Chapter 2 (2)
After sending Eunseong-ssi off, I checked to see if Hyeol was properly attending class in the Forsythia Class. I was also curious about how well he was adapting with the other children. He seemed to get along well at Black Stone Kindergarten…
“Hyeol is doing really well. Have you done origami before?”
“Yes, I can fold dinosaurs too.”
“Really? Even dinosaurs?”
Contrary to my worries, Hyeol was sitting in his seat calmly listening to the teacher and getting along well with the children, responding appropriately to their pestering(?).
“Kkotsu, we’re having origami class right now, aren’t we? So should we play with dolls now, or should we do origami?”
“O-ori… gami is… d-difficult…”
“Then shall we do it together with the teacher?”
“B-but still… it’s d-diffi… difficult…!”
Instead, Kkotsu from the same class was being disruptive. Despite the teacher’s gentle words, Kkotsu shook his head and wanted to play with dolls. This was an unexpected sight I couldn’t commonly see at home, but I thought it was fortunate that he seemed to be saying what he wanted to say.
With a satisfied feeling, I left the children at the kindergarten and came out through the main gate. As I passed the entrance heading toward the parking lot, Eunseong-ssi, who I thought had left first, was standing there blankly.
“Uh… Eunseong-ssi?”
When I stopped walking, Eunseong-ssi scratched his head and showed a shy smile.
“You didn’t leave?”
“Ah, well… I canceled my meeting. It seemed like I’d be late even if I left now…”
“Ah, I see…”
“Are you going straight home, Seungyeon-ssi?”
“Yes, I think I should.”
I replied while looking around to see if there was a bus stop nearby.
“Seungyeon-ssi…!”
At that moment, it was Eunseong-ssi who stopped me in my tracks.
“I’ll drive you home.”
“Oh, no, it’s okay.”
“Come on, get in. It seems like it’s on my way anyway. I’ll drop you off somewhere nearby.”
“No, it’s really okay…”
“The buses don’t run well here, maybe one per hour or something?”
“Really?”
Surprised, I checked the bus stop schedule on my phone and it was true. I’d have to wait at least 40 minutes.
“See, I was right?”
“……”
“So shall we take my car?”
What should I do? I know he’s not a strange person, but…
I wasn’t particularly busy, so waiting for the bus or taking a taxi would have been fine.
“Since Seungyeon-ssi made me get a nosebleed, how about we call it even?”
When I hesitated, Eunseong-ssi persuaded me with an even more troublesome reason. Given the series of events and his personality, it seemed like Eunseong-ssi wouldn’t listen no matter how much I refused.
Moreover, at this kindergarten where I’d probably have to see his face regularly, there was even Da Jeonghan, Hyeol’s strong rival… Just refusing today didn’t guarantee it would work next time either.
“…Then please just take me to the subway station.”
“Yes! Hurry up and get in, it’s cold.”
In the end, I quickly agreed and headed toward Eunseong-ssi’s parked car.
Bzzzzt.
At that moment, my phone in my pocket vibrated. When I checked, it was a text from Baek Woojin.
[The seminar is over. Where are you?]
I immediately replied that I was just leaving the kindergarten.
[I have somewhere to go, I’ll come straight to you.]
“Ah…”
I was too hasty. If I had known Baek Woojin would contact me, I should have held out just a little longer…
Click.
“Get in, Seungyeon-ssi.”
“……”
In the meantime, looking at Eunseong-ssi who had kindly opened the passenger door for me, I hesitated. But I couldn’t just ignore someone’s kindness.
[Uh… Woojin-ssi, I just got in a taxi. Shall we meet at the station? Near that place where we ate pork cutlet.]
I eventually sent Baek Woojin a well-intentioned lie and got into Eunseong-ssi’s car.
*
“So are you friends with Kkotsu’s father?”
It was while riding in Eunseong-ssi’s car toward our destination. He began interrogating me as thoroughly as I had questioned Jeonghan. Among his main interests was the fact that I had come to school with Kkotsu, and he was very curious about Kkotsu’s dad.
“Jeonghan and Kkotsu are very close, right? So I’ve always been curious. But it’s really hard to see Kkotsu’s father.”
“……”
Hard to see his face…
Actually, the two of them have already met.
I couldn’t bring myself to say that. Since their first meeting wasn’t particularly pleasant, I decided to refrain from speaking.
“So I actually thought Seungyeon-ssi might be Kkotsu’s uncle. Both Kkotsu and… Seungyeon-ssi are… so beautiful…”
Glancing at me, Eunseong-ssi’s cheeks reddened. He seemed like someone who really showed his feelings a lot, unlike Baek Woojin.
Speaking of Kkotsu’s uncle though… if you think about it, Kkotsu’s uncle isn’t me but Baek Woojin.
“But it seems like you’ve had quite a few opportunities to meet Kkotsu’s dad…”
When I subtly probed, Eunseong-ssi shook his head.
“Strangely, Kkotsu always says it’s not possible.”
“Kkotsu does?”
“Yes, yes. I heard he’s around the same age as me, so I wanted to meet him once to talk about the children…”
“……”
I suddenly wondered what was going on. It seemed like I was discovering many unexpected sides of Kkotsu more than I had thought.
“Do Kkotsu and his father look a lot alike?”
While I was seriously pondering, Eunseong-ssi suddenly asked that. The question itself was really transparent.
“Hmm…”
I thought for a moment. Did Baek Woojin and Kkotsu look alike? Just looking at their appearances, they didn’t look alike at all…
But since it might not look that way to other people’s eyes, I became cautious.
“Since they’re family, they do resemble each other. Not in every way, but…”
At my vague answer, Eunseong-ssi just continued driving, then rustled around in the console box and offered me a mint candy.
“Would you like a candy?”
“Ah… I’m okay.”
“Really? I always get restless when driving.”
When Eunseong-ssi unwrapped the mint candy and put it in his mouth, a cool sweet scent filled the car.
“That kid Jeonghan only talks about Kkotsu all the time.”
He suddenly brought up Jeonghan. Somehow, it was difficult to follow Eunseong-ssi’s conversation, and he resembled someone.
“It’s really strange. Before meeting Kkotsu, Jeonghan was such a mischievous kid, you know? But suddenly he became mature like he grew up and became a complete good boy.”
Having said that much, Eunseong-ssi laughed softly with a “haha” and added the rather embarrassing words, “The power of love really is amazing…”
“Jeonghan is really smart and kind, not like a child. So sometimes I feel sorry… After divorcing his mother, I relied on him a lot…”
Ah, so there was that kind of situation too… I thought of Jeonghan, who had been mature in a different way from Hyeol, and felt touched.
“I see… Yes, Jeonghan seems to take care of Kkotsu a lot. You must be very proud.”
At my words, Eunseong-ssi sighed softly.
“It’s because Jeonghan likes Kkotsu so much…”
As expected… Da Jeonghan was already completely wrapped around the main shou.
“When he had to miss kindergarten for a week due to a cold, he cried so much…”
“Because he… missed Kkotsu?”
“That’s right. He acts like nothing’s wrong in front of Kkotsu, but he’s not like that behind his back. He cries a lot… You saw the rabbit doll this morning, right?”
Are you talking about the rabbit doll with the hole in the back of its head?
“Jeonghan made it himself, saying he’d give it to Kkotsu.”
Huh… A six-year-old made a doll? Isn’t he a prodigy…?
“The kid takes after his mother with good manual skills. He likes drawing and origami the most.”
So that’s why he rushed out of the nurse’s office earlier…
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
