episode_0156

“Jaehyuk, were you smoking?”

“Oh, no, I can’t smoke because my lungs are weak.”

“Is that so? Well, I’m sorry, but please understand in advance. If you don’t have a cigarette in your mouth… it might be difficult to have a smooth conversation.”

“I understand.”

Tick! Tick!

With a gentle warning, a flame began to flicker in the faint darkness.

As I quietly smelled the pungent cigarette smoke wafting in, I waited for the uncle’s next words.

What will he say first? No, would it be better if a fist came flying instead of words?

Even though Jiwoo’s parents were gentle and mild-mannered, what I had done was a big mistake that even getting hit with dust in the pouring rain wouldn’t be enough to atone for.

Preparing myself to accept even a broken bone somewhere, I was ready to face the uncle’s anger.

But.

“First… I should thank you.”

“Me, me?”

…My preparedness seemed futile as, after a brief silence, the uncle unexpectedly expressed warm gratitude.

In a situation where even a flying bat wouldn’t be out of place, a thank you was the last thing I expected. Am I dreaming right now?

Just to be sure, I pinched my thigh hard, but unfortunately, the strong pain indicated that it was indeed reality.

Confused, I could only roll my eyes helplessly, and the uncle soon turned his gaze towards me and continued speaking.

“Our Jiwoo… said you helped a lot when he was struggling? When his apartment caught fire, you lent him your place, and even helped him adapt…”

“I-I just did what was natural! You have to help a friend in need! Yes, that’s all!”

“Haha, you’re much better than me, who did nothing. Even that guy who always used to fight took it for granted, and as a parent, I wonder…”

“…”

Although the words seemed to be the closest to the right answer, the uncle, with a bitter and melancholic face, weakly exhaled cigarette smoke.

Feeling like I had answered wrong, I hesitated, and the uncle soon wiped away the guilt on his face and asked for my forgiveness.

“I’m sorry, I felt like I didn’t fulfill my role as a parent when you were struggling, and I felt pathetic for myself, so my emotions got the better of me for a moment.”

“I-I may not know what happened, but please don’t blame yourself too much. Jiwoo, that guy, never once blamed you during the six months we lived together.”

“You know him, right? He’s someone with a deep heart. Even though he may have seemed fine on the outside, his heart probably wasn’t.”

“…Even though he may have struggled, he wouldn’t have lasted long. The Jiwoo I know… rather than blaming others when faced with misfortune, he would think of ways to overcome it.”

“Hmm, is that so…”

Offering words of comfort without knowing the situation is clearly deceitful.

Instead of blindly comforting, I cautiously brought up Jiwoo’s behavior that I had observed while living together, and the uncle extinguished his cigarette with a somewhat softened expression.

…Extinguishing the cigarette, does that mean he’s getting to the point now?

Feeling the pressure increase, I swallowed nervously as the uncle, in a softer voice than before, asked his question.

“So… how did you end up dating our kid?”

“M-Me?”

“I’m asking where you fell for him. From my perspective, knowing your past, it seems like the two of you becoming lovers is like a miracle.”

…Well, even so, isn’t it a bit much to call it a miracle?

In a moment of disbelief, laughter burst out of me, but when I thought about the time before the racial mutation crisis, I couldn’t find a way to refute his words.

I started to think about how I fell in love, trying to erase the past that suddenly came to mind and answer the man’s question.

“Um…”

It’s difficult.

There are so many things coming to mind, but it’s hard to pick just one to talk about.

Everything about him is lovely, how do I even begin to explain it?

“He’s always calm and collected, but when that facade breaks, the flustered side that comes out is so endearing, and the way he doesn’t take his kindness for granted is also so lovely, and what else… Oh, right! His intense possessiveness but cautious display of attachment…”

With each charming point that came to mind, a bitter smile formed involuntarily.

Instead of trying to be witty, I decided it would be best to just list them one by one, but the man soon made a bored expression and shook his head.

“…Alright, that’s enough.”

“I’m sorry, sir, I didn’t mean to…”

“I understand. It’s hard to control yourself when you’re in love, isn’t it? But… you still need to have some restraint.”

Tick! Tick!

With a sigh, the man took out another cigarette and lit it.

As I stared at the ground, embarrassed by my outburst, the man stood up and started to stretch.

“Coming here without avoiding it and chattering away, it seems like you’re ready to take responsibility… Well, I guess this is enough to pass.”

“…Really?”

“Really. But… I can’t help but want to hit you a few times. I mean, if I let you have a taste of that, would you be satisfied?”

“You can hit me as much as you want, sir.”

“Already calling me sir, huh, hehe… Well then, I won’t hold back.”

If you’ve done wrong, you must accept the consequences.

If enduring three beatings can wash away the sin of premarital pregnancy, isn’t that a bargain?

And surely… I wouldn’t go as far as to kill a baby daddy?

Even if I get hit hard enough to break bones, it should be enough to just bruise them.

Feeling somewhat relieved, I closed my eyes and waited for the impending pain.

Whack!

Not long after, the man’s club struck my buttocks forcefully.

“Ouch…!”

Before I could even let out a painful scream, another blow followed.

As the pain surged through me, I collapsed to the ground, but the man picked me up and said, “You should wash up and apply some ointment. It’s in the drawer under the TV.”

“Haah… Haah… It’s okay, it’s not broken. By the way, sir? If it’s not too much trouble, may I ask you one thing?”

“It’s not a problem, but choose your words carefully. I might get scared if it seems too serious.”

Perhaps his anger was somewhat relieved by hitting me, as the man nodded with a content expression.

Even though it hurts to be hit, I feel more at ease now than before.

Taking a moment to catch my breath as the man operated the grinder as requested, I whispered my question.

“Um, before you and your mother-in-law got married… who proposed to whom?”

“Uh, I was a bit surprised when you asked me to turn on the grinder all of a sudden… Well, I did propose to her first.”

“Then… could I possibly ask for some advice? I have no idea what to do, to be honest.”

After confirming that Jiyoo was pregnant, I started preparing for the proposal to keep my promise to take responsibility.

During the daytime when the vampire was asleep, I secretly visited the jewelry store and bought an engagement ring. Now all I had to do was hand the ring to Jiyoo and ask her to marry me.

…I was afraid.

Would someone like me, who was clueless about relationships, be able to propose properly?

As the fox spirit guest had mentioned, would it not become the worst memory of my life?

So if I had the chance, I wanted to ask someone who had successfully proposed before.

Shouldn’t I avoid the worst-case scenario at all costs?

As there was not a single married person among my few acquaintances, and the internet was not trustworthy.

Should I ask my father? Unfortunately, I had heard that my mother had proposed to him before.

“Cough! Cough! Ha, haha…”

How embarrassed must he have been to have his future father-in-law overhear him smoking and coughing.

Thinking back, I was too embarrassed and apologetic to change the subject, but it seemed that my future father-in-law was already interested, urging me to tell him the plan.

“Kuh, I’ve always thought you were quite an interesting fellow… No, how desperate and rushed must you have been to ask me this, so what is your plan?”

“Well… Jiyoo’s birthday is in a few days, right? When the mood is right, I’ll pretend to give her a gift and hand her the ring…”

As I spilled it out, it seemed like a pointless thing to do, so I trailed off at the end. However, unexpectedly, my future father-in-law smiled approvingly at my proposal plan.

“Hmm… It’s special but appropriate. It doesn’t seem bad.”

“Really?”

“You resemble my wife more than me, so it should work out. Have confidence.”

“Thank goodness…!”

Feeling endlessly happy after hearing the assurance of success.

But the joy was short-lived as a stern voice, though gentle, sounded in my ear.

“…Jaehyuk.”

“Yes, future father-in-law.”

“I’m sorry to backtrack, but would it be okay if I hit you a few more times?”

I obediently lifted my calf.