episode_0027

*

I entered the restaurant, took a seat, and was about to eat, but it so happened that I, who was sitting next to my father, was munching on my food with my sister in front of me.

“Did Hansol enter the same department as Hayoon this time?”

“You always told your sister that studying wasn’t enough, so how did you get in?”

My father, who was next to me, stopped moving his hands, looked at me and my sister one by one, and then opened his mouth.

Then he smiled and started talking.

As if I was standing at the starting line and pulling the trigger of a powder gun, my mother soon joined in and continued talking.

“I didn’t know that both of us would go into architecture.”

“Well, is it because we work in the architecture field?”

Dad shrugged his shoulders and answered Mom’s words.

Then the mother covered her mouth with her hand and smiled.

I put the food in my mouth and mumbled it, looking around.

I didn’t want to raise suspicion by saying something strange, so I focused on the food.

“Well, it’s not like Hansol is completely bad at studying.”

Just as I was thinking that, my older sister spoke first.

Although the voice sounded sour, the content of the words seemed to praise me.

I glanced at my sister and mother to see if this was okay.

“That’s right. Whose son is this?”

Dad must have been excited by what my sister said, so he laughed out loud and patted me on the back next to him.

“If I had done a little better, I would have aimed for pre-medical school.”

“Are you planning to pass on the family business to your older sister?”

In order to deliberately erase the feeling that I followed my older sister into the same school and department, I said things I didn’t even mean to say.

I had no intention of becoming a doctor. If only I had studied better. He gave an example and started talking.

Then my mother giggled and glanced at my sister.

It was a little uncomfortable. Having my parents wasn’t a very good situation for me.

Since they are people who have always been away from their seats, I don’t know how to treat them when they are around for no reason. That was the biggest reason.

I couldn’t help but react poorly.

The person I saw every day was my older sister, and while I could talk to her without any hesitation, I couldn’t maintain that kind of relationship with my parents, whom I only saw once every few months.

“Well, it doesn’t matter.”

I shrugged my shoulders and appealed as if I had no interest in taking over the family business.

I didn’t specifically want that kind of position and chose the department, so I wasn’t greedy.

Even when I was eating with my parents, I had to pay attention to what they were saying and had to choose my words, so I kept feeling like something was bothering me.

On the way, I felt like my feet kept getting stuck on stones.

“So, how many days are you staying this time?”

“Oh, you’re at home? Are you going tomorrow? I just came here because I had some free time on the weekend.”

When the conversation stopped, my older sister stopped holding her hand and asked my father.

Dad responded to his sister’s words with his eyebrows raised.

“This time, my father went to Suncheon because he had work to do there.”

“What about Mom?”

“Oh, I have to go to Busan.”

Mom, who had been listening to the story for a while, added something.

When my mother told me about my father’s business trip, my older sister tilted her head and asked about my mother’s business trip.

Then the mother blinked and mentioned her business trip location.

Sometimes when I come back from a business trip, I’m at home for quite a while, but this time it was short, so I was glad.

Since you were leaving tomorrow, I thought I would just have to wait a little longer today and tomorrow.

“Well, I came to see my son and daughter, but I’m sad that I can’t see him for long.”

The mother looked a little bitter and expressed her sorrow in words.

Then, Dad put food in his mouth and nodded, agreeing with Mom’s opinion.

“Sure. Next time, are you going to stay a little longer?”

“Mmm. Well, that’s fine. I haven’t made any plans yet, but if this business trip ends quickly, I might come a little sooner.”

I smiled and spoke out of courtesy.

Then Dad swallowed his food and tilted his head.

Dad, who was thinking about his next schedule, later brought some shocking news.

I couldn’t be free with my older sister when my parents were around, so it was a bit of sad news.

I put my hand on the food, hiding my distorted expression.

“Well, then, come back quickly. It’s a bit disappointing that I won’t be able to see you for a long time this time due to MT.”

My older sister calmly cheered up my parents with a smile in her eyes.

When I saw my sister like that, I could only admire her.

How can you talk like that? Unlike me, is my sister sincere?

Rather, am I the only one who feels uncomfortable with my parents?

As I moved the knife around incessantly, I fixed my gaze on that place.

It’s not that I don’t know the grace of my parents. I am grateful that I was born into a family that was not poor and lived with financial support.

However, on the other hand, it was inevitable that parents who were away from home frequently would be inconvenienced.

Since I couldn’t see much, conversation became awkward and I didn’t know how to react.

My parents seemed to be trying to be friendly with me and my sister, but I was gradually distancing myself from them.

“That’s right. Unfortunately, the MTs overlap.”

While lost in those thoughts, I continued speaking, agreeing with what my sister said.

Then my sister glanced into my eyes, smiled and nodded.

I chuckled when I saw my sister’s appearance.

“That’s right. It’s a pity that I can’t take care of my mom and dad because they are both on business trips.”

The last time my mother heard me, she looked at us alternately with a slightly sad and apologetic expression.

Even when I heard those words, I wasn’t particularly impressed.

For nearly seven years, we somehow managed to survive just the two of us, supporting each other.

Aside from financial issues, the person I could mentally rely on and entrust my heart to was my older sister, not my parents.

“Now that I think about it, has Hansol got a girlfriend? I heard that there are a lot of CCs when you go to college.”

“… None.”

When I was just about to concentrate on the food in a daze, my father suddenly opened his mouth.

I was wondering if my dad would suddenly say something, but I had no idea that the story of his girlfriend would come out of nowhere.

I took a deep breath, paused, and answered.

Since I have no intention of making it in the first place, it may not happen in the future.

“Have you made many friends? This is your first year, right?”

“Like a friend. It’s just motivation.”

After Dad’s question was finished, Mom’s question followed.

It seemed like there were a lot of questions about this new student.

I answered awkwardly, putting the meat in my mouth.

Every time I hear questions from my parents, they secretly tell me that I am not doing well in college. That’s what I thought.

“Well, isn’t that why I don’t make friends because I might go to the military soon?”

“Oh, because I won’t have any friends when I go back to school?”

As I was being bombarded with questions, my older sister suddenly opened her mouth as if to offer support.

After hearing what my sister said, my father clapped his hands softly.

It was inevitable that I would become depressed when the military story came up.

“I’m going to go to the bathroom for a moment.”

I left the table for a moment and headed to the store’s restroom.

I turned on the water for a moment, washed my hands, then raised my head and looked at the mirror.

I couldn’t stop myself from bursting into laughter.

“True.”

Although I am a parent, I felt a little uncomfortable without knowing why.

There was a part of me that felt uncomfortable towards my parents.

I couldn’t figure out how to deal with it, so all I could do was sigh and sigh.

I hadn’t seen him for too long to be friendly to him, and my parents were too friendly to me to be awkward.

Is it just because I spend more time alone with my sister?

“… Are you okay?”

“What?”

After washing my face once, I wiped it with a tissue and left the bathroom.

The moment I left the door, my sister, who seemed to have been waiting next to me, glanced at me and asked.

Maybe it was because he was so short, but I almost missed him.

In response to my sister’s question, I tilted my head and asked back.

“You make your parents uncomfortable.”

“… Are you uncomfortable?”

My sister was looking up at me with eyes that seemed to understand how I was feeling.

After being dazed, I came to my senses again and thought about what my sister said.

When I asked my sister back with a bitter smile, she closed her eyes and shrugged her shoulders.

“It’s inconvenient. Aside from the fact that they are my parents, I haven’t seen them much, so it might be uncomfortable to suddenly meet them. I feel a little guilty saying this because he’s thinking of us and working harder, but it’s awkward right now… ”

My older sister laughed, looked at my face for a moment, and then opened her mouth honestly.

My older sister, who had similar sentiments to me, seemed to have gone a little further and tried to understand my parents’ feelings.

That feeling was evident not just from the words but also from the atmosphere.

I nodded while listening to my sister.

We are grateful for the generous financial support. But apart from that, it is inevitable that we feel awkward because we don’t meet each other much.

I rationalized myself by listening to my sister like that.

Without even having time to think about whether this was fair or not, I just nodded at what my sister said.

“Well, it’s obvious, right? If we don’t meet each other for a long time, it becomes awkward.”

“Maybe. You go back now. I’ll stop by the bathroom for a moment too.”

I laughed helplessly and spoke as if reaffirming what my sister had said.

After saying that, my sister nodded and answered as if to confirm it again.

It wasn’t just me. That feeling of relief made me feel comfortable.

When I was smiling like that, my sister waved her hand and let me go first.

“Are you here? Looks like you and your sister are doing well.”

“Well, we stay together.”

When I returned to my seat, the meal was almost over and the staff was cleaning up the dishes.

As I sat down at the empty table in front of me, my mom smiled and spoke to me.

I answered indifferently as if it was no big deal and looked around.

“Your sister ordered it for you. With lemonade.”

“What should I order? Lemonade?”

“You can order a drink or cake as dessert here.”

After we sat down, Dad folded the menu and put it aside and continued talking.

I thought my sister was going home when she came back from the bathroom, but why lemonade? With that thought in mind, I glanced at my father for a moment.

Then my dad looked at my face and answered by pointing his finger at the menu he had put away.

I just ordered it here to save myself the trouble of going to the cafe.

“What did Mom and Dad order?”

I pulled my chair forward and sat down and asked what my parents ordered.

“Dad’s mojito is non-alcoholic. I like mojito alcohol.”

“Is only your mother an alcoholic?”

“Dad drives.”

It was my mother who answered my question.

Since my dad had to drive, it seemed like he had left out the alcohol.

Did your dad like drinking? I do not know. I’ve never been interested in such things, and I’ve never seen anyone drink.

I nodded, glad we were just continuing the conversation.

“I’m here.”

“Uh. Drinks also arrived. Sit down quickly.”

After some time, the drinks were quickly placed on the table.

Not long after that, my sister came back.

My mother looked at my older sister and pulled out the chair to make it easier for my older sister to sit.

“Nuna’s Americano… ?”

“Hazelnuts, and cake.”

My sister, who was sitting across from me, seemed to have been given coffee and was swirling her drink with a straw.

You can choose any other drink, but why drink Americano? I spoke as if I was asking a question.

Then my sister shook her head and answered firmly.

I thought I just ordered a drink, but before I knew it, a cake was placed in front of my sister.

“You’re full anyway, so it’s okay if you don’t eat, right?”

As I was staring at the cake, my sister stared at me with a grin.

Then he opened his mouth with a look in his eyes that seemed to have already seen through my thoughts.

As my sister said, I was already full from just eating the steak.

Unlike my sister, I chose something larger in weight.

I smiled bitterly and nodded at my sister’s words.

“The mojito here is delicious.”

Next to me, my mother opened her mouth happily, taking a sip of her mojito.

“When are you going to go to the military?”

“Ah, um. I’m planning to go after my first year is over.”

“Okay. The faster the better.”

As I sipped on the lemonade in front of me, my dad started talking to me from next to me.

I wondered what the story was about and was struck by a story about the military.

Embarrassed, I shrugged my shoulders and answered.

Then my father nodded at my answer.

I felt a little bad because the military came up for no reason.

“If you go to the military, I will write you a letter every day.”

It’s “. Do you like it? My sister always writes letters to me.”

As I looked a little gloomy as I was talking about the military, my older sister kicked my leg.

When I turned my head to see something, my sister lifted her fork and said with a smile.

I almost fell in love with it instantly. No, I’m already in love with it.

After hearing my sister’s words, my father grabbed my shoulder and hugged me tightly, laughing heartily.

I felt burdened by this sense of distance right away, but seeing my sister’s smile made me feel a little better.