A child who looks like me

Jeong-oh came out of the house holding Ji-heon’s hand.

The strong hand that had desperately clung to him in the hypnosis counseling room was now warm. Jeong-oh felt relieved by this warmth, but his concern returned when he realized Ji-heon was going to drive.

“Are you really okay to drive?”

“Of course.”

Ji-heon replied lightly. His condition had quickly recovered. He knew it was because Jeong-oh was by his side.

“If I had a little more time, I would have fully regained my strength…”

“Ugh.”

In the apartment parking lot, Jeong-oh hurriedly covered Ji-heon’s mouth as a passerby walked by. With his weakened heart, he had let his guard down and was now talking too freely.

“Yikes!”

But that hand soon fell away. Ji-heon’s tongue darted out and licked Jeong-oh’s palm.

“Hey!”

Jeong-oh shouted and withdrew his hand. Her face turned bright red from the sticky sensation on her palm.

Ji-heon stuck out his tongue in a teasing manner. It looked more suggestive than playful, and his gaze, half-lidded as he looked at her, hinted at a desire that could swell up at any moment.

I wonder if it’s okay to take this man, whose mental state seems R-rated, straight to Ye-na.

Jeong-oh glared at Ji-heon with a frustrated expression, and he grabbed her shoulder, pulling her close to him. He was anxious about even a moment of distance between them.

The feelings he had while lying on the bed, confident that she was his, faded as soon as they stepped away. The distance felt more tenuous than ever. He had no idea when he would be able to overcome this anxiety. If possible, he wanted to stay with her 24/7.

“By the way, I have a question.”

Once they got into the car, Jeong-oh asked.

“When the doctor mentioned the pregnancy test, you said ‘no,’ right?”

“I did?”

“Yes. The doctor described my old studio apartment. There were various things in the studio, and when he opened the desk drawer, there was a pregnancy test. We looked at the pregnancy test together the day before your accident.”

Since he seemed not to remember, Jeong-oh clearly recounted what had happened just a few hours ago. Ji-heon’s brow furrowed, just like back then.

“But you said ‘no’ while you were in hypnosis. Why was that?”

Ji-heon pondered the situation from that time. He thought he could see something in the pinhole-sized field of vision, but the image wouldn’t resurface as if someone was forcibly pushing the memory away.

“I don’t know either. I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay.”

Jeong-oh waved her hand at his apology.

“I’m sorry.”

She wanted to pull out the memory but knew she couldn’t cause him pain out of her own desire. Now that they had met again and he vaguely remembered her, there was no need to struggle to recall the past.

It’s okay. Those empty spaces in your mind can be filled with a happy present.

“Let’s not do hypnosis therapy. We don’t need to.”

“…”

“I just want you to not feel anxious or distressed.”

He smiled slightly, lifting the corners of his lips, and started the car.

When they arrived home, they had dinner with Ye-na and Guk-soon.

There wasn’t much time left to spend in this house. Whether it was the coziness of the small house or the bright energy of its residents, Ji-heon, who hadn’t visited this place often, felt a sense of attachment and regret at leaving.

Memories.

They had formed memories.

He had been living a hollow life with nothing to remember and nothing to regret, but now there was a time he had to cherish. And because of those times, he felt he should live the future more fully.

He wanted to create more memories. He wanted to build precious recollections.

“Why is our Jeong husband doing the dishes? Just leave it.”

As soon as Ji-heon rolled up his sleeves to start washing the dishes, Guk-soon rushed over. Ji-heon had taken over the sink while Guk-soon had gone to the bathroom.

“I’ll do it.”

“Still, it’s not right for a newlywed to do that.”

It felt wasteful to have a son-in-law doing chores. Still, Guk-soon found Ji-heon’s actions admirable and quietly watched him.

Ji-heon was struggling to scrub the grime from Ye-na’s water bottle. As she watched him, Guk-soon ultimately smiled and took the brush and water bottle from Ji-heon’s hands.

“Our son-in-law doesn’t know how to scrub properly.”

“You have to scrub in the direction of the grime. There’s dirt in the horizontal lines, and scrubbing vertically for a hundred days won’t do any good.”

Guk-soon skillfully scraped the grime off the water bottle. Ji-heon stared at the now-clean opening of the bottle.

After putting Ye-na to bed, Jeong-oh and Ji-heon went outside.

Jeong-oh kept an eye on Ji-heon’s condition. Now that they were home and spending time with Ye-na, Ji-heon’s face had completely recovered. He didn’t look like someone who had just gone through such a difficult experience a few hours ago.

But she was worried that he might be forcing himself to seem fine.

“Are you sure you can drive well?”

“Of course.”

Ji-heon replied reassuringly, just like before, and called Jeong-oh over leisurely.

“Jeong-oh.”

“Yeah?”

“I’m going to continue with the hypnosis therapy.”

“…Are you sure that’s okay?”

“I’m not sure. But anyway, I’ll give it a try.”

Let’s scrub in the direction of the grime.

If there’s a response, let’s try in the direction of the response. Let’s not avoid it. That was the life lesson Ji-heon learned while washing the dishes today.

Hearing Ji-heon’s resolution lit up Jeong-oh’s eyes. It wasn’t from excitement but from gratitude. She was thankful that Ji-heon was making an effort to improve.

“Okay! Then I’ll contact the doctor again. Just don’t overdo it. You don’t have to find those memories, and there are other ways to treat this.”

“…”

“Oppa is precious; it’s not the memories that are precious.”

“Are you telling me not to go home now?”

The warm conversation shifted abruptly, and his gaze turned lewd.

Jeong-oh was so taken aback that she flared her nostrils. Ji-heon embraced her.

“Now, this is goodbye, but also hello.”

She thought about giving him a little lecture, but Jeong-oh couldn’t say anything in response to his sweet voice.

Two days before the move. She would finally be able to live under the same roof with him. Jeong-oh felt giddy about it like a child.

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

After parting with Jeong-oh, Ji-heon, feeling invigorated, went to meet with the counselor. Upon arriving at the meeting place, Ji-heon first asked the counselor about Kim Jin-goo.

“Have you visited the accident scene?”

“Yes. The police classified it as an accidental fall, so the site was cleaned up quickly.”

“Have the autopsy results come out? Was there anything unusual with the body?”

“Other than a high blood alcohol concentration, there seems to be nothing significant. However…”

“…”

“They still haven’t found his cellphone.”

“That cellphone must have recorded the video he sent me.”

Ji-heon showed the email Kim Jin-goo had sent him to the counselor again.

“I haven’t reported this email to the police. Since they’re not looking for it, I don’t think I need to submit it myself.”

As Ji-heon spoke to the counselor, who was closely examining the video attached to the email, the counselor nodded several times.

“The vehicle’s number plate isn’t visible. If we could see the license plate, it would be easier. We need to identify the vehicle type first. The background scenery isn’t distinctive, so it won’t be easy either.”

“But you can still try, right?”

“We have to give it a shot. It could take a long time.”

“I’ll provide as many cases as needed. Please, I’m counting on you.”

“Is there anything else that might be a clue? Someone you have a hunch about?”

At the counselor’s question, Ji-heon hesitated for a moment before answering.

“Kim Jin-goo threatened Chae Eun-bi, a witness to the accident seven years ago. I mentioned to Eun-bi that I have an older brother.”

“Ah, yes. Lawyer Chae Eun-yeob.”

The counselor answered right away, having gathered that information through investigations.

“Chae Eun-yeob is ambitious and will go to any lengths for his goals. We can’t jump to conclusions, but the person tracking Kim Jin-goo could be someone hired by Eun-yeob.”

“I’ll need to look into that.”

The counselor nodded.

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

After a week of construction, wallpapering, cleaning, and moving in furniture, Sunday finally arrived, marking the day for Jeong-oh’s family to move.

Jeong-oh got out of bed, feeling groggy. She had fallen asleep with her neck twisted, having rolled off her pillow. She could guess how much Ye-na had kicked during the night.

Ye-na, you might become a soccer player rather than a Go player, huh?

Jeong-oh laid Ye-na down properly and stepped out of the room. Her neck was stiff, so she rubbed the back of her neck and drank some water.

How will Ye-na sleep now? Am I going to have to keep sleeping with her?

‘It doesn’t seem like Jeong Ji-heon would allow that.’

Jeong-oh and Ji-heon decorated Ye-na’s bedroom. After moving in, they wanted to surprise her, so they hadn’t shown her the room yet. Naturally, they hadn’t talked about sleeping arrangements with Ye-na either.

The task for today would be to persuade Ye-na to sleep in her own room.

“What’s wrong? Did you sleep poorly?”

Kuk-soon, who had woken up earlier than Jeong-oh and had already tidied up, asked. She quickly checked her daughter’s condition.

“Yes. Ye-na slept really roughly.”

“You’re just like you were when you were little, so fierce.”

“Mom, don’t tell Ye-na’s dad about that, okay?”

Ji-heon had begun to enjoy teasing Jeong-oh whenever he discovered her weaknesses. He felt like he would have a lot of fun teasing her again if he learned this secret, so Jeong-oh firmly instructed her mom.

Ding-dong.

Just as she finished her instructions, the front door opened, and Ji-heon walked in.

“Mother, did you sleep well? What’s wrong with Jeong-oh?”

Noticing Jeong-oh’s sulky nod, Ji-heon immediately asked.

“I slept poorly…”

“Then rest in my car. Don’t bother helping with the move.”

Ji-heon offered a solution to Jeong-oh’s confession.

While the moving crew handled the heavy lifting, Jeong-oh and Ye-na spent time in Ji-heon’s car, while Kuk-soon and Ji-heon directed the workers and helped with the smaller tasks. Thanks to the thorough organizing done by Kuk-soon and Ji-heon the day before, the moving process went smoothly.

While waiting for Kuk-soon and Ji-heon, someone knocked on the car window.

“Ah? Uncle!”

Ye-na was the first to shout. It was Kwon Bae-il.

Jeong-oh and Ye-na opened the car door and stepped outside.

“Hello, Ye-na.”

“Hello, Uncle!”

“You’re moving today, right? Is there anything uncomfortable?”

Noticing Jeong-oh’s discomfort, Bae-il asked kindly.

“No, I just slept poorly.”

As Jeong-oh answered, Ye-na giggled beside her. Meanwhile, Bae-il went into the house and quickly came back out. He was holding a paper bag.

Bae-il handed the paper bag to Jeong-oh. Inside were a Go board, Go stones, and a coin patch.

“It’s a coin patch. It works well when you have a stiff neck. Once the move is over, it might be good for your family to use it too.”

“Oh, no, you didn’t have to…”

Jeong-oh was taken aback by the unexpected gift and couldn’t properly express her gratitude. Without waiting for Jeong-oh’s reaction, Bae-il spoke to Ye-na.

“Ye-na, this is a gift from Uncle.”

“A Go board?”

“Yes. But this is not just any Go board; it’s signed by the professional player who has won the most championships in our country.”

Upon hearing Bae-il’s explanation, Jeong-oh was even more surprised.

“No, you can’t just give me something so precious. No, it’s okay.”

“I don’t play Go anymore, so I thought it would be nice to give it to Ye-na since she likes it.”

“Still…”

“Good luck with your move, and take care.”

While Jeong-oh fidgeted, Ye-na accepted the paper bag.

“Uncle, this is heavy.”

“Should I carry it for you?”

“Yes!”

Bae-il placed the paper bag into the moving truck. Ye-na gave a hearty greeting.

“Thank you!”

“Ye-na, you’ll be a first grader next year, right?”

“Yes!”

“Good. Have fun in school, stay healthy, and be cheerful.”

“Yes!”

Bae-il ruffled Ye-na’s hair. It was a warm gesture.

“Lee Ye-na. Your name is going to change now.”

Not understanding Bae-il’s implication, Ye-na tilted her head. Bae-il spoke to her in a gentle voice.

“Even if your name changes, Uncle will always remember you.”