FI - 11

After decades in politics, one witnesses and experiences many unimaginable things. Most things don’t even make you blink an eye. As he listened to the man’s report, Choi Beom shook his head. The man, who had been investigating Madam Yoon’s daughter, said he couldn’t find anything. That was strange. Why would there be no information on the daughter of a mere bar madam?

“Wait, what did you say?”

Choi Beom cut the man off.

“Executive Director Ki is living with a woman...”

“Living together?”

It was a well-known fact that Chairman Ki held all of his weaknesses in his hands. Since their relationship was based on mutual benefit, it didn’t matter. The formula was simple: Chairman Ki would get him into the presidency, and in return, Chairman Ki would reap the benefits. Still, keeping tabs on Chairman Ki’s side was a basic necessity in a relationship like theirs.

“Yes, they are living together.”

The man handed him a photo. The pictures, taken from a distance, didn’t show the faces clearly, but it was obvious the two were a couple. In every picture, the woman was practically in Executive Director Ki’s arms.

“Her identity? Whose daughter is she?”

Choi Beom asked while looking at a few more photos.

“That’s... we haven’t been able to figure it out.”

Choi Beom raised his head. ‘That’s not figured out, and this isn’t figured out either. Why are there so many things we can’t figure out?’ Choi Beom’s face was scrunched up in frustration. Ki Shin-je wouldn’t meet just any woman.

“Why?”

“She’s not from a well-known family, and the matter is being kept so secret that even Executive Director Ki’s close associates don’t know much about her.”

He rubbed his tired eyes with his palms and sighed. There were too many strange things happening. His gut was telling him that something unusual was going on.

“What’s Chairman Ki’s reaction?”

“There have been no unusual movements.”

“And no one knows where Madam Yoon’s daughter is?”

“No. Everyone who would know has disappeared.”

‘That daughter is no ordinary child.’ He knew that Madam Yoon had been involved with politicians, businessmen, and even famous entertainers. ‘Whose bloodline is she from? Why does this keep intriguing me?’ ‘Are all these strange events just a coincidence?’ Choi Beom tilted his head back and leaned against the back of the sofa.

________________________________________

Saya was lying next to Ki Shin-je, who was talking on the phone. She picked cherries one by one from a dish in front of her and watched a drama on the tablet he had given her. Saya was completely engrossed in dramas these days. In addition to dramas, she would sometimes watch movies with Ki Shin-je, and she had grown to love movies because she enjoyed that time so much. He was so smart and knew everything, and he would explain anything Saya asked about, which was also something she loved. There were so many things she loved that sometimes it was a little scary. She could barely remember how she lived when he wasn’t there.

The past she wanted to forget and erase was being painted over with Ki Shin-je. Saya’s world was filled only with Ki Shin-je.

‘Director!’

‘I’ve told you I like you, Secretary Kim.’

‘You and I are not right for each other. You know that, Director, so why do you keep doing this?’

Saya’s expression grew serious as she listened to the dialogue from the tablet. Secretary Kim’s face, as she said she didn’t want him, looked so pained. She likes him too, Saya muttered to herself. Ki Shin-je, who was still on the phone, smiled as he ruffled Saya’s hair.

‘I only need you, Secretary Kim.’

‘I can’t be with only you, Director.’

‘Secretary Kim!’

The director grabbed Secretary Kim’s wrist and hugged her by force. Secretary Kim struggled, then gave in and cried in his arms. An advertisement came on, and Saya’s face fell. A cherry was pushed into her mouth, which was pouting. Saya opened her mouth in a daze and looked over to see Ki Shin-je, who had finished his call, staring at her.

“Do you like that director?”

He pointed at the tablet with his chin. Saya chewed the cherry and shook her head. The sweet, rich fruit, not sour at all, filled her mouth.

“Why are you so obsessed with that drama?”

“Secretary Kim is strange.”

“Mmm, Secretary Kim is strange?”

‘She’s going to drive me crazy.’ When she gets into something, she gets so excited and focuses on it. Her lips, which were chewing the cherry, were so luscious he felt like he was going to die. He wanted to devour her like she was eating that cherry.

“I don’t know why she’s acting like that when she likes him. Secretary Kim definitely likes the director.”

Without knowing what Ki Shin-je was thinking, she naturally spat the cherry pit into the palm of his outstretched hand.

‘Yesterday, she was amazed while watching a crime investigation show and then shivered in fear. Today, it’s a romantic comedy? How many dramas is she watching?’ She was the only one who didn’t know that these types of dramas all had happy endings.

“She likes him?”

“Yes.”

Saya looked straight at him. As if to say, ‘Can’t you see it with your own eyes? You should look, too,’ Ki Shin-je pulled her lips into his. The sweet scent and taste of cherries were intoxicating. Suppressing his desire to chew on them, he sucked on them hard a few times until they were plump.

“I don’t want to leave.”

“...”

Saya touched her swollen lips with her hand.

“Saya.”

“Yes.”

“Try to act cute. Tell me not to leave.”

Ki Shin-je pulled Saya into his arms. Her body, which came into his arms without any resistance, had put on some weight since the first time he held her.

“...Executive Director.”

“Hmm?”

“Do you think Secretary Kim and the director will end up together?”

“What?”

He let out a hollow laugh in disbelief. Ki Shin-je stroked Saya’s hair as she looked at him silently. There was no place on her body that wasn’t soft.

“Because you know everything.”

“This executive director right now wants to do something else.”

Saya, glancing at Ki Shin-je, squirmed in his arms to create some distance. He was always biting and sucking on her whenever he got a chance, so her body was never without marks.

“You have to... leave...”

“Hah, I told you to act cute, and now you’re pushing me away?”

‘She has nowhere to run, and yet she still squirms like this. It’s enough to drive a man crazy.’

“They’re broadcasting two episodes of this drama in a row today.”

“The drama is more important than me? Is the executive director losing out to the director in the drama?”

His eyes curved into a beautiful arch, as if he was so dumbfounded he could die. Saya folded her eyes awkwardly and chuckled softly.

“When you come back...”

“When I come back...”

“...You can do what you want, Executive Director.”

Saya was embarrassed by what she had said and bumped her forehead against Ki Shin-je’s chest.

‘Hah, damn it.’ ‘She’s a fox, bewitching people.’ Ki Shin-je grabbed Saya’s cheeks and bit her plump, pouting lips tightly.

________________________________________

Im Woo-jin cast a sideways glance at his superior, who had been in a good mood lately, and let out a sigh of relief. Thanks to him, the secretary’s office had been experiencing spring-like days instead of being on a sheet of ice.

“The photos have been delivered to Assemblyman Choi, Executive Director.”

Park Seok-hyun and Im Woo-jin sat on Ki Shin-je’s left and right, respectively. The smell of the cigarette Ki Shin-je was smoking filled the conference room with its wooden blinds drawn.

“Just leak them out little by little.”

Ki Shin-je had intended for the photos to be delivered. The two quick-witted men, not knowing Ki Shin-je’s intentions, exchanged glances. ‘Shouldn’t we be protecting Saya so she doesn’t become a target?’ ‘Team Leader Park, you ask.’ ‘Director Im, you ask.’ Their eyes met and they had a silent conversation.

“Excuse me, Executive Director. Shouldn’t Assemblyman Choi not know?”

Im Woo-jin, who was more curious, opened his mouth. Park Seok-hyun covered his mouth to hide his rising smirk. Im Woo-jin glared at Park Seok-hyun.

“To properly get a hold of that weakness.”

“...”

“Because I want to keep her by my side forever.”

Ki Shin-je took a deep drag on his cigarette and exhaled the smoke into the air. ‘I need to turn that ridiculously unlucky princess into a sparkling princess.’ He was raised to believe that you take what you want. The rock he picked up was a diamond in the rough.

________________________________________

The man she called a scoundrel would not let her go when he was at home. Saya had become so used to it that she felt empty when he wasn’t there. What would have happened if she hadn’t followed him? What if he hadn’t saved her? Saya took in the scenery outside the sedan’s window.

‘But Executive Director, you said you would use me. Are you not using me?’

Saya asked this question one day while living a comfortable life as if she had always lived this way.

‘I am.’

‘...’

Seeing Saya staring blankly at him, the man put a piece of cut melon in her mouth.

‘Your job is to stay by my side obediently.’

Saya recalled the conversation she had with the man and neatly straightened the skirt on her lap. They were in the middle of spring. She had always been cold, but these days, she was warm and hot. The sedan entered the Jeya Hotel, driving along the road lined with cherry trees that were now in full bloom. The blue sky looked beautiful through the white cherry blossoms.

The sight was so beautiful that it made her heart swell, and Saya smiled faintly. At the end of the road, the Jeya Hotel appeared. As the sedan slowed down, Saya got ready to get out.

Choi Beom, who was having a meeting at the traditional Korean restaurant ‘Jedo’ in the Jeya Hotel, came out to make a phone call and saw Ki Shin-je. An innocent-looking woman was with him. The woman was beautiful enough to make anyone turn their heads, and the two looked absolutely perfect together. ‘How old is Executive Director Ki? Wasn’t he thirty?’ The woman was young enough to be a high school student.

“Assemblyman Choi, what brings you here?”

Ki Shin-je was the first to acknowledge him. The aide behind Assemblyman Choi bowed and greeted Ki Shin-je. The woman’s fearful eyes gathered themselves, and she discreetly grabbed the hem of Ki Shin-je’s suit. As if sensing this, Ki Shin-je pulled the woman closer to him.

“I have a meeting here. It seems you’re on a date, Executive Director Ki.”

Choi Beom found himself staring at the woman next to him. Her face kept drawing his attention.

“Saya, say hello. This is Assemblyman Choi Beom.”

“Hello.”

The woman called Saya said hello in a small but clear voice. He had never seen her before, but somehow, she didn’t feel like a stranger.

“She’s very shy. Please enjoy your meal, Assemblyman.”

“Thank you. See you again.”

Choi Beom watched the two as they walked towards the opposite room. They were definitely in a romantic relationship. But the woman’s face kept reminding him of something. Choi Beom kept wondering what this strange, uneasy feeling was.

“Assemblyman? We should go back inside.”

His aide looked at him with concern and gestured towards the room. Choi Beom looked at the door, which was now closed, and slowly turned around.

“...”

Choi Beom quickly turned back around and looked at the closed door with wide eyes. He had realized what the strange and uneasy feeling was.

It was Madam Yoon. The woman resembled Madam Yoon. Choi Beom clenched his trembling hands into a fist.