Ch.329329. Like Mother, Like Daughter

That evening.

I rushed home, turning down the invitation from my supervisor and coworker to have a casual drink with the guys. I couldn’t contain my excitement after seeing Hwa Nabi’s photo earlier today—who cares about a few drops of alcohol right now?

I can see those faces at work every day anyway, so I can hang out with them another time. I pushed everything related to work, including my supervisor, to a corner of my mind and filled that empty space with anticipation for tonight.

Ah, my heart is racing. Just imagining it makes my chest tingle. Trying to suppress my excitement, I arrived at the front door. Just as I was about to ring the bell, I paused to check my appearance.

Hmm, I should tidy up a bit before going in. I’m the head of this household after all—I can’t show my wife and kids such a disheveled appearance.

I fixed my crooked tie and dusted off my clothes. After clearing my throat, my preparations were complete. Everything was perfect.

-Ding dong.

──Yes, who is it?

“It’s me.”

──Oh, you’re home, dear? Just a moment!

After waiting briefly as instructed, the door clicked open, revealing Hwa Nabi, whom I’d been longing to see. She was wearing a pink apron that matched her hair color, probably because she’d been cooking.

“Nabi, I’m home.”

“Welcome back. Had a tough day again?”

With our now-familiar greeting, Hwa Nabi threw herself into my arms. I reached out to hug her back and patted her a couple of times.

While embracing her, I gently stroked her back before letting go. Behind Hwa Nabi, Woohee peeked out and then startled.

“W-welcome home, Dad.”

Hesitating at first, Woohee adorably stretched out both arms. I quickly approached her, gave her a big hug, and lifted her up.

“Hello, my cute daughter. Have you been listening to your mom well?”

“Ah, yes. I’ve been good…”

Though she had reached out first, she seemed embarrassed by the hug, not hugging me back but just gently gripping my shirt. This reminds me of the old days. Hwa Nabi used to be this shy and passive too, right?

After briefly reminiscing, I put her down. Holding Woohee reminded me of what I’d heard earlier today. Come to think of it, Woohee had said she had something to tell me.

I wondered what it could be and almost asked directly, but stopped myself. Though I was very curious, the entryway wasn’t the right place for a conversation. I gently patted Woohee’s head and stood up.

“Dear, you haven’t had dinner yet, right? The food’s ready, so wash up and come eat.”

“Thanks. By the way, Nabi, where’s Woocheon?”

“He fell asleep right after dinner. He’s still at an age where he needs a lot of sleep, you know?”

True, at two years old, he needs to eat well and sleep deeply to grow. I decided to check on him before bedtime later and went to the dressing room to hang up my suit.

“I’ll prepare a change of clothes for you, so go wash up. The food will get cold.”

“It doesn’t take that long to take this off and hang it up. I’ll do it myself.”

“Tsk, not listening again. I need to check if there are any stains and iron it if it’s wrinkled, so let me hang it up, okay?”

With those words, Hwa Nabi took the dress shirt I was holding. Left empty-handed, I had no choice but to remove the rest of my outer clothes and hand them over.

“Make sure you wash thoroughly, understand?”

“Why do I need to wash thoroughly?”

Hwa Nabi, who had been examining my shirt, looked at me with a meaningful smile.

“Heh, you know why.”

“…I don’t know.”

The image of Hwa Nabi from the photo I saw earlier overlapped with the Hwa Nabi in front of me now, making the corners of my mouth twitch involuntarily.

Hmm, am I a fool? Just one smile from her and my eyes are darting around, my expression softening. As the head of the household, I shouldn’t show such a frivolous side.

“Really, my clueless husband? Don’t just stand there like a statue, go wash up.”

Almost pushed out, I headed to the shower.

…I need to maintain my composure. Repeating this to myself, I took off my underwear. I turned on the faucet, adjusted it to warm water, and closed my eyes to shampoo my hair.

Pink slip lingerie with open sides.

“…Ah, hot!”

*

Fortunately, I quickly switched to cold water before it got too hot—I almost scalded my scalp while washing my hair.

“Phew…”

Anyway, I finished showering safely, and family dinner was over too. Tonight’s side dishes were grilled yellow corvina and spring greens. The peculiar fishy smell I’d noticed since entering the house must have been from the corvina.

Sighing, I plopped down on the sofa. My head still felt hot. As I pressed my head with my right hand and leaned back, our house cat, Nabi, gracefully walked toward me from across the room.

Cats are such free-spirited companions. I figured she was just wandering around as she pleased. Watching quietly, I was surprised when she easily jumped onto the high sofa, settled on my lap, and curled up neatly.

“Nabi, have you eaten?”

-Meow.

“Huh? What’s that? You ate a lot?”

Seemingly too lazy to answer, she licked various parts of her body, stretched her back, and pushed her rear end toward me. It looked like she wanted me to pat her. I gently tapped her bottom with my palm.

Nabi’s tail stood straight up. Seeing it standing still without the tip twitching, she must enjoy me touching her bottom.

Her enjoying having her bottom patted reminds me of Hwa Nabi’s similar reaction. Since I’m already petting her, should I touch her a bit more?

“Oh, dear. Why are you with Nabi?”

Just as I was thinking that, the person herself appeared. Speak of the devil—as soon as I thought of Hwa Nabi, she approached the sofa with Woohee.

“She seemed to want me to play with her, so I was giving her some butt pats.”

-Meooow.

Nabi let out a long meow as if agreeing with me. Woohee, watching this with curiosity, sat down next to me, and Hwa Nabi sat beside Woohee.

“Dad, can I pet her too?”

“Woohee, shouldn’t you ask Nabi directly about that?”

“…Nabi, can I touch you?”

Woohee hesitantly reached out to Nabi. Nabi glanced at Woohee, then suddenly got up and walked over to her.

-Meow.

Sitting on Woohee’s lap, Nabi meowed proudly while swishing her tail as if giving permission. As soon as she got Nabi’s approval, Woohee, with a truly delighted face, opened her palm and vigorously stroked Nabi’s back.

“Wow… she’s really soft. Dad, how old is Nabi?”

“Nabi, aren’t you eight years old this year?”

“Yes, she’s eight. Exactly twice our Woohee’s age.”

“Um… then, should I call Nabi ‘unnie’?”

“Hmm, no. You shouldn’t call her unnie. Our Nabi doesn’t have a gender.”

“Huh, why? Why doesn’t she have a gender? Isn’t everyone either a boy or a girl?”

“Woohee, pets like Nabi usually get what’s called a neutering surgery. This neutering surgery is…”

I explained that it’s a procedure to prevent pets from having babies by permanently removing their reproductive functions. Woohee’s face turned completely pale.

“Dad, does that mean Nabi has to live alone forever?”

“Yes, usually that’s the case.”

“Oh… I see. That’s a little sad.”

“It’s sad but necessary. If we hadn’t done it, she might have gotten pregnant by some random tomcat and had tons of kittens. We couldn’t possibly handle…”

“Dear, what on earth are you talking about in front of the child…?”

Hwa Nabi nudged my shoulder. A signal to restrain myself. I awkwardly stopped talking and looked at Woohee.

After hearing about Nabi’s neutering surgery, Woohee seemed deep in thought, her expression quite complicated.

Well… I understand why Woohee might be shocked. While Hwa Nabi and I know it was a necessary procedure, Woohee doesn’t. It’s natural for a child to feel sympathy.

I was seriously wondering how to explain this in a way Woohee would understand when she suddenly looked up at me. Very directly.

She seemed to have something she wanted to say.

“Dad.”

“Yes, Woohee?”

Woohee stared at me quietly, then lowered her gaze to look at Nabi the cat. Then, very slowly and deliberately, while stroking Nabi’s bottom, she murmured.

“Can’t we make a family for Nabi?”

“…”

I was momentarily speechless. This was a suggestion from a direction I hadn’t anticipated at all.

Making a family for Nabi—doesn’t that mean adopting a new cat? This definitely wasn’t something I could decide on my own. I quickly turned to look at Hwa Nabi.

I expected her to be as surprised as I was, but she looked surprisingly calm. As if she had known Woohee would say this.

‘Nabi, did you know about this?’

‘Woohee has been begging for a month now, how could I not know?’

‘She’s been begging for a month…?’

But why didn’t I know anything about it? Curious, I asked with just my eyes, and Hwa Nabi smirked and nodded toward Woohee.

‘Woohee is playing a trick.’

‘Huh? What do you mean by a trick?’

‘Woohee first begged me about getting another cat. But when I firmly said no, she decided to convince you first, since you’re easier, and then get permission that way.’

‘…Really?’

‘Yes, really. If you don’t believe me, just ask her.’

Surely Woohee couldn’t be that cunning. Though doubtful, I looked at Woohee.

“Woohee. Did you by any chance ask Mom if we could get another cat?”

“…”

“Woohee…?”