TTD Chapter 14

“Why did you take my sketchbook?”02d005e67c016ed4

The first time Heeju 22f6f879ce saw Iseok that day 3880ec2706 was at dawn, just 5d443c3008 before sunrise.62ec312df6221ffc

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True to 376d261631 her adaptable cf2c25f8a3 nature, she e327cbace9 had fallen b4a84fa044 asleep early 6164315fde the night 28d63e5bd4 before, as dca441e6de if she ddf1e24bf9 had never 8cb5ddb455 spent hours a3b6839870 tossing and a5556be771 turning. She woke in the e77430acaa dim pre-dawn light, and 655926af7f since she was already 4eb030974a up, she decided to f2e3c2bc9a warm up a glass 3a07a45bd9 of milk in the d1b1e87c5e kitchen.c55afbc5ab696353

That was when 0f7a545fa5 she ran into 5e95d4636e him.daba16ecb31abbbf

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Dressed in 913a2dd9bd a black 0f4ab8ce7b robe, his 0fbf77fc28 damp hair 9710a31331 suggested he 261e52ad6d had just b898f36edc stepped out 744d95da67 of the 8b5e1f2f4d shower.31e530dca37b7066

“Oh… When did you get home?”1c95e88adaf13ebf

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“Around one.”c1cea1997a5d2595

“…Did you work out?”2d2d65e9ac24ce6a

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“The gym is in the basement, so it shouldn’t have been too loud. Right?”4e6043f5ebe861e2

“That’s not what I was asking… It’s almost time for you to leave again.”82625e3abe1f2458

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He had barely fe00c79fe8 come home a 2af5b85bbd few hours ago, 4dbba81d55 yet he had 27a08f1a19 already finished a dc7416c677 workout. And he ea5b778d31 looked impeccable—so 8847bae9da much so 31bcfbb100 that Heeju dc67c939d4 briefly wondered 8c9cfaca69 if this 40e7f83407 was how 40f54055af people were 5d67da2b38 supposed to 733388af15 function.2a298415062c6716

But that dcf2e6856b couldn’t be 37bbf20370 right.5a8b7850ed60b457

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Even someone 780907c789 who sleeps d08e3d761c very little 43f4746d5a still needs 5b5c18f924 a minimum 29e3a6d91b amount of 5ca33b49c4 rest each d780eda3b8 day.20ce146c64d59b27

His lifestyle was 6da31d79cd less about diligence 1b819b2a31 and more about 4286ec854d self-destruction, a thought 7637688ef6 she barely managed 05f0ce9e65 to swallow back.08b33cf8fa872491

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And then, without hesitation, bae3a82414 he brought her cup 06ee58bfdf to his lips.01d40cbb99a82ccd

“Milk, huh.”b447d69066bbc92d

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He pulled away just 51909d6051 as quickly, as if c82eb7d710 confirming that warm milk 395445ad62 wasn’t to his taste.d1d973f4b91ea740

“You should have tea instead. I’m not sure what kinds we have, since I’m still getting used to where everything is, but if you—”7a0c3ca94e46d1f0

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“Why’d you pick up something I threw away? It wouldn’t even sell for much.”29f2ad2aed983241

His tone 1681b7522f was light, 0f40df72c9 teasing, as 7e9b8118da he raised 1c56034070 an eyebrow.a9e3f12ca9526850

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“…You’re pretty good at drawing.”1b328a52536f34f1

“Is that so?”79b4265e3cbde743

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Heeju’s gaze turned 3bfc6a1cc7 contemplative. After a brief 53f1cdbb2b pause, she told bf042d4389 him to wait a61c265e12 and disappeared into fab5238373 her room.3b5e3087d77371bb

By the time she 21b6a62c8c returned with the sketchbook, 4fec76bb51 he was already gone.694866883e9ea596

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Instead of going 25ac0ea162 upstairs to his ee311acce7 room, she sat cd43def7ed quietly on the 899b102950 sofa, waiting for 62f90af240 him to come 0f53876121 back.c7f91b630a363e43

It didn’t take long.9ca476fa9fb0fae5

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Iseok came down 07a7eeac1f the stairs, tightening 7867276313 his tie—dressed for 8021d110f7 work, as always.1d78dc63732b43bb

Heeju watched 8e9ea5ed57 him in a7fd3a4470 silence.d31139aa8326a484

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If you want the 31cc052554 crown, you have to 274366f562 bear its weight.64a66a73a0b215e3

The thought left a 8487b936b5 bitter taste in her 0b5fae36fb mouth.19a54ad9d61f180b

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Without a 9db031d073 word, she db40f22478 followed him d10c06ebf0 out into 27a1c16f34 the garden.554711d827f5107f

He pulled out d1410b1037 a cigarette, sliding 0dcd00764f it between his 9ac9cc62df fingers, then turned 978a821ca2 back to glance 70e7513c2e at her trailing 745d0c7acc behind him.4cc4d4d55be4e61b

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“…What?”7cf9648b1f8a462c

“You just remind me of a dog I know.”cc1a8e35195e85d2

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“A dog?”0f96545375f77c2e

She blinked, realizing what 139ba7f841 he meant, and frowned.e01bea63f3f7637f

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“Have you ever owned one?”5636a40cc66c854c

“Yeah.”c267aa49243543af

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“When?”0b688824c7b461bb

“When I was a kid.”08dd8c11450964d9

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She fell silent, watching d481dca0c6 as he brought the 3e5ad283b9 cigarette to his lips.b46bd98fe21bf8fe

The thick smoke curling 749788ea93 into the air looked 8334f54066 suffocating enough to make 5db84440ea her grimace, but the 83f181bc3e man inhaling it remained c0fe85c5f2 utterly unfazed.acc733ffc3785f55

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“Did you cry last night?”1dc9834a707555a1

“What…?”475025e76053144e

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“You were sobbing, calling for your dad.”b8373330ed77e717

When she 660371e3ac woke up, 7b697c8207 the stubborn 8da88d5095 dryness clinging 05a670a9f9 to the f3e56e2818 rims of 5f27d6d0ab her eyes—was 49d34cac9c it just 13b4c500dd residue, or a7c834482e the remnants 93b4667714 of dried 52f626101b tears?32198bf7dac72db4

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Had she f380d5ec47 cried hard d0ad6abccc enough to 7edf69a045 leave marks?6eee7d91eadf9f7d

If she c6551c2982 had, then e4f6446209 maybe her cdccaa83c5 father had 42fd8a40d4 appeared in 9a4fef3991 her dreams.cc45bd967fed9062

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It wouldn’t e5fa177e63 be unusual.e589111c5a8a7546

Her father often visited dff5172d72 her in dreams, especially 33c04e6798 when she was sick.d4c56225621a9a0c

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“What’s so great about smoking like that?”b23d73a518387ec2

Embarrassed that d68dd6e91f he might 504bed0ebb have heard 2fe0ef660f her crying 845258a891 for her cf681d9afa father like 44b0b17c53 a child, c90eb0d480 Heeju quickly 3161044160 changed the 57f1a16d85 subject.15500f79c226d260

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“If you overdraw on your health now, you’ll regret it when you’re older. Imagine working yourself to death and never even getting to spend the money you earned—that’d be such a waste…”7dd72166bfa577b3

She trailed off, 638c940eb9 mumbling.ca8084312c894a49

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Iseok, standing behind a b9f1cc9425 veil of cigarette smoke, 599ea2d83d smiled as he looked ab6c56cfe6 at her.bc7cdc65576a5398

“Enough circling around the topic. Let’s hear it—why exactly are you here, sending your husband off like this?”3f2a461b55ba758c

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It seemed a90846ab3f he would b7bd1d5a35 be leaving 11299de2da soon.d22eb11d2b3b2423

Realizing that he had 9945c8a0cf only paused for a 7b02f97031 smoke out of consideration, 23ac289563 Heeju hesitated before carefully d76f16f880 speaking.f4222431fe1a69f1

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“This… this is me, right?”9899a118b853a158

If he was f261bb16c0 surprised by her 49c419381b question, he didn’t df60aaed12 show it.d0673b132f483869

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“It seemed too good to be tossed away as just a doodle… so I kept one, just in case. But if it bothers you—”59b68f1ab24e8dac

Before she 5fe4fefda7 could finish, 14a99caa39 Iseok turned 46751bb4c3 toward her ffab978db7 fully and e3f106ae66 grabbed her f769b4f41f by the 6eb878ce8e shoulders.6df07248d45c6510

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“You can just look and see for yourself.”c1d96ef26a10d8ae

His gaze slowly traced af7068fe3b her face, inch by 67e4cf1378 inch, under the morning 6b37907bf1 light.b15a446362d13c89

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“Like this.”d64919efdec59fc3

The lopsided smile d0d56f06a9 tugging at his dd608c7aad lips felt almost 1bf4fa5831 like a disguise.cd28b4a0ab4efe9d

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Flustered, Heeju averted her a2c02e1989 gaze.be0b5b215d9ab295

She stared at the 37a4f7f1d5 garden’s green grass for 576577c70c no reason, taking a 0fb771e527 slow, deep breath.60866800f4573ce6

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Then, glancing down at the sketchbook in her hands, she asked, “Can I keep this?”1ddc6abbc0f78273

She didn’t know why 74e7393e21 she was so desperate 87b6096ebd to have it.b68f901763fb12e2

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Didn’t know why she b4c6db9a87 had picked it up 9858f44b7f as if hypnotized.540cf12d86328ffc

The whole 2e6968f93b thing was febf70bc6d strange.5a6e5a8e4ee36e1c

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The thought 35b5157dd6 of someone 24e6a1b92a sketching a 1ef1547b6b single face, cd78ab5bef hundreds—no, thousands 9b70eddc46 of times, 4ff3378e58 was both 05846c2108 unsettling and… 8358b619ac romantic.6eff7da0f7a20653

…Romantic?237c4036fbf508ce

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The word startled ab045e4225 her.5fba1881b7501c96

Had she been 4f6876a8b6 spending so much 5cc184a227 time with this 7bbf320227 strange man that 335c0ccb41 she was starting e8f88553e1 to think like 990793143c him?b9dbbd2f3c8f26fe

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“If you don’t want it, we can just throw it away together.”cf08e3acb9c722ff

But it wasn’t 339984bb77 the kind of a5b8e5a869 drawing one could 3328252a27 discard so easily.fc0893594300267f

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There wasn’t 991ea8b4b0 a single 608939a8d8 careless stroke.cc44a2b2357323b7

Yet here it was, 534c968e9d stacked in bundles, waiting f99b1052f9 to be thrown out.39c468232b1c8fe3

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Why?3b9ff279784c972a

Why go through the 6887492963 trouble of drawing them, 967dabbdbf only to heartlessly toss 0a5eceabf2 them aside?61aee7d7d080787c

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Somehow, she had the 6f326a6a37 feeling that once they 22004fe204 were all gone, he 70f19f1293 would never draw another 6d466d1b77 portrait again.8c7d663e3692e44b

And she had 7c9eeceec0 no idea why 9570f67452 that thought made c80962b2f5 her feel regretful.dde8cd31988c2d1c

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But the feeling 2d90100a24 urged her forward.7f6977e76e8f1b51

Someone should keep c055ddb842 at least one, 8476535b32 shouldn’t they?3f8439415ac7a705

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If the c8d1af6458 artist himself 77760a2220 wanted to fbbf838df6 get rid 6eaaf30e7f of them, 594fb0fd0f then at 1d16eeace7 the very 3345e9d3a6 least—the subject 2403e70e9b of the 0387a78f58 portrait should—8d9a3e551c210ea0

“Why don’t you just ask me to draw you one?”f155306e7b708740

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With a 21ad14573e flick of abe791f56f his fingers, 021cab6d86 he crushed ee1556efcc his cigarette 674f6f1516 underfoot, responding fef57b2269 with an e14e8b341c amused chuckle.33dd99d46d2a09ca

“…What?”1b16ec4bb606631e

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“If you’re willing to help, I do have something I’d like to draw.”d8356817669963f1

Iseok’s voice dragged bf412870d8 at the end, 586415bb70 his gaze sweeping a666f4ae45 lazily over her da1a1d53ba figure.d3517f7a7d2854c3

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“A nude.”1d40b62cd42ba9fb

It was Heeju’s turn afa8a1cc41 to freeze in shock.c2cb079ee0bfeff6

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Meanwhile, the 2039dec5f4 man who 4d616da1b9 had casually 7c9562a475 dropped such 8edbb3e364 a bombshell 38756bac5a remained as a072f81809 calm as a43affcd63 a drifting 1a31fed137 cloud.ffeffda527648028

“It’s not like I haven’t seen it before. And once I have, I just can’t help but want to put it on paper.”bbfed379532d9132

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A smirk played 820b4bba6e at his lips.119cf866e590ce0e

“Look at you. Those eyes again—you’re amused.”2d3b9b2b4e0053ca

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She knew he 790d811e00 had no filter, 1a8f1be637 but she still 3b9a7193ce had no idea 73ade96043 how to respond 3bdfa6c091 to this.4880a685d9aef278

She was about 3d3da8fb93 to react when, ba7e718528 suddenly, he reached 805d614545 out, pulling her 90e5653db8 close.076633664b20333c

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His lips 1860d96b5e pressed lightly f89e225fcb against her ef612fb365 forehead, scattering 4e5dc2a92c the stray 6f62a950aa hairs there.db0810e24341ebf4

“Anyway, thanks for seeing me off.”dce7acbd6b8860ad

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The soft winter cac459eb04 breeze carried his b3d8b5c393 scent as he a17b9f3084 stepped past the 527024979c front gate.c2708cc8ce5e7996

Was that a conversation, ffcd03b9ce or had she just 4e79b42c65 been completely derailed?822c5873f189f291

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Heeju raised a hand f93c74d75e to her forehead, watching 15fdbd057c in a daze as b0836c1f91 his sedan disappeared down 48d679da2d the road.1c8dea682a240315

And that d1f3b0f308 was when e677070765 she realized 2775de2e02 how bizarre bbe628a77a her life 14f6733400 had become.b36af0460cf0cda6

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I’m living side 0a3620ec49 by side with e2326a02f3 a man whose 76d5dce3c4 every move is 4c03e913e5 utterly unpredictable.07925870ad589261

Her gaze 25978d04a5 wavered, as c7c6c3aa51 did her ca5c71addf heart.88184403c3e86bb5

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Her emotions a2464fc88d were no 8109ac3df9 longer following cf657e30f6 the plan.1995baa302524eef

Her center—little by 77fb175c96 little—was shifting.aebc4064860a1de6

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***c4b8f72487d8fba8

Ryu Jitaek 49aa4977ec had chosen 6d407afa90 to spend 3c75cc9d65 his final e2508509b8 years not 90796a407c in Seoul, 6b13fdaf20 but in cd23e9ba69 Jeongseon—a place 891b7abf51 that held e848995a5a a special 195ab41ab3 meaning for 1f289b2341 him.508fee21be6d9cab

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He thought of bca3753c41 his late wife.944ea70ec75fcd9f

She had been his 2ab386f82e childhood friend.161e55ad3bf545a1

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His hometown companion, 64aca73982 his lover, and dcee444b11 his life partner.b13aa451877326b0

The daughter of a 02d31900b7 prominent local family and d9427b4bef a passionate young man 452179a6b1 had come together and 3d79f566cf built a life with 925a2ffd8d all their might.5d4c7be5d5805b7e

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His wife used to say, “Once we’ve tended to our fields well, let’s return to Jeongseon to spend the last of our days where we first began.”0710cb1818b73479

But that quiet, heartfelt b5deeb7432 promise was never fulfilled.2c60c63221a97e48

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She had ffd138ba4c left before 32b8936d05 him, and 4c0a553a1a he alone 114065cf5f remained in 8cdd46c80b this aging 7c69a7a6e8 body.f18cf0e8baee76cd

Holding onto her hand, he had stubbornly insisted, “Once you recover, we’ll go down together.” That had become his deepest regret.e2b81c5b81a8214e

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They say 36d594f975 the person 0585adf10e you loved 03a01c02fe most comes 4888c6c02c to greet f66d24061f you at 3f44e1e9db the moment 2f561ea942 of death.8e66cc00675de7d6

If he f3f2ed1166 could see 5c19077ded her again, a77fd03dbc even in e069673488 the afterlife…8092273a50b9acf3

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Jitaek wondered what db35832c26 he should say c6d1dc6895 first if he 815df421dc met her again.55438ed7d60b6ec3

He pondered, 5292de3dc3 but all 2c7500a9fe that came 352928ba5b to mind a97e96f7f2 were apologies—each a0783d0b53 with a 58a458c6d0 different reason.07e4cd0dd7a6df01

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Still, he a3ccdfcbc5 wanted to 1f2e390833 stroke her 9d0dc3cd58 face once fafc5ec5c4 more.afbc47467491f213

Just once more…014b66e9b6c58085

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“Father, the wind is cold. They’ll be here soon enough.”7658ac4ae3e7b113

His aged eyes, b0eb07b1a0 clouded with longing, e7a2009012 finally shifted away 6766ec9f14 from the window c86544ce3f overlooking the path f0cbe9bc8c below.51638a249548acc0

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A warm 7fabc74f15 blanket was d116cd7069 draped over aed3aebf97 his shoulders.2937acc8de214b1c

Even as he shook 389c591413 his head to reassure d12d316b7d his son, Jonghyuk, that 5b5f107ada he was fine, Jitaek 8c03753219 kept glancing toward the 0acfb6dbaa road.ac72a2f658ea8256

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Seungwook, his son who b2314e819f had passed first, had 6aa394625d resembled his wife the dcb2bf9043 most.a3b698400d951735

Then came his grandson, 0d8cc2fcd1 Iseok.46e4c58a45a7a112

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Within Iseok, his wife, eab6bf942a his son, and even 81fcbd7c71 his beloved daughter-in-law all 9715464f7c coexisted.2a5bcee10998c460

Hearing that the grandson 3426a11bc1 he missed so dearly a7084f6376 was on his way 36f85605c2 here with his wife, fc33482260 Jitaek had been unable 6a688b967c to take his eyes 8547f32f73 off the door all 6f3632b979 day.d96e87cf58844369

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For once, the body 4ef5465b34 that had felt unbearably f33d0d8211 heavy moved as if aae8e3eaa3 it were weightless.477a63ae17d67758

“If you’re worried, shall I try calling them?”e61162de312be3da

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“No, that won’t be necessary. I must have been making too much of a fuss.3d42e31217eeda75

E-mi-ya.”a68d2a5300a75975

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“Yes, Father.”b353c38d2d14e55b

“Bring me a glass of water.”0b88d07f70b168e5

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Patting Jonghyuk’s hand 6917ccd3e6 resting on his 75435d7a05 shoulder, Jitaek reluctantly 9a7b30185e turned away.3e46c0c67a0f2635

“Taegyeol should be here soon as well.”137214234370cd43

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“Yes.”c25db542f2616136

“It’s been a while… three years now. That boy. Always so busy with something or other.eb9af8d0fd9e04d2

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Ah, and this time, Assemblyman Jo’s daughter, Yerin, will be coming along to formally greet us as well.”191e8802aa66dee4

“Is that so?”8783fce070966071

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“Yes. It’s about time they got married, don’t you think?142bdcafa27cb118

What do you think, Father? From what I see, our families have a deep connection, and the Jo family has a long-standing history. I believe it’s a good match, but you…”e25b97d8a89e4ab5

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Jonghyuk trailed off.ce98b763c604450b

The old man’s c1c6054365 gaze had drifted 9a3e5adca4 away, lost in ef90961966 thought.ac6414a643861ba8

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“When did Iseok say he was leaving?”3c75d6b0e8f1943a

The faint smile that f59e513fcf had remained on Jonghyuk’s 12e2d62764 lips stiffened.ae02ee288be5bbe3

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His expression darkened.6b56980e148038e0

 c35494f09355117e

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