I was scolded for searching the cash register like a mouse looking for this.
Anyway, I found the paper and it arrived at the address written on it, so it was time to take action rather than worry.
“Are you busy? “Why are you looking at your phone so intently?”
“busy.”
Kang Hye-joo pouted her lips at Kang Ha-jun’s short reply. I know that he is not a very friendly older brother to me, but I felt sad to see him like that even though it had been a long time since I visited him.
“I didn’t know my brother was busy. But what should I do if you tell me to leave so openly?”
Kang Hye-ju strongly stirred the drink in front of me. Then she took a refreshing lick and smiled.
“You want to sit down more.”
“Do whatever you feel like. I will wake up… … .”
“Wait a minute, brother!”
Kang Hye-joo actually grabbed the sleeve of Kang Ha-jun, who had half-raised his body. Although it was only a pinch, Kang Ha-jun did not ignore it and sat back down.
“He said he would give me time and did so.”
Kang Hye-joo acted as if she was going too far, but then hurried to talk to Kang Ha-jun in case he woke up again.
“Congratulations on your engagement.”
“okay.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t go that day. “I will definitely go to the wedding.”
“okay.”
“You said yes? “Am I really going?”
When Kang Hye-joo asked back with joy, Kang Ha-jun nodded.
“Then can’t you introduce me to your fiancé before you get married?”
Kang Hye-joo subtly inserted the purpose of my visit into the conversation. In fact, even though she came to visit, she did not think that he would give her permission.
No matter how kind I try to be, there is no reason for Kang Ha-jun to accept all my requests while we are only half blood related. I wondered where it was possible to not ignore it.
Still, Kang Hye-joo alone couldn’t decide whether it was acceptable to ask to see her fiancé.
All she can do now is to try hard to convince Kang Ha-jun to change his mind to listen to her request.
“I’ll just take a quick look. I was so sad that my dad told me not to go again this time. Still, if my brother is a burden, he can’t help it.”
Kang Hye-joo, who was discouraged by Kang Ha-jun’s gaze of just listening in silence, quietly spoke back. She said she didn’t mean to be a burden, but her eyes showed her sincere desire to see him.
“no.”
It would have been a little less disappointing if I had at least pretended to think about it, but my answer was too firm. It was a time when he thought that no matter how well he did, he would never be able to narrow the distance between himself and Kang Ha-jun.
“You don’t even have enough time to spend with me.”
“… … uh?”
Kang Hye-joo, who thought it wouldn’t work because I was her half-sister, raised her head.
“that… … “You’re saying it’s not because you don’t like me?”
“I will talk to Eunyul, but we won’t be able to see each other alone.”
Kang Hye-joo nodded happily at the words, which implied that she had to be there too.
“But is your fiancé’s name Eunyul?”
Kang Ha-jun picked up his cell phone, opened his work email, and nodded. Now that she knew why Kang Hye-joo had come, she planned to do the work she couldn’t finish.
That way, I can go pick up Eunyul even if it’s late.
“okay. Then I’ll wait for your call.”
Kang Hye-joo happily got up and slowly lowered her butt.
“But we can’t meet today, right? “It’s not because I’m afraid my brother will change his mind, but because I want to see him.”
Kang Hye-joo hesitated and pushed Kang Ha-jun’s drink forward.
“I will stay quiet and not disturb you.”
The secret to her being able to get along well with Kang Ha-jun was to choose actions that he would be okay with while not missing an opportunity.
“go.”
Although Kang Ha-jun has never really accepted it.
* * *
“It’s a real house.”
From the moment she rang the doorbell and entered the house, Eunyul didn’t stop looking around.
“Dad, the ceiling is really high.”
“I know.”
When Haneul tilted his head back as if he was going to fall backwards, Eunyul followed suit.
The ceiling was much higher than that of a typical home, so it felt open.
“It’s really amazing.”
The stairs leading up to the second floor also curved up along the wall, but for some reason it wasn’t like the typical house I was familiar with. There was even a fireplace on one side, so I kept looking around.
“Welcome.”
“hello.”
As I was looking around the house without even thinking about sitting on the sofa, Hyunseung Lee came out.
Haneul walked closer to Hyunseung Lee, greeted him politely, and held out his hand.
“hmm?”
As Lee Hyun-seung looked at him wondering what that meant, Haneul reached out his hand and grabbed his hand.
“We said we should become closer when we saw each other the second time.”
“that’s right. It did.”
Eunyul was once again taken aback by Haneul’s gentle manner, which seemed to remember all the conversations they had had when they first met.
It was a conversation he hadn’t heard, so he couldn’t think of anything to say, but Hyunseung Lee smiled brightly and liked what he said.
“let’s go.”
Eun-yul, who watched from behind the moment Lee Hyun-seung and Haneul walked holding hands, looked like she couldn’t help it.
Who on earth does that personality resemble in the sky?
* * *
I don’t know when it was prepared, but the room was full of toys for Haneul.
There is a car-shaped slide that Haneul can play in, a small basketball hoop, and a big teddy bear that looks like Haneul will be hugged… … The entire room was like a children’s paradise.
Even at first glance, there was no feeling of use.
This meant that it was not something that Kang Ha-jun used in his younger days.
As Eunyul was playing with the toy, Hyunseung Lee answered her questions.
“When I brought Ha-jun here, he wasn’t old enough to play with toys.”
When Eunyul turned around, Lee Hyunseung nodded as if to come next to him. It was a table placed so that Haneul’s room could be clearly seen. He obediently walked to the table and sat down on the chair, and Hyunseung Lee offered tea in front of him.
“No. “He was old enough to play with toys, but I guess I should say he wasn’t interested because he was a mature child.”
When Kang Ha-jun told him about his childhood, Eun-yul listened quietly, holding the teacup with both hands.
“How much do you know about Hajun?”
“hmm… … “You could say you know everything, or you could say you only know part of it.”
Having seen the original work, I knew a lot about the main character, Kang Ha-jun. I already knew what he had experienced in his childhood, why he was the way he was now, and who the person he hated was. So he thought he knew everything about him, but these days he realized he was wrong.
“I know that I met my grandfather when I was young, and I also know that he has tuberculosis. “I don’t know what your hobbies are.”
“okay… … We met when we were young. “I brought her in because I found out she had suddenly lost her mother and was abandoned.”
Fortunately, my answer seemed to line up with what Hyunseung Lee wanted to say. When Lee Hyun-seung talked about Kang Ha-jun’s childhood, Eun-yul’s eyes naturally turned to Haneul.
“If I had been in contact with my daughter more often, I would have found out sooner. “She almost cut herself off from her daughter because she married against her permission.”
Even without looking at Hyunseung Lee, there was no way I couldn’t read his guilt. Because it was so deeply embedded in his earnest voice.
“When I went to visit Hajun, the child’s eyes were already cloudy. “Her heart, torn and torn inside, was clearly visible in her eyes.”
How much it must have hurt Lee Hyun-seung to see Kang Ha-jun like that. Eunyul bit her lip and held back tears.
It’s all in the past… … . Why is my heart so shaken?
But, even if I tried to pretend like nothing was wrong, it wasn’t easy. When I met Kang Ha-jun again, it was the same feeling I had when I tried to take a little more care of him.
It’s funny, Kang Ha-jun doesn’t pity himself, but I pity him.
“I tried to rebuild the house and stay with the child who had been living in narrow houses and alleys, but it seems it wasn’t enough to ease the child’s feelings.”
On the outside, he was acting as if everything was better, but Lee Hyun-seung let out a dry laugh, saying that wasn’t the case.
“That’s why I’m even more grateful to you. Oh, I’m sorry for calling you and telling you this. What I just said… … . huh?”
When Eunyul turned her head and revealed her face, Hyunseung Lee was startled and stopped talking.
“Una?”
“no.”
Eunyul shook her head and roughly wiped her eyes with her sleeve.
“I was on the verge of crying.”
“haha.”
“Maybe it’s because I’m raising a child, but I feel very sorry for Ha-jun when he was young. “Parents want their children to grow up brightly like that.”
My heart may have been shaken by Kang Ha-jun even more because of Haneul. If it was before he became a parent, it’s more likely that he didn’t know any better.
“Thank you for understanding my feelings.”
“But.”
Eunyul completely wiped away her tears by blinking a few times. The expression quickly became brighter. As he watched Eun-yul’s expression change, Lee Hyun-seung was smiling without realizing it.
“Hajun’s wounds got better after meeting a good grandfather. “It wasn’t me, it was his maternal grandfather who did it.”
How can you not be shaken when you try to adjust everything for yourself?
“I guess I should say thank you.”
Eun-yul wanted to convey her feelings and held Lee Hyun-seung’s hand.
“Thank you for raising Ha-jun into a person who can love Haneul.”
I once had that thought. It’s not that he covets Haneul and wants to take her, but I’m afraid he might think he doesn’t like me because I gave birth to him without saying a word.
However, Kang Ha-jun was a man who gave Haneul warm eyes from the beginning until now. When he said thank you to the person who raised him like that, Eunyul’s tears moved to him.
