60. SOLUTION IS FOUND

A month passed since I first met sleazebag Yohan and he began harassing me for ual favors. The stress of daily dealing with him on the job was beginning to show on puppy. He relaxed when at home, but he lost his smile every day when leaving for work. He started calling me during his lunch hour to de-stress himself. He began talking in his sleep about Yohan. Imo and I started preparing more of his favorite dishes for dinner.

We had told imo and uncle about Yohan problem so that everyone in the family was aware and careful. Soo was working with Kibum in the general hagwon as I did not want her to come in any contact with Yohan. We wanted our whole family as far away from him as possible.

Puppy and I daily wracked our brains for solution to our problem. We came up with many solutions but discarded each one as unsuitable. When sleazebags like Yohan had positions of power, they became double dangerous. Any misstep from our side could have serious repercussions not only for the two of us but also for our extended family.

In a few months Soo would be 21 and Jiyeon 15. I was a grown, experienced man and could deal with the stress of the situation. If he shifted his target to anyone else in my family, they wouldn’t be able to handle it. My constant rejection was also worrisome for us. He could at any time decide to begin harassing our family.

We were doing a delicate balancing act but for how long could it continue? Finally, puppy decided to involve Heechul’s father and approach him for a solution. My father had political clout in Daegu but we knew he wouldn’t lift a finger to help me.

Heechul invited his father and us together for dinner. While the children played lazily after dinner, we explained the Yohan problem to Heechul’s father. He told us he had dealt with more than a few similar cases. According to him we were handling it in the best possible way from our side. He advised all of us to sit tight and keep avoiding Yohan as we had in the past month. He promised to work out a permanent solution for us. There was a collective sigh of relief in the room on hearing his promise.

He left us talking to each other and sat on the floor with the kids to play with them. Minx was playing house and serving milk to her two kids, Byong and Duckie. She served tea to her house guest and told him to supervise the kids in drinking milk. Heechul’s father liked the name I’d given to Jinri and called her Duckie only.

Byong got bored with playing house and started banging Minx’s and Duckie’s dolls on the floor. He smiled happily at us when the leg of one of the dolls came off in his hands. Puppy quickly attached the leg again before any of the girls could even think to react and reprimanded him.

“Byong, you must not upset the girls this way. Remember you are one and they are two. If they gang up on you, you will be very sorry.”

Siwon corrected puppy, “Jjong this is not the way to teach him to behave properly.”

Puppy gave him the field. Heechul and I watched the two fathers.

“Byong girls are very delicate and so are their toys. You must treat them gently with care. You do want Jinri to keep playing with you, right?”

Byong nodded his head.

“If you break Jinri’s toys she will stop playing with you. If that happens, how will your Hee umma’s dream of being related to your ummappa become true?”

“How is that better than my way Super?” Puppy argued.

“I taught him that girls need to be treated gently. After all, my daughter’s future depends on what he learns.” Siwon reasoned.

“What? You have a giant baby. She will be taller than me I think. Just look at her. At one year of age she is nearly same height as Byong. I want a dainty and petite daughter-in-law.” Puppy protested.

“You can’t break Cinderella’s heart. And my girl will be dainty, a giant dainty lady. It’s not her fault that you are short.” Siwon argued.

“I am not short. I am normal. You are abnormally tall. I am not breaking hyung’s heart. I am preventing it from breaking. What if Byong falls for a guy after growing up, like you and me? Won’t hyung’s and Jinri’s hearts break then?”

“But it does not look that way to me. We can marry them early.”

“He is only two Super. What if you don’t like what he grows up to be?”

“What will be there not to like? He will be growing up under my eyes. I will keep a check on him all the time. Do you think I will give my girl to just any boy? Only the best man will do for her. You better make sure that Byong grows up to be the best man for her. My Cinderella has his heart set on your Byong for our Jinri.”

“My boy will grow up to be the best dragon like me. He will be the best man for Jinri.”

“Good then it’s decided we’ll marry them when she is 15.” Siwon offered his hand to puppy to shake.

Puppy shook his hand without thinking.

“There Cinderella you’ve got yourself a son-in-law to raise. Told you not to worry. That I’ll take care of it.” Siwon grinned at Heechul who beamed back proudly at him giving him two thumbs up.

Puppy looked at them and then at me, then at Byong. He was slowly realizing what he had promised Siwon. When full realization of the meaning of his handshake dawned on him, he looked at me in shock.

I went to him and rubbed his back to keep him calm.

“Tokki I promised our boy away.” He choked out.

“It’s okay puppy. You did not promise our boy away, they promised their girl away. Well done. You know we love Duckie. It will be okay. Byong will love her too. We just need to be ready to care for three kids in fourteen years.” I tried not to chuckle. Puppy looked so comical with his wide open, shocked eyes. It was not that I was averse to Duckie as a future daughter for us, I just didn’t want both our children spoken for in their childhood.

I looked at grinning Siwon and Heechul and smiled at them. “Congratulations Siwon. Be ready to hand over Duckie to us in exactly 14 years from now. On June 5, 2020 Duckie will come to us for life.”

“What? Jinri will be with us for more than 14 years.” Heechul looked at me bewildered.

“But Cinder, Siwon just shook hands with puppy for marrying Duckie to Byong when she is fifteen. That means you have exactly fourteen years from today with her.” I said innocently, continuing to rub my still-shocked puppy’s back.

“Simbbbaaaa. Fourteeeeeen years. Nooooooo. My babbbyyy.” Heechul began wailing.

His father came over to us to find out why his son was crying his head off like a female. I related the good news to him with a smile, “Congratulations ajeossi! You will be a grandfather-in-law in fourteen years from today.”

“What? What did you two idiots do now?” His eyes popped out at the news. He glared at his sons, one of whom was crying in earnest and the other looked about to cry.

The kids came to us to check the commotion. All of them gravitated towards wailing Heechul. Minx tried to wipe off his tears while Jinri hugged him and looked about to cry herself. Byong looked confused, just like his father.

“I shook hands with Jonghyun to marry Byong and Jinri when she is fifteen.” Siwon explained with a trembling voice.

“What? Are you nuts? Who marries off their daughters at such young age in these modern times?” Heechul’s father exploded.

Duckie started sobbing along with Heechul. Seeing Jinri cry set off Byong who began sobbing in sync with her. I took Duckie from Heechul who was in no condition to console her. Leaving Puppy to take care of sobbing Byong, I went to the kitchen and sang to Duckie while looking for a bottle for her. I couldn’t find any. Finally, I opened my shirt buttons and put her to my to calm down hiccupping Duckie.

She immediately stopped sobbing and began ling me. I held her in one arm and wiped her tears away with the other, continuing to sing soothing lullabies to her. Within five minutes she was fast asleep. I couldn’t hear any more wailing from the family room which meant everyone had calmed down there. Taking sleeping Duckie to her room, I tucked her in and kissed her good night.

Re-buttoning my shirt I entered the family room to see a sleepy Byong cradled in still-bewildered puppy’s arms and Minx settled on Heechul’s lap kissing his cheeks and wiping his tears.

“Hee umma don’t worry. We will take good care of Duckie for you when she lives with us.” I heard Minx promise to Heechul, making him shed even more tears. The Little Big Ears was living up to her new name. Even though she was playing with the kids, her ears were tuned into our conversation and she had pieced enough of it together to make sense to her.   

I sat besides Heechul and wrapped my arm around him. “Cinder, stop crying. Can’t you take a joke? I just said all that to make you realize what you and Siwon are doing. She is your baby girl. You carried her for eight months. Suffered through a major surgery for her. Don’t even think of her marriage till she is at least 25 years of age. Byong and Duckie are just babies right now. Do you really want to take such a big decision at this time? Let them grow up and decide who they want to spend their lives with. It’s their lives we are talking about Cinder. It is not a joke. Marriage is serious business. We may kid around all we want about Byong and Duckie, but that’s all it is. I don’t take any of it seriously. I request you to stop right here. Leave it as a joke. Let the children decide when they are mature enough to know their minds and make life-altering decisions.”

Heechul started sobbing harder, “I am sorry Jinx. I forgot the distinction between joke and life. I should have trusted you to do the right thing when the time came. I know you love Jinri like your own. I should have trusted you. I am sorry.”

I wrapped both my arms around him and Minx, rocking them. “Ssshhh stop crying Cinder. It’s okay. It’s me, Jinx. There is nothing to be sorry about. Come on smile for me now.”

When he continued to sob, I whispered in his ear, “Do you know Duckie led me to sleep just now. Where are her feeding bottles?”

“We threw them away. She does not use feeding bottles anymore. She takes solid food now. How did you manage to get her to sleep so quickly?” Heechul sniffled.

“I sang lullabies to her as she led me.”

“What? You will spoil her. She will demand the same every night now.” Heechul stopped crying.

“One night does not make a habit. Stop worrying.”

“What are you two whispering?” Heechul’s father asked.

“They are talking about Duckie ling ummappa to sleep tonight.” Minx answered to our embarrassment. She was turning into a dangerous Little Big Ears.

“You too Jinki?” He asked in surprise.

I blushed and kept silent. I noticed Byong had fallen asleep in his father’s arms. I took him from puppy to move away from the embarrassing situation. I put Byong to sleep besides Duckie in her room.

When I returned to the family room, Heechul’s father had resolved the matter to everyone’s satisfaction. “– you all agree that the promise is void and there will be no further talk of marriage between these two children, unless they talk of it themselves?”

All of them nodded, including Minx.

“Harabeoji can I talk of my marriage?” Minx asked him.

He looked in surprise at her solemn face. “You are only nine years old.”

“I am eight. Sehun is nine. I want to marry Sehun. He also wants to marry me. We decided long ago to marry each other when we grow up. He will carry my baby when we marry. So can I talk of my marriage?”

Heechul giggled at his father’s shocked face. His father looked at me and I shrugged my shoulders, “Ajeossi, it’s not me. The little ones decided. Jonghyun and I are hoping they will outgrow it.”

He nodded, trying to calm himself. He kept his tone even as he answered Minx, “Little girls don’t talk about their own marriage. It is impolite. It will embarrass the names of your parents.”

She nodded her understanding and skipped off to gather up the toys.

Heechul’s father turned to me. “Jinki you are a wise man. You have more maturity than my son and son-in-law put together. I promise you I will resolve Yohan issue at the earliest and free you from his harassment.”

“Thank you ajeossi. This really means a lot to us. We can now breathe a little easy.”

Puppy also thanked him.  

That night for the first time in weeks, puppy did not talk in his sleep. It spoke volumes about how worried he was and how relieved Heechul’s father made him feel.

We waited for the promised solution to show itself. None of us had any idea what it would be. Finally, at the end of the month puppy called me with the good news.

Sleazebag was promoted and posted to his hometown Incheon. He was leaving in one week’s time. There was a new person replacing Yohan as the Senior Superintendent, Lee Dong Hae. Siwon was over the moon with that bit of news. Dong Hae and him were roommates during their training.

 We decided to wait before celebrating the news. Only Yohan’s actual departure would make it final for us. We called Heechul’s father and thanked him for his efforts. If it wasn’t for him, who knows for how long our suffering would have continued. His response took me by surprise.

“Jinki I’ve thought a lot since our dinner together. I want just one favor in return from you.”

“Anything within my means, ajeossi.”

“If Byong has an arranged marriage, do give us the first right of refusal. My granddaughter will be very happy with in-laws like you and Jonghyun. You will always love her as your own. I can see why Heechul and Siwon were so eager to make you promise.”

“I promise ajeossi. You don’t have to even ask this. It is understood. You are like my father. You do not have to ask for favors, you have to just command us. Now may I ask for another favor?”

“Anything Jinki.”

“Please don’t wait for Heechul to invite you to meet them. Heechul misses you a lot. And Duckie will grow up before you know it. Why don’t you meet them at least once a week? Siwon’s parents have not spoken to him or met him since he married Heechul. He would love to spend more time with you. They need your guidance. They’ve lived without it for too long.”

“Don’t make me cry Jinki. I am an old man. You are right. I have been away for an unnecessarily long time. Let me see if I can move closer to my only family. May God always bless you and your family with love and happiness.”

“Thank you ajeossi. And thank you once again for your solution to Yohan problem.”

“You are welcome any time Jinki. Please call me abeoji.”

“Thank you for the honor abeoji.”

Next day, Heechul and I discussed about Mrs Park Miran. She had not made much progress in her therapy. We were worried because ours was the only hagwon to offer therapy for abused wives. Our franchise in Incheon did not have the facility.

We met and spoke with her and repeated our offer to teach Personality Development classes in our three Daegu hagwons. It was visible to us that Yohan had again taken his frustrations out on her the day before. She rejected our offer and took our leave with dejected shoulders.

Two days later we heard the news that Miran had taken her own life by shooting herself with her husband’s gun. We couldn’t help wondering whether it should be considered a case of suicide or homicide. For us it was homicide. Even if she pulled the trigger of the gun, it was her husband who had driven her to it. I felt helpless for the first time since leaving Minho.

A day later, coroner’s report was released to the media. Miran’s body bore marks of fresh abuse which horrified even me. She had fresh cigarette burns all over her body. There were knife cuts on her face and upper chest. There were bruises on most of her body, some healing and some fresh. She had three fractured ribs. Her bones showed old healed fractures. Her skull had hairline fracture. The list of her old and new injuries was long. I just couldn’t bear any more of it.

Heechul and I cried for a long time on hearing this. Same day we made it compulsory for all our hagwon franchises across the country to run therapy classes for victims of domestic abuse. All the classes were to be named the same in her honor, Miran Therapy. There was nothing more to hide. We declared a week-long mourning in all our hagwons nationwide.

Yohan was in police custody and faced many years in prison if it could be proven that he had caused the injuries on Miran and abetted her suicide. Siwon was in charge of the case and he told us they had solid proof to put Yohan away for at least ten years without parole.

Heechul and I spearheaded a signature movement in our hagwons. The mothers of every JinHee hagwon in the country signed a petition for making stricter laws to deal with perpetrators of domestic abuse, and even stricter implementation of those laws. The petition also asked for government to open shelters for abused women. Since the inception of first JinHee hagwon till the current year, we had 54 franchises operational across Korea.

The petitioned signed by one million women was submitted to the Commissioner General, father of Miran, by Heechul’s father who had agreed to be our face and voice in Seoul.

Within a month of the presentation of petition, amendments were made in the existing laws and they were unofficially named Miran amendments. Funds were provided to open shelters in 30 cities immediately and in remaining cities within six months.

Yohan was kept in solitary cell due to threat to his life by other jail inmates. Despite all efforts by the police, he was found stabbed to death in the shower stalls.

That day we celebrated.