Yeohwi stood blankly in front of the closed door for a moment, then trudged back to the dining table like a dejected puppy.
A table with only him.
He sat in his seat and looked at the coffee cup Dowon had left behind. Then he shrugged his shoulders once.
“Eh.”
Let’s just eat before the food gets cold.
Yeohwi put cheese, jam, and ham between bread, topped it with scrambled eggs, and took a thick bite. The taste was amazing. He then found a giant soup bowl, poured cereal into it with a clatter, filled it with low-fat milk, and began scooping it up with a spoon, crunching away.
Just turned twenty. The appetite of someone at the prime age for growth was tremendous.
It seemed like he could easily finish at least three servings.
Yeohwi, who had completely cleaned up even the portion Dowon had left untouched, suddenly looked up. He saw the housekeeper clearing away the dishes and coffee cup from Dowon’s seat.
“Excuse me.”
He called out, quickly wiping the milk from his mouth.
“Ajumma.”
The housekeeper looked at Yeohwi with slightly surprised eyes.
“Did you call me, young master?”
Yeohwi smiled with the refreshingly bright face characteristic of a young man and spoke in a friendly manner.
“Do you have time right now?”
“What… do you need?”
Mrs. Park asked cautiously, keeping her distance.
“I have something I’m curious about.”
Yeohwi stood beside her, personally bringing his empty dishes to the sink.
“Young master, just leave it!”
“No, no. I’m taking up your working time, ajumma. Let’s clean up together.”
Mrs. Park looked at Yeohwi with slightly flustered eyes. This newlywed who had married Director Do didn’t resemble anyone from the Do family she’d worked for over decades.
Despite being neglected all morning, he’d emptied his rice bowl cleanly, and even now he didn’t seem discouraged at all. That boldness, or perhaps innocence, was unfamiliar to her.
“You know, is Dowon-ssi usually that quiet?”
“Pardon?”
“Is it just today, or does he normally seem angry?”
Questions poured out. Mrs. Park organized the dishes with a troubled expression.
“The director usually doesn’t speak much normally either.”
“What about meals? I noticed he only drank coffee. Is that normal, or did his appetite completely disappear because of me?”
“He doesn’t usually eat breakfast. He’s very busy.”
“I see…”
Yeohwi muttered as he put on rubber gloves. The pink gloves seemed a bit small for him.
“No, young master. Don’t do that. Really, just leave it.”
“No, it’s fine. Just this! I’ll just wash the coffee cup and this one thing.”
“If you do this, it puts me in a difficult position…”
“I have so much I want to ask ajumma. I’m really desperate. Please help me, okay? This time it’s a really important question.”
Yeohwi looked straight at Mrs. Park and asked. Under his tousled brown curly hair, clean brown eyes without a trace of falsehood shone.
“Excuse me, what does Dowon-ssi like?”
“……”
“Or, things he dislikes at least.”
Mrs. Park was at a loss for words. There was no one in this household who asked such questions. Especially not about Director Do.
“That’s hard to say… The director doesn’t usually show his emotions.”
Mrs. Park answered while carefully maintaining boundaries. Yeohwi innocently asked in return.
“Why?”
“Pardon…?”
“Why doesn’t he show his emotions? Was there a reason he shouldn’t?”
“……”
She quietly looked at Yeohwi’s face. To think he could ask so brightly even after receiving such cold treatment. It wasn’t from resentment or stubbornness, but a face filled with pure curiosity, genuinely wanting to get along well.
‘Well…’
Mrs. Park had originally been Dowon’s nanny. But in this ice-cold household, under a cold and greedy eldest uncle and a servile youngest uncle, Dowon was a young master who had never once been a child.
From a young age, Dowon always had to satisfy the expectations of relatives who kept him in check, and showing emotions became a weakness.
Mrs. Park had spent her entire life by his side, caring for Dowon while feeling sorry for him inwardly.
And now that Dowon had gotten married.
Of course, she knew from years of observation that this wasn’t a normal marriage.
However, at this moment, Mrs. Park wondered.
‘Maybe.’
Could such an untainted young man change something?
Mrs. Park looked once more at Yeohwi’s innocent, sunshine-like face. She seemed to feel the fresh scent of grass. Like when you run to your heart’s content in a wide field at noon with sunlight beating down overhead, then stop. That kind of overwhelming emotion naturally came to mind when looking at Seong Yeohwi.
“Ajumma?”
Yeohwi urged her on.
Mrs. Park let out a deep sigh.
“Young master.”
Her voice had become much softer.
“The director… has never rested comfortably even once in this house.”
“What…?”
“He probably has never had anything he liked, nor avoided anything he disliked.”
Mrs. Park wiped her wet hands with a dishcloth hanging in one corner of the kitchen and spoke as if she’d made up her mind.
“Do you really want to get along well with the director?”
Yeohwi’s eyes sparkled like stars in an instant.
“Yes! I want to become close with Dowon-ssi. Please help me.”
The large-framed young man quickly nodded his head. His characteristic fresh charm overflowed.
The nanny, who had only seen the inhumane and ice-cold Dowon in the mansion until now, ended up being swayed by the sunshine-like appearance of Yeohwi.
‘Yes. This much might be okay.’
Even if she ended up offending the director’s mood later, it would be something she could take responsibility for.
Mrs. Park wrote something on a small memo pad in one corner of the kitchen and carefully handed it to Yeohwi.
“The director is so busy he won’t answer phone calls. But he will check text messages… If you really have something to say, try sending it here.”
It was Dowon’s personal cell phone number.
***
From that point on, the tables turned.
Seong Yeohwi’s one-sided campaign began.
After finishing cleaning up, he bowed 90 degrees to Mrs. Park in greeting, then rushed to the bedroom. When he opened the closed door and entered, Dowon’s scent seemed to still linger in the room.
“Great.”
First, he decided to unpack.
All he’d brought with him to this mansion was a single simple suitcase. A few clothes, toiletries, and a laptop with its charger.
Click. Yeohwi, who’d taken a photo of the suitcase with his phone, sent his first text to Dowon’s number.
Suitcase photo.jpg
I’m moving in!
09:21
Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’ve properly greeted you yet
09:22
I look forward to working with you from now on
09:23
Of course, there was no reply.
As if he hadn’t expected one, Yeohwi opened the suitcase and began organizing his belongings. After placing his laptop and charger in the empty storage of the huge bedroom, he headed to the dressing room with his clothes.
“It’s empty.”
Yeohwi muttered as he opened the magnificently large dressing room.
In that space that could hold hundreds of outfits and still have room left, only Dowon’s black and gray suits and shirts hung perfectly aligned. Watches, belts, shoes, etc. were also displayed, but there were only exactly the necessary quantities, not that many in number.
Yeohwi hung his t-shirts and jeans one by one on the empty hangers next to them. He also rolled up his socks and tucked them in neatly. Then, to commemorate finishing unpacking, he took a photo so that his clothes and Dowon’s suits were captured in one frame.
Dressing room photo.jpg
10:02
Organizing clothes
Putting my clothes next to Dowon-ssi’s really doesn’t match.. But do you like black by any chance?
10:03
Naturally, there was no reply.
Undaunted, this time he headed to the bathroom with his toiletries. He placed the toothbrush, toothpaste, and razor he’d brought in the bathroom where he’d spent quite a while yesterday. After finishing, he took a photo of his toothbrush lined up next to Dowon’s toothbrush.
Toothbrush photo.jpg
Finished organizing
10:31
Hehe
10:32
After brief consideration, he additionally sent a smiling yellow-headed emoticon.
Returning to the bedroom again, Yeohwi pushed the suitcase into a corner and began exploring the house.
A huge mansion. There were still many places he hadn’t visited yet.
