Munjeong - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

 

“……”

 

Although the distance was too far for her to hear his breathing, the moment their eyes met, Chaeon instinctively tensed and held her breath. Like a herbivore freezing in fear, suppressing any movement upon encountering a predator.

 

The man’s languid and detached gaze trailed over her as if appraising an object. Chaeon’s throat moved visibly as she swallowed hard, frozen in place. While she forgot to breathe, his gaze slowly traveled downward from her head to her feet, lingering there briefly before retreating with an almost clinical precision.

 

Had she curled her toes slightly under the scrutiny of his gaze? Even though his attention had already moved on, it felt strangely uncomfortable to breathe again.

 

“I heard there was some unrest recently. I also heard it’s been resolved,” Kim said, addressing the man.

 

The man responded with a faintly amused expression.

 

“It has.”

 

“The chairman must have been displeased in many ways. No matter where you go, there are always noisy people causing unnecessary commotion.”

 

“Well…”

 

The man’s jaw tightened briefly, as if clenching his teeth.

 

“Generally speaking, that’s true.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“They’re loud and slow to understand their place.”

 

His dry tone was as unyielding as poetry, crushing the faceless masses without hesitation. After a brief pause, his gaze returned to Chaeon’s feet.

 

“And pitiful.”

 

“……”

 

Startled, Chaeon glanced down at her own feet, where his gaze seemed to linger. The worn-out, frayed white socks she was wearing had holes at the tips, exposing her skin. It was too evident to hide, even if she tried.

 

Ah… Only then did she realize why his gaze had lingered there for a moment longer. Biting her lip slightly, she lifted her head, only to find that the man was no longer looking at her, as though she were no longer worth his attention.

 

Her toes curled involuntarily, this time with a distinctly different feeling.

 

As soon as she returned home, the first thing Chaeon did was pull off the socks that had felt suffocatingly tight and stuff them into the trash can. Staring at the crumpled white heap with a mix of shame and irritation, she pushed the trash can to the farthest corner of the room as if she couldn’t bear to look at it anymore.

 

After carelessly tossing her school blouse into the laundry basket, she flopped face-down onto her bed.

 

“Loud, slow to understand their place… pitiful.”

 

She wasn’t sure if the man had looked at her feet purely coincidentally when uttering those words or if those words had been meant for her. Either way, the disdain in his gaze left a mark, like a scar.

 

With her face buried deep into her pillow, Chaeon’s mind replayed the cool, appraising gaze that had swept over her. Her throat felt dry, and her toes curled again, just as they had in the funeral hall. How could she describe this feeling? Those detached, jet-black eyes of his…

 

Arrogant and imposing, he was a man who made her uncomfortable without a single word exchanged. Perhaps that was why everyone instinctively bowed their heads and deferred to him, as if their necks were broken.

 

Letting out a deep sigh into the pillow, Chaeon heard Heejung enter the house, finishing a phone call she had stepped out to make.

 

“…Of course, I understand, ma’am. How could I not? You’ve always been so kind.”

 

From the tone, pitch, and rhythm of Heejung’s voice, Chaeon immediately knew who she was speaking to: Im Soyoung.

 

“Oh, absolutely. I’d be thrilled under such conditions. It’s just…”

 

The closer Heejung’s voice came to Chaeon’s room, the more her words trailed off until she lowered her voice to a whisper.

 

“I’ll need to discuss it with Chaeon first. But yes, the sooner, the better. Of course. Yes.”

 

After a few more words, Heejung ended the call and lightly knocked on Chaeon’s door.

 

“Chaeon, can I come in?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

As Chaeon sat up on the bed, Heejung carefully opened the door and stepped in. Dragging a chair from the desk, she sat down and clasped Chaeon’s hands, smiling awkwardly. It was her habit whenever she had something difficult to say.

 

“Chaeon, I have something to tell you.”

 

“What is it?”

 

Chaeon’s skeptical gaze made Heejung bite her lip and sigh softly.

 

“Well… we…”

 

Why was she hesitating so much? After a long moment of reluctance, during which Heejung seemed to chew over her words, she finally spoke just as Chaeon was about to press her for an answer.

 

“Let’s move.”

 

“…What?”

 

Holding Chaeon’s hands tightly, Heejung smiled weakly with teary eyes.

 

“Let’s move, Chaeon.”

 

“……”

 

“Honestly, staying in this house has become too difficult for me.”

 

Chaeon understood. It hadn’t been long since debt collectors had kicked down the door, made threats, and slapped red foreclosure notices on what little furniture they had. This house was now a place with more painful memories than good ones.

 

“The lady from Hannam-dong introduced me to a really good job.”

 

The lady from Hannam-dong—Im Soyoung.

 

“What kind of job?”

 

“She said they’re looking for someone to work at the Jungwang family’s residence in Munjeong.”

 

“……”

 

“Apparently, it’s a huge mansion, and they need someone to live there and assist with the work. It’s not just me; I’d be alternating shifts with someone else.”

 

“……”

 

“They said they’d provide a place to stay.”

 

Heejung looked earnest. Staring down at their joined hands, Chaeon gently squeezed Heejung’s hands in return and asked softly.

 

“Are you okay with it?”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Are you really okay with leaving?”

 

Startled by the sudden question, Heejung’s eyes widened. Meeting her gaze, Chaeon asked again.

 

“I honestly don’t care if we move or not.”

 

“Then?”

 

“I respected your decision to stay here because I knew how desperately you fought to keep this house.”

 

“You…”

 

“I thought you felt the same way… I didn’t realize how hard it had been for you.”

 

As if it were a lie, with just those words, Heejung’s eyes turned red. Feeling her own eyelids grow warm, Chaeon suppressed her tears and held her mother’s hand even tighter.

 

“If you’re okay with it, and if you’re the one saying we should go, then I’ll go. After all, what does it matter where we live as long as it’s the two of us?”

 

Once again, Heejung’s hand covered Chaeon’s. The way her mother stroked her hand, as though cherishing something precious and lovely, was unbearably tender and warm.

 

“My goodness. My daughter has grown up so much…”

 

Heejung, her eyes glistening, pulled Chaeon into a tight embrace.

 

A few days later, Chaeon left behind the house where she had spent nineteen long years and set off with Heejung toward Munjeong City. Having lived without much to their name, they didn’t have many belongings to bring.

 

The moving boxes contained neatly folded clothes, Chaeon’s books, and some small household items. Atop those lay a photo album filled with memories of happier times as a family of three. Staring at it with mixed emotions, Chaeon let out a deep sigh before reluctantly closing the box lid.

 

When the truck to carry their few moving boxes arrived, Chaeon and her mother took one last slow walk through the now-empty house. The familiar smell of the house lingered faintly at the tip of her nose. This smell, too, would soon be forgotten.

 

The small drawing of an elephant that Chaeon had scribbled on the wall as a child had faded over time, worn down by the years. Even the moment when her father had praised that drawing as if it were the greatest masterpiece in the world felt distant now. Looking back, there had been small moments of happiness, brief though they were. But unhappiness had always diluted those moments with ease.

 

After gazing at it for a moment, Chaeon quietly shut the door to the house she would never open again.

 

—

 

A thick mist hung in the air.

 

The journey from Seoul to Munjeong wasn’t as long as she’d expected. After departing from their house in Eunpyeong-gu and driving for about thirty minutes, they passed a sign announcing their arrival in Munjeong City, situated in the middle of the road.

 

“Goodness. This area always gets so misty…”

 

The taxi driver muttered to himself, slowing the car.

 

“Does it often get misty here?”

 

Heejung, leaning her bored face against the backseat window, caught his words and asked. The driver met her eyes through the rearview mirror and nodded, as though it was common knowledge.

 

“Yes, ma’am. Just a bit further ahead is Geumso-dong, and there’s a huge lake there. It’s called Geumso-dong because it was built on a site where gold veins were once mined. You’ve heard of that, right?”

 

“Really?”

 

“You didn’t know? This whole area used to be gold-mining land. Over time, the mines closed, the water filled up, turning into a lake, and then neighborhoods started springing up.”

 

The driver, proud to share his knowledge, glanced around at the mist-covered surroundings and continued.

 

“The mist from that lake spreads all the way here. It usually happens only at dawn or early morning, but maybe it’s because it rained recently.”

 

“Wouldn’t it be inconvenient to live here with all this mist?”

 

“Oh, people just think of it as something temporary. Especially since there are neighborhoods near the lake with stunning views. The scenery alone makes living here feel like some kind of trophy to the people who can afford it.”

 

Though the driver seemed eager to chat, his tone suggested he didn’t hold the residents of this area in high regard. His occasional clicks of the tongue or sharp tone betrayed a mixture of passive aggression or perhaps envy toward lives he could never touch.

 

“But this address… it’s on the estate of Chairman Jungwang. I’ve been around this area plenty, but I’ve never once been inside. If they’re letting you in, I guess you must be working for them.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Wow. That house is something people are dying to catch even a glimpse of…”

 

Heejung responded with a slightly awkward smile. The driver, meanwhile, focused on carefully driving through the mist, and their conversation soon fell silent.