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Chapter 12
“Especially if I raise Yewon myself, the two of you would be able to see each other often. It’s a win-win for everyone.”
For a moment, silence settled over the conference room.
“…But, sir….”
Doha hesitated briefly before continuing.
“Aren’t you… too busy?”
For the CEO, this wasn’t a win-win at all. No matter how important I might be to the company, that would be—
Doha swallowed the rest of his words.
He knew better than anyone how extraordinary Chairman Park’s consideration already was.
“I am busy.”
Chairman Park answered without hesitation.
“But my time isn’t more important than Gleet—or Lee Doha.”
“…….”
“Well, honestly, time can be bought with money. Hire the very best private tutors, cover everything from A to Z, entrust all the education to them. Get a full-time nanny too. They’d be better than most parents out there. Do I look like someone who’d skimp on money? I’m confident I could be a better parent than anyone else. I intend to give Yewon every possible form of support.”
“…….”
“To the press, we can just say I adopted a child because I wanted one, even though I’m publicly known as a non-marriage advocate. Or we can throw some money around and block any articles from coming out at all. Legal issues? Hire a few lawyers and it’ll be over in no time. As long as you, her blood relative, agree.”
It was clear Chairman Park had already thought everything through; the words flowed from him without a single pause.
Everything he said made sense. Even to Yewon, it sounded like the most rational solution.
But—
“No!”
I said no!
Yewon shouted urgently.
“?!”
Everyone turned to look at her at once.
They all looked flustered, as if they hadn’t expected Yewon to be the one to refuse.
“I-I…! I want to live with Uncle Doha…!”
“……!”
They clearly hadn’t expected her to be this adamant; everyone’s eyes widened.
Especially Doha’s.
“O-of course… th-thank you so much…. But I….”
Even in her desperation, Yewon desperately searched for words a seven-year-old could manage.
“I can’t live without Uncle Doha!!”
It wasn’t just that she couldn’t trust any adult other than Uncle Doha.
It was also that she had to protect him.
Having said that, Yewon clung tightly to Doha’s arm with both arms and legs.
“!!!!”
At that overwhelming display of determination, the adults fell silent.
But Yewon knew it wasn’t because they were convinced by her words—it was simply because they felt sorry for her.
Seeing a child insist on living with her uncle right in front of them would naturally tug at their hearts. Still, realistically, they must think it was impossible.
But Yewon had prepared for that reaction.
“U-Uncle and I l-look e-exactly the same!”
“!!!”
…This was it.
“I-if you don’t tell anyone I’m his niece, a-adults will think I’m Uncle’s daughter! So we have to live together…!!”
Just like that.
At Yewon’s bold declaration, all the adults were left utterly shocked.
“…She’s not wrong, is she…?”
Her words had come out in a complete jumble—but they were, in fact, true.
Lee Yewon looks exactly like Lee Doha.
So everyone would end up suspecting their relationship.
Where did she get this idea?
Right here—
‘She seriously looks insanely identical. Wow, Lee Doha, be honest—she’s not your niece, she’s your daughter, right?’
‘No, seriously, did you give birth through some kind of cloning method? How else could two people look this alike?’
From remarks like those, made in passing.
All at once, Yewon remembered the things she’d heard throughout her career.
‘Yewon really looks like Gleet’s Lee Doha~’
‘Exactly. She’s like his little sibling!’
That was why they’d even been able to shoot commercials together in the first place—using a family concept.
…Back then, I just thought it was a strange coincidence.
But thinking about it now, it was obvious. They were family, after all….
As she got older, maybe because of the difference in gender, she didn’t hear comments like that as often.
…Come to think of it, what did my face look like when I was seven?
What was it like, that everyone said we looked alike?
Suddenly curious, Yewon quietly stood in front of the full-length mirror in Doha’s room after everyone had fallen asleep.
“!!!”
And when she saw her own face, she was truly horrified.
…We really do… look exactly the same…!
To the point that denying their blood relation would make you seem like a heartless monster—they really were that alike.
While the shocked adults took a moment to collect themselves, Yewon was sent outside.
Chairman Park’s secretary stayed with her for a bit, doing some coloring together.
“…Yewon’s right. If it were anyone else, maybe. But if the CEO raises Yewon, people will 200 percent think he’s cleaning up the mess of Lee Doha’s accidental daughter.”
“…I can’t deny that….”
Wooyeon and Youngoh murmured as they nodded.
“If you left her with someone completely unrelated, you could at least insist, ‘Wow, what a strange coincidence.’ But if the CEO’s daughter looks that much like him, that won’t work.”
“A rumor about an idol having a ‘secret biological daughter’…. Reporters would swarm in and tear it apart.”
“I can already see the list of reporters trying to link this to Yoo Taeyoung’s voluntary withdrawal. I can practically write the headline already. ‘Sudden Exit of Gleet’s Yoo Taeyoung—Behind It, Lee Doha’s Hidden Daughter?’ Or maybe, ‘Gleet Shocker: Behind Yoo Taeyoung’s Decision, Lee Doha’s Family Secret?’ It’ll be that kind of bullshit….”
“I’m getting PTSD just listening to this, Wooyeon… stop….”
As Wooyeon and Youngoh muttered with hollow expressions, Chairman Park quietly let out a sigh.
“This is a big problem.”
“…What is?”
“You saw Yewon’s reaction just now. Do you really think she’ll calmly agree to be adopted somewhere else?”
Chairman Park shook his head. Not a chance.
The moment he saw her expression earlier, he’d already assessed the situation.
That kid would never leave quietly.
“I thought maybe Yewon wanted to go somewhere else too. I didn’t expect her to be that determined to live with you.”
“…….”
At Chairman Park’s sigh, Doha closed his mouth.
“In one year, she’ll be entering elementary school. What are you going to do if she goes around saying, ‘My uncle is Gleet’s Lee Doha’?”
“…….”
“Sure, if it were a normal eight-year-old saying that, no one would believe her. But what if it’s an eight-year-old who looks exactly like Lee Doha?”
“…….”
“I think I’d believe it myself.”
With a shrug, Chairman Park sank deeper into the sofa.
At that ambiguous attitude, Doha’s brows knitted tightly.
“Then what exactly are you suggesting?”
“We need to consider all possible scenarios. It’s not like there’s only one option.”
At that businesslike response, Doha’s gaze darkened even further.
Normally, it would have felt reassuring—but when it came to Yewon, it only made him feel cold.
“Where is there even another option right—”
Doha genuinely wanted Yewon to grow up happy. For that, he believed she needed to go somewhere that could raise her better than he ever could.
And yet—
“How about you raising her yourself? Do you really hate that idea that much?”
“!”
“…What did you say?”
“Think about it, at least. The child wants it. And it seems like you’ve grown pretty attached to her in this short time.”
“Sir.”
Doha clenched his teeth.
For the one person who knew better than anyone why he couldn’t raise Yewon to say this—it was all the more absurd.
Of all people, Chairman Park—the money-obsessed man who always preached ‘business is business, life is life.’
“I’ve actually never thought you absolutely had to hide your family background.”
“…….”
“You’re not the perpetrator. You’re clearly the victim. There’s no reason for you to hide.”
At the word victim, the atmosphere in the office grew even heavier.
There was no one here who didn’t know Doha’s family history—but no one ever spoke of it lightly.
Yet Chairman Park continued without batting an eye.
“The reason we’ve hidden all of that until now was because I respected your wishes. It’s your private life, your family history, so I let you handle it however you wanted.”
Doha knew that too.
In truth, Chairman Park had been a good CEO from the moment Doha joined Time Entertainment until now.
Because of his family background, Doha had required a great deal of consideration—but Chairman Park had resolved every obstacle without once complaining.
Legal issues? He found lawyers.
Problems money could solve? He solved them all with money.
In return, since his debut, Doha had never once gone against the company’s wishes and had been a perfect idol.
That was why—
“Then are you saying you won’t respect my wishes anymore?”
It was precisely because of this that Chairman Park’s stance felt so strange.
“No. I still respect them. You know my principle, don’t you? As long as it doesn’t harm my business, I respect my artists’ wishes one hundred percent.”
“Then why—”
Just as Doha was about to object, Chairman Park raised a hand to stop him.
“So now I’ll ask you—my artist. Are you really okay with sending Yewon away?”
