Our Perfectly Imperfect Relationship - Chapter 14 Family Dinner

After calming down and washing up her face, Haeun and Minjoon’s whole family gathered around the dining table to have dinner. There were still worried about what happened earlier but after Minjoon explains everything to them, they suddenly feel at fault.

“We’re really sorry, Haeun. We didn’t know our family conversation made you miss your family that badly. I hope you’ll be able to meet them again. I’m sure they would have forgiven you by now. As a parent, I can say that what they said wasn’t their true intention. They just said it based on their feeling at the moment. So, don’t think about it too much, okay?”

Mrs. Kim patted her shoulder in comfort. She understands what Haeun’s parent felt at that moment in time. They were just thinking about her future and was just genuinely worried about her. It’s always the case for all the parents, sometimes they were just too overbearing but sometimes, what they say bear some truth.

In this case, they must have somehow known the kid and know what kind of person he was. For a parent to be hurt to such an extent that they would push you away, they must have felt hurt when Haeun didn’t seem to trust their judgment of the kid. Maybe if they were to explain properly to her, this whole problem wouldn’t happen in the first place.

“Thank you, Mrs. Kim. You have been kind.. You all have.. I feel bad that I suddenly burst of crying like that. I’m sorry for troubling and making you guys worried about me for such a small thing. But I really appreciate it. I really do hope I can meet my parents again.”

Haeun felt thankful for all the kindness and concern they showed towards her when she was just an outsider. She came from an ordinary family and have a daughter with another man but still, they accepted her like their own family and even love her baby. She was truly touched, she never thought anyone would accept her warmly like that. Especially not a family like Minjoon’s.

“Sister in law, you don’t have to worry about that. We understand what were going through in your mind, so we didn’t mind it that much. We were just scared that it might be because of your injury or something, that’s why we were worried so much about you. Oh, you don’t have to address mom so formally like that. Just call her mother or mom. We’re a family now, so you don’t have to be so formal with us.”

Minjung was smiling giddily at Haeun as she serves her some ginseng chicken. She still can’t believe Haeun is her sister in law. To see her brother being so gentle and caring towards Haeun was something she thought she never would be able to see in her entire lifetime. And she even got a niece, she totally couldn’t be happier. She hopes she will get a nephew soon since she has a lot of things she wants to do with him.

Though what Minjung said makes sense, Haeun felt it was a little bit awkward calling Minjoon’s parents informally like it was hers. She had just known them and she wasn’t going to stay long with Minjoon, just two months and she was gone. So she didn’t feel like she should get attach with them since she doesn’t want to have any lingering feelings later on when she leaves. It would be hard for her then.

While she was quietly thinking away, Minjoon seems to take notice of what she was thinking about. He didn’t want to admit it but he has to thank Minjung for her chatty mouth this time. She has casually helped him in a way where Haeun can’t exactly deny her request and forces her to get close to his family. That way, when the two months contract expires, she’ll be stuck in a decision where she can’t help to make herself leave since she’s already so close with his family.

“Yeah, you don’t have to be so formal with us, Haeun. We are already a family, so make yourself comfortable around us. If you have a problem or ever need help with anything, you can consult any of us. We will be willing to help you out. So, don’t be shy. Just treat me like your older sister, okay?” Minjee said as she smiles softly at Haeun. She rarely ever smile but when she does, it’s the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen. Nobody will be able to escape from such a smile, even Haeun was mesmerized by it.

“Okay, I will try my best. But I might need some time to get used to it. Since I’ve just got to know all of you, I feel a little awkward suddenly talking casually with everyone. I hope you guys can try to understand.” Haeun shyly smiles to everyone as they nodded their head in understanding. They obviously understand where she’s coming from and for her to suddenly drop formality like that, it would make her feel awkward in some ways.

On the other hand, Minjoon was silently celebrating in the inside. Haeun has fallen for one of ‘his’ trap and he’s one step closer to achieving his goal from stopping her to leave. Though he does feel like he’s kind of deceiving her, he has no other choice. This was one of the ways to make it hard for her to leave him and even if it seems despicable, he has to do it, for her sake. It’s not a safe world out there and with her being by his side, he can protect her from all the dangers that might come her way.

After dinner was over, all of them gather at the living room to discuss the issue about the dismissal of Minjoon from work for two weeks. To the surprise, he didn’t put up any fight and just readily agree to their suggestion. His reason being he agrees that he wasn’t being responsible enough and had let such an incident happen to Haeun. This time, he wouldn’t let it happen again and for the next two week, he promises to follow her everywhere she went.

“You don’t have to go to such an extent. I’m capable of taking care of myself and I don’t need you to follow me everywhere. I don’t want to be such a burden to you. You also have a lot of work to do and I don’t want to disrupt your work. So you don’t have to take any leave from work. I’m fine already so you don’t have to worry so much.” Haeun said timidly as she gave Minjoon a troubled look. She knows how busy it must be for him if he leaves work for two weeks and she doesn’t want to be the reason why he’ll stress up.

“Oh, you don’t have to be sorry, my dear. We’ve all agree to it and we’re doing this all for you. We want you to rest as much as you can and take care of yourself. It’s important for a woman after pregnancy to recover their health, so we want you to do as minimum work as you can. We’ll try to help you out with everything and for Hyomin, you don’t have to worry. Your job is to just feed her and play with her. Anything other than that, either Mrs. Park or any of the servants here will help you with it, okay?”

Seeing Mrs. Kim hopeful eyes on her, Haeun couldn’t manage to reject. She just smiles and nodded her head as an answer. Though she felt troubled by it, she knows they just wanted to help her out. She felt a warm feeling spreading inside her as she sees Minjoon family treating her well and with such care, as if she was one of their own. It has been a long time since she receives such care and warmth from her family. So when Minjoon family is treating her this way, she felt sort of happy and blessed. Even though it was only going to be for a short while, she’s willing to savor every moment of it.
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