episode_0114

“Right, right. Seonga, were you upset because you couldn’t see Mom? Mom is sorry.”

Seonga clings tightly to me as if afraid to leave Su-jin’s embrace. Her face, filled with sorrow, changes to the usual cozy expression.

Who does she resemble to be this cute?

“Oh, thank goodness. I was at a loss because you wouldn’t stop crying…”

Su-jin looks exhausted. Seeing her once neat hair now disheveled, it seems she has been through a lot in my absence.

I only have gratitude towards Su-jin.

“Get a hold of yourself. Seonga, I’m sorry. Have I been holding onto you for too long?”

As I place my hand on Seonga’s head nestled in my arms, I speak softly. Looking at her like this, it feels like I am not dealing with my granddaughter, but rather with a mother and her daughter.

…Well, it’s not entirely inaccurate.

“Ah! Ah!”

Seonga turns her head in response to Mom’s touch. Come to think of it, is this the first time Seonga is seeing Mom’s face? Although it’s the second time, the first time was when she was just born.

“Mom, do you recognize who I am? Do you remember Grandma?”

“Ooh! Ooh!”

Seonga nods repeatedly in response to Mom’s question. She may be our daughter, but she’s quite smart. The genes from her father are truly exceptional!

“Why are you like this, Seonga? Do you want me to put you down?”

“Ah!”

Seonga keeps tugging at my clothes. When I ask her, she nods repeatedly just like she did with Mom.

Alright, alright, I’ll put you down soon.

“Oh, Seonga, are you already walking? How many months has it been?”

Mom can’t help but admire Seonga’s toddling steps. Right? Impressive, right? She walks fast, talks early, our daughter is definitely a genius! Now she just needs to learn to say ‘Mom’!

“Ah! Ah~”

As I watch our brave daughter, her hesitant steps finally come to a halt as they reach Mom’s legs as she sits on a chair.

Clutching onto Mom’s legs with her fern-like hands, Seonga stops, causing Mom’s face to relax without tension.

“Ah… Uh…”

“Why, Seonga? Do you have something to say to Grandma?”

Mom smiles brightly as she holds Seonga on her lap. It’s heartwarming to see her smile so broadly. They say parents are speechless when they see their grandchildren, and today I see a side of Mom that I haven’t seen before.

“Uh… Mom…”

“Oh, Eun-hye, look at her. Does she have something to say to Mom?”

“Oh, Mom, you’re overreacting. Even though Seonga is talented, she’s still too young to speak properly—”

“Uh… Mom!”

Seonga’s small whimper spreads, and soon the room is enveloped in silence. Mom, Su-jin, and I are all speechless, only looking at Seonga in Mom’s arms.

“Uh, Mom!”

Seonga claps her hands towards Mom, who watches her silently with wide eyes.

Soon, tiny tears start to form in the eyes that gaze at Seonga.

“Mom? Is she… Is she really… Mom? Should I call her Grandma?”

“Mom! Mom!”

“Seonga…”

Mom wipes away the tears in her eyes and hugs Seonga. I don’t know why Mom is crying, but seeing her bewildered, it seems she herself doesn’t know why the tears are flowing.

After a while of struggling together, Mom was the first to surrender.

“Uh… Eunhye. I should go now, Mom. I came to visit the in-laws, but time has passed too quickly here, hasn’t it?”

For some reason, nodding at her mother who seemed eager to leave, I take Seong-a in my arms. Mom breathes a sigh of relief only after confirming that Seong-a is in my embrace. Her wistful gaze still lingers on Seong-a.

“Eunhye. I should leave now. Let’s talk more leisurely next time.”

“Yeah. Let’s do that, Mom. And next time, bring Minjeong along too, if possible.”

“Got it. Our daughter should be doing well, right? …And Seong-a too.”

“Yeah! Come visit next time for sure! Seong-a, you should say goodbye to your grandma, right?”

“Bye~ Bye~!”

Seeing off Mom as she walks away, Seong-a and I wave our hands together. I thought she came to pay her respects because she hadn’t seen us in a while, but apparently not. It’s a bit disappointing…

Well, there’s something else that’s more disappointing.

“…Kang Seong-a. Why don’t you call me Mom? Is it only for your grandma to call me Mom?”

“Huh?”

As Mom disappears from sight, I speak quietly to Seong-a while looking at her. Seong-a just tilts her head as if asking what I’m talking about.

She’s only two years old, so I shouldn’t be doing this, but I feel really hurt right now. This child’s mother is absurd. How can she not call me Mom and call me Mom only to her grandma?

“Seong-a, who am I?”

“Daddy?”

“No. It’s Mom! You said it nicely to your grandma earlier! Now, say it. Mom.”

“Oppa?”

“Mom!!”

“Oppa~!”

“Argh!! You’re really~!”

“Kyaa~ Kyaa~!”

As Seong-a laughs happily, I, feeling genuinely hurt, poke her soft cheek with my finger in jest.

This is too much, even for a baby!

I want her to call me Mom too!

“Miss, she’s not acting like an adult.”

“…I know, so please be quiet, Sujin.”

“Yes. I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

The third party who doesn’t understand my feelings tells me to be quiet. Oh… I’m so depressed… When is my husband coming back?

#

“Why did I feel that way…”

As I clench and unclench my hand, still warm from Seong-a’s touch, her words to me come vividly to mind.

Mom. She definitely called me Mom.

Not her grandma, but Mom… Why did that child say such a thing?

I feel strange about it myself, but when Seong-a called me Mom, I felt a sense of being like a daughter to me.

I feel truly sorry for Eunhye, but why does Seong-a feel more like a daughter to me than Eunhye? Eunhye is like my own child too… No, this is just a useless distraction.

“It’s been a while. Madam. I’m sure you’ve been through a lot, but thank you for coming.”

As I follow the servant with absurd thoughts, the lady and the master come out to greet me. They’ve been waiting patiently to not disturb the mother-daughter time. I’m just grateful for their thoughtful consideration.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen you both. Is the chairman doing well?”

“Haha, our father is always in good health. His health is so good that it’s excessive.”

“The chairman is still the same…”

Engaging in formal conversation, I sit facing the two of them in the spacious room that looks like a reception room.

“As requested by the madam, all dealings with that household have been cut off. We’ve also put pressure on the companies, so there should be a significant impact.”

“…Thank you. I understand that there will be a considerable impact on their side as well, so thank you for bearing with it.”

I bowed my head respectfully to the two of them. After divorcing the man who was my husband, I had persevered with the determination to bring down his family.

My dear friend… Not only did they kill the mother of grace, but they also tried to kill Grace herself. I can never forgive them.

I must steel my heart, even if it’s for the sake of Grace’s future.

“No. We simply did what needed to be done. Our dear… ahem, for the sake of Grace, that household is filled with danger.”

“That’s right. No matter how prestigious the in-laws may be, that household is filled with unforgivable trash, right? How could they not only kill our dear’s birth mother but also her twin brother…!!”

I silently watched as the enraged lady gritted her teeth.

The child who might have been like my own, like Grace. Thinking of Eunseok’s actions still sends a chill down my spine.

Committing unspeakable acts as a human, yet how…

“And madam. Have you heard the news?”

“…Is it true that our mother, father was kidnapped by criminals in Germany? Surely local racists… But I heard that they will soon be released after paying a ransom.”

“That… actually… sigh… I didn’t expect to have to say this, but madam, you should know.”

“What are you talking about?”

As the two of them looked at me strangely, the lady spoke with a tense expression.

“It seems… our father may have had a hand in it.”

“What? What do you mean…”

“Sigh… After hearing about the situation with the twins at Saeaga’s house, our father apparently went to Germany himself… He’s currently listed as missing.”

The lady spoke quietly as she took a sip of her tea.

“Wherever they go, those people won’t be able to show their faces again.”