episode_0015

[I feel sorry for taking care of you until the end, what should I do…?]

“No, no. Don’t worry and have fun. Since you’ve come this far.”

[Okay, thanks Haruya. Have fun tomorrow.]

“Yes, have a good time.”

The neighbor’s wedding anniversary. This morning, the uncle and aunt headed to Westia, a city on the opposite side of Easty. They had taken Seo-hoo with them last year, but this year, they went on a trip with just their spouses.

[Honey… If you’re having a hard time already…]

[Okay, wait a minute! The phone hasn’t hung up yet!]

As I was about to hang up the call, I heard an urgent voice on the other end of the phone.

[Oh my, come to your senses. Please take care of Haruya Seohoo!]

“Ah, yes yes of course! Don’t worry! Ahahaha… .”

Stop.

As soon as he finished speaking, the call was disconnected.

This, this, I wonder if I’ll have a younger sibling tonight? The man who usually calls me “Seo-hoo’s mom” is calling me by my name today. I’m glad that he seems to be having a good time.

As I thought about that, the corners of my mouth kept twitching, so I rubbed them a few times before entering the daycare.

Inside the quiet daycare. I guess I was the last one to arrive.

“Hello… .”

“One day has come. Mirae, Mom is here!”

“Mom?”

Mirae, who was organizing the snack bags with the kindergarten teacher, suddenly turned around. Then, as soon as she saw me, she threw down all the snack bags she was holding and ran towards me.

“Mom! Why are you so late?”

“How have you been, Mirae? Mirae was helping you, teacher!”

I threw it all away, but… . But since the trash is all gathered in one place, it seems like it will be easier for the teacher to clean it up.

“Hmm, umm… Mom, did you drink coffee?”

“Huh, huh?”

Mirae sniffs as soon as she’s held in her arms. How on earth did she do that?

Hanna Yeon and I both had a lot of time on our hands, so we stopped by a cafe. Hanna Yeon ordered an Americano, and I ordered a chocolate latte, and we just sat there blankly for a while…

“… With who?”

“Uh, that’s… with a friend?”

Why am I making excuses like a husband who was caught having an affair? Maybe it was because Mirae’s eyes were dark and sunken, but I felt a loss of confidence.

“… The friend who kissed my mom?”

“Huh?”

Because I was flustered, I avoided future gaze. So naturally, I looked to the side and ran into the teacher who was stepping back hesitantly, covering his chest with both arms.

I shook my head and said no.

“Future, shall we go home first?”

I thought that getting out of this place was the priority, so I got up, holding Mirae in my arms. It was honestly a bit heavy compared to when I was a baby, but it was still bearable.

“… … .”

“Mom, I’m not going anywhere. Don’t worry too much.”

Mirae hugged my nape tightly. Her thin arms trembled pitifully. In fact, she didn’t want to have a pajama party, but I forced her to do it because I thought friends were important. I can understand Mirae’s anxiety to some extent.

“Seo-hu, what were you doing, Seo-hu?”

And I had one more child to take care of. Seo-hu, sitting miserably in the corner of the daycare center. My heart ached when I saw his hunched shoulders.

This is the first time that Seo-hoo has been completely separated from his parents. Let’s play hard today so that Seo-hoo doesn’t get lonely.

I took a step closer to Seo-hu and crouched down next to him.

“Seohu, let’s go to your house today and have fun! How about playing with the Masked Rider toy? Oh, Seohu, do you like chicken? Let’s order some chicken and eat it late at night!”

The old man wanted Seo-hoo to like pizza, but sadly, Seo-hoo liked chicken more. However, Seo-hoo was sullen and didn’t move at all, just lying there.

“Hey, Seohu…?”

“Masked Rider Kick!!”

“Wow!”

As I put my face in to check on Seo-hoo’s condition, my forehead touched the Masked Rider toy at the same time.

“Hahaha, what do you think! The Masked Rider won’t give up!”

Seo-hu ran towards me with a big smile, picked up my bag, and started swinging the Masked Rider around.

“Minseohoo… Why did you hit my mom?”

“That’s because he was aiming for the back! But even that is an opportunity for a hero! That’s the Masked Rider! ”

Mirae glared at him coldly, but Seo-hoo paid no attention and shouted confidently.

And I could see the redness around Seo-hoo’s eyes. He was trying to look cheerful so that I wouldn’t worry… .

“Ah, chicken! Are you ordering it as soon as you get home?”

“No, ma’am, I won’t let you do it because you’re upset.”

“Eeeee, lethal! Masked Rider Punch!!”

Seo-hoo already shows signs of being a protagonist. He will definitely become a much cooler hero than Masked Rider.

* * *

As soon as I got home, I washed up with Mirae and lay down on the sofa. The three of us were originally going to wash together, but Seo-hoo stubbornly refused and is now washing up alone. He’s still a kid, so there’s no need to be embarrassed.

─When will Hanna Yeon arrive? Is it still far?

I sent a CocoaTalk message to Hanna Yeon. In fact, since I mostly talk to the uncle and aunt over the phone or meet them in person, this was my first time using CocoaTalk properly.

So I bought the Masked Rider emoticon too! The tight-fitting bike outfit looks a bit weird, but I feel affectionate towards it because I see it so often.

─Right now.

Even CocoaTalk doesn’t send long messages. But two letters is too much. Should I throw a Masked Rider Kick at you?

With that thought in mind, I sent a Masked Rider kick emoticon and started writing down what I was going to say next.

─Is this okay?

“Mi, the future?”

I was about to send ‘Eat this.’, but Mirae, who was lying on my back, started typing carelessly on the keyboard. It wouldn’t have mattered if she had stopped there, but she went a step further and ended up pressing send.

A masked rider doing a flying kick while wearing a perverted bike suit. And then a strange message is transmitted immediately. A somewhat aggressive person might think of it as a challenge.

“… … .”

“Don’t be upset, Mirae. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you in advance.”

“… I’m not upset.”

─(Choochoo question mark emoticon)

While chatting with Mirae and checking CocoaTalk, an emoticon of Chuchu holding a question mark flew in.

It seems like he has no intention of hiding it anymore. Well, it’s time to admit it. He even thought about giving a month’s wages for one Chuchu sticker.

I snickered, put down my phone, and carefully turned over so that Mirae wouldn’t fall over. Then Mirae buried her face in my chest and muttered.

“It’s okay because the future is with you this time.”

“Yeah, yeah. Since we’re going to be together in the future, it’s okay, right? Since that older sister gave me the ticket to Chuchu Land, we should get along well when we get home, right?”

Actually, I’m more worried about Hanna Yeon than Mirae. Hanna Yeon treating Mirae kindly. I can’t imagine that. I hope Mirae isn’t scared.

“… Okay. We’ll get along well.”

“Good, our future.”

I hugged the future and stroked it until my palms were on fire. Honestly, I thought she would show a little more hostility. Whenever I talked about my friends, I would feel anxious and think that I would lose my mother. At this point, it was easy to get over it.

“Oh, that girl likes ChuChu too. Shall we watch the ChuChu animation together?”

“If Mom sees it too… .”

“Of course. I must embrace the future.”

I’m just happy for my daughter’s attention. Every time she says “Mom, Mom” with a pouty expression, I think I could die from cuteness.

“I have to hug my mom too. Hehe.”

We hugged each other and lay still, sharing warmth. Since we had just showered, the same scents mixed together and lingered in our nostrils. Comfortable silence. It was a time we could share as family.

“Masked Rider finished bathing!”

While we were sprawled out on the sofa, Seo-hu, who had just finished showering, came out and shouted.

“Oh, as expected of Masked Rider! He can do it on his own! But should I get the lady to dry his hair?”

“No, the Masked Rider dries his own hair!”

Wheeee …

Seo-hu sat on the floor and started drying his hair. He didn’t have to do it all by himself. For some reason, he felt like Seo-hu was watching him and he was worried.

“Seo-hu, do you want to sleep with the lady? There’s no room.”

“Masked Rider sleeps alone… .”

“Hey, then you’ll get in trouble with the lady. I can’t give in on this. I’m going to sleep with Seo-hoo today.”

“Hmm… Well then, I guess there’s nothing I can do.”

Seo-hu nodded, and Mirae looked at me intently.

Then Mirae went down under the sofa and ran into the room. I wondered what she was bringing, and it was a sketchbook and crayons.

“Let’s draw a picture? That’s great. Should we draw together with Seo-hoo?”

“No.”

The future is cold… .

Mirae held a black crayon tightly in her small hand and began to draw something large. Just a long circle with a line that looked like hair. The size of the circles were all different.

“What is this?”

“Mom, me, Minseohoo.”

Mirae pointed to the circles one by one. The large circle at the end is me, the one in the middle is Mirae, and the one on the opposite end seems to be Seohu.

“It’ll be fine like this.”

Mirae spoke firmly and closed the sketchbook. And a smile that was so pleasant it almost seemed like it was going to spill over onto my lips.

Indeed, Mirae wanted to sleep next to Seo-hoo. Ahem, ahem. Did I just barge in without realizing it?

“The future is greedy.”

“I don’t know… .”

Mirae left her sketchbook on the floor and came to me again.

Anyone could tell that she was embarrassed, but Seo-hu, knowing or not, was already taking out a Masked Rider toy from his bag and playing with it.

Ding dong, ding dong.

At that moment, the doorbell rang. Of course, it was Hanna Yeon.

“Are you here? I guess the bus is late?”

“A little… .”

“Hello, Masked Rider Kick!”

As expected, it was Hanna Yeon, and Seo-hu ran over to her, saying he was happy to see her, and pushed the Masked Rider toy in her hand.

“… What is it.”

“Eek!”

But the opponent was not good. Han Na-yeon must have tilted her head because she was genuinely curious, but Seo-hu must have felt threatened because she gasped and ran away to her room.

“Son?”

“What are you talking about? I said she’s the kid next door.”

I looked at the back of the defeated Masked Rider with pity, then gestured to Mirae, who was sitting quietly on the sofa.

“Future, Mom’s friend is here. Should I say hello?”

Mirae got up right away and clung to my thigh, nodding her head.

“Hello… .”

“Oh, that… Nice to meet you. Yes, Iharu’s daughter.”

In the awkwardly still air, an unidentifiable tension began to hover.