A child who looks like me

After work, Jihun arrived at Jeongho’s house, lost in thought.

What could Kim Jingu possibly feel so wronged about that he still harbored such animosity? He received a one-year sentence for the hit-and-run, and then got five years for a more serious crime afterward, so why was he still so angry after all this time?

‘If he served a longer sentence than expected, it makes sense to be upset.’

But I lost my memory because of that incident.

Jihun couldn’t empathize with Kim Jingu’s anger at all.

“Dad, relax.”

While Jihun was deep in thought, Yeona approached him, observing his face closely. Jihun lifted Yeona onto his lap.

“What’s up?”

“Dad is just sitting here like this.”

Yeona said, pinching Jihun’s brow with her fingertips. It seemed his brow had furrowed while he was lost in serious thought.

Yeona pressed down on the brow that she had just pinched, smoothing it out.

“Dad, relax.”

Where did she learn to say such things?

Yeona, I’m so relaxed because of you that my heart might melt.

The sparkling light gently pushed away the darkness in his mind.

“Yeah, I should relax so that our Yeona doesn’t worry.”

“……”

“It seems like my healing fairy has almost disappeared.”

Jihun smiled gently, showing his wrist. He had tried hard not to erase it, but the durability of the children’s temporary tattoos was short-lived. Now, the healing fairy only remained as a blurred shape.

After looking at Jihun’s wrist, Yeona became quite serious.

“What should we do? Should I buy some stickers and put them back on?”

“Sure.”

“Then Dad should give Yeona some money.”

“How much?”

“Two thousand won.”

Jihun’s response to Yeona’s adorable request came a little late, as the wall around his heart crumbled. When he opened his wallet to check, there were only a few bills inside, and aside from a check, all he had were fifty-thousand won notes.

“I don’t have any money.”

“Dad doesn’t have money?”

“Uh, it seems so. I’m sorry. I’ll prepare it tomorrow.”

“No, I have money in my piggy bank. Yeona has a lot of money.”

“How much is in the piggy bank?”

“About one hundred million?”

Pffft. Jeongho, who had been quietly listening from a distance, burst into laughter first. Even the smartest child still had illusions about money they hadn’t counted yet.

Realizing that her claim didn’t hold, Yeona quickly changed her answer.

“No, about one million?”

This time, she glanced at her mother after making the statement. When Jeongho quietly shook her head, Yeona changed her answer again.

“About one hundred thousand. Anyway, Yeona has saved up a lot of money for her whole life.”

The money that had started as one hundred million had ultimately been reduced to one hundred thousand. To a child, one hundred thousand, one million, or one hundred million all seemed like a lot of money.

“Then I’ll buy it. With one hundred thousand won, I can buy fifty stickers.”

“Are you really going to spend your whole life’s savings on Dad? Is that okay?”

“Of course. It’s only natural. Yeona values Dad more than money.”

With that answer, Yeona dashed to her room to bring back her piggy bank. The rabbit-shaped piggy bank made quite a heavy sound. It was the sound of the money Yeona had saved up in her seven years of life turning into stickers.

“Yeona, Dad is now completely pain-free and relaxed. So we only need one healing fairy.”

Before Yeona could break the rabbit’s neck, Jihun quickly spoke up.

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

Drrrrr. Drrrrr.

He was already on his tenth call, but the man didn’t pick up. After repeatedly pressing the call button, Eunbi threw her phone onto the bed and screamed, “Aaaah!” Tears welled up in her eyes.

She went to the blind date as her brother had suggested. The man was a 43-year-old divorcee. It seemed he had dumped black powder over his thinning hair, as black dust fell every time he bowed his head. Eunbi felt nauseous and couldn’t eat.

The divorcee showed interest in Eunbi’s appearance, but when she mentioned her age of thirty, he frowned slightly. He casually remarked that he had never met someone in their thirties before.

Then, with an air of pride, he boasted about his assets: several houses, several buildings, worth billions in total… His overflowing confidence stemmed from his wealth.

He spoke as if he expected her to adapt to his lifestyle simply because he had this much money.

Unable to tolerate the divorcee’s arrogance any longer, Eunbi stood up, claiming she wasn’t feeling well.

Leaving Max Planning felt like falling off a cliff.

Eunyeob had lined up several blind dates with men in their forties who were wealthy. Among them were men with two divorce records and even one with a child.

Receiving such a list only made her miss men even more. She longed for a regular office worker who was young, smart, and handsome—someone who could easily compare to Jeong Ji-heon in looks.

Eunbi suppressed her pride and sent a text message to the man.

– Why haven’t you contacted me?

– I have so many difficult things going on. I feel like I’m going to die. Come comfort me soon.

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

After putting Yeona to bed, Jeongho and Jihun stepped outside. Despite it being late at night, the air was humid. Jihun felt like Jeongho was glancing toward the convenience store at the end of the alley, so he firmly warned her.

“Lee Jeong-ho, don’t roam around at night.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re so beautiful that someone might snatch you away.”

“Pff.”

“I’m serious.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

Jeongho sighed and responded apathetically.

It was true. Jihun had intended to talk about Kim Jingu but quickly shut his mouth. He couldn’t worry her without any prior investigation.

As Jeongho looked at him skeptically, she said,

“Be careful yourself.”

After parting with Jihun, Jeongho headed straight to the convenience store. Given the hot weather, she desperately craved a beer. She decided she would quickly down a can of beer and then go home to sleep comfortably.

However, she unexpectedly ran into a man outside the convenience store.

“Ah? Officer! Hello!”

“Oh, hello.”

While Jeongho greeted him warmly, Bae Il looked embarrassed and quickly flushed. He was sitting alone in front of the convenience store, drinking soju. The soju bottle was already half-empty.

Jeongho went into the store and came out with a can of beer and some snacks.

“If you only drink soju, you’ll hurt your stomach. The people’s walking stick must be strong!”

“… I’m fine, really.”

Bae Il awkwardly replied and bowed his head.

“Anyway, thank you.”

Jeongho smiled and popped open her beer can. She had initially planned to drink the beer quickly without any snacks, but now that she had a drinking companion, she felt more secure.

And there was something to say to her neighbor.

“Officer, I’m moving.”

“… Oh.”

Once again, Bae Il’s reaction was slow.

“That’s a good thing, right?”

“Yes. I met the child’s father.”

“… So the long-term unresolved case has been resolved.”

At Bae Il’s cautious prediction, Jeongho nodded vigorously.

“What do you feel?”

“It feels good. It’s hard to put into words.”

“….”

“But it’s also scary in a way.”

“Everything will be fine.”

Bae Il spoke in a reassuring voice, uplifting Jeongho’s spirits.

“You’re a strong person, Lee Jeong-ho, so you’ll overcome anything.”

“How do you know whether I’m strong or weak, Officer?”

“Well, I can guess because you raised your child so well.”

Although Jeongho shook her head humbly, she felt good. Bae Il was indeed a man with good public consultation skills.

Adding certainty to his claim, Bae Il opened his mouth again.

“In fact, Yeona resembles me. I didn’t have a father either. It was just my mother and me in this world.”

“Ah….”

“Now it’s different. Yeona has met her father.”

Jeongho’s mouth fell open at Bae Il’s personal story, which she was hearing for the first time. His kind-looking eyes appeared lonely.

“I think I was in a similar situation to yours, Officer. I also grew up without a father.”

Jeongho broke down the wall and confessed her personal story.

“But you know, single-parent families can still be healthy and happy.”

“….”

“Your mother must be very proud of you. Her only son grew up so well, as a wonderful pillar of the people.”

“That’s true. I hope so.”

“….”

“I wasn’t able to see her before I became a police officer.”

Ah. Once again, Jeongho’s lips parted. What was meant to be comforting turned into a reminder of Bae Il’s pain.

Noticing Jeongho’s embarrassment, Bae Il quickly apologized.

“Oh, I talked about something depressing. I’m sorry.”

“No, no. I’m the one who should apologize, Officer.”

Feeling awkward, Jeongho turned her head aside and took a sip of her beer. Perhaps because she had nothing more to say, she emptied the can in just a few gulps. As the alcohol spread within her, her body warmed up, and she felt emboldened.

“Officer, I told you once that living is a struggle.”

Today, she wanted to encourage Officer Kwon Bae Il, who seemed especially lonely and lifeless.

“So your age is a measure of the time you’ve spent overcoming those struggles. You should applaud yourself.”

Jeongho clenched her fist and spoke with vigor.

“I’m sure your mother is proud of you as well.”

“Do you really think so?”

“Of course.”

“Thank you. Truly.”

Bae Il smiled gently. His kind expression, in turn, made Jeongho feel comforted.

Noticing that Jeongho’s beer can was empty, Bae Il said,

“You can leave first. I’ll stay a little longer before heading in.”

“Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

“Of course. Aside from my worries, I’m fine. My unresolved case is still ongoing.”

“Ah… So there are no signs of resolution?”

“I’m not sure how things will go from here.”

Just as Jeongho had opened up about her troubles, Bae Il shared his current concerns.

“You know the butterfly effect, right? The weak flutter of a butterfly’s wings in one village can turn into a typhoon in another region. Depending on how that typhoon develops, the fate of the butterfly that caused it will also be determined.”

As Jeongho rolled her eyes at Bae Il’s profound metaphor, she suddenly said,

“Do you know about that?”

“….”

“I’ve heard that the butterfly in the butterfly effect is actually a cat. When a wingless cat tries its best to fly, all the people in the village help it out, you know, to build a plane for it. While they were making the plane, a lot of carbon dioxide was emitted in that village. In the end, that turned into a typhoon.”

Bae Il, with his wide eyes focused intently on Jeongho’s quirky yet earnest story, suddenly burst into laughter. His face, filled with concern, seemed to brighten with a genuine smile brought on by Jeongho, who shared in his joy.

“Yeona’s father must be really lucky to have someone as interesting as you, Lee Jeong-ho.”

“Oh, come on, it’s nothing special.”

“Thank you. I hope your move goes well.”

“Yes. I wish you happiness wherever you are.”

Jeongho blessed Bae Il’s future as if it were her final farewell, then departed. Bae Il watched her walk away for a long time before getting up from his seat.

His steps were heavy. The humid weather caused beads of sweat to cling to his clothing.

As he arrived at his empty house, which felt desolate with nothing around, the experiences from outside seemed to fade into a dream.

On the bed, his phone, set to silent all day, lay quietly doing its job.

—Why haven’t you contacted me?

—I’m going through a lot. I feel like I’m dying. Come quickly and comfort me.

Bae Il furrowed his brows at the two text messages for a moment before immediately pressing the delete button. He opened the refrigerator and pulled out a can of beer.

Just like Jeongho moments ago, he emptied the beer can in one go. A warm breeze flowed in through the partially opened window. Bae Il leaned against the side.

From the fourth floor of the neighboring building, he caught a glimpse of a living room light turning on and then off again. It seemed like sweat was trickling from his eyes as well.