SACCHARIN
CHAPTER 3

 

01. On the Way to the Airport

The Day Before

I knew this would happen. Dad had clearly forgotten about today’s plans.

A quick glance at my left wrist confirmed it—it was well past our agreed time. Picking up my phone from the table, I stared at the screen in frustration.

One hour. It had already been an hour.

I had done my part by waiting this long. Still, I figured I should at least send a message to let him know I was leaving, just in case. Otherwise, Dad might show up later only to find I wasn’t there.

Honestly, I was angry. It hurt that Dad had forgotten my birthday. I had booked a table at a hotel restaurant in advance, thinking we could finally spend some quality time together while celebrating, and yet here I was—waiting again for someone who didn’t show.

After another ten minutes of debating, I made a decision. This time, I was really going to let him know how I felt.

[Dad, how many times has this happened now? I’m so disappointed in you. It’s my birthday—how could you be so…]

I stopped typing, my fingers hovering over the screen. Just a few more taps would’ve completed the message, but I froze. Because at that moment, I finally got a reply from Dad—his first message all day.

[Wan-yi, Dad is so, so sorry. Something urgent came up at work, and I just can’t make it today.]

This was always how it went with Dad. His work was the only thing that ever mattered—my time never even crossed his mind.

[Dad, don’t you think this is too much?]

[Something really important came up. I totally forgot. I’ll buy you anything you want next time, so just head home for today, okay?]

The idea that Dad thought he could smooth this over by throwing expensive gifts or luxury items my way was infuriating. Sure, when I was younger, I thought it might even be to my advantage, but life isn’t all about material things, is it?

I knew Dad was often busy, sometimes so much so that he couldn’t come home for days. And I understood that sometimes life gets in the way, and promises can’t always be kept.

But why was it that he was always busy on special days? On my birthday, Mom’s death anniversary, graduation, entrance ceremonies—occasions that mattered.

[Got it. I’ll head to bed early. Just come in quietly.]

Though my face was still burning with frustration, I gave in once again. After all, I couldn’t bring myself to lash out more harshly. I was living comfortably thanks to Dad’s hard work, and I couldn’t deny that.

[You’re the best, Wan-yi. You know Dad loves you so much, right?]

He must really have something urgent keeping him away. I tried to console myself, imagining that Dad probably felt guilty about not being able to spend my birthday with me. So, I let it go.

I sent a simple reply—[I know.]—and with that, my day was over.

The iced Americano I had ordered to pass the time had long since melted, the ice reducing it to a watery, tasteless mess. Feeling awkward sitting there alone, I decided it was time to leave.

I’d just go home, crack open a cold beer, and sleep it off.

“Let me take care of that for you.”

“Yes, here. Thank you.”

As I paid for my coffee and left, the evening felt like just another disappointing chapter in my life.

After settling the bill, I headed to the parking lot and, instead of going straight to the driver’s seat, I opened the trunk first. I pulled out a pair of sneakers I always kept in the car for comfortable driving. Since it was my birthday and I had dinner plans at a hotel restaurant, I had worn heels for the first time in a while, but they were killing my feet.

After switching into my sneakers, I closed the trunk and walked to the driver’s seat. Tossing my bag haphazardly onto the passenger seat, I pulled out my phone and placed it beside me.

Starting the car with practiced ease, I turned the wheel as a conversation I’d had with Dad a few weeks ago came to mind.

“Wan-yi, the chairman hasn’t been feeling well lately.”

“Really? What’s wrong with him?”

“They say it’s cancer. It was caught late, so it doesn’t seem like he has much time left.”

It seemed likely that Dad’s recent busyness was related to the chairman’s condition. Still, the timing felt strange—especially because, right after sharing the news about the chairman’s illness, Dad had brought up something completely unexpected.

“So just think of it as a blind date and have a meal together.”

“…No.”

Lately, Dad had been unusually persistent about arranging meetings between me and potential partners. It was starting to get on my nerves.

Not that I was uninterested in relationships or men—I was twenty-eight, after all. Looking back, plenty of people had expressed interest in me during college and graduate school.

But every time I made plans with someone I genuinely liked, something would go wrong. Just like today.

They wouldn’t show up, suddenly stop responding, or outright avoid me. At times, it made me wonder if there was something wrong with me.

As this pattern repeated, I grew busier with my studies, from undergrad to my master’s program. And though I tried not to let it bother me, the sting of those unintended rejections had left its mark.

So, I naturally closed off my heart and lost interest in that kind of thing. My mindset became something like this: If I meet someone along the way, then maybe I’ll date and get married. But if I stay single, I can still live a fun and fulfilling life on my own.

That’s why I immediately rejected Dad’s suggestion to meet someone. I wasn’t desperate enough to force myself to meet a man, nor did I have the time or emotional bandwidth for it because of my studies.

“Don’t just say no outright. Meet him once. If he doesn’t seem like a bad person, maybe go on a few dates…”

“I’m too busy working on my thesis to have time for dating, Dad. Let’s pretend I didn’t hear this.”

Dad had never brought up dating, marriage, or men before, which made this all the more strange. It made me wonder if something was going on.

Was the chairman’s illness causing Dad’s position in the company to waver? Maybe he was looking for some kind of solution, a way to secure stability.

“It’s a good opportunity, Wan-yi. The person’s nice, too.”

“I get what you’re saying, but why should I meet a man just because you think it’s a good idea?”

“If you don’t have any plans of your own, why not at least consider what I’m saying?”

I let out a long sigh as I stopped at a red light. Arranged marriages or anything of the sort had always seemed like something that didn’t concern me. Our family and Dad weren’t in that league, after all.

But there was another reason for the discomfort gnawing at me as I kept refusing Dad’s requests.

It was because Dad wasn’t just an ordinary office worker.

Pyeonjae Trading Executive Director, Seo Kyoyong.

Dad had climbed the ranks from an entry-level employee to an executive, but his company always felt shrouded in mystery. Officially, Pyeonjae Trading was known as a solid mid-sized company with strong fundamentals. But still… something about it seemed off, as if there were things hidden beneath the surface.

[Dad! What is all this blood?]

Dad’s flustered expression, Mom’s panicked voice, his shoes caked in dirt, and the metallic, unpleasant smell that filled the house.

No. Stop. That was just a dream. It was just a dream.

Even though I tried to forget, fragments of those memories flashed in my mind, making me shake my head quickly. I had never tried to dig deeper into Dad’s secrets—not back then, and not now.

My dad was just an ordinary company employee. Sure, he had been promoted to an executive role as he got older, but he was still a normal man, no different from any other middle-aged dad. Just your average, everyday guy.

I didn’t have the courage to confront the truth, nor did I want to. So, like always, I pushed the unsettling memories out of my head.

It was around ten minutes before I reached home when Dad called. I had been listening to music with my phone connected via Bluetooth, so I pressed the call button on the steering wheel.

“Hi, Dad.”

– Wan-yi! Wan-yi! Listen to me carefully. Grab my passport and yours, and head straight to Incheon Airport right now!

“…Huh? Passport?”

The moment the call connected, Dad’s voice filled the car, frantic and urgent. At this hour, asking about passports out of the blue—what on earth was he talking about? Confused, I tilted my head as I responded.

“Dad, what’s this about passports all of a sudden…?”

– It’s an emergency, Wan-yi. Grab the passports and come to me right now! You know the safe in the master bedroom, right?

“Y-Yeah, of course I know!”

– The combination is the date your mom and I first met! You can open it, right?

“Yes, I can… I’ve heard you two tell that story since I was a kid.”

– Good. Open the safe, take out the passports, and come to me immediately! Leave everything else behind. Got it?

“Okay, got it. But, uh… where am I supposed to go?”

– Incheon Airport! Long-term parking lot! Get there as fast as you can! Oh, and the combination is eight digits!

“Uh… okay.”

– And listen, under no circumstances should you call the police. Do you understand?

“Yes, I understand.”

What was going on? Why couldn’t I call the police? My mind went blank, and all I could manage was a series of dumb, repetitive responses.

– Wan-yi, I’ll call you again later!

“Okay… fine, I got it.”

– You know Dad loves you, right? Just grab the passports and come straight to Incheon Airport—right now.

“Y-Yeah… okay.”

Dad ended the call abruptly, as though he was out of breath, like someone being chased. The urgency in his voice made my chest tighten as I gripped the steering wheel, my gaze fixed on the road ahead.

“Ah, damn it!”

Lost in thought, I nearly missed the traffic light turning red. Slamming on the brakes, I barely managed to stop the car in time, just as the amber light shifted to red. My heart was pounding in my chest, my head spinning from Dad’s frantic instructions.

 

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