Chapter 159 – Aftermath – The Pregnant Family
*Aftermath – The Pregnant Family (9)*
After ejaculating, I left Moonyoung sobbing and patting my chest with her fist. She was an odd sight, a pregnant woman running away with semen dripping down her legs, her face a mix of resentment and joy. I thought about chasing after her, but figured she’d pull herself together if I left her alone. When she didn’t come back the next day, I was at my wit’s end.
“Junseo.”
“What.”
“What? Go find her, now.”
“Ugh…”
It was as if she was telling me not to come back into the house until I found her, my sister Haeun glaring at me coldly. Was sex while pregnant really that intense? I thought she wasn’t seriously angry, so I was nonchalant, but in the end, I had to go look for her myself.
“How did it come to this…”
I looked ridiculous, wearing a tank top and shorts, slippers on my feet, as I trudged along to find my kid. Maybe it’s because I’ve been taking the kids everywhere, but I don’t feel like a father. It’s all because of the elders who hate me but love the kids. I bet they’re having a blast somewhere in the village right now, babbling with the old folks. I wonder if they like the villagers more than their own father.
“Excuse me.”
“Yes?”
“Have you seen my kids?”
I figured they had to be somewhere around here, so I went down to the village and just grabbed an old man passing by and asked him.
“Huh.”
He wasn’t questioning why I was asking him, but looking at me with a cold, disappointed gaze, as if to say, “How can a father not know?” I felt pathetic. If Moonyoung had just answered her phone, I wouldn’t have to do this. It felt strange, like I was chasing after a runaway wife.
“Over there, see that building?”
“Thank you.”
“You’re still young… tsk tsk…”
I’m a young master, you know. I never thought I’d get such a cold look. I hated that title at first, but now that I’m being treated like this, it’s…
No, never mind.
Don’t think too hard about it.
The traditional Korean house the old man pointed out was surprisingly close, and the yard was open. It looked like a place where old people would gather, so they had to be here.
“Hello?”
“Oh, we have a guest. Who are you~?”
“Huh?”
But just like with those crazy lovers I met during my walk, I’ve been encountering a lot of sudden things lately. In the yard of the traditional house, there was a woman with shining blonde hair and nipples poking out through her traditional Korean mourning clothes. She was playing kickball with a girl in a slightly oversized hanbok. It was Serim Lee, whom I hadn’t seen in a while. The girl who bowed deeply to greet me also looked familiar, and for some reason, my conscience pricked.
“Young Master?”
“Serim? What are you doing here? You’re still in the village?”
“Yes, I haven’t been sold off, and recently I’ve been taking care of children. What brings you here today?”
“Don’t play dumb. Moonyoung came here, didn’t she?”
“Play dumb? I would never be so disrespectful to you, Young Master. If you had asked, I would have told you right away.”
“You haven’t changed. Where are my kids?”
“Your children are here with Moonyoung, and they’ve been eating and sleeping with the elders since yesterday. They’re growing up healthy, which I’m very relieved about.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
Serim brushed her blonde hair back and showed me her slightly flushed face. After that incident, after causing a ruckus in the village, after rebelling, and everything else, many people started avoiding me, but Serim’s attitude hasn’t changed. Usually, this would be the moment she’d poke at me, saying something like, “Shouldn’t you be taking care of your kids, Young Master?” but Serim didn’t seem to have any intention of doing that.
“That’s unexpected? Everyone else just badmouths me, saying I neglect my kids.”
“Taking care of children is a woman’s job in the first place. Why would you make the Young Master do such a bothersome thing? It’s not something you should be making him do.”
“You’re so bad because you’re serious about that…”
My conscience pricked even more. A woman who was perfected as a product. Her common sense was deeply rooted in something less than human.
“Serim unnie, who’s this ahjussi?”
“Ahjussi…”
A girl ran up to me, glaring at me, making me taste Serim’s scary common sense again. Unlike her kind tone, her eyes were narrowed, and her hair was neatly styled. She looked like an elementary school student, or maybe she was about to enter middle school? I couldn’t shake the feeling that I’d seen her somewhere before.
“Juae, he’s not an ahjussi. He’s the Young Master, got it?”
“Young Master~? The highest person here~? Hehe~! I didn’t know because I’ve never seen him before~!”
“She’s a little rascal… Is her last name Ju and her first name Ae…?”
“Yup~! You look like you get a lot of stress~! Were you always like that~?”
“This one, her way of speaking is just like Haeun noona… like… ugh~?”
My head buzzed with electricity, and I stared at the girl’s face, then back at Serim. I couldn’t stop looking back and forth between Serim and the girl called Juae. Serim was making a sly face at me, clearly using this girl to tease me, but I couldn’t figure out what exactly she was teasing me about.
“What’s wrong, ahjussi? Why are you staring at my face? Is there something on it? Or are you looking at Serim unnie? It’s not me, right? Are you getting excited by a kid? If you’re that kind of crazy person, I’ll report you right away!”
“She has no filter… this feeling is…”
Like Haeun noona…?
Haeun, Haeun, Haeun noona…
Noona?
“?!”
“Whoa?! Why! Are you really a pervert? No, right?! Let go of me!”
Without realizing it, I grabbed the girl’s cheeks and pulled her face close to mine. Her fox-like eyes and rough way of speaking, just like Haeun noona. And that unique nuance reminded me of someone.
“Those fox eyes!!!”
“It’s good that you noticed, but please don’t say it out loud. She’s just a normal girl who doesn’t know anything.”
“Say it’s not true.”
“I’m sorry. I’m a woman who can’t lie to the Young Master. You knew she was staying here, right? It’s surprising that you didn’t notice right away.”
“Hwaaaack…?!”
“Eek! What are you doing! Are you crazy?!”
I was so shocked that I pushed the girl away. Serim caught her skillfully, but Juae was so surprised by my actions that she immediately cursed at me. But I was genuinely confused, and my head was a mess.
“Ju, Ju, Ju… right, so her last name is… Ju…”
“Shhh.”
She covered my lips with her finger, telling me not to say it, even by accident. I knew that Juyeonmi had died and that the child had been entrusted to Yongshin Kim. It’s been four years, so she must have grown a lot, but she’s already like this? No, wasn’t she younger? I really don’t understand…
“Serim unnie, who is this ahjussi really? Does he know me? I knew he was a weirdo since he’s the Young Master of this village, but he’s worse than I thought! I wish weirdos would just walk around naked?!”
“The Young Master is an acquaintance of Juae’s late mother. He took care of things at the funeral when Juae was still young. So don’t talk like that.”
“Huh?! Really?”
“Really. He was the one who watched over her until the end. So you shouldn’t do that.”
Unlike Serim, who was smiling brightly, Juae seemed surprised by the fact and blinked her fox-like eyes at me, apologizing. Even though her tone was rough, it was proof that she was still innocent, unlike Juyeonmi.
“I didn’t know that. I’m really sorry.”
“No, don’t apologize.”
My face turned pale at the cruel lie.
I’m the one who ruined her mother.
I was the bastard who watched over her until the very end, so I didn’t want her to tell such lies to that woman’s child.
“Where’s Grandpa Yongshin…?”
“He went out with Moonyoung for a bit. They both seem to have developed a habit of making things themselves, wanting to feed the kids good food.”
“Does that happen often?”
“Yes, didn’t you know? This place is like a gathering place. Other ‘products’ often come to see the children too.”
“I had no idea.”
“It might be presumptuous of me to say, but I think you’ve added to the list of things you’ll be scolded for when you go home. Wouldn’t it be better to prepare some excuses in advance?”
“……………”
My head started to ache again. I’ve never told anyone in my family about Juyeonmi. At least, I haven’t, and judging by their reactions over the past year, it doesn’t seem like anyone told them while I was locked up for three years.
‘At least I have to face her… for now… she’s also a part of our family’s perverted three sisters’ bloodline… I can’t just ignore this…’
Even if I can’t say it.
Now that I know, I don’t think I can pretend not to know.
