My Brother's Friend Wasn't a Guy - Chapter 4

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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4.

Jin Ae-ran had three sons, all born from her own body.
Though each was her own child, the youngest of the three brothers, Moon Kang-hyun, was uniquely headstrong.
The eldest son, Moon Seong-hyun, had inherited the group following his father’s sudden death from overwork and cerebral hemorrhage, and now served as chairman of Moon Seong Group; the second son, Moon Jeong-hyun, was president of Moon Seong Holdings, the largest affiliate within the Moon Seong organization.
Her two sons, who wielded considerable influence within Moon Seong Group and had established themselves firmly, were Jin Ae-ran’s pride.
The third son, Moon Kang-hyun, by contrast, showed no interest whatsoever in group affairs.

“How fortunate that I have two sons who move according to my wishes.”

His will was immovable as steel, yet his tongue flowed like silk, and it wasn’t the first time conversation with him had sent her blood pressure rising.

“What about you? You’re my son too, aren’t you?”
“Of course I’m your son. But I’m not a criminal, I’m not a delinquent, and I work diligently to support myself—surely you’re not angry about that?”

Jin Ae-ran recalled a past conversation with Kang-hyun and sighed.
No matter what, running away from the Founding Anniversary Event was inexcusable. The more she thought about it, the more her insides churned.
She regretted that befriending the wrong sort during his school days seemed to be the root of all this trouble.
She should have been firmer with him back then.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door, followed by Secretary Kim’s voice.
“Madam, your youngest son has arrived.”
“Show him in.”
Jin Ae-ran drew a deep breath and rose from her seat.
After learning he had fled yesterday’s event, she had summoned him to her office.
“You don’t seem very busy today?”
Kang-hyun entered the office with an expressionless face. The brazen look of someone utterly unaware of his wrongdoing made Jin Ae-ran’s chest lurch.
Why was he so maddeningly handsome? In the spring sunlight streaming through the window, his face gleamed like a sculpture.
It was undeniable that his face weakened her resolve every single time. Gazing at her most handsome youngest son, Jin Ae-ran steeled herself.
How long could an event possibly last? He couldn’t even stay for its duration. He had given her cause, and this time she would not let him off easy.
“Would I have called you if I had leisure time?”
“Then did you call me because you missed me? You saw me yesterday.”
He settled languidly onto the sofa as though it were his own home. At his ease, Jin Ae-ran lifted one eyebrow sharply.
“Why did you just leave yesterday without a word? I don’t call you in constantly for group business.”
“I disappeared midway—surely no one but you would notice?”
“What? Is that supposed to be an excuse?”
Jin Ae-ran raised her voice in exasperation, yet she could not deny what he said.
Though the architect Moon Kang-hyun was well-known to the public, very few knew that he was the scion of Moon Seong Group.
And yet, her wish that he appear at the event and remain until its end was purely her own desire.
It was her hope that he would involve himself in group affairs, not merely in architecture.
As her voice rose, Kang-hyun’s eyes dimmed slightly.
“Mother, you still don’t understand my nature? I told you I would have no part in group business, and once I decide something, I don’t go back on it.”
How could she not understand that ridiculous stubbornness? Jin Ae-ran fixed him with a hard stare.
At times like this, he felt less like a son and more like an enemy.
“Who on earth do you take after!”
“Naturally, Father and you. Or did you pick me up from somewhere? You of all people should know best.”
Jin Ae-ran could not strike a son nearly twice her size, so she could only glare at him.
“It was wrong of me to have let you do as you pleased back then.”
At his mother’s words, which escaped like a sigh, Kang-hyun’s eyes grew even darker.
It was not the first time hearing such a thing, so he understood perfectly well what she meant.
It was a reproach for those days when, instead of mingling with children from similar chaebol families, he had become inseparable from Seo Yi-hwan and indulged in what she called reckless behavior.
Even calling it reckless behavior was laughable.
From Jin Ae-ran’s perspective it was recklessness, but from Kang-hyun’s, it had been entirely ordinary and wholesome student life.
Rather than learning to flaunt wealth and lord rank over others from childhood, spending days playing basketball on an athletic field and buying tteokbokki at a cheap snack bar with dirty hands—this was merely what a chaebol matriarch’s eyes perceived as recklessness.
“Because of your regret, I went five years without contact. And thanks to that, I saw my friend’s face only in a memorial photograph—is that still not enough?”
At Kang-hyun’s words, Jin Ae-ran flinched.
She knew all too well how cold and frightening her usually cheerful, glib son became when his smile vanished.
“Who wants to think such things? But when I see you, I can’t help it. What am I supposed to do?”
All trace of warmth gone, Kang-hyun rose from his seat.
“If you keep dwelling on such thoughts, there’s always the option of simply not looking. Wouldn’t it be better to reconsider before resorting to that?”
“You’re seriously calling that advice?”
Without so much as a flicker of reaction to Jin Ae-ran’s trembling form, Moon Kang-hyun excused himself.
“Rather than expecting anything from me, it would be faster to change your mother’s mind. I’ll be going now.”
Moon Kang-hyun left the office without a backward glance.
He’d always been like this, but today it felt as though something inside her was collapsing.
Where did such a person come from? Jin Ae-ran let out a sigh she’d repeated countless times before, pressing her throbbing temples with trembling fingers.

***

After accepting Moon Kang-hyun’s proposal, Lee Jin suspended her teaching bookings.
Since she only continued classes that had been reserved beforehand, she found herself with considerably more free time than usual.
The sunlight streaming through the large glass window of the Workshop was dazzling, so Lee Jin made her way to the window to close the blinds.
Beyond the glass, the rows of street trees and scattered spring blossoms looked fresh and inviting.
She stood gazing absently at the outside view for a while before coming to her senses and reaching for the blinds, when a car pulled up in front of the Workshop.
Wondering if it might be a customer, she looked more closely and recognized the face.
“Cha Ji-hun?”
A senior from university whom she’d been close to had visited without notice. Lee Jin hurried toward the entrance.
A clear doorbell chimed as Cha Ji-hun stepped inside.
“Senior, what brings you here without a word?”
Lee Jin greeted him with wide eyes.
“It’s been a while. How have you been?”
“Thanks to you.”
He studied her face carefully as he entered, as if checking whether any shadow still lingered there.
“The Workshop looks even nicer than when I last visited.”
After exchanging pleasantries, the two settled at the Workshop’s worktable facing each other, sipping coffee and making conversation.
“So you became a professor.”
Lee Jin laughed as if she couldn’t quite believe it, prompting Cha Ji-hun to furrow his brow.
“Is it really that unsuitable?”
“Well, the club members all had the same reaction as me, didn’t they?”
Her guess proved right—Cha Ji-hun’s frown deepened. Seeing this, Lee Jin let out a quiet laugh.
“I was worried, but I’m glad you seem so cheerful.”
Understanding that his words were referring to Seo Yi-hwan’s death, Lee Jin hesitated for a moment. A bittersweet smile crossed her lips.
“Everyone’s been so kind. The living have to keep living, after all.”
Those who had done club activities with her had at least paid their respects at the funeral.
Cha Ji-hun had been there too. Wanting to keep the mood from darkening, Lee Jin asked hastily.
“But what’s the real reason for the visit? Surely you didn’t come all this way just to brag about becoming a professor.”
“Why not? Can’t I come to brag?”
Cha Ji-hun grumbled deliberately as he produced a document envelope.
“What’s this?”
Seeing Lee Jin’s puzzled expression, Cha Ji-hun explained.
“We’re hiring adjunct professors this semester, and you came to mind. Why don’t you apply? With your credentials, I think you’d have a solid chance. And I’d like to help if I can.”
“An adjunct professor?”
“I mean, to students it’s no different from being a professor. If you get good evaluations, there’s a real possibility of being hired as a full professor.”
Watching him explain earnestly, Lee Jin spoke apologetically.
“Senior, I’m grateful for the offer, but I don’t think I can. I’ve been commissioned for a project this term.”
“What? What kind of project?”
“Well…”
Lee Jin was about to explain when the doorbell chimed.
“Oh, you have a customer. Should I come back later?”
Moon Kang-hyun, stepping into the entrance, asked with a slightly surprised expression.
“No, come in. It’s not a customer—it’s a senior from university.”
“Ah, I see.”
He walked over to the table with heavy footfalls. With each step he took, his considerable height and striking presence made the Workshop feel cramped.
Cha Ji-hun, observing the man who radiated a predator’s intensity, found himself instinctively on guard.
Lee Jin, oblivious to the tension that passed between the two men, made introductions from where she stood between them.
“Senior, this is my brother’s friend, Moon Kang-hyun.”
“Kang-hyun, this is my university senior, Cha Ji-hun.”
Both men paused at the terms of address she had used.
Brother and senior. Somehow, it felt as though the victory had already been decided by those words alone.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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