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Chapter 57: Don’t Cry, Miso (1)

My body felt as though it had been relentlessly pounded by pain. Forcing myself up, I made my special hangover ramen with extra chili powder, bean sprouts, and dried pollack.

Slurp!

After inhaling the chewy noodles and the salty broth, it was time to have a bite of the perfectly ripened kimchi.

Crunch!

It was only after savoring the refreshing kimchi with the ramen that I finally regained my senses.

"Burp! Thank goodness. I finally feel a bit alive."

After settling my upset stomach, I immediately headed to a nearby cafe to meet with the administrators of Yoo-Jin\'s fan website from her Burger Queen part-time days, \'Cheonho-dong\'s Burger Maiden,\' and persuaded them to help us with the news of Miso\'s adoption.

The meeting was a great success and the administrators immediately rolled their sleeves and got to work. As a result, the comments on the article written by Ju Kang-Yong began to fill up with posts from the fan club members.

[Rookie Actress J\'s Private Life]

-J\'s high-paying part-time job!!

-Underaged Miss J earned 3 million won a month from part-time jobs—the backstory.

(Comments)

-You referred to the actress as Miss J but you really think we wouldn\'t know it\'s Jung Yoo-Jin with that mosaic picture?

-High-paying part-time job? LOL. What an attention seeker. Are you that hungry for the views?

-So what kind of part-time job did Jung Yoo-Jin do to make 3 million won?

-Jung Yoo-Jin worked a Burger Queen part-time job in Cheonho-dong.

-I thought she worked in a strip club or something just by the title of the article. But she just worked at a burger place part-time? How do you make 3 million won from that?

-Apparently, the branch owners competed and placed bids against each other to recruit her.

-Ah, typical reportrash.

-He’s deliberately confusing people.

-I thought it was something serious.

-Go check the \'Cheonho-dong\'s Burger Maiden\' fan website. All the clarification documents are there.

With the blazing comments by the fan club members, Ju Kang-Yong\'s article seemed to diminish in power.

***

I arrived in front of Miso\'s kindergarten.

Because Yoo-Jin was busy focusing on her script rehearsal and had delegated the role of responding to all queries concerning the article to me, l came to pick up Miso from her kindergarten today.

Miso wasn’t coming out even though it was way past her usual dismissal time. Waiting in the car, I rested my chin on the steering wheel and grumbled.

“Should I go check? Why isn\'t she coming out?"

I got out of the car and headed toward the kindergarten—and as soon as I entered the kindergarten, I saw Miso fuming with anger.

"My m-my auntie is not a bad person!"

In the kindergarten playground, a girl, who was at least a head taller than Miso, was wearing a big pink ribbon on her head and mocking and making fun of Miso.

"Shut up! Everyone knows your auntie works at a strip club! I heard all celebrities do that!"

Two other girls standing behind the pink-ribboned girl were nodding incessantly.

Despite the bullying, the principal was nowhere to be seen.

Miso cried out again with an indignant expression, clenching her fists and thrusting her head forward. "No! My auntie doesn\'t work at a strip club! She plays with me every night!"

"Ah, is that so? Then she must have sneaked out after you had fallen asleep."

For a moment, I was so dumbfounded by the girl’s remark that I couldn\'t help but let out a hollow laugh.

\'Is that something a 7-year-old should say?

\'

Suddenly, Miso erupted with uncharacteristic anger, pointing her finger at the girl\'s pink ribbon in front of her and blurting out something that she typically would not have said.

"You. You! That pink ribbon doesn\'t suit you at all! It\'s re~ally ugly!"

For Miso, that was the nastiest thing she could say.

The face of the girl with the pink ribbon turned bright red. "Eek~ What!? How dare you!"

Then, the girl with the pink ribbon pushed Miso roughly on the shoulder, causing Miso to stagger and fall onto the sandy ground.

‘How dare she push my precious Miso!?’

I quickly ran over to Miso, helped her up, and examined her carefully. "Miso, are you hurt?"

As Miso stood up, she recognized me and her eyes immediately welled up with tears.

"Sob sob. Uncle Yoon-Ho~~. Waaaaah!"

Miso had been holding her tears in front of the girls but began to sob out loud when she saw me.

"There, there. You’re okay now, Miso."

Miso clung to me and cried pitifully as I glared at the girl with the pink ribbon without realizing it.

"Hey, you. How could you say that your friend\'s auntie works at a strip club? Where did you learn to say such nasty things?"

The girl with the pink ribbon seemed frightened by my low voice. The girls who stood behind the pink ribboned girl hiccuped in fear and soon ran away.

However, the girl with the pink ribbon stood her ground, shouting back defiantly. "B-but I\'m right! I don\'t lie! My mom said that all the pretty-faced celebrities work at strip clubs at night!"

Her trembling body suggested that even at a young age, she might have issues with anger management.

I struggled to restrain myself from wanting to forcibly correct her behavior. Nonetheless, I persisted with the patience of an adult and spoke calmly. "That\'s because your mom doesn\'t know better. How can a busy and popular celebrity have time to go work at strip clubs? You\'ve seen Miso’s auntie appear in dramas, haven\'t you? Miso’s auntie is so busy she hardly has any time to sleep."

As I spoke, Miso gradually stopped crying and shouted, "He’s right! My auntie is really famous! Super popular!"

It was my first time seeing Miso shouting like this.

‘Yes, in Korea, those with a loud voice will always win.’

Unwilling to back down, the girl wearing a pink ribbon shouted back, "You’re wrong! My mom also works in the entertainment industry! Mister, you are wrong! My mom is right!"

The girl with a pink ribbon yelled at me with her eyes welling up with tears. However, the battle was already leaning in our favor.

“Hey, are you crying? You know you lose if you cry, right?"

"N-no, I, I\'m not crying. Hic hic. Waaaaaah!"

‘Ah, yes.’

It was a moment of triumph for the teasing and patience of an adult.

But just as the cries of the girl wearing a pink ribbon echoed through the kindergarten, a sharp-faced woman came running toward us from afar.

"What are you doing! Why are you making my child cry!?"

Her voice was high and piercing.

‘Wait...I know that woman.’

The girl wearing a pink ribbon immediately ran to her mother.

"Mommy~~!! Waaaaah!"

"My Gong-Ju! Who did this to you!"

The mother of that girl was dressed in a black suit and sported a waxed short haircut, exuding an aura of intelligence. However, contrary to her appearance, she was a selfish and dogmatic woman.

Her name was Jin So-Mi.

In my past life, she used to work as an entertainment lawyer who handled the legal aspects of Kim Dong-Soo\'s dirty work. She was a person who actively participated in Kim Dong-Soo\'s misdeeds.

I couldn’t believe I met this woman here in Cheonho-dong.

\'Wait, did she say \'Gong-Ju\'? So, this pink ribbon girl is that Gong-Ju?\'

The girl in Jin So-Mi\'s arms would later become a member of the multinational idol group VIVA4 and the biggest troublemaker.

‘Jin Gong-Ju.’

Just like her mother, she was arrogant and had a nasty personality. I recalled her being notoriously backed by her mother even in my past life.

However, that was a story for later. Right now, it was more important to resolve the situation. I secretly turned on the pen-shaped recorder I had bought for emergencies.

In the meantime, Jin So-Mi approached me after thoroughly checking her daughter for any injuries.

"Hey, you! Who do you think you are!? Why are you shouting at my daughter!?"

Jin So-Mi shot me a sharp, venomous look.

I looked at the mother and daughter in front of me, I knew that the upcoming conversation wouldn’t be a wholesome and edifying one. Hence, I turned to Miso, who was still in my arms, and said, "Miso, cover your ears."

"Okay, Uncle Yoon-Ho!"

"And hold onto me."

"Okay! Uncle Yoon-Ho!"

"Miso, you can still hear everything I say, can’t you?"

"I can\'t hear! I can\'t hear anything!"

Perhaps because she was curious about what was to be said, Miso still had one ear uncovered. Yet she had no choice but to cover both ears and clung to me upon my insistence.

Only after confirming that Miso had also tightly closed her eyes did I respond to Jin So-Mi. "That girl pushed Miso first. I only scolded her for that. I didn\'t hit her or use any bad language. She cried out of shock, that\'s all."

"My Gong-Ju pushed that girl? No way. You have no idea how fragile my girl is! Don\'t you dare lie, or you\'ll be sorry!"

‘Fragile my foot!’

Jin Gong-Ju looked sturdy enough to win a healthy baby contest.

"Hmph! And even if she did push her, that girl must have said something nasty to my Gong-Ju first! Just look at her—she seems completely spoiled!"

I was glad I had Miso cover her ears so she did not have to listen to such unjust words.

Just as I was about to respond to Jin So-Mi\'s words, the kindergarten principal came running over hurriedly.

"Miso\'s uncle! Gong-Ju’s mother! Please calm down. The children are watching."

The principal\'s face was pale and a never-ending stream of tissues was hanging from her waist. I figured she must have been in the bathroom and couldn\'t come out earlier.

The usually kind-hearted principal apologized repeatedly.

However, Jin So-Mi was not someone to accept such apologies.

"Ma’am. What kind of atmosphere is this for a kindergarten?"

"Mrs. Jin. It’s not like that..."

"Seriously, I shouldn\'t have come to such a poor neighborhood. I’m withdrawing my child from this kindergarten effective from today. Please process a refund!"

"M-Mrs. Jin. Please don\'t...why don’t we talk this out..."

The principal bowed apologetically, but I couldn\'t hold back any longer and confronted Jin So-Mi.

"Listening to your remarks is just unbelievable. A poor neighborhood, you say? Don’t you understand that children are watching us right now? You better watch what you say."

The principal, fearing the argument might escalate, quickly grabbed my sleeve. "Mr. Jung, please calm down."

"Mr. Jung? Oh~ I know! The talent agent of that stripper celebrity, right? Was it Jung Yoo-Jin?"

\'How dare she speak about Yoo-Jin like that?\'

I felt a vein on my forehead bulge, pulsating with anger. I wished I had never met this woman in my second life, but it was too late.

I looked at Jin So-Mi and slowly opened my mouth. "Watch your language, Mrs. Jin So-Mi. Or should I say, Mrs. Jin Chu-Ja?"

Jin So-Mi had long had a complex about her tacky name. I recalled hearing in my last life that changing her name was the first thing she did after becoming a lawyer. Of course, that would happen five years from now.

"H-how do you... know my r-real name... W-who are you? How do you...how do you know my name!"

Jin So-Mi stepped back in a flustered manner.

It was only natural for her to feel frightened and unsettled when a stranger knew the secret she wanted to hide so badly.

I opened my mouth again and grabbed my recorder at the same time. "I\'ve recorded everything you just said. Why should Yoo-Jin, who works hard and diligently every day, be judged by you that way? Huh?"

Jin So-Mi took a step back as I took a step forward. She probably understood her words could be grounds for a lawsuit.

At that moment, the principal intervened again. "Mr. Jung, please. The children are watching."

I saw the children huddled together, looking scared. Only then did I manage to regain some of my composure.

"Sigh. I\'m sorry, ma’am. But I still demand an apology."

Jin So-Mi\'s eyes darted around in anger. But, as expected, she chose to step back. “This isn’t over! I\'ll remember your face!"

Jin So-Mi pointed her finger at me before turning sharply to the principal. "This is ridiculous. Just refund the fees to my account!"

With that, Jin So-Mi led her daughter, Jin Gong-Ju, out of the kindergarten. Even as she did, she kept glancing back at me—the stranger who somehow knew her real name.

"Let\'s go, Gong-Ju!"

"Uh, M-Mom. Are we really leaving like this?"

"Hurry up, won\'t you!?"

Jin Gong-Ju was pulled out of the kindergarten by her mother.

I was glad that I had come to pick Miso up. I shuddered to think how much Miso might have suffered if I hadn’t come today. Although Jin So-Mi remained a concern, at least the immediate conflict was over for now.

Once Jin So-Mi and Jin Gong-Ju left the kindergarten, I put Miso down. Then, I called the children who had been standing behind Jin Gong-Ju over. "You two kids."

The children looked slightly scared.

"Ah, s-sir, we\'re sorry."

‘Sigh. Fine. After all, what do they know at their age? They must have been influenced by a bully like Jin Gong-Ju.’

"It’s all right. Miso\'s auntie is a very kind person, so don\'t believe what Gong-Ju\'s mother said. Understand?"

When I spoke gently, the principal and children sighed in relief.

"Okay!"

The two children, Yeon-Woo and Ji-Eun, cautiously approached Miso and extended their hands in apology.

"M-Miso, I’m sorry."

"I\'m sorry, too, for only taking Gong-Ju\'s side."

Children were bound to quickly make up no matter how much they fought.

Miso, with her hands on her waist, issued a warning. "Fine. But if you talk bad about my auntie again, I\'ll really get mad!"

"Okay! We won\'t do it again."

The girls made a pinky promise, stamped it with an imaginary seal with their thumbs, and then quickly hugged and made up with Miso.

Seeing the children make up in peace, the principal\'s face brightened.

"I\'m sorry for causing a commotion," I apologized.

"No, it\'s okay. It turned out rather well. Gong-Ju was often troubling the other kids, so it\'s probably for the best that she left. And I\'m the one who should apologize. It\'s my fault for not educating the children properly."

The principal kept apologizing to me and expressed relief that Jin Gong-Ju had left.

"Oh my. Those kids..."

Following the principal\'s gaze, I saw that Miso was already playing and holding hands with the two girls from before.

\'She\'s too kind. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not...\'

Just then, Yoo-Jin\'s call came through.

[Caller: Lovely Yoo-Jin]

‘Yikes. My bad.’

Recalling that I had told Yoo-Jin that I would take Miso home quickly, I scooped Miso up in my arms and hurried to the car.

Once in the car, I immediately started the engine and answered Yoo-Jin\'s call.

"Hey. I\'m on my way. There\'s a lot of traffic."

-Oh, is that so? I\'m sorry, oppa. Take your time.

"Okay."

The moment I hung up the phone, I felt like I could finally breathe.

"Huff."