Chapter 11
“The director told me to commute here and assist the managing director. I’ll occasionally go into the Seoul office, too.”
“So, let me get this straight. You’ll work here from nine to six, then go home afterward? You’ll leave me here all by myself and go back to that place with the cozy ivory sofa? And if something comes up in Seoul, you’ll go there instead?”
“The commute might be a little exhausting, but there’s nothing I can do about it. At least I’ll have the weekends off.”
“Meaning I’ll be here alone on weekends?”
“Yes.”
Sa-heon let out a long, incredulous sigh.
“So right now, I’m nothing more than your job?”
“Th-That’s… right?”
The woman’s innocent expression made it seem as though she had simply stated the obvious. Sa-heon nearly lost his temper, but instead he ran a hand through his hair and forced a smile.
“You have to live here too, honey.”
“Me?”
Jian recoiled in surprise, taking a step backward. Sa-heon immediately stepped closer.
“You said this is your real sister’s house. You said it was comfortable. Cozy, even.”
His lips curled into a crooked smile as he asked,
“Isn’t it?”
At a loss for words, Jian’s eyes darted around.
“Well, th-that…”
Screeech!
Just then, the sound of a car coming to an abrupt stop on the first floor rang out. Jian hurried past Sa-heon and rushed to the edge of the rooftop, looking down.
“Oh! It looks like my sister’s home! Director, just in case, I need to tell you something. You absolutely cannot call me ‘honey’ in front of my sister!”
Jian hurriedly opened the rooftop door and ran down the stairs.
Meanwhile, Hee-jin was climbing the outdoor staircase leading to the rooftop, her face flushed as she stomped upward.
“Unni! Today’s your day off. Why are you back so early?”
Jian hurriedly grabbed Hee-jin by the arm. Hee-jin shot her a sharp glare.
“Han Jian, have you lost your mind? How could you bring someone here without asking me?!”
Technically, Jian had informed her rather than actually asked for permission.
She clasped Hee-jin’s hands, lowering the corners of her eyes in a pitiful expression.
“Unni, please try to understand. He’s a coworker from my company, and he quit his job and needs somewhere to stay for a little while. He has nowhere else to go. His situation is really tragic.”
“What?”
Hee-jin’s face immediately scrunched up.
Jian lowered her voice sympathetically.
“I-I heard he made a bad investment in cryptocurrency. He even lost his entire deposit for his rental…”
“Are you crazy? Even so, how could you tell someone you barely know to live in the rooftop room?!”
“I know him well.”
“You haven’t even cleaned the rooftop room!”
“It’s okay. He’s an easygoing person.”
“Hey!”
Unable to hold back any longer, Hee-jin was about to let out another furious shout when—
“Ms. Jian.”
A low voice suddenly came from behind Jian.
I’m screwed.
Jian squeezed her eyes shut.
“Hello.”
Sa-heon had come down the stairs and was politely greeting Hee-jin.
Hee-jin had been huffing and puffing, ready to see exactly what kind of man Jian had brought home. But the moment an unexpectedly handsome man appeared before her, her sharp eyes went wide.
“Oh, my…”
She covered her mouth with one hand, trailing off.
Sa-heon smiled awkwardly and bowed his head apologetically.
“I understand you’re Ms. Jian’s older sister. I apologize for imposing. I was actually planning to leave anyway…”
“Y-You can stay as long as you’d like!”
Hee-jin hurriedly cut him off with a bright smile.
“The rooftop room is a little shabby, isn’t it? I’ll tidy it up for you.”
She even added the last sentence shyly.
Seeing her sister’s sudden change in attitude, Jian gave an awkward little laugh.
“Haha…”
“Uncle!”
A booming voice suddenly came from below.
Thump, thump, thump!
A little boy wearing a taekwondo uniform with a red belt came charging up the outdoor stairs two steps at a time before throwing his arms around Jian’s waist.
“Dong-yoon! Did you miss your aunt?”
Jian gently stroked the boy’s hair.
“Yeah! Are you going to live with us now, Auntie?”
“No, Auntie is going to her own house—”
The boy didn’t even wait for Jian to finish. The moment he spotted Sa-heon, he shouted at the top of his lungs.
“He’s a celebrity!”
“Dong-yoon! You can’t say that. And he’s not a celebrity. He’s someone Auntie knows…”
“Is he Auntie’s boyfriend?”
“No! He’s not my boyfriend. He’s my friend.”
“Hello! I’m Yang Dong-yoon! I’m eight years old!”
The boy clasped both hands politely, bowed deeply, then straightened up.
What on earth was going on?
Sa-heon let out a small chuckle.
“Hello.”
“Mister! Do you want me to show you my forms?”
“D-Dong-yoon! Don’t call him Mister. You should call him Uncle.”
The boy completely ignored Jian. Suddenly, he assumed a stance and moved to the flat landing between the first and second floors. He spread his legs and took a deep breath.
“Taeguk Chapter Six, begin!”
Apparently forgetting how cramped the space was, the boy enthusiastically began performing his poomsae.
He clenched his tiny fists and thrust them forward with all his might.
“Hiyah!”
When he attempted a kick in the narrow space, he nearly slammed into the railing, but he somehow regained his balance with impressive agility.
In the end, because of the limited space on the stairs, the boy could only show a few moves before finishing with a loud yell.
“TAE! KWON!”
Dong-yoon struck his final pose and proudly looked at Sa-heon.
His little face was filled with anticipation, clearly waiting for praise.
“I was cool, right? My master said I’m really good! Next year, I’m going to test for my black belt!”
“You’re good. Uncle’s a black belt too. Third-degree.”
“Really?”
Dong-yoon’s eyes sparkled.
Apparently, he had taken a liking to Sa-heon, because he suddenly clung to one of Sa-heon’s legs like a little monkey.
“Dong-yoon!”
Hee-jin was horrified and quickly pulled the boy away.
“I’m sorry. He’s my son, but he’s so energetic that I can barely keep up with him. As you can see, he has an endless supply of energy.”
“It’s all right.”
Holding Dong-yoon’s hand, Hee-jin led him up the stairs and asked,
“I’m going to tidy up the rooftop room for you. Have you eaten? It’s already past lunchtime. If you haven’t, would you like something to eat? Do you like bread?”
“No, Unni. I’ll take care of it myself.”
Jian quickly cut in.
Hee-jin clenched her teeth while smiling and whispered,
“First, you and I need to have a little talk.”
＊＊＊
Jian nervously peeked through the crack in Hee-jin’s bedroom door, watching the scene in the living room.
“What did you say your name was?”
“Lee Sa-heon.”
“I’m Han Hee-jin. Jian’s older sister. As you can see, we use the second floor as our home, and we run a bakery downstairs on the first floor. I made this myself, so please help yourself.”
Hee-jin cut a large slice of freshly baked pound cake and placed one in front of Sa-heon and another in front of Dong-yoon.
With a kind smile, she poured milk for Dong-yoon and coffee for Sa-heon before turning her gaze toward the bedroom.
Gasp!
Their eyes met.
Jian quickly closed the door.
Not long afterward, Hee-jin entered the room with the smile completely wiped from her face and shut the door behind her.
“What is going on with you? Tell me the truth.”
Hee-jin was five years older than Jian. Though they weren’t that far apart in age, Hee-jin had practically acted as Jian’s guardian since they were young. Whenever Hee-jin interrogated her, Jian could never resist and would end up blurting out the truth.
“It’s true. He really has nowhere to go…”
Jian lowered her eyes and mumbled, careful not to reveal the real circumstances.
Hee-jin put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes.
“You’re absolutely sure there’s nothing going on between you two?”
“I told you, there’s really nothing between us.”
“Sounds like a lie.”
“It’s true.”
“Then why don’t you make it into something while you’re at it?”
Hee-jin plopped down on the bed and rubbed her shoulders with a laugh.
Jian, who had been standing there like a criminal awaiting judgment, suddenly lifted her head.
“What?”
“He’s handsome.”
“Seriously…”
Only after seeing Hee-jin soften did Jian finally let out a small smile.
At least she didn’t seem like she was going to kick him out.
Jian cautiously glanced at her before sitting beside her.
“How long is he staying?”
“Um… at least a month?”
Jian didn’t know when Sa-heon’s memories would return, but she thought he would need at least that much time just to make some plans for what came next.
“What about his belongings? It looked like he came empty-handed.”
“I was worried you might say no, so I left his things somewhere else for now. If it’s okay, I’ll have him bring them over.”
“All right.”
Thank goodness.
As Hee-jin readily gave her permission, Jian let out a relieved sigh.
Hee-jin straightened the rumpled blanket with her hand and asked,
“So he used to work at Hyungang too, right?”
“Yeah. I guess so…”
“And he didn’t know your brother-in-law?”
“No. He didn’t know him.”
“I see.”
Hee-jin nodded with a bitter expression.
The atmosphere suddenly grew heavy.
Perhaps overcome by emotion, Hee-jin buried her face in her hands.
Without saying anything, Jian gently rubbed her sister’s back.
“It’s almost the anniversary of his death.”
“Yeah. I can’t believe it’s already been a year. Time really flies, doesn’t it?”
Jian’s eyes fell on the framed photograph sitting on the vanity.
In the picture, her sister, Dong-yoon, and her brother-in-law were holding hands affectionately, all three of them smiling brightly.
Jian’s brother-in-law, Tae-joon, had been a senior researcher at Hyungang Tech’s AI Control Research Institute, which was headed by Sa-heon’s second older brother, Lee Jae-sung.
Her sister had worked at a bakery across from Hyungang Tech, and that was where she had met Tae-joon.
They had been each other’s first loves. They had Dong-yoon before getting married and built a family together, living happily and affectionately.
It had been such a warm and loving family that whenever Jian saw how happy her sister was, she felt happy too.
At least, they had been—
until her brother-in-law took his own life a year ago.
