“Huh.”
Why wasn’t the work finished when all I did was breathe and work?
Saebyeok was half-heartedly eating lunch while mentally organizing tasks that seemed likely to finish quickly.
“Intern Shin.”
“Yes?”
“You’re supposed to peel a banana before eating it, you know?”
“Ah.”
He had been eating mindlessly and was about to put a banana in his mouth without peeling it. Saebyeok smiled awkwardly as he peeled the banana.
“You’ve completely lost your mind. How amazing was your date yesterday? Hmm? If it interferes with your work, even I, despite having my weakness exploited, won’t be able to allow any more dates.”
“You had your weakness exploited?”
“…No? Me? Come on. That’s ridiculous. I’m not the kind of person who gets their weakness exploited. Really. Really.”
He looked exactly like someone who had their social weakness exploited.
“Ah. I’m done. I’m done eating. Yeah. Yeah. Gotta go.”
Gong Jeong fidgeted as he took out a few bills from his wallet and placed them in front of Saebyeok.
“Even among family, financial transactions should be clear. Don’t forget to pay me back.”
“I’ll pay you back with interest higher than the base rate.”
“That’s a good mindset.”
Gong Jeong spoke cheerfully, but as he turned around, he let out a small sigh.
He seemed to mutter, ‘Gong Pyeonghwa, you son of a…’ but that couldn’t be right?
Back at his team, Saebyeok handed over the 100,000 won in a paper envelope to Saetbyeol.
Even in this day and age, Gong Jeong carried quite a bit of cash. He still had 100,000 won left after giving 100,000 won, and Saebyeok thought he should buy something for Gong Pyeonghwa with the remaining money.
Saetbyeol checked the amount on the spot, then looked at Saebyeok with a surprised face and muttered quietly.
‘As expected of a son of Shin…’
Well, since his surname is Shin, he is indeed a son of Shin.
Saetbyeol looked hesitant before asking Saebyeok.
“Um…”
“Yes?”
“It’s nothing.”
She seems more bored than she looks. Saebyeok didn’t think much of it, made himself a cup of coffee, and sat down to find a message waiting for him.
[Employee-Kim Saetbyeol: Saebyeok-nim gave 100,000 won ã„·ã„· even for the rich, 10 is the maximum ã…‹]
[Employee-Kim Saetbyeol: But why did you choose the name Shin Saebyeok?]
What’s this about?
Saebyeok didn’t think much of it and replied.
[Me: I was born at dawn, so my parents named me that]
There was still some time left before lunch break ended, but Saebyeok immediately started working for the movie date he had planned for today. Or at least, he tried to.
“Um, Saebyeok-nim…”
“Yes?”
“That, messenger, uh, I’m sorry…”
“For what?”
Hurry up and go back to your desk so I can work. Saebyeok suppressed what he wanted to say and put on a business smile.
“I’m sorry…”
“For what?”
“For talking behind your back… You must be upset… I’m sorry…”
What talk? Ah. Is she referring to the messenger conversation earlier?
“It’s fine. I don’t mind. I’m past that age.”
When Saebyeok was younger, he was sometimes teased because his name sounded like a girl’s name.
But we’re not middle or high school students anymore. Why make a fuss about a name at twenty-eight?
Manly Shin Saebyeok only wished that Saetbyeol would return to her desk soon.
“Well, no, I just wondered why you came with that name when everyone knows… I really didn’t mean anything by it. I’m sorry.”
“What… what does everyone know?”
“Saebyeok-nim, you’re a direct descendant of Taekang, right? Probably the only person in the company who doesn’t know is our team manager…”
“No, I’m not.”
I’m a direct descendant of Baeksan. I’m the heir to a competing company.
“No? You’re not? But then why are you with the Chairman and the Managing Director…”
Apart from Chairman Gong and Gong Jeong, the rest of the family was somewhat shrouded in mystery.
People knew that Gong Jeong had a brother six years younger and a sister eight years younger, but they didn’t know what they looked like or their names.
A 28-year-old parachute hire out of nowhere. Add to that daily commuting with the Gong men, plus pressure from above not to make him work overtime—everything pointed to Saebyeok being part of the Gong family.
She had thought he was the second son using an alias, which seemed like an extreme case of hiding in plain sight, but he says he’s not? Perhaps a cousin from his mother’s side? Now that she looked at him, she realized his face didn’t resemble theirs at all.
“I think I’ll soon be part of the family, but anyway, I’m not a Gong.”
“Ah…”
Saetbyeol awkwardly scratched her cheek, apologized once more, and returned to her desk.
As the afternoon work hours arrived after lunch, people busily tapped away at their keyboards. Saebyeok, not wanting to be outdone, diligently tackled his accumulated tasks.
The pure and unaffected Saebyeok didn’t know.
He didn’t know that office workers who don’t want to work, like students who don’t want to study, have a dampness that clings to even the smallest rumors.
He didn’t know that while pretending not to, everyone’s ears were wide open to the conversation between Saetbyeol and Saebyeok.
He didn’t know that rumors gain unfounded distortions and fabrications.
And that the speed of spread is very fast.
Saebyeok didn’t know.
***
[Have you heard?]
[He is a parachute hire, but not a direct descendant]
[Maybe an illegitimate child?]
[Might be from his mother’s side? If I were the Chairman, I wouldn’t openly bring around an illegitimate child like that]
[Could be a distant relative ã…‹]
[He’s wearing a ring and said he’ll soon be family, so maybe he’s a son-in-law?]
[Son-in-law?]
[Yeah, their faces don’t look alike at all]
[True, the third child is a daughter]
[This is shocking]
[Wow, a modern-day male Cinderella ã…‹ã…‹]
[Met a good woman and changed his life, and the partner is Taekang’s youngest princess ã…‹]
[So jealous]
[What’s there to be jealous about? This is only possible because he has the looks, while you were rejected at the appearance stage]
[You jerk]
[ã…—]
[ã…—ã…—]
.
.
.
[Anyway, he’s a parachute hire? Jealous ã…Ž I spent 4,000 hours and studied for 3 years to build my qualifications ã…‹]
***
Why is there so much work?
Time had flown to 4:55 PM, not much time left until the end of the workday. The movie starts at 9, so…
There’s still plenty of time.
In America, Saebyeok and Gong Pyeonghwa often watched movies together. They would sit on the sofa or beanbags, eating salty, greasy popcorn and pepperoni pizza with beer to relieve stress.
And when romantic scenes came on… well, um, ahem! Anyway.
Back then, he didn’t eat much, but perhaps due to increased work stress, today he kept thinking about greasy and salty foods.
Gong Pyeonghwa had been singing about buttered squid, so he should buy that too.
Just thinking about how Gong Pyeonghwa would giggle with delight gave him energy.
Is this what it feels like to be the head of a household? Saebyeok entered a frighteningly focused state and worked diligently.
And finally, the much-anticipated end of the workday approached.
Having completed his work just in time, Saebyeok shut down his PC and went to a nearby bookstore to prepare for next week’s presentation.
While drafting his presentation outline and skimming through relevant books for research, he felt a vibration.
Of course it was his phone, and it was from Gong Pyeonghwa.
Not a call, but a text. Saebyeok checked the message with an excited heart.
♥MyHusband♥
Looks like we won’t be able to see each other for a while.
What? Why? Were we caught? Saebyeok wondered what he should ask first, or rather, whether he should contact him at all.
Unable to decide what to do, he just stared at his phone when another message arrived.
♥MyHusband♥
My father-in-law seems to be watching more closely today ã…Ž;;
You seem to be having a hard time too, so let’s just communicate through phones for a while ã…
ã… ã… miss you
Thankfully, it didn’t seem like anything serious had happened. It’s disappointing, but… well…
He felt deflated, but what could he do?
I miss you too
I had been looking forward to it. How disappointing.
***
Ah, shit. I suddenly lost strength. Was my condition not good today?
Even monkeys fall from trees, but who would have thought that I, Gong Pyeonghwa of all people, would set off the security alarm while climbing over the wall?
Gong Pyeonghwa, moving as fast as a humanized cockroach, climbed back up the wall, ripped off the tape wrapped around his hands, and pretended to be calmly reading a book.
“Is something wrong, Father-in-law?”
“…Nothing. The alarm suddenly went off, so I was just checking.”
“Come on, I’m not Rapunzel. How could I possibly escape from this fortress? You’re giving my physical abilities too much credit, which makes me happy, but… unfortunately, I’m not that capable… If I were, I would have gone to meet him already… Sigh… I miss him… our Saebyeok…”
As he gazed longingly out the window, he could see his father-in-law’s reflection, looking as if he had caught him in the act, unlike his mother-in-law who had been sympathetic.
Tsk. Still not working? Gong Pyeonghwa inwardly clicked his tongue while smiling.
“It’s okay. I just have a bit of loss of appetite, lack of energy, depression, sometimes I feel like crying a little, and I’m lonely so I can’t sleep well… but I’m really fine.”
“I see.”
This doesn’t work either? Was the bond still insufficient? Was the likability score too low?
Should I just take a beating like a man and get it over with? No, that only works with my dad. There has to be a more sophisticated method…
“Father-in-law, would you like to have a drink with me?”
Maybe food is the answer after all?
“Do you like drinking?”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
