ETP Ch 56

Because of Hwang Yoohyun, I blew up several times again today. By the time I was done cleaning up the mess he’d made, it was already time to go home.

“I’ll be heading out now.”

As soon as Sungyeon saw Hyungseop, who had just arrived for his shift, he barely managed to suppress the urge to scream, “Fire that bastard right now!” and greeted him.

“Ah, good work, Bokseung. Yes, hurry on home. Yoohyun, make sure you take Bokseung home safely.”

Having witnessed Yoohyun’s atrocious behavior on the first day himself, Hyungseop was not unaware of the kid’s feelings. But what could he do about someone he’d already hired? Besides, finding another alpha like him for a part-time job was something that would never happen, not even in his next life.

Hyungseop once again avoided the kid’s resentful gaze and quickly sent the two of them out of the PC cafe.

Yoohyun was the type who didn’t usually care what others thought, but strangely enough, it had become a daily routine for him to watch Bokseung’s reactions when their shift ended.

If there was ever a time when the normally chattering Bokseung’s mouth snapped shut, it was during the ride home after work.

“Thank you for today as well. I’ll see you tomorrow!”

As expected, Bokseung, who hadn’t said a word in the car, said his goodbyes and got out.

However, Yoohyun, who usually just accepted the farewell while sitting in the car, followed Bokseung out today.

“Hmm?”

Bokseung’s small, round face tilted to the side. Turning his body, which had been about to walk away, back to the front, Bokseung’s face was filled with curiosity. It seemed like he wanted to ask if Yoohyun had something to say to him.

Yoohyun ruffled the boy’s fluffy hair once before getting to the point. He could have said this on the way, but he purposely initiated a separate conversation because he wanted to see the kid’s face for even just a little longer.

“I can’t come to work tomorrow.”

“What?!”

At first, Bokseung’s face showed surprise, but then it gradually lit up. It seemed he was quite pleased that Yoohyun wouldn’t be coming to work.

A mischievous thought sprouted in Yoohyun’s mind, tempting him to break his promise and go to work after all. But the situation was one he couldn’t easily back out of, so he had no choice.

“Oh, just for tomorrow?”

Sungyeon asked with a hint of hope, wondering if Yoohyun might say something like, “I can’t stand this crappy job anymore, I quit.”

However, an answer that completely shattered his expectations popped out of Yoohyun’s mouth.

“Yeah, just tomorrow. I have something to take care of at home. I already told the boss. He said he’ll come in a little early tomorrow in my place, so don’t worry about anything scary happening.”

I wasn’t worried about that, sir.

With his hopes fizzling out, Sungyeon gave a half-hearted nod.

Sigh, how nice would it have been if that business of his lasted for a few days.

Yoohyun ruffled Bokseung’s hair once more—it was so obvious what he was thinking—before getting back in the car.

“Then, does that mean we can’t have lunch together tomorrow either?”

“Yeah.”

“Aah, I see.”

This was a bit disappointing.

From Sungyeon’s perspective, the quiet Yoohyun was a much better dining companion than the mind-numbingly energetic Beagle Trio. He thought he’d probably have to eat alone tomorrow, bowed his head, and went inside the villa.

Sungyeon could feel Yoohyun’s gaze following his back until he had safely arrived home.

It was only about a dozen steps, but it seemed he was worried about Bokseung being alone for even that short distance.

“He’s kind of cute.”

Sungyeon muttered to himself as he punched in the passcode. For some reason, it felt like a huge, dependable dog that only ever caused trouble was standing behind him.

🍑‧₊ ⋆˙

Yoohyun was a child born into a family where heirs were precious.

His great-grandfather, grandfather, and father were all born as only sons without any brothers, and the same was true for Yoohyun.

Besides the characteristic that all his family members were of a special trait, a chaebol family with so few members was rare in the political and business worlds.

And he was a dominant alpha born into such a family.

Those two conditions alone were enough to guess how reverently Yoohyun had been raised by those around him. It was so extreme that when he merely mentioned once that he liked baseball, his grandfather immediately acquired a baseball team.

And miraculously, as soon as Yoohyun’s family acquired the team, they started winning championships as if it were nothing.

This year was no different.

Inside the hall prepared for the party, a large placard read, ‘Hoseon Polar Bears, Korean Series Champions!’ Not only that, but the hall was garishly decorated with fresh flowers emitting vibrant scents and all sorts of glittering props.

Whoever’s taste this is, it’s certainly flashy, Yoohyun thought as he headed toward a room set up in the inner part of the hall.

“Yoohyun, you’re here?”

His mother, who seemed to have arrived earlier, was sitting there.

“Yes.”

Greetings like “How have you been?” were, as usual, skipped.

Yoohyun’s mother, Lee Joosun, looked at her son, whose annoyance was palpable, and clicked her tongue briefly. I raised him without him wanting for anything, so why did he grow up with such an attitude? Other kids go on trips with their mothers, go shopping, or at the very least, go camping together.

Joosun, who had married her husband—Yoohyun’s father—for love, had been so happy every day when she was pregnant with Yoohyun, imagining a harmonious family.

But she had to taste the despair of that fantasy shrinking more and more as the child was actually born and grew up.

Today was a prime example.

If it were any other kid, they would have gone to a salon with their mom to get ready and pick out clothes together before coming to an event like this, but that brat of hers had merely sent a message through a servant about whether he was coming or not.

If I knew it would be like this, I should have had one more! Of course, it wasn’t for a lack of trying. It was just that Yoohyun had never gotten a younger sibling. The ones who wanted another child more than anyone were his parents.

Not just Joosun, but Yoohyun’s father, Hwang Myungjin—the vice chairman of Hoseon Corporation—had also been nagging him to have a younger sibling since Yoohyun first started walking.

Anyway, Yoohyun had been a lost cause from a very young age.

It was so bad that when she, angry at Yoohyun, had snapped at him to only come by on holidays, he had been sticking to that rule religiously for years. He probably thought it was for the best and didn’t even care.

What’s the point of giving birth to such a handsome and respectable son? He doesn’t even give me time to show him off to others.

“What is it?”

Yoohyun asked, looking at his mother who was staring at him with a fiery gaze.

“You, are you doing well in school?”

“Yes.”

“Are you eating your meals properly?”

“Yes.”

“Your father’s birthday is next week, so come home and at least have a meal before you go.”

“It’s not a holiday, though?”

At her son’s sly reply, Joosun’s eyebrows crumpled fiercely.

“Hey! How long has it been since I said that, and you’re still sticking to it?! You never listen to a word I say otherwise!”

“You two have a nice, intimate time together. I’ll make a reservation at a restaurant for you.”

“What, what?”

“You said you wanted to go to that new restaurant that opened in Seongsu, Mom.”

“Oh my, you remember that?”

Joosun’s eyes widened as if in surprise. At her genuinely surprised reaction, Yoohyun raised one corner of his mouth.

“You sent me so many texts saying you wanted to go there, Mom. Wouldn’t I be an idiot not to remember?”

“You, you!!”

He just has to say things that way!

Joosun clenched her fist as if she were about to smack Yoohyun, but she couldn’t stop her expression from gradually softening. He never replied, so I thought he didn’t care, but he still remembered. Is this what it feels like to raise a child?

Before she knew it, her gaze toward Yoohyun was filled with affection. Of course, it was only natural that her son, the recipient of that gaze, would cringe as if he found it disgusting.

For a while, Joosun’s one-sided chatter continued. Yoohyun would occasionally just nod at her words, or if even that was too much trouble, he would fix his gaze on his phone.

As this standoff-that-wasn’t-a-standoff continued, news arrived that Yoohyun’s father and grandfather had reached the venue, and the Hoseon Polar Bears’ victory party began.

“So, Yoohyun, are you eating a lot?”

“Yes.”

Yoohyun replied to his grandfather, who was next to him, and then took a sip of his drink.

Even that gesture was so elegant that his grandfather, Hwang Jingu, couldn’t hide his pleased smile.

This must be what they mean when they say they’re full even without eating.

Hwang Jingu treasured his grandson more than his son. He would jump out of bed in the middle of the night for anything concerning Yoohyun.

Because of this, it was his son, daughter-in-law, and employees who were tired, but neither Yoohyun nor he were the types to care about such trivial matters.

“Because of the team we acquired on your advice, Yoohyun, our group’s image is getting better by the day. I’ve been getting sick of hearing congratulations from everyone lately.”

Although he used the expression “sick of,” he couldn’t hide the pride contained within it.

Yoohyun gave a small smile at his grandfather’s words. It was because of the sudden thought of Kim Bokseung.

He said he was a fan of the RJ Triples, didn’t he? If he knew what kind of party I was at, he’d probably jump up and down in frustration.

The Triples, far from winning the championship this year, had ended up finishing in third place after being overtaken by a lower-ranked team.

I should contact him later.

Yoohyun’s mood brightened at the thought of teasing Bokseung to his heart’s content.

Misinterpreting the reason for his grandson’s good mood, Hwang Jingu cautiously asked Yoohyun.

“If you like baseball so much, how about trying to run the team yourself starting next year?”

“What?!”

The response to this came from Yoohyun’s parents, who were sitting at the same table.

He hasn’t even graduated from college yet!

Yoohyun’s parents shifted their gaze, worried that people nearby might have heard. Fortunately, there was no one around.