But it was too quiet. His tightly closed lips seemed unwilling to answer the question I had asked.
What’s this? Feeling slightly suspicious, Munbeom slowly got up.
“See you next time.”
“…You’re leaving without even having coffee?”
As always, Ho Munbeom left without replying. Admiring how consistently unpleasant this man was, Younghwa put an ice cube in his mouth while drinking the cool coffee and muttered.
“Did he come to get his rut medication?”
Wondering if things weren’t going well with either his mother or his partner, Younghwa bit down on the ice.
Since Younghwa was dedicated to VVIPs, his location was completely separate from the main hospital building. So if arrangements were made in advance, one could come and go comfortably without encountering others. This time too, Munbeom was able to go down to the parking lot without meeting anyone, immediately got into his car, and leaned his head back against the seat.
“…”
He was in a very bad mood.
The major cause of this was, needless to say, his mother.
Becoming anxious about being pushed out of Ho Moon Group as the divorce proceeded, she had done something to her son Munbeom that she shouldn’t have. After being forgiven the first time, she tried two or three more times and eventually had to leave the country almost as if she’d been kicked out. Now this woman had returned to Korea in utmost secrecy. The fact that he hadn’t known about it meant his grandfather had definitely had a hand in it behind the scenes.
He could guess why his grandfather, who despised his mother terribly, would do such a thing. His maternal grandmother’s health had deteriorated over the past few years, and this year she had been put on oxygen. She was in a day-to-day condition, so perhaps his grandfather had permitted his mother’s entry into the country. He might have granted her the generosity to personally attend to her mother’s final moments.
The problem was whether his mother would appreciate this.
Even knowing that there was no need to worry about it particularly, it bothered him. Why of all times now? His condition and mood had been better recently than on any other day.
Munbeom recalled the day he first received the news that his mother had entered the country.
Despite having passionate sex until dawn, he woke up at his usual time. However, he didn’t get up right away because of the presence lying next to him. He couldn’t take his eyes off the small, white face curled up in sleep, turned toward him.
Without realizing it, he had put his arm under his head and turned his body toward Yeonwoo. As their faces got closer, he could feel Yeonwoo’s soft breathing. With each breath, his feelings grew increasingly strange.
As he was intently staring at Yeonwoo’s swollen lips, bitten and sucked, he felt a vibration from somewhere. Eventually recalling the status of his phone, Munbeom quietly got out of bed. Finding the phone lying near the living room sofa, he let out a small laugh.
He wondered what he’d been doing to drop his phone here. He usually kept it within reach. Checking the screen with disbelief that he hadn’t even noticed his phone rolling around here yesterday, he saw it was a number calling from overseas.
It was best not to answer unfamiliar numbers.
If it was work-related, it would have come from a number he knew, not this unfamiliar one.
Munbeom blocked the number without hesitation and, since he was up, worked out and showered. It was when he was taking Yeonwoo to a restaurant later. The moment he checked the call that came again, he wondered if he was seeing correctly. There was no choice but to think so, as it was his mother’s number, which hadn’t called him for several years.
He knew she was thick-skinned, but not to this extent. Rather, he wondered if he hadn’t blocked this number before. After a brief hesitation, Munbeom answered the call. She was an uncomfortable person, but there was no reason for him to avoid her.
And the voice he heard was definitely unpleasant.
‘It’s been a while.’
As she said, it had been a long time, but her voice didn’t seem to consider that particularly problematic. Perhaps because of that, Munbeom could naturally engage in conversation as if the years of absence were not felt.
I heard you came back to Korea. You’re working by your grandfather’s side, they say. At this rate, you’ll become the head of Ho Moon Group. After saying what she would typically say, she added something at the end.
‘Do you have someone you’re seeing seriously these days?’
He thought the conversation with her wasn’t a big deal, but apparently it was.
Finding her words amusing, Munbeom asked.
‘Why are you asking that?’
All that could be heard from the other end of the phone was breathing. Despite her efforts to maintain composure, what inevitably revealed itself was anger. She still seemed to believe that he was her appendage. Only she didn’t know that their deficient mother-son relationship had long been severed.
‘Don’t cause unnecessary trouble and stay quiet until you leave obediently. Don’t make Grandfather regret his consideration…’
‘How can you speak like that?! I am your mother…!’
‘Stop saying useless things.’
At his words, which seemed to cut her off, her breathing became increasingly rough. It was merely amusing to sense her squirming, unable to pour out the harsh words she wanted to say.
Still, he had thought she had patience before. It seemed she had discarded her patience as she aged, and he hung up the phone.
It would be right not to worry about it any further, but it kept subtly bothering him.
Even knowing that his grandfather would handle it well, Munbeom’s stern expression didn’t easily soften, and eventually, instead of grabbing the steering wheel, he took out his phone. The ring tone was long. Usually, his calls were answered within three rings, so he was wondering why it was taking so long when the other person finally answered.
[Yes, Director.]
“…”
It was the same as usual, with no particular problem in the voice, but there was something. Noticing this, Munbeom quietly called, “Secretary Kang,” to which, after a few seconds of silence, came the reply, yes.
Secretary Kang was sometimes clumsy but diligent and definitely handled his assigned tasks. That’s why he was able to work in one of the many secretary teams that his grandfather kept, and now he had become Ho Munbeom’s dedicated secretary.
But what Munbeom valued most was the fact that he couldn’t lie.
Secretary Kang himself might think he hides it well, but to those around him, he was truly a man who couldn’t lie. Therefore, Munbeom didn’t drag it out any longer.
“Tell me.”
[…]
Why did he answer the phone only after the ring tone had gone on three more times than usual, why was his voice subtly hoarse when he answered, why couldn’t he respond immediately when called – all these questions.
During that brief wait, as Munbeom’s mood worsened, a thin line formed between his brows. Secretary Kang swallowed dryly and began, “Well, that is…”
“Just wait a little longer. In the meantime, please help yourself to some refreshments.”
“…”
“If there’s anything that makes you uncomfortable, please let me know.”
The woman who spoke so respectfully looked to be at least in her fifties. Just having such a person serve tea and fruit was already overwhelming, so there was no way he could actually mention if something was uncomfortable.
No, the truth was that coming to this place itself was so nerve-wracking that Yeonwoo, unable to even open his mouth, slowly nodded. Then, thinking that just doing this might be impolite, he greeted her with a timid “Thank you.”
Even after the woman with a gentle smile disappeared inside, Yeonwoo couldn’t release the tension from his stiff body. There was no way he could. Ho Jaejung, Ho Munbeom’s grandfather, was here in this place. He couldn’t relax when that person might suddenly appear at any moment.
Meanwhile, the question occupying Yeonwoo’s mind was, ‘Why am I here?’
After receiving a sudden contact and barely squeezing out a response to an invitation he couldn’t refuse, a luxury foreign car was already waiting near his house. Though it was an odd time of day, it was a residential area, and Yeonwoo got in while receiving the glances of passersby. When he came to his senses, he was here.
Everything that entered his vision, even with just a slight raising of his head, made Yeonwoo feel intimidated. Sitting in a place that was spacious, splendid, and luxurious, he felt like a nail sticking out awkwardly.
But he couldn’t keep being this tense.
This was his second meeting with the person who had invited him here. Recalling the old man who had stiffened his expression as soon as he saw him during their first meeting, Yeonwoo clenched his hands together.
“…”
Although he hadn’t heard anything particularly negative, there was something communicated through the look in the other’s eyes and the atmosphere. The other person didn’t approve of him. More precisely, he seemed to consider Yeonwoo an unsuitable match for Munbeom.
In Ho Jaejung’s eyes, Yeonwoo was nothing more than an excuse for Munbeom to avoid going on arranged meetings for a while. He couldn’t really blame him for that; most people would probably think similarly.
Even if there were some traces, no one would take his relationship with Munbeom seriously.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
