Side Story 8
They decided to have an early dinner.
Ga-eun, Si-heon, Se-ryun, and Se-ori gathered around the table.
“Omma, Se-ori made Abba’s study alllll pretty. Right, Abba?”
Si-heon wiped the sauce from Se-ori’s mouth and nodded.
“Yeah.”
Se-ryun put on a stern face and spoke as if lecturing her.
“Se-ori, Dad said you shouldn’t go into his study without permission.”
“But Kiki wanted to go in!”
Ah, so Oppa had been disappointed.
Well, of course. Grandpa Chairman, Grandpa, Grandma, and even Great-Auntie all wanted Se-ori’s drawings!
“Oppa, I’ll draw on your bag too. Even prettier than Abba’s. Super-duper pretty. I’ll even draw P.P. specially for you. ‘Kay?”
Se-ori’s confident declaration left Se-ryun speechless, his mouth hanging open.
Watching the siblings’ usual antics, Ga-eun laughed aloud, and Si-heon smiled as he looked at his wife.
“Oppa likes Se-ori sooo much.”
“…….”
“Why no answer?”
Se-ori’s unwavering gaze showed she hadn’t the slightest doubt her words were true. Se-ryun sighed and nodded in resignation.
“Yeah, yeah.”
“I’ll draw it after dinner. Just wait a little!”
Se-ori speared a small piece of apple with her fork. Her tiny red mouth moved chew-chew as she ate.
It was so absurd, yet so adorable, they couldn’t help but laugh.
“Se-ori, next time, you must ask permission before going into Dad’s study. Just like you wouldn’t like it if someone took your bag without asking, you have to respect other people’s spaces too.”
At her mother’s kind but firm words, Se-ori answered obediently.
“‘Kay.”
In this house, Ga-eun’s word was law.
Se-ryun, Se-ori—and even Si-heon—strictly followed that rule.
“Daddy, we’re really all going out together tomorrow, right?”
Si-heon nodded as he placed a small piece of meat onto Se-ryun’s spoon.
“Yeah.”
The moment Si-heon finished speaking, Se-ori quickly chimed in, as if she’d been waiting.
“Se-ori wants to bring Kiki too.”
“You can only bring Kiki. No dragging along the whole doll box like last time.”
“Mm.”
Se-ori gave a half-hearted reply to her brother’s words and lightly swung her dangling feet.
It meant she was in a good mood.
How adorable. Smiling with her eyes curved, Ga-eun poured apple juice into Se-ori’s cup and said,
“Se-ryun, Se-ori, both of you need to chew your food slowly and thoroughly.”
“Yes!”
“‘Kay.”
As she watched the children eat contentedly, something touched the corner of her lips.
Reflexively opening her mouth, the refreshing taste of yuzu sauce spread across her tongue.
Si-heon wiped Ga-eun’s lips and murmured softly,
“Ga-eun, you should chew slowly and thoroughly too.”
At his deliberately stern expression, Ga-eun burst into laughter like a flower in full bloom.
It was a warm evening, just like any other.
***
The next day.
The black SUV carrying the family of four left Seoul and sped down the endless stretch of highway.
In the back seat, Se-ryun and Se-ori chattered excitedly the whole way, whispering to each other about this and that.
“…Yes, Grandfather. No, we still have plenty left from the last batch you sent. Yes, I’ll do that.”
Ga-eun ended the call and slipped her phone back into her handbag.
“Grandfather?”
“Yes. He said he’s sending more strawberries because the kids seemed to enjoy them so much last time.”
When they had visited the main house last week, Chairman Kwon Soon-yeol had been so delighted watching Se-ryun and Se-ori happily eating strawberries that he sent over a mountain of them.
And yet, there were still plenty left in the pantry.
“I think he misses the kids.”
It had been a full year after Se-ryun’s birth before Kwon Soon-yeol was finally allowed to see his great-grandson.
That had been Si-heon’s decision.
Though Ga-eun, now emotionally secure, had said it was fine, Si-heon had refused to yield—not that time.
He wouldn’t let his grandfather shake their marriage ever again.
And in the end, it had gone exactly as he’d wanted.
Chairman Kwon Soon-yeol sincerely apologized to Ga-eun for the past and transferred most of his shares in Hwanhee Cultural Foundation to her.
Even when Ga-eun adamantly refused, the Chairman shook his head.
“It seems my judgment has dulled with age. It’s only right to pass the reins to someone young and wise. I truly am sorry. My greed hurts you.”
“I understand. Back then, you must have done what you believed was best.”
“I’m grateful you see it that way. And though it’s shameless of me… I’d like to be called something other than ‘Chairman’ now.”
It was proof that he was accepting her as family.
Hearing those words, Ga-eun had burst into tears without realizing it, and as a result, Chairman Kwon had to endure Si-heon’s sharp glare for quite some time.
That was already years ago.
Now, even when she looked back on it, the memory no longer carried any pain.
All thanks to how much stronger Si-heon and Ga-eun’s bond had grown since then.
They no longer hid their feelings from each other.
If they were anxious, they said so. If they missed each other, they said so. If they were worried, they said so. If they felt at ease, they said so.
By expressing themselves honestly, they fortified their love even more.
And with the addition of children who resembled each of them in equal measure, there was nothing left to fear or dread.
They would be together forever.
Even long after Se-ryun and Se-ori had grown up and left their side.
Well, that was still a distant future, though.
“Oppa. Kiki says she wants candy.”
“Okay, I’ll give Kiki some candy.”
“But Kiki says Se-ori has to have it first.”
In the end, she was just asking for the candy Se-ryun had.
Honestly. Too cute to refuse.
Se-ryun smiled, tore open the wrapper, and popped the candy right into Se-ori’s mouth.
“Oppa.”
“Hmm?”
“Should I give you a kiss?”
“Sure.”
“After I eat this one, then the grape one, then the strawberry one, then I’ll do it.”
In other words, she wanted more candy.
At the youngest’s shameless negotiation, not just Se-ryun but even Si-heon and Ga-eun in the front seats burst out laughing.
Seeing her family laughing at her, even the usually coy Se-ori scrunched her eyes shut and giggled, her dimples deepening.
A sweet, rainbow-colored air—visible only to Se-ori—floated lazily inside the car.
It was that warm, soft air that only appeared when she was with Mom, Dad, and Oppa.
“Se-ori will make Oppa’s room pretty too.”
“Huh? No, you don’t have to—”
“S’okay. Se-ori will specially draw on the ceiling too. Even more than Abba’s study—way, way more.”
Unable to refuse but also unable to accept, Se-ryun could only offer an awkward smile at his sister’s beaming face.
Watching this, Ga-eun and Si-heon erupted into laughter.
It was like a firework signaling the start of spring.
***
“They must have fallen asleep.”
After parking the car and turning his head, Si-heon saw Se-ryun and Se-ori fast asleep.
Having chattered nonstop the whole way, they must have worn themselves out.
Just then, Ga-eun’s phone buzzed softly.
“Looks like the poster draft for next month’s exhibition came in.”
Tension creased Ga-eun’s brow—proof that her focus had already shifted there entirely.
Before his wife could forget his existence, Si-heon cupped her cheek and kissed her.
“Ah—”
Her lips parted in surprise, and his tongue slipped smoothly between them. It glided lightly over hers before tangling tight, sucking hard once.
“Hah…”
A brief but searing kiss left Ga-eun’s cheeks flushed.
“Work in peace. I’ll keep an eye on things around us.”
After pressing one more light kiss to her lips, Si-heon stepped out of the car and retrieved something from the trunk.
Well-tended landscaping. Neatly swept paths and benches placed intermittently. Vibrant floral arrangements before each memorial stone.
The black SUV had arrived at the memorial park Si-heon visited often.
At the highest point, only one memorial stone rested gracefully on the ground.
“Lee Han-gyul.”
Placing the bouquet he’d brought atop the stone, Si-heon smiled.
“I became a dad, hyung.”
From reuniting with Ga-eun and moving back to Seoul, to Se-ryun’s birth and then Se-ori’s—
Officially named as successor and promoted to executive director, Si-heon’s schedule had grown even more relentless, leaving no time to visit.
But now, amidst the chaos, he’d finally carved out an opening.
So here they were—a family trip doubling as a visit to Han-gyul.
“They’re sleeping in the car now. You’ll see them when they wake up.”
A mountain breeze rustled the bouquet on the memorial stone.
“I wish you were really my hyung. I want to grow up to be as amazing as you. Then maybe I could have a family too?”
If not for Han-gyul, he might never have met Ga-eun.
Without the grief and emptiness of losing someone precious, without the insomnia it brought—he would have married as planned and lived a life painted in monochrome.
There would be no assorted candies secretly tucked into his bag by Se-ryun, no bags and study plastered with Se-ori’s rainbow scribbles.
Lee Han-gyul would’ve played with them so well.
Even giving up his favorite ice cream without hesitation.
“Next time, be born as my little brother. Help me babysit these rascals.”
Si-heon grinned.
“Then Ga-eun and I can finally date in peace.”
Just then, a loud “Abba!” echoed from below.
They must’ve woken up already.
Se-ryun, spotting his father, waved both hands wildly above his head.
Se-ori, cradled in Ga-eun’s arms just outside the car, gestured toward him too, her bunny plush tucked under her chin.
At that moment, a yellow butterfly fluttered down and perched atop the verbena bouquet on the memorial stone.
“I’ll come again. Keep doing well.”
The butterfly’s wings quivered softly at his words—
almost like a farewell.
Smiling, Si-heon walked toward his waiting family.
It happened on a fragrant spring day.
< The End >
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