Ch.8282. Memories of That Day

That afternoon.

After finishing dinner with my family, I requested a private meeting with my father. The reason was, of course, to get permission for a trip to Jeju Island with Hwa Nabi.

“So, you want to go on a trip to Jeju Island?”

In his home office, my father took a sip of the coffee I had personally brewed for him and got straight to the point. Sitting across from him, I cleared my throat once and answered carefully.

“Yes, father.”

“…Father?”

At that moment, my father’s eyebrows suddenly shot up.

Since this was a serious matter, I thought I should speak formally and changed how I addressed him… Did he not like that?

While I was inwardly trying to gauge his reaction, my father stroked his chin and quietly stared at me.

If I look away now, it’ll seem like I have something to hide. With that thought, I met his gaze without avoiding it.

Then, my father threw out another comment.

“Seeing you trying to get permission for such a trivial matter, it seems you’re not planning to go alone… I assume you want to go with that girl?”

The term “that girl” clearly referred to Hwa Nabi. I hadn’t even explained the details yet and had only hinted at it, but he had already seen right through me.

Figuring there was no point in denying it, I nodded in affirmation.

“Ah, yes. We’ve both been busy lately preparing for college entrance exams. We’ve worked hard and have been running non-stop for months, so I thought it might be good to get some fresh air as a way to recharge.”

“What hardship from mere college entrance exam preparations? When you enter society later, you’ll face struggles dozens of times worse.”

As expected of the future head of the Han Group, my father dismissed me as if telling me not to talk nonsense.

Hmm, I guess that approach didn’t work at all? This could cause problems with my plan.

As I searched for words to persuade my father, my head naturally drooped. My father, who was staring at me, said:

“A man shouldn’t hang his head just anywhere.”

At those words, I slowly raised my head.

Then, my father, who was still staring at me, smirked.

“I met your mother when I was twenty. The place was… probably a university freshman welcome party.”

“…What? Ah, yes.”

What is this man suddenly talking about? I was taken aback by the sudden reminiscence, but I responded calmly.

My father, seated at the head of the table, stroked his well-groomed beard. He closed his eyes for a moment, as if savoring the memory, and then slowly continued.

“You might not know since you’re young, but back then, universities had a bad practice called ‘sabal ceremony.'”

Though my father said that, I was well-informed enough to know what it was.

Sabal ceremony, simply put, is a drinking culture where freshmen must accept and drink alcohol served in bowls by seniors.

It’s almost disappeared now after being publicly criticized in the media and newspapers, but it was rampant in the 90s when my father was in college.

“Simply put, everyone took turns drinking alcohol from bowls, and neither I nor my peers felt we could refuse, so we just drank whatever the seniors gave us. As the turns passed in order, it became your mother’s turn.”

“Ah, yes.”

“And at that moment, an incident occurred.”

“…What kind of incident?”

…But as I listened, I found myself getting quite engrossed. I unconsciously leaned forward, focusing intently.

“Your mother refused the bowl offered by the seniors and stood up abruptly. Then she boldly declared, ‘I can’t drink alcohol, so I’m going home.'”

“Um… was that allowed?”

I was so dumbfounded that I unconsciously used extremely formal speech. My father answered with an unfazed expression.

“No, of course not. She should have at least pretended to drink. But was your mother an ordinary woman?”

“What? What did mother do…?”

It’s awkward for me to say, but my mother is truly one of the most generous people. After all, she’s someone who would gently reason with her son who stayed out all night with just a few words.

But my father looked at me as if to say, ‘You know nothing.’

“She’s mellowed a lot now after having you three children. But when your mother was a freshman… huh, don’t even get me started.”

It must have really been difficult, as my father shook his head. What could have been so bad? Having only seen my mother’s gentle demeanor, I couldn’t imagine it at all.

“Anyway, back to the story, after your mother boldly declared ‘I’m going home.'”

“Hmm, yes.”

“Naturally, everyone in the hall was shocked. Of course they would be—back then, the seniors’ words were law, so no one even imagined defying them. But your mother went and shouted that…”

I can roughly imagine the atmosphere then. Probably all the freshmen and seniors alike were just gaping.

“After a brief silence, the face of the sophomore senior who had been offering the drink turned bright red. And that senior raised his hand high.”

“…And then?”

“Yes, in that critical moment… I raised my hand and stepped forward. And I boldly declared, ‘I’ll drink in place of that female student, won’t you please forgive her?'”

This isn’t some youth manga—you actually said something like that at such a moment? Even the original white knight would be impressed. This is equally hard to imagine.

“Then the senior, with a face that seemed to say ‘let’s see you try,’ filled the bowl with alcohol. As the emptied soju bottles became one, two, two and a half, and then three, your mother looked at me with a face that seemed about to cry. She had boldly spoken up, but felt sorry because the consequences had fallen on me.”

“……”

“But your mother didn’t know that I was actually quite good at drinking. I confidently took that bowl and downed it in one go. Then I went to your mother and said, ‘Since I played the white knight, could I have your pager number?'”

Pager—a word that made me feel the generation gap.

“So, what happened next?”

“Well, nothing much after that. I started dating your mother, and exactly one year later.”

“Yes, one year later?”

“One year later, your brother was conceived. That’s why I went to the military a bit late.”

“…Ah.”

What a sudden development. Skipping all the process and just stating the result made for a terribly anticlimactic ending.

“Ah, well. I’ve heard your story, but why are you telling me this?”

I suddenly came to my senses and asked.

The story of my father and mother’s college days was something I didn’t know about, and it was quite intriguing.

But I don’t understand the purpose of suddenly telling this story. So, what does this have to do with my trip?

“I’m telling you not to do the same if you can help it.”

“What? What do you mean…?”

My father picked up his coffee cup and took a sip. Then, as if making a passing comment, he said to me:

“Today is Thursday, right?”

“What? Ah, yes. It’s Thursday.”

“Then I should have the private jet ready by tomorrow evening. One day should be enough to pack, right?”

What is he saying? As I slowly processed my father’s words, my eyes suddenly widened.

Wait… Is he giving me permission?

Surprised, I silently looked at my father. He took another sip of coffee and said in a low voice:

“The first principle to follow when you have to entertain someone: understand their preferences first.”

“…What?”

Seeing that I didn’t immediately understand, my father added:

“Your ‘father’ doesn’t like the aroma of kopi luwak coffee, so keep that in mind next time.”

“…Ah, yes. I understand. Thank you, father.”

“Good, now that you understand, go take care of your business. Your ‘father’ is busy with unfinished work.”

As he said this, the corners of my father’s mouth were subtly but definitely curved upward.

“……”

It seemed he quite liked being called ‘father.’

***

──Moving to a different location, Hwa Nabi’s apartment.

-Ring ring.

In the late afternoon, as she was humming a tune while preparing dinner, Hwa Nabi’s phone rang.

“Oh, who could it be?”

There’s no one who would contact me at this hour… Ah, could it be him? With that thought, she quickly put down the ladle and took out the phone from her pocket.

Siwoo♡ [It went well, he said we can go.]

The sender was, as expected, her “boyfriend,” and seeing the message, her face bloomed with a smile.

“Yes, it worked!”

-Ding.

Siwoo♡ [But there’s a slight problem.]

“…Problem?”

Problem? What kind of problem is he talking about? Hwa Nabi’s hands became a bit frantic as she operated her phone. She typed a reply at almost the speed of light.

Me [Wht problem?]

Me [What problem?]

Having sent the same message twice without time to correct the typo, she waited anxiously.

‘Ah, why is the reply so slow? Should I just call? No, let’s wait. The disappearance of the “1” means he’s writing a message now. But what if that’s not it? What if the problem is so urgent he can’t even reply? Should I call the police? Or since I know his address, should I go to his house directly?’

…All these thoughts raced through her mind in just 5 seconds.

After what felt like an eternity to her, a reply finally arrived on Hwa Nabi’s phone.

Siwoo♡ [It’s not a big problem, but when I told my father I wanted to go on a trip with you, he said to leave tomorrow afternoon. He offered to arrange a private jet, and I couldn’t refuse, so I agreed. But then I realized, it’s not just me going on the trip, right?]

Siwoo♡ [Since we’re going together, I should have discussed and decided with you. I’m really sorry. Would it be okay if we leave tomorrow? If not, feel free to tell me. I can talk to him again.]

“…Ah, I thought…”

I thought something serious had happened. Finally relieved, Hwa Nabi tapped her phone to send a reply.

Me [No, it’s fine with me. I don’t mind leaving tomorrow. No, since it’s now a 2-night, 3-day trip, I’m even happier!]

Siwoo♡ [Oh, really? That’s a relief. Still, I’m really sorry for deciding on my own. It’s not much of a compensation, but I’ll make sure we have fun there.]

Me [Okay. Looking forward to it♥]

Siwoo♡ [Yeah, see you tomorrow.]

With that simple farewell, their conversation ended, and Hwa Nabi resumed her interrupted cooking.

-Bubble bubble.

She stared endlessly into the pot where bubbles were rising.

A trip just for the two of us… It’ll be fun. Where should we go this time? We’ve been to the sea once, so maybe the mountains would be nice this time.

Yes, I’ll bring water and a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his forehead. He doesn’t seem to realize it, but his profile when drenched in sweat is quite sexy… That alone would make for a good picture.

As her thoughts continued to chain together, suddenly another thought crossed her mind.

“…Ah, I need to pack right after dinner.”

Originally, she had planned to prepare leisurely tomorrow evening, but since the schedule was unexpectedly moved up by a day, she needed to hurry accordingly.

“I’ll just need to bring face masks for cosmetics, and I don’t think I’ll need that many clothes…”

Muttering to herself, Hwa Nabi slightly turned her head to the side. There were numerous delivery boxes that had arrived “last night,” and among them, her attention was drawn to a certain “nightwear.”

-Click.

She turned off the stove and quietly approached the delivery boxes. Then, slowly extending her hand, she picked up one piece of clothing.

“…”

The identity of the garment, or rather nightwear, in her hand was none other than her “battle-ready nightwear.” It was a nightgown she had purchased as if entranced while browsing an online shopping mall.

As she slowly examined the nightwear, her throat involuntarily gulped.

The nightgown was too revealing. The neckline of the shoulder-strap nightgown was deeply cut, exposing most of the upper chest, and the fabric covering the abdomen and back was so sheer that everything underneath was visible.

“Wow…”

…She wondered if it could even be called nightwear. At this point, it was actually lingerie. And not just any lingerie, but extremely sexy lingerie.

Holding the nightgown, she unconsciously imagined herself wearing it.

In a darkened hotel room, on a bed with just the two of them, me wearing this nightgown, doing this and that with him…

“…I wish tomorrow would come quickly.”