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Chapter 7
Haena let out an involuntary, slightly twisted exclamation of surprise. In truth, even though there wasn’t much of an age gap between Hong Yi-do and Haena’s original self, the word “mister” came out naturally.
“…?”
“It’s been a while, Father. Have you been well?”
“……?”
Haena bent her waist very politely into a deep, formal bow and smiled brightly.
*I’ll become a perfectly polite child, like something straight out of a Confucian schoolhouse.*
“Haena, you…”
Director Hong Yi-do looked very flustered by Haena’s smile, but his confusion quickly faded.
Or rather, it seemed like he’d simply lost interest in Haena.
As if he thought this was just another one of Haena’s new tricks.
“Right. I’ve… been well.”
Hong Yi-do looked down at Haena with a very bewildered face.
“Are you… okay too, Haena?”
*If this is what a father calls greeting his daughter, it’s absolutely terrible.*
“Yes. Thanks to you worrying about me, Father.”
“…Then go to your room now.”
*Mister, you have no blood or tears, do you?*
*When your adorable daughter talks to you so sweetly, shouldn’t you respond?*
*If I were Haena’s mother, the first thing I’d do would be to kiss her a hundred times.*
*My mom and dad—no matter how tired they were after work—they always kissed me, hugged me, and then went to sleep.*
“Why do you keep trying to send me to my room, Father? Are you very tired?”
“…!”
“If you’re very tired, just tell me. Don’t lock me in my room. If you do that, I’ll feel really hurt.”
Haena spoke grumpily, then turned her body and went upstairs.
*I don’t particularly want to stay here with you either, mister.*
Even after Haena went upstairs.
Director Hong Yi-do stood rooted in the entrance, unable to move for a long time.
“Hurt…?”
He mumbled something like this to himself.
“Ah, Director!”
Just then, the passing nanny, Uiryeong, approached him in surprise.
“You’re here? If you’d arrived, you should have called us…! Your luggage is in the car, right? I’ll go—”
“No, that’s fine.”
“Excuse me?”
“I left my luggage at the hotel. I plan to stay there for a while.”
“The hotel? You’re not coming home?”
Yi-do nodded.
“Haena would be uncomfortable if I were here.”
“What? No, not at all! Miss Haena misses you so much—”
“She’s a child who used to have seizures every time she saw me.”
Yi-do paused briefly, recalling that Haena hadn’t had a seizure just now, but then shook his head.
“…She seems fine seeing me now because it was only for a short while, but if she stays with me for a long time, she’ll get sick again. Staying apart is better for Haena.”
“Director…”
When the nanny Uiryeong was too flustered to say anything, Yi-do nodded calmly and stepped inside the house.
“I only stopped by today to greet Father. Is Father home now?”
“Ah, the chairman isn’t home right now. He said he’d come for dinner later.”
“Then I’ll come back then.”
Just as Yi-do was about to turn around without hesitation—
“Um, Director!”
Uiryeong stopped him.
“Please don’t leave. Wait for the chairman here. Miss Haena has changed a lot lately.”
“…?”
Yi-do looked puzzled, then recalled Haena’s attitude from earlier.
That side of Haena was new. Until now, whenever Haena saw Yi-do, she would shrink back and wouldn’t even speak. Then, not long after, she’d inevitably burst into tears and have a seizure.
Speaking in such bright, lively tones was something Haena hadn’t done since her mother died.
Seeing how Haena had always gotten so stressed just by looking at him, Yi-do had naturally come to regret his very existence.
Even when he asked Haena why she was crying, she could barely answer through her sobs.
“Mo… mo… mommy…”
That was all she ever said.
It was a symptom that had started after Haena’s mother died.
Even when other adults asked Haena why she cried just by looking at her father, she would clamp her mouth shut and never open it.
They left her with all sorts of renowned counselors and doctors, but nothing changed.
Instead, the symptoms only got worse.
*’Perhaps… it’s because seeing you reminds Miss Haena of her mother.’*
*’!’*
*’It’s a very rare case… but it’s possible. The trauma of losing her mother remains, and whenever it’s triggered, it manifests this way.’*
At those words from the doctor, Yi-do’s heart sank.
When he asked if there was a way to cure it, the doctor repeated that it would take time and a lot of therapeutic counseling.
But no matter how much effort they put in, the problem showed no signs of resolving, and Yi-do—worried Haena might hurt herself if she fainted from seeing him—had simply kept his distance.
The reason he’d told Haena to go straight to her room earlier was also because he was afraid that if she looked at him any longer, she’d start crying, exhaust herself, and have another seizure.
*’…It’s been a long time since I’ve had such a long conversation with her.’*
The Haena he spoke with after so long was lovely, smart, capable, cute, and pretty.
*’Just like my daughter… speaks well. Sharp and articulate.’*
Yi-do nodded.
“Miss Haena has been doing very well lately. She’s polite to the adults, too. Right now, kindergarten is temporarily under construction, so she’s taking lessons with tutors, and the tutors all say that Miss Haena has become much brighter and is doing very well.”
Uiryeong seized the opportunity and passionately highlighted Haena’s changes.
“Of course, it’s only been two weeks since Miss Haena brightened up so much… but still, we’re all happy because it seems like Miss Haena is getting much healthier.”
“…Two weeks?”
“Yes, and lately she’s even been eating—”
“Then it’s not stable yet.”
“!”
Yi-do turned back to his defensive posture.
“If Haena has only been this bright for two weeks, it’s still uncertain. We can try talking again when we’re sure Haena is truly comfortable and healthy.”
After saying this, Yi-do hesitated, then added.
“Last time too… I thought she was fine and tried to talk to her, but she suddenly fainted and couldn’t get up for a long time.”
In the past, Haena had seemed fine for a short while. Thinking she had finally stabilized, he’d tried to talk to her, but Haena had cried again, suffered a seizure, and fainted. And it didn’t end there. She’d suddenly started running a fever and eventually ended up in the emergency room.
Fortunately, she recovered quickly, but from that point on, Yi-do had been deeply traumatized.
He wanted more than anything to be close to his daughter, but more important than that was Haena’s health.
After the doctor said that if a young child’s fever got that high, it could cause brain damage, Yi-do had been tormented by immense worry.
“For now… I’ll stay in my room. Please make sure Haena doesn’t come near me.”
At Yi-do’s firm words, Uiryeong couldn’t say anything more and simply nodded.
Because she, too, understood how Yi-do felt.
—
**”Mmm. Homework, done.”**
*Why are they giving such heavy homework to a seven-year-old?*
*Isn’t this mistreating a child? Is the human rights situation for chaebol children really okay like this…*
*It’s only manageable because I’m a K-office worker who used to work until 1 AM every day, but this seems a bit excessive for a normal seven-year-old.*
And so, Haena suddenly found herself contemplating the human rights of chaebol heirs.
Then she looked at the clock and saw it was already dinnertime.
Haena hopped off her chair and went looking for the nanny. *Her name was Uiryeong, right. When I said I forgot her name, she looked so sad… I should memorize it.*
*Anyway, where is Haena’s father? What a heartless father, coming home after so long and not even looking for his daughter.*
Secretly, Haena felt a little hurt.
Having spent her whole life with parents who weren’t rich but were warm and adored her, becoming the daughter of such a completely opposite household was worse than she’d expected.
The more she thought about it, the more she felt that a warm, loving family—even with less money—was far better.
*If only my mom and dad were here, it would be perfect. We wouldn’t have to worry about money, we could eat lots of delicious food together, and just live comfortably going for walks…*
“I miss you. Mom, Dad…”
As she mumbled this, she suddenly heard a presence behind her.
“!”
