Episode 15
“Mrs. Kang.”
Hiding her inner sigh — ‘What is she up to again?’ — Director Kang walked over to Young-sook.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Did you keep an eye on the kids?”
At those words, Director Kang hesitated and couldn’t immediately respond.
“Well…”
“What’s with that tone? If something happened, say it did. If not, then say it didn’t. Is that so hard?”
Letting out a deep sigh under Myung-sook’s stern tone, Director Kang replied.
“I did it because I was told to, but it really feels like I’m spying on kids on a date. It’s just… uncomfortable.”
“There wasn’t anything unusual.”
“If nothing happened, then why does he look like that?” Myung-sook’s cold voice cut through, and from the other side of the phone, Tae-yoon’s startled voice followed.
— “That’s too much. If you say things like that, Mom, it makes me upset.”
Tae-yoon didn’t respond further. His mother had always been a bit clingy, but after he returned to Korea, Ahn Young-sook had become borderline obsessive. Regardless of his reaction, she continued speaking.
— “How’s work these days? I don’t hear anything, no one talks, so how would I even know?”
Tae-yoon smirked to himself. Apparently, the warning he’d given to Chief Song had worked. There were likely others besides him too, but Tae-yoon trusted they would handle it.
“What is it that you really want to say?”
She was clearly dancing around the point, trying to bring up a difficult topic. When Tae-yoon got straight to the point, Young-sook seemed flustered and cleared her throat awkwardly.
— “You’re so hasty. Well, I had something to ask. Are you busy this afternoon? If not, I’d like you to drop by somewhere.”
“Today? Where?”
— “Well, you know there’s Jae-hee’s alumni gathering. I thought I’d go and make a good impression there.”
He had clearly and repeatedly said he had no intention of marrying Jae-hee, but his mother seemed to have no intention of letting it go. Tae-yoon rubbed his temples in frustration.
— “Just go, okay? Be nice to Jae-hee, and the people there are all pretty influential. Wouldn’t it be good for you to know them too?”
Listening to her soft persuasive tone, Tae-yoon let out a long sigh.
“I’m not going.”
— “Tae-yoon.”
“Don’t bring this up again. And don’t try to set me up with Yoo Jae-hee either.”
— “Tae-yoon! Are you trying to give your poor mother a heart attack?!”
Her shouting echoed through the phone, but Tae-yoon didn’t hesitate and pressed the end call button. Shaking his head, he turned his attention back to work.
Meanwhile, Young-sook, now off the phone, clutched her head with both hands.
“Ugh, this child is going to drive me insane.”
Collapsing onto the sofa, she shouted toward the kitchen.
“Hey, Seo-rin! Bring me some citron tea!”
At her yelling, Seo-rin soon came out with a steaming cup. After blowing on it and taking a sip, Young-sook finally started to calm down.
“Ha… I gave birth to him myself, but how did he turn out so disobedient?”
While muttering complaints about Tae-yoon, her eyes suddenly caught sight of Seo-rin quietly standing nearby. That reminded her — Jae-hee had asked if Seo-rin could attend as well.
Looking at Seo-rin gave Young-sook an idea. Maybe she could send both Seo-rin and Tae-yoon to the gathering.
“Seo-rin, can you run a little errand for me?”
Seo-rin immediately recalled what Tae-yoon had told her earlier — to keep her evening free. The sun was already setting. She wondered what Young-sook was planning. If she finished the errand quickly, would she still be able to meet Tae-yoon afterward?
The thought was tempting. After all, it was her birthday today.
But she shook her head. “What’s the big deal about a birthday?” Her priority was surviving in Young-sook’s house and protecting Dongmyung Food.
Nodding, Seo-rin stepped forward.
“Yes, ma’am. What would you like me to do?”
“There’s an orange shopping bag in my bedroom’s dressing room. Bring it and deliver it to Jae-hee.”
“To Jae-hee?”
“Yes, Jae-hee. Why do you make me say everything twice? What, do you not want to?”
Seo-rin quickly waved her hand at the sharp tone.
“No, it’s not that.”
“Then go get it. It’s a gift, so deliver it properly. I’ll text you the address.”
With that, Young-sook closed her eyes, looking tired. Seo-rin bowed slightly and walked off toward the dressing room.
