part 35

"Hayeon, wash your hands and come back~."

"Okay!" 

I watched Hayeon walk quickly to the sink with a smile. 

She seemed so mature when acting. 

But in everyday life, she was just a carefree child. 

A child who needed an adult's detailed help. 

This was something Seung-rok couldn't do. 

A man couldn't take a child to the bathroom and guide her. 

No matter how much of a dad he was, he couldn't go to the bathroom with his daughter.

I wasn't doing anything special. 

Just going to the bathroom with the child and being there for her. 

Still, I felt happy, like I was helping the family.

I felt silly for having my emotions swing with every little thing. 

After all, I wasn't even Seung-rok's girlfriend. 

I was just here on a work outing with the child.

But even a small thing like this made me happy. 

No matter how handsome and capable a K-pop idol dad was, it was silly to feel this way.

Thinking these thoughts, I stood in front of the sink and looked at myself in the mirror. 

My hair was always tightly rolled and fixed.

But now, with the weather getting hotter, it felt stuffy. 

This hairstyle was something my mom always insisted on because it was neat and didn't get in the way when exercising. 

Somehow, I didn't like it.

Impulsively, I took out the pins and hair ties holding my hair. 

My hair fell to my shoulders.

It felt so refreshing, almost liberating, to let my hair down after so long. 

Thinking about it, there was no need to keep my hair tied up anymore. 

I wasn't an athlete anymore.

 As a golf coach teaching kids, I didn't need to worry about my performance. 

There was no reason to tie my hair tightly to focus on exercise. 

I didn't need to wear sports clothes like a golfer all the time either.

It took me this long to realize it. 

It's been over 100 days since my mom collapsed. 

I suddenly felt how much I had been living out of habit. 

I played with my hair, thinking that from now on, I could dress however I wanted.

Just then, I heard a child's voice from behind. 

"Mom?" 

Hayeon was looking at me with a face like she had seen a ghost.

 "…What?" 

I had a puzzled expression.

***

"Teacher, I want to ride the air balloon!" 

"Huh? Oh, okay."

Some time had passed. 

After talking with Hayeon, I was lost in thought even after returning to Seung-rok.

Then Hayeon's shout brought me back to reality. 

I took her hand and walked to the ticket booth for the ride.

"…"

Seung-rok followed us silently, watching me. 

But I didn't have time to think about him. 

The conversation I had with Hayeon kept replaying in my mind. 

For the first time, I talked with Hayeon about her mom. 

I knew it was better not to pry into personal matters, but I couldn't help my curiosity. 

Hayeon, such a smart kid, had called me "mom" twice. 

It was strange.

I found out that Hayeon had no direct memories of her mom. 

She said her mom died right after she was born.

She only knew her mom from photos. 

And in those photos, her mom looked like me. 

Especially when I let my hair down, I looked even more like her mom. 

It was weird. 

It shouldn't matter if I looked like Hayeon's mom or not.

 But it bothered me.

Did he hire me because I looked like Hayeon's mom? 

It felt creepy. 

Even unpleasant. 

What annoyed me more was that I couldn't express my feelings to Seung-rok. 

I couldn't confess that I had been secretly investigating who Hayeon's mom was. 

I could only pout and act as usual.

"…"

Seung-rok seemed quieter than usual.

But honestly, I didn't care. 

Meanwhile, we got on the hot air balloon ride that Hayeon wanted. 

It wasn't a real hot air balloon but a ride shaped like one that went around the indoor amusement park. 

It was safe, but I held Hayeon tightly just in case.

"Wow! There's the Sinbad ride we went on. Sinbad, right?" 

"Yes, yes, that's right. Keep your feet on the floor~."

While I was bickering with Hayeon, I was actually grateful to her. 

Arguing with her kept my mind off Seung-rok. 

Just a moment ago, I was so confused. 

Why was Seung-rok so nice to me? 

He was cold to everyone except his fans, but he was different with me. 

I wondered if there was something behind his kindness. 

From the start, he had offered me an exceptional deal. Even while teaching the child, he always showed warmth and consideration. 

It confused me every time. 

I didn't know what his feelings were, and more importantly, I didn't know what my own feelings were.

But when I discovered I looked like Hayeon's dead mom, a cold feeling washed over me.

Could it be that Seung-rok saw his old lover in me? 

Is that why he was nice to me? 

Thinking that way answered many questions.

He was nice to me because I reminded him of Hayeon's mom. 

And he kept his distance because, in the end, I wasn't Hayeon's mom. 

It all made sense.

But there was something I couldn't figure out. 

My own feelings. 

Why was I so bothered? 

There was no reason to be. 

It was actually a good thing. 

I was making easy money. 

So what if he had weird feelings for me?

He was a K-pop idol, so he wouldn't bother me. 

I just had to enjoy the benefits. 

But why did my heart ache? 

Why did I hate Hayeon's dead mom so much? 

Even as a golfer, I had never felt such intense jealousy. 

I wasn't angry when people like Jisun Sunbae became world-class players ahead of me. 

But I felt jealous of Hayeon's mom, whom I had never met and who wasn't even alive.

How did I end up like this? 

Where did it all go wrong? 

I shouldn't have opened my heart. 

I hated Seung-rok for opening his heart to me. 

Without realizing it, I lowered my head. 

Something tickled my ear with a regular breathing sound. 

Shhh~ shhh. 

I looked up and saw Hayeon sleeping against the hot air balloon wall. 

Seung-rok quietly lifted Hayeon like a princess. 

Then he whispered to me.

"We should go home."

His face was calm and expressionless, the opposite of how I felt.

***

"Please wait a moment." 

Seung-rok asked me as he entered his hotel room. 

No, it was more of an order. 

"What is it?" 

I asked, frowning slightly. 

I was tired. 

It was already late at night. 

And I didn't feel like talking to Seung-rok.

But today, he wasn't backing down as he usually did. 

"Just a moment." 

His eyes were cold and firm. 

When he was this determined, I couldn't refuse. 

He looked different when he spoke so firmly. 

Maybe it was his colder eyes or his still radiant beauty.

"If you insist, sir." 

I grumbled and went into the living room. 

I collapsed into a chair in front of the TV. 

Seung-rok's eyes sharpened slightly at my last words. 

"That 'sir' thing." 

"Yes?" 

"When will you stop calling me that?"

 I couldn't help but tense up. 

"Then what should I call you? Boss? KROCK? Seung-rok?" 

"Seung-rok sounds good." 

I was joking, but he took it seriously. 

I frowned, surprised. 

His lips seemed to twitch slightly, though his face remained expressionless. 

"Alright then, Seung-rok." 

"Just a sec, Mina."

I couldn't help but laugh a little at his sudden informal speech. 

I should have ignored it. 

While I regretted it, Seung-rok went into his room. 

Left alone, I turned to the hotel night view, mesmerized. 

He came back sooner than I expected. 

"Already done, Mr. Seung-rok?" 

His eyes sharpened slightly at my greeting. 

"Speak informally. You're older than me." 

He said, sitting on the sofa next to me. 

Now, a smile was clearly on his lips. 

"Are you teasing me for being older?" 

"I'm just saying to be comfortable. We've known each other for a while now." 

"I'm more comfortable being formal. I've never spoken informally to my boyfriend, so how can I speak informally to my employer?" 

Maybe I was disappointed in him. 

And that was a good thing.

I tried to keep my distance by being polite, but it didn't work. 

I spoke more freely than when we drank together. 

Somehow, Seung-rok had always seemed like an unreachable K-pop star to me. 

But after finding out I looked like Hayeon's mom, and probably his lover, he seemed different. 

He looked like a pathetic guy next door. 

A guy who couldn't forget his past lover and brought a woman who looked like her into his house. 

It felt a bit unpleasant, but it made talking to him easier. 

I wasn't intimidated anymore. 

The perfect angelic man suddenly seemed like a loser next door. 

Honestly, his eyelashes were too pretty and long for a loser. 

'Why are his eyes so unnecessarily shiny?' 

I was thinking when Seung-rok asked playfully.

"You had a boyfriend?" 

"I've lived for 30 years. If I hadn't dated, that would be a problem, right? You've dated, haven't you? As an idol, you've never been 'official' with anyone, right?" 

Seung-rok scoffed without blinking. 

"I've dated. I'm human." 

"With whom?" 

"…With THE One. Every day." 

Geez. 

Maybe because Seung-rok was usually so straightforward, it was hard to keep a straight face when he had these idol moments. 

"Oh, okay… If this is all you're going to talk about, I'll leave now." 

I tried to get up from my seat. 

But Seung-rok shook his head. 

"Please sit for a moment." 

"I'm tired from overtime. I want to rest. We have to check out tomorrow." 

I tried to brush him off and go home. 

Just then, Seung-rok asked in a more serious tone. 

"I've dated. That's why Hayeon was born." 

Seung-rok dropped a bombshell. 

His expression remained calm. 

His cold eyes looked at me. 

"You knew, didn't you?" 

I bit my lip without realizing it.