episode_0111

“Wow… so beautiful. How is she this adorable?”

“What are you saying to the child? Our cute little lady~ What’s your name?”

“Kim Ji-eun! That’s my name!”

She even greets well.

“How old are you, Ji-eun?”

“I’m five years old!”

“Oh….”

Enchanted by Ji-eun’s charming expression, the sisters wanted to hug her.

“Why are you so cute? A mini version of wisdom has been created.”

“Mom….”

“They’re Mom’s friends~”

“Friends…?”

Ji-eun mentioned that she’s at the age to attend kindergarten and has made many friends.

“Yes yes. There’s Daeun and Aeun. Mommy has friends too.”

“Wow….”

Not sure why she’s surprised, Ji-eun looked at me, then smiled brightly at the sisters.

“!!!”

Naye unni and Hyejin unni also arrived.

“There are people we haven’t seen in a while?”

Mom called out.

Probably didn’t call everyone I know.

Actually, that’s not true.

I almost called everyone in my contacts.

“Oh! Come on in. Everyone could make it this time due to their schedules aligning.”

“Friends, right?”

“Yes. They’re friends.”

That’s why we gathered.

I called them.

“Everyone! Look here!”

Certainly need a place for everyone to gather.

Booked a pension overlooking the sea.

Plenty of meat, not lacking in vegetables either.

Actually… Mom helped a lot.

I’ve never booked a pension or done anything like this before, don’t even know the reviews.

Since my brother also lacks such experience, I asked Mom for help.

“Thank you all so much!!”

And so, we gathered.

Truly grateful.

One of my lifelong wishes, perhaps.

Really wanted to try this.

Gathering together to eat meat.

Isn’t it nice. Things like this.

“Hehehe. This is so nice.”

Spread out the table and grill the meat.

With the number of people, three barbecue grills were set up.

“We could have hired staff. Won’t we be too busy to talk?”

“I wanted to do it myself. No special meaning… just wanted to cook and feed you guys…?”

It’s not like I can’t concentrate and of course, I can talk while doing it.

“I’ll help too~”

“Me too~!”

The sisters volunteered.

Although they rolled up their sleeves and came close, I didn’t intend for that.

“Just… we just need to grill.”

“Ugh. When will we eat~”

“Do we have to make it hard for our younger siblings~?”

The sisters get along really well.

I can’t beat these sisters.

“!!”

Naye unni was also holding onto my sleeve.

“Naye unni too…?”

-Nods

“Uh… thank you.”

Ji-eun decided to be my brother’s companion, and Sua unni decided to be the talkative one.

Sua unni will soon become a mother too.

Actually, I wanted to invite Hyun unni, the person who is in a relationship with her, and our parents, but it seemed like things would get out of hand if I did.

“What am I doing?”

“Um… playing?”

Hyun unni is good at taking photos when she’s bored, so she’ll handle it well.

“Oh… huh? Little lady, would you like to try modeling?”

“Um… what’s modeling?”

She’ll do well…?

What is this unni doing now?

“It seems like Ji-eun is still too young for that kind of thing….”

My brother hugs Ji-eun.

It’s unreasonable after all.

We’re not trying to send Ji-eun into showbiz right now.

“Um… I guess so.”

“Dad, what’s a model?”

“Um… wearing pretty clothes in front of a camera and taking pictures?”

My brother explained it briefly.

Though that’s a correct explanation….

“Wow! Hal-lae hal-lae!”

Author’s words to Jieun are always filled with praise.

Pretty clothes catch Jieun’s attention, and posing in front of the camera is something she enjoys the most.

Calling herself a princess while wearing princess-like attire.

“Oh… this isn’t it.”

It’s cute… yeah. It’s so cute that there’s nothing much to say, actually.

But it’s not right.

“Unni~?”

“Kkum… It would be nice if you came back quickly.”

“I’m still far away~”

“Aha….”

Unni took out her camera and started taking pictures of Jieun.

Aware of being photographed, Jieun made a sunflower shape with her hand and rested her chin on it.

“Oh… that’s good. How about smiling from behind there?”

For someone just playing around with the camera, she acts quite professionally.

Is this occupational hazard?

“Waah!”

“Wow, so pretty~”

Occupational hazard… maybe?

“Hey, dongsaeng~ Looks like the meat is going to burn, doesn’t it?”

“Huh!?”

I was too focused on Jieun.

Upon Unni’s words, I immediately grabbed the tongs to flip the meat.

“…Huh?”

“Actually, I already flipped it~”

Unni’s tone was mischievous, but her sense was spot on.

“Kkum… I was surprised.”

“Why did you grab it when you were so worried about Jieun….”

“Oh well. I did it because I wanted to. Everyone is enjoying the food.”

Meat is really good.

Good meat melts in your mouth, you know.

“Oh…”

Dad is having a sincere conversation with Jihyeok oppa, Jihyeok is taking photos with Jieun, and Hyejin unni is setting up the camera properly, even showing a suspicious smile.

“Hehe. Try one too.”

“Umm….”

Mom and Dad are lovey-dovey.

Sua unni was patting her stomach, leaning against Jihyeok oppa.

“Hmm… Should we try it now too?”

“Yeah. It’s time for a meal to go into our stomachs.”

“Huh. Didn’t Jieun eat much when she was pregnant?”

Everyone is enjoying the food.

This is what I wanted.

“Ayy~ Wasn’t it you who knew better about this body? Even if you eat like a normal person, you lose weight.”

“Huh… I envy you.”

“Well… I don’t like it.”

Being able to gather like this and talk about things we couldn’t before.

How wonderful.

The sun is setting.

Lights come on along the railing that stretches along the road.

“Wow… it’s incredibly beautiful.”

The sun sets between the mountains, illuminating us and the world until the very end.

I didn’t expect such a beautiful scenery just slightly outside the city.

“Today… and until tomorrow. I don’t know why 1 night 2 days feels so short.”

“That’s why we all came on a weekday vacation instead of the weekend, right? Rest comfortably when you get home.”

“Yeah… thank you.”

Unni wrapped the grilled meat for me and fed it to me.

“I want to have hot pot again later.”

“Unni, feel free to come to our house anytime. I’ll prepare the ingredients.”

Suhyun unni is my friend and benefactor.

Hot pot.

Perhaps that’s when things really started to change.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

“Oh. Me too! I want to eat Tanghulu!”

Sua unni, who had been quietly listening, shouts for Tanghulu.

“Ugh… Tanghulu is a bit…”

But I’m not one to treat Tanghulu as food.

It’s easy to make, but I hesitate to make it.

“Umm… then something else.”

“Ugh… okay. We’ll have Tanghulu ingredients ready, so just bring yourself.”

“Yay!”

I received a lot of help from Sua unni as well.

At first, I was just confused by being forced to wear women’s clothes, but looking back now, the fact that I became so interested in women’s clothing was also thanks to Sua unni.

“Sigh… That was fun.”

“Isn’t that just a work hazard?”

“I consider this playing. This is my life.”

Hyejin adjusts the camera, a faint smile on her face.

Initially a business-like relationship, now we are like sisters.

When it comes to photos, it’s safe to say that all my pictures could be credited to her achievements.

Especially the wedding photos. And Jieun’s first birthday photos.

It was just wishful thinking to dress up every time we met.

Hyejin was indeed a beauty.

Comparing her appearance when we first met by the sea to now, one couldn’t even imagine they were the same person.

Taller than me.

With neatly trimmed and managed curly hair, she looked like a long-haired young man from afar, but up close, she was a beauty that could captivate anyone.

Cute enough to just look at, her attire was also neat.

“I have something on my mind.”

Suddenly, Hyejin was looking at me.

There was a somewhat serious gaze in her eyes, making me slightly tense.

“To me…?”

“Yes. Just… you know, I quit my job and settled down. I’m not sure.”

After picking up a piece of meat and eating it, she looked back at me.

“Are you happy…?”

“I am happy. Each day is enjoyable.”

With those murmured words, I reassured her with certainty.

“Will I ever meet someone like that too?”

“If it’s you, anyone would be lucky.”

“I need to meet someone I love. There’s no one else I can be friends with like you.”

“Oh. Is this a confession?”

“Come on. Do I look like someone who would mess with a married woman?”

Memories of us sleeping together flashed through my mind.

“…You think so?”

“That’s too much.”

“You will meet someone you like. It’s not just about destiny for no reason.”

If Hyejin puts effort into dating, she will surely meet someone.

As long as she shows interest in other connections beyond her hobbies.

“Yeah. Thanks. Sorry for suddenly getting serious.”

“No problem. Thank you for talking to me.”

“As expected… you’re too kind.”

Filling a cup full of alcohol, she downed it in one shot and then disappeared somewhere.

“Ahh~”

Seems like Hyejin wanted to play with Jieun.

“!!!”

“Ah. Good job.”

“!!”

“Oh. You know how to drink, Hyejin?”

-Nodding

Next to me, Naye unni offered me a drink.

Drunk Naye unni… Oh. She was already drunk.

Through the gentle lighting, Naye’s face looked slightly dim.

“Cheers!”

One might expect a childlike grimace after drinking, but Naye’s expression seemed content and happy, as if savoring the drink.

“Mmm… sweet.”

Naye looked at me with a vacant expression.

“Um… Naye?”

Naye pressed closer to me.

“Hey.”

As she leaned in, her clothes brushed against me, and a fresh, sweet, cool scent intensified.

“Unni~”

The face that had been looking at me now rested on my shoulder.

-Nodding

From the slight nodding, it seemed she wasn’t asleep.

“Every time I see you, Unni, there’s something cute about you.”

Is Naye one of the cutest people I’ve seen?

She gives off a vibe like a cute little creature.

Yes, exactly. She reminds me of a cat.

Despite being over thirty, her skin seems better than mine.

Is she putting in a lot of effort to maintain it?

“You were the cutest person I’ve ever seen.”

-Shivers

Speaking in past tense made me shiver slightly.

But there was a reason for it.

Originally… Just five years ago, the title of cuteness champion belonged to my sister, but I ended up having a cute child… Hehe.

The author is indeed cute.

Because there are charming points that babies can have.

My sister wrapped her arms around my waist, and suddenly, I found myself kneeling down before her.

She neatly arranged my sister’s hair and lightly patted me on the back.

My eyelashes fluttered as it tickled.

“If I drink, will I become even cuter?”

Amidst the bustling noise, Mom, dressed elegantly, holding a wine glass in one hand, sat down in front of me.

“Did you have fun today?”

“Well~ It was fun because it’s been a while since something lively happened.”

I’m glad it was fun.

I hoped everyone enjoyed themselves, not just me.

“Nothing special happened during this time, right?”

“My days are all the same.”

Still leisurely, but the stories she told were so entertaining that I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

“Jieuni is really cute. I wonder what she’ll grow up to be.”

“She’ll excel at everything and even be beautiful, right, as my daughter?”

Mom burst into laughter at that.

“Haha… I don’t know anymore.”

I didn’t quite understand, but Mom was laughing at me, not with me.

“I… I felt the same way. I always wondered what would happen when looking at Suhani.”

“Oh… really?”

“Yeah… like… making mistakes.”

It was funny yet sad.

We all already knew how things turned out.

“Well… whatever. You’re going to have fun tomorrow, right? I’ll go to bed first.”

“Goodnight, Mom.”

Did I seem somewhat childlike?

Mom roughly put down her glass and hugged me.

The rich scent of matured grapes wafted past my nose.

“Thank you. Thank you…”

Mom called for my brother and took him away with her.

Even Dad was there.

“Sigh… Another day passes by.”

A chaotic-looking pension.

Passing through a messy place.

Just as I was about to tidy up a bit, I remembered Mom saying that if we called the cleaning service, everything would be gone by morning.

“…Should I sleep?”

I trudge towards the pension.

“…Ah.”

I shine the flashlight around, wondering if our people spilled or misplaced anything.

You never know. If we lost something valuable, I’d feel unjust if I didn’t find it.

“Hmm… nothing.”

Luckily, there was nothing, so I started heading back to the pension when I saw Dad leaning against the railing, gazing at the night sky.

“Dad!”

“…Yes.”

“Did you enjoy today?”

“Yes. I did.”

Dad remains as modest as ever.

He doesn’t seem affected by the alcohol at all.

Dad lets out a deep sigh.

A sense of relief.

Although he’s far from the light and hard to see clearly, it seemed like he was smiling faintly.

“Thank you. For inviting me to a place like this.”

“Oh, no. Among the people I wanted to invite, you were the first on my list, Dad.”

“Yeah… yeah.”

I slowly approached Dad.

“Thank you. Always. I’m more thankful.”

Dad looked at me and then gazed back at the sky.

With no pollution and not a single cloud, the stars shone brighter than ever.

“Thank you for… taking care of me so well. I should be the one thanking you, not the other way around.”

Dad has always helped me.

I want to repay him in full.

“Live long. That way, I can be more filial.”

But I know I can’t do that.

If I do better, Dad will try to give back to me.

Even more.

“Alright….”

“You haven’t forgotten about going to the beach together, have you? When we have time again, let’s ride a yacht to the seaside. We can fish, catch some fish for sashimi… and I want to stargaze together like this.”

I lean on my dad’s shoulder.

Completely, without expecting anything in return.

But he stands in front of me, protecting me from threats.

“Dad, you’re my greatest idol.”

I couldn’t help but admire my dad.

“Hehe. Let’s go inside now. It gets cold at night.”

As we entered the pension, everyone was sprawled out.

Is the fact that there’s no one snoring the key point?

It was so quiet that if it weren’t for the lights being off, I would have thought no one was there.

“Goodnight, everyone. Let’s have fun together again tomorrow.”

Beside Su-a unnie, Jieun was already asleep.

I carefully sat down so as not to wake her.

I waved to my dad and turned off the lights.

In the pitch-black room, the sound of the long refrigerator continued in the cozy atmosphere.

Everything is the result of mere coincidences.

That’s why I don’t regret becoming a woman.

Because those coincidences overlapped several times.

When coincidences happen repeatedly, they are no longer called coincidences.

We call that fate.

I live with the man I used to call my brother-in-law.

And even our daughter, who I wouldn’t trade for anything.