Real Man

Yoo-hyun was also surprised.

“What are you doing here, mother?”

“I came to fill up the fridge with side dishes for Hyunsoo.”

As soon as his mother answered, Kim Hyunsoo, who had belatedly arrived and grasped the situation, looked embarrassed.

“Mother, you don’t have to do that anymore.”

“What’s the big deal? I’m just giving my son some side dishes. And you fixed my car for free last time.”

As his mother spoke casually, a man sitting on the bench said.

“President Kim, you’re lucky to have your mother’s cooking. If not, the customers would have left with their mouths open.”

“…”

His mother gave the man a friendly word along with some jerky.

“I’ll put a lot of them in the car center, so feel free to eat them anytime. Here, one more for you, president.”

“Wow, I’ll have to come even if my car doesn’t break down.”

“Come and visit. We have plenty of parking space at our side dish store.”

“Where is your side dish store?”

“Here’s the address on the back. I’ll give you a special service when you come.”

Upon closer inspection, his mother’s way of dealing with people was extraordinary.

She still had the knack of a side dish store owner.

While Yoo-hyun was admiring her, Kim Hyunsoo bowed his head to his mother.

“Mother, thank you.”

“Thank you for what? I was just chatting with some people because I missed you. It’s good for our store to give out samples like this.”

She said it nonchalantly, but it couldn’t have been easy to entertain the customers while waiting for Kim Hyunsoo, who might not come back anytime soon.

Kim Hyunsoo sincerely expressed his gratitude.

“I’ll fix your car right away if anything goes wrong with it.”

“I know, so go back to work. People are waiting a lot.”

“Yes. I’ll finish the repair and come back soon.”

Kim Hyunsoo bowed his head again and approached the customers.

Yoo-hyun gave his mother a thumbs up.

“Mother, you’re so cool.”

“Of course, it’s natural. Do you want some jerky too?”

As Yoo-hyun was about to take the jerky, Han Jaehui, who had appeared out of nowhere, reached out his hand.

“Mom, me too.”

“Huh? Jaehui, this is not a diet food, what should I do?”

His mother, who had turned pale, soon made a troubled expression, and Han Jaehui was outraged.

“What? Do I have to eat only diet food?”

“No, not necessarily. But wouldn’t it be better to eat chicken breast?”

“Mom.”

As Han Jaehui snapped, his mother smiled playfully.

Yoo-hyun felt a warm feeling as he watched his mother, who was smiling brightly, and Kim Hyunsoo, who was working hard to serve the customers.

When did this connection start to form behind him?

While Yoo-hyun was running forward, behind him were precious people who were intertwined and exuded a strong human scent.

Yoo-hyun’s surprise was not over yet.

He returned home and his eyes widened at the sight of the boxes piled up on one side of the floor.

“Mother, what are all these?”

“These are gifts to celebrate the expansion of our store. I took care of it while we closed the store for a while.”

“You should have rested on your rare day off.”

“Hey, I’m taking it easy, what. And these are for our regular customers, so it’s not hard at all.”

Yoo-hyun chuckled at his mother’s gesture of waving her hand and sat down on the floor.

Then he opened a box that had not yet been wrapped with a gift ribbon.

Swoosh.

Inside the box with the logo of the side dish store, there were various colors and shapes of traditional Korean sweets.

It was obvious that a lot of effort had gone into the composition, and an exclamation came out of Yoo-hyun’s mouth.

“Wow, this is a lot of content. It must have cost a lot, right?”

“I’ve received so much, I have to do this much.”

“Still. You don’t have to give anything to anyone who doesn’t complain.”

“I got help and it went well. It’s only right to pay back unless you have a guilty conscience.”

His mother’s warm personality was evident in her firm words.

Yoo-hyun felt like he knew why his mother had taken care of Kim Hyunsoo as well.

“You’re one step ahead of me, mother. I learn a lot from you.”

“Oh, I’m glad to hear my son’s compliment. Oh, Yoo-hyun.”

His mother, who had a flush on her face, called Yoo-hyun as if she had remembered something.

Then she took a paper from the table and handed it to Yoo-hyun.

Swoosh.

“Aren’t some of these people from Ulsan your company people? Take a look.”

“Just a moment.”

Yoo-hyun took the paper and looked at the names of the people who were grouped by Ulsan address.

-Ko Seongcheol, Kim Hogul, Maeng Gi-yong, Lee Jin-mok, Jeong Areum, Jeong In-wook…

There were quite a few people from the Ulsan factory who had a connection with Yoo-hyun.

Were they all still using his mother’s side dish store?

Before Yoo-hyun could even be surprised, his mother pointed to one name.

“Is this Jeong Areum definitely your company person?”

“Yes. She is. Why?”

“She sent me a long letter last time about what we could improve on our side dishes. She even made a promotional material and sent it to me, and I used it very usefully.”

“Really?”

He had no idea.

Yoo-hyun nodded his head and added a word.

“She also came up with the idea of diet side dishes.”

“Really? No wonder. She’s really a benefactor. I should take care of her more…”

“She’s getting married next month. I’ll take good care of her then.”

“No. I can’t just sit still.”

His mother was about to roll up her sleeves.

It was then.

Han Jaehui, who had been eating the crumbs of the sweets on the plate, grumbled.

“Mom, don’t I get anything?”

“Ugh. You’ll gain weight if you eat that. Just wait a minute.”

As his mother went to the kitchen, Yoo-hyun flipped through the paper.

There were also familiar names on the other regions’ pages.

-Kim Seongdeuk, Kim Hyun-min, Lee Ae-rin, Choi Min-hee…

It wasn’t just the company people.

-Kim Tae-soo, Number One Gym, Park Young-hoon, Oh Jeongwook, Lee Jang-woo…

The gym acquaintances were also using his mother’s side dishes regularly.

No matter how good the side dishes were, it was not easy to stay as regulars for over two years.

Even though he was oblivious to his surroundings, everyone was taking care of Yoo-hyun. That fact tickled his heart.

But his gratitude was short-lived.

Crunch.

Han Jae Hee, who was munching on a new rice cake, started to criticize the gift.

“But the box design is not very good.”

“Right? I changed to a different company this time, but it seems too bland.”

“Mom, you should have paid more attention to that.”

“Jae Hee, you should at least appreciate what you got.”

Yoo-hyun, who was listening, sighed in frustration. Han Jae Hee snapped back.

“Who said I didn’t appreciate it? Mom, who designed the logo on the box?”

“You did, Jae Hee.”

“Then who changed the signboard this time?”

“You did that too, Jae Hee.”

“…”

Yoo-hyun, who had nothing to say, was challenged by Han Jae Hee.

“Did you ever care about this stuff, brother?”

“Hey, Jae Hee, Yoo-hyun was busy, you know.”

“Mom, I was busy too. Do you think I had nothing to do but manage the online shopping mall for you?”

This time, it was clear that his sister had done a lot.

Yoo-hyun bowed his head without a word.

“I admit it. Jae Hee, you worked hard.”

“Right? I’m the best, right?”

Han Jae Hee was finally proud of herself.

Their mother came closer to Yoo-hyun and whispered, but her voice was too loud.

“Yoo-hyun, you don’t need anything else. The car is the best.”

“Mom.”

“Jae Hee, it’s true. People will be so jealous when you drive this car.”

Their mother spoke her honest feelings, and Han Jae Hee grabbed the bag that was on the floor.

“Then, give me back everything I gave you.”

“That’s not fair. Don’t do that…”

Yoo-hyun looked at the paper behind the bickering mother and daughter.

“…”

His eyes lingered on the place where the names of his precious friends were listed.

That evening, Yoo-hyun told his father about what had happened during the day.

The place was the factory lounge, and there was a bottle of liquor on the table that Yoo-hyun had brought.

“Mom today…”

“Your mom has become more generous. She bought a car and all.”

His father, who was listening, seemed jealous and subtly belittled his mother’s achievement.

“A car? Come on, mom has always been generous.”

“She’s been like that since she got a big car. She wasn’t like that before.”

“She wouldn’t have so many regulars if she wasn’t. She takes good care of them behind the scenes.”

Yoo-hyun kept defending his mother, and his father emptied his glass with a grumble.

“Why do you care so much about that?”

Glug glug.

Yoo-hyun filled his father’s empty glass and asked casually.

“Don’t you care too, dad?”

“What?”

“You never gave me a diary, but you keep sending them to Manager Kim Young-gil, right?”

His father, who was embarrassed, rolled his eyes and pointed to a box in the corner.

“Um… I still have some left, do you want one?”

“Ha ha. Yes. Please.”

Yoo-hyun shrugged his shoulders, and his father made an excuse.

“But I’m different from your mom.”

“How so?”

“I got lucky without giving anything. I have to pay back unless I have no conscience.”

Do couples resemble each other?

Yoo-hyun held back his laughter as he saw his father say the same thing as his mother.

“Yes. You’re right, dad.”

“Why do you look weird?”

“I’m just happy that I can have a drink with you.”

Yoo-hyun offered his glass, and his father said with a troubled expression.

“If your mom finds out that I called you out for a drink with the excuse of working late, she’ll kill me.”

“Hey, your face is already red. It’s over.”

“Then we just have to sneak in quietly without anyone noticing.”

His father smiled slyly and emptied his glass.

After a heartfelt conversation with the passing drinks, his father suddenly remembered what Yoo-hyun had said a while ago and asked.

“How’s your new department?”

“I quit there.”

“Really? You didn’t get along well?”

“Yes. So I’m following your advice and quitting.”

When Yoo-hyun answered confidently, his father smiled.

“You did well. You have to know when to quit if it’s not your path. How’s the new place?”

“It’s incomparable to the previous one. It’s a great place.”

“That’s why you look much happier.”

“Yes. This time, it’s something I really want to do.”

He had no choice but to go to the group strategy room, which he didn’t want, to block Shin Kyung-soo.

He tried to control his mind, but it was never pleasant to be dragged around.

But this time was different.

He was moved by a big goal, not a narrow one, to change the whole Han Group.

And he was not alone.

Yoo-hyun thought of the people who were at the center of the change and added a word.

“And I’ll have good colleagues with me. It’s different from before.”

“Good colleagues?”

“People who looked after me even when I couldn’t pay attention. People who give me strength when we’re together.”

At Yoo-hyun’s sincere answer, his father, who had been smiling warmly, opened his mouth.

He looked so serious that Yoo-hyun straightened his posture.

“Yoo-hyun, do you remember what I said to you here before?”

“What did you say?”

“I said I wouldn’t ask for your help.”

Suddenly, a scene flashed in Yoo-hyun’s mind.

-Leave the company matters to me. It’s not that hard for me yet.

In a much smaller lounge than now, his father had asked him with a worried look.

Yoo-hyun tilted his head at the unexpected remark.

“Why do you bring that up?”

“I was also proud back then, but it wasn’t true. I realized later that I got a lot of help from you.”

“What did I do?”

“No. It was possible because you were there. Your mother’s side dish shop is the same.”

“No. I…”

Yoo-hyun was about to say no again when…