episode_0024

Arum was showing Sarang around the house, and her father was watching TV on the sofa in the living room.

And I was hovering around my mom in the kitchen, peeling fruit, whispering softly in her ear.

“… Mom.”

“Oh my, why aren’t you going over there?”

“Isn’t that too much for your son?”

“Son, stop doing things you’ve never done before and get out of the way. Mom is holding a knife right now.”

“Huh, that’s not it. I have a question.”

“Then why don’t you just ask? What are you asking, even whispering in my ear?”

I’m sure she knew I was going to ask her about love, but her reaction seemed completely nonchalant.

“Anyway, why did Sarang suddenly come here? And without saying anything.”

“Oh my, look at what she’s saying. Sarangi, shouldn’t you come here? And is this your house? Isn’t it because Mom and Dad did it for you?”

“No, that’s not what I’m saying now.”

My mother sighed deeply at my words.

“Oh my… You know what’s going on, right?”

“Ah, well… something like that.”

The love that I heard over the phone was definitely not light, including the parents’ car accident, their deaths, and the love that was left alone.

“Did you know that Dad and Sangpil were really close?”

“Yeah. You used to come to my house often, right?”

“Did you just come? Your dad often went there too. And then when he was late, his mom would call and tell me not to worry, and she would often take care of me and send me a taxi.”

“… Yeah.”

I thought the story was going off track a bit, but then he suddenly started telling me an old story as if he was lost in memories.

“There was that time when your dad didn’t want to come so much that he went to get you himself, and even your mom got drunk and came with you in a taxi. At that time, that little Sarang told me to get him some honey water and stuff?”

“Ha… Are you proud of getting honey water from a kid?”

“Wow! That means Sarang was that smart. Anyway, how hard must it have been for Sangpil and his wife to end up like that and Sarang alone? The kid who couldn’t even hold back tears in front of people was crying all alone in the bathroom? ”

“… Is that so? That must have been hard for the kid alone. Was he twenty this year?”

“If I were twenty, I wouldn’t have worried. I’m a senior in high school now. At the most important time… .”

My mother put down the apple she was peeling and made a very sad expression.

As I looked at that face, I felt depressed for no reason.

“Then what can love do alone? You have to graduate from school, right? Your relatives will take care of it?”

“Haa… That house is really pitiful. I had a feeling that it would be like that when we talked before, but they don’t have any relatives to take care of them. Phew… I’m thinking of our Arami for no reason, so I feel even worse as a mother.”

It was a repertoire I had seen a lot of.

“Ah… So Mom will take care of it again?”

“Leaving her alone. What can I do with her since she’s already grown up? I’ll just feed her and send her to school.”

“Haha… Mom is amazing too. So you stay at home together?”

“Yeah. Sarang said she couldn’t stay alone in the house she used to live in, so I packed up some of her clothes and belongings and moved them to our house.”

I think my parents must have felt like they were watching A-reum when she was little.

Although I felt like my mother’s judgment was a bit harsh, I also intend to respect Sarang’s choice.

“You’ll do well on your own, but take care of your love too. Okay?”

“Yeah. I will.”

“Okay, take this. Mom will clean it up and go.”

I accepted the plate my mom handed me.

There were colorful fruits and five small forks next to them.

*

A sweet and sour taste came out from the crunchy apple flesh.

I couldn’t stop biting into the juice that tickled the tip of my tongue.

“Darling, you eat some too.”

“Oh, thank you.”

Sarang now looks mature, which is unusual for her age as a high school senior.

I don’t know if all kids these days are this tall, but at first glance, she definitely looked taller than Arami.

“Haha! When I put them all together like this, it reminds me of when the kids were little.”

My father had a hearty laugh and a slightly sad smile.

“That’s right. We’ve been a bit distant since our kids were in high school. Have you guys kept in touch?”

“… No, it wasn’t like that.”

“Well, what do you think? It would be good if we kept in touch more often from now on. Did you exchange numbers?”

My parents were quite extreme.

It seems that he was very worried about his lover who was left alone.

“Ah… Oh, not with oppa yet… .”

“My son is so shy. Can you please understand, love?”

“Yes, yes… .”

I remember being more active when I was younger.

Memories of my childhood came flooding back to me: clinging to me, teasing me, hitting me, running away…

However, in his current state, his emotions were complicated and his every action seemed passive.

“Give me your phone. I’ll dial your number.”

“Ah, yes, yes! Here it is… .”

At times like this, I thought it would be right for me to approach her first, so I reached out to her.

Sarang felt a bit embarrassed, but quickly handed over her cell phone.

“Here. If anyone is bullying you at school, call me. I’ll scold you.”

“Hehehe… Okay.”

It was the first smile I saw since coming home.

The pure white teeth visible between the lips were impressive, and the neat rows of teeth and cute dimples on both cheeks stood out.

“Your dimples are cute. Did you have them when you were little?”

“Ah… I don’t know. I think it’s just been there for some time. Hehe… .”

“Really?”

In her small smile, we can see a little bit of her old self.

It’s a very old memory, and I clearly remember her as cute when she was young, but now that she’s lost all her baby fat, she has a face that people naturally say is pretty wherever she goes.

“Oh my, our son is talking nonsense to Sarang. Can’t you see our daughter’s assistant?”

“Ha… Mom, what are you talking about? Just by what you say.”

“Oh my, are you embarrassed now?”

At Mom’s words, which I couldn’t tell if they were a joke or not, Dad once again let out that hearty laugh from earlier.

Love also covered her mouth and smiled slightly, and when I looked into her pretty crescent-shaped eyes, I thought that it was okay to be teased like this.

“Ha! Okay. Have some fruit.”

“Don’t change the subject. Isn’t Sarang pretty? When you were young, I used to tell you to get married.”

“… Mom also said all sorts of things to the kids.”

It seemed like my mother’s teasing would continue for a while longer at my pointless grumbling, but then her eyes were focused on Areum, who suddenly got up from her seat.

“Daughter, what’s wrong?”

I looked at the slightly darkened expression on Arum’s face, and it sent a chill down my spine.

My body was tense, wondering if that crazy bitch would say something right here, right now, with love in the middle of it.

“Ah… I’m going to the bathroom.”

“Haha, our daughter was really in a hurry?”

“I’ll go and come back.”

My eyes met with A-reum’s again as she left her seat naked.

It seemed like he was telling me something with his eyes, but I had no way of understanding it.

So the pretty girl disappeared towards the bathroom, and the topic of conversation was this weekend.

“Tomorrow is Saturday, where are you guys going?”

“… I don’t have one. I don’t know him either.”

“Then shall we go out and play with our family?”

“Ah… Wait a minute.”

“What’s there to worry about? There’s nowhere to go.”

My head went blank at my mother’s question that suddenly came in.

Arum and I were like a bomb that could explode at any moment, although we barely showed it.

“Ah, Arami doesn’t know yet. Ask her first.”

First of all, A-reum gave the girl a choice.

Since I had already said that I had no plans, I was a little at a loss for an excuse.

And I thought that since it was Arami, she would know how to do it.

“Really? So your son is okay?”

“… Yeah. I, I’m fine. ”

I wanted to avoid it if possible.

Since Arum and I had some regrets that needed to be resolved alone, it wasn’t a very desirable option for the family to be together.

“Ah… I wish my sister could go with me too… .”

At that time, a corner of my heart felt a little uncomfortable at the sound of Sarang-yi muttering next to me, but in any case, it was clear that this plan would be ruined by A-reum-yi’s initiative in the future.

Squeak- bang-

Thud- thud- thud- thud-

The sound of A-reum’s footsteps from far away.

I opened my mouth first because I thought my parents might get in trouble.

“Hey! Do you have plans for tomorrow? Mom wants to go on a trip together tomorrow.”

“… Travel?”

“Okay, let’s go out and play together as a family. Don’t you have plans for tomorrow?”

Please, please, please… .

I prayed and prayed in my heart.

I really hoped and prayed that Arami would crack down on this plan.

So I wanted to be free from this feeling of standing anxiously on this ice rink.

“Oh, I have plans for tomorrow… .”

I was cheering inwardly as soon as Arum finished speaking.

“Is that so? Oh my… What should I do?”

“Is this an important appointment?”

“Yes… Joe, it’s a little important.”

Even when my father said that, I found the way he spoke so firmly to be somewhat cool.

I take a deep breath and lie back down on the sofa in a comfortable position.

“We also caught it in a hurry, so there’s nothing we can do.”

“Ah… Sister, you can’t?”

I definitely thought that Pato would fly.

Since my parents paid a lot of attention to this, the four of us did everything together, so they never made anyone feel neglected.

“Daughter, I’m sorry… Is it okay if the four of us go and come back tomorrow? I made a reservation yesterday, and I need a change of pace.”

The mother stroked Sarang’s head with an apologetic expression on her face.

“Ah… … There are four of us?”

I wasn’t the only one surprised by my parents’ unexpected reaction.

The thought that she would be left behind must have been unexpected for Arami.

“Okay, just a moment.”

I look at the back of Arami as she disappears again with a strange expression on her face.

I think it wouldn’t be so bad if the two of us were torn apart like this…

“I, I… I cancelled my plans for tomorrow. But, it’s our first family trip… I don’t want to be the only one missing… .”

“Oh my! Really? You don’t have to push yourself too hard.”

“Yeah. It’s okay, like Mom said, you don’t have to forcefully cancel because of us.”

Arami answered with an embarrassed expression, but her parents seemed to be concerned about something else.

“Yeah, really, that’s okay… I’ll go with you.”

Arum’s face turned red.