Deal Breaker - Chapter 77
As they got out of the car and headed toward the arrivals hall, a remark Kanghyeon had made before boarding the plane suddenly came back to Hyeji. He had told her not to come see him off when he left, yet now he was saying she absolutely had to come pick him up, and even saying things like this.
‘Hyeji-ya, I miss you.’
What is that, why is he saying things like that. I’m not shaken anymore. But still…
‘I miss you too, Director.’
Maybe it’s just physical attachment. Or maybe it’s money attachment.
The flight was delayed. As they sat on a bench in front of the arrivals hall, waiting without any clear end in sight, the secretary seated beside Yoonseok, his son’s father, kept her eyes fixed on the electronic board.
His son’s secretary? No, his future daughter-in-law.
Yoonseok recalled a conversation he’d had with his son a few years ago.
“So you got a dedicated Guide?”
As expected, his son didn’t bother hiding how much he disliked being asked.
“Yes.”
He answered curtly, not even lifting his gaze from the book he was reading, his brow furrowing.
“What does she do?”
“She was in college, took a leave of absence, and works as a Guide and secretary.”
“Which university.”
“The same one as you, Father.”
“Oh, a hoobae?”
“Hoobae? She’s dozens of graduating classes below you.”
“What about her family.”
“Don’t dig into it.”
In truth, he already had.
“I’m not vetting a daughter-in-law candidate. She’s a Guide.”
How would he know whether today’s Guide might become tomorrow’s daughter-in-law.
When he looked into it, his son’s Guide was living alone with her maternal grandmother after her mother passed away. He also looked into her biological father, but he was someone running a small business in Chungcheong Province, and they were so estranged that he didn’t even know his daughter was a Guide.
He had no intention of forcing his son into a marriage with some prestigious family. He didn’t want to benefit from a future daughter-in-law’s family background either. From his position as a public official, a clean family was better than an illustrious one. Noh Hyeji-ssi had no issues herself, nor did any of her relatives.
And after meeting her in person, she was proper and remarkably capable.
Good. Approved.
“Who goes digging into a coworker’s family background?”
I do.
“That’s totally crossing the line.”
He had wondered where his son picked up that kind of trendy slang.
“That’s totally crossing the line.”
Looks like he picked it up from his Guide. Hyeji muttered with displeasure while staring at the board that still hadn’t shown an arrival notice, then crossed her arms. They didn’t seem like an ordinary relationship. Yoonseok glanced subtly beneath where her arms were crossed.
So that child is our grandchild?
Yoonseok had been maintaining a marriage of over thirty years filled with constant bickering and tug-of-war between two accomplished families. Even so, the affection between them ran deep, though children who knew nothing of those inner workings only judged by appearances and declared they would never marry.
So grandchildren were off the table, he had thought.
And yet, it seemed he’d soon be holding one without even realizing it.
When he first met Hyeji, this was a thought that never crossed his mind. At the time, he hadn’t known she was pregnant. But each time he saw her, her belly had grown more noticeable. That was when his suspicions began.
Could it be that she was so fervent about her boss’s life or death because he was the father of her child?
That suspicion had been thoroughly stoked by Kanghyeon himself, talking about leaving all his assets to his secretary if he died.
I raised that son, and instead of thinking about his parents, he’s taking care of his secretary.
No, wait. Is he taking care of his wife?
As expected, they were far from an ordinary pair.
“Get married before it’s too late, and think about becoming a good husband and father.”
Since he’d come back before it was too late, Yoonseok intended to watch closely, eyes blazing, to see whether his son would properly take responsibility for what he’d done. The boy had managed his life well so far, but to parents, children always seemed like unreliable kids.
These days, they say young people leave their kids with their retired parents and make them do twilight childcare, right. Tsk.
Yoonseok counted on his fingers.
When is my retirement again. Not much time left.
As he tried to suppress a pleased smile, his usually stern face took on a ridiculous look.
While Yoonseok was busy getting ahead of himself, imagining buying a new car model suitable for installing a car seat and looking into English kindergartens for his grandchild, the plane carrying Kanghyeon arrived. It would still take some time before he came out, but the moment the arrival notice appeared, Hyeji stood up and went to the railing in the arrivals hall.
They told her not to stand because her body felt heavy and her legs would hurt, and to just sit, but Hyeji insisted, saying sitting too long was bad for blood circulation.
Must be nice, at a time like this.
After about ten minutes, passengers began to emerge one by one.
“Director!”
The moment she spotted a familiar face, Hyeji shouted loudly and waved her hand. As soon as their eyes met, Kanghyeon broke into a bright smile and walked straight toward her.
