Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 125

125

“What brings you here?”

Hyun-sung asked, and Seo In-hye giggled before replying.

“What brings me? If the butterfly doesn’t seek the flower, the flower must come…” [A Korean proverb suggesting that if someone doesn’t come to you, you should go to them.]

“You’ve got an answer for everything.”

Hyun-sung chuckled.

“Tch, it’s true. When have you ever come looking for me first, Oppa?” [Oppa is a Korean term used by younger women to address older brothers or close male friends.]

“Enough, is something wrong?”

“If something were wrong, would you solve it for me, Oppa?”

“Of course. Whose business is it…”

As Hyun-sung finished speaking, Seo In-hye’s face lit up with a smile.

Hyun-sung had become quite close to Seo In-hye. There was no reason for him to avoid her anyway. It was a common occurrence during school days, so he decided not to overthink it.

At first, he tried to avoid her, but he realized there was no need. He felt like he would be hurting the young Seo In-hye for no reason, so he stopped. He decided to think of her as just a younger sister.

“What were you doing here?”

“I was meeting someone. Did you really come here looking for me?”

“Yeah. You told me to come whenever I missed you.”

“Did I say that?”

Hyun-sung tilted his head, and Seo In-hye, watching him, exclaimed.

“Oppa!”

“Why are you suddenly shouting?”

“Do you have to confirm everything like that? Can’t you just let it go? It makes me feel awkward.”

“Was that it? I thought I was getting dementia already and got really surprised.”

“Tsk…”

Seo In-hye frowned and glared playfully.

It was kind of cute.

Hyun-sung asked first.

“Want to take a look around the store?”

“Really? What’s the occasion? You’re actually offering to show me around?”

“In-hye understands. I’m usually a bit of a bear [meaning he’s usually not very outgoing or affectionate].”

“It’s okay, Oppa, I don’t like those loose girls either.”

“Hey, watch your mouth…”

“Hehe, is that so?”

Seo In-hye covered her mouth and laughed.

It was something he couldn’t have even dreamed of in his past life. Hyun-sung smiled as he watched Seo In-hye laugh.

Seo In-hye opened the store door.

“Oh! Oppa, you’ve completely changed the store door.”

“Yeah, the old sliding door was too worn out, so I replaced it completely. What do you think? Is it okay?”

“Wow, it’s really nice. It looks like a newly built house.”

Even to Hyun-sung, the store looked different after the entrance was redone. With the new tinting, it was a huge improvement over the old store.

“I’m glad someone noticed.”

“Seriously, my Oppa is amazing. How do you even think of things like this at your age?”

“Is that a compliment?”

“Of course! My Oppa is the best.”

Seo In-hye gave him two thumbs up, looking pleased.

It was a strange feeling. Even though she was young, being praised still felt good. It seemed like everyone, young or old, was susceptible to praise.

Hyun-sung felt good.

“In-hye, shall we go grab something to eat?”

“Really?”

“Are you that happy?”

“Of course, I am. It seems like my efforts are finally paying off. As they say, sincerity moves heaven…”

Seo In-hye was simply delighted.

Hyun-sung smiled as he looked at her.

He also felt a little sorry.

He had only tried to push her away until now. He didn’t need to do that…

Then Seo In-hye spoke again.

“Oppa, shall we go eat Jajangmyeon?” [Jajangmyeon is a Korean-Chinese noodle dish with black bean sauce.]

“Jajangmyeon?”

“Yeah, the first thing I wanted to do with you was to eat Jajangmyeon.”

Hyun-sung looked at Seo In-hye as she said that.

Looking at Seo In-hye, who was so happy, he felt a strange sense of pity.

‘What is this feeling?’

It felt like there was something he didn’t know.

“Can I ask why?”

“I just wanted to do it.”

“Is that really all?”

“Why? Is it obvious?”

“No, it just feels a little strange…”

Seo In-hye looked at Hyun-sung, who kept pressing her. Then she smiled and continued.

“Our Oppa is more sensitive than I thought?”

“Right? My instincts aren’t wrong, are they?”

Seo In-hye nodded slightly at Hyun-sung’s words.

“Actually… I was always envious when my friends said they ate Jajangmyeon with their dads.”

“Dad?”

“Yeah, Ji-yeon didn’t tell you? Actually, my dad passed away when I was young. So, I guess I unconsciously had that kind of feeling.”

It was a fact he didn’t know.

Of course, his younger sister, Kim Ji-yeon, hadn’t mentioned it either. So, it was natural that he didn’t know.

Hearing that, he realized that Seo In-hye always had a shadow somewhere. He thought it was strange that she kept calling him Oppa, Oppa.

But today, he seemed to understand the reason a little.

Hyun-sung looked at Seo In-hye and said loudly.

“Let’s go to the Chinese restaurant.”

“Yeah, Dad.”

“Dad?”

“Hehe, did I say Dad? Anyway, let’s go.”

Seo In-hye slipped her hand into Hyun-sung’s arm.

He couldn’t shake off that hand today.

“My daughter, let’s go eat Jajangmyeon quickly.”

“Hehe, okay, Dad.”

Hyun-sung joked, and Seo In-hye responded as if she had been waiting for it.

The two arrived at the Chinese restaurant.

“I’ll eat Jajangmyeon, so Oppa, you eat Jjamppong. That way, we can try both.” [Jjamppong is a spicy Korean noodle soup with seafood.]

“Why not just order Jjamjajangmyeon?” [A combination of Jjamppong and Jajangmyeon.]

“Jjamjajangmyeon? What’s that?”

It was Hyun-sung’s mistake. Come to think of it, the concept of Jjamjajangmyeon hadn’t even been established yet at this time.

It just came out unconsciously.

“I just thought that if you combined Jjamppong and Jajangmyeon, it would be something like that. I was just saying.”

“Whenever I see you like this, Oppa, you’re quite bland.”

“Why? Should I add some salt?”

Seo In-hye pouted and shook her head at Hyun-sung’s teasing.

“Stop with the corny jokes and order.”

Hyun-sung smiled and finished ordering, then asked Seo In-hye.

“How was yesterday?”

“Yesterday, what?”

“The Jan-di Faction kids. I heard you’re in charge of the 2nd graders?”

As Hyun-sung spoke, Seo In-hye’s expression changed.

“Ji-yeon told you. Don’t even mention it. I expected it to be bad, but it’s worse than I thought. I think I’ll have to give up on English and math and focus on memorization subjects.”

“Do you think it’ll work?”

“Well, I’ll do what I can, but I don’t think it’ll be easy for everyone to improve by 5 grades. But do you know why they’re trying so hard to improve by 5 grades?”

“Huh? Well, I don’t really know either…”

Hyun-sung vaguely brushed it off.

If he said it was the condition Hyun-sung had set, it would look very strange.

At that moment, the ordered Jajangmyeon and Jjamppong arrived.

Hyun-sung quickly pulled the Jajangmyeon in front of him and started mixing the noodles with the sauce.

A smile began to spread on Seo In-hye’s lips as she stared blankly at the sight.

“Wow! Oppa, you’re the best!”

“You don’t have to be that touched. Just eat and enjoy.”

“Thank you. Seeing this, you’re not a bear at all. It’s kind of suspicious…”

“Hey, what’s suspicious? Today is Dad’s treat. So, don’t say weird things and just eat quickly.”

It was true.

When she said earlier that she was envious of her friends eating Jajangmyeon with their dads, he really felt sorry for her.

He didn’t know she would feel her dad’s absence in such things.

Seo In-hye might not consciously feel that way, but from Hyun-sung’s perspective, he couldn’t help but feel sorry for her, as if she were his own daughter.

“Is it good?”

“Yeah, the Jajangmyeon I ate today is the most delicious in the world. Actually, I never even got to eat Jajangmyeon with my dad.”

“Eat a lot, and if you want to eat Jajangmyeon in the future, just tell me anytime.”

“Really? Wow! What’s with our Oppa today?”

Seo In-hye was simply delighted. Hyun-sung’s eyes, looking at her, were also filled with affection.

***

Two days later.

The Tteokbokki [spicy rice cakes] and fish cake sales were quite successful.

The average daily amount prepared was 50 servings for each grade, totaling 150 servings. Since they sold for 3 days from Monday to Wednesday, the total was 450 servings sold.

He wanted to prepare more out of greed, but since they were selling for a little over an hour in the morning, he reduced the amount and made a plan.

Still, selling out for 3 days without any leftovers made it feel worthwhile.

“How much did we make in total?”

Na Min-soo, the president, asked, and Shin Mi-sun, the treasurer, said after counting all the coins.

“After deducting the cost of ingredients and everything else, we have 26,600 won left. It’s not even 30,000 won, but it’s still a success.” [Won is the currency of South Korea. 26,600 won is approximately $20 USD.]

“Of course. Where else can you sell without leaving any stock?”

“It’s all thanks to Jung-woo’s mother. The president should properly thank Jung-woo’s mother when returning the dishes.”

“Okay. I’ll take care of that. And everyone, gather at Miso Restaurant after class today. The principal gave us 10,000 won last time, so let’s have dinner with that.”

Money wasn’t the main goal anyway.

It was to show their dedication.

They had done everything they could. They had collected money from the students, and they had made a little more by selling snacks, even though it wasn’t much.

Now, all they had to do was go to the alumni association in two days and present their case. Then the seniors would take over. Even if the amount raised was small, it couldn’t be helped.

Lunchtime.

After eating lunch, Hyun-sung headed to the principal’s office.

Principal Park Sang-hyun greeted Hyun-sung as he entered the office.

“Welcome. You’ve been working hard these days, haven’t you?”

“Not at all. I’m actually enjoying it.”

“That’s a relief. So, have you sold all the Tteokbokki and fish cakes?”

“Yes, it ended today. We’ve done everything we can, and now all that’s left is to see how the alumni respond at the association meeting.”

Principal Park Sang-hyun nodded as if he understood, then continued.

“That’s right. I hope for a good outcome, but don’t expect too much. There’s a chance that the result might not meet your expectations.”

“Yes, I understand. But is there no way to meet the president of the alumni association beforehand?”

“Is there something you need to discuss with him first?”

“Yes, I think I need to explain our situation in advance. I think it would be better to meet him and explain in detail than to suddenly meet him on the day of the alumni association and present everything then.”

Principal Park Sang-hyun smiled at Hyun-sung. There was no way that smile would appear without a reason.

Hyun-sung, seeing that, felt something was up.

“Perhaps…”

“Did you guess? Wait a moment, the president of the alumni association will be here shortly.”

Just then.

Knock knock.

As soon as he heard the knock, someone entered.

The person who came in was Lee Soo-hyuk’s father, Lee Man-soo, the head of the alumni association.

Principal Park Sang-hyun jumped up from his seat and greeted Lee Man-soo, and Hyun-sung also greeted him.