A Child Who Resembles Me [EN]: Chapter 65

Eun-bi repeated her name to Guk-soon, who was staring blankly.

“Don’t you know me? Don’t you remember? Chae Eun-bi. We went to Jeong-oh High School together.”

“Ah… right.”

Guk-soon barely managed to answer. She couldn’t quite welcome her or smile.

The bad blood with Chae Eun-bi was already over a decade old, but it was still as vivid as if it had happened yesterday.

Thirteen years ago, Guk-soon, who was working in Jeong-oh’s school cafeteria, was kicked out because of an incident with Chae Eun-bi. After that, Guk-soon had to go down to Gunsan to find a job, and Jeong-oh ended up living on her own, away from her mother.

Her daughter was seventeen at the time, a time when she needed her parents’ care the most. Guk-soon, who had to leave her precious daughter alone and live in the countryside, also had heartbreaking days every day.

So she still feels sorry for her daughter.

So she doesn’t know how to treat this child.

“But didn’t Jeong-oh tell you? I work at the same company as Jeong-oh.”

Eun-bi asked with a sullen expression, as Guk-soon didn’t seem very welcoming. It was information Guk-soon didn’t know. When Guk-soon looked at her with surprised eyes, Eun-bi scoffed.

“Jeong-oh doesn’t even talk about that, huh? I’m Jeong-oh’s boss at the company she’s currently working at, ma’am.”

Guk-soon remembered the conversation she had with her daughter a while ago.

“Mom, there was a girl I really hated when I was a freshman in high school. I met her at work.”

“Why hate her? You should have gotten along.”

“She’s originally a bad person. But she’s still not great.”

“…”

“I had some friction with her today, and I’m so upset.”

That girl was Chae Eun-bi.

Her daughter couldn’t even reveal the name Chae Eun-bi because she was worried her mother would be upset.

How hard must it have been for her daughter? How much hurt has she endured?

She regretted now, with a heavy heart, that she hadn’t taken her daughter’s side more and had scolded her back then.

Nevertheless, Guk-soon couldn’t bring herself to say harsh words to Chae Eun-bi in front of her. If Chae Eun-bi was Jeong-oh’s boss, then to Guk-soon, Chae Eun-bi was still a VIP [Very Important Person].

“Okay. Welcome. It’s been a while. Please, sit down.”

As Eun-bi moved to the seat Guk-soon offered, she said with a delighted expression.

“Wow. I never thought I’d see you like this. This is my friend, and this is a BJ who’s close to me.”

Eun-bi introduced the two people who came with her to Guk-soon.

“Do you even know what a BJ is? It’s an internet broadcasting host. This is great. So-young, please introduce this restaurant on your broadcast. Help the business do well.”

“I’ll have to eat first.”

The person called BJ snorted and replied.

Broadcasting or whatever, Guk-soon just wanted them to leave quickly. She regretted not saying she was closing early and waited for their order.

Eun-bi glanced at the menu and ordered.

“Three orders of the regular white rice meal, please. These friends who came with me are rare guests who are hard to meet in restaurants like this, so please take good care of them.”

Guk-soon quietly took the order and went into the kitchen. The regular white rice meal didn’t take long because the side dishes were already prepared, and she just had to boil the stew.

I need to feed them quickly and send them away.

It had already been 13 years since she started working at the restaurant. Thinking about all the difficult customers who had visited the restaurant during that time, today’s reunion seemed like nothing.

Nothing will happen. If I do well.

Guk-soon took special care to scoop the rice, arrange the side dishes, and put on the stew. She even added steamed eggs and grilled fish. Before she knew it, there were 10 side dishes.

“Tell me if you need more. I can give you as much as you want.”

Guk-soon said to the customers as she carried the generous meal.

“Yes. We’ll enjoy the meal.”

Eun-bi greeted her.

Before she knew it, the camera was rolling. Guk-soon asked the person called BJ for their understanding.

“Excuse me, we don’t allow filming in our restaurant. Could you please turn off the camera?”

“Yes. It won’t be broadcasted.”

The BJ replied coldly. Guk-soon turned around and went to the kitchen.

She could hear whispering in the hall. But they were talking too quietly to hear the pronunciation. She became anxious, wondering if they would broadcast something strange or do something harmful like they did 13 years ago.

After a while, Eun-bi’s voice calling Guk-soon was heard from the hall. It was only five minutes after she had set the table.

“Here’s the bill.”

Guk-soon, who was sitting on the floor, jumped up and went to the cash register.

The rice and side dishes on the table were almost untouched.

“You… hardly ate anything.”

“Yes. It didn’t suit my taste.”

“Then the money is fine. Just go.”

“No. Still, you went to the trouble of preparing it.”

Eun-bi’s friend took out a 100,000 won check and placed it on the cash register.

Guk-soon, who didn’t expect to receive a check, opened the cash register safe.

While Guk-soon was busy preparing the change, Eun-bi leisurely walked into the kitchen. She saw a child sitting on the floor, folding colored paper. Eun-bi could recognize her right away.

“Are you Yena?”

“Yes.”

Yena answered, lifting her head.

“Your mom is working, so you’re playing here alone? Oh, that’s too bad.”

“…”

“You’re very pretty, just like your mom. Who’s your dad?”

Yena didn’t answer any more and just blinked. She wondered why this strange woman was interested in her.

“Baby, can’t you talk well?”

Eun-bi sighed deeply and took out a 50,000 won bill from her wallet and handed it to Yena.

“Here. Your 언니 [older sister] is giving it to you because you’re pretty.”

“…”

“You have to say thank you and accept it. She’s an adult giving it to you.”

Eun-bi repeatedly shook the money and stared at her, and Yena was pressured by the force and took the money.

“Thank you.”

“Good girl.”

Eun-bi turned around with satisfaction.

Lee Jeong-oh. You twisted my life, so it’s only fair that I trample on your life too, right?

*.*.*.*.*.*.

After finishing work, Ji-heon looked for a flower shop near the jewelry store.

Flower Dream. The name of this flower shop was on the card usage statement he received from the credit card company. Fortunately, the flower shop was still in the same place with the same name as it was 7 years ago.

Seven years ago, on November 2nd, he purchased a ring from the jewelry store and then made a card payment at ‘Flower Dream’.

Since it was a considerable amount, he could infer that he had purchased flowers for a proposal.

Hopefully, he can find a clue here. Even something small.

Ji-heon opened the door of the flower shop with a trembling heart.

“Welcome!”

A man wearing an apron greeted Ji-heon. The flower shop was large, so there were many flowers. On a large table on one side, a woman was arranging flowers in a basket.

“Hello. Excuse me, but I’d like to ask you something.”

“Yes. Please speak.”

“I made a card payment at this flower shop 7 years ago, but I don’t remember it well. Did you operate this flower shop 7 years ago too?”

“Yes. That’s right. My wife and I ran the flower shop together back then too. It’s been 9 years now.”

“Then could you take a look at this payment history?”

Ji-heon handed the man the card usage statement he had checked separately.

The man received the document Ji-heon handed him and tilted his head.

“7 years ago… Since we have a considerable amount of orders per day, it’s a bit difficult to remember each and every customer. But since it’s over 500,000 won, it seems like a large pot set or something for a proposal… Don’t you remember exactly?”

The man asked, as if he found it strange that a customer couldn’t remember such a large amount.

Ji-heon had no choice but to tell him the situation.

“I had an accident the day after I made this payment. So I lost some of my memory, but recently I found a clue about this memory and came all the way here.”

Telling someone about his personal circumstances is one of the things he dislikes the most. But Ji-heon became desperate to find even a small clue. He had never asked a stranger for a favor before, so his pride was hurt.

Lee Jeong-oh on May 27th came to mind. What must have been on her mind when she couldn’t say it was Yena’s birthday and begged him to leave work early?

Desperate people give up something to get what they want, and sometimes they risk their lives. They sometimes navigate the vast ocean, where they can’t see an inch ahead, with only a compass, imagining a hope that is faintly waving from afar.

He came to know the poignancy of such a life. It seems that you see as much as you have experienced.

The flower shop owner, who had been wary, quickly changed his expression at Ji-heon’s story. The woman who was arranging flowers at the table also wiped her hands and approached Ji-heon.

“Honey, we take pictures of proposal orders, right? If we look for it, we might find a picture?”

Ji-heon also added strength to the woman’s welcome words.

“Yes. It’s very likely that it was a proposal order. I also ordered a ring on the same day.”

“…”

“Please, I’m begging you.”

At Ji-heon’s earnest request, the woman nudged her husband’s shoulder. The man reluctantly nodded and sat in front of the PC.

“I don’t know if the file is still there.”

While the man was looking through the PC files, the woman handed Ji-heon a chair.

“Please sit down.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

“If I had worked with my husband, I would have remembered it. I couldn’t work much back then because I was pregnant.”

Ji-heon also gave a friendly answer to the woman who spoke kindly.

“Then the child would be about seven years old.”

“Yes. She’s seven years old now.”

At the woman’s answer, Ji-heon thought of Yena. Since Yena’s birthday was said to be May 27th, Jeong-oh must have been pregnant around that time.

The man said while looking through several folders.

“I didn’t organize the photo files properly, so it’s taking some time to find them.”

“I’m sorry for the troublesome request.”

“It’s okay.”

The man couldn’t fuss any more at Ji-heon’s polite and courteous apology and moved diligently. As the search time lengthened, the woman who had been hovering around Ji-heon also returned to the table and continued her work.

After 30 minutes.

“Oh. Here it is. November 2nd. I think this is it.”

At the man’s voice, Ji-heon got up from his chair. The woman also ran over.

It was a photo of various beautiful flowers forming a flower garden on a wide table. Above it was a garland with the sentence ‘MARRY ME?’ written on it.

“But this is a bit different. It’s decorated on the table. We usually decorate the car trunk and take pictures.”

The man tilted his head. Then the woman clapped her hands and said in a loud voice.

“Ah! I remember! She said that there was someone who ordered proposal flowers and finished the payment, but she didn’t contact him. She said she would come to pick up the flowers the next day, but her phone was turned off and she couldn’t be reached.”

The man’s voice also rose as he rolled his eyes.

“Oh, right! That’s right! So I couldn’t take a picture of the car trunk and took it on the table. I was really worried back then. I wondered if she had been dumped before she even proposed, or if someone had been in a car accident. The person who ordered it back then was really handsome… That’s right! It was you, sir!”

The man, who remembered, grabbed Ji-heon’s hand with a more moved expression than the woman.

“…Could I check the picture?”

Ji-heon barely managed to speak in a voice that didn’t come out well because his heart was pounding.

“Yes. Sit down, here.”

The man gave up the chair in front of the PC.

Ji-heon sat down and slowly looked at the picture.

MARRY ME?

Ji-heon’s eyes stung at the letters of the garland.

‘There was someone I really wanted to marry.’

And I completely forgot about that person because of the car accident. An unfamiliar stuffiness that could not be expressed made his heart noisy. In that confusion, Ji-heon found a neatly written card on the right edge of the picture.

Ji-heon’s eyes widened as he recognized the writing on the outside of the card.

– TO 정오 (Jeong-oh)

It was definitely that name. Jeong-oh.