A Child Who Resembles Me [EN]: Chapter 77

77. Aching Unrequited Love

Lee Jung-oh’s trickery worked beautifully. Eun-yeop faced one of the most embarrassing moments of his life.

“Lawyer, why can’t you speak? Is it really… is your name not Ha Jin-cheol?”

Jung-oh questioned him as if he knew nothing, as if he were shocked to learn Eun-yeop’s real name only now.

“I’m very embarrassed right now. Why did you impersonate someone? Are you even a lawyer?”

Of course, Eun-yeop knew. He knew that Jung-oh was feigning ignorance.

When Eun-yeop couldn’t open his mouth, Jung-oh asked Ji-heon.

“Director, by any chance, is Chae Eun-yeop… Chae Eun-bi’s brother?”

“That’s right.”

“Oh my! The person I was going to sue is Chae Eun-bi!”

This detestable play continued.

“So, did you approach me on purpose? To stop me from suing Eun-bi?”

“…….”

“No, did Chae Eun-bi ask you to?”

“You have a vivid imagination, Lee Jung-oh. And you’re being unreasonable.”

Having finally gathered his thoughts, Eun-yeop belatedly opened his mouth.

“When did I ever say I was Ha Jin-cheol? I said I was Chae Eun-yeop from the beginning, but Lee Jung-oh misunderstood.”

There was no evidence. There wouldn’t be.

He had introduced himself to Lee Jung-oh as Ha Jin-cheol only once at the company desk, but he hadn’t mentioned that name again since then. Silencing the desk staff would be easy, so if he could just get through this situation, he would be fine.

“You did! In the law firm lobby!”

Jung-oh retorted, as if he couldn’t believe it.

“I’m very displeased. You deliberately called me the wrong name and now you’re trying to put the blame on me.”

Eun-yeop spoke clearly.

“Besides, I even gave you a free consultation, and today I took time out of my busy schedule to meet with Lee Jung-oh and even offered to write a complaint, but this is the result of my kindness.”

“…….”

“You kept calling me the wrong name in emails too, which was unpleasant, but you were planning to set a trap like this and corner me. Why are you doing this, Lee Jung-oh?”

“Lawyer, I have the email records, so if you say that…”

As Eun-yeop continued to insist, Jung-oh picked up his phone. It was clear he was going to present the email records. Eun-yeop scoffed lightly. Even in the emails, Jung-oh had consistently called him Ha Jin-cheol, but there was no evidence that Eun-yeop had directly impersonated him.

Realizing this, Jung-oh’s eyes also wavered.

“Don’t go around calling people the wrong name. Lee Jung-oh.”

While Eun-yeop’s scolding continued, Ji-heon took Jung-oh’s phone.

“It looks like you’re lying to me, Chae Eun-yeop.”

Ji-heon said after examining all of Jung-oh’s emails.

“If the email came like this, shouldn’t you have corrected it? A lawyer who should be truthful to their client, being called by a different name and not correcting it is a problem, isn’t it? If a person named Ha Jin-cheol actually exists in your company, it would also harm that person.”

Ji-heon pointed out Eun-yeop’s insincere attitude, and Eun-yeop clenched his fist tightly.

“To prevent it from being perceived as impersonation like now, you should have corrected it properly earlier. Why didn’t you? This is also tarnishing your company’s reputation.”

“…….”

“The way that law firm works is very unpleasant. Now that I know, I can’t just let it go. Tell your company. All contracts with Max Planning are terminated. I can’t work with an unreliable lawyer.”

“…….”

“No. I’ll contact them directly. I can’t trust you to convey it properly, so I can’t leave it to you.”

“Ji-heon, that’s not something you decide, but the company representative decides. You’re not the representative of Max Planning.”

Eun-yeop managed to maintain a poker face and retorted. Now that things had come to this, Eun-yeop didn’t need to hide his claws completely.

It was also worth pointing out that a director from headquarters was stepping in as a colleague at the call of a mere employee.

“And Ji-heon, you’re not particularly close to Lee Jung-oh, are you?”

Eun-yeop, who had packed all his belongings and stood upright, passed by Ji-heon and whispered near Ji-heon’s ear.

“Ji-heon, you should be careful too. You should be selective about who you associate with. What if your mother gets surprised and collapses?”

“…….”

“I’ll leave first today. I barely managed to make time while traveling. Let’s meet separately later.”

After giving Ji-heon a brief warning, Eun-yeop immediately left the table. He pretended to be relaxed, but he was sweating. He walked quickly so they wouldn’t catch him. He might have even been running for the last few steps.

After leaving the cafe and moving quite a distance towards the parking lot, Eun-yeop quietly took a breath and organized what he had seen and heard in the cafe in his head.

Lee Jung-oh and Jung Ji-heon. The two were colluding with each other. Jung Ji-heon seemed to trust Lee Jung-oh quite a bit, but it wasn’t clear whether the two were in a romantic relationship.

Last Friday, when Lee Jung-oh came to the company, Jung Ji-heon and Lee Jung-oh were probably not together. If the two were close, Lee Jung-oh wouldn’t have come for a free consultation.

Did the relationship between the two change during the week? Did Lee Jung-oh tell Jung Ji-heon everything, even about Lee Ye-na? If so, his efforts to switch Lee Ye-na’s hair would be in vain. Of course, it might cause confusion for a while.

“Ha, you bug-like things!”

Eun-yeop shouted into the air.

Why are you making it so confusing!

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

Seung-gyu kept fidgeting because he wanted to leave work early. No, his mouth was itching, and he couldn’t stand it.

As soon as it was time to leave work, Seung-gyu jumped up from his seat like a bullet and took a taxi home for the first time in a while.

“Honey, honey, honey, honey!”

It had been a long time since he opened the front door and shouted “Honey” four times in a row instead of “Daddy’s home.”

“Why, why, why!”

Jin-seo, who was teaching Do-bin about tidying up in his room, rushed out to the living room at her husband’s boisterous cry.

“Daddy!”

“Daddy, Daddy!”

Do-bin and Do-yoon also ran to greet Seung-gyu.

“Oh. Yes, yes. Did our Do-bin and Do-yoon listen to their mother well?”

While Seung-gyu hugged Do-bin and Do-yoon once each, Jin-seo’s eyes widened and she pressed him.

“Why? What’s wrong? What’s the matter?”

“Ha… I have huge news.”

Seung-gyu replied with eyes full of joy, as if he couldn’t control his excitement.

“What is it? What is it?”

Seung-gyu took the two children to the living room so they could play together and dragged Jin-seo into the master bedroom.

“Do you know who Ye-na’s biological father is?”

“Who is it? Is it someone I know? Is it a celebrity?”

“Hehehehe.”

“Ah, who is it!”

“It’s Jung Ji-heon.”

“…Is today April Fool’s Day?”

“No. I’m serious! I heard it directly from Ji-heon. Ji-heon had amnesia all this time, so he didn’t remember Deputy Lee Jung-oh. Deputy Lee Jung-oh didn’t know that and raised Ye-na alone, thinking he had been dumped.”

“Really? No way!”

“Really, I’m telling you!”

“Oh my goodness…”

Jin-seo couldn’t close her gaping mouth. Seung-gyu finally felt relieved.

“Isn’t it amazing? I guess I have foresight. What would have happened if I hadn’t connected the two of them?”

“Oh my, what’s going on, what’s going on…”

Jin-seo, who was mumbling with her hand on her surprised chest, asked.

“Then what happens to Jung-oh? Ji-heon’s mother is a very scary person, right?”

“It’ll be fine. They have a child. She’s the first granddaughter in that family.”

“So, are Ji-heon and Jung-oh going to combine households [get married]?”

“I haven’t heard that far yet.”

“Oh dear… I hope Jung-oh suffers less now.”

Jin-seo stroked her chest and prayed for the peace of Jung-oh’s family. At that moment, they heard a crash from outside.

Jin-seo and Seung-gyu went out to the living room at the same time.

The freezer door was open, and the ice from the ice container was all spilled on the floor.

“I’m sorry!”

Do-bin preemptively apologized before Jin-seo could scold him.

Jin-seo sighed and stretched out her arm at her son’s desperate appeal, who had folded his hands together so earnestly without being taught to do so.

Her son, who flinched as if he thought he was going to be hit, was both pitiful and lovely.

“Son. If you want to eat ice in the future, tell Mom. Okay?”

“…Okay.”

“I love you, son.”

Jin-seo hugged Do-bin tightly.

When she thought about it, if Do-bin hadn’t liked Ye-na so much, she might have ended her relationship with Jung-oh according to Seung-gyu’s words. The foresight was with her son.

“I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you.”

“Mom, what’s wrong? Did you accidentally throw away my toy again?”

Do-bin, who was puzzled that he wasn’t being scolded even after spilling the ice container, asked Jin-seo.

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

Jung-oh returned to the company, finished the unfinished work, and left work with Ji-heon.

They couldn’t push Eun-yeop any further at the cafe. As expected, Eun-yeop acted meticulously and quickly escaped from the trap.

“Anyway, Chae Eun-yeop won’t approach you anymore, so that’s enough. I’m worried about your mother…”

“My mother will also be cautious. I showed her the black box footage containing Chae Eun-yeop’s appearance. She was stubborn in front of me, but her suspicion will grow over time.”

“Yeah. That’s a relief.”

“You did really well today.”

“Really? I think I acted too well.”

“I agree. You could be an actress.”

Ji-heon was sincere. To Ji-heon, who believed everything Lee Jung-oh said, Jung-oh’s acting today must have seemed excellent. In a warm atmosphere, Ji-heon revealed what had happened during the day.

“I told Seung-gyu everything about Ye-na.”

“Then Do-bin’s family will know soon?”

“He probably already told them. He must have been eager to tell Jin-seo.”

“Everyone will be very surprised.”

“If Seung-gyu makes a fuss at the company, tell me.”

Ji-heon told Jung-oh, remembering how surprised Seung-gyu had been in his office this morning. Jung-oh tilted her head, thinking of something else, and asked.

“You’ve been close to Section Chief Park Seung-gyu for a long time. Why didn’t you introduce me to him seven years ago?”

“…….”

“You didn’t introduce me to any of your friends or anyone.”

Ji-heon’s smile disappeared at Jung-oh’s remark.

“I wonder why I didn’t.”

“…….”

“Were you worried about losing you?”

“Huh? You were dating Jin-seo at that time, weren’t you?”

“Ah, I guess so?”

“…….”

“Were you still worried?”

Ji-heon stretched out his right hand and touched Jung-oh’s hair and earlobe, muttering to himself. He hadn’t been able to hug Jung-oh as much as he wanted, even though he was close to her, because he had been digging into the past for days and because of Ye-na’s situation.

It was the same now. As he quietly tickled her, she quickly changed the atmosphere and asked another question.

“What are you doing this weekend?”

“Nothing. I have nothing to do.”

Ji-heon asserted without hesitation. Because he could put aside any schedule if she wanted him to.

“Okay. Then let’s play with Ye-na. We need to show her our faces often so she can change her mind quickly.”

At Jung-oh’s suggestion, the strength in his arm drained away.

Would Ye-na even accept if I asked her to play…?.

To Ji-heon, Ye-na was the scariest person in the world, scarier than the group chairman or his mother-in-law.

It was a man’s aching unrequited love, who had lived with pride.

The car carrying Ji-heon and Jung-oh arrived at the market without being late. Jung-oh entered the restaurant first and opened the door. The hall of the restaurant, which was closed for business, was dark.

“I’m home.”

“Mom!”

Ye-na, who ran out after hearing Jung-oh’s voice, tightened her lips when she saw Ji-heon following behind.

“Hi, Ye-na.”

Hmph.

Ye-na turned her head away primly and went to the kitchen.

“Oh, you’re here?”

Guk-soon, who looked at the entrance from the kitchen, welcomed them. Ji-heon greeted her politely.

“Yes. Hello.”

Jung-oh poked Ji-heon’s side, who was awkwardly stepping into the kitchen. It was a signal to talk to Ye-na.

Ji-heon quickly understood and carefully sat on the wooden floor, talking to Ye-na.

“Ye-na, on Saturday…”

Ji-heon, who was so proactive to her, couldn’t do anything to Ye-na. Jung-oh was both pitiful and amused by Ji-heon, who was carefully choosing each word and speaking with difficulty.

“…Shall we ride bikes with Dad?”

With Dad.

At Ji-heon’s question, Ye-na stared at Ji-heon with wide eyes before leaving the wooden floor and grabbing Guk-soon’s pants.

“Grandma, let’s go to Gunsan [a city in South Korea] on Saturday!”

“Does our puppy want to go to Gunsan?”

“Yes. I want to go. The restaurant grandma said she wanted to see Ye-na too.”

Ye-na, who had firmly persuaded her grandmother, turned her head and said to Jung-oh as well.

“Mom, let’s go to Gunsan together.”

There was no place for Ji-heon.

Ji-heon stared blankly at the three people, unable to let go of the beautiful smile he had made towards Ye-na.

The smile on my face is not a real smile.