NOVEL NEXT Chapter 155
“Kana, Kana.”
“….”
“Do you know what the downside is of living apart from your parents?”
“….”
Knock, knock.
“Kana, Kana.”
“….”
“Do you know what the downside is of living apart from your parents?”
“…sigh.”
I sighed and put my phone down.
Da-eun was looking at me with her big, shiny eyes.
“Aren’t you bored?”
She had already said the same thing four times.
Not even one word was different.
“If Kana had just answered, I wouldn’t have had to ask four times!”
“At this point, isn’t it time to just give up?”
“There’s no giving up in my dictionary! Even if there is, it’s a word only used when counting cabbage!”
“What kind of concept is that?”
“The concept of a brave leader. How does it look? Does it suit me?”
“You look ridiculous.”
“…that can’t be!”
Boom!
A lightning bolt struck Da-eun’s head.
“I thought it was perfect…”
“Stop talking nonsense. So what are you trying to say?”
I knew it would be useless chatter, but ignoring her would only mean she’d keep pestering me.
So with a thought of just hearing her out, I crossed my arms.
“Ahem… that is, it’s about not seeing my parents’ faces often.”
“Wow. I see. You know what, Da-eun?”
Since she revealed such a profound truth, I should give something back, right?
“When you eat, you get full. When you sleep, your tiredness goes away. Amazing, right?”
With a dull response, Da-eun yelled.
“No, really!”
“What I said is true too.”
“I’m not joking!”
And thus began Da-eun’s long speech.
While she may not know about the places we’ve been, I know this: it’s strangely empty living apart from my parents who I’ve been with my whole life.
Even living close, we don’t see each other much because of busy schedules.
Listening quietly, I opened my mouth as Da-eun was finishing her little speech.
“…isn’t that just an excuse?”
“Ugh!”
Though she rambled on for ages, when it comes down to it, isn’t that what it is?
“If you don’t have time at all, fine, but if you do, you could just take a moment to visit. You’re wasting time doing nothing anyway. You could have gone ten times in that time.”
“…I’m hurt, Kana…”
“Instead of whining about being hurt, just go say hi.”
“Cough!”
Da-eun pretended to cough up blood.
And then, with a heavily sulky face, she said,
“Kana has become prickly… Seeing you prefer your phone over talking makes me think you’re already hitting puberty. Soon you’ll yell about how I washed your clothes together, slam the door when you go in, and demand your allowance without letting me interfere…”
“What the heck are you talking about?”
“More than that, Kana. Do you know what the upside of living apart from your parents is?”
“…What is it?”
“It’s that I don’t get to see my parents’ faces often!”
“…..”
It seems Da-eun really is a fire attribute.
She could probably survive winter without any heating, just like a cozy stove that burns bright and hot.
“When you live together, you inevitably start bumping into each other. Little things can pile up and lead to hurt feelings.”
If you live apart, you won’t fight, and you’ll come to appreciate each other.
…That’s what Da-eun said.
“So what’s the conclusion?”
“…Mom visits too often!”
Da-eun shouted as if she had been waiting for that very statement.
“I’m happy when mom comes! I’m happy! But…! She comes too often! And every time she comes, she nags me on top of that!”
“….”
“The fridge is now overflowing with side dishes, and there’s no space for anything else! Now if I buy beer, I have to drink it lukewarm…”
“…Was that what you were bothering me about all this time?”
From annoying me without response to giving a grand speech, it was ridiculous to think all of it was the foundation for that one line.
“If you dislike it so much, just tell her to stop coming.”
“…It’s not that simple. If she comes because of me, I can’t tell her not to. But if it’s because she’s worried about Kana, how can I stop that?”
“…?”
Is that what it was?
“Exactly! If it weren’t, mom and Kana would’ve met long ago. So I was wondering… could you say something to Kana?”
“What should I say?”
“Just say, ‘I’m fine, so you can stop coming~.’”
“Hmm…”
The contemplation didn’t last long.
“I refuse.”
“…Why?!”
“Because it’s fun?”
Da-eun plopped down in shock, as if she never imagined I would reject her request.
But honestly, I had no reason to say it.
Unlike Da-eun, I didn’t feel uncomfortable with the lady’s visits, and watching Da-eun getting smacked on the back was my guilty pleasure.
“No way… If this continues, my cozy nest with Kana will be invaded by outside forces…!”
Ding ding ding.
Just then, I heard a sound from the front door.
An all-too-familiar voice chimed in.
“Hey, auntie’s here~ How have you been?”
“Yeah.”
“…Now it’s not ‘Mom’s here’ but ‘Auntie’s here’?”
“What kind of daughter doesn’t greet her mom when she arrives?”
“That’s the same with Kana!”
“Aw, jealousy is so unbecoming in a child! Good job!”
“Ugh…!”
Today’s mother-daughter debate ended in yet another defeat for Da-eun.
The defeated Da-eun, unable to let go of her stubbornness, puffed out her lips and prepared for her last stand.
“Why do you come so often?”
“Really? Weren’t you the one crying and begging me to come over anytime?”
“When was it that you could just cry and call me over anytime?”
“…That was then, and this is now!”
“Da-eun, did you cry?”
“Oh, that’s right! Kana, do you want to hear this? Well, let me tell you how Da-eun was when she first became independent-”
“Aaaaargh! I can’t hear you!”
“…Has she eaten a train whistle or something?”
Da-eun’s desperate cries to maintain her dignity filled the house.
As she kept screaming, the lady finally covered her ears and shuddered, only then did Da-eun shut her mouth.
Once the lady removed her hands from her ears, she leaned in and whispered.
“If you’re curious, I’ll tell you later.”
“Okay.”
Pat, pat.
She lightly patted my head and headed to the kitchen.
This had been her routine every time she came over these last few days.
I stared at her blankly while counting in my head.
“It’s about time.”
One… two…
Threeeeeeee…
“Oh my, look at this kid!”
“…Eh?”
“Isn’t three a bit too long?”
“Not at all.”
It was precise without a hint of error.
Even while Da-eun was plotting against me, distant voices of discontent flowed from the kitchen.
“You didn’t finish the japchae I brought last time, and the stir-fried fish cake from before is still untouched. The braised beef… you ate that, right? Anyway, Da-eun, did you order takeout again?!”
“No way! How could I eat all that logically?!”
“Uh-huh.”
This time, I couldn’t disagree with Da-eun.
The lady’s cooking was quite good, so finishing most dishes—excluding vegetables—wasn’t that difficult.
But since I hadn’t even eaten half of the side dishes she brought before, there was no way the fridge would run out of food anytime soon.
Before I knew it, standing there with her hands on her hips was the lady, and Da-eun protested while lifting her clothes.
“Don’t you see I’ve gained belly fat from eating so much? And Kana too…”
Whip.
“…?”
Da-eun turned to me.
But for some reason, the words that should have followed didn’t come.
Tilting my head, Da-eun looked at me as if I were something strange.
“…Why haven’t you gained weight?”
Fidget.
Suddenly, her hand slipped into my shirt and began poking my belly.
“…What are you doing?”
“…It’s still soft.”
I was so taken aback that I couldn’t even think of making a retort, and Da-eun, with a serious face, pinched her chin.
“At least I eat a balanced diet; Kana only picks things that make her gain weight. Why haven’t you gained weight more than me?”
“Are you kidding? You’re in your growing years, and you’re comparing yourself to me? When you’re young, what you eat goes to height, not weight.”
“…Ugh.”
“Kids at that age shoot up in height in no time!”
“See, it’s growing well even between the cracks.”
“…Ugh.”
“…Pfft!”
I couldn’t bring myself to say otherwise.
Instead, I glared at Da-eun, who was trembling with laughter.
She may not have made a sound, but honestly, she was practically cackling.
“…Why are you laughing?”
The aunt couldn’t help but notice what was happening right in front of her and squinted her eyes.
“You’re not teasing Kana for being short, are you? Just you wait. Right now, you may be taller than Kana, but she’ll shoot up and outgrow you in no time!”
“Pfft! Hahaha!”
“…Looks like you’re having fun.”
“…Cough, cough! Well, Kana is still in her growth period, so that’s possible.”
Da-eun, unable to hold back her laughter, was finally struck by my icy gaze and sank down.
“Sigh…”
Da-eun knows the story tied to Gracis’s blessing.
I’m not sure how it’ll be crossing dimensions like this, but I’ll probably have to live in this body anyway.
However, there’s no way the aunt knows about this predicament, so she wouldn’t be teasing me, right?
…It was true that my heart felt a little gloomy.
“It’s okay, it’s okay.”
Pat, pat.
“Get your hands off me.”
“Oh dear.”
At this rate, I might scratch her.
The annoying smile on Da-eun’s face matched her most laid-back tone as she pulled her hand away.
“I hate this world….”
Maybe Da-eun was right about one thing.
Living together can lead to emotional conflicts.
Isn’t it possible that the things I had let slip until now were all somewhat logical?
‘…No. That isn’t right.’
I shook my head.
Logic, my foot.
I think that recent attack was just too powerful; it threw my mind off balance.
“Oh, wait, check my sanity!”
The aunt snapped her fingers.
“I forgot to mention this. How about you and Da-eun come over to my house soon for a visit?”
“…Huh?”
Suddenly?
Stunned by the sudden proposal, I blinked as more explanation followed.
“Uncle… Da-eun’s dad said maybe he should bring her over.”
“Huh? Dad?”
“Yeah. He said since there’s a kid living with Da-eun, he’d like to see her, maybe share a meal.”
“Oh, I see.”
If his daughter is living with someone she doesn’t know, it’s only natural to be curious.
Plus, I heard it’s okay to refuse if it’s uncomfortable.
“Okay. Got it.”
I nodded readily.
Surely, my dad would have the same reaction.