Ch.178Mom, I Love You (1)

A Slightly Late Evening.

After the wedding ended and we sent off Sol-young and Teacher Miso,

the group that came down from Seoul moved together in the kendo dojo’s van operated by the dojo.

“It feels really quiet and peaceful.”

“I know, I thought Ban Do-young would be making nonsensical comments at least once every 30 minutes. But he’s just sitting there quietly, staring out the window.”

“Oh, what a coincidence. I was thinking the exact same thing as you unnies.”

“Right? Si-young, you thought so too, didn’t you?”

“Not getting along with Ban Do-young was normal for me, but somehow I feel like you and Si-young would get along well.”

“What a coincidence, I thought so too, Seong-gyeong unni.”

Gossip behind my back.

No, they must know I can hear everything from the back seat,

so perhaps it’s more appropriate to call it gossip to my face.

There’s no need for these people to talk behind my back anyway.

Everyone in this van is someone who can speak honestly about any complaints or dislikes.

Everyone knew that while I couldn’t speak for An Seong-gyeong, there was no trace of disgust or condescension in Sa-hyang’s or Hye-rang’s words.

If there had been any such meaning, they wouldn’t have said those things with my mother sitting perfectly fine in the passenger seat.

“Do-young, are you tired? Seeing you so unusually quiet makes me feel concerned.”

“Or did you have a fight with Do Ha-min?”

“No, for those two, ‘fighting’ isn’t the right expression. ‘Do Ha-min being tormented by Ban Do-young’ would be more accurate.”

“I can’t help but agree with that.”

“Huhu, but despite that, don’t they naturally sit next to each other without even planning it? Even without making any arrangements.”

“Well… that’s true.”

“Isn’t it the same as how auntie naturally sits next to uncle?”

I always sat next to Do Ha-min whenever we rode in a car, as usual.

I did smack his butt earlier when he was awkwardly holding onto the railing, embarrassed about starting to refer to himself as “I” as if he thought he was Miss Ban Do-young,

but I didn’t want to distance myself from Ha-min with ridiculous excuses like during the school trip.

Even if I denied now that he had identified himself with Miss Ban Do-young,

nothing would change anyway.

Moreover, the seating arrangement was what it was.

In this van, excluding my dad who was driving,

Ha-min was the only male.

The rest of the party consisted of my mom and Si-young,

and those who came for Teacher Miso’s wedding:

Choi Sa-hyang, Yoo Hye-rang, and An Seong-gyeong.

All women.

If I made excuses about being embarrassed, feeling awkward,

or not knowing what to say and distanced myself from Ha-min in this van,

I would have to seat him next to one of these other women.

How could I allow another girl to take the seat next to the protagonist while the main heroine was right here with her eyes wide open?

That was unacceptable.

Even if I didn’t have the slightest feelings for Ha-min, I couldn’t allow it.

“First, I’ll give you credit. Coming to sit next to me naturally without being told. +10 points.”

He deserved high marks for not showing any embarrassment or trying to hide the fact that he was Ban Do-young’s lover in front of others.

Especially considering that due to the nature of weddings, we had to greet many relatives.

Even I had trouble dealing with the relatives who came to the wedding since I didn’t have any memories as the original Miss Ban Do-young, making it difficult to take care of just myself.

Despite that, he didn’t avoid his place, didn’t try to back away,

and admirably maintained his position as Do Ha-min, Ban Do-young’s lover, until the end of the wedding.

“…When I was flustered because I couldn’t recognize our relatives, you introduced yourself as Do-young’s boyfriend first and explained that I was nervous and shy because I wasn’t used to wedding preparations. That saved me. +10 points.”

Fortunately, I’ve memorized their faces now, but it was a close call.

When summer vacation ends and autumn comes, Chuseok holiday will arrive soon.

If I couldn’t recognize them then, I wouldn’t have Ha-min’s help like today.

I should thoroughly study the family albums before visiting relatives’ homes.

“But honestly, I didn’t like how you got caught up in your own world and excitedly chatted away during the bride’s speech. And you ignored what I was saying in the middle. Then you even cut off what I was about to say. That’s -10 points.”

“…”

“And here I am, going through all the good and bad things from today one by one…”

“…Phew.”

“And you fall asleep within 5 minutes of getting in the car. That’s another -10 points.”

On the way home.

Ha-min had fallen asleep leaning on my shoulder in the back seat.

I knew that Ha-min always falls asleep in cars, but still.

Come on.

We were just having an important conversation about which month’s bride I would be,

and he runs away from the topic claiming he’s tired.

Such a bad habit.

Later on, this will probably happen often,

when I tell him we need to make time for a serious conversation as a couple,

he’ll say he’s just going to change clothes but end up sprawled on the bed.

I personally think he needs to fix that habit of falling asleep as soon as he relaxes.

“…But I have to admit he did try his best.”

I lifted Ha-min’s face from my shoulder and laid it down on my lap.

His fluffy brown hair tickled my knees as it slowly came down.

“Oh, when did Ha-min fall asleep? He dozed off so quietly I didn’t even notice.”

“Well, he was busy running around helping during the wedding. He was practically part of the staff.”

Even though no one asked him to,

he used his strength where strength was needed,

and his brain where thinking was required,

moving busily throughout the wedding.

I suspect that the lack of any special troubles during the wedding despite the tight schedule and small staff

(except for Teacher Miso’s habitual crying)

was partly due to Ha-min’s willingness to help wherever hands were needed.

Well, at the very least, he must have been as helpful as a blank sheet of paper.

“Somehow that position looks familiar. As if you’ve done it many times before.”

“Well, I guess you would have. Someone like Do Ha-min would have their energy drained just by being next to Ban Do-young.”

“Shh. You people in the front seats. Could you please be quiet? Our baby just fell asleep. Just chat moderately and look ahead, okay? Are you going to take responsibility if our baby wakes up because of the noise from you chattering hens?”

What if he wakes up and shows me his ugly sleepy face, causing my affection points to drop?

The affection points he earned at the wedding have already been deducted here in the car.

Huh? You’re asking if I shouldn’t like his messy, ugly face after waking up too?

That’s unacceptable. If I liked that too, I’d just be a female animal.

I’m playing the role of a girlfriend, not a female who loves everything about Do Ha-min.

“Shoo, shoo, stop looking this way and look ahead. It’ll disturb our baby’s sleep. Our baby has a disease where he dies if non-virgins look at him with lewd eyes.”

“I’m seriously going to kill you.”

“Then Si-young and I can keep looking, right? At Ha-min’s sleeping face.”

“Flat-chested girls will also kill him if they look with lewd eyes, so turn around.”

“Just die, Ban-thief unni, not Ha-min oppa.”

Waving my hand to signal them to ignore the back seat and look forward,

I redirected their attention away from Ha-min and me.

“Sigh. Surrounded by these pretty girls. Are you going to keep being the center of other women’s attention? That’s another -10 points. You shouldn’t waste all the affection points you earned at the wedding like this.”

Today, Ha-min’s affection points, which had risen by 20,

were reduced by a total of 30 points for becoming the object of attention of four pretty girls (two non-virgins, two flat-chested ones) excluding Ban Do-young, resulting in a net negative gain for the day.

“What are you going to do? At this rate, my affection points might go negative. You know you’ll have to pay back with your body for the points you’ve lost, right? It’s common sense.”

-Peck

I silently embraced Ha-min’s face that was resting on my shoulder,

filling in the lost affection points in various places.

-Peck

One on the forehead.

-Peck peck

One on each cheek.

-Peck peck peck

Around his neck, which remained firm even while sleeping.

-Peck peck peck peck

And on these unnecessarily muscular, mischievous arms that smelled of sweat.

“Phew… I think I’ve covered today’s losses. Keep doing well before your affection points hit rock bottom.”

I said while stroking Ha-min’s hair as he slept with his head on my lap.

Now Ha-min’s remaining affection points were 1,000,000,597.

**

“Hey, Do Ha-min. Wake up. We’re in front of your house.”

“…Huh?”

Ha-min’s eyes snapped open at Do-young’s voice.

In the dark of midnight, the van carrying Do-young’s group was parked in front of the apartment building where Ha-min lived.

“Oh. We’re already here.”

“Your neighborhood comes before ours, so we stopped by. How did you not wake up even once until we arrived?”

“Ah… s-sorry. How long was I asleep? I was sleeping in such a comfortable embrace that I lost track of time.”

“Hooh… so that’s how you’re going to play it. Fine, I’ll let that comment cancel out your deduction. Hurry inside. Your mom will be worried.”

“Yeah… you could have just dropped me at the station, but thanks for coming all the way to my house.”

“I know your address, so how could I not?”

Ha-min, now fully awake, patted his face to shake off the remaining drowsiness and got out of the van.

“Ha-min, thank you for all your hard work at the wedding today. Go home and rest well.”

“Have a good night, Ha-min. See you next time?”

“Get home safely, Ha-min! See you after the break! Or before if possible!”

“…Sleep well, Ha-min oppa.”

“Th-thank you, everyone! Get home safely!”

“Hey, Do Ha-min! No matter how sleepy you are, wash your face before going to bed, okay? Kekeke.”

“Alright, I got it! Do-young, you get home safely too!”

Ha-min bowed gratefully to Do-young’s group for bringing him home and then headed inside.

“This habit of falling dead asleep in cars… I need to fix it. At this rate, I won’t be able to keep my promise to drive for Do-young.”

Reflecting on his shortcomings for the day,

Ha-min entered the house where his mother was waiting.

“I’m home.”

“Oh, Ha-min, you’re back? Did the teacher’s wedding go well?”

“Yes, it ended well.”

“I see… Huh? Kekeke…”

His mother, who had been waiting for her son’s return on the sofa, suddenly covered her mouth to suppress a laugh when she saw Ha-min’s face.

“It must have been a wedding full of love. Or perhaps Do-young was very inspired?”

“Huh…? What’s wrong, Mom?”

“Nothing. Nothing at all. Make sure to wash up before bed. You don’t want to transfer it to your pillow or blanket.”

“…Huh?”

Puzzled by his mother’s comment, which was similar to Do-young’s parting words,

Ha-min tilted his head as he went to his room.

“Did Do-young… draw something weird on my face while I was asleep?”

Since he had previously played a small prank on Do-young’s forehead,

it wouldn’t be particularly strange if she had taken delayed revenge.

“What kind of drawing did she do…”

Ha-min immediately went to the mirror in the living room

to check what Do-young had done.

“…W-what is all this?”

Ha-min’s face, neck, and arms were covered with familiar-sized lip marks.

Ten in total.