A child who looks like me

Once again, Jiheon’s heart ached at his mother’s tears. But he firmly closed his heart.

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

Suppressing his swirling emotions, Jiheon handed Young-mi a tissue and urged her.

“Absolutely don’t go looking for Yena or Jeong-o. Not even for Jeong-o’s mother. If you go looking for those three, I’ll never see you again.”

With that sharp warning, Jiheon opened the office door immediately.

“It’s uncomfortable for you to visit suddenly during working hours. I have my own schedule too. If you have something to say, please call me first.”

“Why have you become so cold?”

Young-mi’s voice made Jiheon close the half-open door again.

The sound of her son approaching felt strangely sharp. Young-mi’s eyes widened, as if she were facing someone other than her son. This was a side of him she didn’t recognize.

From a mother’s perspective, it seemed her son had changed due to the wrong woman he had met. Young-mi wanted to blame everything on Jeong-o.

“You say you won’t see your mother? You never said that before. Why are you like this? What has changed?”

“I haven’t changed. I’m saying this because I love you.”

Jiheon replied in an eerily cold voice. It felt as if he had confirmed the terrifying underside of the word “love.”

“I’m telling you in advance because I care. I want us to get along without friction.”

Only then did Young-mi realize. The declarations of love she had received like gifts from her son had been empty boxes.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

After sending Young-mi away, Jiheon immediately went to find Jeong-o. He was anxious that Young-mi might change direction and head to Jeong-o. He needed to protect Jeong-o.

Fortunately, it seemed Young-mi had left the company safely, and Jeong-o was alone in the meeting room.

As Jiheon approached and sat beside Jeong-o, staring at her, she asked,

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Never mind.”

He felt embarrassed. He couldn’t bring himself to speak.

Your mother had welcomed me so warmly, but I couldn’t repay that warmth. I felt sorry and ashamed.

“My mother might come looking for me.”

“I’m fine with that.”

At Jeong-o’s calmly stated words, Jiheon nodded cautiously.

“If she bothers Yena, I won’t just stand by. My mom feels the same way. But I’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”

Was that the concern? Seeing Jiheon’s heavy expression, Jeong-o also felt worried for him. As she thought of a topic that could lift his spirits, she suddenly had a good idea.

“It would be nice for Yena to have her dad around and live together… but it can’t be helped. That’s the only way.”

“What way?”

“I hope you’ll be careful. Don’t let Yena get too attached.”

“What?”

“We might live together, but there’s also a chance we can’t. We never know what might happen. So please, don’t let Yena fall too hard for you.”

Indeed, her cold words prompted an immediate reaction from him. He furrowed his brows and glared at her.

“We’ve been doing fine so far. In the worst-case scenario, we should be careful so that everyone can return to how things were without getting hurt, right? You can’t tell Yena not to develop feelings for her dad. She’s just a kid. So you have to be careful.”

“So, you want me to tell Yena not to have feelings for me?”

“I’m just asking you to be cautious. Don’t let Yena get too ‘dad-dad’ about you.”

Jiheon’s eyes narrowed slightly. With a smirk, Jiheon raised an eyebrow and asked Jeong-o,

“Let’s be honest.”

“……”

“Honestly, you’re feeling insecure right now, right?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’re worried that I might get closer to Yena than you, aren’t you?”

“Hah. That’s funny. What are you saying?”

“Are you jealous of me, jealous of Yena? Which one is it? Or both?”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Look at that. Your expression is really awkward right now.”

“That’s because it’s so absurd. So absurd.”

Jeong-o, who had pretended to be nonchalant, couldn’t keep up the act and burst out laughing.

Only after seeing Jeong-o laugh did Jiheon realize that the ice-cold heart he had been holding onto had melted away.

He had come to protect her, but instead, he felt comforted again.

You remind me that it’s possible to face the world’s many worries with a smile. You show me where I’m meant to be.

How have I lived all this time without you? Now, I can’t go back to a time without you.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

Eun-joo, looking for something to say to Jeong-o, wandered around and discovered Jiheon and Jeong-o sitting side by side in the meeting room. She turned around.

“You came back quickly.”

Gi-hun spoke up. He had gone to find Jeong-o but returned to his seat almost immediately.

Please understand, Eun-joo thought as she replied to Gi-hun.

“Yeah. I saw Director Jeong in the meeting room.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Director Jeong and Assistant Lee are alone.”

“Alone?”

However, Gi-hun didn’t grasp Eun-joo’s intention. For some reason, the assistant Park Young-gwang beside him flinched.

Gi-hun, with an innocent expression, suddenly stood up with his laptop.

“Where are you going?”

“To the meeting room. Assistant Lee is supposed to be there.”

He was determined to protect Jeong-o from Director Jeong. Gi-hun’s pure soul, burning with loyalty and chivalry, strode toward the meeting room.

“No, no, no, Gi-hun…”

Young-gwang hurriedly reached out, trying to stop Gi-hun, but it was no use. A young man in love couldn’t be stopped by anyone.

Eun-joo smiled bitterly.

Well, it wouldn’t be so bad if he figured it out on his own.

Whether they fought over a woman or not, it was none of my business. It wouldn’t be bad to see it to the end.

No matter how great Director Jeong is, he can’t easily win against the impulsiveness of youth. Gi-hun is six years younger, after all. If Gi-hun charges in, Director Jeong will be a bit nervous.

If a fight is going to happen, I hope Gi-hun wins.

“Sigh.”

Eun-joo sorted out her feelings and returned to her work, but she kept hearing sighs from beside her. Eun-joo pushed her chair back and asked Young-gwang,

“Assistant Manager, what’s wrong?”

“Huh? Nothing.”

“……”

“Assistant Ko, I don’t have two lives, nor am I brave. I just want to live a long, thin life. I want to do this job for a long time.”

Though he had said nothing was wrong, Young-gwang quickly added,

“There are times when you have to act as if you haven’t seen something or that you don’t exist. That position is a bit painful.”

“……”

“Our Gi-hun should realize that soon.”

Ah, the deputy director knows about the relationship between Director Jeong and Deputy Lee.

Well, given that Director Jeong Ji-hun is being so obvious about it and they even went on a business trip together, it’s hard not to know.

Earlier, I was cheering for Gi-hoon, but now I feel a bit sorry for him. Just as Eun-joo was about to get back to work, she hesitated.

‘Wait, what if Song Gi-hoon and Jeong Ji-hun have a showdown?’

I might be rooting for Song Gi-hoon, but Deputy Lee Jeong-oh is tied to Jeong Ji-hun!

What if Song Gi-hoon quits the company? That would all fall on me!

Oh no. I really didn’t want this to happen!

Eun-joo quickly pushed her chair away and stood up.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

In the conference room.

Gi-hoon opened the door and peeked his face inside.

“Deputy!”

“Oh, Gi-hoon.”

Jeong-oh smiled, and Ji-hun’s expression, which had been smiling, instantly hardened.

“Oh, Director, you’re here too. Hello.”

Whether he was unaware or pretending not to be, Gi-hoon greeted them cheerfully and took a seat in the conference room.

“Were you two having a conversation?”

In response to Gi-hoon’s question, Ji-hun answered relatively kindly.

“We were discussing the filming of the Dawan liquor advertisement. We said that you worked really hard.”

Personally, he wanted to snap back and ask what Gi-hoon was doing interfering, but as the head of the department, he maintained a benevolent demeanor.

“No, no. Every time I was about to doze off, Deputy Lee kept me entertained with his interesting comments.”

“Still, it must have been tough driving back and forth.”

“No, it wasn’t too bad. Ah, I did take a quick nap in between. Where did we sleep, Deputy?”

Gi-hoon’s provocation made Ji-hun’s eyes flash. In truth, Gi-hoon didn’t intend to provoke him. It was a genuinely innocent reply.

“At the rest area, you napped for about 5 minutes, and I was outside getting some fresh air and drinking coffee.”

Feeling the need to justify himself, Jeong-oh hastily added extra details. Despite that, Ji-hun’s expression didn’t soften. Ji-hun then asked an unexpected question in a quietly sharp voice.

“Song Gi-hoon, do you keep secrets well? Are you a tight-lipped person?”

“Yes, I tend to be that way.”

Although surprised by Ji-hun’s question, Gi-hoon answered without showing any other emotions. He didn’t dwell on it long because Gi-hoon’s purpose was to protect Jeong-oh, so he bravely spoke to her.

“Deputy, I have something to ask. Should I wait outside?”

“No, it’s fine. We’re done talking, right, Director?”

Ji-hun looked between the two before waving his hand slightly. He signaled for them to talk. Ji-hun seemed to be somewhat sulky, which made Jeong-oh a bit concerned. However, she couldn’t ignore Gi-hoon, who had something to ask. Jeong-oh told Gi-hoon,

“Go ahead.”

“It’s about the hair loss prevention shampoo advertisement. I don’t understand the advertiser’s intent. Keeping the hair you have is different from stimulating hair growth in places where there is none.”

“What did the advertiser say?”

“Could you check the email that the AE sent? But the wording is a bit rough. You should keep that in mind.”

“It’s okay, it’s okay.”

While Gi-hoon showed Jeong-oh the laptop screen and talked about the details, Ji-hun sat still, quietly observing them. Even though he was staring hard at them, they continued their conversation as if in their own world.

Ji-hun’s fists clenched tightly.

Is that guy trying to keep me in check, or is he just clueless? Doubts began to arise gradually.

Somehow it feels like he’s challenging me.

Ji-hun wiggled his fingers as he measured the time. Their conversation continued.

“By the way, the rumor that thinking about dirty things makes your hair grow faster is all nonsense. If that were true, I would be Rapunzel.”

“Pfft.”

“It sounds like a joke, but it’s true.”

“You’re such an innocent young man, Gi-hoon.”

“Well, I have to manage my image a bit in front of the Deputy.”

I can’t take this anymore!

As Ji-hun’s irritation boiled over and he clenched his fist, Jeong-oh’s phone vibrated.

“Hold on, it’s a call from the planning team’s manager. Yes, manager.”

Jeong-oh answered the phone. In the now quiet conference room, the voice of the planning team manager echoed from Jeong-oh’s phone.

[Lee Jeong-oh, can you tell me about one spelling error?]

“Yes, go ahead.”

Gi-hoon let out a slight laugh at the manager’s voice. Reaching his limit, Ji-hun could no longer stand the sight and intervened.

“Song Gi-hoon. Be a bit more careful.”

“…What?”

“Stop acting like a fox.”

“……”

“Tell Deputy Lee Jeong-oh to stop bothering her.”

“Director!”

As Jeong-oh hung up the phone in shock, the door suddenly burst open, and Eun-joo entered.

But by then, the damage was already done.

Jeong-oh, Gi-hoon, and Eun-joo all had faces as red as tomatoes from the same farm, while Ji-hun, the one who had spilled the beans, wore a calm expression like a still lake. Jeong-oh was astounded by Ji-hun’s shameless demeanor.

Jeong Ji-hun, are you really out of your mind?