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Chapter 18
So that was why.
Han Woo-yeon… looked like my family.
It felt like that family had returned.
Doha felt emotions he couldn’t describe, and he adjusted his posture carefully with cautious eyes.
The overwhelming emptiness he had felt earlier was starting to settle.
Now, he didn’t want to hesitate anymore.
Doha put both of Ye-won’s hands in his, holding them gently as if to protect them.
“Ye-won is part of my family too.”
“That’s right.”
“…So, don’t go anywhere. Live with me, uncle.”
“!”
“…Uncle might not be enough, though—”
Doha rarely stuttered, but he did now.
“!”
Ye-won hugged Doha’s neck without hearing the rest.
She didn’t need to hear more—because it was already a happy sentence.
Beep beep beep beep beep.
“!”
The door lock was released, and Woo-yeon rushed in.
“Ye-won, Uncle Woo-yeon is here—!”
“Quiet.”
Doha covered Woo-yeon’s mouth with his hand.
“?!”
“Ye-won is sleeping.”
Woo-yeon shot a glare at him, and Doha said calmly.
“Mm-mmm-mmm… mm. Mm-mmm. Mm-mmm-mmm. (Alright, fine. I’ll be quiet.)”
“…”
Maybe because he had seen it too many times already.
Doha hated that even when he covered Woo-yeon’s mouth like this, he could still understand what Woo-yeon was saying.
He closed Ye-won’s door slightly, then looked back at Woo-yeon, who was holding a huge teddy bear.
“…How did you even carry that big thing here?”
“For my Ye-won, this is the least I can do.”
“You’re out of your mind. What if someone saw you?”
“Even if someone saw, there’s no problem. The only place I carried this is to your house.”
“……”
When he said it like that, it sounded true.
Even if a dating rumor broke out, it wouldn’t really be a problem for Idoha and Han Woo-yeon as pro idols.
“Then why is Ye-won already asleep? It’s only nine.”
“Kids usually sleep at this time. You and I are the ones who are abnormal.”
“Really? Kids normally sleep now? My younger siblings used to beg me to play at this time. Is Ye-won too weak? Should I train her stamina or something?”
“……”
Doha decided it wasn’t worth answering, and instead took the teddy bear from Woo-yeon’s hands.
Woo-yeon handed it over willingly and went back outside.
“……?”
As Doha was confused by this ridiculous behavior, the door lock sounded again and the door opened.
And what appeared—
“…A suitcase?”
It was luggage almost the size of a moving set.
“Yeah. I’m going to live here.”
“Wait, you said you were just staying temporarily, you crazy person. Weren’t you planning to leave after a month or two?”
“That’s my choice. Didn’t you hear the CEO earlier? He said, ‘One uncle can barely raise a child, but half an uncle is barely enough.’ Idoha can’t raise a child alone. I have to be here too.”
“If you’re half an uncle, you’re not even a quarter. Get out.”
“Ah~ no~ Ye-won said she wants to live with me~ I’m going to live here with my little baby bird, my baby angel Ye-won~”
“I said no.”
Doha lowered his voice and shot a fierce glare at him.
“If you keep doing this, will you force Ye-won to choose? Like, ‘Uncle Doha, Uncle Woo-yeon is leaving?’ Then she’ll say, ‘I hate you, uncle.’ Haha.”
“……”
That argument was so convincing that Doha gritted his teeth.
“Do you think I want to live with you? I’m only putting up with someone like you because of Ye-won, Idoha.”
“Who are you to say that. So don’t hold back—”
“And when Eon comes.”
“……”
“If Eon comes, he’ll try to kill you, right? Then I have to carry Ye-won and run away~ idiot~!”
Woo-yeon patted Doha’s shoulder lightly.
When Eon’s name came up, Doha fell silent as if he had nothing left to say.
It was obvious that Eon would try to kill him, and he couldn’t let Ye-won see that scene.
“Anyway, I’m using this room. See ya~!”
Woo-yeon laughed at Doha as he walked into one of the rooms.
Doha’s face turned pale.
“That room is not allowed.”
“Why?”
“It’s my studio.”
“You don’t even work there. Why do you need a studio?”
“Because I need it. Get out. Use the next room.”
“Ha. You’re so picky, picky. It’s hard to match the taste of a picky leader~”
Woo-yeon shrugged like he was going to forgive him and started walking to the next room—
“……?”
He stopped.
Because this room—
“Isn’t this your room?”
“That’s right.”
“Then how can you use this? Where are you going to sleep?”
“I’ll sleep there too.”
“What nonsense is that? How many rooms are there? Why would you share a room? Are you crazy?”
“There are five rooms here.”
“Then why are you sharing?! There’s Ye-won’s room, the studio, your room. There are still two rooms left, you crazy man!!”
“One room is a dressing room. The other room is Eon’s.”
“……”
At the name ‘Eon,’ Woo-yeon froze completely.
He hadn’t thought of that.
“Right. This house… you and Eon lived here together… damn…”
Doha looked at Woo-yeon with a contemptuous expression as if to say, You just remembered that now?
Originally, this was Grit’s dorm, but when the lease ended, Eon and Doha bought the house separately.
“Or you can share a room with Eon. If you want to, I won’t stop you. I don’t mind.”
“……”
At the thought of sharing a room with Eon, Woo-yeon’s expression turned cold.
“…You’re going to put another bed, right, honey?”
“Buy it with your own money. You’re rich.”
And so.
The kind of living situation they had only when they were rookies began again.
Meanwhile, in CEO Park’s office.
After Doha left, Park began to move in his own way.
“Good. Doha made a big decision, so we need to move accordingly. Let’s think of a plan.”
“Actually, CEO. I’ve been thinking… about that offer from OTube the other day.”
“The one from Producer Hwang?”
“Yes.”
The offer was from the industry’s top star PD, Hwang Ji-o.
A PD who guaranteed public attention whenever he appeared.
“That was a reality show offer. With the kids’ relationship in such ruins, would it even work? I was already thinking of rejecting it.”
Park felt like his insides were burning at the thought of rejecting PD Hwang’s offer.
“Ha, but… this might be a chance, CEO.”
“A chance?”
“Yes. We could completely reveal Doha and Ye-won to the public. If we hide them too much, rumors will only grow. What if we show everything in a childcare reality show—no hiding, no secrets?”
“!”
“Childcare shows are the best for improving an image. It would revive Grit’s declining image. And it would publicly show Doha’s family situation in a positive light. It seems like killing two birds with one stone.”
“……”
When he heard it, Park realized the idea had merit.
A childcare reality show was exactly the kind of content PD Hwang was always interested in, so he would welcome it.
But the problem was…
“Would the kids even agree? Eon isn’t even in Korea. Even if we somehow persuade Eon, do you think Doha would agree? That stiff guy?”
“Ahem…”
Young-oh scratched his head awkwardly.
“Sigh. Still, rejecting PD Hwang’s offer would be foolish.”
It was such a perfect opportunity that Park sighed in disappointment.
Then, at that moment—
“…Wait.”
“Yes?”
“…I just had an idea that’s completely insane, Young-oh.”
Park’s eyes lit up.
—So you succeeded in getting into that house?
That evening.
Woo-yeon received a call from CEO Park.
“Yes. Idoha is a jerk, but… he took out a 40-year mortgage in Cheongdam-dong with a 5.8% interest rate and pays it monthly… even though he’s a freelancer, so he pays more interest than others… but Ye-won is so cute and lovely, so I want to stay here for her.”
—Good choice. Hannam-dong is quieter than Cheongdam, so it’s better to live there.
“…CEO, you live in Cheongdam too. How can you say that when you live above me?”
—You’re noisy. I’m only saying it for your sake. By the way, how is Doha and Ye-won’s relationship? Have they become close?
“Ah, that show-off. He says he can’t live without Ye-won but he’s denying his feelings so hard.”
—…Denying?
“Yes!! Listen… I’m so worried he might steal my niece, and he keeps glaring at me. You should come and see!”
—…Doha?
“Yes!!”
“He pinched my thigh twice, you know? Because Ye-won was hiding? Did you see it? He didn’t want to lose her. It was my first time seeing that.”
—…He really did that?
“Yes!!”
—…It’s going better than I thought.
“Excuse me? What is?”
—Nothing. Just keep watching him closely.
“Yes, sir.”
Even without being told, Woo-yeon had already planned to do so.
After hanging up, Woo-yeon felt uneasy.
Something felt strange.
The CEO was definitely planning something…
