Chapter 4 – After Date
“Hmm… ahh…”
From the morning, his throat itched, a sure sign that spring had arrived.
Kang Yoon had suffered from pollen allergies since childhood.
Not severe, but every spring he inevitably dealt with sneezing and rhinitis.
Inside the house, everything was always clean, and the air purifier ran constantly, so it wasn’t too bad. But as soon as he stepped outside, the garden’s riot of colorful flowers made him sneeze despite himself.
“Are you okay?”
Choi, his driver for the past five years, glanced at him through the rearview mirror.
“Not really. This spring is going to be worse than usual.”
Kang Yoon’s eyes were slightly bloodshot as he habitually sprayed his nasal passages with a saline spray.
At the company, he went straight to the CEO’s office from the main lobby and took a sip from the warm tea that had been prepared for him at his usual arrival time.
“Sir, the response to your inquiry has arrived.”
“Leave it here.”
The neatly dressed female secretary placed the envelope on his desk, bowed politely, and left.
I wonder if there’s anything useful this time?
Kang Yoon set down his half-drunk tea and carefully opened the meticulously sealed envelope.
Inside were several documents and photos.
“I investigated as much as possible per the client’s request. At Daehan Hospital’s obstetrics department, four people were born on January 1, 1990: two boys and two girls. The parents of the two boys are:
Father Kim Jeong-hoon / Mother Park Young-hye
Mother Ahn Ji-hye
You requested information on the individual listed with only the mother’s name. Here’s what we found:
Ahn Ji-hye was hospitalized for four days and then discharged.
Her last known address was a semi-basement in a multi-family house in Daewoon-dong, Narae-gu, Seoul. The building has since been redeveloped into an apartment complex.
No other notable details were discovered, though some residents who remembered her said she was a ‘remarkable’ person.
We managed to obtain photos of the house before redevelopment. We also included a photo of a woman believed to be Ahn Ji-hye, though her identity is not certain.
Detective Gong Jin-hwan”
Kang Yoon skimmed the report and examined the two enclosed photos.
The two-story multi-family house with red brick walls looked so worn it could be demolished at any moment.
Ahn Ji-hye had lived in the semi-basement of such a narrow, dilapidated building.
The woman in the photo—presumed to be her—smiled shyly in jeans, a white T-shirt, and sneakers. She looked youthful and innocent.
Do we… look alike?
The photo was grainy, but the woman had large eyes and a cute face. The resemblance was ambiguous—similar in some ways, not in others. Kang Yoon put the photos and documents back in the envelope and stored it in his desk drawer.
“My grandfather would never say a word about this…”
Kang Yoon respected his grandfather, Han Tae-soo, but he also had doubts.
“How could I have driven that boy away? I’m the sinner… the sinner. I wonder if the sin of twisting the natural order will only be forgiven when I go to hell.”
Three years ago, on the anniversary of his father Han Woo-jin’s death, the ritual table had been arranged meticulously as usual.
Jin Hyun-sook, his mother, wore a neatly pressed hanbok. Kang Yoon and Kang Moon wore black suits and performed the rites properly.
The first part of the ceremony was Kang Moon’s responsibility; Kang Yoon’s role was simply to bow at the end.
He had never thought his father’s annual rites were unfair or burdensome.
After cleaning up and as everyone slept in the early morning, Kang Yoon went to get some water. The water purifier on the second-floor kitchen wasn’t working, so he had to go downstairs.
Crossing the dark hallway, he reached the kitchen and saw his grandfather sitting alone at the table, murmuring to himself while sipping a drink.
What on earth was that about? Why my name… and what does he mean by twisting the natural order?
When Kang Yoon entered the kitchen, his grandfather looked at him with clouded eyes for a long while.
He never spoke like that again, but the memory left Kang Yoon with an uneasy feeling.
So he decided to find out who his biological mother was—the one who had an affair with his father, bore him, and then died.
But Kang Yoon’s family was meticulous.
Perhaps they had erased all traces of her in anticipation that he might try to find her someday. By now, finding any trace of his mother was extremely difficult.
He had tried several times without success, and due to his busy schedule, he had almost forgotten. But recently, he heard rumors of a famous detective who would even exhume a grave for a hefty fee.
Even though the detective’s schedule was over a year full, Kang Yoon paid more than five times the usual fee. He didn’t expect much, but the results were satisfactory.
First, I’ll meet Yoon Bora today.
No matter how much he probed, it seemed unlikely his grandfather would reveal any secrets.
But experts exist for everything.
The moment Kang Yoon saw Bora, he felt an unusual sense of calm.
He thought: With her, I might be able to move my grandfather’s heart, uncover long-hidden secrets, and finally learn my roots.
“…She’s pretty, too.”
Her flawless appearance perfectly matched his tastes. There was no reason to refuse her.
Kang Yoon glanced at his wristwatch and reached for the pile of documents he needed to handle before meeting Bora. He intended to finish everything beforehand.
“Hmm… is this color too bold?”
Since becoming CEO of Silvertown, Bora had always tried to maintain a clean and neat appearance.
She had given up long nails, nail art, and glitter for over three years, keeping short nude-toned nails.
She rarely used makeup, and when she did, it was subtle shading.
But today was the day Kang Yoon had requested an after-meeting date.
It was her first arranged after-meeting, and her first such date since a few college meetings.
To make a good impression on an investor… being pretty is better, right?
So she applied a bright coral lipstick instead of her usual pink-beige, checking the mirror several times out of unfamiliarity.
“Already so late!”
Bora saw the clock’s second hand approaching 11:55, properly slipped on her high heels, and stood up.
She rushed to the elevator and descended to the tower lobby, where employees recognized her and greeted her.
“Hello, CEO. Want to have lunch together?”
“Oh, no. I have an appointment. See you later.”
She smiled awkwardly and rushed out to see Kang Yoon’s large back already visible.
I can tell just from his back… but wow, he really is huge.
“Ah, hello. Did you wait long?”
Bora quickly checked the time on her phone.
Yesterday, she had seemed calm and elegant; today, she looked lively and cheerful. Kang Yoon surveyed her leisurely.
“Shall we go eat?”
“Let’s.”
“By the way… did you usually wear glasses?”
Noticing something different from yesterday, she was wearing thin gold-rimmed glasses.
“No, I wear them in spring to protect my eyes from pollen allergies.”
“Oh, I see. I have a sun allergy. In summer, bumps appear on my skin…”
Bora’s face flushed slightly as she shared too much personal information.
Glasses… so sexy.
Contradictory, yet elegant. Her neat face contrasted with her strong body, reminiscent of a male lead from the romance comics friends used to read in school.
Bora chatted as she walked, leading the way toward a narrow alley lined with modest restaurants near Silvertown.
“This is a real local gem. It’s a bit run-down… is that okay?”
The single-story building looked like it had been operating for over thirty years, with peeling paint.
A thin aluminum-framed sliding door bore the menu in red paint: “Sundaeguk, Sundae, Osorigamtu.”
Judging by the exterior, it looks legit.
Kang Yoon strode in confidently. Seeing his nonchalant attitude, Bora hurried in first and took a seat.
“Auntie, two bowls of sundae soup, please!”
Kang Yoon’s eyes sparkled as he watched Bora, ordering loudly in a cramped sundae soup restaurant crowded with middle-aged men reeking of sweat and smoke.
Yoon Bora… interesting girl.
