As True as a Dream

“Hey! Hae-Joo, come here. No, no, no. Stay there. You’re precious, you can’t ask me to come and go.” 

Hae-Joo, who had just gotten out of the car, turned around with an inward smile at the familiar voice.

 

It was Mr. Zhang, the manager of the automobile association.

 

Four days ago, when she told him that she was quitting her job, he had made her feel uncomfortable by saying that there was no point in being nice to her, that she would stab him in the back after she made some money.

 

But now he was overly flattering her.

 “You know, I don’t know how your precious body has done all this hard work until today. Are you tired from driving all day? Do you want me to rub your shoulders?” 

‘Is this man crazy?’

 

Hae-Joo tried to hide her embarrassment and put on a confused face.

 

Mr. Zhang, who had gotten her a job at the automobile association, was probably the only person in the whole city she didn’t have a good relationship with.

 

Of course, it wasn’t always like this.

 

Mr. Zhang is a married man in his early 30’s with three children, and when she first started working for him, he was very easy going and friendly.

 

But over time, he became more frivolous, flirting with her and asking her out to dinner or to the park when the weather was nice.

 

Maybe he thought it was funny because he had no ties to Gyeongseong and was a blood brother.

 

But Mr. Zhang was her boss, and he was also her senior, so she didn’t dare to do anything.

 

One day, he heard that Mr. Zhang’s wife was more terrifying than a ghost.

 

So when Mr. Zhang was with his wife, she happened to appear in front of him and mentioned his proposed weekend plans.

 

The next day, Mr. Zhang returned to work and found a blue bruise on his face that hadn’t been there before.

 

From that day on, he was always sarcastic and made fun of Hae-Joo, ignoring her as if he didn’t understand her.

 

But now, what was this bizarre attitude?

 “Hae-Joo, I heard that Mr. Ban Yi Ho of Song Yue Pavilion is your fiancé. He looks like he has eyes on his head. Are you quitting your job to get married?” 

She didn’t react to Mr. Zhang’s sarcasm for a moment.

 

She had been very quiet over the past few days, expecting the rumor that the owner of Song Yue had a fiancée to be loud.

 

She had come to the conclusion that Song Yue’s reputation in Gyeongseong was weaker than she thought.

 

The rumors finally started to spread.

 “Hey, Hae-Joo, is that article true? It was published in the tabloids today. Is that you?” “How do you know about Mr. Ban? Have you ever seen him unmasked?” “The article said they were family friends, but was your house really that big? Wasn’t it just a country house?” 

As Mr. Zhang rambled on, his fellow drivers who were resting in a nearby restroom came over as if they had been waiting for him.

 “Why work so hard when you have such a rich fiancé, Hae-Joo, you’ll have an easy life now.” “Congratulations, Hae-Joo, I knew you’d do well.” “You can’t pretend that we don’t know you just because you’re rich!” 

She could only laugh at the comments coming from all directions.

 

She thought she was quitting to find a Guishan Dao, but when the rumors spread, she ended up quitting to prepare for her wedding.

 “I didn’t know that her fiancé was Mr. Ban Yi Ho until recently.” “But didn’t you say that your father is your stepfather, not your biological father?” “Well… this marriage contract is between my father’s family and Mr. Ban’s family, and I’m the only child my father has, so even if I’m his adopted daughter, I’m… well, that’s how it happened.” “Hey, Hae-joo, you’re so lucky to be a foster daughter, where should we send our daughter Naemi to be a foster daughter? Hahaha!” 

Hae-Joo sweated for a while, satisfying the curiosity of her colleagues.

 

So what should have been a nice car show turned into an engagement announcement.

 

But that wasn’t the end of it.

 

In the afternoon, she walked the streets of Kwonbun and Fairyland delivering the jewelry she’d put off making because of her work with Yi Ho, causing the roof to shake from the excitement of the entertainers who saw her.

 

The entertainer Ying Yue, who had recently gotten close to her, was the most agitated, slapping her on the back and asking if she had been faking it all along.

 

The stinging hand wouldn’t have stopped if Hae-Joo hadn’t held out a red headband with flowers woven into the branches.

 “Oh my! It’s so pretty. Will you give it to me?” 

Seeing the headband, Ying Yue couldn’t take her eyes off the unusual style and laughed as she rubbed the back of Hae-Joo’s shoulder.

 “It’s to thank you for helping me with Guishan Dao the other day. Even though it didn’t work out, I still have to thank you properly.” “Oh, really… I didn’t do anything.” 

Ying Yue waved her hands in embarrassment, then put on her headband and looked at herself in the hand mirror.

 

Fortunately, she didn’t tease her with mean words like the other entertainers.

 

“You don’t have to take off your mask to know you must be beautiful. It must be night. What do you think, Hae-Joo? You’re not married yet, don’t you know?”

 

“There’s nothing you can’t say with a child, sister! How can I understand you with such a metaphor? Listen to me. A man is just a waste. If he tastes good, even if he’s got a bear’s face, his body will open wide. A man who makes you wet down there just thinking about him is a real man!”

 

“Don’t listen to your sisters, they’re just making fun of you!”

 

“Is there a girl here who doesn’t know how important a good rhyme is?”

 

Hae-Joo’s cheeks flushed as if they were stained with lotus paper as she remembered all the rude things the entertainers had said.

 

She couldn’t understand a word of what they said when she opened her body and got wet down there, but she knew that they were exaggerating on purpose to tease her.

 

***

 

Hae-Joo sighed as she saw Eun-sil in front of her house.

 

‘Is it already over?’

 

Surely Eun-sil hadn’t heard the rumors and came looking for her?

 “Sis, were you engaged? When? Why didn’t you tell me until now?” 

‘Or maybe not.’

 

She frowned at Eun-sil’s screams.

 “The girl Mr. Ban Yi Ho said he got engaged to is a taxi driver for Iori Motors and a girl named Yeon Hae-Joo, is it really you sister?” “Yes. That’s me…” 

Hae-Joo continued telling the story of her engagement to Yi Ho, which she had explained several times today.

 

When she finished, Eun-sil’s eyes sparkled and she said excitedly.

 “Sister, I once saw Mr. Ban from a distance, and although I couldn’t see his face because of his mask, he was very elegant and his whole body was full of elegance.” 

That’s right, that one leather is amazing.

 “You won’t find another like it in the whole country, not just in Gyeongseong.I’m happy with it. Very happy.” 

Hae-Joo agreed inside, but outside she just laughed with an embarrassed face.

 “But, sis, did you interact with him much?” “Huh?” “It’s good to have a lot of money, but you have to like him and be nice to him. Marriage is a big deal, and you don’t marry someone just because he’s already married in your family. What do you think, is he good to you?” 

Eun-sil’s next words suddenly made her feel a pang in her heart.

 

Every single person who congratulated her today said the same thing.

 

“I’m happy for you, don’t forget me when you become a rich man, and let’s be closer in the future…”

 

Only Eun-sil asked if Yi Ho was a good match for her.

 

Hae-Joo stared at Eun-sil’s serious and energetic face and then pulled her into a hug.

 “Ugh! Sis? What’s wrong? What’s wrong?” 

Hae-Joo buried her face in Eun-sil’s skinny shoulder and whimpered.

 “Hmm. You’re so nice to me. Don’t worry. He’s a good guy.” 

She felt like she was really going to get married soon.

 “Then you like him too, don’t you? Him?” “Huh?” 

Hae-Joo, who had been so touched by Eun-sil, was suddenly confused.

 ‘Does she like Yi Ho?’ 

When she thought of him, she remembered the way he rubbed medicine on the back of her hand, the way he smiled at her, the way he kissed her, and the way he said he would be her support.

 

A faint heat flared in her chest and her heartbeat became dizzy.

 “Sister?” 

Eun-sil’s voice snapped Hae-Joo out of her trance.

 “You didn’t have to tell me. Do you like him?” 

Eun-sil, who had been staring at her, smiled teasingly.

 

Since she couldn’t say no, she nodded.

 “Yes. I like him, so we’re… engaged.” 

As she continued, Hae-Joo suddenly felt a subtle sensation that she couldn’t explain, and she became confused.

 

‘Yes. I like him. Why wouldn’t I…?’

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