Chapter 4: Convincing Family

Shin-ae Choi tirelessly investigated Yongsu Kwon for the sake of Mihye’s daughters.  

From the contracts he signed to the works he wrote.  

Even the location of his current home and his social media accounts—she dug into everything.  

She investigated, investigated, and investigated again.  

While overseeing the funeral, she kept digging until she realized something.  

…He has this much wealth?  

It was as if all of Mihye’s luck had been transferred to Yongsu.  

No, that wasn’t it.  

Did Mihye’s wish… reach him?  

During their university days, Mihye talked about her brother.  

She said he wanted to become a writer.  

That she’d give all her luck to him if it meant he could keep pursuing his dreams without breaking.  

It felt like her wish had reached the heavens, but in exchange, a curse had been placed on Mihye.  

If only I’d known a little more…  

No, if Mihye had been a little less kind, wouldn’t she have asked her brother for help?  

“ ”  

Shin-ae looked at Yongsu with a nervous expression.  

He seemed to be staring blankly, but only one thought occupied his mind.  

Take responsibility…?  

Me, who abandoned my family?  

For my sister’s children?  

Can I do it?  

I looked at the children, gripped by fear.  

Kids whose ages and names I didn’t even know yet.  

Could I take responsibility for them?  

No… did I even have the right to?  

I needed to speak, but no sound came out.  

Beneath my expressionless face, countless thoughts rose and vanished repeatedly.  

I wanted to escape this place.  

My sister’s face flashed in my mind.  

I wanted to move my legs.  

Her smile appeared.  

I wanted to open my mouth.  

But… I couldn’t move at all.  

What did I even want to do?  

You idiot… the kids are scared.  

Say something, please, just say anything.  

My heart, my body, my mouth.  

Please, give me an answer.  

Clench…  

My fists tightened on my knees.  

Where had the courage I’d carried while living alone in Canada gone? I couldn’t move my mouth an inch.  

“Um…”  

Jiyu’s voice reached my ears.  

“Are we… gonna live with Uncle now? Jiyu likes that!”  

“Shh, shh! Be quiet, Jiyu!”  

The second child, who looked like an elementary schooler, quickly covered Jiyu’s mouth.  

It was hard to believe a child that age could act so mature in this situation.  

I’m full of regret.  

If only I’d known these kids earlier… what would’ve happened?  

Regret…  

Suddenly, I remembered the taxi driver’s words.  

“Don’t leave regrets in Korea.”  

I… couldn’t leave any more regrets.  

My choices had allowed me to rise above regret before, but not now.  

The regrets from my choices had borne fruit.  

I couldn’t leave any more.  

Grit!  

I clenched my teeth so hard it felt like they’d break.  

As I resolved not to leave regrets, I felt my lost courage returning.  

“I…”  

I slowly opened my mouth.  

In a small but clear voice the kids could understand.  

“I haven’t done anything for you until now.”  

I was speaking to the children.  

I couldn’t make excuses or lie.  

I just spoke honestly.  

“So now… I want to take responsibility for the ones my sister left behind. But I’ve already immigrated.”  

Calming the kids was important, but Shin-ae taught me that understanding the current reality was just as crucial.  

“Because of the work I’ve done… I can’t live in Korea. So…”  

My voice caught, but I took a quiet breath to steady myself.  

“I’d like you to come with me to Canada.”  

There was the option of giving them a choice.  

Or sending them money every month.  

But I didn’t want that.  

I’d already abandoned my family, and that choice kept filling me with regret.  

Now, I wanted to fix that regret.  

“ ”  

The children, hearing my sincere voice, looked at each other.  

“Pfft!”  

In the meantime, Jiyu broke free from her sister’s hand covering her mouth.  

“Canada! Where’s that?”  

“You have to take a plane to get there.”  

“A plane? So Jiyu gets to ride a plane? Jiyu wants to fly!”  

At Jiyu’s words, the eldest, who seemed to be the big sister, quickly covered her mouth again.  

“…Canada?”  

“Yeah.”  

“I’m not saying you have to decide now. And I’m not saying you have to trust me. I’ll respect your choice. But… I want to go to Canada with you.”  

The eldest and the second child seemed to know where Canada was.  

A place far, far away.  

A place that’s hard to return to Korea from once you go.  

That was Canada.  

“How long… do we have to decide?”  

“Three days at the latest would be good.”  

“Three days…?”  

“Yeah.”  

Honestly, I didn’t know if three days was long or short.  

But there was a reason I chose three days.  

The longer the decision takes, the more the heart wavers.  

I was drowning in regret right now, but I didn’t regret going to Canada.  

If I could go back, I’d talk to my sister more often, but I’d still go to Canada.  

It was the place where I could chase my dreams, and I had no intention of changing that.  

Making a quick decision kept my heart steady.  

“Three days is too…”  

As expected, the kids hesitated.  

Deciding to leave Korea, where they’d lived their whole lives, wasn’t easy.  

Still, they had to decide.  

The world wasn’t so kind.  

“What if… we say we won’t go?”  

“I’ll send money to your account. Enough for all three of you to graduate university.”  

“ ”  

The kids looked at each other briefly.  

It seemed they needed to discuss.  

“Let’s get some sleep now.”  

Seeing their expressions, Shin-ae spoke up.  

It was far too late, and her intention was to pause their thoughts and rest.  

“What about you, Yongsu-ssi?”  

“I’ll… stay here.”  

“I see. Alright.”  

I wanted to stay by my sister’s side for her final journey.  

Since I hadn’t done anything for her until now, I wanted to at least do this properly.  

“Come this way. I’ll show you where you can rest.”  

“Oh. Yes. Thank you.”  

As Yongsu and Shin-ae stepped away, the kids looked at each other.  

If Hye-yeon Kang, the eldest, were asked to recall her earliest memory, one scene would come to mind.  

Living in a small rooftop room, her mom and dad smiling happily despite their busy lives.  

Back then, Hye-yeon had asked them:  

“Don’t we have any other family?”  

At the time, her mom and dad just gave a bitter smile and patted her head.  

When she turned ten, she asked again.  

“Mom, do you have any siblings?”  

“Of course I do.”  

Hearing something she hadn’t been told as a younger child, Hye-yeon’s eyes sparkled as she looked at her mom.  

With a joyful expression, her mom spoke.  

“I have… a really, really talented and kind younger brother.”  

“Really?”  

“Yeah. We can’t meet now, but… someday I’ll introduce you to him. That day will definitely come.”  

“Okay! I’ll wait!”  

Since then, she hadn’t heard anything more about her uncle.  

All she knew was that her mom had a brother, and he was talented.  

“Zzz… zzz…”  

Leaving the sleeping Jiyu aside, Hye-yeon spoke with her younger sister, Yuri.  

“What are we going to do, Unnie?”  

“…I don’t know yet.”  

“A brother? Mom had a brother? Did you know about this, Unnie?”  

“I knew, but… I didn’t hear much. She didn’t even tell me his name.”  

“Sigh…”  

They couldn’t make a hasty decision.  

Even though they’d heard their mom had a brother, they hadn’t been told he was safe.  

The grief of their mother’s death hadn’t even faded, and thinking about immigration felt too cruel.  

But they had to decide.  

I’m the eldest…  

For the sake of her younger siblings, she, as the eldest, had to make the right choice.  

What was the right choice?  

Canada… is too far.  

They’d have to leave their friends and Shin-ae, who was like a second mother.  

They’d have to live with an uncle they didn’t know and adapt to an unfamiliar language.  

Staying in Korea isn’t bad either…  

He said he’d provide enough money.  

But could they survive on their own?  

No, more precisely, could they protect each other and live?  

“ ”  

“Unnie…? You’re not thinking of going, are you? Right?”  

When Hye-yeon stayed silent, Yuri grew anxious.  

Yuri was against going to Canada.  

They’d have to leave everything behind and had no confidence in adapting to a new environment.  

Trying something new was scary, and above all, she didn’t want to live with a grown man she’d just met.  

“Let’s go to Canada.”  

“Unnie!”  

Yuri shouted in shock at Hye-yeon’s words.  

But Hye-yeon was firm.  

“We can’t survive on our own. We need an adult’s help.”  

“He said he’d send money! We can live off that!”  

“And who’ll cook? Do the laundry? Wash the dishes? Clean? What about Jiyu? Do you think money alone is enough to raise her?”  

“That’s…”  

The biggest issue was Jiyu.  

They could manage household chores by taking turns, but Jiyu was different.  

They couldn’t ask Shin-ae, who had to work, to take care of her.  

Sending her to kindergarten was an option, but someone still needed to watch her constantly.  

“ ”  

“Are we going to rely on Shin-ae? Or go to an orphanage? We can’t keep living on our own without adults… We don’t have Mom or Dad anymore.”  

At her sister’s final words, Yuri couldn’t say anything.  

Their parents were gone.  

There was no one to protect them anymore, and now they had to protect each other.  

“…Let’s trust Mom.”  

Mom didn’t just say she had a talented brother.  

She said a talented and kind brother.  

So they decided to trust their mom.  

“Let’s sleep. Tomorrow… we have to send Mom off.”  

“…Yeah.”  

At her sister’s words, Yuri slowly nodded.