episode_0080

(new)

In the frozen atmosphere, no one opened their mouths.

My parents, who had been laughing heartily just a moment ago, started to watch us.

Soon, my father put down his spoon with a “thud” and crossed his arms, his expression becoming serious.

Mom also looked back and forth between me and Areum with a very serious expression.

“Um… guys… wasn’t that a joke?”

My mother’s gentle, soothing voice echoes through the kitchen.

I exchanged glances with Arami and nodded quietly.

“Haha… .”

My father’s subsequent laughter sounded a bit embarrassed and bewildered.

“Honey, are you laughing now?”

The mother’s sharp voice is directed at the poor father.

My father scratched his face several times with an awkward expression as if it was itchy.

“… So since when have you guys been like this?”

“Huh?”

“Since when have we been in sync?”

The eyes that had been directed at my father now turned to me.

I also scratched my face with a similar expression to my father’s, then muttered, overcome with shame.

“Oh, it hasn’t been that long. A month or two?”

“But, why are you telling Mom and Dad that important thing now?”

“Ah… Yeah. Well, I waited a bit because you said you were busy with work.”

“Sigh… I really can’t live like this… .”

There is a strange current flowing.

It was definitely a very serious atmosphere until just a moment ago, but now it feels a bit lax.

My father’s complicated expression and my mother’s frustrated face showed signs of worry about our relationship, but I never thought that they would oppose us.

“… Are you allowing us?”

“Huh! Won’t you be quiet!?”

As I tried to force myself to get permission, my mother, who was sighing deeply, scolded me.

However, since he didn’t seem to be blindly opposing it, the possibility seemed to have increased.

“Ah, yeah… .”

I become a dumb person and wait for a moment.

Because I belatedly heard that my parents were worried about being shocked by this notification.

“Oh my… … .”

“Honey… … .”

“… … .”

“… … .”

My mother, who kept sighing as if the floor was going to collapse, and my father, who had relatively regained his original expression.

Some rather unexpected words were coming out of my father’s mouth.

“What did I say? I told them not to put it on the family register just in case they don’t know?”

“… Are you saying that now? Then you must have raised that child without parents to feel better?”

“No, why are you mad? I’m just saying that… .”

“Don’t bother me for no reason, just stay still. Okay?”

“Oh, I got it.”

I felt like I had been hit in the head as I understood the hidden meaning behind my father’s words.

It might have been a joke the two of us shared when we were kids, but now it was a blessing in disguise.

“… Did you say something like that?”

“Haha… I was just saying that, but did you really think it would turn out like this?”

My complicated heart feels a little more at ease at my father’s hearty laughter.

And then I feel secretly delighted at my mother’s words.

“Oh my… First, let’s finish eating. Let’s eat and talk. Okay?”

“Oh, I got it. Hehehe… .”

“Don’t even laugh. Just eat. Just eat.”

“Uh… Yeah.”

This time it was a static that I didn’t dislike.

Although the kitchen was filled with the sound of dishes clanking, I felt more at ease than ever before when I came home.

*

After the meal, everyone cleaned up the table.

Empty plates and spoons were in the sink, leftover side dishes were in the refrigerator, and Mom was cutting fruit for dessert while Sarang helped out next to her.

“Eat only fruit and talk. If you talk while eating, I think I’ll really get sick.”

“Hehehe… Okay.”

“… Don’t even smile so mischievously.”

“Yes!”

I didn’t hate my mom’s nagging like that.

The crumpled impression became almost the same as usual.

“… But, do you guys plan on getting married?”

“Honey!”

“Still, I have to say what I have to say. Aren’t you curious?”

The topic of marriage suddenly came out of my father’s mouth.

To be honest, I didn’t think about it that deeply, so I was very embarrassed.

Because A-reum and I were only eager to be acknowledged, we never talked about what happened after that.

“Ah… … .”

“Haha, you never thought about it, did you? I knew it.

I first looked at the beauty next to me.

Looking at his expression, it seemed like he was exactly like me.

“Yeah, it’s nice to meet you guys. ”

My father stopped talking, dipped his fork into the apple, and started chewing it.

And then he chews and swallows it and continues speaking.

“Son, and daughter. You may have been strangers in the past, but now we are family. Do you understand?”

“… Yes.”

“No matter what, does it make sense for family members to date? I can’t stand it. Your mom would feel the same way. Isn’t that right, honey?”

“Of course. How did I raise them.”

A-reum and I quietly shut our mouths and waited for our mother’s next words, who seemed a little discouraged.

“Then let’s say you give up your daughter. If you do that, Arami will become a stranger again, right? And you two can date and do whatever you want. But what happens after that? If you break up after dating, is that the end? What will become of me and your mother, who raised her all her life? I honestly don’t know if you’re thinking of us when you say things like that.”

All of these statements are correct.

And in my parents’ eyes, it seemed like they expected us to be like a pot, a relationship that would boil over quickly and then cool down just as quickly.

“Still, you have an only son and a daughter whom you raised for almost your entire life, so we want you to do whatever you want. The choice is yours, but we want you to think about us a little bit.”

“Honey! I didn’t say anything! Why are you making decisions on your own?”

“Haha! Aren’t you just like me?”

My parents started bickering with each other.

Arami and I were facing each other, lost in thought for a long time.

First of all, I think I thought too simply.

When my father told me about the wedding, I felt like I had been hit in the back of the head with a hammer.

And I think a little more deeply about me and Arami.

About whether it is okay to have a marriage like this.

.

.

.

However, I was a little disappointed by the conclusion that came out so quickly.

I wondered why I couldn’t answer sooner.

“Sigh… .”

At this, I sighed involuntarily.

It was because I was not yet at the age to think about marriage, so I was afraid that Arami might have different thoughts from me.

I watch Arami’s expression like a puppy that needs to take a dump.

The expression was no different from before.

He seemed to be watching me closely as he fiddled with his hands.

“So what do you want to do? Do you need some time to think?”

The father’s question continues again.

“Hoo… .”

“Haha, the ground is going to collapse.”

“… Father.”

“Yeah.”

“I… I… .”

“What’s that little boy mumbling about?”

“Haaah… … .”

He clenched his fist.

My heart felt like it was going to jump out of my throat.

“Khuh-hum… .”

“Wouldn’t it be better to just live as brother and sister?”

My throat is sore.

My mouth feels dry as if a drought has come.

“Ah, A-reum and… I, I want to get married.”

“Hahaha! This guy is funny. Who said he would allow it?”

“That, I told you to do it yourself earlier… .”

“No, not us, but my daughter will do it.”

I turned my head to the side in surprise at my father’s words.

There, Arami was bowing down to the customer with an expression on her face that looked like she was about to cry.

“Daughter, daughter, do you want to marry my son too?”

Arami nods her head vigorously at her father’s voice, which is full of laughter.

And next to me, my mother’s disapproving eyes were scanning me.

“Haa… Raising a son or a daughter is useless.”

“What are you doing when you’re happy too? Aren’t you happy that you can live with your daughter for the rest of her life without sending her off to get married?”

“… It’s good. I thought it would be over once I got married, but oh my… .”

I reach out to the side and pat Arami on the back.

Arami was half-hugged by me, her head buried in my arms, and shedding tears.

It wasn’t a long series of twists and turns, but I feel like I’ve aged at least ten years.

In particular, it seemed as if Arami had completely lost her mind over what would happen if she had different thoughts from me.

And our parents clicking their tongues at the sight of us like this, and our love sitting next to them.

“I have something to say, too.”

And then the lover’s mouth opened.

I feel a chill down my spine and a chill down my spine.

“Huh? What’s wrong with our little daughter?”

“Excuse me… I’m trying to retake the exam.”

“Haha, what’s there to be sorry about? Are you thinking of going to an academy or something?”

“No, that’s not it… I just thought it would be easier to do it at home.”

“Oh my, those guys told me to pay attention to our little daughter, I can tell without even looking. So, when are you coming home?”

“Ah… That’s not what I meant… .”

“Why are you being so observant? Are you uncomfortable because of them?”

Sarang smiled slightly at those words and shook her head.

“That’s not true.”

“… Really? If it’s okay with our daughter, then whatever you want, do whatever you want.”

The father strokes the head of such a loving person.

And he was looking at me and Arami alternately, nodding to us to do well.

“… And I have one more thing to tell you… .”

“Okay, feel free to talk about anything.”

“I want to marry you too.”

“… … Ha, haha! Our son is really popular, huh? He doesn’t take care of his younger siblings at home, and just teases them, huh? ”

It was a beat late, but it was my father’s hearty laugh.

But, I couldn’t help but close my eyes tightly at the words that followed.

“I’ve done everything except sex with my brother… .”