episode_0026

When I woke up again, it was already halfway through lunch time.

“Ugh… .”

The events that happened just a moment ago were floating around in my dazed head. No matter what, I couldn’t believe that I was being held by my friend and crying like a baby.

Are Hannah Yeon’s clothes okay? They probably have snot and saliva on them… .

Thinking about it, I felt unnecessarily anxious and caressed the corner of my mouth with the palm of my hand. My face was clean, as if Hanna Yeon had wiped it away.

You ended up telling me everything. Did you understand what I said? I don’t think you heard me properly because I kept crying while talking.

Still, I felt a little better. If I had kept it to myself, it might have exploded somewhere. It would have been a bigger accident than being angry at Mirae.

“There’s no one… .”

I got out of bed with a much lighter body. I didn’t forget to grab the banana milk that was on the bedside table.

“Eww!”

And just as I was about to leave the infirmary, I ran into Hanna Yeon at the door.

“Haa, haa… .”

“Why are you so surprised?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

Well, I can’t help but be surprised… I ran into a wild beast at school.

I glanced down from where I had been meeting Hannah Yeon. Then, a faint stain caught my eye. There was a small spot on my chest that I couldn’t tell if it was a snot stain or a spit stain.

“Hannayeon Wait a minute… .”

I took a wet tissue out of the school nurse’s desk and handed it to Hanna Yeon. I wanted to wipe it myself, but if I rubbed it too hard, I’d end up touching it here and there.

“That, it was a little dirty. I guess it wasn’t wiped off properly.”

“Ah… .”

Hanna Yeon, who had been following my gaze, let out a sigh.

“You look so messy.”

“Who was buried.”

I tried to lighten the mood by saying something playful, but I ended up closing my mouth without even breaking the bank.

In the silence that fell for a moment, only the sound of fabric rustling quietly spread. Hanna Yeon rubbed her knitwear diligently. It seemed like it wasn’t being cleaned well.

“Give it to me. I’ll clean it for you.”

I felt like my insides would explode if I just watched, so I reached out to Hanna Yeon. If I stretched the knit all the way out and wiped it, there wouldn’t be any mishaps where my hand would touch it.

Hanna Yeon obediently handed me a wet tissue.

“You have to stay quiet.”

He warned her again and put his hand inside Hannah Yeon’s knit.

Ah, it’s warm.

When I said it was warm, my face turned bright red. After feeling this warmth to my heart’s content, I couldn’t easily shake off my embarrassment.

Let’s not be conscious, let’s not be conscious.

“Okay, it’s that simple.”

While repeating that to myself and wiping the knit, I took my hand out and the back of my hand met Hanna Yeon’s stomach.

It was only a brief brush, and I couldn’t really feel it through the blouse, but it was smooth without a single ounce of fat.

No, what’s important isn’t these useless sentiments… .

“Mi, sorry!”

I was startled and raised my head.

“No… .”

Even Hanna Yeon showed a look of embarrassment, which was rare. Her two arms were floating awkwardly on my shoulders. It was as if she was trying to hug me…

Did you raise your arm so that I could wipe it easily?

Anyway, it’s fortunate that Hanna Yeon’s feelings weren’t hurt.

“Should I go out?”

“Ugh, yeah… .”

We left the infirmary in a somewhat awkward atmosphere.

* * *

“Why are you getting off here again?”

“Going home.”

After school, I rode the same bus as Hannayeon as usual. Out of consideration for Hannayeon, I didn’t bring up the future. After all, it wasn’t a problem we could solve.

So I thought it would just pass like this, but Hanna Yeon got off at the same place as me.

“Your house is over there, 8 more stops away.”

“I’m going to your house.”

What makes him so confident?

Hanna Yeon talks about our house as if it were her own. And today isn’t even Friday. It’s the day Hanna Yeon has to go to work.

“What about part-time job?”

“I said I was going to rest.”

Hanna Yeon said it as if nothing had happened, but a bitter smile appeared on my lips.

“You don’t have to do that because of me… .”

“It’s not because of you.”

Here we go again. I’m sure I’m embarrassed just like last time… .

“It’s because of your daughter.”

No. This time there was a clear reason. I was much more grateful than if it had been for my own good.

“We’re not done talking. Let’s go in first.”

Hanna Yeon walked briskly toward our house as if she knew the road well.

To keep up, I had to walk more diligently. After all, Hanna Yeon’s legs were long, so it was difficult to keep up.

“But what are you talking about?”

“Bring your daughter.”

When I asked while opening the door with the key, Hanna Yeon gave me a clear answer.

“How could I? My real family took me?”

I asked back in a slightly aggressive tone without realizing it. Of course, there was no solution. Thinking about it again would only make me feel gloomy. But not thinking about it would not make me feel better.

“… Real family?”

Hanna Yeon’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, and only then did I realize my mistake.

“Oh, no. I mean, legally speaking… .”

But will anything change if you change your words?

As my future aunt said, in the eyes of society, I am nothing more than a kidnapper. A strange person who took in a child who could not make decisions for himself and secretly raised him until he was seven years old.

That’s why I had nowhere else to vent my frustrations. Whether or not I’ve raised Mirae properly for 11 years is an extremely subjective opinion. That’s why I didn’t really have anything to say when Mirae’s aunt told me I was an outsider.

“I don’t know much about laws.”

“No, but still… .”

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with you raising your daughter.”

Hanna Yeon, who had entered the living room, turned around and spread her arms out, as if welcoming me who had just returned home. However, as I was still hesitating in the hallway, Hanna Yeon approached me with a slightly embarrassed expression.

“Also, it looks like you raised it with a lot of effort… .”

The first thing that thawed was the ears that had been frozen in the cold spring weather. Then, Hanna Yeon’s body temperature mixed with her cold cheeks, and soon her entire body began to feel warm.

“He looked happy too… .”

A delicate hand touched the hair that fell behind her back. Perhaps because she was in Hanna Yeon’s arms, even her previously blunt voice sounded like a sweet whisper.

Why is he acting like this today… Did he try to make me cry… .

I bit my lip and fought against the sadness welling up from deep within.

“So… um… what about you?”

But as Hanna Yeon continued to speak.

“Do you want to give up like this?”

As the warm voice, which is quite different from usual, continues.

“The Lee Haru I knew would never do that.”

It was becoming increasingly difficult to hold back tears.

“What the… When did you look at it so intently… .”

I closed my eyes tightly. And when I opened them again and faced Hanna Yeon, she smiled brightly and told me not to worry.

“Because I kept watching.”

Hanna Yeon rubbed my eyes with her thumbs, as if she was determined not to leave even a single bit of sadness behind. Her tear ducts became loose again, and Hanna Yeon panicked and had to wipe my eyes several times.

Ding dong, ding dong.

At that moment, an urgent doorbell rang.

“Yes… I’m going out.”

As I opened the door, rubbing my reddened eyes with the back of my hand, an old woman barged in right away.

“Haruya! Are you okay? Mirae, why did Mirae quit daycare?”

“Ugh, ugh… Eek… !”

Seo-hu followed in, panting. He took a moment to catch his breath, but as soon as he made eye contact with Han Na-yeon, he took a deep breath.

“Ah, that scary friend you said you went to Chuchu Land with last time?”

“Mom, I told you not to tell… !”

The woman who had just discovered Hanna Yeon muttered, and Seo-hu whispered to her in surprise.

“Hello.”

“Oh, nice to meet you. Hmm… I’m like a mother to Haru?”

The lady who was naturally greeting Hanna Yeon suddenly started fidgeting and looked at me blankly.

“… Did you hate it? I’m sorry, I made you do something wrong.”

“No, okay, Mom.”

It wasn’t exactly wrong. My aunt was like my second mother. If it weren’t for my aunt’s help, my future and I might not have existed.

“Hoohoohoo, our daughter… .”

The woman’s hands were itchy, so she hugged Seo-hu, who was standing next to her. Seo-hu’s face became distorted, but he didn’t push his mother away.

“No, more than that, Mirae quits daycare… .”

I brought the conversation back to where it started after it had gone off on a side note.

I can guess the whole story. It must have been my aunt who made her quit the daycare center. There’s no way someone who’s the CEO of a large corporation would like the neighborhood daycare center.

“That’s right, that wasn’t what Haru said. I got a call from someone called Imo. She said she was going to stop sending me to daycare… .”

The woman released Seo-hu and asked in a very serious voice.

“Can you tell me what happened?”

“That’s… .”

I explained to the lady everything that had happened up to that point. It wasn’t something I could hide forever anyway.

“How about we start with a conversation? Most things in the world can be solved through conversation. I don’t know what your aunt will think… but can’t we at least try?”

This was the conclusion the lady came to after finishing her story. I don’t think much of it. The person who avoided me instead of trying to resolve the issue through conversation was taken aback for no reason.

“Auntie, weren’t you already Mirae’s mother?”

And Seo-hu, who had been quietly listening from the side, opened his eyes wide in surprise.

“Seohuya… !”

“To be honest… she’s not my biological mother… .”

The lady warned Seo-hu, but I tried to smile and say that it was okay.

“I see… Well, she’s too young for a mother… .”

Seo-hu nodded his head.

“But doesn’t that matter?”

Then, as if it was nothing serious, he smiled innocently, as if asking why I was worried about something like this.

“Imirae likes middle-aged women, right? It’s so obvious, right? She only smiles when she’s with middle-aged women.”

“Ah… .”

Thanks to Seo-hu, the most important fact came to mind.

Yes, I haven’t heard the future’s mind yet. If the future wants, it can collide with it as many times as it wants. Even if someone points a finger at it and says it’s wrong, I can’t just send the future away without knowing the circumstances like I do now.

“Thank you. As expected, Seo-hoo is smart!”

“This is basic.”

Seo-hu was proudly putting his hand on his waist. I left Seo-hu behind and went into the room to look for the business card. Fortunately, it was on the desk so I was able to find it right away.

Lee Ha-neul, Chairman of the Lee Seol Group.

Without hesitation, I dialed the number listed below, and after a short beep, the call was connected.

“Hello? Are you Chairman Lee Ha-neul?”

“… Let’s refrain from unnecessary conversation.”

Somehow, it seemed as if I could see the other person’s expression. Those blue eyes, as cold as ice, must have been filled with displeasure.

“Okay. Then could you tell me your home address?”

So I did as you wish.

You can just go and find the rest and solve it.