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“You broke a violin once.”
“How long ago was that? Do you really think I’d do something like that again at my age?”
“I don’t... but I am curious why it has to be Yoo Hee-jin.”
Why Yoo Hee-jin? Seok-hyun laughed as if he had been asked a strange question. Chairman Go’s eyes narrowed as he watched that smile. Seok-hyun was a grandson he could be proud of anywhere, but there were times when he acted subtly like this.
“Grandfather. Yoo Hee-jin is the real deal.”
Seok-hyun pointed to his ear with his right index finger. His own ears were the proof.
“Are you mocking this old man for being deaf?”
“Of course not. It’s just that Yoo Hee-jin is still an unpolished gemstone. If she is cut more precisely, she won’t be inferior to any other jewel. I simply want to be that lapidary.”
Chairman Go remained silent for a moment. Seeing his grandson assert that Yoo Hee-jin—who played so brilliantly—was still unfinished left him with many thoughts.
He was proud that Seok-hyun had grown enough to make such a judgment, yet it bothered him that the subject of that judgment happened to be Yoo Hee-jin.
Of course, the incident of breaking the violin was, as Seok-hyun said, a very long time ago. At the time, there were many worries about a conduct disorder, but perhaps because he had immediately completed a behavioral correction course, he was not diagnosed with ASPD. Since then, he had never once crossed the line.
He had grown from a reckless child who acted out relying on the family's power into an adult who knew how to take responsibility for his actions. He did not oppress others with power, nor did he engage in delinquency.
When he heard stories about children from wealthy families these days lacking proper home education and causing trouble, it was appalling. Gambling, drugs... Compared to that, both Seung-woo and Seok-hyun had grown up quite upright.
To think I'm worrying needlessly, clinging to the past. I really have grown old, Chairman Go thought, rubbing his temples to clear his cluttered mind. Come to think of it, now that Seok-hyun's business was on track and he had some leisure, it was a good time for him to gain experience with the cultural foundation. If he watched how Seok-hyun polished the gemstone that was Yoo Hee-jin and the results were good, it might be fine to hand over the foundation to him entirely.
“Fine. Since you put it that way, I will trust you. It is your freedom to sponsor her personally. I will not interfere.”
“Thank you for trusting me, Grandfather.”
A satisfied smile played on Seok-hyun's face as he nodded. Chairman Go looked at him and then put his glasses back on. Recognizing this as the signal to leave, Seok-hyun rose from his seat with a smile.
Stepping outside, Seok-hyun turned his head, feeling the sunlight pouring down from the sky. The smile on his brightened face was incredibly radiant. Perhaps because he was in a good mood, he hummed a tune to himself as he searched for Hee-jin.
He finally found her in a corner of the garden. He didn't know why she had come to such a remote spot while they were still in the middle of a conversation. However, seeing Hee-jin surrounded by the green garden was a feast for the eyes. Because of her black suit and black hair, Hee-jin looked even whiter and more transparent. Beautiful. Seok-hyun admired Hee-jin with a gaze as if he were looking at a sculpture. As he watched her silently, Hee-jin eventually looked back with a face that asked why he was staring.
“Because you’re pretty.”
Whether she intended to ignore him or not, Hee-jin didn't show much of a reaction and turned her head back. Seok-hyun's eyes narrowed as her gaze remained fixed on something other than him. He approached her to see what she was doing. The carp in the pond were swarming, thinking Hee-jin was feeding them with her hand gestures. Since she gave them nothing, they scattered and then approached again in a repeating cycle.
“Is it fun?”
It was obvious that no answer would come, but Seok-hyun continued to talk to her. Doing so made him feel as if he had truly returned to the time of the music camp. The colors and scent of the green garden reminded him of those mountains.
“Do you remember? Back then, I really wanted to get close to you, Noona. That’s why I kept talking to you and following you around, but you didn't look at me even once.”
With a smirk, Seok-hyun leaned in to meet Hee-jin's eyes. Perhaps thinking it would be strange to intentionally look away, Hee-jin did not avoid his gaze. When he saw himself reflected in her eyes, which were still as clear as glass beads, Seok-hyun's smile deepened.
“Do you still hate dealing with me?”
Do you have to say it out loud for me to know? Hee-jin's eyes seemed to say exactly that. Her stubborn silence felt as if it were intended to ignore his very existence. Seok-hyun deliberately took another step closer to her.
“The more you ignore and avoid me, the more obsessed I'll become.”
Feeling that the distance was far too close, a frown creased Hee-jin's brow.
“Is that what you want?”
His playfully whispering voice was light and affectionate. Hee-jin, feeling a slight chill, glared at him before turning her gaze away as if she had had enough. She didn't even respond, as if she intended to ignore Seok-hyun's very existence.
However, such a reaction only amused Seok-hyun. If Hee-jin had approached him with a beaming smile to get on his good side, his interest would have plummeted. But Yoo Hee-jin remained consistent in her attitude, acting as if she didn't care that Seok-hyun was the heir to the Gio Group.
“You really haven't changed a bit, Noona. You look just as desperate as you did back then, like someone clinging to a cliff.”
Perhaps this time it was too hard to ignore, as Hee-jin glared at Seok-hyun with intensity in her eyes. She couldn't understand why he had come all the way to a remote temple just to grate on her nerves like this.
She had thought he showed a fairly mature attitude during the formal meeting, but that was just an act because he was in front of adults. He seemed to be managing his image in his own way, but no matter how well he packaged himself, he couldn't hide that malice.
Feeling no need to deal with him, Hee-jin began to walk away. She intended to meet Chairman Go and formally request sponsorship. She wondered if it was okay to ask directly, but she thought that if she desperately proved her value, the possibility might increase.
“I’ll sponsor you.”
“...!”
However, Go Seok-hyun stopped her departing steps with a single sentence. Standing frozen in place, Hee-jin looked back, doubting her own ears. The playful gestures were gone, and she saw Go Seok-hyun standing seriously with a confident face.
“I said I’ll raise you. I'll make Yoo Hee-jin a world-class soloist.”
I’ll sponsor you.
It wasn't a proposal, but a firm voice that sounded as if he had already reached a conclusion. An arrogance that said, I've made the decision, so you just have to follow. As Hee-jin chewed over his words of sponsorship, she frowned slightly.
“Not on the level of the foundation... but a personal sponsorship?”
Seok-hyun nodded as if she had understood correctly. Even that haughty tilt of his chin grated on Hee-jin's nerves.
“That's right. Me. I, Go Seok-hyun, will personally sponsor Yoo Hee-jin.”
Hee-jin's expression darkened. It was the moment the anxiety she felt when Chairman Go was tight-lipped about the sponsorship materialized. Despite her best efforts, it seemed her performance was insufficient to cross the cutoff line. Though regret and disappointment are different, the feeling was equally unpleasant. It felt as if she had been sentenced to a limit: this is as far as you go.
“Are you so happy that you're speechless?”
When Hee-jin remained silent with her head lowered, Seok-hyun laughed, asking if she was overcome with emotion. However, when Hee-jin looked up, her expression did not look good, even by a long shot.
“I'll pass.”
At the single phrase that flowed out quietly, Seok-hyun felt as if he had been hit in the back of the head. He wondered how many times Yoo Hee-jin had acted contrary to his expectations, but this was far beyond the norm. Regardless of her discomfort with him, this was an opportunity to change her life.
“Do you even know what you're saying right now?”
Seok-hyun asked back with a hollow laugh. His arched eyebrows seemed to represent his mood. Since there was nothing more to think about, Hee-jin gave a short nod and turned around. Now that the foundation's sponsorship had fallen through, there was no need for her to remain in this awkward place.
“You're not refusing because I broke a violin back then, are you?”
Walking with long strides, Seok-hyun grabbed Hee-jin's arm and forced her to look at him. Hee-jin, her body whipped around by his strength, frowned. His grip was full of power, as if he wanted to prove he was no longer a middle school boy.
“Let go. It hurts.”
“Right. It sounds much better now that you've dropped that pathetic formal speech.”
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