episode_0028

You’ve been killing people’s spirits from the very beginning.

That was my first thought as soon as I entered the building. Unlike the exterior, the interior of my house was clean, so I had no particular complaints. But this place was a completely different world.

When I saw it on the internet, I thought it was amazing. Of course, it had a luxurious interior, and it had amenities like a sports center and spa, entertainment facilities like a bowling alley and screen golf, and even an aquarium.

Even if you just look it up, it’s like that, but when you actually see it, the impact is different.

“What brings you here?”

“Ugh… !”

As I was blankly staring up at the ceiling, which seemed too high to fit my house even if it were stacked three levels high, a female employee dressed in a neat uniform spoke to me.

His head tilted to the side. The staff member’s eyes began to fill with suspicion as if my reaction was suspicious.

“Oh, over there… .”

It is inevitable that you will be met with suspicion. You will wonder why such a shabby person came to such a precious place.

“I know someone. I came to see you for a bit.”

But I have to go out confidently. Even if my outfit is just a popular brand uniform and a cardigan that is starting to get a little fluffy, I am here to meet the chairman of the Iseul Group.

That too, to kidnap the chairman’s nephew. Of course, it would be best if it could be resolved through dialogue.

“Then I will help you from this side.”

I followed the staff to the information desk.

And when I called out the address I had written down on a note, he looked at me with suspicious eyes and pressed the intercom button.

“What is your name… .”

“This is the day. If I tell you that I have come to meet the future, you will know.”

The employee who had been relaying my message through the intercom soon put the receiver down and lowered his head with a nervous expression.

“Thank you for your valuable time. Please take your visitor’s pass here, and the elevator for residents is on the right side when you exit the back of the lobby… .”

The staff member handed me a transparently coated card along with a friendly explanation.

“Yes, thank you.”

His discomfort was so obvious in his actions that I quickly lowered my head and turned away.

Bam.

“Ah… .”

Then I bumped into a man in a suit behind me, and for a moment I thought I had hit a wall.

No matter how small my body is, if you add up the length and width, it looks like there’s about twice as much difference. But my impression was really good. A smile that was not at all messy. He was a man with a warm feeling who used his large size to his advantage.

“Sorry, I’m in a hurry… .”

“No, it’s because I didn’t see it. Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Ah, yes yes. I just bumped into something. ”

I offered a light apology and tried to move to the side, but my path ended up crossing with that of a man. Things like this happen when you bump into a stranger on the street.

As I looked at him with a blank expression, he stretched his hand behind him and smiled refreshingly.

“Haha, you go first.”

“Thank you… .”

I nod my head and approach the elevator. As expected from a luxury building, the elevator doors are also gold.

The intimidating color combination made me feel a little nervous, so I swallowed my saliva and scanned the visitor’s pass I received from the staff member on the sensor.

Large doors that slid open silently on both sides. Even the inside was made of glass, allowing a clear view of the outside.

“Uh… !”

I spotted a familiar white sedan through the glass. At the same time, the back seat window rolled down, and Han Na-yeon, who had been sitting there with a blank expression, opened her mouth.

‘cheer up.’

Then, without even listening to the answer, he rolls up the window.

Is Hannah Yeon cool or shy? Until recently, I thought she was definitely closer to the former, but lately, she seems to be leaning more toward the latter.

But when I see him doing shameful things so casually, I wonder if that’s not the case…

Even though I know Hanna Yeon, I don’t know her. That’s also her charm. It’s fun because it’s like watching a cat with strong alertness.

Ding─

As I was laughing out loud with that thought, my head rose to a dizzying height.

It was a 60-story building, excluding the sky lounge at the top, and the chairman’s residence was located on the 55th floor.

If I could choose which floor I wanted to live on, I think I would live near the 55th floor. No matter how well it is soundproofed, it would be uncomfortable to be near a floor where visitors come and go.

“Um… .”

I passed through a hallway that was sparkling clean and spotless. There were four rooms on each floor. I could guess the size of the rooms by looking at the space between the doors.

Let’s not be discouraged any longer. What’s the point of having a big house? They say that families that live in small houses are actually more harmonious.

So it’s okay. You can do it this day. The future makes the choice.

I consciously straightened my back and held my visitor’s card up to the sensor next to the door.

“I’m here.”

I pushed my face in when the light came on in the terminal next to me. My expression hardened to show that I was not at all young.

I waited in that state for a while to hear the chairman’s voice.

“Come in.”

Oddly enough, a cold voice was heard right next to me.

Because of that, I was having a staring contest with the terminal, and eventually I couldn’t keep my expression straight and had to go inside.

“Excuse me… .”

I find myself looking around without realizing it.

The biggest difference was the lighting. Unlike the lights in our house, which were installed just for the purpose of lighting up the room, the soft orange lighting made the atmosphere in the room more elegant.

In addition to that, I noticed furniture that hadn’t been touched at all, and things like a TV as big as my living room wall, but perhaps because the house was so big, I felt a bit lonely overall.

“What about the future?”

I asked him as I followed him. His gait seemed much more tired than when I first saw him. He must have had a hard time in the past two days.

“… is in the room.”

As I passed by, I caught a glimpse of the kitchen, and the table was filled with various Western dishes, including steak.

But there was no trace of having been touched on the food. Not only the steak, but also the pasta, salad, and even the high-quality pudding that couldn’t even be compared to the 1,200 won one. They were all in such a clean condition that they looked like they had just been made.

For some reason, the current situation was pictured in my head. So, naturally, I started walking faster.

“The future… .”

As expected, Mirae was lying alone in a dark room. On a bed big enough for ten people to sleep in, Mirae was holding a bag of 1,200 won pudding.

“Mom… Ma… ?”

The future’s head slightly lifted. Her parched lips moved slightly. There was a Chuchu drink and a glass of water next to the bed, but even those were all in their original state.

Are you sure you haven’t even drank water and are starving until now?

In terms of time alone, it’s been almost 24 hours. That means that a child who is only 7 years old has gone hungry for an entire day.

I shot the chairman a quick glance, then hurriedly ran to the bedside and grabbed a glass of water.

“Future, let’s drink some water first.”

“I hate it… .”

Mirae buried her face back in the bed. Was she angry that she came looking for her so late?

Surely you should have come looking for me instead of crying alone last night. At that time, I couldn’t decide what to do.

“Don’t do that, isn’t the future good?”

He climbed into bed and put his arm around Mirae’s shoulders.

“No… . Mom, go home.”

But the future pushed me away and held onto the hem of my clothes. It opened its lips as if it had something to say, then bit its lips and swallowed the tears so they wouldn’t come out.

“Mom… I’ll be sick if I stay with Mirae… Because scary old men are harassing Mom… Mirae… I want to live with my aunt… .”

One by one, tears fall from the deeply bowed head. The shoulders and hands tremble pitifully, representing Mirae’s feelings.

“Chairman.”

The chairman was standing in front of the door, waving his hands. When I called him in a low voice, he finally came to his senses and carefully approached the bed.

“I don’t plan on letting the bodyguards in. I won’t make you sick… I promise. So please, Ms. Mirae… .”

He continued to speak fidgetily. His worry was clearly evident.

Suddenly, I remembered the news article I had read in the car. The tragedy that had befallen the Lee Seol Group. The person who had the hardest time at the time must have been the chairman. His sister, his brother-in-law, his nephew. And a few years later, his mother also passed away.

He must have been incredibly lonely. Maybe that’s why he wanted to take Mirae by force. Of course, his method was the worst.

“Miraeya, you promised not to make your aunt sick? Now the scary old men won’t come.”

“… Really?”

His face was filled with suspicion, but his hands were honest. His small hands were placed on top of mine, which was resting on the bed. He was interlocking his fingers as if he didn’t want to let go.

“Yes. I will never take back what I said.”

The chairman gave a definitive answer.

“Mom… Ugh… Mom… !”

And finally, Mirae hugged me. Mirae kept calling me “Mom” and rubbing her cheek against mine. For some reason, I felt a pang inside because I was in front of someone related to my biological mother.

Gulp –

There was another reason why I felt strange. Besides, it seemed like Mirae felt the same way.

A loud noise echoed between the two stomachs that were pressed together tightly. Come to think of it, I hadn’t eaten anything except the banana milk that Hannayeon had given me.

I also worry about my future health, which may include starving all day long… .

“Miraeya, aren’t you hungry? There’s so much delicious food on the table.”

“I’m hungry… Hurray… I want to eat with Mom… .”

As Mirae nodded, her cheek naturally rubbed against mine. She smiled at the soft feeling and got up, holding Mirae in her arms.

Then he looked at the chairman’s hand with pity and said.

“Where is the first aid kit? Well, it’s a home, so there should be some over-the-counter medicine.”

That was because there was a red, burning mark near the thumb. It seemed like it had only been a short time since the burn, but it was necessary to take action quickly to avoid leaving a scar.

Also, my perception of the chairman changed a little after seeing that wound.

The chairman’s loneliness, the reason he wanted to bring the future, and how anxious he must have been.

Of course, I can’t completely understand the chairman. If everyone could understand each other, why would there be a fight? The chairman even treated me like an outsider and subdued me with force.

But I couldn’t just hate the chairman when I imagined him preparing his own future meals and being startled when his hand touched the frying pan.

More than anything, the fact that he was so focused on the future that he put himself on the back burner made me smile bitterly.

“Quickly. I’ll put some medicine on you.”

Yeah, I didn’t come here to fight the chairman.

We are all alone. If there is no future, we will be left alone. That is why we need to talk. To create an outcome that satisfies all of us.

There are three of us, so if we put our heads together, wouldn’t something come out of it?