“Let’s hurry and get ready.”

At Yu Seol Ah’s words, Yu Min put his art study books and worksheets in his bag.

“Are you going to be there all day today too?”

“No. Just until before we eat.”

“So you’re coming home for lunch?”

Yu Min’s face brightened.

Seven years old this year.

His chubby cheeks and red lips were so cute that Seol Ah smiled back at him.

Seol Ah didn’t want to do this either. On weekends, she wanted to play with her child all day, but she couldn’t do as she pleased. She had to work part-time jobs whenever she could to raise Yu Min without him feeling deprived compared to others.

He was a child she had to raise alone. And it was a life she had to endure alone.

Fortunately, the convenience store where Seol Ah worked was understanding, so she was able to bring Yu Min to work. While Seol Ah was working, Yu Min would draw pictures or do worksheets by himself in the corner.

“It must have been hard getting ready and coming out early in the morning. Did you eat?”

The store owner, Baek In Sook, was a single mom in her 60s just like Seol Ah. Her son had already graduated college and was preparing for employment. So in some ways, she seemed to understand Seol Ah’s feelings well.

“Yes, I ate together with Yu Min while taking care of him at home.”

“Is that enough? Here, these are almost at their expiration date, but eat some of these too.”

In Sook handed over plenty of boiled eggs for both Yu Min and Seol Ah, but Seol Ah waved her hands.

“No, there’s still a lot of time left before the expiration date. Those can still be sold.”

“What’s the point of selling them and making a few coins. Eat some. People need to get their protein. Yu Min too.”

“Thank you.”

Yu Min, who liked eggs, quickly took them with both hands and politely bowed his head.

“Oh my, look how well-mannered he is. Whoever raised him did a great job raising a son.”

When In Sook patted Yu Min’s head, he laughed sheepishly.

Seeing In Sook who always took care of her and Yu Min like her own daughter and grandson, Seol Ah felt her heart ache.

“Thank you, ahjumma.”

While Seol Ah and Yu Min were sitting and eating the eggs, In Sook brought over milk for Yu Min and cider for Seol Ah, saying it would help wash it down.

After guzzling down the cider, Seol Ah got up from her seat.

“Yu Min, then keep studying. Mom will work and come back soon.”

“Okay, don’t worry Mom.”

Seol Ah lightly kissed the forehead of Yu Min who was smiling brightly and went to the counter.

As usual, there were friendly customers, but there were also annoying customers who practically threw their crinkled bills at her. Seol Ah, a veteran part-timer, responded appropriately and spent the morning.

Before she knew it, the promised lunchtime was almost here.

She was finishing up and briefly reconciling what she had done so far when someone came to the counter to pay.

“Ah, sorry. I’ll ring you up right away.”

Seol Ah lifted her head and looked at the person.

And she froze on the spot.

The man standing tall like a totem pole was the man she had left 7 years ago, the man she thought she would never see again.

“Ha.”

Seol Ah couldn’t say anything more. What in the world was going on?

It was a memory she had left behind 7 years ago. A man she thought she would never meet again.

The head of JK Group’s Strategy Planning Department, Han Seung Jun. He was the eldest grandson of JK Group’s chairman and had the power to make even flying birds fall, it was said.

Seung Jun’s eyes were lowered deeply. But Seol Ah knew. That he was also quite surprised. The coffee can in his hand was tightly clenched.

“Checkout.”

Seol Ah hurriedly rang him up. She picked up the coffee and scanned the barcode. But then her hands shook and she dropped the coffee. She quickly bent her head to pick it up when she felt someone approaching her.

“Mom, I’ll pick it up for you.”

Yu Min, who had come at some point, picked up the coffee and handed it to Seol Ah.

“Thank you, hurry and go study.”

Seol Ah took the coffee, feeling her voice tremble without realizing it.

Seung Jun was watching with an expressionless face.

“I’ll check you out now.”

Seol Ah scanned the coffee again on the barcode and paid with the card Seung Jun had placed. A black card. She remembered. It was the one he had given her 7 years ago to use freely.

Seol Ah had refused.

Three years as his secretary, and one year as his lover. That was enough for Seol Ah. She had gotten pregnant, and he had someone to marry. So it was over. She couldn’t raise this child as the child of a woman he didn’t know.

Seung Jun looked at Seol Ah handing him the card and coffee and only picked up the coffee.

And then, as if nothing had happened, he walked out of the convenience store.

“Sir, customer.”

Seol Ah picked up the card and hurriedly followed Seung Jun out.

Before the door closed, she glanced at Yu Min and fortunately, he was absorbed in doing his worksheets.

“Customer, you didn’t take your card.”

Even though Seol Ah held out the card, Seung Jun just stared at her blankly.

“Customer.”

“Keep it.”

“Pardon?”

Seol Ah’s eyes widened.

“What are you saying? It’s your property so you have to take it.”

“It’s not the only thing I took, is it?”

Seung Jun lowered his head and looked straight into Seol Ah’s eyes as he spoke.

“My son.”

Seol Ah’s pupils trembled. She looked clearly flustered.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Seol Ah quickly lowered her head and spoke in a shaking voice. Seung Jun laughed without answering.

Seung Jun’s body swooped close to Seol Ah.

The scent she always smelled from him wafted over. A faint musk scent mixed with his body odor. It was also her favorite scent.

When she was embraced by his lean, firm body, it felt like that scent filled her heart. Memories of closing her eyes and being absorbed in languor. Days she wished today and tomorrow would disappear like that.

“Your son would be at your home. Why are you looking for him here?”

Seol Ah said one more thing, feeling burdened by the silence.

“I don’t have one.”

Seung Jun spoke in a cold voice.

“Didn’t you get married?”

When Seol Ah looked up, she felt momentarily breathless.

His large pupils were shining blackly as if they would swallow her.

“I’ve never been married. It was just a false rumor.”

This time Seol Ah’s pupils widened.

She was sure the news of the marriage had come out as an article.

“You left for such a trivial reason? Over a mere marriage news?”

Mere? You were someone I could never have anyway. The marriage news just made me realize reality. Even if it wasn’t that, we were a couple that couldn’t continue together anyway.

“Mom.”

Then the sound of the door opening was heard. Yu Min must have come out because Seol Ah was gone.

“Mom, why are you out here?”

“Ah, the customer forgot something so I was bringing it out for them. Don’t worry and go back inside.”

Seol Ah spoke to Yu Min with a forced smile on her lips. Seung Jun was watching with an interested look.

When Yu Min went back inside, Seung Jun, who had been silently watching his back, turned to Seol Ah.

“The truth will all come out if investigated.”

Seol Ah’s face turned deathly pale.

“Let’s do this – I’ll come find you again after I uncover the whole truth.”

Seung Jun finally pushed his black card into Seol Ah’s hand and turned to walk away. The moment Seol Ah tried to follow him, someone entered the convenience store.

She couldn’t stay out any longer with a customer inside.

Seol Ah tightly closed and opened her eyes as she watched Seung Jun’s receding back. The card in her hand was trembling.

As if it wasn’t a card but a knife stabbed in her heart.

*

“I’m going to catch you now!”

“Wahhh!”

A few days later.

After school, Yu Min was playing with friends from the same kindergarten at the playground.

Today was a day Seol Ah was getting off work later than usual.

Seol Ah had entrusted Yu Min to Yoon Sung’s mom, whom she was close with among the other daycare moms.

“The kids must be hungry. I’ll go buy some snacks. You won’t go anywhere, right?”

Yoon Sung’s mom, who was sitting on the bench next to the playground, spoke to Shin Young’s mom beside her.

“Yes, we’ll be here so don’t worry and go.”

“Then I’ll leave it to you.”

Yoon Sung’s mom looked at the playing children with a satisfied expression and stood up.

“Tag!”

“Ahh, I’m caught!”

Meanwhile, the children had started playing tag.

When Yu Min became “it”, all the children were caught in less than 5 minutes.

Yu Min had good physical attributes, so he was a head taller than his peers and also excelled at running.

“Let’s hurry and pick the next person who’s ‘it’!”

When Yu Min spoke, Shin Young, who had been caught first, complained.

“You’re too good so from now on when you’re ‘it’, you have to hop on one foot.”

Yu Min immediately protested the arbitrarily decided rule.

“There’s no such rule. Then everyone has to hop on one foot!”

“Yeah. Yu Min is right about that.”

Yoon Sung, who was close with Yu Min, agreed, but the other kids all sided with Shin Young.

“No, it’s no fun if Yu Min keeps winning.”

“If you don’t like it, then just go home.”

When Shin Young pointed her finger and spoke, another child who agreed chimed in.

“Yeah, go home. You don’t even do Tuntun Learning anyway.”

Tuntun Learning was an extracurricular study group that the other children did together, excluding Yu Min. Led by Shin Young’s mother, they were doing English, Korean, and advanced math.

Seol Ah had also been invited but refused.

She was worried that if she spent money on private education now, she might not be able to properly support Yu Min in middle and high school if money became tight. And she also had to save up for expensive college tuition in advance.

Seol Ah directly taught Yu Min Korean, math, and English, and fortunately, her home-schooling worked well for him. Right now, Yu Min had better skills than anyone.

However, because he didn’t receive private education together with his peers, Yu Min was sometimes excluded by his friends.

“Mom said I don’t need to do Tuntun Learning!”

Yu Min shouted but Shin Young also shouted back unyieldingly.

“No. You have to do Tuntun Learning. My mom said you must do it. You can’t do it because you don’t have a dad so you don’t have money.”

“What did you say?”

Yu Min’s eyes widened.

He didn’t mind them telling him to do Tuntun Learning. But saying he didn’t have a dad was a problem. Because that would make Seol Ah and himself sad.

“Hey, apologize!”

Yu Min yelled at Shin Young. But instead of apologizing, Shin Young just stuck out her tongue.

“I don’t want to. Says the one without a dad.”

“I said apologize!”

Yu Min hit Shin Young’s head with his fist. Shin Young burst into surprised tears.

“Waahhh!”

Shin Young’s mother, who had been sitting on the bench looking at her cell phone, saw Shin Young crying and ran over in surprise.

“What’s going on, why are you crying?”

When Shin Young’s mother asked, Shin Young pointed at Yu Min and shouted.

“Yu Min hit me. He punched me!”

Shin Young’s mother looked at Yu Min with a frown.

“You hit her? Yu Min, you’re a bad boy, huh? You shouldn’t hit your friends! Why did you hit her, why did you hit Shin Young?!”

Shin Young’s mother grabbed Yu Min’s shoulders and shook him.

But Yu Min just lowered his head with his mouth tightly shut.

Mom had said that under no circumstances should you hit someone. Yu Min couldn’t accept the fact that he had broken that himself.

Then a man was seen approaching them.

The tall man was walking towards them with a stern face.