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Grandfather finally raised his voice. He shouted while slamming his spoon on the table, but I calmly watched him before taking the spoon and scooping up some rice.
“What on earth do you think you’re doing?”
“What am I doing? I’m taking care of Grandfather’s meal. Come on, don’t be angry and eat quickly.”
I pushed the spoonful of rice into his open mouth, then picked up some spinach side dish and put it in his mouth next.
“And I noticed earlier that you’ve been eating only meat, but they say that as you age, your ability to digest meat decreases. Eat some vegetables. The spinach has a mild saltiness that’s quite nice. You know eating too much salt is bad for your health, right?”
The freezing atmosphere at the dining table showed no signs of thawing. The family members, frozen with their utensils in hand, couldn’t continue eating and just busily rolled their eyeballs, checking each other’s reactions.
“Can’t you keep your mouth shut?”
“Yes, please chew and swallow what’s in your mouth thoroughly. Our grandfather still has enough strength to shout and is in good health. I thought you were about to collapse because you couldn’t use chopsticks, but you’ll easily live for another three years.”
“This son of a bitch.”
He was so agitated that rice grains in his mouth flew everywhere. Wait, if he has this much energy, why can’t he use chopsticks? Did he grow up without learning how to use them?
“Ma’am, could you please give me a handkerchief? Has Grandfather always eaten like this, spilling food? Having a hospital director for a son is useless, utterly useless. Grandfather should really get checked up.”
Clicking my tongue with a tsk-tsk, I ostentatiously wiped Grandfather’s mouth with my sleeve. He pushed my hand away roughly and glared at me.
“Are you done eating? What other side dish would you like? What do you like, Grandfather? No, you should eat vegetables.”
“Get out. Disappear from my sight. Can’t someone throw out this insolent brat right now?”
“Oh my, your voice is strong and so is your strength. Don’t be stubborn and finish your meal quickly. From now on, I’ll take care of Grandfather’s meals. I’m afraid rumors might spread that Grandfather can only handle a spoon because he doesn’t have a caregiver. Ah, and next time I visit, I’ll bring a chair. If you need anything else, please let me know. Hmm, should I perhaps visit once a week?”
At my words, Grandfather looked like he was about to faint. Although he seemed like the type of old man whose death would benefit the family, I tried hard to maintain my expression and created a smiling face.
“What are you doing? Get this brat out of here right now.”
“I see our grandfather watches a lot of historical dramas at home. Yobora! Imprison this guy immediately! How was that? Did I get it right?”
After imitating a scene from a historical drama I had seen, raising my voice even louder than Grandfather’s, the sister-in-law who had been sitting with a dumbfounded expression laughed a bit, failing to read the atmosphere.
Look here, this isn’t the time for you to be laughing.
As if to prove this, Grandfather’s face turned red as if it might burst at any moment. He pushed back his chair, stood up, glared at me, and slapped my cheek with all his might. There was a cracking sound like a gourd being broken.
Wow, it seems alphas don’t lose their strength even as they age.
Stars flashed before my eyes and my vision momentarily went white. I stood firm, putting strength in my feet, and blinked slowly to try to normalize my flickering vision.
“Wow, …our grandfather is quite strong. I need to cancel the three years. You’ll probably live for another five years.”
After I spoke with a smile, his hand came flying at my other cheek. Even after being hit, I stubbornly put strength in both legs out of defiance. I must have gotten a nosebleed because a drop of red liquid fell onto the table with a plop. The atmosphere at the dining table became even colder than before.
“Grandfather. Getting so agitated is bad for your health. There’s a reason why old people fall backwards in the bathroom. Quickly sit down and finish your meal. Come on, quickly.”
I pressed down on Grandfather’s shoulders to make him sit, and I casually scooped up another spoonful of rice. Blood dripping from my nose fell onto the white rice on the spoon. I deliberately held out the rice stained with red liquid in front of Grandfather.
Go ahead and throw it away. I can ask for another spoon, and there’s still plenty of rice left.
Grandfather kept his lips tightly shut and just stared at the spoon of rice I was holding out. The family members who were watching the confrontation between me and Grandfather were, for some reason, unable to utter a single word and were even holding their breath.
Normally, Alpha Father would have scolded me or stopped Grandfather, but he too seemed perplexed by the current situation and unable to figure out what to say.
“Enough. I can’t swallow any more food. Let’s end the meal here.”
Grandfather spoke in a heavy tone as he stood up from his seat, as if he couldn’t see the spoon held out in front of him.
He’s quite quick to change emotions. I thought he would keep squawking, but this guy is no ordinary person. That’s probably why he’s been treating Omega Father like a servant all this time.
As Grandfather left the dining room, the family members rose from their seats. The eldest brother and his wife looked at me once before following Grandfather out, and the second brother muttered some unintelligible insults at me before leaving. Alpha Father, who had been sitting, stood up and looked at me.
“You’re being disrespectful to Grandfather.”
“If you want to discuss the current situation, let’s do it at home. This isn’t a simple situation that can be resolved with just one scolding from Father. If you don’t mind it getting lengthy, that’s fine with me too.”
At my retort, Father let out a disapproving groan and turned his back. Only Omega Father remained. He showed no change in expression even in this situation. He just looked up at my face, which was dripping blood from the nose. Untouched rice and soup still sat in front of him. For some reason, this made my heart sad.
Only my body is Cha Sukyung; my soul is Min Jaehee, so this person is a complete stranger with whom I have no relationship. And yet, I felt so sorry for him. I felt even sadder because I couldn’t tell what emotions he was hiding behind his expressionless face.
“Don’t do anything more. Just stay quiet until we leave.”
“Is there more to come?”
“It’s time for tea. Your grandfather also does foot baths at that time. …You should stop that nosebleed.”
He’s warning me about what’s going to happen, as if telling me not to be surprised and not to intervene. But that makes me even less likely to stay quiet.
After watching Omega Father quietly leave the dining room, I took out my phone from my pocket and contacted Lee Gyeongjin.
—Young master?
It was understandable that he was surprised, since I had gone in saying I would have a meal but was now calling him. I called out to him with a small smile, “Driver Lee.”
“Driver Lee, are you in the middle of a meal? I’m really sorry, but could you do me one favor? There’s something I urgently need. I’m truly sorry.”
—No, it’s fine. Go ahead and tell me.
Lee Gyeongjin was enthusiastic, and I quietly told him what I needed in an apologetic voice.
—What?
Lee Gyeongjin asked in surprise, as if he wasn’t sure if he had heard correctly.
—You really want me to bring that? Right now?
“Yes. It’s urgent. It won’t take long, will it?”
—Well, it’s sold almost everywhere, so I can get it, but do you really need it right now?
What, am I asking for something unnecessary just to mess with you? I answered with a strong “Yes!” and Lee Gyeongjin hung up with a reluctant voice, saying he would buy it right away. Blood was still dripping from my nose, so I put my phone in my pocket and covered my nose with my hand.
The only people left in the dining room were the employees. She was gathering the empty bowls on the table and moving them to the kitchen connected to the dining room.
“Ma’am.”
“…Yes?”
What crazy thing is he going to say now? Her thoughts were clearly visible in her frightened eyes.
“I’m sorry about earlier.”
“Ah, yes.”
“I wanted to tell you that everything I said was nonsense. You were upset, weren’t you? Earlier… the situation was a bit tense, right? Actually, all the side dishes were delicious. If the atmosphere had been good, I would have asked you to pack some. It’s a shame that they were left uneaten. You’re such a skilled cook that on any other day, Grandfather would have enjoyed his meal, right?”
My face, smiling while blood was running from my nose, probably looked like something from a horror movie, but I kept smiling resolutely. The woman, who had been listening to my words quietly, brought me a clean tissue and handed it to me.
“The chairman still has a fiery temper. So… like your parents said, just stay quiet until you leave. I heard you had an accident. You probably don’t remember, but this has always been the way things are. It’s just making trouble for yourself if you speak up. There’s nothing to gain if you get hit like you did just now.”
Instead, the woman was fidgeting and admonishing me. She must have been working here for quite a long time. And she must have witnessed days like today for quite a long time too.
“Just because something has always been a certain way doesn’t make it right. If you keep enduring it, it eventually becomes justified. I think it’s fortunate that I’ve lost my memory. Otherwise, I would have just continued to watch this happen. …My attendant will be here shortly. He’s bringing something I asked for, so please open the door for him. I… I need to sit here until he arrives.”
I don’t know what face to make if I go out to the living room. I rolled up the tissue and plugged my dripping nose with it. My nose bridge, which had already swollen, hurt even when I inserted the tissue.
I became afraid that the old man still had so much strength that he might live for several more decades. I hope I don’t have to see this kind of treatment for the rest of my life.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
