At that moment, Yu-jin felt his heart drop like a stone.
He was aware that his expression had twisted into a complete mess, yet he couldn’t pull himself together. His mouth opened and closed soundlessly before he finally managed to speak.
“No, that’s… that’s not true. That can’t be.”
He immediately scolded himself for managing to say only that much. But to his dismay, nothing else came to mind. When he caught sight of Angela glancing up at him with a timid, anxious look, his heart felt like it was shattering.
He hurriedly pulled Angela into his arms and spoke.
“Angie, it’s not like that. That would never happen.”
Trying his best to soothe his daughter’s wounded heart, he continued.
“Both Winston and I know you’re not that kind of child. What he said is true. I really was just at the hospital for a bit because I wasn’t feeling well.”
It was absurd, even humiliating, to find himself in the position of defending Winston. But right now, what mattered most was that Angela wouldn’t be hurt. Yu-jin calmed himself and spoke as gently as he could to reassure the child.
“Everyone knows how much you care about your little sibling. Winston knows too. That’s actually why he’s being extra cautious. So please, don’t think that way, okay?”
He thought she’d nod and say “Okay,” but Angela remained silent, unresponsive. Wondering what more he could possibly say, Yu-jin racked his brain. Just then, Angela, who had been quietly pursing her lips, hesitated and finally spoke.
“…That’s not it.”
“What?”
Yu-jin asked, puzzled. Angela fell silent again, then suddenly squeezed her eyes shut and confessed.
“Actually… I didn’t want a little sibling.”
Yu-jin was momentarily stunned, completely caught off guard. He blinked at her in disbelief as Angela stumbled over her words, struggling to explain.
“I thought… if the baby comes, maybe Daddy will love that baby more… And Mr. Campbell—he’d only care about that baby, right? That’s fine, ‘cause it’s Mr. Campbell’s baby. But Daddy… Daddy is my Daddy…”
Her voice faded, and she clamped her mouth shut before she could finish. Only then did Yu-jin realize just how deeply anxious she had been all along.
Why hadn’t he thought of this?
Angela always acted so mature for her age, it had never even occurred to him. But in the end, she was still just a four-year-old child.
“Angie, don’t think like that.”
Yu-jin’s heart ached as he held her tightly, kissing her head and cheek in turn.
“You’re the most precious thing in the world to Daddy. No one could ever take your place.”
“…But.”
Angela, who had been quiet until now, murmured in a small, uncertain voice.
“What if Mr. Campbell’s only being nice to me ‘cause he’s scared I’ll do something bad to the baby…?”
“That’s absolutely not true.”
Yu-jin firmly denied the child’s words with a resolute tone.
There is no baby. So you don’t have to worry about that.
The words rose to the tip of his tongue, but he barely managed to swallow them back down. The truth would have to wait a little longer. Winston probably already knew that there was no pregnancy.
Thinking back on how the man had smoked right in front of him, it might have even been a test.
With a bitter taste in his mouth, Yu-jin replayed it all again.
Of course, he had blurted out the pregnancy under the influence—so from the beginning, things had already started to unravel.
Regardless, if Winston wanted to keep playing pretend, then it was better to go along with the performance. Yu-jin made up his mind and soothed the child from another angle.
“Winston genuinely wants to be close to you. It has nothing to do with the baby.”
Angela’s eyes visibly wavered. Yu-jin gave her a warm, trusting smile. Maybe that smile gave her the courage she needed, because she blinked slowly and asked in a small voice,
“Really…?”
“Of course. Really.”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Yu-jin answered and gently pressed his forehead to hers with a soft laugh.
“Who in the world could not love you? Be confident, Angie. You’re the most lovable little girl in the entire world.”
Angela’s expression slowly began to brighten. Thankfully, his heartfelt sincerity must have reached her, because she beamed and threw her arms around Yu-jin’s neck, rubbing her cheek against his.
“I love you, Daddy.”
Yu-jin smiled and held her tight, showering her with kisses.
“I love you too, Angie. I love you more than anyone in the world.”
Breathing in the long-missed scent of his child, the tension in his chest finally unraveled, replaced by a sense of peace. As he planted another kiss on her smiling face, a sudden flash of inspiration jolted through his mind like lightning.
Yes… that’s how I’ll write it.
The solution to the scene he’d been agonizing over suddenly came to him like a divine revelation.
Startled by the realization, Yu-jin’s eyes widened unconsciously, and he froze. Angela tilted her head, puzzled by his sudden change in expression.
“Daddy, what’s wrong?”
“Huh? Oh, uh…”
Snapping out of it, he quickly blinked and then gave her a wide, cheerful grin.
“It’s nothing. I just thought of a funny story.”
“A new one?”
Angela’s eyes sparkled with curiosity, instantly perking up.
Yu-jin chuckled. “That’s right.” Then he hugged her tightly.
“It’s all thanks to you, Angie. Thank you.”
“Me?”
“Yeah.”
He gently pinched her nose and let go with a smile.
“Because you’re my guardian angel.”
At that, Angela giggled and burrowed deeper into his arms. Holding her close, Yu-jin lightly patted her back, his heart finally at ease.
I can’t put this off any longer.
He began thinking fast.
He could move around to some extent now. Running was still out of the question, but walking wasn’t too difficult anymore. It was still a bit early, but for Angela’s sake, he needed to act quickly. Yu-jin made up his mind.
***
He put Angela to bed early and waited for Winston, but of all days, the man—who usually came home at about the same time every evening—ended up arriving three hours late.
Yu-jin, who had been tense all day carefully preparing what to say, found himself completely drained by the time Winston finally walked through the door.
“You’re late.”
That was all he could manage to say. Winston, as if it were no big deal, simply replied, “I was busy.”
But the waiting didn’t end there.
Winston immediately went into the bathroom, and Yu-jin had to wait again until the man had finished washing up and was ready to talk.
At some point, he must have dozed off. When he stirred awake at the sound of movement, Winston was by the window, pouring himself a drink.
“…Drinking again?”
He asked it without thinking, and Winston turned his head.
The way his eyes widened in surprise gave Yu-jin an odd feeling.
“Sorry. Did I startle you?”
At Yu-jin’s words, Winston didn’t respond right away, then muttered, “No.”
Yu-jin waited a moment before speaking again.
“I waited ‘cause I have something to talk about.”
“Talk?”
“Yeah.”
Yu-jin took a deep breath—and finally spoke.
“I want to go out.”
Was his voice trembling? Did he sound too nervous? Did Winston notice something was off? Did he suspect anything…?
“Go out? All of a sudden?”
As expected, Winston furrowed his brows. Yu-jin nodded as casually as he could manage.
“I’d made plans with Georgina earlier. We were going to go shopping together.”
He’d even called Georgina earlier that day just to be able to say this. In fact, that’s when he’d actually made the plans.
At first, Georgina had been visibly flustered and tried to refuse, but Yu-jin had been persistent, going so far as to hand the phone to Angela to catch her off guard and corner her into accepting.
In the end, Georgina caved and agreed to meet up.
He did feel a twinge of guilt for manipulating a teenage girl like that, but Yu-jin forcefully shoved the guilt down. Angela came first. His daughter had been hurt—what else could matter more?
“…With Georgina?”
Winston repeated with a frown, clearly unconvinced. Yu-jin exaggerated his tone and raised his voice just a bit.
“I’ve been cooped up in here forever. I’m suffocating. I want to get out and pick things out myself for once—actually go shopping. It’s been way too long since I’ve spent any money.”
That should do it… right?
Winston thought of Yu-jin as a shallow materialist obsessed with money.
So really, there was no better excuse than this.
As Yu-jin watched Winston’s expression grow serious, he felt quietly vindicated—his prediction had been right.
But then—
“Why do you want to see her?”
The sudden question made Yu-jin blink in confusion.
That wasn’t one he’d expected.
