Jeong-hyeok and Seri have maintained their love and commitment to each other, despite only being together once a year. But will they ever have the opportunity for more than that? Will Jeong-hyeok ever realise his full potential as a musician? Perhap...
That evening, just before 7pm, Seri, her parents and Yoon-he were all together at her apartment, waiting for the Evening Show to start. After lots of discussion with the show's producers and Park Hyun-ki, Jeong-hyeok had agreed to the interview with Ko Jin-Ae, one of the show's principal presenters. The story had buzzed around all day on the media. Even though the original news site had published a correction of the money aspect of the story, when Seri's lawyer had intervened, there was still a question mark over his family background. One news site had gone as far as saying that since he hadn't refuted the allegations about his father's corruption, then they must be true. And the presence of the money in Switzerland seemed to confirm it for most people.
She was feeling apprehensive. She knew Jeong-hyeok was nervous about the interview. He had found it difficult to adapt to public interest in him, even when the interest was positive. The success of the interview was important though and not just for his reputation. The slurs circulating against him were potentially damaging to her too, and she knew he was also thinking about the possible impact on their children in the future.
He had also had a difficult meeting with his mother that morning. Yoon-he had been very upset by the press coverage and initially she had been angry with him about the money. She felt Jeong-hyeok should have been straight with her and made it clear that the money transferred to her came from Seri, not the Swiss fund. She felt she should have made the decision about whether to access it and would never believe that Cheong-ryeol was corrupt. Eventually though, she had understood it and accepted that they were better able to deal with the criticism now as a result. When Yoon-he had arrived earlier, she had been keen to assure Seri that she didn't blame her for anything. Seri was relieved. They had a good relationship and she knew how keenly her mother-in-law was looking forward to the birth of the twins. She didn't want there to be any family tension.
Now, they were waiting for the interview to start. They all felt nervous for how it would go. Jeong-hyeok had been promised that the interview would cover the allegations already made and would give him the opportunity to share what he knew. She hoped he could put across his point of view effectively.
After a couple of other items, the programme cut to a sofa where Jeong-hyeok was sitting with Ko Jin-Ae. She was a rather glamorous woman, well regarded for celebrity and human interest journalism rather than investigative news, so Seri was hoping that she wouldn't be too hostile towards him. He looked a little nervous, but that was only because she knew him so well. Outwardly to everyone else, he seemed calm and composed. Yoon-he, sitting beside her, gripped her hand nervously. Here we go, she thought.
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Ko Jin-Ae opened up the interview with a summary of the morning's headlines and background. She then turned to him.
"Thank you so much Ri Jeong-hyeok for coming on tonight's show."
"Thank you for inviting me Ko Jin-Ae," he answered politely.
"Tell me, how do you feel about the stories this morning?"
