Heart and Seoul (The Seoul Series Book 1)

by Erin Kinsella

  “Let me go get changed, and then we can head home.” Eun Gi wandered off and left Tessa and Chun Hei together.

  That night Eun Gi’s phone rang while they were crowded together on the couch watching a movie. Tessa perked up.

  “Hello?” Eun Gi put the phone on speaker.

  “Baek Eun Gi.” His lawyer’s voice came over the line. “I wanted to update you on your parents. Has anyone else called to inform you?”

  Eun Gi glanced to Tessa, who shook her head.

  “No, not yet. What’s going on?”

  “Your parents have been convicted. They found sufficient evidence to charge them on all counts. EchoPop and Elite Studios also both tacked on defamation lawsuits. Unfortunately that means I won’t be able to free up your parents’ accounts for you. I imagine the companies will be demanding enough to drain them, but if there’s any remaining at the end of this, I’ll see about transferring it to your name.”

  Chun Hei pressed a hand to her mouth, and Eun Gi had gone rigid.

  “I—I see. Thank you.” Eun Gi stumbled over his words.

  “How long will their sentence be?” Tessa asked.

  “Ah, Hale Tessa-ssi, I didn’t realize you were on the call as well. As far as I’m aware the sentences will last six years. I would imagine Kim Seo Yun will be in contact to discuss a more permanent arrangement for Baek Chun Hei’s guardianship. I’ll email you any necessary paperwork from my end. Do you need anything else in the meantime?”

  “No, but thank you. I appreciate it.”

  “Best of luck to you all.”

  The call disconnected, and Tessa hopped off the couch. “What’re we feeling?”

  The siblings shared twinned expressions of disbelief.

  “I get to stay?” Chun Hei whispered.

  “You get to stay!” Tessa pulled her into a hug, squeezing her until Eun Gi joined them.

  The lingering spectre of their parents evaporated, and both Chun Hei and Eun Gi dissolved into laughter blended with sobs, emotion pouring out of them as they leaned on Tessa. She held them close, hands tucked protectively against their heads.

  Eun Gi wiped at his face. “We get to be a real family.”

  “We do.” Tessa kissed his forehead.

  “You’re really sure you want to keep me?” Chun Hei asked.

  “Absolutely,” Eun Gi said.

  “I finally got the little sister I always wanted. There’s no way I’m letting anyone take you from us.” Tessa smacked a kiss on Chun Hei’s cheek.

  “As long as you’re sure.”

  “One hundred percent.”

  Chapter 27

  Tessa

  “Hurry up, let’s go!” Tessa herded Chun Hei and Eun Gi out to the car to tackle the six-hour drive to Seoul. They’d decided to forgo the flight so they’d have ready access to a vehicle during their month-long stay to visit everyone. Tessa’s parents were already in the air, and they would all meet up around dinner at the airport.

  They followed the route from Busan up through Daegu, Daejeon, and into Seoul. Tessa stared out the window at the undulating mountains enrobed with trees, and glittering rivers that wound past charming towns and thriving metropolitan centres. Daejeon offered them a respite when they stopped for a leisurely lunch, inhaling barbeque and rice until they could hardly move. Chun Hei still picked up a box of chocopies and nibbled them through the rest of the drive.

  “We should do a proper tour of the country sometime,” Tessa said. “I always forget how beautiful the countryside is. We’re taking my parents a few places, but I bet there are hidden gems all over.”

  “Oppa, can we?” Chun Hei leaned through the seats.

  “Pick the destination, and we’ll make a plan.”

  Tessa admired him as he drove. His shoulders were relaxed, face soft with a smile curving up the corners of his mouth. Going back to Seoul was exactly what he needed.

  The turn off to Incheon brought them to the international airport with an extra hour to spare before Tessa’s parents were due to land.

  “Oppa, can I get some bingsu?”

  “How are you still hungry?” Eun Gi pulled into a parking spot.

  “I’m growing.” Chun Hei turned to Tessa. “Eonni, can I have some?”

  “We’ll get some after we pick up my parents. I’m sure they’ll need a little pick-me-up.” Tessa wiggled in her seat. “Now I’m hungry too. Bingsu will be amazing with this heat.”

  Eun Gi

  “Mamãe! Appa!” Tessa dashed towards her parents as they emerged into the arrivals lounge pushing their luggage cart.

  Her mother lifted Tessa right off her feet with a sound of absolute delight. Her father joined them at a far more sedate pace, wrapping his arms around them both. Eun Gi hung back, watching the strange and wonderful family dynamic he’d never known. Warmth bloomed through him at seeing his wife so happy.

  Tessa’s mother popped up her head, and Eun Gi paused in place as her gaze locked on to him.

  “You must be Eun Gi.” Her face was so similar to her daughter’s. “I say that as if I don’t already have you memorized from Tessa’s posters. You’ve grown up so well. My name’s Olivia, but I don’t mind at all if you want to call me Mamãe too.”

  She snared his face in her hands and delivered a kiss onto each cheek.

  “Mamãe, please, you’re embarrassing me.” Tessa poked at her mother’s ribs.

  Her mother ignored her entirely and pulled him into a hug. He checked the urge to flinch and tried to just absorb her exuberance. She reminded him of Min Jae, a puppy with new people, and he knew how to handle that.

  Tessa’s father stood with his arm looped around his daughter’s shoulders. Eun Gi bowed. “It’s nice to meet you, Hale Jun-ssi. I’m sorry it wasn’t able to happen sooner.”

  Her father grinned. “No need to be so formal. We’re family and not so fussy with all that in Canada. I hope Olivia didn’t startle you. She comes on a bit strong sometimes.”

  “Not at all,” Eun Gi lied.

  “Who’s this cutie tucked behind you?” Tessa’s mother asked, urging Chun Hei to come to the front.

  “My little sister, Baek Chun Hei.”

  Tessa’s mother scooped her into a hug before any protest could be made. “Another daughter! Is that the whole set? Biological, honorary, and in-law? I don’t know exactly how the in-law part works, but I’m claiming you as a daughter. If that’s okay?”

  Chun Hei blinked rapidly. “Um, sure. I’m down an eomma, so I could use an extra.”

  “We did warn you that you’d have more family than you knew what to do with.” Tessa laughed.

  Her father’s brow pinched. “Peanut, would you mind popping open my wheelchair? The flight didn’t agree with me.”

  “Of course.” Tessa lifted it off the cart and pressed the seat down until it clicked into place, wheeling it up behind him. He settled in, and his wife took over pushing the wheelchair.

  Tessa and Eun Gi pulled their luggage.

  “Thank you for taking such good care of our girl.” Tessa’s father reached for Eun Gi’s hand and gave it a grateful squeeze.

  “We’ve been taking care of each other,” Eun Gi replied. Tessa smiled out of the corner of his eye.

  Her mother squished his cheeks in her hands again. “You’re a good boy. I knew it from the beginning.”

  “Um, thank you?”

  “Mamãe, no.” Tessa tried to pry her away, but she had an astonishingly strong grip.

  “I’m expressing my affection for your husband, meu amor. Let me be.”

  Tessa’s father looked chagrined from his seat. “Sorry. She’s been over the moon for weeks about meeting you.”

  “It’s okay,” said Eun Gi. “I’m just not used to it.”

  Tessa’s mother looped her arm through Eun Gi’s. “So, meu filho, are you going to show us around Seoul?”

  “Of course, but what does meu filho mean?”

  “Oh, it means my son. Would you rather I not call you that?”

/>   She said it so casually, but the simple use of it left him breathless.

  “No, it’s fine.”

  He listened with a stunned but delighted ear as Tessa’s mother chatted the entire drive from Incheon into Gangnam. They stopped for bingsu, at Chun Hei’s insistence, and spent a quiet hour overlooking the Han river while they ate their treats.

  “I haven’t been here in so long,” Tessa’s father remarked. “Not that we ever got into the city all that much. Eomeoni always had us going straight to Seongnam to visit relatives when I was younger.”

  “How long ago did you come?” Eun Gi asked.

  “When Olivia and I got engaged so she could meet the family over here. That would be, what? Thirty-three years now?”

  Olivia nodded. “Tessa went with her Halmeoni when she was about four, but I don’t imagine you remember much of it, do you?”

  “Not a bit.” Tessa shoveled another bite of her strawberry bingsu into her mouth. “I’ve seen all the pictures a million times though, so it almost counts.”

  “I want to visit where you’re from, Eonni.” Chun Hei tugged on Tessa’s sleeve. “Can I?”

  “Absolutely!” Olivia answered in her daughter’s stead. “Everyone’s been dying to meet Eun Gi, and they’ll adore you too.”

  Stress melted out of Eun Gi’s body, leaving him pliable and content, watching his wife and her family envelop his own.

  Tessa’s mother sidled over to him. “You look contemplative.”

  “I’m not used to parents. Nice ones, I mean. Mine are…”

  “I’ve seen the news. I’m fully aware of what kind of people they are. We’re your family now too, and you can take all the time you need.” She smiled. “My girl adores you, and I’m ready to do the same.”

  Eun Gi softened. “Thank you. I adore her too.”

  Olivia grinned, squeezing her cheeks between her hands. “I’m sorry, you’re just so cute.”

  “Mamãe.” Tessa plunked down on the other side of Eun Gi. “You wouldn’t be overwhelming my husband, would you?”

  Olivia pouted. “Not at all. You’re not overwhelmed, are you?”

  Eun Gi blinked rapidly, glancing between his wife and her mother. “Um. No?”

  “Oh, alright. I’ll give you some time to get used to me.” Olivia polished off the rest of her bingsu and stretched out comfortably. She turned to Tessa. “Why isn’t my other girl here?”

  “Kelly is helping Min Joo and Sung Soo cook, but she’s definitely hanging out with us while you’re in town.”

  “Sounds perfect.”

  When the sun edged towards the mountaintops, they crowded into the car and headed to the apartment where 24/7 was waiting for them.

  Tessa turned to her parents in the backseat when they pulled to a stop. “Ready to meet everyone?”

  “I was born ready.” Her mother’s eyes were sparkling with mischief and mirth.

  Sung Soo greeted them at the door to the building, a smile bright on his face.

  “It’s good to have you back in Seoul.” He hugged Eun Gi first before Tessa’s mother could visit upon him the same level of affection she’d given Eun Gi.

  Sung Soo pushed the elevator button.

  “That’s not the right floor,” Eun Gi said.

  “You’ve been in Busan too long. It’s definitely the right floor.”’

  Eun Gi’s brow furrowed, but he didn’t press the issue. All the outsides of the suites looked the same in the building, but he hadn’t forgotten the suite number he’d lived in for years.

  Sung Soo knocked when they arrived, and Hwan swung the door open with a grin. “Welcome home!”

  “Home? What’s going on?”

  Min Jae, Sung Soo, and Hwan gathered together. Hwan couldn’t keep the smile from his face. “We got you a gift.”

  Baffled, Eun Gi could only stare at them blankly, heart pounding. “A gift?”

  “We bought you this suite. The company wouldn’t let us buy the one you were in before, but this is only one floor up,” Sung Soo explained. “We wanted to surprise you.”

  The shock drained away, heat rising from his toes, heart racing.

  “You guys,” his voice broke. He dove into the group. “Thank you!” He chanted the words over and over again, squeezing his friends before he spun around to gather his wife into his arms, then his sister.

  “You like it?” Tessa asked.

  “I love it, and you. All of you. How did you do it?”

  Tessa grinned and looped her arms around his waist. “Coordinated effort between the realtor, moving company, and everyone here.”

  “We bought you new furniture, dishes, the works, and it all arrived yesterday. The rest of your things just had to be transported,” Sung Soo said.

  Tessa nodded. “We took as long as we could over lunch and snacks to make sure there would be time to get everything moved.”

  “You’re amazing.” Eun Gi kissed her cheek. “I feel like I don’t tell you that enough.”

  Kelly chattered away with Tessa’s mother, and Min Joo occupied her father.

  “You guys are going to love Seoul. We have tons of stuff planned.” Kelly swept Tessa’s parents over to the kitchen, where she plied them with samples.

  Hwan hadn’t left Eun Gi’s side since they’d arrived.

  “Busan is way too far away.” Hwan snared him in a sudden hug. “I’m glad you’re back.”

  “Can’t get rid of me that easily.”

  “I’d never want to.”

  “I know.” Eun Gi’s smile softened. “I think it’s finally starting to click.”

  “About time.” Hwan laughed. “I’ve only been telling you for a decade.”

  “I’m a slow learner about these things.”

  “Well that’s an understatement if I’ve ever heard one.”

  A knock on the door drew everyone’s attention. Eun Gi pulled it open.

  “Kyung Mi?”

  “You’re back!” She sounded happier than he’d ever heard her. “I was so worried about you.”

  “Give him your present!” Min Jae hopped over, leaning over Kyung Mi’s shoulder.

  “Can I be here more than a moment before you start badgering me?”

  Min Jae slumped away, but only to the table where he stared impatiently at her.

  Kyung Mi sighed. “First, I’m checking to make sure that you’ve been informed EchoPop is pursuing charges against your parents.”

  “My lawyer mentioned it, but I’m not sure why.”

  “Defamation costs them money. This whole scandal has affected their bottom line.”

  Bitterness rolled over his tongue. “Of course that would be what upsets them.”

  “My boy, I know it’s not ideal that money is what forces their hand, but this is a good thing right now.”

  “I appreciate that you’re keeping me informed.” Eun Gi nodded.

  Kyung Mi pulled out her phone, tapping away at it. “I’m here.” She thrust the phone at Eun Gi.

  “Hello?”

  “Baek Eun Gi, this is Kim Gyeong Suk.” Her voice came over the line, clear and crisp, as always. “I want to apologize on behalf of the company.”

  “I— Wait, what?”

  “We were hasty in our actions, and you have some tireless advocates who fought for you.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “The remaining active members of 24/7 all demanded release from their contracts if you were not reinstated upon being declared innocent of wrongdoing.”

  Eun Gi’s gaze snapped to the others who were all watching him anxiously.

  He mouthed, I love you, but what the fuck?

  “You may consider yourself employed once more by EchoPop. We’ve already drafted up a contract renewal, and Kyung Mi will handle everything from there.” She was quiet for a moment. “Baek Eun Gi?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Welcome back.”

  He hung up in a daze.

  Min Jae thrust his hands into the air. “We did it! I knew they’
d back down. We’re too awesome for them to risk losing us.”

  “I can’t believe you guys risked your entire careers for me.” Eun Gi’s lip wobbled. “Have I mentioned how incredibly amazing all of you are?”

  “Once or twice.” Sung Soo grinned, eyes misty. “But we always like to hear it.”

  Kyung Mi held out a manila envelope. “If you’re interested in returning, I have the contract here for you to sign.”

  Eun Gi stared at the envelope. The key to his old life. Exactly as it had been…filled with restrictions and control.

  Kyung Mi nudged him. “I have it on good authority that if you want to negotiate they’ll agree to an additional fifteen percent payment increase.”

  His eyes flared wide. He glanced at the others, but they were all nodding enthusiastically.

  “You deserve the increase after your parents stealing from you,” Sung Soo said. “It’ll help you rebuild faster.”

  “I’d also negotiate having clause thirty-five and forty-two struck from the contract,” said Kyung Mi. She glanced over to where Chun Hei was perched on the dining room table. “It’ll give you more freedom now that you have a family. And perhaps have a lawyer add in a stipulation that allows you to retain control of your own channel to produce your own music at your leisure?”

  Eun Gi couldn’t quite manage to breathe.

  Kyung Mi handed him a pen and showed him exactly where to make the changes, then bundled it back into the envelope and tucked it into her bag. “If I thought they’d go higher I would suggest it, but from what I overheard, that’s as much as they’re willing to bend.”

  “Kyung Mi, thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. I don’t often get a chance to hit back at the company when they do things I disagree with. Gyeong Suk got very tired of me during these past few months, but I consider it her penance for going along with your removal. You deserved so much more than was given to you. I’m sorry for how you’ve suffered.”

  Tessa slipped her hand into Eun Gi’s.

  Kyung Mi turned to her. “I admit I was not entirely convinced of the company’s idea when this marriage was proposed, but I’m pleased it’s worked out. Thank you, Tessa, for taking care of him when I could not.”