VDN Ch 49

Knock, knock.

Ignoring the polite knock of the employee standing at the door, Hae-geon abruptly opened it himself. Chairman Jin was already seated in the place of honor on the sofa, as if he’d known Hae-geon was coming.

“You’re here.”

“Why did you call me?”

“Sit down.” 

When Chairman Jin spoke with a stern look, Hae-geon let out a shallow sigh as if he had no choice and sat on the opposite sofa.

Chairman Jin had an impressive presence—the man who had left many rumors of his handsome appearance in his youth seemed to have lost his energy. but his eyes were still sharp. Perhaps it was the weight of his responsibilities that weighed him down. Every day, Chairman Jin constantly feared someone would expose his flaws. Hae-geon was one of those flaws. 

Hae-geon looked at his grandfather and thought, “What a small-minded man.” Still, no one could deny his natural business acumen. That was what had built 80% of Mooyoung Group’s success.

Chairman Jin pushed a square file on the table toward Hae-geon. Hae-geon casually pushed it back, letting it fall off the table. At that arrogant gesture, Chairman Jin raised an eyebrow and spoke.

“She’s the eldest daughter of Samyeong Group. She’s set to officially inherit their construction company. I heard she just returned from studying in the US. Her situation is similar to yours.”

“I’m not interested.”

“You’ll feel differently once you meet her.”

“I already know I’m not interested, so meeting her would just be a waste of time.”

“How long are you going to live like a loafer? At your age, the heirs of other groups have already finished their management training!”

“I told you, Grandpa. I’m just going to run a little shop.”

“A little shop?”

“Yes. It’s doing pretty well. I’ve even opened several branches…”

“Do you think that restaurant is really yours? There’s nothing in this world you got with your own power!”

Chairman Jin’s shout, his hair now completely white, echoed through the office. Hae-geon kept his face expressionless and his mouth shut. Chairman Jin looked at his grandson’s face, as if frustrated, and continued.

“All you do is chase after alphas who can’t even get anyone pregnant! I’m too embarrassed to even introduce you to anyone! Don’t you ever think about being an heir?”

“Since you’re so healthy, Grandpa, maybe you should make another heir yourself…”

Splash! Before he realized it, tea was poured over Hae-geon’s face. Wiping the dripping tea away, Hae-geon spoke with a blank expression.

“Grandpa, I’ve told you over and over.”

He lowered his gaze and continued quietly.

“I’m broken.”

“How old are you, and you’re still acting out like a rebellious child?”

“I can’t get it up. With omegas.”

“I’ve told you not to speak so crudely.”

Chairman Jin continued,

“If you don’t go to this matchmaking meeting, I’ll cut off all your money.”

“Go ahead.”

Hae-geon tossed a single card from his pocket onto the table.

“My wallet got stolen, so this is all I have anyway.”

Chairman Jin, who was silently watching Hae-geon speak so casually, let out a deep sigh.

“It’s time you stepped out from your parents’ shadow.”

Then, in a slightly tired voice, he added,

“One day, when you’re sitting in this seat, you’ll understand me.”

“Grandpa.”

Hae-geon smiled slightly.

“I never had a parent’s shadow to step out from, not since I was born.”

With a smile, Hae-geon stood up and left the Chairman’s office. The employees who saw him coming out, dripping wet, just bowed their heads expressionlessly, as if they were used to it.

His parents abandoned him and ran away. His father had an affair, and his mother hated Hae-geon for looking just like him. Had they ever regretted leaving their young child alone, even once? Sometimes, he wondered about that.

Suddenly, he thought of Nam-woon. Who is more pitiful? The only grandson treated like a racehorse or the only son who gets beaten every other day? How does Seok Nam-woon manage to live like that despite being treated so badly? Why does everything feel lighter when I’m next to him?

“Ah, I want to see him again.”

Hae-geon smiled as he ran his hand through his wet hair.

***

These days, Hyung doesn’t come to pick me up. 

Seo-oh wandered around the front gate for a while and then looked around for the eye-catching pink bicycle. When he didn’t see it, he started walking slowly. 

These days, I give him a ride in the back, so why isn’t he coming? 

Seo-oh thought of the recent rainy day. At that time, he was really surprised. Nam-woon, sitting in the driver’s seat, was trembling and gasping for breath with his eyes tightly shut. He felt fear seeing Hyung in such a state. When he was younger, he didn’t know because Nam-woon hated him and cursed at him every day, but now he realizes there are so many things he doesn’t know about Nam-woon. 

“That delivery guy.”

“He said he’d take my eyeballs.”

What Na Dae-yeol said seemed to be true. He didn’t know that Hyung was doing deliveries, nor did he know that he had threatened Na Dae-yeol in such a way. If Na Dae-yeol was shouting in such anger, it probably wasn’t a lie. Why is he doing deliveries? And why did he suddenly act that way towards Na Dae-yeol? 

Seo-oh’s expression darkened. It was natural to be angry at Nam-woon for threatening a student at his school but that wasn’t on his mind. Seo-oh’s thoughts were solely focused on Nam-woon. 

Why didn’t he tell me?

The fact that Nam-woon hadn’t mentioned deliveries or meeting Na Dae-yeol bothered Seo-oh. Maybe he saw Seo-oh as his younger brother and didn’t want to burden him.

It’s not my fault I’m younger than him.

Seo-oh wasn’t one to dwell on problems that could not be changed, but when it came to Seok Nam-woon, he couldn’t help but worry. Would Nam-woon speak up before Seo-oh asked? 

Seo-oh entered the house. Today was the day Se-han went straight to taekwondo practice after school, so it was clear that no one would be at home.

However, as soon as he opened the front door, faint sounds reached his ears. Next door, in Auntie Soon-i’s small garden, Nam-woon was sitting crouched over, wearing gardening gloves and working on something. As Seo-oh approached, he heard a conversation.

“Do you have rubber at home?” 

“Rubber gloves? Yes, we do.” 

Seok Nam-woon answered casually, holding the drill to the wood, in response to Grandpa Nam-nam’s cautious question. Grandpa Nam-nam trailed off his words, muttering, “Rubber… Not that kind of rubber…” To Seo-oh’s surprise, the wooden table was almost complete. Nam-woon bent down, examining one of the legs of the table. 

“But isn’t this a bit low?” 

“Why? It looks fine.” 

“Seo-oh has long legs. It might be uncomfortable when he sits.” 

At that, the old man snorted.

“Oh, then what about Se-han? Se-han’s legs are incredibly short. If you adjust it to Seo-oh’s height, he might have trouble getting up!” 

“Se-han would be angry if he heard that.”

Nam-woon chuckled, as if imagining Se-han’s reaction.

“We don’t have the tools to cut more wood here! I’ve already cut it all!”

Nam-woon squinted and shaded his eyes from the dazzling sunlight.

“But the room is so small, he has to sit with his knees bent every day. He’s tall, too. I’m worried it’ll be bad for his knees.”

He didn’t say who, but anyone could tell he was talking about Seo-oh. Grandpa Nam-nam grunted, looking displeased.

“What a load of nonsense. They’re just going to climb up on the bench and play anyway, so what’s the big deal? Back in my day, everyone sat cross-legged and never had any problems with their backs or knees!”

Kids these days, tsk tsk. Grandpa Nam-nam started in on his “back in my day” speech. Nam-woon didn’t even feel the need to argue and just kept working. Grandpa Nam-nam, getting into the mood, started airing more of his complaints.

“And why did you leave the watermelon at my store? If you bought it, take it home!”

“I brought it home, but it wouldn’t fit in the fridge. I’ll just leave it for a bit.”

“Then why’d you buy it in the first place?”

“The kids actually eat a lot of fruit.”

At that, Seo-oh looked at Nam-woon’s face. He was turned to the side, so it was hard to see from where Seo-oh was standing.

“Really?”

“They eat well.”

“I bought three bananas last time, and they were gone in no time. If I blend them with milk for Se-han, he eats them right up.”

“That kid’s going to grow up big. He eats everything, just like his brother.”

“Right? He gets a little belly when he eats a lot, and it’s so cute.”

Nam-woon laughed softly. “I can’t see Hyung smiling.” Seo-oh moved a little closer.

While thinking about something serious, Nam-woon casually asked Grandpa Nam-nam,

“…Se-han doesn’t eat ants or anything, right?”

“…I’m not sure about that, actually.”

Nam-woon set the drill down and sat on the bench, tapping the wood with his hand. Seeing that it was almost finished, Grandpa Nam-nam commented,

“You made that pretty quick.”

“It’s just a matter of putting up the wood and nailing it together. I’ll take the watermelon later.”

“If you make fruit punch, bring me a bowl too.”

“I don’t know if there’ll be any left.”

At Nam-woon’s joking reply, Grandpa Nam-nam shouted, “What, am I not allowed to have any?” as if offended. Seo-oh, who had started to walk away, stopped at Grandpa Nam-nam’s next words.

“Still, since you came here, the kids have gotten a lot brighter.”

Nam-woon’s hand, which had been feeling the bench, paused.

“Every time I saw those kids, I used to worry, ‘What’s going to happen to them?’ But since you came, I can finally sleep easy at night.”

“…I’m sure you slept just fine before I came.”

“What? See, every time I try to say something nice, you have to ruin it.”

Grandpa Nam-nam rubbed his nose, turned his head, and muttered,

“Thanks.”