Chapter 77: When Unnie Becomes a Bride

“You’re getting married!?”

“You scared me!”

When I unintentionally shouted in surprise at Ji-eun unnie’s unexpected schedule from yesterday, she jumped and her shoulders twitched in shock.

Seeing me standing there dumbfounded, she looked flustered. Then, with a look that seemed to say “Why are you making such a big deal out of it?”, she asked me in return,

“Yeah, you didn’t know?”

“Not at all…”

“Remember at the last meetup, when I talked about retiring… I said I met someone special.”

As she asked if I really didn’t know, and I froze with a blank face, she brought up that moment from the previous meetup when she had first dropped a hint.

Raising her index finger as if to explain, she helped jog my memory—and it finally clicked.

“Oh.”

That time at the meetup when she vaguely mentioned having someone special or whatever.

The atmosphere had gotten so awkward I couldn’t tell if the hot chocolate and bread were going into my mouth or up my nose.

Turns out, the “special someone” back then wasn’t her husband yet—just her boyfriend.

And even in that early stage, she went ahead and announced her retirement. Now, after a few years of dating, they had their formal family meeting, and it was all leading to a wedding this year.

To think she made such a bold move when nothing was certain yet… I found myself quietly impressed.

Anyway, it was good that things had worked out.

A family meeting leads to a wedding, a wedding means a wedding ceremony, and a ceremony means… buffet!

Following that chain of thought, I suddenly remembered buffets—something I rarely get to enjoy—and asked her,

“When’s the wedding?”

“We’re planning for April. You guys wanna come?”

“Of course! If you invite us, we’re definitely going.”

With an elementary schooler’s schedule wide open outside of school, I had no reason to say no.

And with that, the anticipation of getting to enjoy a buffet again in April filled me with excitement.

Now that I think about it… if there’s going to be a buffet…

“By the way, are we doing that thing again this Lunar New Year?”

“Probably. Planning to join again this year?”

‘That thing’ referred to our Magical Girl Gathering for the holidays—a tradition that started back when we were first graders.

It was supposed to be a one- or two-time event, but it kept getting revived every year and somehow lived on, so I was curious if it was happening again this year too.

Siyun and I usually participated in the big holidays, like Chuseok and Lunar New Year.

So it made sense that unnie would ask “again this year?”, and I nodded.

“Well… it’s a chance to see people, after all…”

Trailing off mid-sentence, I glanced at Siyun, who was sitting at her computer.

Truth is, back during Chuseok two years ago, we skipped it once—mostly because we were sick of holiday food and a little tight on cash.

And… the look on Siyun’s face that day…

Just thinking about it again filled me with guilt.

Spending the long holiday without seeing anyone is enough to bring on depression. But the atmosphere around us during that time? That was the real killer.

The apartment parking lot crammed full of cars.

The scent of holiday food wafting in through every open window.

 

During the holidays, the whole neighborhood was noisy—every house seemed to be bustling with energy.

But our place remained quiet, filled only with the sound of takeout deliveries.

That’s when it hit me.

This isn’t good for the kids.

Since then, I’ve made sure never to miss a holiday gathering.

“I’ll mark you down as attending, then.”

“Please do.”

“You two are eleven now, right?”

Ever since becoming an adult, I found it easier to remember people’s ages by their birth year.

Even though I’ve returned to childhood, I still can’t shake the habit, mentally calculating the years to estimate their age.

At that age, we definitely used to count our age by numbers.

It’s true what they say—habits ingrained in your mind are hard to break.

“Uh, yeah… probably.”

I gave a vague reply, mumbling a bit.

“Every time I see you two, I can’t believe you’re the same age.”

Ji-eun unni (older sister) gave us a puzzled look before turning her attention to her phone.

She started tapping rapidly on the screen, and just like that, the conversation drifted back from holidays to its usual rhythm.

“Aren’t you busy helping with the meal prep? Are you sure it’s okay to be here like this?”

“I still have to get work done…”

She was lying on her stomach, legs kicking back and forth, looking at me with a dry, half-hearted expression as she spoke about “work.”

‘Work? What work? Oh…’

I tilted my head, confused for a second, but then it hit me—this situation, her being at our place helping out—it was work.

I let out a silent sigh.

Right. This is still considered work.

She just seemed so relaxed, I’d momentarily forgotten.

Even without asking, she seemed to be steadily preparing for things.

Her voice trailed off as she added, “After I get you guys dinner, I’m heading back early to keep talking about it.”

“You’re basically living together now, huh?”

“Of course. We dated for years.”

Just then, the washing machine beeped like an alarm, signaling that the spin cycle was done.

The moment the sound rang out, she got up swiftly, headed to the machine, and casually pulled out the laundry.

After giving each piece a good shake, she started hanging them one by one on the indoor drying rack.

There are these mean-spirited posts online claiming women today can’t do housework—but at least when it comes to Ji-eun unni, that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

She vacuums the floors daily.

Once the laundry piles up enough, it’s straight to the machine.

And it’s not like she can’t cook either—she’s mastered all kinds of stir-fry and fried dishes.

I wonder if she’ll have to say goodbye to this comfortable life once she gets married…

The thought made me feel a little wistful.

Whenever someone around me gets married, I start getting curious about all kinds of things.

Trying to sound casual, I kept her company while she hung the laundry, tossing out questions about what’s coming next.

But really, I was just genuinely curious.

“So, where are you going for your honeymoon?”

“A hot spring tour in Japan.”

“Ooh…”

When I asked about the honeymoon, she paused mid-laundry, turned toward me, and flashed a peace sign with her index and middle fingers.

Hot springs, huh.

I’d only heard about them—never actually experienced one myself, especially not abroad. It felt foreign to someone like me who’s never even been out of the country.

Do magical girls in Japan really fight like they do in anime?

No, wait. Why am I thinking about magical girls in the middle of a conversation about travel?

“Japan!?”

Suddenly, Siyun reacted excitedly to the mention of Japan mid-conversation.

Ever since she found out that the original series of her favorite magical girl anime was from Japan, she’s been diving deep into that world, eyes sparkling with interest. Seems like she stumbled across a wiki page while searching for her favorite show.

“Should I get you some magical girl merch while I’m there?”

“Yes! Yes, please!”

Siyun, who had been sitting at the computer, jumped down and started bouncing around in excitement.

Hey now, calm down—you’re gonna have the neighbors downstairs coming up here in a second.

A souvenir from a trip to Japan, huh…

I’ve been given a few before, here and there, so I kind of know what to expect.

Jieun unnie, watching this with a warm smile, turned the question toward me this time.

“What about you, Mari? Anything come to mind when you think of Japan? Want me to get you something?”

“Tokyo Banana, Shiroi Koibito, Royce chocolate.”

Not missing the opportunity, I casually tossed out some bait—and she bit right away.

Three classic Japanese treats, reeled off without hesitation.

“…Wait, how do you know so much?”

Jieun unnie stammered in surprise, clearly not expecting such a confident answer.

Hey, you’re the one who offered, so don’t blame me.

Even though she looked a bit suspicious and tilted her head, the conversation continued.

Especially since this trip was coming up, Jieun unnie looked like she was finally free from something. After hanging up the laundry, she stretched out wide with a deep sigh of relief.

“Once April hits, my diet is over! I’m gonna eat so much while I’m there.”

Contrary to her recent obsession with dieting, she suddenly announced her plan to go all out with food.

That’s when I finally realized the reason behind her recent diet craze.

“Oh—so the diet was for the wedding?”

“Yeah. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime wedding. Gotta look perfect in the pictures.”

All the effort was to make a good impression at the family meeting and to look flawless in the wedding shoot.

At the phrase “once-in-a-lifetime wedding,” I had to shut my own mouth before blurting out a joke about how it might not be the only one.

Even though I understood the reason behind her intense dieting, a tiny thought crept into my mind.

‘Couldn’t she just use filters or Photoshop…?’

In this day and age, people can completely change their face and body in photos, no lie.

Although… at that point, it might not even be the same person anymore.

While I was lost in thoughts about modern technology, another idea suddenly popped into my head.

‘Will someone else come here once she’s married?’

I turned that thought into a question and asked Jieun unnie directly.

“After you get married, you won’t be coming here anymore?”

“Hmm? Who knows? I’ll think about that when the time comes. These days, you need two incomes just to get by.”

Unlike what I expected—that she’d stop coming after marriage—her lukewarm response suggested she might still visit and take care of us.

Dual income, huh. Honestly, I think she’d do just fine as a full-time homemaker too.

But more than that, what would I even call her after she gets married?

“Aju—ma—?!”

“You’ll still call me unnie, right?”

The moment that word started to leave my mouth, Jieun unnie’s thumb and forefinger clamped down on both my cheeks.

Startled by her fingers cutting off the last syllable, the rest of the word came out in a weird pitch like it was shot up into the sky.

With my cheeks squished and my mouth flapping awkwardly, a new question surfaced in my head:

‘Seriously though, what even is the line where you start calling someone “ajumma”(married woman)?’