A child who looks like me

“…Amnesia?”

Mi-ran nodded.

“Yeah. He lost memories from that period, about three years or so. Apparently, he even forgot that he had just returned from military service before that.”

“…”

“Maybe that incident made his personality more sensitive?”

Jeong-oh remembered the first time she met Ji-heon, back when she was in Australia on a working holiday seven years ago. Ji-heon had just returned from military service, with his hair sticking up like a chestnut burr.

A chill ran up her spine, as if something heavy had struck her head.

“The cookie gift is the same. No matter how much it’s a present from kids, isn’t it hard to trust food made by someone you don’t know? If you’re in a position of fear about what risks there might be, you might end up throwing it away.”

“…”

“Of course, throwing away the card was too much, though.”

Jeong-oh didn’t say anything, so Mi-ran cautiously shared her opinion.

Jeong-oh was too shocked to speak.

It felt as though her brain, which usually thought flexibly, had momentarily frozen.

After a moment, Jeong-oh managed to open her mouth again.

“Team Leader, do you know exactly when it happened…?”

“Seung Team Leader. We were looking for you. We have a meeting to attend.”

Just as she was about to ask Mi-ran more details about the hit-and-run accident, a member from another team came to find her.

“Oh right! That’s true.”

Mi-ran was pulled away by the team member and waved goodbye to Jeong-oh.

The important conversation came to an abrupt halt. Jeong-oh placed her hand on her chest and pressed down. Her heart was racing.

If this is true…

‘That means… he might not remember me?’

The hand on her chest moved up to cover her mouth.

No way.

‘He forgot me? Really?’

Even though she trusted Mi-ran, she couldn’t believe it.

She wanted to talk more with Mi-ran and looked for a chance, but the opportunity didn’t arise again.

Before she knew it, lunch break was over.

Jeong-oh had to set aside her heavy thoughts and focus on her afternoon tasks. Closing off her emotions with patience was one of the things Jeong-oh was best at.

The first project at her new company had begun. It was a planning meeting for a new product from an existing client.

She thought only the Production Team 2 would attend the meeting, but when the members of Production Team 2 took their seats, the door opened again. Members of Team 1 entered the meeting room.

Of course, Chae Eun-bi was among them. When Eun-bi’s eyes met Jeong-oh’s, she warmly greeted Mi-ran, who was sitting next to Jeong-oh.

“Team Leader, you look great in all black today. Chic and sexy!”

“Really? I wore this to go eat jajangmyeon.”

“Oh, you went to Hyangmi-gak. Speaking of which, it looks like everyone from Team 2 is wearing black.”

Eun-bi scanned the members of Team 2 and said.

Does she think I’m not in Team 2? Jeong-oh grumbled to herself.

Mi-ran took care of Jeong-oh.

“Everyone knows our team’s new face, right? This is Lee Jeong-oh, our copywriter.”

As Mi-ran reintroduced Jeong-oh to the AE (Account Executive) and members of Production Team 1, Eun-bi smiled kindly, as if meeting someone for the first time.

“Nice to meet you! I’m a copywriter too.”

“Yes. Nice to meet you.”

Jeong-oh sensed that Eun-bi didn’t want to reveal that they knew each other, so she responded politely.

Eventually, the AE from the planning team briefed the clients’ requests.

“The target is working professionals in their 20s and 30s, and the concept is ‘beer you keep at home for drinking alone after work.’ Since it’s an alcohol advertisement, TV commercials can only air after 10 PM, and outdoor ads aren’t allowed, so we’ll need to target in other directions. If the ideas are good, they plan to actively use them for the product packaging as well. The advertiser is picky and the scale is large, so Production Team 1 will also participate, with the goal of presenting drafts by the last week of May.”

Jeong-oh was pleased with the enticing project brief. It was her first time working on an alcohol advertisement, and she felt excited.

“I’d like us to start brainstorming; please feel free to share your ideas.”

At the AE’s suggestion, Mi-ran spoke first.

“Since it’s about drinking alone at home, how about storytelling from a solo perspective? Show the daily life of a single person looking longingly at happy couples.”

Nodding at Mi-ran’s idea, Jeong-oh scribbled some copy ideas in her notebook.

“Then it’d be advantageous for Team 2. Since everyone here is single.”

In the meantime, the team leader of Team 2 cracked a joke.

Gi-hoon playfully replied, “So you’re assuming I’m single?”

“Do you have a girlfriend, Song Gi-hoon?”

“Not at the moment.”

People burst into laughter. Jeong-oh, who had been a bit tense, was also absorbed by the cheerful atmosphere and laughed along.

In the lively mood, Gi-hoon turned his head and asked Jeong-oh, “Do you have a boyfriend, Assistant?”

“Nope.”

Was it just her feeling? It seemed she heard a suppressed laugh coming from Eun-bi’s direction.

“Oh, Assistant wrote something in her notebook. Can I read it?”

Gi-hoon quickly leaned over to look at Jeong-oh’s notebook. The meeting room fell silent, all attention on her.

“On a snowy day, you should look at the snow, not at him.”

Gi-hoon’s low voice conveyed the copy she had scribbled after hearing Mi-ran’s suggestion.

Laughter and gasps of admiration erupted from all sides.

“Wow, that’s classic copywriter material.”

The usually taciturn Deputy Park Young-gwang exclaimed, giving a thumbs-up.

“It’s great as a solo monologue.”

A male team member from another team clapped lightly.

Amid the admiration, Eun-bi smiled at Jeong-oh and said, “That’s poignant and relatable. You must have been single for a while?”

Jeong-oh clenched and unclenched her fist under the table.

Is she teasing me?

It was frustrating. Frustrating, but she couldn’t get angry since it was somewhat true.

“Yeah, I guess so.”

Jeong-oh shrugged her shoulders.

“I might not do as well. It’s been so long since I was single that the feelings are pretty distant. Why don’t you write the main copy?”

I really don’t want to know your personal details.

Jeong-oh rolled her eyes inwardly at Eun-bi’s remark, though she kept a pleasant smile on her face.

The AE wrapped up the meeting.

“I think what you’ve shared can be kept as one idea tip, and we can develop it in various directions. Let’s schedule the next meeting for next Tuesday.”

“Sure. Thanks for your hard work.”

As the meeting concluded and people began to rise from their seats, Eun-bi slowly gathered her things and greeted Jeong-oh.

“Assistant, I look forward to working with you.”

“Yes, me too.”

Eun-bi deliberately moved her hands slowly. A ring sparkled on her left ring finger.

As Mi-ran watched Eun-bi, she smiled warmly and asked, “When is Team Leader Chae getting married?”

Eun-bi’s expression brightened as if she had been waiting for that question.

“My mom hopes it’ll be before the year ends, but as you know, he’s really busy. I still don’t know for sure.”

Eun-bi tossed her hair behind her ear, showcasing the ring on her left hand, which boasted a fancy design.

Jeong-oh couldn’t help but overhear the conversation. However, she wasn’t really curious. All Jeong-oh wanted to know was about Jeong Ji-heon’s amnesia.

After the meeting room was tidied up, Mi-ran, noticing that Jeong-oh was looking at her intently, asked, “Assistant, what’s up? Do you have something to say?”

It was a perfect moment with just the two of them left in the meeting room.

“About that accident with Director Jeong earlier…”

“Yeah? What about it?”

“Do you know when that accident happened?”

Mi-ran, rolling her eyes and thinking deeply, picked up her phone.

“Wait a minute.”

After accessing a portal site and searching for a while, Mi-ran showed her phone screen to Jeong-oh.

“This is the article about Director Jeong.”

“……”

“They’ve blocked all the articles from your family, so this is the only one left.”

“On November 3rd around 1 PM, an incident occurred where a man in his 20s, residing in an officetel in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, was hit by a hit-and-run vehicle. The suspect who fled after the accident was caught by police around 7 PM, and the victim was confirmed to be in critical condition.”

Her hands trembled slightly.

November 3rd, seven years ago.

She remembered that day.

The day she had a promise to meet Ji-heon.

The day he was supposed to pick her up at three but never showed up.

The day she made dozens of calls only to eventually receive a notification that his phone was turned off.

“Assistant, are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“…I’m fine. …Thank you for letting me know.”

Jeong-oh struggled to say goodbye and handed the phone back to Mi-ran.

Stumbling, she walked toward her seat, feeling dizzy as if the floor and ceiling had swapped places.

Amid the chaos, she suddenly recalled what Deputy Park Seung-kyu had said a few hours earlier.

“Actually, I’ve known Director Jeong for 16 years. Our distinguished director probably doesn’t even remember properly.”

He had definitely said that Ji-heon didn’t remember properly.

Was that about his amnesia?

She couldn’t just stand by. She had to confirm it directly.

Jeong-oh changed direction and quickly headed toward Ji-heon’s office. As she hurried to the office, her footsteps became faster, and by the time she reached the door, she was nearly running.

“What’s going on?”

A secretary guarding the office door asked as Jeong-oh reached for the doorknob.

“Is the director in?”

“He’s probably in the lounge.”

“Okay, thank you.”

Jeong-oh turned and dashed toward the lounge.

The ninth-floor lounge was quite spacious. It featured various tables and chairs that could be used for different purposes, along with many books, massage chairs, entertainment facilities, and simple refreshments.

Ji-heon, who had just parted with a client visiting the company, turned at the sound of her footsteps, which felt oddly intrusive.

Upon recognizing the woman entering the lounge, he swallowed hard.

His body tensed up.

It’s Lee Jeong-oh… again.

Ji-heon tried to hide his discomfort, gazing at her silently.

She, too, noticed Ji-heon from a few steps away and stopped in her tracks.

Though she was tightly pursing her lips, her chest was visibly rising and falling. With each breath she took, her small shoulders shook.

Seeing her looking like someone who had lost something precious made Ji-heon turn his head away. He couldn’t shake the thought that she was looking past him, at someone else.

But there was no one behind Ji-heon. No, the lounge was completely empty.

It was just her and Lee Jeong-oh.

Fearing that tears would burst forth before she could even speak, Jeong-oh bit her lip.

What words should she say first?

After running around searching for him, standing right in front of him made her head feel hazy.

“Do you really not remember? Really? Nothing at all?”

Have you truly forgotten me?

You’re not pretending to forget; you genuinely don’t remember?

“Then, you don’t even know we have a child?”

You don’t know that you’ve become a father?

Her heart raced so much it felt heavy.

Suppressing her emotions, she struggled to open her mouth.

“…Do you know who I am?”

“I do.”

Ji-heon replied easily.

“Copywriter Lee Jeong-oh.”

His voice was deep, but the answer was terribly apathetic.

That coldness crushed her heart, which had been in ruins for so long.

“…Is that all?”

“Is there anything more I should know?”

He had forgotten everything.

“I’d prefer to talk about what happened this morning.”

To him, the conflict from a few hours ago was more significant than the past few years.

She faced the miserable reality.

How? How could you forget me?

Her heart felt like it was being torn apart; it was so painful that Jeong-oh had to wrap her hands around her chest again.

How could you forget me!

What kind of person were you to me?

What kind of person was I to you that you could forget? How could you!

The man before her showed no reaction, even while looking at his distorted face.

She wanted to grab him by the collar, demand answers, and punch him in the chest.

But there he stood, endlessly and helplessly pitiful.

“…How much have you suffered? How badly were you hurt that you lost your memory…?”

She wanted to scream, embracing the cold man who looked at her as if she were a stranger, like a foreign object stuck to his hand.

Have you been well? Huh?

Did you forget me completely and manage to live well? What about you?

I was terrified.

With just you missing from my life, my whole world was darkness.

It felt like my eyes had been gouged out, and I couldn’t see anything.

In that darkness, I wandered and gave birth to a child.

“Your child was born. A child you don’t know about…”

That child is now seven years old.

Very pretty, very capable, and so mature like you.

The time you’ve missed is still growing.

Our child is growing, beautifully, painfully…

Countless words that had been trapped in her chest threatened to pour out all at once. Yet, Jeong-oh found herself unable to speak, her mouth merely moving without sound.

Tears, faster than words, dropped in a straight line to the floor.

Ji-heon’s gaze, which had been cold and distant, wavered.

At that moment.

“Oppa. Were you here?”

A woman’s voice echoed.

Jeong-oh recognized it.

“I heard you went to see Dad and Mom this morning. They said to come together next time.”

It was Chae Eun-bi.

Eun-bi approached, continuing her chatter without checking if Ji-heon was alone.

Though it was the lounge, she acted as if she didn’t care who else was present.

“It’s so hard to see you, even though we work in the same company.”

Her voice, full of charm, felt like a dagger stabbing into Jeong-oh’s heart.

Jeong-oh quickly wiped her tears.

“…Oppa?”

As Eun-bi tilted her head, she realized Ji-heon wasn’t alone, frowning slightly.

But soon her expression brightened, and she stood beside him, linking her arm with his.

“Oppa, I didn’t tell you?”

Her demeanor seemed like she was introducing Jeong-oh to Ji-heon, but Jeong-oh knew better.

She was trying to brag about Ji-heon to him.

“Lee Jeong-oh, my friend. We’re high school classmates.”

After the friendly introduction, Eun-bi turned to Jeong-oh.

“Jeong-oh, what’s going on?”

What’s wrong with my man?

Eun-bi’s question carried that implication.

The ring on her hand sparkled painfully as it clung tightly to Ji-heon’s arm.

…My child’s father has a fiancée.