episode_0000

Today, I took a half-day off.

“I’ll go in first.”

“Please, go ahead~”

“Oh, Manager! Please take a look at this!”

“…There’s a typo here. And here too. Ask Manager Choi for a new template and rewrite it. Manager Choi, send the template to Hyejin.”

“Yes, Hyejin. How many times do I have to tell you? Double-check properly!”

“I’m sorry….”

*Sigh* These days, the youngsters are all good but too careless.

I understand why people want experienced newcomers. That’s why you have to teach them everything from scratch. Is the supervisor not teaching properly?

…It was my job after all.

“Then, I’ll go in.”

“Yes, please go in, Manager~”

Education Department.

According to the company slogan of hiring experienced newcomers, new employees or interns undergo a 3-month training period.

They are trained in simple document tasks or hospitality suitable for newcomers and interns without overwhelming them with tasks.

Since I’m not good at scolding others, Manager Choi handles all the scolding. I always feel sorry about it.

Seeing how drastically their personalities change around me, it seems like scolding is part of their concept.

“Manager Kim, are you leaving? Shall I clock you out?”

“Oh, yeah. Thank you.”

“Sure~”

The secretary Jihee is competent and has a pleasant personality. How many months will it take for Hyejin to become like her? The official employment recommendation day is approaching soon, but at this rate, it doesn’t seem likely…

“Hyejin! Double-check before submitting! Every little detail represents the company! Is your face as sloppy as this? No, right! Try to be as meticulous as when you do your makeup!”

“Yes….”

It seems like it won’t work out after all.

~~~

The subway during the day is really quiet. There’s enough empty seats to lie down comfortably.

Of course, if I did that, I’d probably get kicked out.

Upon arriving home, I entered the passcode at the front door.

*Sigh* A sigh escapes involuntarily. There’s no one to welcome me home.

Due to an accident during my sophomore year of high school, Yuhee was born, sent to an orphanage, and I got divorced during that time.

To get divorced at such a young age, it would be a big surprise for my colleagues.

Yuhee must be home; there were shoes in the shoe rack.

“I think she said she had no classes today.”

I moved as quietly as possible.

When Yuhee was in elementary school, I couldn’t bear to give her the trauma of having no parents, so despite being alone, I brought Yuhee back.

But even after over 10 years, Yuhee still hasn’t said a word to me. When I arrive, she quickly goes into her room and locks the door.

Today, the door was locked even before I arrived. Still, I speak to myself in case she might hear through the door.

Yet, she treats me well. She prepares meals like now, does laundry, a filial daughter to the core.

-My clothes. I’ll take care of it myself.

When she reached the age to start wearing a bra, she said that to me. It was the first and last time I heard Yuhee’s voice.

Somehow, I ended up in a situation where Yuhee does my laundry, but I didn’t express any complaints. Since we never even face each other, there’s nothing to complain about.

“What I need.

RAM 16GB, SSD 256GB, Graphics Card: MTX 2060, liquid cooling system, keyboard, mouse, monitor…”

The day she made a request to me for the first time. The specifications were quite detailed. Of course, it was written on a note.

After buying her a smartphone, we only communicate via text. Only when she has something to ask for.

It’s my fault for lacking self-restraint, so I accept it. I live every day with a sense of guilt.

When Yuhee graduates from college, her father has already saved up money to help her become independent. Living with a father like this is just impossible.

“Ugh.”

As I go to collect my laundry, I see Yuhee’s underwear scattered on the drying rack. A set with small pink lace details. Judging by the cup size, it seems like she has grown quite a bit.

“What is this crazy guy thinking?”

Anyway, I decide not to touch Yuhee’s clothes for no reason and quickly grab my own clothes to lie down, unsure of what might happen if I mess with her clothes.

There is a TV in the living room, but I’m not in the mood for it today. Not that I usually am.

The reason I took half a day off is to meet my ex-wife. I guess I want to see Yuhee after a long time. Shameless, really. Trying to see Yuhee whom I haven’t even looked at closely.

Thud.

Yuhee’s room is right next to mine, so sometimes when I put my ear to the wall, I can hear rock music playing or the sound of an electric guitar filling the room.

But today, there is no rock music playing, just the sound of a thud as if someone hit their head against the wall.

It sounded painful, so I put my ear to listen.

“Haa… Haa…”

I immediately pulled my ear away from the wall.

Of course, I’ve reached an age where I have an interest in such things, but… Could it be that she didn’t notice I was here?

“This shouldn’t be happening…”

My instincts inside me were screaming that they wanted to hear more of the sound coming from beyond the wall, and my body involuntarily leaned against the wall. And naturally, my ear pressed against it.

“Haa… Dad…. Dad!”

…Did I mishear something?