A week. For a week, my boys had been dragging their sadness like an invisible weight, their smiles dimmed, their laughter become rare. The cause? The absence of their... of Tae-Oh . Of their progenitor. Of that guy who had burst into our lives like a storm, stolen my children's hearts in one afternoon, and disappeared without a trace.
Why? Why had he entered my little ones' lives if it was to abandon them so cruelly? This question haunted me day and night, gnawed at my sleep, poisoned my days. I saw their gazes turn to the door every evening, their ears listening for the sound of a car that never came. And it broke my heart.
I had made a decision: this weekend, I would devote every minute, every breath to them. I would drown them in love, activities, hugs, to make them forget that man who hadn't deserved their adoration.
On Friday, they finished school early. I had taken a half-day off, a rarity in my overloaded schedule, to go pick them up from school myself. I had promised them, and this promise, I would keep it, me at least.
First, a quick stop at home to put on casual clothes. No more CEO suit, time for jeans and a cozy sweatshirt. I would arrive at school as a cool dad, not a stressed-out executive. Maybe that would help them decompress.
When I arrived at the gate, they were already there, lined up with their class, looking gloomy. Ji-ho was tracing circles in the sand with the tip of his foot, Minjun was staring fixedly at a point in the distance, and Hyun-su... Hyun-su had that pout that twisted my guts. Their faces lit up for a fraction of a second when they saw me, before falling again when they realized I was alone. Alone, as always.
The teacher signaled to them, and they walked towards me without enthusiasm, without that wild dash that was their habit. I was about to crouch down to take them in my arms, whisper sweet words to them, promise them the moon and stars for the weekend...
And then they stopped.
Frozen.
And the air exploded around me.
"DADDY!!!"
One cry. No, three cries, merged into a single scream of pure, absolute, heart-wrenching joy. My children let go of my hands, my legs, my heart, and rushed towards... towards him.
Tae-Oh was there, crouched in front of the gate, arms wide open, that smile which was the carbon copy of Minjun's lighting up his face. Hyun-su jumped first, clinging to his neck like a lifebuoy. Ji-ho buried his face in his shoulder, his little fists clenched on his jacket. Minjun, my big one, pressed against him, eyes closed, drinking in every second of this long-awaited hug.
My heart lurched in my chest. A violent mix of relief, unspoken jealousy, and... something else. Something warm and painful at the same time.
I moved closer, legs heavy, watching Tae-Oh kiss the tops of their heads, murmur words I couldn't hear, stroke their hair with a tenderness that seemed so natural, so obvious. When he looked up at me, his smile softened but didn't disappear. On the contrary, a gleam of defiance, or perhaps expectation, shone in his eyes.
I crossed my arms, my usual armor, and attacked straight away, my voice harsher than I intended:
"Can I ask where you've been for over a week?"
He stood up slowly, without stopping stroking Hyun-su's head who refused to let him go. He helped the boys sit on the edge of his car – that damn black Hyundai – before turning to me, arms crossed in turn, a smirk that immediately annoyed me.
"I thought you took me for a stalker after your money," he said, his voice bittersweet.
Humor. He dared humor. Anger rose in me, red and hot. "All that is our problem, not the children's! You have no right to make them suffer just to prove you were right!"
His smile disappeared. His eyes narrowed, a worried crease marking his forehead. "What are you talking about? Why are you saying that?"
"Because you haven't come for a week! And because of that, the boys... they thought you had abandoned them!"
The silence that followed was heavy, charged. His face crumpled, genuine pain crossing his features. He glanced towards the children, who were already busy telling each other secrets in the back seat, unaware of the drama playing out a few meters away.
"Jung-Su," he said, and the use of my first name hit me like a wave. "It wasn't to make them cry that I didn't come. I was on a business trip. A week in Tokyo, non-stop meetings, time zone differences... And I didn't have your number. I couldn't let you know. I didn't know how to reach you."
He didn't have my number.
This obvious fact, so simple, so stupid, hit me square in the forehead. Of course. How could he have warned me? We had parted angrily, I hadn't even deigned to ask his name, and him... him neither. We were two idiots, two adults incapable of communicating, and the children were paying the price for our immaturity.
"Ah... it was just that..." My voice was now just an embarrassed, ashamed whisper. "That's what I thought..."
He didn't respond, but his gaze said everything: "I forgive you, but next time, think before you accuse."
He turned back to the boys, sticking his head inside the car to interact with them, and I stood there, planted like a fool, suddenly realizing we were still in front of the school. A deserted school, gates closed, on a silent street. We had been so absorbed by our argument, by our emotions, that we had forgotten the world around us.
I moved closer, hesitant, and placed a hand on his shoulder. He straightened up abruptly, surprised by the contact, and turned to me, his big eyes diving into mine. My heart did a stupid leap. I swallowed.
"Uh... I don't want to ruin this moment, but we need to go home now."
"Ah. Okay." His voice was soft, almost tender.
I hesitated, words stuck in my throat. "U-uh... Could you tell me your name? Because... you see... I still don't know your name."
He burst into a small laugh, light, crystalline, dancing in the evening air. "Ah. Lee Tae-Oh ."
Lee Tae-Oh. The name resonated within me, anchoring itself somewhere in my memory, in my heart. "Hmm..." I cleared my throat, embarrassed. "Minjun, Hyun-su, Ji-ho... say goodbye to daddy."
He crouched down one last time to receive their onslaught of hugs, then looked up at me, that smirk present again. "Finally, I know my boys' names. I was beginning to wonder if they had names at all."
I blushed, aware of my unforgivable oversight. "Uh... it wasn't my intention, I..."
"Don't worry, I'm not angry." His voice was warm, reassuring. He kissed each of the boys on the top of the head, one last time, before helping them settle into my car. They held him so tight, their little arms tied around his neck, as if it were the last time. As if they were afraid he would disappear again.
He closed the door, nodded at me, and I got in turn. As I drove off, I watched him in the rearview mirror, walking away towards his own car, our paths separating. But inside the car, the atmosphere had changed. The boys were smiling, babbling, already telling each other about their next adventures with "daddy." Joy had returned. And despite the dull jealousy that still tugged at me, I couldn't deny that it was thanks to him.
...
The weekend was a whirlwind of happiness. Amusement park, ice cream galore, movie night at home with popcorn and blanket fights. I had kept my promise: drown them in love. And it had worked. Their laughter had regained its sparkle, their eyes their shine. But Tae-Oh was present in each of our games, in each of their stories, in each of their drawings. He was there, as a watermark, without even having to show himself.
Monday, back at the office, I collapsed into my chair, my head heavy with fatigue and confused thoughts. Hae-won and Il-Nam hyung, as always, soon poked their noses in, curious as ferrets.
"So, this week? Did you finally find your progenitor?" Hae-won launched, flopping onto the couch.
"Stop bothering me with that, and yes, he came to school."
Il-Nam leaned in, eyes shining with curiosity. "Hmm... so are you finally going to tell us his name?"
I sighed, resigned. "Lee Tae-Oh."
The silence that followed was deafening.
They both jumped up like springs. "You said WHAT?!"
I blinked, surprised. "Lee Tae-Oh. Why? Do you know him?"
Hae-won looked at me as if I had just fallen off the turnip truck. "You're funny, Gguk. Everyone knows Lee Tae-Oh !"
Il-Nam continued, hands in the air as if invoking a deity. "Lee Tae-Oh is the hotel giant! He owns luxury hotels in about twenty countries, he built his empire alone, by the strength of his own wrist. He's richer than your family, Su. MUCH richer."
The ground gave way beneath my feet. Richer than my family. Richer than US. And I, poor idiot, had accused him of wanting to extort money from me.
"And here I thought he was after my money..." I murmured, head in hands.
Hae-won's eyes widened. "You didn't say that to him, I hope? Tell me you didn't do that."
I buried my face in my arms, groaning with shame. "Yes. I did."
Il-Nam shook his head, a disillusioned smile on his lips. "Jung-Su. Jung-Su. Jung-Su. Before accusing someone, you first need to know who they are. Lesson number one of social life."
"I get it, hyung... I get it..."
They burst out laughing, those traitors, those false friends who were doubled over on the couch mocking my stupidity. It's true that I had made a mistake, but to the point of laughing to tears, wasn't that a bit exaggerated, no?
My vibration suddenly cut short their hilarity. My phone. A message.
Tae-Oh hyung: I'm leaving for Rome for three days. Tell the boys that when I come back, we'll go to the fair. Promise.
My heart skipped a beat. He had written to me. On his own. To warn me. To think of them, of us.
To Tae-Oh hyung: Okay, but they'll still be sad not to see you tonight.
Tae-Oh hyung: I'll call you when I've arrived, and I'll talk to them myself, okay? That way, they'll hear it from me.
To Tae-Oh hyung: Okay. Have a good trip.
"Who was that?" Hae-won asked, interrupting my reading.
"Tae-Oh. He's just letting me know he's leaving on a trip. That's all." I put my phone down, my heart strangely light.
"Hmm..." they said in unison, picking up their files again.
But me, I stared at my screen without seeing it. It was the first time he had written to me. And it wasn't to talk to me about himself, his money, his problems. It was for the children. To reassure them. To keep his promise.
A stupid smile stretched my lips. I chased it away immediately, resuming my serious expression. But deep inside, something had changed. A little thing, tiny, but very real.
My phone vibrated a second time. My mother, responding to my message from earlier: she would pick up the children. Perfect. The day was busy, files were piling up, and this nascent migraine was beginning to pound at my temples.
But through the fatigue, through the work, through everything... a little voice in my head repeated his name. Tae-Oh. Lee Tae-Oh.
And it wouldn't shut up.