episode_0056

That’s how my mom made us kneel and asked for an explanation.

What kind of explanation could I give in this situation?

“Ta-da~ Surprise~ Were you surprised?”

When I mentioned the surprise that Jiwon had prepared, my mom said she was so surprised that her heart almost stopped.

She must be thinking I’m someone else.

I stared at my mom for a while.

Soon enough, she asked if it was real.

Jiwon and I nodded slightly.

“Not a child born out of obligation. Truly loved, a child by choice…”

My words made my mom sigh. She slowly approached me, looked at me, and then…

Smack!

She slapped my head.

Mother… Why are you suddenly hitting me?

I wanted to argue back, but in this situation, I couldn’t, so I stayed quiet.

I continued to stare at my mom with a dumbfounded expression.

My mom went towards Jiwoon, starting to look at him.

Surely she wouldn’t hit Jiwoon too?

Thinking I had to stop it somehow, I tried to intervene, but…

Swish-

Instead of hitting Jiwoon, my mom hugged him.

“Oh.. Mother?”

“Our son is truly sorry. For making you suffer like this. At such a young age… I’m sorry.”

That’s how my mom started apologizing while hugging Jiwoon.

Mother? Why do I feel like I’m being compared to someone?

Your… son, not daughter…

“I now consider you as my mother, you can call me that. So don’t worry too much.”

Oh, I didn’t have a daughter, but now I do?

Should I call Jiwoon ‘nuna’ now?

This situation is beyond awkward; I don’t know what to say or do.

After staring at my mom and Jiwoon for a while, my mom hugged Jiwoon again.

Well… Can I say it’s resolved?

After watching for a while, my mom said goodbye and left.

I’m relieved the emergency meeting ended quickly.

“Is everything okay?”

Jiwon looked at me somewhat anxiously.

“Since it’s fine, don’t be too scared.”

I reassured him and gently patted his head.

Seeing he was tense, I told him to calm down a bit.

Jiwon nodded and said he would rest in the room for a while.

I’m a bit worried, but I let him rest and lay him on the bed.

It’s probably best not to interfere unnecessarily.

Thinking this, as I was about to leave the room after looking at Jiwon…

“Hmm… A football team would be nice, right?”

“What?”

Jiwon suddenly made a meaningful comment.

“I mean, let’s just create a football team or something.”

“Oh my… Are you crazy?”

I asked if he could handle creating a football team.

He said it’s fine, patting his belly.

“Haha… Hey, don’t pat your belly like that, it’s scary.”

After talking to Jiwon, he said okay and started falling asleep.

He must be tired.

It was a stressful situation; of course it was. How terrifying it is to reveal such a fact.

I thought of going back to the living room to watch TV.

Ring–

My phone started ringing on the sofa.

Looking at the caller ID, it was Dad.

Why is Dad calling at this hour?

Answering the call, I asked what’s up.

“Hey, Jihoo.”

“What’s up?”

“Come out.”

“Now?”

Dad bluntly told me to come out.

Confused, I asked him why, and he said, “Go out with your girlfriend.”

With a serious tone, I couldn’t joke around.

“She’s sleeping now, I’ll bring her out in a bit.”

Won-i, who was sleeping, couldn’t be woken up abruptly.

Let’s tell her we’ll go when she wakes up later.

“Sigh… No, we’ll go ourselves.”

Saying that, I hung up the phone.

I was momentarily taken aback.

“Us?” I said.

Why “us”…?

**

After about 40 minutes passed, Dad came in.

Mom followed beside him, starting to come in with a laugh, “Ahaha~.”

Why on earth was Mom coming from there?

Confirming their approach with Mom, I froze.

Dad then started grabbing my shoulders.

“Father… What’s going on?”

Asking in a bewildered state while he held my shoulders.

Suddenly, Dad’s eyes widened, and he began to raise his voice.

“The picture!!!! Where is the picture?!”

“Yes…?”

I stared at Dad for a while.

He asked where the picture was.

I wondered what picture he was talking about.

Looking at the ultrasound picture lying on the table, he said, “Is this it?” and started looking.

“Oh…! These people! They chased me here because they wanted to see the picture?!”

“You understand my feelings of becoming a grandfather!”

Dad got angry and said.

He started talking about feelings I really didn’t want to hear about.

“At such a young age, hearing ‘grandfather,’ my heart flutters already.”

Dad was smiling as he looked at the picture.

I wanted to leave the situation quickly, but seeing his wide smile, I couldn’t say anything.

While staring at Dad for a while,

“Ugh… What’s going on?”

Won-i started coming out of the room.

“Oh… Are you up?”

Rubbing her eyes, she came out.

“Did the baby wake up?”

She was surprised to see Dad and Mom in the house.

Of course. I was extremely surprised too.

Wouldn’t a kid be surprised? I thought.

So Won-i, surprised, asked what was going on.

Dad sat back down seriously and started watching us.

“Just a moment… Can we talk?”

Dad made us sit down and suggested having a conversation.

And as we sat down,

“But… How did this happen?”

He began asking about the incident again.

Sitting down, I told Dad the same things I had told Mom.

Dad sighed and said, “I thought there might be an accident someday, but getting pregnant so accurately is surprising.”

Looking at me, Dad asked what I planned to do next.

“I will raise the child. It wasn’t a mistake; it was born out of love.”

Dad replied, “I see.”

“Life will become much more tiring and difficult from now on. Ji-hoo, you have to endure it.”

With those words, Dad stood up and said,

Nodding slightly.

“I was one of the victims too.”

Looking at me, Dad encouraged me to stay strong.

Nodding to Dad, I said I understood.

**

After my parents left, I received some pocket money.

After receiving the money, I thought about what to do with Won-i.

I needed to think not only about Won-i but also about the children in the future.

From now on, I pondered how to live with Won-i.

Won-i looked at me and smiled faintly.

I don’t know why I’m smiling in this situation, but…

Still, it’s better than spending this time in disbelief.

Thinking that way, I hugged Won-i, said let’s rest a bit, and headed towards the bed.

As Won-i headed to bed, she said she would sleep well.

From tomorrow onwards… I need to work hard.

While caressing Won-i, I thought about work for tomorrow.

Because there will be hardships ahead.

Now, thinking about the feeling of being a bride, I gazed at Ji-won for a long time.

Ji-won looked at me and spoke.

“By the way, there’s something I’m curious about.”

“Oh? What is it?”

“Can I… get married?”

What is she suddenly talking about?

I asked Ji-won what on earth she meant.

“Well, you know, I was originally a man. Even my ID card says I’m male. So how do I file for marriage?”

I was momentarily stunned by Ji-won’s words.

What should I even say?

After waiting for a while, I said, “Let’s go to the district office tomorrow to register.”

“What did you say?”

“Um… Transgender?”

“Do you want to die?”

Ji-won got angry and started hitting me.

I really don’t know what to say in this situation.

After apologizing for a long time, I decided to look for a solution.

**

The next morning, I woke up from sleep.

As I prepared to go to work early in the morning instead of school, feeling like I had become an adult in society, Ji-won handed me something.

“Ji-hu, you need to take this with you.”

Ji-won took care of me and told me to come back safely.

Feeling a slight sense of newlywed bliss… what should I say…

“Thank you. I’ll be back.”

I told Ji-won I would be back and stepped outside.

Ji-won smiled and asked what time I would be back today.

I said I would come back as soon as possible and went outside.

And so, I stepped outside and headed to work.

Ring–

My phone vibrated, and the alarm started ringing.

Checking the alarm… it was Jaesung hyung contacting me.

[“Hey Sung, I’m going crazy looking for you.”]

What kind of nonsense is this?