F Side Story 11

After work, Yeonho visited a law office with his father. When he mentioned that he wanted to draft and notarize a will, his father didn’t open the car door and sat still.

“A will? All of a sudden? You’re still so young. Don’t scare Dad like that.”

He had used the word “Dad” without thinking. It was the first time since graduating elementary school that he had said it. Once Yeonho entered middle school and began calling him “Father” to create some distance, the man followed suit, calling himself “Father” in return.

“Don’t worry. I don’t do that kind of thing anymore. I want to live a long life.”

The thought that Siwoo’s parents might one day threaten his life had driven him to this decision. But it wasn’t as if he truly believed something bad would happen. Life was unpredictable. He just wanted to be prepared.

If anything happened to him, Siwoo would be left all alone in the world. No family, no inheritance from parents. Just him. And in the end, he would surely try to follow.

It was Yeonho who had cut Siwoo off from his family. He had made Siwoo an orphan so he could have him all to himself. Yeonho carried was responsible for that. He had to remain Siwoo’s family for the rest of his life. But there was no guarantee he would live longer. So he wanted to prepare.

He had already lived through something like death once. That experience had taught him what mattered. No more disappearing with a goodbye hidden in a phone. He needed to leave behind a trace, something official that those who remained could confirm and honor.

“I’d like Father to be a witness to my will.”

He still wasn’t ready to call the man “Dad” again. It was conditional. If you continue to show me genuine fatherly care, I might consider opening my heart again.

He named two witnesses: his father and a staff member at the law office he had gotten to know during recent legal disputes.

Testator Joo Yeonho declares the following last will and testament:

1. To Kim Siwoo (Date of birth: February 23, XXXX), I bequeath the following:

1) All real estate owned under the testator’s name

2) All bank accounts held by the testator

3) All securities and stock holdings of the testator

2. In the event of the testator’s death, his father Seong Namsik and mother Cha Gyeongshin shall recognize Kim Siwoo as the successor to the Platte Resort in place of the late Joo Yeonho. This clause remains valid even if Kim Siwoo marries after the testator’s death.

3. The inheritor, Kim Siwoo, is asked not to return to his biological parents.

***

Upon arriving at the business site with the investors, Siwoo didn’t spare Park Jihyun a single glance. Yeonho had told him again and again, not to hate him. That he was only a puppet being manipulated by his parents. That he wasn’t even worth feeling bothered by.

Siwoo understood exactly what Yeonho was afraid of. He sympathized with his desire to monopolize even the hatred directed at him. Their ways of loving had grown so alike that understanding each other’s hearts had become effortless.

Park Jihyun seemed to be waiting for Siwoo to make the first move. He hovered nearby with expectant eyes, hoping Siwoo would lash out and demand to know why he had gone to Yeonho and said those things. If that happened, Jihyun would proudly throw back some pathetic lie like, “Why don’t you remember our night together?”

Siwoo intended to crush that hope completely. He would deliver the final blow just before returning to Korea, after securing the investment. Short, clean, and final.

No matter what lies you try to use to break us apart, our relationship will not fall. So stop being a puppet for my parents. If you lose money by walking away from them, I’ll compensate you.

After inspecting the site for the new resort with the investors, Siwoo drove Yeonho’s mother to the restaurant. While driving, he casually brought up a subject, trying to sound composed though his heart pounded.

“Mother, I finished the book. It was really good.”

Once they rejoined the investors at the restaurant, he would call her “Director” again. But while they were alone, he deliberately chose to call her “Mother.”

How long had it been since he had wanted love from an adult?

He had tried countless times to earn love from his own parents, only to fall, break, and get hurt each time. In the end, he had given up. The hope of being loved by someone he wished to love him had already been abandoned in his teenage years.

Then he met Yeonho, and his world turned upside down. And because of Yeonho, he was daring to dream that same dream again.

“Really? You read it all? I’m touched. You’re so lovely.”

“You can speak comfortably with me. You don’t have to be formal.”

“Shall I? But only in private, then.”

Siwoo tried to hold back a smile twitching at the corners of his lips, but he couldn’t stop himself from breaking into a wide grin. He wanted to tell Yeonho right away. That the only person who had been on his mind throughout this business trip wasn’t Park Jihyun, but the mother of the man he loved.

Their business conversations stretched late into the night. Siwoo began to understand why Yeonho’s father had been so unsettled about her being away on this trip. The longer the talks went on, the more alcohol was poured.

Siwoo recognized his role. He quietly began to drink in her place.

She never asked him to. But he wasn’t thoughtless enough to sit by while all the investor’s drinks were forced onto her. He didn’t want to disappoint her. He wanted to help in any way he could.

Kim Siwoo was someone who had never lost control or gotten wasted at a drinking party. He had always relied on willpower to endure. He was not the type to show vulnerability while drunk.

But tonight was different.

The liquor was stronger, whiskey and vodka, not just beer, soju, wine, or cocktails. He might actually get drunk this time.

Two hours earlier, Yeonho had fallen asleep after a short phone call. Because of the time difference, Yeonho would wake up earlier than him. Knowing Yeonho would panic if he couldn’t reach him in the morning, Siwoo sent a message explaining that the business dinner was running late and that Yeonho’s mother was with him. He set his phone to silent.

He believed he wouldn’t pass out or lose consciousness. Just two promises to himself: no embarrassing mistakes in front of others, and he would walk into his hotel room on his own feet before he blacked out. He trusted himself.

But there was only one person before whom Siwoo had no confidence in himself, Yeonho. He couldn’t trust his own instincts around him. He feared that if he ever got drunk beside Yeonho, he might devour him like a predator. So he lived always wary of being drunk when they were alone together.

He arrived at the hotel in a chauffeur-driven car. He felt like he could black out at any moment, but he forced his eyes to stay open. From the outside, he still looked mostly fine.

“Good night, Director.”

“You worked hard. Sleep in tomorrow. Rest all day if you need to.”

He politely saw her to her room. He waited until she went inside. Park Jihyun and the investor he was assigned to also entered their rooms.

The moment Siwoo was left alone in the hallway, his legs gave out. All the tension drained away. No one was watching. He had done everything he needed to do.

With the room key in hand, he staggered down the hall and reached his door. The moment he opened it and stepped inside, he collapsed.

Just before the door clicked shut, a hand slid into the gap. The man who entered calmly walked over and pulled the phone from Siwoo’s pocket. It was glowing and vibrating silently with an incoming call.

Yeonho’s mother had returned to the hallway. Among the things she’d bought during the day was a charger that Siwoo had mentioned needing. She was heading to his room to give it to him.

“…What the…”

She caught sight of Park Jihyun’s back as he slipped into Siwoo’s room.

***

Yeonho had drifted into light sleep to the sound of Siwoo kissing into the receiver, but woke soon after, just like the night before.

After checking Siwoo’s message, he couldn’t fall back asleep. He called him every ten minutes.

Siwoo didn’t answer. Yeonho assumed the meeting wasn’t over yet. He called fifteen times.

On the fifteenth try, the call finally connected.

But the person who answered wasn’t Siwoo.

–Hello, Joo Yeonho. Kim Siwoo’s asleep. He can’t come to the phone right now.

It was Park Jihyun, drunk on victory.

Yeonho’s lips curled into a cold smile.