Ch.39My Mom Was Awesome (4)

After seeing that kid Dohamin board the train, I returned to the parking lot beneath the station.

While train stations are places where countless people come and go every day, the parking lot underneath sees much less traffic.

After all, people who own cars don’t really have a reason to take the train.

Especially in areas where only regular trains operate without high-speed rail.

Bando Yeong’s neighborhood was similar.

Most people only parked their cars in the lot briefly to wait for friends or family arriving by train.

Otherwise, it was a place people avoided due to its noise and darkness.

“Oh no, I’m too late.”

I had asked them to wait just 20 minutes until Dohamin’s train arrived,

but due to a delay, I ended up abandoning my mom and dad for 30 minutes in this dark, remote corner of the parking lot where few people passed by.

At least our family car is a bright yellow Carnival that stands out.

Otherwise, even I might have had trouble finding where we parked.

“I’m sorry, the train was delayed. I waited with Dohamin until he boarded because I didn’t want to just leave him.”

-Grumble

Although it wasn’t really my fault, I had still caused them to waste time unintentionally,

so I apologized as I opened the middle door of the vehicle.

-Whoosh!

As soon as I opened the door, hot compressed air rushed out.

It felt like a white blow of hot steam slapping my face.

I’m sure the car wasn’t this hot

when Dohamin and I left it earlier.

“What’s this? Why is it so hot in here?”

The inside of the car was strangely hot.

No, rather than just hot, it was steamy like a sauna.

It’s only mid-March, still early spring with chilly weather.

Even during daytime, this was clearly a secluded parking lot tucked under the train overpass.

The bright sunlight didn’t reach here.

If it had, it wouldn’t be this dark.

“A-ahem!”

“Welcome back. Did you see Hamin off well?”

My dad and mom, sitting in the front seats, greeted me with slightly flustered voices.

“You, you came back faster than expected.”

“Huh? What are you talking about? The train was delayed, and I waited at the station for an extra 10 minutes.”

“Ah… was that so? I was enjoying catching up with your dad so much that I lost track of time. Right, Doyoung’s dad?”

“Y-yes, that’s right…”

Mom brought her right hand to her mouth, showing a cultured laugh,

but strangely enough, her hair, which had been perfectly neat just 30 minutes ago, was now slightly disheveled.

“But what’s wrong with the car? Is the air conditioning broken?”

“Are you feeling hot? Should we get some ventilation?”

Dad was in a similar state.

The coat he had been wearing when we left the restaurant was now completely removed.

Several buttons on the shirt he wore underneath were also undone.

“Hmm…”

“W-what is it?”

I pointed my index finger at Dad and tapped my right cheek.

“Dad, you still have eel sauce on your face.”

“Oh, really? I thought I wiped it off properly before we left.”

“Here, Doyoung’s dad. Have a tissue.”

“Ah, thank you, Doyoung’s mom.”

Dad looked in the rearview mirror,

hurriedly wiping away the supposed sauce stain with the tissue Mom gave him.

As the alleged sauce marks disappeared,

strangely, the tissue Dad used smelled not of eel sauce but strongly of cosmetics.

“That’s odd, the eel sauce we had earlier was definitely brown, but why does that stain look so red?”

“…”

“…”

Just like the pink-red tint Mom had applied to her lips today.

“Did you two eat something delicious without me and Dohamin?”

Or perhaps Mom.

“E-eat? What are you talking about?! We were sitting right here waiting for you two the whole time!”

“I see. Hearing that you waited patiently makes me feel bad for being late.”

“It’s fine, you could have come back even later.”

“Really? Should I step out for a bit then?”

“What are you saying? We should all go home together now. Right, Doyoung’s dad?”

“Y-yes! Mom must be tired from her flight, so let’s hurry home to unpack and rest! Let’s go, home!”

Dad wiped the sweat from his forehead and hastily started the car.

As the engine started and we pulled out of the parking lot,

Mom took out a compact from her bag and fixed her hair and makeup.

Her hand movements were so quick and skillful that

by the time Dad drove out of the parking lot to pay the fee,

Mom had already returned to her original neat and elegant appearance.

“Dad, I’m bored. Let’s listen to some music on the way home.”

“S-sure! Could you take out a CD from the middle?”

Dad pointed to the console box between the driver’s seat and passenger seat,

where he kept CDs for playing music in the car.

“Oh, our car plays music with CDs? That’s more modern than I thought. I was under the impression that Mom and Dad were still stuck in the cassette player era.”

“Huh? You tease us about not knowing how to connect Bluetooth to the car speakers, and now you say this?”

“No matter what, we’re not that outdated, you know.”

“No, what I meant was… I definitely thought Mom and Dad were stuck in the casex!…ette player era.”

“…Bando Yeong, you.”

“Kikikik!”

“Just wait until we get home.”

The drive from the station to home took only about 5 minutes.

Of course, the only sound in the car during that time was my laughter.

“I’m home!”

Our home.

Well, not exactly mine, but Bando Yeong’s home that I needed to recognize and get used to as my own.

I immediately headed upstairs to my room.

Having completed all my scheduled activities outside for the day,

I wanted to quickly throw off all the clothes wrapped around my body and gain freedom.

“Bando Yeong.”

“Hm? What is it, Mom?”

“Come down to the dojo after changing into your uniform.”

“…Huh?”

“I heard you’ve started kendo again, so how about a match with Mom? Doyoung’s dad can be our referee.”

I didn’t realize it then.

That “wait until we get home” wasn’t just a simple warning.

.

.

.

“I’ll go ahead. Don’t dawdle too much before coming down.”

“…You’re already changed?”

As soon as we arrived home,

Mom immediately changed into her uniform and went down to the dojo.

I thought I was pretty quick at changing from my military experience,

but by the time I finished putting on my uniform, Mom had already completed all preparations and gone down to the dojo.

“Is Staff Sergeant Cheok using some kind of teleportation?”

When I came down to the dojo,

I saw Mom kneeling neatly in the center, deep in meditation.

With her hair tied up high and dressed in her uniform, Mom looked no less impressive than Bando Yeong, who was known for her physical beauty.

If photos of Mom and Bando Yeong were put on promotional flyers,

the number of students would probably triple.

Male students, of course.

“Wow, Mom. You look like a real master sitting like that.”

“Well, I can’t deny it. Your mom was even a youth national representative in kendo.”

“Ohhh…”

“Bando Yeong, you already know that, so why are you pretending?”

“Ah, r-right.”

While I was certainly impressed by Mom’s beautiful appearance in her uniform,

that wasn’t the only thing that caught my eye.

Mom was the master who first taught kendo to Dad,

who is the head instructor of this dojo.

That would mean her kendo experience is equal to,

or even greater than Dad’s.

The aura she exuded certainly

lent credibility to the claim that she had taught Dad.

“Mom seems to be taking this quite seriously. She’s even wearing her white uniform that she doesn’t usually wear.”

Masters reveal their skill level through their appearance.

Unlike my uniform, which was crumpled from being carelessly stuffed into the closet,

Mom’s uniform was perfectly ironed with crisp, straight lines.

The perfect pristine white without a speck of dust or stain,

visibly emanating a master’s aura throughout her body.

Add to that the sound of even breathing from her unwavering posture.

Mom in meditation looked not like a beautiful woman merely holding a sword for decoration,

but a true martial artist honing her mind and skills.

“Doyoung’s mom is really fired up.”

“Indeed. It’s been a while since she crossed swords with Doyoung. I’m looking forward to it too.”

The two of them conversed calmly and cheerfully,

Mom and Dad now seemed more like fellow martial artists walking the same path rather than a couple who had missed each other.

“How does it feel to meditate at home, Mom?”

“Well… *inhale*”

Mom quietly drew in a breath,

slowly opened her eyes, and turned to Dad.

“Did you order pizza in the dojo?”

“Gulp.”

“I believe I told you to eat food in the office, not in the dojo.”

“Ah, Dad insisted we eat in the dojo! It’s all his fault!”

“B-Bando Yeong! How could you be so underhanded!”

“Honey~?”

Bando-chip did it.

Bando Yeong is innocent.

“W-well, with Hamin here too, the office seemed a bit cramped for the three of us…”

“Sigh… never mind. From now on, I’ll let my sword do the talking.”

Having finished her meditation, Mom brought out black equipment from the storage room and placed it in front of me.

“Doyoung, I’ve already taken out your hogu.”

“Hogu? Do you mean Dohamin…?”

“I’m referring to protective gear [護具], dear.”

Next to Mom, and beside my place in the dojo, protective gear with my name on it had been laid out.

Since kendo uses weapons, the size and thickness of the protective gear was considerable.

“Do you remember what Mom promised earlier? That I’d give you allowance when we got home.”

“Of course I remember. My bank balance is only 974 won, so I’m really strapped for cash.”

“Then would you like to make a bet with Mom?”

-Tighten

Mom firmly secured the straps of her face guard, then extended her bamboo sword toward me.

“If you can score even one point against me, I’ll increase your allowance from the original 100,000 won to 200,000 won.”