OMS 106
by Cherry“What’s all this?”
“I bought these while in Jeju Island. I was thinking of you, Mother.”
Madam Song frowned at the boxes before her. Tangerine jelly, tangerine candy, tangerine tart, tangerine chocolate, and even tangerine rice cake…It seemed like he had bought every possible product made with tangerines.
“My, what terrible gift-choosing sense.”
“You don’t like them?”
“Thanks to this, I might develop an allergic reaction to tangerines.”
“Come on, at least appreciate the thought and try one. Jeju Island is famous for tangerines, after all. Yoon-ah, please open one for Mother.”
As Kim Yoon-ah opened the box to take out a tangerine chocolate, Madam Song’s gaze fell to her wrist. Staring intently at the gleaming watch, Madam Song called out to Kim Yoon-ah.
“Manager Kim.”
“Yes?”
“Did you also receive tangerines?”
Caught off guard by the sudden question, Kim Yoon-ah nervously pulled down her shirt sleeve to hide the watch. Madam Song’s eyes sharpened as she gave Park Dong-sik a very unfriendly look.
“So after taking your busy ex-husband on some trip, you buy your mother-in-law mere tangerines while getting your secretary a luxury watch?”
Park Dong-sik responded with brazen playfulness.
“Madam Song, I told you gifts should be what people need. You already have lots of luxury items. I bought Manager Kim a watch because she’s been forgetful about time lately. Besides, you know all the money I spend is CEO Kim Jun-han’s money, right? Do you want a luxury watch bought with money your son earned through his hard work?”
Madam Song laughed in disbelief.
“Do you know you’re the one who wastes that money the most? Luring him to go on a trip during his busiest and most hectic time, and for your mother-in-law’s gift, a single tangerine… Ha, anyone would think you run a tangerine farm.”
Park Dong-sik grinned broadly.
“Did you really think I only bought tangerines?”
As he reached into his pocket, Madam Song’s eyes sparkled with anticipation. Seeing her expectant look, Park Dong-sik made a dramatic show of it, complete with sound effects, making a heart with his hands before revealing it with a “ta-da!” Madam Song’s face immediately crumpled, while Kim Yoon-ah quietly wiped away nervous sweat from her forehead beside her.
“There’s truly nothing likeable about you.”
“Alright…Then I’ll take these back and eat them myself.”
“Leave them. Someone will eat them eventually.”
“That’s a good idea. They say sweets are best when feeling down. Trust me and try some.”
After reluctantly eating the forcefully offered chocolate, her expression softened slightly. “The taste isn’t bad.” Taking advantage of this opening, Kim Yoon-ah offered something else, while Park Dong-sik looked around the house.
Since Chairman Kim was confined to the villa and Butler Yoon was driven out, he wasn’t visible. Seeing some staff members had changed, it seemed there had been an overall personnel overhaul. However, staff members were carrying laundered bedding toward Kim Tae-han’s separate quarters.
“Has Kim Tae-han been discharged yet?”
“They called to say it’s happening today. For some reason, he changed his mind and said he’d receive treatment and live well.”
“That’s good…”
“So don’t come around here anymore. Don’t disturb his peace.”
Park Dong-sik nodded. “Yes, I won’t…” Though he had been worried, he felt relieved that Kim Tae-han would eat and receive treatment. Checking the time, evening was fast approaching. Thinking it would be better to leave before running into Kim Tae-han, he got up to his feet, when Madam Song suddenly received a phone call right then.
“What? What did you say?”
Madam Song shouted and jumped up from her seat, then clutched her head, saying “Oh my” and collapsed back down. She snapped at the phone.
“Find him immediately! Use whatever means necessary and find him! Understand?”
After hanging up, her face was as pale as a sheet of paper. Park Dong-sik carefully observed her expression and cautiously asked.
“What happened?”
“Tae-han has disappeared. They say he escaped in a taxi when they stopped briefly. Oh, this cursed boy. Oh, this crazy fool.”
As Madam Song lamented and beat her chest, Park Dong-sik exchanged glances with Kim Yoon-ah, wearing a troubled expression on his face. Just then, there was a rumbling boom outside and lightning flashed across the sky. Then raindrops began falling against the window panes with soft taps.
Park Dong-sik left the living room and took out his phone to call Kim Tae-han. There was no response except a message saying the phone had been turned off. He let out a small sigh and looked outside, where worryingly, the raindrops were getting heavier.
***
“My balls! Give me my baaaalls! Give me my baaaaaalls!” Watching Blackey hopping around frantically, Park Dong-sik laughed in disbelief. Was all the nutrition he was eating going to that little guy? How does he always have so much energy?
And demanding to see balls…Had they been listening to everything inside the womb? While seriously considering whether he should only use proper language from now on, his back felt warm, and he turned to see Whitey sitting there quietly.
“Hello, Whitey?”
Instead of answering, Whitey gave a long, sleepy yawn. Park Dong-sik couldn’t help but laugh—it looked just like in the ultrasound image.
“Is Whitey sleepy?”
After nodding, it lay down using its front paws as a pillow. While Park Dong-sik was smiling at how cute it was, Blackey came bouncing over from afar and casually draped an arm over Whitey’s shoulder. Before it could finish saying “My balls~”, Whitey kicked Blackey away with its hind legs.
Even while rolling away like a ball, Blackey was laughing gleefully. Seeing this, Park Dong-sik looked on with concern in his eyes.
“Surely…they won’t be like this when they’re born? Right, Blackey?”
Looking for agreement, he found Whitey already fast asleep, snoring softly. Seeing this, Park Dong-sik laughed silently and lay down beside it. The sun was perfectly warm, and in the clear, windless sky, thunder rumbled—
Huh?
Opening his eyes suddenly, he saw the scene outside the window. Endless heavy rain was pouring from the dark sky. Moreover, the car had stopped on the bridge, unable to move forward.
Ah, he had been dreaming. Feeling as if the rabbits were still beside him, he stroked the seat next to him. Then his eyes met Kim Yoon-ah’s in the rearview mirror.
“Are you awake?”
“How long did I sleep…?”
“About 30 minutes. You must have been very tired.”
“Oh, I even drooled.”
As he wiped the drool from his mouth, thunder struck again in the sky.
“Wow, the weather’s really fierce.”
“While you were sleeping, your mother-in-law called. She was worried, asking if we arrived safely.”
“That’s unusual. After treating me like a terrible daughter-in-law who just bleeds her son dry…By the way, did they manage to find Kim Tae-han?”
“No, they haven’t.”
“Ha, where did this guy go….Really crazy….”
Sighing deeply, he tried calling Kim Tae-han, but the phone was still off. It was well past evening when he briefly talked with Kim Jun-han, who said he’d be late due to backed-up work.
Just two days of vacation and work had piled up. Poor Kim Jun-han…
He couldn’t even mention Kim Tae-han, concerned that such news might trouble him.
Meanwhile, the traffic gradually cleared, and by the time they arrived home, the sky had cleared as if nothing had happened.
“Oh?”
As they approached the house, Kim Yoon-ah startled at something and looked back.
Following her gaze, Park Dong-sik also spotted a dark figure crouched beneath the wall.
“Is it a homeless person? Why are they under someone else’s wall like that?”
Kim Yoon-ah stopped in front of the garage and opened the glove compartment to take out a collapsible baton. Seeing this, Park Dong-sik asked in surprise.
“What’s that?”
“I prepared it just in case. Please go up first. I’ll check who it is and come up.”
Just as Kim Yoon-ah was about to open the door, Park Dong-sik urgently grabbed her arm.
“Wait. I’ll go.”
“What?” Kim Yoon-ah looked at him with a confused face, and Park Dong-sik unfastened his seatbelt and got out of the car. When Kim Yoon-ah, who had gotten out after him, tried to follow, he pushed her back.
“You go in first.”
“No. I know who it might be. I’ll go with the security guards.”
“I think I know who it is too. Please.”
After earnestly requesting that Kim Yoon-ah leave, he passed through the gate. When the security guards tried to follow, Park Dong-sik gestured for them to stay back and walked down to the wall. Despite his footsteps, the strange visitor remained motionless, face buried between their legs.
“You’ve finally gone crazy….”
As the head lifted, Kim Tae-han’s pale face was revealed. Whether due to being soaked or from hunger, his cheeks were so sunken he looked emaciated, and his eyes were unfocused.
Park Dong-sik roughly ran his hands through his hair, considering what to do. Should he tell Kim Jun-han first, or Madam Song? Seeing him in this state, Madam Song would certainly faint.
While biting his lips and pondering, Kim Tae-han slowly stood up. His labored breathing was notably concerning.
“Are you okay? Why did you come all the way here instead of being discharged properly—”
Kim Tae-han carefully embraced Park Dong-sik. His cheek touched Park Dong-sik’s neck, and despite being rain-soaked, he was burning with fever. When Park Dong-sik tried to pull away urgently, Kim Tae-han held on tightly and whispered weakly.
“I just wanted to see your face one last time…”
“…”
“I wasn’t going to come back…”
“…”
“I can’t give up…Even if I die, I can’t let go…”
“I hate…that I like you…Hee-soo…” As he painfully uttered each word, Park Dong-sik felt as if his breath had stopped. When he forcibly separated from Kim Tae-han, his cheeks were wet with what could have been tears or rain.
Sighing, Park Dong-sik took out his phone to give Kim Jun-han a call. At that moment, Kim Tae-han collapsed. Though Park Dong-sik tried to catch him, he couldn’t manage alone. He urgently called for the security guards, and two strong men who had been guarding the gate came running quickly to where they were.