episode_0083
by fnovelpia“When are you setting the date?”
“…Wouldn’t it be nice to do it soon?”
“So, can we meet today if possible?”
“…Yes?”
A call came from my mother.
And I almost dropped my phone.
“Do we need to have a meeting? I haven’t heard any news lately, thought we had broken up.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Both my brother and I were busy last month.”
I don’t know if people contact their relatives or friends well while living such busy lives.
I’m busy sharing love with my brother.
“Oh. I saw you modeling. You look so pretty, it’s nice.”
“…Really!?”
I almost dropped my phone again but miraculously caught it.
How did they even know?
“Isn’t it natural to be surprised…?”
“Have you not seen the famous photographer’s name in magazines? He even did advertisements.”
I was speechless.
I saw it too.
Popular…yes. It was popular.
For a month, I did receive messages and calls from my older sisters asking if I was wise or an entertainer, along with photos, but…
I just didn’t know that my mother would find out.
“Should we set it for today then?”
“If we both have time, today is fine. We have time.”
“Okay then…I’ll check and call you back right away.”
“Sure~”
Dad.
Is Dad resting today?
He hasn’t called once despite being so busy; he might be slightly upset.
“Dad~”
“What’s wrong?”
“Dad, do you only call when something’s wrong?”
“…Isn’t that so?”
It makes sense.
There must be a reason for calling now.
“Do you have time today?”
“I do.”
His words got shorter…?
They were usually short anyway.
“So, about marriage…”
“Meeting?”
Oh, he’s annoyed.
This is definitely annoyance.
We really should have contacted him.
“I’m sorry. You know I love you, Dad, right?”
“When should I come then.”
Oh, it’s resolved.
Can I say Dad is so easy…? Feels a bit unfilial though.
“I’ll send you a text later. You have to answer because I will call, okay?”
“Alright. Love you!”
“Yeah.”
He didn’t say he loved me back.
Let’s save that for when we meet and hung up, then called my mother again.
“It seems possible.”
“Okay. Will you decide where to go with your son and send it to me via text?”
“Yes. Understood.”
“And…”
Her words trailed off. It seemed like she had more to say, so I listened carefully on the phone.
“Think of me as your daughter, okay?”
“Oh. Yes….”
“Then don’t use a stiff tone. From now on.”
“Hyee?”
I got flustered.
This is the third time now.
Whether it’s because she’s comfortable or honest.
I did ask for this…yeah, I still want it.
It’s nice to be close without these formalities.
“Um…what’s a good way to start? Mom…calling you mom sounds a bit strange, right? If we both call each other mom, it’s weird.”
“Oh. It’s okay. We’re divorced.”
It’s strange, but I had to accept it.
Even though I was told to think of my mother as…a mother, if I do, then she really is my daughter.
“Um…sorry.”
“It’s really okay. It’s in the past. They divorced when I was in middle school.”
Days of constant fighting.
Dad wanted distance at that time, and Mom kept getting angry.
I don’t know whose fault it was.
I don’t know what happened or why they fought.
What I remember from that time is that my brother Jihyuk gave me earplugs.
He said to wear them if I hear noises at night.
Now it’s been a long time, and all I remember is the sound of fighting.
[Hmm….]
“It seems to have gotten more awkward.”
[Well… um….]
There’s no point in forcing a relationship that doesn’t feel right.
I’m aware of it too, and since we hardly ever met, my interest had slightly waned.
“I’ll come to visit often. We’ve only met twice so far.”
[Hmm….]
“Then I’ll contact you.”
It was a meeting that was still lacking in closeness.
“Oppa.”
“Yeah, I heard you. Where should we go?”
“A quiet place where we can talk?”
“How about a Japanese restaurant then?”
Oppa found a suitable place and showed me a restaurant nearby where they had reserved seats for us in private rooms with a family course menu specified.
“I’ll send you a text.”
“Yeah yeah. Let’s get ready too.”
Booking on a weekday afternoon was easy.
“Do you prefer this one or that one?”
“Um… the left one?”
In the middle, there was a slight frill-like detail, but it was a gray dress that matched top and bottom, with delicate spring flowers blooming on it.
Well, it was an obvious answer.
“Stockings?”
“…Yeah.”
Of course…
I’ll probably wear them for the rest of my life.
“I’ll shower and be back.”
“Huh? Like that?”
What Oppa pointed out was my outfit.
He wanted me to wear stockings.
Was he suggesting I go in naked?
“Oh, no. I won’t shower with stockings on! What made you think like that?”
“Oh. Sorry.”
Embarrassed by his strange thought, he moved me to the shower from behind.
“When we come back today… should we do it in white?”
“…Yeah.”
I petted Oppa a lot and went into the shower room.
Today, I should wear my school uniform.
*
“Dad. Dad!”
Just as I roughly left my bag in the room and came out, Dad appeared waiting outside.
“Why are you here in the cold?”
“I don’t know the room, and it’s nice outside. I want to feel the breeze.”
“Hello.”
Oppa was still stiff.
It would be nice to get closer.
“Right.”
Dad didn’t seem to be in that kind of mood.
“Uh-huh… Welcome. Is today your day off?”
“I took a day off.”
“You have time…”
“I have a lot of days off. You need to have taken some.”
It sounded blunt, but it meant he worked without much rest.
“…I’ll let you take more days off later.”
He responded to the hug from earlier.
Dressed up nicely in a suit for the first time, even his beard was neatly trimmed, which made me smile involuntarily.
“I’m coming.”
“Oh.”
Someone was walking towards us from afar.
In their 20s… no, they were already over fifty.
“Aww~ Has our Suhan been doing well?”
And she seemed as lively as ever.
“Yeah yeah. How about you?”
“Well…”
“Ah. Let’s go inside now.”
Pushing his mom away, he held my hand.
This is getting a bit weird.
After coming in, we took our seats.
For the first time, I ended up sitting away from Oppa.
After exchanging greetings, amidst the silence, Mom began to speak.
“Well… before the food comes out, shall we finish this?”
It was a way of saying they wouldn’t drag it out.
Since the original process was completely different, they must have known that we were serious about marriage, so they said it like that.
“Yes. Then let me set the date.”
Dad?
Turning his head, it seemed like Dad didn’t really want to go on for too long.
“Dad, I’ll take care of the money. Any place is fine. Maybe… accommodating around 200 to 300 people should be enough.”
“Money. It’s fine. Well then, at least 300 people will gather.”
Without hesitation, the number three hundred came up.
I wonder if there were really that many people for Dad.
“Then I’ll cover half of it. Let’s set the venue for 400 people.”
“Yes. Are we done talking now?”
And just like that, it ended in a flash.
What… what was I supposed to say? There are various customs for these kinds of meetings, right?
“……”
The food still hasn’t come out yet.
“Oh. I just wanted to apologize.”
Once again, when silence fell, Mom spoke up.
“I… don’t have a daughter, so… Miss Ji-hye, do you perhaps see me as your mom?”
She vaguely clouds her words.
After saying it, she seems to feel awkward, wondering if this is even appropriate.
“Oh, Dad. I meant what I said. I asked you to treat her like a daughter.”
“…I see.”
Dad also looked quite taken aback.
With things turning out this way, I found myself speechless.
“Hahaha… Is that okay?”
“It’s… fine. As long as your daughter approves. My opinion doesn’t matter.”
Is this right? Is this really happening?!
“Well then…”
Mom looks at me.
In sincere mode after what I said… Mom.
“Mom….”
“Ah.”
She seems extremely pleased.
The gaze that used to be on my brother now turns towards me.
This… I don’t know.
*
“If there’s anything to meet about, I’ll see you, and if not, I’ll see you at the wedding.”
“Yes.”
Simple and clear.
After having a family course meal, we bid farewell to each other.
In the middle, due to Mom’s unexpected statement about continuing modeling work, Dad, who had no idea, asked me about it, so I explained.
Of course, even after getting married, I’ll earn money unless there’s something else I need to do.
Good pay, and me…
“Oh, Dad!”
I called out to Dad who was about to leave alone.
“What is it?”
“Let’s go fishing together sometime when we get the chance.”
He hesitated slightly, then nodded.
As he tried to leave again, I stopped him once more.
“You’re not going to say ‘I love you’ later?”
“…I love you. Daughter.”
“I love you too.”
What a son couldn’t do before, he did now.
What a daughter could do, she did.
“Hehe.”
I gave him a peck on the cheek and smiled brightly.
0 Comments