#66
Trying to jog his memory, Hyun-oh searched the dressing room for items that might have disappeared. Both his closet and the rack where Eunsol’s clothes hung were filled with new clothes that still had their tags attached.
Among them, he searched frantically for the things Eunsol frequently wore. Like the white silk pajamas that were as soft as Eunsol’s skin, or the light beige cashmere cardigan he would occasionally put on.
Strangely enough, the clothes Eunsol frequently wore had vanished from the dressing room.
While he hadn’t taken a single ring, the few articles of clothing he regularly wore were gone. Then Hyun-oh noticed that clothes were missing from his closet too.
There was an outfit he often wore when at home. It was a cardigan similar in design to Eunsol’s.
It was a cardigan that fit his body perfectly, one his hand would unconsciously reach for when it hung on the rack. Besides that piece, nothing else seemed to be missing.
For someone else, this might have been a situation where they simply took a spontaneous trip, but given Eunsol’s personality, he wouldn’t leave home without saying anything.
“He really… disappeared.”
Hyun-oh raised his hand and roughly wiped his face. He desperately craved the tobacco in the drawer of his Chairman’s office.
He had never smoked tobacco at home since it was a space where Eunsol lived. Because of this, he hadn’t even thought to keep tobacco at home.
There was only one space he hadn’t yet entered. The place where Eunsol would occasionally linger in front of the door, a place where Hyun-oh had not permitted entry.
With dragging steps, Hyun-oh headed toward the study. Having searched everywhere else, if Eunsol wasn’t here either, he would have to accept the fact that Eunsol had truly disappeared without a word.
His chest heaving from his unintentionally rough breathing, he opened the door.
But Eunsol wasn’t here either. The muscles in Hyun-oh’s jaw visibly tensed. His emotions were so intense that his vision throbbed, as if he might lash out at someone without even realizing it.
“Haa…”
Even after exhaling a long breath, the throbbing headache didn’t diminish; rather, it seemed poised to completely dominate Hyun-oh’s mind.
Then something out of place caught his eye. The study was a place where even the household staff were strictly forbidden to enter, so cleaning was done only by Hyun-oh or Kim Myungjun personally.
There was only one difference from the last time he had seen it. His gaze automatically went to the object prominently placed on the table.
He had a bad feeling. Hyun-oh hurriedly approached the table and picked up the manila envelope.
The moment he took out and checked the documents inside, a gasp escaped Hyun-oh’s lips.
“…Divorce papers.”
Next to Eunsol’s name, a seal was clearly stamped. The red color seemed to sear through his retina and brand a red-hot iron into his heart.
Emotions too complex to define in simple terms boiled inside his chest, making him wonder if he had ever felt this emotionally intense in his life.
Wrinkles began to form on the neatly placed documents. It was by chance that his eyes lingered on the watch Eunsol had given him, which he had worn every day since receiving it. Ever since seeing the faint blush on Eunsol’s cheeks whenever he looked at his wrist, his hand naturally gravitated toward this watch alone.
Eunsol was someone who felt happy just by the fact that Hyun-oh wore the watch.
…What could possibly be the reason for Eunsol to do something like this?
Even asking himself, no answer came to mind. Eunsol was someone with nowhere to return to. After personally witnessing how Eunsol’s stepmother and half-brother tormented him, Hyun-oh had made sure they couldn’t establish themselves in high society.
News that Yoo Hye-jin had wet herself at a beauty shop had already spread discreetly throughout social circles. Knowing this, Hye-jin had shut herself at home for a while, ceasing all social activities.
Unlike Hye-jin, Eunsol’s half-brother, Lee Joo-young, had been actively moving around in social circles since that day, trying to find a suitable marriage partner.
All while spreading malicious rumors about Eunsol.
Hyun-oh wasn’t one to leave that alone. Before Kang Ye-ryeong could take action, Hyun-oh had used his social connections to ensure that Joo-young couldn’t attend gatherings with his peers.
By the time Hye-jin had recovered from the shock and tried to return to social circles, he had driven the mother and son to a point where they had nowhere to set foot.
Eunsol’s father had continuously reached out to Hyun-oh, expressing his desire to meet, but Hyun-oh hadn’t married Eunsol because of his background in the first place. He only needed someone presentable enough to be his spouse and didn’t feel the need for help from the Ongaram Group.
While receiving assistance from such a solid company would benefit the TH Group, they had close relationships with other groups to the extent that there would be no problem without the Ongaram Group.
Eventually, Joo-young went to study abroad in the United States, almost as if being driven out, along with Hye-jin. Hyun-oh had completely blocked any path for him to return to Korea with a decent marriage prospect.
So Eunsol was in a situation where he couldn’t return to his family. Not only would his family be unlikely to accept him, but they might also vent their anger on Eunsol for what Hyun-oh had done.
While Eunsol was gentle and tender in nature, he was by no means foolish. This was evident in how he absorbed social information provided by Kim Myungjun and Kang Ye-ryeong like a sponge soaking up water.
The possibility of such a person voluntarily going back to his family was extremely low.
Eunsol had two remaining options. One of those people passed through the open study door and approached Hyun-oh with fierce steps.
“What on earth did you do to the child? How did you behave that he disappeared without a word?”
Hyun-oh pressed between his brows at the high-pitched voice ringing in his ears. Hearing Kang Ye-ryeong’s voice, his already severe headache intensified to the point where he had to clench his teeth.
“Go home. I’ll contact you after I find him.”
Hyun-oh had no room to argue with Kang Ye-ryeong right now. Just thinking about the missing Eunsol made his mind feel like a bomb with a lit fuse, about to explode.
“I’ve been just watching, thinking it was between a married couple. If I had known you were pushing the child to the point of running away…”
Kang Ye-ryeong couldn’t finish her sentence and raised her neatly groomed eyebrows. This was because Hyun-oh had violently slammed his fist on the desk, leaving an indentation.
The sound was so tremendous that an ordinary person would have flinched in surprise, but Kang Ye-ryeong’s expression only grew colder.
“…Did you behave this way toward the child too?”
Even when he seemed to have calmed down, he had been a child who would roll his big eyes, observing reactions carefully. If he had acted this violently toward Eunsol, it would be understandable for him to run away in fear.
Even if he hadn’t raised a hand, this kind of behavior would certainly come across as threatening to someone like Eunsol.
“I’ve never done that.”
Hyun-oh roughly pushed his hair back. The joints of his knuckles were scratched to the point of bleeding from the friction, but Hyun-oh was so extremely agitated that he couldn’t even properly feel the pain.
It felt like he had returned to his childhood when he couldn’t even properly control his emotions.
Hyun-oh closed his eyes and tried to extend his exhale to calm his heaving chest, but it was to no avail. Even with his eyes closed, only Eunsol’s white face, tinged with sadness, came to mind, causing his breathing to continue jumping irregularly.
What could have been the problem?
Hyun-oh searched his jumbled thoughts, trying to recall Eunsol’s recent behavior. Then a few instances came to mind.
The moment when Eunsol had tried to talk to him after he returned home at dawn, acting as if he had something to say, or the time at the restaurant when Eunsol had confessed his feelings.
At that time, Eunsol had clearly told him, as he was turning to leave the room, that he would miss him.
It was a statement he had dismissed as insignificant at the time, but it was evident that Eunsol had already completed all preparations to leave him.
“Have you mobilized people?”
As Hyun-oh’s breathing gradually calmed as he was lost in thought, Kang Ye-ryeong, who had been standing with her arms crossed, spoke in a low voice.
After receiving Song Do-ye’s call and feeling uneasy, she had also contacted Kim Myungjun. Only after hearing Kim Myungjun’s voice did Kang Ye-ryeong realize that something serious had happened to Eunsol.
To make matters worse, it was a season when the tip of one’s nose would quickly turn red from the cold if they went outside. Given Eunsol’s personality, even if he had left home, he probably wouldn’t have taken proper care of himself, causing her immense worry.
The image of Eunsol wandering the night streets wearing only a thin coat made even the veins at Kang Ye-ryeong’s temples rise.
“Before my patience runs out, I’d like to know how things are progressing, son.”
The thread sustaining her patience was stretched so thin it seemed about to snap at any moment. Just as Hyun-oh had failed to control his emotions and damaged the desk, Kang Ye-ryeong was barely suppressing her urge to shout.
She didn’t think for a moment that Eunsol was at fault. It was definitely Hyun-oh’s mistake. Otherwise, someone who liked Hyun-oh so much wouldn’t have disappeared without a word. And to keep it a secret even from her.
“…I’ve had Manager Kim mobilize all personnel. So please, Mother, don’t make this a bigger issue and go back home.”
As Kang Ye-ryeong’s voice grew not just cold but fierce, Hyun-oh opened his tightly closed eyes and met her gaze.
Two pairs of identical eyes intertwined fiercely in mid-air.
Kang Ye-ryeong barely pushed down the words that had risen to the tip of her chin. She felt like slapping Hyun-oh’s cheek.
Her husband was a disgraceful man to be displayed anywhere, but she hadn’t expected the same from Hyun-oh.
After marriage, he had immediately cut ties with the partners he occasionally met, so she had thought he would be faithful to his spouse, but this was a misjudgment.
Hyun-oh resembled his father. The way he acted according to his own desires, regardless of whether his married partner’s heart was dying, was identical.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
