Ch.211211. An Unexpected Reunion

“Why are you here?”

“…Why are you here?”

The two questions overlapped, and both of them immediately frowned. From what I could tell, my brother and Hwa Nabi’s sister didn’t seem particularly pleased to see each other.

“That’s what I want to ask. Weren’t you studying abroad in Boston?”

My brother, who was standing with his hand on the doorknob, asked first. In response, Hwa Nabi’s sister—my sister-in-law—straightened up from leaning against the wall and shot back.

“I was. But my sister’s getting married. Isn’t it proper etiquette to come back and attend the wedding?”

“Ha, I never thought I’d hear the word ‘etiquette’ coming from your mouth.”

“Are you done talking?”

“…”

“…”

Their gazes locked in midair. They glared at each other intensely without breaking eye contact, as if they were mortal enemies.

“Ah, forget it. What’s with this disgraceful behavior on such a special day? If you want to fight, contact me separately later. I’m busy right now.”

My sister-in-law shook her head and spoke while subtly glancing at me. Noticing where her gaze landed, my brother nodded with a suppressed expression.

“Fine. This isn’t something to discuss in front of my brother anyway. We’ll talk later.”

After responding coldly, my brother made eye contact with me. His eyes, which had been consistently calm, were now trembling slightly as if flustered.

“Siwoo. If anything happens, contact me right away. Got it? And keep the conversation short. We need to prepare for the entrance in five minutes.”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. I will.”

I feel like I’ve heard something similar before. I think the other person was my sister that time. Both then and now, I don’t understand why my brother is always surrounded by such strong-willed women. Should I say they’re domineering?

…Anyway, after giving a reluctant response, I observed both of them. My brother, while backing away, kept looking at my sister-in-law with concern for me before closing the door. My sister-in-law then said something in the direction where my brother had been.

“Seriously, I can’t believe this. People might think I’m saying something inappropriate.”

“…”

I don’t know how to respond. Staying silent might make her feel awkward, but agreeing would mean badmouthing my brother.

After briefly contemplating, I chose silence. If I stay quiet, this will pass.

“Ah, sorry. I called you here but we’ve just been talking about ourselves, haven’t we?”

“No, it’s fine. It was interesting.”

Thanks to that, I heard quite an intriguing conversation, so there’s no need to apologize to me. I responded sincerely.

At that, my sister-in-law’s gaze changed. Until just now, it was a look of seeing something unfamiliar yet interesting, but now it’s somehow sympathetic.

“…You know, the more I look at you, the more you resemble your brother. This is the first time I’ve properly seen your face, but why do I feel like I’ve seen you many times before? Is this why?”

“This is the first time I’ve heard that I look like my brother.”

“People don’t tell you that you look alike?”

“I think I look more like my sister, but not so much like my brother.”

It’s a bit awkward to say it myself, but my sister and I have somewhat sharp features, while my brother looks more intellectual. If I say he has the appearance of a model student who suits glasses well, would that make sense?

In contrast, my sister and I, well, um… we look like we’d be terrible at studying. It’s no wonder Hwa Nabi was surprised when I told her I ranked first in exams.

“No, you do look more like Jinwoo, but your aura is very similar to Jiwoo… your brother. I guess blood doesn’t lie.”

“Is there a reason you corrected yourself?”

“Hm? What?”

“You just called my brother Jiwoo.”

“Did I say that? When?”

My sister-in-law tilted her head and smiled brightly. Her smile resembles Hwa Nabi’s a lot. Is it true that blood doesn’t lie, as she said?

After having such a pointless thought, I nodded appropriately. From what I could tell, she seemed to want to continue the conversation as if what just happened didn’t. If so, I should play along.

“Yes, whatever. So, may I ask why you called me here?”

We’ve already spent three minutes on trivial chat, and there’s hardly any time left for leisurely conversation. When I asked directly, my sister-in-law leaned back against the building wall and took her time.

Then, crossing her arms and looking at me, she suddenly said:

“First of all, congratulations. I heard Nabi is pregnant?”

‘Oh, and getting married too.’

Since she only added that with her eyes, I calmly nodded in acknowledgment.

“…Yes, that’s right. Thank you.”

“A twenty-year-old father and mother… Separate from congratulations, I am a bit worried, but it’s your choice to have the baby, so it’s not my place to say anything. I haven’t contributed anything, so I have no reason or right to.”

That was somewhat true, so I just listened. If my sister got pregnant at twenty, I’d be worried too.

“I’m sorry for being late to say this, but if you need anything, just let me know. For example, if you need to go somewhere urgently and don’t have anyone to watch the baby.”

“Are you saying you’d come babysit if I contacted you?”

“Yes, if I’m nearby.”

“But you said you’re studying abroad in Boston.”

“That’s right.”

…Isn’t that basically saying not to contact her? Feeling incredulous, I stared at her, and she shrugged her shoulders.

“What? You two won’t live in Korea forever. When the kids get a bit older, you should let them experience other countries too. It would be reassuring to have family nearby for small favors when living abroad, wouldn’t it?”

It wasn’t entirely wrong, but it was a somewhat awkward question to answer. Discussing the child’s future at this point, when the wedding hasn’t even finished, seems a bit premature.

“Yes. I’ll think about it later.”

“Good, give it some serious thought.”

After saying that, my sister-in-law took a short breath. Then she slowly began speaking, staring not at me but at the building entrance.

The place where our wedding would soon be held.

“By the way, I’m just asking this out of curiosity.”

“Yes?”

“Are you marrying our Nabi because you love her?”

“…Are there people who get married without loving each other?”

The words came out almost reflexively. My sister-in-law seemed surprised by my immediate response, looking somewhat taken aback.

“Y-yes, right? Sorry, I guess that was an unnecessary question.”

“No. Well, it’s understandable that you’d be curious. After all, Nabi and I initially started with an engagement arranged by our parents.”

It would be a lie to say otherwise. Hwa Nabi and I didn’t even know we were each other’s fiancés until we introduced ourselves.

“So, it’s different now?”

My sister-in-law asked in a very cautious voice. It was a needless question. I answered immediately again.

“Yes. Regardless of how it started, we’re genuinely in love now.”

“…Is that so? That’s good then. Yes, spouses should love each other.”

There seemed to be some inexplicable regret in my sister-in-law’s voice. I thought about what it might be for a moment, then bluntly asked.

“But why did you suddenly bring that up? Did you perhaps get married without love and then separate?”

Could my sister-in-law be what they call a divorcee? I asked out of curiosity, but she shook her head vigorously in alarm. It seems my guess was wrong.

“W-what are you saying? People might actually believe that if they heard you. It’s not like that.”

“Then, the opposite? You had someone you loved deeply but had to break up due to family opposition?”

“…”

Oh, did I hit the mark? I just asked casually without thinking, but she couldn’t answer. Having accidentally guessed correctly, I quietly maintained the awkward silence.

“Yes, I guess you heard from Jiwoo. It’s true. Actually, seven years ago, we…”

—BANG!

“Siwoo! What are you doing here? The opening ceremony is about to start, and the staff are going crazy looking for the groom!”

Just as something significant was about to be revealed, the door leading inside the building burst open, and Hwa Nabi rushed out.

Before I could say anything, she grabbed my right hand firmly.

“Let’s go quickly. It’s about to start!”

“Huh? Oh, wait. We were in the middle of a really important conversation…”

“About what? If it’s not extremely urgent, do it later. The wedding is about to start—are you going to make the bride take the vows alone?”

Ah, that absolutely cannot happen. How could the groom stand up the bride when pledging eternal love? That would make me a real scoundrel.

With that thought flashing through my mind, I came to my senses and shook my head.

“No, we should go together.”

“Yes, we should. And sis, you should hurry to the guest seats too. Mom is furious and looking everywhere for you, calling you a rascal!”

“…Mom is?”

Even my sister-in-law, who studied abroad, seemed afraid of our mother’s wrath, as her face suddenly changed color. She quickly moved past Hwa Nabi and entered the building ahead of us.

“Nabi, I’ll go first, so hurry up and follow!”

“I was planning to anyway!”

Hwa Nabi shouted at my sister-in-law’s back before turning to me. Her face was full of smiles. Did something good happen?

“Siwoo, let’s hurry too! What would happen without the main characters?”

Hwa Nabi, looking so lovely in her wedding dress, asks me. As I walk holding her hand, I say:

“Nabi.”

“Yes?”

“I love you.”

“…Yes, me too. But save those words for later, when we’re alone after the wedding. Okay?”

“Hmm, not during the ceremony?”

Why specifically after it ends? Feeling a bit puzzled, I asked, and Hwa Nabi, who had been walking ahead, suddenly stopped. She turned to face me, approached with a meaningful smile.

“Yes. There’s a place where we need to say it a lot, very much, later.”

“Where is that?”

“…Heh, I wonder. Where could it be?”