A child who looks like me

It was a busy day.

As noon approached, she chatted away with Jiheon while they moved along.

“Today gave me chills all day. How could that happen? I mean, it’s from seven years ago—a lot of people wouldn’t remember something from that far back.”

“It felt like a wall blocking the memory was just gone, and suddenly, I could recall everything. Though it’s just the memory of November 2nd.”

“No way. You even remembered November 3rd!” Jeong-oh replied excitedly. Jiheon laughed at her heightened voice, but his smile soon faded.

Was Kim Jin-goo really the hit-and-run driver?

What exactly did the culprit say to me?

Amid the excitement and wandering thoughts, they arrived at their next destination. Their next stop was the OB-GYN clinic.

Actually, Jeong-oh had wanted to wait a bit longer, but Jiheon had been pestering her since Friday night, so she couldn’t resist.

The last time she came to the OB-GYN for a prenatal check-up with Jin-seo, there had been no signs, so it felt strange that something had changed with her body since then.

As they waited for their turn, Jiheon, already drinking the kimchi soup, whispered to her, “Do you think it’ll be a girl or a boy?”

“…You’re not actually expecting to find out today, are you?”

“Of course not. I’ve done my homework. It’s only about this big now,” he replied, holding up his thumbnail. Hearing that he had done some research made Jeong-oh feel a bit emotional.

If it weren’t for the accident seven years ago, he probably would have been the best dad in the world. Maybe he’d even cherish and love the baby more than she would.

“Would you prefer a daughter or a son?”

“I had a talk with my mom a few days ago,” he said.

“….”

“At that time, I thought daughters were the best. But now, whether it’s a girl or a boy, it would be wonderful either way. Either way, they’ll look like you and me, so they’ll be beautiful.”

It was as if he was already nurturing the baby, saying sweet things. She felt emotional again as the nurse called her name. The two of them went into the examination room together.

Looking over her chart, the doctor tilted her head as she faced the eager and bright-eyed couple.

“You’re here early. It’s only been a short while since your period ended….”

“Yes, but it showed two lines.”

“Even with two lines, it might not show up yet. Still, since you’re having symptoms, I’ll check with an ultrasound. Please change your clothes.”

After Jeong-oh left to change, Jiheon’s eyes grew wide.

“…Why does she need to change?”

“We need to do a transvaginal ultrasound.”

At the doctor’s explanation, Jiheon looked bewildered.

“You already have one child… You didn’t know?”

The doctor stared at Jiheon as if she couldn’t believe he didn’t already know this. Embarrassed, Jiheon realized he hadn’t done enough research.

A moment later, Jeong-oh, having changed, got onto the examination table. Seeing her tense expression, Jiheon felt anxious too. Watching an ultrasound wasn’t easy, and he’d been pestering her to go through this. He felt so sorry toward her.

“I can see the gestational sac.”

In the midst of his confusion, a small black pouch appeared on the monitor. Inside that sac was a small white ring-like circle.

That’s the yolk sac! I studied this!

As he recognized what he’d studied, Jiheon’s eyes sparkled again. But he had no time to show off his knowledge; theory and reality were worlds apart.

“If you come back in a week or two, you’ll probably be able to hear the heartbeat.”

They couldn’t hear the heartbeat yet, but Jiheon felt like he could already hear it. Maybe it was his own heartbeat, thundering with excitement that he couldn’t control.

This was even more amazing and miraculous than when his memories started returning.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

Guksun hurried out of the academy as soon as class was over. She’d invited Bae-il over today, so she needed to go grocery shopping. As she rushed to the taxi stand, someone approached her again.

“Madam.”

“Oh my, you startled me!”

Once again, it was Bae-il, who apologized, looking a little embarrassed.

“Did I scare you? I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m just getting old. But were you still around here?”

“I had something to do nearby. I was supposed to meet someone, but they stood me up.”

“Oh dear, really? A lady?”

“Yes.”

“Well, who in the world would stand up a respectable officer like you?”

Bae-il chuckled at Guksun’s playful comment.

“Now I have some free time. Are you headed home? I can give you a ride.”

“Oh, actually, I’m heading to the store to pick up groceries so I can treat you.”

“In that case, let me take you to the store and drive you home afterward. I have plenty of time.”

“Well, if you don’t mind, that’d be great, though I feel bad since I invited you as a guest…”

“No, it’s my pleasure. Let’s go together.”

As Bae-il took the lead, Guksun looked at him with satisfaction, feeling as though she had gained another son-in-law.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

After stopping by the hypnotherapy center and the OB-GYN clinic, Jeong-oh returned to work for another busy day. After finishing a heated meeting, she returned to her desk and found that it was already time to leave.

‘Oh right, I haven’t called Mom yet.’

Today was Jinseo’s turn to pick up the kids from their classes. Worried that Guksun might forget and head to the academy, potentially missing Jinseo, she called her mother right away.

Guksun answered after quite a while, her voice sounding somewhat breathless.

[Hello?] “Mom, are you busy?”

[I’m just getting dinner ready. I’m having it with the detective.] “Mom, that’s supposed to be tomorrow.”

[Didn’t you hear? We moved it to today. The detective said he has to go down to Jinju for work tomorrow.] This was news to her. Jeong-oh’s eyes widened.

[So he even helped me carry everything home. He helped with the groceries and even came back to the house with me.] “What?!”

Jeong-oh shot up, feeling a sense of urgency. She wished she could instantly teleport home, imagining how awkward it must feel for her mother to be alone with the detective.

Eun-joo, noticing her pale face, guessed what was going on and spoke up knowingly.

“Looks like something’s come up again. Same old, same old.”

“Ah, Deputy Ko, I’m so sorry, but I think I’ll need to leave a little early.”

“Why apologize to me? You don’t have any more tasks today anyway.”

“Uh, could I leave just ten minutes early?”

“You don’t need my permission for that either.”

“I’ve been out of the office all day, and now I’m leaving early again, so I feel bad.”

“But you worked over the weekend, too. So did I, of course.”

“…”

“I actually hope you’ll set a great example and leave on time. Someone has to end this awful overtime culture in our ad agency. The computers should just shut off at six.”

Eun-joo clenched her fist in a fiery, determined gesture, then flashed a big grin. It had been a while since Jeong-oh had seen her smile.

“Not that I’m asking you to relay this to the director. But I won’t stop you if you do.”

“Alright, I’ll pass it along.”

Understanding Eun-joo perfectly, Jeong-oh smiled back.

“Well, I’ll be off then.”

After saying goodbye, she quickly left the office.

As soon as she stepped out, she called Jiheon. He was out in the field, so it took him a moment to answer.

“Are you busy?”

[Not too busy. What’s up?] Though his tone sounded somewhat dry, Jeong-oh didn’t want to hang up just yet.

“Did you know Officer Kwon Bae-il is coming over today? Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

[…I just heard that. Who told you?] “Mom said he’s heading to Jinju tomorrow, so she invited him for dinner today. And apparently, he’s already at our place.”

[…I had no idea. I’ll try reaching out to Bae-il.] “Alright, but make sure you come home quickly. The officer is already there.”

[Got it. See you later.] The call ended abruptly. Just as hurriedly, she hailed a taxi to go home. On the way, she got a call from Jin-seo.

“Hey, sis!”

Through various experiences, she had begun calling Jin-seo “sis.” Ever warm, Jin-seo was even more caring toward her than before.

[Jeong-oh, I picked up the kids, and Ye-na asked if she could play at our place for a while. I’ll bring her back in an hour. Is that alright?] “Yes, that’s fine. Thank you.”

[By the way, is something going on? You sound a bit urgent.] “You know Officer Kwon Bae-il, right? Turns out he’s a friend of Jiheon’s. We’ve been wanting to invite him over to show our gratitude for helping us with a few cases. So we invited him over tonight.”

[Oh, I heard they were friends from my husband! Actually, I meant to mention something to you recently.] “…”

[There’s a picture of my son Do-bin from when he was little, taken at the flower shop, and you and Ye-na are in it, too.] “Really? That’s amazing.”

[Even more amazing is that in the next photo, Officer Kwon is in it too. It shows him moving in the same direction as you, as if he was following you. Isn’t that interesting?] As she listened to Jin-seo’s excited tone, a chill ran down her spine for some reason. She recalled the day she first met Officer Kwon in the neighborhood and learned he was a neighbor. It gave her a strange feeling.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

After the call, Jiheon excused himself from the meeting and left immediately, feeling a bit thrown off. It was strange that Bae-il had gone to his house without letting him know.

When he tried calling Bae-il, he didn’t answer. Regardless, he had to go home. As he hastily turned his car, the tires screeched, and suddenly he was hit with a wave of memories from seven years ago.

Ugh.

Jiheon stopped the car briefly and massaged his temples.

“…Have I heard that name before?”

Seven years ago, the man who had left Jiheon after hitting him with a car had asked him a question. What was that name he’d asked about?

He felt like he almost remembered, like the memory was obscured by layers of fog. Jiheon took a steady breath, just as his doctor had taught him.

After a few moments of calming his mind, the fog began to clear.

“Have you ever heard the name Kwon Bae-il?”

As the memory surfaced, his heart pounded furiously.

He shook his head sharply. No, it could just be a coincidence.

But he had to be sure.

Jiheon urgently called his counselor.

[Yes, how can I help you?] “Hello, do you remember when I asked you to look into Kwon Bae-il before?”

[Yes, you asked me to check if there were any records of a name change, but nothing else.] “Is there anything at all, even just a brief history?”

[One moment.] He could hear papers rustling on the other end. After a moment, the counselor replied.

[On November 2, twenty-four years ago, his mother passed away. After that, he was taken in by his aunt.] “Did you say his mother’s memorial date is November 2?”

[Yes, looking again, her birthday and death date are the same: November 2.] November 2.

The day before Jiheon’s car accident, seven years ago.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

Stepping out of the taxi in front of her house, Jeong-oh hurried upstairs.

When she opened the front door, no one came to greet her. She heard the faint sounds of clattering in the kitchen.

Walking carefully toward the kitchen, her gaze was drawn to something on the sofa.

A hat… red in the front, blue at the back, with a Spanish soccer team’s logo on the front.

It was the same hat a strange woman had worn on the day she’d tried to lure Ye-na away long ago.

‘Why is this here…?’

Her heart pounded with an eerie sense of dread as she made her way to the kitchen.

“Oh, you’re here?”

“Hello.”

Both Guk-soon and Bae-il greeted her. Bae-il was wearing Jiheon’s apron, helping her mother with cooking.

“Hi,” she responded softly.

“Jeong-oh, you should take the officer out of here. He keeps insisting on helping in the kitchen even though he’s our guest.”

Guk-soon chuckled as if amused by the events of the evening.

“Why don’t you come out? Leave that alone,” she said to Bae-il as her mother requested. Was she being too serious? At her words, he stepped away from the counter and took off the apron.

Cautiously, she spoke up again.

“By the way, the hat on the sofa…”

“Oh, that’s the officer’s. I put it there to make sure he doesn’t lose it.”

Seeing her hesitation, her mother responded first. Guk-soon didn’t know about the video taken on the day Ye-na got lost.

“It’s yours?” she asked.

“Yes.”

He replied briefly, with a slight smile that revealed nothing of his thoughts.

Why that hat, though? Why did Officer Kwon wear it here as if to flaunt it?

As she stood there frozen, her phone vibrated. It was Jiheon calling.

“Aren’t you going to answer that?” Bae-il asked.

Slowly, she reached for her phone. It was Jiheon.

“Hello?”

[Are you home, Jeong-oh?] “Yes.”

[Is Kwon Bae-il there, too?] “Yes.”

[Listen carefully, and don’t panic.] As she stood there, phone pressed to her ear, Bae-il was still in front of her, smiling. But his smile felt colder than ever before.

[Kwon Bae-il might be more dangerous than we thought. Don’t provoke him. Stay calm. I’ll be there in ten minutes.] The call ended quickly.

“When will Jiheon be home?” Bae-il asked.

Though she hadn’t mentioned Jiheon, he seemed to know.

On the counter lay a knife in a precarious position.

Didn’t he say once he liked soccer because he couldn’t kick the culprit?

She remembered the joke he had made back then, how it hadn’t quite fit his kind appearance, and now she shivered at the thought that it might all have been intentional.

Seeing her standing there silently, he moved first. In her heightened state, she imagined he might harm her mother, and she cried out.

“No!”

Startled, her mother accidentally hit the counter. The knife slipped off and fell to the floor.

“What’s with you suddenly shouting like that? You scared me.”

Guk-soon looked slightly irritated, as if her behavior was rude in front of a guest. Bae-il waited until she picked up the knife and set it safely aside before replying.

“It’s alright, ma’am. Ms. Lee Jeong-oh’s reaction is only natural.”

“…”

“Now that she knows the real culprit behind Ye-na’s kidnapping.”

Jeong-oh couldn’t help but notice the gun holster at his waist more than the faint smile on his lips.