“Not possible…?”
“Huh?”
The driver peered at me through the rearview mirror. “I’m sorry, sir—I didn’t catch that. What did you say just now?”
“Oh, nothing… Just talking to myself.”
After the baseball game ended and we headed home, Chairman Yoo Jin-gap sighed deeply, unable to speak the words in his heart.
‘It can’t be…’
It simply had to be impossible.
‘Come on—it makes no sense. Sia pregnant?’
She’s only twenty-four. I can still picture her in her cap and gown at graduation. She’s in the prime of youth—too young, too vibrant, to be expecting, especially by some ordinary office worker.
‘It’s just a stomach upset.’
He forced himself to believe it.
Vrrr–
His phone vibrated. It was Chief of Staff Choi.
“Hello, Chief Choi.”
–“Chairman, sorry to call at this hour. Are you on your way home?”
“I’m almost there. What’s the matter?”
–“I have urgent news I need to deliver. May I come by now?”
“Now?”
–“Yes.”
Chief Choi knew full well how badly the Phœnix’s last-place finish had unsettled the Chairman. And at nearly eleven p.m., a summons at this hour must be serious.
‘Something’s up.’
Perhaps the multi–billion–dollar project in Neom City, managed by HR Construction, had hit a snag—or a political scandal requiring leverage ahead of the next presidential race, or the discovery of secret foreign bank accounts by the tax authorities. Whatever it was, it was huge.
“All right. Come here now.”
–“Yes, sir. I’ll be there in thirty minutes.”
‘Everything’s off lately.’
He inhaled deeply and calmed himself, arriving home composed.
The master bedroom light was off—his wife, visiting her sister’s house, hadn’t returned yet. He entered quietly; the housekeepers didn’t notice him come in.
“Really?”
“Oh, yes.”
Only the clinking of china and their chattering reached him.
“Are you sure?”
“They told me just yesterday—Aunt Kang’s son had an elementary school sports day, so I covered for the youngest boss’s household, and heard it there.”
“They’ve changed her diet, she’s been gagging, and her cycle’s overdue… Could she really be pregnant?”
“Shh—keep it down!”
“It’s fine—no one else is home. The butler and housekeepers are all upstairs sleeping. It’s just us on the first floor.”
“Still… it’s so coincidental.”
“I know… but it must stay secret. If this leaks, we’re fired.”
“Of course—this is just among us, right?”
Thud–
A sudden noise behind them. They dropped their tea set and froze, turning to the wall.
“…Chairman?”
There he sat, legs giving out beneath him. He’d collapsed to the floor, cursing.
“That bastard… deserves worse than the five bodily tortures!”
Rumors spread fast—especially among housekeepers. Even knowing secrets, they could only speak them to each other, rationalizing it as “internal” talk.
Yet the gossip reached Chairman Yoo’s ears.
“I’ve tightened the housekeepers’ lips,” Chief Choi reported, seated on the edge of the bed. “None of them spoke outside.”
“Good…”
He sighed. “Sia pregnant… impossible.”
Though he suspected for the same reasons, he could not accept it. He had to deny it.
“So Chief Choi, what was the matter you needed to report?”
“Well… it’s difficult to say.”
His face more uncomfortable than when he’d reported his wife’s infidelity twenty years ago.
“Just speak plainly.”
Chief Choi knelt to meet his eye level. “Chairman, you must not be alarmed.”
“Why not? What is it?”
“I met with Director Kim today.”
“Doctor Kim of HR Hospital?”
“Yes.”
Dr. Kim Sang-deok, responsible for the Yoo family’s health.
“Three days ago, Ms. Yoo Sia had a health checkup. The results just came in.”
The Chairman’s heart pounded.
“What—cancer? A fatal illness?”
“No—it’s not that.”
Chief Choi inhaled, then said quietly, “She… is pregnant.”
Chairman Yoo stared blankly.
“What did you say?”
“I ran several tests to be sure—it’s confirmed.”
His pupils dilated. His limbs shook; even his breathing grew ragged. Doubt had become certainty.
Gurgle–.
He gasped, clutching his neck, collapsing back onto the bed.
An hour later, he finally roused himself. Not only Chief Choi but every male family member—sons, grandsons, uncles—had gathered at his summons.
“Father, are you all right?”
“Grandfather, please don’t get up.”
“I’m fine.”
He waved them off, struggling to sit on the bed’s edge.
Eighteen men’s eyes fixed on him.
“I hesitated to speak this aloud,” he began.
“A while,” someone prompted.
“Sia… is pregnant.”
A chilling silence fell. No one dared speak.
They were all furious. But most furious of all was Chairman Yoo.
“That Son Jin-seong… that worthless scoundrel got her pregnant.”
His wrath threatened to tear the roof off.
The others seethed too. Executive Director Yoo Jeong-min of HR Construction lost control.
“Chairman, in construction, I know some fixers—if you pay, they’ll tidy up messes cleanly. We can send that bastard off to China.”
“Yoo Jeong-min, no. He must be executed publicly—hire a killer, toss him off the roof!”
“That scumbag deserves to be dismembered!”
Chairman Yoo roared: “Quiet!”
In truth, he and Chief Choi had debated in private. Revealing Sia’s pregnancy to his sons and grandsons would serve no purpose. He’d intended to keep it secret.
‘They’ll find out soon enough.’
‘Right…?’
‘Yes. Sia will certainly carry to term.’
‘Then it’s only a matter of time…’
If so, he’d rather hunt down the culprit. He needed someone to direct his fury at.
“Sia warned: ‘Mess with me, and I’ll go for a premarital pregnancy.’”
“….”
“Who dared cross her?”
His sons and grandsons lowered their heads. None were blameless.
They’d all used their influence—some spied on Son Jin-seong, some plotted to exile him, some threatened him.
“Whoever provoked her, surrender now.”
“….”
The one who felt it most was Director Yoo Ho-min—he’d paid Son to break up with Sia.
He squeezed his eyes shut and raised his hand. Then…
One by one, every uncle, cousin, and even Sia’s father, President Yoo Jong-hwan, raised his hand.
“…?”
Not a single man abstained.
All eighteen had something to confess. They’d believed they were acting secretly—but summoned eighteen at a time, it was a collective inquisition.
“Bastards…” Chairman Yoo murmured. But he, too, was complicit—ordering the company-wide probe to find Sia’s boyfriend.
“From now on, I declare,” he said in a savage voice, “no one dare provoke Sia or that Son Jin-seong. If you do—and are caught—on the day I die, not a single won of inheritance will you receive.”
He meant it: if even a hair of their heads crossed her, they’d never set foot again in Korea.
Meanwhile, in a cramped one-room apartment…
I, Son Jin-seong, was in turmoil. ‘My child is growing inside her…’
The feeling was strange: excitement and wonder, but also fear and anxiety.
‘Can I raise a child well…?’
Yet it wasn’t for me to worry alone.
My girlfriend was only twenty-four—too young, an unplanned pregnancy threatening her future.
Still, I mustered courage.
“I—I’ll take responsibility,” I said, taking her hand.
“I can’t promise I’ll do everything right, but as a man, I will stand by you…”
“Marry me.”
“…Huh?”
Sia’s eyes locked on mine as she spoke directly.
“I love you, Assistant Manager Son. I want to spend my life with you. No—I love you.”
“….”
“I know we didn’t plan this pregnancy, but I think it’s our lucky charm—luck that will bind us together for life.”
“Luck…”
“So marry me and let’s be happy. The three of us… No.”
She placed my wrist on her belly.
“The three of us together.”
Though she spoke bravely, her arm trembled, betraying her nerves.
And because of that, I found myself falling completely for her.
I did not want to lose this wonderful, loving woman—my woman.
“Okay, Sia. Let’s get married.”