Siblings Work in Business (100)
“Eun-ho and Eun-ji?”
Park Chang-seok was asked a subtly probing question by the surprised teacher, “I heard Eun-ho and Eun-ji stayed here.”
“Yes, I heard they were here.”
“Ah, yes, they did… but why are you looking for them?”
“I work in the entertainment industry. I happened to meet them and talked to them briefly—”
“You talked to them?”
The teacher in charge of Eun-ho and Eun-ji seemed incredulous.
He wondered why she reacted that way.
What the teacher said next was a bit of a shock.
“Those kids were so shy and wary…”
The teacher knew nothing about Eun-ho and Eun-ji besides their names and ages.
She knew even less than Park Chang-seok himself.
‘I heard they were here for several years…’
He had finally found the place where they stayed, but he was about to leave empty-handed when…
“Excuse me, who are you?”
A nun stopped him at the entrance to the church, her expression wary.
Park Chang-seok quickly handed her his business card and explained his situation, just like he did to the teacher.
“So, I’m looking for Eun-ho and Eun-ji.”
“…Would you come in for a moment?”
“Ah, yes.”
Chang-seok followed the nun to a reception room in a corner of the orphanage.
Perhaps because there was a forest nearby…
He could hear the pleasant sounds of insects and rustling leaves.
“Director-nim!”
Some children ran and hugged a kind-looking teacher who appeared to be in her early 60s.
The atmosphere seemed better than any of the other facilities he had visited, so he wondered why the siblings left this place.
His questions multiplied as he looked around.
Inside the reception room, there was a statue of the Virgin Mary and a cross.
Park Chang-seok, feeling the solemnity of the space, straightened his wrinkled tie.
“Would green tea be alright?”
“Yes, I like green tea.”
“Please have a seat.”
As he sat down at the round table in the reception room, a white mug was placed in front of him.
It was filled with green tea.
“Where did you meet the children?”
The nun asked, speaking in formal Korean, perhaps out of consideration for Park Chang-seok, who had a dialect.
Momentarily surprised by her formal tone, Park Chang-seok briefly explained how he met Eun-ho and Eun-ji.
“I apologize for prying.”
“Not at all. It’s natural to be suspicious of someone who comes looking for them like this.”
“Hehe.”
The nun chuckled politely, covering her mouth with her hand.
Perhaps because of her age…
Her every gesture seemed to fit the serene atmosphere of the space.
“I’m the director here.”
“Ah…”
Park Chang-seok, nodding, suddenly stopped.
“But… outside just now…”
He had seen the children call a different person “Director-nim” on his way to the reception room.
“To children, nuns are all ‘Sister.’ Hehe.”
The nun gave a simple explanation as Park Chang-seok’s confusion grew.
The director of this orphanage was a nun, and the person the children called “Director-nim” was the vice-director.
“Now that I’ve answered your questions, can I ask you something?”
“Yes, please.”
“How… were the children doing?”
“Ah…”
The nun’s voice was filled with genuine concern for Eun-ho and Eun-ji.
Park Chang-seok hesitated for a moment, then told her the truth.
Although he didn’t know how they were making a living, they seemed to be quite thin.
“Goodness… where were they sleeping…?”
“They said there were places that wouldn’t kick them out, even late at night, because they looked like adults due to their height, so they were staying there.”
“Oh my…”
Tears welled up in the nun’s wrinkled eyes.
“How could they…”
She dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief embroidered with flowers.
She took a deep breath, composing herself, and asked, her voice trembling slightly,
“Those children are very wary of strangers. How were you able to talk to them?”
The nun had shown Eun-ho and Eun-ji genuine affection, but they, having never experienced such kindness, didn’t open up easily.
Perhaps if she had tried harder to connect with them, they wouldn’t have left and suffered like that.
She had worried about them every night.
So, she wanted to know how Park Chang-seok had broken through their walls during their first meeting.
Park Chang-seok thought about how he got them to come to his office, and one thing came to mind.
“I… promised them meat.”
“M-Meat?”
The nun’s hand, wiping her tears, froze.
She looked up, her expression clearly asking, ‘That’s… it?’
“Yes. The day they came to my office, I think I fed them about five servings of samgyeopsal (pork belly), marinated galbi (short ribs), and bibim naengmyeon (spicy mixed noodles).”
“And… then?”
“As I listened to their story, it got late, so I stopped them from going back to the sauna and let them stay in the second-floor room, which used to be a dorm for my trainees.”
“They slept there?”
“Yes. Ah, I wasn’t there.”
“Ah…”
The nun seemed surprised by his every word, realizing how cautious he had been.
“You wanted to get close to them.”
“Of course… they were like stray cats.”
“Haha, yes…”
Park Chang-seok held the warm mug in his hands.
“I think that’s why… why I was so concerned after hearing their story…”
Park Chang-seok nodded, as if finally understanding something, and took a sip of tea.
‘Stray cats…’
His three cats at home had suffered like that.
He had taken them in when they were skinny and starving, and he raised them.
Now, they were big and plump, what people called ‘pigs.’
They were much bigger than PD Cheol-soo’s cat, even though they were brought in around the same time.
But he always found it endearing when they ate well.
Just like his three “masters of the house,” he wanted Eun-ho and Eun-ji to stop struggling.
He was ambitious about their talent, but his ambition stemmed from a desire for their happiness.
“I have three cats at home, all former strays…”
“They must be lovely.”
“Yes. They’re lovely, and it breaks my heart, so they’re even more precious.”
“…”
The nun nodded, seeming to understand.
“I’m hesitant to ask this, but…”
“Please, go ahead.”
The nun spoke carefully.
“Are you aware of the concept of legal guardianship?”
“Legal guardianship?”
That’s when Park Chang-seok learned about the ‘bakery owner’ Eun-ho and Eun-ji hadn’t mentioned.
“He didn’t show it, but he genuinely cared for them and wanted to take responsibility for them.”
“He…”
Park Chang-seok tilted his head at her calling the bakery owner a “he,” and the nun smiled faintly and explained.
“He grew up here too, just like Eun-ho and Eun-ji, when he was in elementary school.”
“Ah…”
But the ‘bakery owner’ was deeply in debt and couldn’t take responsibility for the children.
So he did what he could.
He assured them that the police officers weren’t bad people and told them about birth registration.
After they calmed down, he took Eun-ho and Eun-ji to a safer place.
But they struggled there, and the nun, hearing about their situation, took them in.
“Is it possible… to meet him?”
Park Chang-seok asked, his eyes sparkling with interest. He wanted to know more about Eun-ho and Eun-ji, but the nun shook her head.
“He has passed away.”
She added that he had known his time was coming, but her voice was so low and choked with tears that he could barely hear her.
Park Chang-seok, seeming to understand, nodded slowly and offered his condolences.
“I mentioned legal guardianship.”
The nun continued, dabbing her eyes with her damp handkerchief.
“I’m getting too old. Those children need a guardian who can show them more of the world.”
She sighed and was about to continue, but…
Park Chang-seok interrupted.
“Could… I become their guardian?”
“Their legal guardian?”
“Yes.”
The nun was taken aback by his confident answer.
Park Chang-seok had been conflicted when he first met the children.
He thought he was too cold and calculating to take responsibility for them.
But he was capable, so why not?
‘Eun-ho…’
Eun-ho had said he wanted to be a singer.
A boy so wary of strangers, yet brave enough to audition for TaKa and other agencies…
He knew he wasn’t a good person, at least not before seeing their talent. He had felt burdened.
But during the time he couldn’t find them, he realized…
‘I want those kids to be happy.’
He wanted to become their benefactor, their guiding light.
He had the money and the resources.
‘And I’m not likely to suddenly get married and have kids of my own anytime soon…’
He earnestly pleaded his case to the nun, even mentioning his slightly bitter single status. The nun, her eyes filled with emotion, nodded along to his every word.
After he finished, the nun said carefully,
“If the children ever come to you again, please tell them what we talked about today.”
“Ah, they’re not here, are they…”
“No. But if they cherished their time with you, they might come looking for you someday.”
“I hope so…”
“And if that happens… if they want to, and if you’d like… could you bring them here with you?”
“Yes, of course.”
The day Park Chang-seok returned to his office…
…He put up a large poster on the gatepost.
Like a fruit tree attracting birds, it was a picture of meat, with a short message underneath:
[I’ll buy you meat, kids.
Give this old man one more chance.]
It didn’t take long for them to meet again.
Their second meeting was at a completely different restaurant.
When Chang-seok brought up the contract again, Eun-ho became even more suspicious, and Eun-ji cried.
But Eun-ho’s suspicion melted away, along with the meat grilling before their eyes.
Chang-seok made a promise.
“I don’t care about the contract anymore. Just give me a chance to show you a bigger world.”
NOOO MR BAKERY OWNER 😭😭