GBH 31

 In the early morning, accompanied by chirping birds, Kim Deuk-pal was on his way home after finishing his usual jog. Although he often got lost in the unfamiliar alleys with high walls, he had now adapted enough to use shortcuts.

“Huff, huff…”

While waiting for the gate to open, he wiped his forehead with the wristband he wore. After running at a steady pace all the way back from the mineral spring, not only his forehead but also his soaked back rose and fell roughly. As he entered the house, there was a guest sitting in the living room.

Short in stature with her hair tied up. It was the housekeeper, Lee Mi-kyung. If it wasn’t to monitor the chairman’s mistress from misbehaving, she wouldn’t visit. It was unusual for her to be sitting in the living room drinking tea in the morning.

Kim Deuk-pal passed through the living room, pretending not to see her. Mi-kyung put down her teacup.

“You don’t even greet your elders.”

In terms of age, Kim Deuk-pal’s soul would be the elder, but it was unfortunate that his body was Song Yi-heon’s.

“Sit down.”

It seemed Lee Mi-kyung came looking for Song Yi-heon, not Song Min-seo. Although reluctant, Kim Deuk-pal sat on the sofa opposite her. The housekeeper from Seosan, who had been pacing restlessly in the kitchen, quickly brought tea when their eyes met.

“Where is mother?”

“Madam is sleeping in her bedroom.”

Song Yi-heon nodded as if understanding, then sat down spreading his legs wide and leaning back on the sofa. Lee Mi-kyung’s eyebrows twitched.

“Sit properly.”

“I am sitting properly.”

What Lee Mi-kyung wanted was a cowed and hunched Song Yi-heon, but unfortunately, Kim Deuk-pal had no intention of granting her request. Even using honorifics was a great concession. There was no reason to bow down to Lee Mi-kyung, who was merely the chairman’s lackey.

When Song Yi-heon didn’t change his posture even after she frowned and glared at him, Mi-kyung reluctantly and irritably rummaged through her bag.

Kim Deuk-pal, who had flinched thinking it might be a midterm report card, was relieved when a credit card statement fell onto the table.

“Why does a student spend so much money?”

Kim Deuk-pal picked up the statement and skimmed it. Cafeteria, cafeteria, café, cafeteria, café, department store, cafeteria, bookstore… Most of the charges were small amounts for snacks at the cafeteria.

However, the original Song Yi-heon barely used his card, and because Kim Deuk-pal had bought luxury brand items like bags and wallets from the department store, the card charges had jumped significantly in just a few months.

What Mi-kyung was picking at wasn’t the amount, but the increased card usage, but that was none of Kim Deuk-pal’s concern.

Calling himself the chairman, surely he can’t be short on this much money, Kim Deuk-pal muttered under his breath.

“He should at least have a lot of money.”

“What?”

Her reaction was immediate. Somehow catching his low voice, Mi-kyung’s eyes sharpened. Kim Deuk-pal tossed the statement to the center of the table.

“Isn’t that right? If he’s going to hide a young mistress, he should at least have a lot of money.”

Even Kim Deuk-pal made a lot of money during his gangster days doing illegal things, so a chairman who even had a young woman hidden away shouldn’t be short on money. A thought flashed through Kim Deuk-pal’s mind, and he raised an eyebrow.

“Surely he didn’t think he could get away with just this one house?”

Lee Mi-kyung flinched and averted her eyes, as if wondering if he had said something plausible. It wasn’t even surprising anymore. Kim Deuk-pal spoke.

“Go and tell the chairman. Tell him to prepare Song Yi-heon’s college tuition, allowance, and an apartment in a place with good transportation.”

It was just enough wealth for Song Yi-heon’s soul to return and live comfortably. However, the deeply loyal Lee Mi-kyung was furious and didn’t want to give even a penny to the mother and son living off the Chairman.

“You should be grateful for living off the chairman’s money, what kind of attitude is this!”

“He probably had a great time having sex, but now he’s stingy.”

“What, what?”

Lee Mi-kyung couldn’t believe her own ears, but Song Yi-heon laughed and mocked her.

“Isn’t that right? Do you think a child comes out alone? The Chairman is half responsible, so he should be thankful we’re living quietly.”

Lee Mi-kyung flushed with embarrassment as the young man lounged on the sofa with his legs spread.

“I guess what you fear most is people finding out I’m the chairman’s child. If so, shouldn’t you at least give me plenty of money to keep quiet?”

“You’ll come to your senses once your card is cut off…!”

“Do you want me to call reporters and do a paternity test?”

The smile on his handsome face faded like it was bleached out. Living miserably worrying about money was exactly what he despised. Fearing Mi-kyung might try something foolish, Song Yi-heon warned her.

“I warn you again. If my life becomes uncomfortable, you’ll next see me in the social pages of the newspaper. The Chairman will be thrilled to know you caused trouble over a trivial amount.”

Every time he mentioned the chairman, Lee Mi-kyung’s reaction intensified. When he brought up the chairman again just in case, sure enough, Lee Mi-kyung couldn’t confront him recklessly.

Figuring she must have understood by now, Kim Deuk-pal stood up without asking permission. As he hurried to the second floor, running short on time to prepare for school due to this useless meeting, he suddenly remembered to inform her:

“And call before you come next time. Don’t just show up at someone’s house unannounced. It’s unpleasant seeing your face first thing in the morning.”

“You, you ungrateful brat, after we raised you!”

Lee Mi-kyung, who had been suppressing her anger for the chairman’s sake, finally jumped up and pointed at him accusingly.

Kim Deokpal stared at her as if she were talking nonsense. Unable to hold back a derisive laugh when she sincerely claimed she had raised him well.

What raising? Throwing a credit card at him and neglecting him wasn’t raising, it was abuse.

Even Choi Se-kyung, who had only known him for two years since entering high school, noticed that Song Yi-heon had changed. But Lee Mi-kyung, who had known him his whole life, not only failed to sense anything strange since his hospitalization but was still desperate to take out her frustrations on Song Yi-heon.

Kim Deuk-pal roughly pushed back his sweat-soaked hair and tilted his head back. That ill-tempered woman just couldn’t accept the fact that she’d never get the upper hand if she tried to confront him.

“Right, I should repay the kindness. The kindness of raising me…”

He tilted his head back and closed his eyes as if deep in thought, then suddenly opened them as if struck by a brilliant idea.

“Shall I put you in my mother’s place?”

Lee Mi-kyung froze.

“What?”

“You love the Chairman, don’t you? Since you can’t become the legitimate wife, you should at least aim for the mistress’s position. Isn’t that why you’re sticking around here?”

“…”

“Let me know when you make up your mind. I should repay the kindness of raising me. I support your filthy love.”

The eyes resembling the chairman she loved bitterly criticized her before disappearing. Lee Mi-kyung collapsed, clutching her trembling legs.

---

After the midterm exam results were out, the senior students began their career counseling. The afternoon classes were replaced with self-study sessions, and students were called one by one according to their numbers for counseling with their homeroom teacher.

“Song Yi-heon, it’s your turn.”

The boy who had just finished his counseling session returned to the classroom and called for number 12, Song Yi-heon. As Kim Deuk-pal was leaving, he noticed student number 11’s expression, which suggested the counseling hadn’t gone entirely well, and his own face darkened in response.

Opening the door to the counseling room at the end of the corridor, Jung Eun-chae greeted him from her seat at the round table.

“Yi-heon, you’re here. Have a seat.”

Kim Deuk-pal sat down demurely, folding his hands on his knees. As Jung Eun-chae took out Song Yi-heon’s student record and midterm exam results, he behaved as if he were a criminal. He tensed up, as if feeling unworthy to fully sit on the chair.

Jung Eun-chae began gently, trying not to put pressure on him about his grades.

“You must be upset that your midterm scores dropped significantly.”

“Yes…”

“But I’m really proud of you, Yi-heon. You’ve been through a lot during winter break, but you’re attending school well and getting along with your classmates. I was worried, but you’re even popular. Interpersonal relationships are much harder than studying. Grades can improve with time and effort, right?”

“Yes…”

Having never improved his grades before, Kim Deuk-pal couldn’t relate, but he nodded respectfully at the teacher’s words.

“Are you getting along well with Jae-min?”

Jung Eun-chae cautiously broached the subject. On the first day of the semester, when Song Yi-heon had fought and won against Hong Jae-min’s group, Jung Eun-chae had postponed changing his class. She judged it wasn’t too late to change classes after observing Song Yi-heon’s efforts to change. If he showed willingness to change on his own, it was right to respect and support his will rather than solving the problem externally.

In fact, Jung Eun-chae knew that Hong Jae-min couldn’t bully Song Yi-heon anymore. She often visited the classroom to check on them and asked other subject teachers and classmates about the two. From what she had seen and heard, Yi-heon was adapting well to school life. His closest friend was the vice-president Kim Yeon-ji, and during lunch breaks, he could often be seen playing soccer with his classmates.

However, hearing it directly from him was different, so when she asked, Song Yi-heon answered in a bright voice as if he were enjoying every day.

“Yes, I’m getting along well with Jae-min.”

When Hong Jae-min was accused of stealing class funds and returning to school after a few days, he kicked desks in anger, creating a hostile atmosphere. Song Yi-heon, who had just returned, was caught off guard. That must have been when it started. Whenever Hong Jae-min exuded a menacing aura, Song Yi-heon would chase after him with a broom and beat him up…. Peace came to the classroom as Hong Jae-min’s era of suffering began.

With his peer relationships sorted out, Jung Eun-chae moved on to the next issue.

“Could I possibly get your parents’ contact information? I met your guardian at the beginning of the semester, but she seemed busy. I’d like to speak directly with your parents.”

Although things are going well now, the issue of being left vulnerable to school violence for the past two years couldn’t be easily overlooked. There could be other fundamental problems, so Jung Eun-chae wanted a serious consultation. She needed to talk directly with a parent – someone who sincerely cared for Song Yi-heon and could take legal action if necessary – not the irresponsible Lee Mi-kyung who claimed to be his guardian.

Although she couldn’t say it, Jung Eun-chae suspected that Lee Mi-kyung might be abusing Song Yi-heon.

However, no matter how much Jung Eun-chae searched, she couldn’t find contact information for Song Yi-heon’s birth parents. Song Yi-heon also seemed troubled, moistening his lips with his tongue.

“Ah, my parents… Well, my father isn’t around,”

It seemed his family registry was under Song Min-seo, and since the chairman was trying to hide Song Yi-heon, it was probably right to say he didn’t exist. Kim Deuk-pal nodded to himself, convinced.

“And my mother is an alcoholic…”

Clack-. Jung Eun-chae dropped her pen.