#064
On the day of Kim Tae-pung’s concert, Gyo-ha willingly volunteered to be the driver. To think there would come a day when the third son of the BK Group would be used as a chauffeur. Life was indeed full of surprises.
Hwi-kyung insisted on taking the wheel due to Gyo-ha’s habit of sudden stops, but Gyo-ha defended his position as the driver, repeating his promise to drive safely three times.
How could one stop someone from driving their own car? Hwi-kyung sat in the back seat instead of the passenger seat. It was better to sit close to keep an eye on his grandmother, who had come out of the hospital after a long time.
Ok-ja and Gyo-ha quickly became close. Somehow, Ok-ja was now more affectionate towards Gyo-ha than her own grandson, Hwi-kyung.
Lee Gyo-ha treated Kim Ok-ja with utmost care, as if she were his own grandmother. Not only did he bring expensive fruit baskets every time he visited, but he also played hwatu (Korean card game) in place of Hwi-kyung.
Unlike Hwi-kyung, who had become a master at hwatu after playing hundreds of times, Gyo-ha didn’t even know the rules well. Ok-ja excitedly coaxed Gyo-ha into playing hwatu for 100 won per point.
As a result, Lee Gyo-ha lost 50,000 won to Kim Ok-ja in less than half a day. Since it was 100 won per point, one could only imagine how many times he had lost.
Getting concert tickets, letting her win money at hwatu… Lee Gyo-ha was someone Kim Ok-ja had no reason to dislike. Moreover, Ok-ja seemed to genuinely consider Gyo-ha as a potential spouse for Hwi-kyung.
“So, is Hwi-kyung treating you well?”
“Of course. Hwi-kyung likes me so much. Right?”
“……”
“Since he’s not denying it, he must really like me.”
“My, you’re quite the smooth talker.”
Every time Hwi-kyung saw Gyo-ha dealing with Ok-ja so confidently, he was at a loss for words. He was grateful that Gyo-ha was being nice to his grandmother, but Gyo-ha was acting almost like a grandson-in-law.
Hwi-kyung felt a bit uncomfortable about it. It was true that he liked Gyo-ha, but they weren’t even dating yet… From afar, Gyo-ha looked exactly like Hwi-kyung’s spouse.
But Hwi-kyung was too decent a person to ask, “We’re not dating, are we?” to someone who not only got Kim Tae-pung concert tickets but was also accompanying them to the concert.
Besides, apart from feeling uncomfortable, it wasn’t such a bad feeling to see Ok-ja and Gyo-ha getting along well. After all, they were the two most important people to Hwi-kyung.
Jung-hye called Gyo-ha just before they arrived at the concert venue. Since Gyo-ha was driving, he answered Jung-hye’s call on speakerphone.
– Gyo-ha? I heard you’re going to Kim Tae-pung’s concert today.
“Yeah.”
– Did you go with Hwi-kyung?
“Yes.”
– Hmm, that’s a bit troublesome then.
“What is?”
– Our grandmother is also going to that concert right now.
“Grandmother? Which one? Paternal grandmother?”
– No, maternal grandmother.
“So?”
– If you have time, could you bring her back when you return?
“…Alright. If you had told me earlier, we could have picked her up on the way.”
– That’s what I’m saying.
Jung-hye sighed as if tired.
– But you know how our maternal grandmother is…
“Always appearing and disappearing unexpectedly.”
– That’s right.
Gyo-ha was once again surprised by Kim Tae-pung’s popularity. As far as he knew, his maternal grandmother wasn’t someone who would be interested in things like trot music.
Because his maternal grandmother was… a famous fortune-teller who could predict the next president with her eyes closed. She wouldn’t like to set foot in a concert hall where there were said to be as many ghosts as people.
“My grandmother is coming too, is that okay?”
“To the concert hall? If we had known, we could have come together in the car.”
“I just found out too. Our maternal grandmother is a bit…”
“Unpredictable, right?”
“Yes. I haven’t seen her since I was young.”
Unlike Gyo-ha, who took his grandmother’s sudden participation seriously, Hwi-kyung didn’t think much about Gyo-ha’s maternal grandmother. Kim Tae-pung’s popularity among older women was sensational, and not just Ok-ja, but most elderly people wanted to come to Kim Tae-pung’s concert.
So Gyo-ha’s grandmother must have been the same. For the mother-in-law of the BK Group’s chairman, getting concert tickets must have been as easy as pie. If she wasn’t close to her grandchildren, it wasn’t strange for her to go to the concert alone.
Gyo-ha immediately called his grandmother. Since things had turned out this way, he intended to invite her to the safe VIP seats. But the phone just kept ringing without connecting.
“She’s not answering the phone.”
“There are a lot of people… We’ll go in separately, so you should find your grandmother and bring her.”
“Is that okay?”
“Of course.”
The two parted at the entrance of the concert hall. Hwi-kyung bought Kim Tae-pung cheering sticks for Ok-ja at the MD shop located at the front of the concert hall. Ok-ja clicked her tongue, asking why he was spending money on such things, but she seemed secretly pleased.
They took pictures next to a life-size standee of Kim Tae-pung and were surrounded by ladies who seemed to be part of the fan club, saying they envied Ok-ja for coming with her grandson. When Ok-ja laughed like a young girl, Hwi-kyung laughed along.
He felt surprisingly fulfilled. This finally felt like life. Even if all of this might become nothing the next day, at least for this moment, he could laugh comfortably.
“Grandma, let’s go in soon.”
“Already?”
“Yeah. The show will start soon.”
“Aw, I was just getting close to that lady from Changwon.”
Ok-ja, who had quickly become close to a fan club member from Changwon, clicked her tongue in disappointment. The middle-aged woman called “Changwon lady” waved goodbye to Ok-ja with a friendly smile, saying they should meet again next time.
Hwi-kyung guided Ok-ja into the concert hall. The VIP seats were close to the stage. Ok-ja stopped briefly in front of the aisle leading to the VIP seats, saying her back hurt.
“I get to come to places like this because I have a good grandson.”
“I’ll keep treating you well in the future.”
“My precious puppy.”
To Ok-ja, Hwi-kyung was always a cute and adorable puppy, no matter how old he got. Whether he got into a good company or not, he was her only grandson, and the sore spot who grew up struggling because she had failed in raising her own child.
“Kyung-ah, you know, right?”
“What?”
“That grandma loves you.”
“…I love you too, grandma.”
“So don’t feel too sorry.”
Ok-ja hugged Hwi-kyung lightly. Even before she was hospitalized, Ok-ja used to hug Hwi-kyung like this. She did the same when he got into university and before he enlisted in the military.
How could he not feel sorry? Ok-ja had died several times due to Hwi-kyung’s regressions. Her funeral was repeated, and Hwi-kyung fell apart easily as much as he had endured because of Ok-ja.
Kim Ok-ja’s stomach cancer was unavoidable. Most of humanity suffers from aging and disease before dying. But even knowing it was natural, Hwi-kyung always felt guilty.
It felt like all of this started because of him. If he hadn’t helped the fortune-teller grandmother, if he hadn’t said he wanted to get a job at a good company… But now there was no way to turn back.
Suboptimal condition:
When Hwi-kyung was lost in sentimental thoughts, the system window suddenly appeared. Since the concert hall wasn’t the company, the system window output was surprising even to Hwi-kyung.
Moreover, the system window only had the phrase “Suboptimal condition” fixed, with nothing else written. Thinking it was some kind of error, Hwi-kyung tried to close the window, but another window popped up.
Suboptimal condition: He
Suboptimal condition: Here
Cracks started to appear on the system window that had been fine no matter how much Hwi-kyung cursed it inwardly. The annoying Batang font outputting broken characters felt quite eerie.
Suboptimal condition: Escape
Escape from here? Hwi-kyung didn’t understand the system window’s instruction. Until now, the system window had never spoken to Hwi-kyung personally. This kind of demand was also a first.
Moreover, Hwi-kyung had no intention of leaving this concert hall. How could he come all the way to Kim Tae-pung’s concert and leave Ok-ja behind?
Hwi-kyung tried to ignore the system window and guided Ok-ja towards the VIP seats. With each step Hwi-kyung took, the system window popped up new windows as if screaming.
Suboptimal condition: Not yet
Suboptimal condition:
Suboptimal condition: Suboptimal condition
Do you want to regress?
It was distracting, but he couldn’t show it in front of Ok-ja. Hwi-kyung sat down with his lips tightly sealed. Even if forced regression started, it couldn’t happen now. He would go back at least after this concert was over.
He couldn’t understand the sudden system window malfunction, but he had to endure at least until Kim Tae-pung’s concert was over.
“Hwi-kyung!”
At that moment, Gyo-ha’s voice was heard from behind Hwi-kyung. His tense body finally relaxed. Now that Gyo-ha was here, it seemed good to discuss the current situation together.
Hwi-kyung slowly turned his head. Unlike Hwi-kyung who reflexively felt relieved, the system window was going crazy with each of Gyo-ha’s approaching footsteps. Now the letters were completely broken, making it impossible to read what it was saying.
“You came in first.”
Behind Gyo-ha stood an elderly woman with a hunched back. Although she was mostly hidden behind the tall Gyo-ha, Hwi-kyung felt as if he’d been electrocuted the moment he made eye contact with the old woman.
“This is my maternal grandmother.”
The elderly woman behind Lee Gyo-ha was familiar to Hwi-kyung.
“This can’t be.”
“Pardon?”
“This can’t be happening…”
The old woman who called herself a fortune-teller straightened up, holding onto Gyo-ha’s arm. Gyo-ha supported her quite skillfully.
Even with his seemingly malfunctioning brain, Hwi-kyung could recognize that this old woman was Gyo-ha’s maternal grandmother. The old woman who had offered to grant Hwi-kyung one wish smiled, revealing her gold teeth.
