episode_0053

[Episode 053] Special Day

Thud!

“What, what? What’s this sound?”

Suddenly hearing a loud noise from the house, I search for wood and rush back to the house in surprise.

Heesun, who is far away, seems to have hurriedly run over, looking around the yard with surprised eyes, catching her breath in front of me.

Thud!

What could possibly be in the yard that there’s the sound of a excavator coming from our house…?

Hurriedly rushing in, I look out into our small yard…

“What, what is that?”

A huge… elephant? Bear? A peculiar creature is uprooting trees like Heesun’s and digging the ground to plant them in the yard.

Eventually, all the trees are planted in the yard…

Bang!

The elephant transforms back into a cute puppy with a sound.

“Woof woof!”

Approaching with a cute wagging tail and pawing the ground, as if asking for praise, it nudges its hindquarters towards me.

I bend down and pat its hindquarters in surprise, briefly meeting Heesun’s eyes…

We stand there for a while, not saying a word, just in silence.

“Oh my! Look at Sari, husband! These antlers are really cute.”

Sari is currently being held by Heesun, trying on the clothes she made one by one.

Today, our family’s outfits were all unique and different,

I wore a Santa outfit with a full cotton beard, while Heesun had a strange mix of Eastern and Western styles with a hairpin in her hair and a red Santa hat on top.

And Sari’s outfit was…

None other than ‘Rudolph.’

When I first explained Rudolph to Heesun, I hesitated.

I suggested not making it since deer might not have a good image for us, but Heesun thought it would be cute and insisted on trying it out,

How could I have thought not to put it on? Sari looks so adorable in it.

After all, Rudolph is a ‘reindeer,’ right? Reindeer and deer are different!

“Woof! Woof! Nyanyanyang!”

Wearing the ‘reindeer’ headband made by Heesun and a fake sponge nose twisted on its nose, Sari happily jumps around after getting dressed.

Both Heesun and I couldn’t wipe the satisfied smiles off our faces watching that scene.

Busy decorating the tree, making clothes, and even cooking pasta to create a date-like atmosphere, we almost didn’t realize how the day had passed.

We light candles and sit on the veranda, admiring the twinkling decorations around the tree Sari planted, illuminated by the flickering candlelight.

With Heesun leaning on my shoulder and Sari quietly panting on my lap, we enjoy the view.

Even having a tree in the yard adds charm and isn’t so bad.

Of course, it was quite surprising at first…

Not only Sari transformed into an elephant-like figure, but also the fact that whenever we found a nice tree, we thought about decorating it, and seeing Sari bring a whole tree unexpectedly… Ah, I can’t describe that feeling.

But that tree must be alive, right? It should be…

Hmm… I should probably give it some nutrients with a sponge roll later.

For now… let’s just enjoy this scenery.

I wish we had added LED lights powered by batteries here. It’s a bit regrettable.

“Wow, husband, it’s really beautiful. Today, making clothes, decorating, and everything was so hectic, your outfit is so fun, Sari looks cute, and… and I never knew the sight of trees sparkling in candlelight could be this beautiful.”

Heesun’s voice, leaning on my shoulder, is slightly moist. Being sensitive, she seems touched by the beautiful scenery.

Alright… What’s the use of light bulbs? It just makes others uncomfortable if they find out. Isn’t this beautiful enough?

Of course, the most beautiful thing is right next to me.

“But Heeseon, are you okay? You made hometown clothes for me, dressed our Sari so cutely, but you didn’t dress well…”

At those words, Heeseon’s face playfully changes.

“What are you talking about, uncle? Of course, I made my clothes too.”

“Huh? Weren’t you originally wearing that outfit? Did you make the same outfit again?”

“Ahaha! It’s impossible to remake such clothes in such a short time.”

“Then what kind of clothes did you wear…?”

In response to my question, Heeseon presses her buttocks closer to mine and whispers in my ear.

“I wore it underneath, not on the outside. Hoo…”

Whispering softly, seductively blowing warm breath into my ear, sending shivers down my spine.

“Umm…”

“Hehe, it’s Lover’s Day today, husband? So I prepared secretly… The fabric was small and thin, so it didn’t take much time… How about it? Aren’t you curious about the clothes I made?”

Small… Thin… Fabric? Ugh…

I was too curious.

I wanted to grab Heeseon’s arm right away and drag her inside to check, but…

I have to suppress my desires for now.

There’s something important I have to do today!

I’ve already coordinated everything with Sari in advance.

I promised to let Sari sleep separately in the kitchen for a day longer in exchange for another week of curry. So, I secretly made Sari’s house in the kitchen and placed it there.

What am I going to do??

Today… I’m finally going to propose properly to Heeseon.

Actually, I planned to propose before the year ended, but when it came time to prepare, I felt a bit embarrassed and kept postponing it until now.

I haven’t told Heeseon, but I’ve already set a wedding date for next year, so I need to propose quickly before that!

Coincidentally, it feels like the world is urging me to propose today.

With such a beautiful tree and a special day like Christmas Eve, and the snow falling beautifully.

Wouldn’t it be foolish to miss this golden opportunity?

So, I kept touching the jade ring hidden in Heeseon’s pants that I bought secretly at the last village fair.

First, let’s set the mood by changing into some nice clothes. Proposing in a Santa suit is a bit awkward.

“Kum… Heeseon?”

“Why, uncle? Why are you acting so aloof when a pretty lady is seducing you so openly today? We rarely have time together… You’ve been avoiding taking off your clothes every morning because of Sari… Have you accumulated a lot?”

Heeseon subtly leans against my arm as if disappointed.

But… I must resist desperately right now.

“Um… I’ll change my clothes first and come back.”

“Why? You’re going to take everything off in the room anyway.”

“Well… I have something important to do right now… Just wait a moment, Heeseon.”

“Aish… The atmosphere was nice…”

Heeseon’s shoulders slump slightly in disappointment.

It hurt to see her like that, but!

Let’s consider this a step back for a leap forward… Once I propose, we can regain the atmosphere.

“Yay! Yay!”

Excitedly calling Sari, who is circling around the tree.

Sari initially looks puzzled, cutely tilting her head, but then follows me with a determined expression when I show her the jade ring from my pocket.

“Yay!”

Nodding, she follows me with determination.

Heeseon just watches us enter the kitchen with a puzzled expression.

Entering the kitchen, I show Sari the jade ring wrapped in silk and say,

“Sari! When I give you the signal, you run here with this in your mouth, okay?”

“Yay!”

Nod.

So the two of us exchanged serious glances and made plans for the future.

Oh my! I should change my clothes!

Here, Heesun, who had hidden it in advance, puts on the black silk dress that was carefully made for her.

It was a nice outfit, but it seemed too flashy, so I never wore it and kept it hidden in a corner. Today, I decided to wear it.

Well, even if I want to wear it, I can’t because if I wear this outfit in a place where social distinctions are strict, I will definitely stand out.

So I told Heesun that I would wear it when I go to see the craftsman later…

Today is an important day as well.

I put on the clothes and entrust Sarie with inspection.

“How does it look, Sarie? Do you think Heesun will like it?”

“……”

Sarie looks at me blankly without any reaction.

Is it because it’s different from usual?

“Bark! Bark!”

Suddenly, Sarie barks and rubs against my leg.

“Um… Does that mean it’s okay? Well, I don’t know, but it must look better than before. Anyway, Sarie, do you know what it means when I kneel down on one knee?”

“Bark!”

Good.

“Phew….”

I take a deep breath and head to the kitchen.

Heesun sits on the veranda, looking at the falling snow and trees with a slightly lonely and dark expression.

I felt really sorry for making Heesun feel lonely as if I had proposed to her for no reason.

I quickly approach Heesun and offer my hand.

“Heesun, could you please get up for a moment?”

Heesun turns her head at my words, then looks surprised when she sees my attire.

“Wow, Oh my brother! You look so cool right now! What’s going on? You refused to wear it even when I asked you to wear it once, saying it’s too precious and you’ll wear it when you go to heaven…?”

Heesun’s cheeks were very red.

Seeing her like that, I remembered that she had been outside in the cold weather.

I need to finish this quickly. If Heesun catches a cold because of my embarrassment, it won’t be good.

I silently take Heesun’s hand and help her up, leading her to the tree.

“Haha, what are you trying to do? By the way, where’s Sarie?”

Even though she asks with a smile, I couldn’t answer.

I’m just too nervous right now… Even though I’m sure Heesun, who loves me, will accept if I propose, my heart is pounding like when I used to present in front of others during elementary school.

“Why is our handsome prince acting like this? With such a serious face…”

I close my eyes tightly.

I slowly take Heesun’s left hand and kneel down.

“Oh my goodness! Brother! Why are you kneeling… Please get up quickly… What if someone sees us..!”

Even though there’s no one here except us, Heesun couldn’t help but be flustered at my kneeling posture.

This isn’t a traditional proposal method, so it might be embarrassing.

Western-style proposal methods may not be familiar here.

But still, I wanted to do it this way.

Because she’s the one who loves me. Because she’s the one I love.

For you, kneeling down is really nothing.

Knowing that you’re someone who would do anything for me, I will do anything for you too.

“Bark! Bark!”

At the right moment, our Sarie comes bouncing over with a silk cloth in her mouth like a rabbit.

The ring slowly placed on my hand.

“Oh. Oh, brother….”

Heesun’s trembling pupils.

My heart is pounding as much.

I put the ring on Heesun’s finger and say.

“I love you. Will you marry me?”

“……”

It was a dark night with snow falling.

For someone, it was a day that evoked nostalgia for their hometown,

for someone else, it was the most special day of their long life.

And… for someone, it was a day of admiration….

The cute puppy looks enviously at the pretty sight with its ash-colored eyes, then barks once and trots into the kitchen with quick footsteps.

The man, who was smiling as if he found the woman who cried like a child and nodded her head lovely, picks up the woman’s leg, carries her into the room, and cries like a princess.

The candle that lit up the tree suddenly goes out in the falling snow, leaving only smoke flying,

A rural thatched house. Only the red light pouring out of the window brightens the darkness.