Deal Breaker - Chapter 55

At her grandmother’s question, Hyeji nodded without hesitation.

“Alright then. No matter what, don’t tell the baby’s father.”

“Mm. I won’t tell him. I’ll just raise the child on my own.”

“Good. That’s the right decision. All you need is money. A man’s completely useless when it comes to raising a child. These days, unlike in the past, there are plenty of women raising children on their own.”

Most grandmothers would insist she marry the child’s father, even if it meant bowing low and begging him, rather than becoming a single mother. But Hyeji’s grandmother didn’t say that, because she’d watched her own daughter’s life as a single mother up close.

Her mother had had a secret relationship with a coworker and conceived Hyeji. The man who had promised to take responsibility changed his tune as soon as her mother resigned from her job. Her mother had already grown attached to the baby in her belly and couldn’t abandon Hyeji.

It wasn’t until Hyeji was in middle school that her father showed up again. He apologized for his foolish past and said he wanted to try again, but it didn’t last long.

Not long after that, her mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Stage 3 lung cancer.

When Hyeji told him the news, her father expressed regret and concern for the two of them. His words were warm, but it had felt as if he were consoling a stranger. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before he disappeared again.

They were disappointed and hurt, but they needed money. So Hyeji broke her grandmother and mother’s rule of ‘don’t contact him’ and sent her father a message. He read it, but no reply ever came. He didn’t show his face at her mother’s funeral or at Hyeji’s middle school graduation, even though he’d promised he would.

The man who had filled their lives with empty promises severed ties without hesitation when the time came to follow through. Mother and daughter had been abandoned by a man twice over. People don’t change, it seems.

The illusions she’d had about the mysterious being called ‘Dad’ shattered mercilessly. She’d been happier back when she’d still had that fantasy. Hyeji didn’t want her own child to feel that kind of pain. She would keep it a secret forever.

“But you’re in a better situation than your mother. You have a house, you make good money.”

“Yeah…”

But that didn’t mean she could feel at ease.

Now that there would be three of them, they’d need a bigger home. She was the sole breadwinner, so she’d have to be even more diligent with insurance and savings. If she got sick and couldn’t work, it would be catastrophic.

Her thoughts followed patterns built by her experiences. As soon as her mother—the family breadwinner—got sick, their relatively stable household finances crumbled overnight. They had to move into a smaller home. Their savings vanished in an instant.

“Mom, that’s Hyeji’s money.”

When her grandmother suggested cashing out the last savings account for an uninsured experimental treatment, her mother had weakly but firmly shaken her hand, refusing. That money had been set aside and saved for over ten years for Hyeji’s college education.

They’d only been able to break the savings after Hyeji promised she’d study hard and go to college on a scholarship. With that promise, her mother finally agreed, and she received the treatment. Hyeji kept her word, earning a scholarship to college, but her mother, who would’ve praised her for it, was no longer alive.

If she’d gotten treatment sooner, would her mother have lived?

Hyeji could never forget her mother’s gaunt, determined face as she’d chosen to give up her own future for her daughter’s years later. The regret of not being able to give her mother every possible treatment because of money still haunted her.

Maybe that was when her obsession with money had sprouted.

Something like that must never happen to us again. Now, Hyeji had even more reason to work hard and save diligently.

“Men may betray you, but money never will.”

“This grandma of yours won’t betray you either.”

Her grandmother’s wrinkled hand, which had been rubbing her belly, now clasped Hyeji’s hand and raised it, as if cheering her on.

“Our Noh Hyeji, you can do this. Don’t worry, I’ll help raise the baby with you.”

“I’m not worried. But Grandma, you have to live a long time. Until your great-grandchild goes to college.”

“Hold on, let’s see… How old would I be then?”

Her grandmother folded her fingers, calculating, before bursting into hearty laughter.

“They’d put me on the news as the longest-living grandma.”

“‘Madame Kim Geumok, what’s the secret to your longevity?’”

“Oh dear, raising both my granddaughter and great-grandchild! I couldn’t close my eyes even if I wanted to.”

Talking back and forth like this, they ended the day as if nothing had changed. Even with an unexpected new member joining their family, their strong bond remained the same. Before she’d confided in her grandmother, she’d felt like she was on a tiny boat tossed about on a stormy sea. Now she felt as if both feet were firmly planted on solid ground.

Hyeji rubbed her belly and shouted in her heart.

Noh Hyeji, you can do this.

And she truly believed she could.