Chapter 26: Overflowing Heart(8)

I cut the radish, make the seasoning, and prepare to season the cabbage.

Since there is no large basin at home, I split the work into two groups.

Yu-ah sits in one and my mother sits in front of the other.

Yu-ah stares at me and asks me as if she feels wronged.

“Why isn’t he working, Mom?”

“While you were locked in your room, Ji-bin finished setting up here.”

If you haven’t done anything so far, you should at least do that…

My mother immediately rebukes Yu-ah for his tantrum.

I nod my head to her.

I sit on a chair in the living room and quietly watch the two of them work.

Yu-ah doesn’t look that pleased, but she puts on rubber gloves for now.

She mixes the kimchi and says to her mother, “Mom. I can’t get married anymore.”

“Why can’t I?”

“You showed your naked body to another man. Does that mean you can’t get married?”

At Yu-ah’s question, which she didn’t know whether to call her naive or stupid, her mother laughed.

“Really? … In that case, I guess you can just marry Ji-bin?”

“Oh… That’s not what I meant! Are you a woo-gyeol-chung, Mom?”

“What does woo-gyeol-chung mean?”

“Someone who insists that a man and a woman are in a relationship like that.”

It was a term that was a bit difficult for my mother to understand.

It was a term often used on the Internet.

Then my mother made a voice that seemed to be struggling and said, “Then I’m not a woo-gyeol-chung.”

“… Huh?”

“Someone who insists that a relationship like that is a woo-gyeol-chung.”

“Right?”

“But you two aren’t being forced. Aren’t you just in a relationship like that?”

“Ah! Mom!”

“I understand. I understand. Hehe. Sit down quickly. If you don’t, you’ll fall into the kimchi seasoning.”

The mother verbally disciplines Yu-ah, who is getting ready to jump up and run to her mother.

Yu-ah grumbles and eventually sits back down.

Sometimes, when I see Yua’s mother, it seems like she enjoys teasing her daughter.

Maybe Rikyuel’s good hitting sense was created through early education.

It seemed like the inner strength that was well-developed while being teased by her mother like this every day at home was being expressed in the air.

Be thankful to your mother, Yu-ah.

She was the one who built your broadcasting sense since you were young.

After all, the Baemons used a lot of cheese when they beat up Rikyuel the most.

It seemed that her mother also had a lot of share in her high income.

“What are you laughing about?”

“Why are you suddenly picking on me?”

Since Yu-ah couldn’t vent her anger on her mother, her anger arrows were directed at me.

She furrowed her eyebrows like the number eight and expressed ‘I’m angry’ with her whole body.

She sighed as she looked at her long sleeves that kept falling down.

“Miss. I wore long sleeves for nothing.”

Was it because she had shown her naked body earlier?

Yu-ah came out completely wrapped in long sleeves, including her pants and top.

As if she didn’t want to show me any of her bare skin.

Even though her clothes were wet and she had to change them anyway, I didn’t know she would come out with such tight security.

The problem wasn’t just her clothes.

“Ouch. It’s uncomfortable.”

Even as she moved around mixing cabbage, her long hair moved along with her, covering her eyes.

I blew my breath to see if it was blocking her view, but she didn’t move at all.

“Hehehe~.”

In comparison, the mother humming was smart.

She had her hair tied tightly with a rubber band and was wearing short sleeves.

There was no way her sleeves would fall down or her hair would get in the way.

As expected, the vibe coming from her was different….

She’d probably ask me to do it anyway, right?

I got up from my seat, looking at Yu-ah who looked uncomfortable.

I was the only one who wasn’t wearing rubber gloves.

I was the only one who could help her.

I decided to go and do it before Yu-ah could say anything.

“What? Why are you suddenly coming next to me?”

“It’s okay, just ignore me and do whatever you were doing.”

Yu-ah looked wary as I quietly came over and sat down next to her.

Yu-ah was extremely alert due to the series of events that had just happened.

However, both of them were accidents, and I still had no intention of doing anything to her.

“Just stop your hand for a moment.”

“Hand?”

Yu-ah stopped moving at my words.

I grab her sleeve and pull it up slightly, then fold it up three times so that it doesn’t go back down.

Yu-ah also stays still, as if she understands what I’m trying to do.

When I finish folding the other sleeve, Yu-ah thanks me.

“…Thank you. You were watching me gloomily?”

“Is that all you can say to thank me? Oh my.”

“But if you weren’t watching me gloomily, you wouldn’t know.”

What can I say to her?

Anyway, I knew that Yu-ah was talking like that on purpose to hide her embarrassment.

Even though her mouth was rough, her nature wasn’t rough.

“Okay, now keep your head still.”

“Hair?…Uh…Yeah…”

When I bring my face closer, Yu-ah’s body stiffens slightly as if she’s nervous.

I carefully tuck the hair that’s bothering her eyes behind her ear.

For some reason, I can hear Yu-ah swallowing her saliva.

For some reason, her face seems a little red…

“Okay. I won’t bother you anymore, right?”

“Uh… that’s true…”

“Or should I bring a hair tie and tie it for you?”

Although I’m not good at it, I’ve tied her hair a few times while I was with her.

So I knew how to tie her hair, however clumsily.

“Oh, no. That’s enough! Now step away…”

Ugh. What’s the point of doing it for her?

Even if I paid attention to her, she’d just hear me tell her to step away, so it wasn’t rewarding.

As I followed her instructions and stepped back a little, I heard an ominous sound from behind me.

“Oh my.”

I completely ignored the sound coming from behind me.

It was closer to the sound my mother makes when she’s about to tease me.

As I quickly tried to return to my seat, Yu-ah stopped me with a word.

“Hey. Wait a minute.”

“What.”

When I look back at her, Yu-ah holds out a piece of kimchi she mixed in one hand and says, “Eat this… I have to taste it to see if it’s good anyway…”

Still, I guess it was worth it for her tactful care.

The rubber gloves on her small hands.

And the delicious red pickled cabbage caught my eye.

I quickly take a piece of pickled cabbage from her hand and eat it.

Crunchy.

The kimchi tastes spicy and salty in my mouth and is refreshing.

It’s a taste that no Korean would dislike.

“How is it…? Is it good?”

Yu-ah asks, carefully observing my expression.

After swallowing the pickled cabbage, I tell her, “Hmm. It’s okay.”

“Really? That’s good. I was worried that it wouldn’t taste good because I did it.”

Yu-ah isn’t good at cooking, so that’s why.

Her hands are pretty nimble.

That’s why I was able to taste her food without hesitation.

“Oh my. What should I do? What should I do?”

And then again, the sound of the audience from behind.

The behavior that was not embarrassing at all became embarrassing for no reason.

But my mother’s rambling did not stop there.

“Kids. You two are acting like a newlywed couple.”

“T-That’s not it! Don’t say weird things again.”

Yu-ah tried to protest, but her mother didn’t even listen.

“You just fold your sleeves, flip your hair, feed each other… It makes me excited to see you. Hey.”

“Mom…”

“Two young kids are salting each other right in front of your nose, so how can this old single mother live with sadness?”

After listening to my mother, I think maybe I was a little too much.

This was something I normally did with Yu-ah so naturally that I didn’t really care….

Something feels weird.

I quickly get up from my seat and get away from Yu-ah.

Then Yu-ah yells at me.

“Hey! What if you run away from there? That would be really weird!”

“I’m not running away. I did everything I could. I’m going back to where I was.”

Actually, she was running away.

Yeah, yeah.

“Ahh… If I do this, I’ll just be the weirdo again…”

Yu-ah awkwardly stirred the kimchi in her mouth with her head down.

The slightly reddened nape of her neck clearly showed her feelings.

Seeing that, her mother smiled faintly and delivered the final blow.

“Oh. Our Yu-ah. Now you’re good at making kimchi and can get married~~?”

“Stop it! Mom, stop it! Hey, where are you going!”

“To the bathroom.”

I left the two of them behind and quietly went into the bathroom with my cell phone in my hand.

If I stayed there, I’d just be the butt of jokes.

One victim was enough.

I entered the bathroom and let out a sigh.

“Are you saying that this is how it always ends up here?”

I stood in front of the sink and looked at my face in the mirror.

I thought I did a good job of pretending to be calm……….

I was the same.

With Na Yu-ah.

Only then did I notice my face, which had turned bright red all the way to the nape of my neck.

***

After finishing the eventful kimchi-making, we went back home.

We got off at the subway station and went outside, and looked at the kimchi in our hands and talked.

“Even though it’s wrapped like this, does it still smell?”

Is this really the best Korean food?

Yu-ah and I each received a bunch of kimchi.

It was a precious food for a single person living alone.

If there’s a flaw, it’s that my heart was racing while I was riding the subway back, worried that the smell would leak out.

Even though I put it in an airtight Lock & Lock container and wrapped it several times with a cloth, a faint scent wafted out.

“… That’s right. It’s just like you. Yoon Ji-bin.”

“What are you talking about?”

“No matter how good the wrapping is, it still smells coppery.”

“Are you saying I stink now?”

“Your face is gentle and fine, but your insides are rotten. Should I say it’s the rotten smell of your heart?”

“Can you tell me that it’s not rotten, but fermented to make it easier to eat?”

“That’s it.”

Our Yu-ah would immediately hit me with a bang.

There was a reason for that.

Yu-ah usually hit me with a bang when she had nothing to say.

It seemed that she wasn’t feeling well when she came back.

It was the same when she had dinner with her mother.

It felt like her mind was somewhere else.

I asked her, “Are you still recovering from the shock of being exposed naked?”

“What?”

“No. You seemed a little out of your mind earlier…”

They say that shock is usually forgotten with a bigger shock.

I thought that I should apply a bigger shock therapy.

But how can I give her a bigger shock than being exposed naked?

While I was worrying about useless things, Yu-ah shook her head.

“Oh… It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

Yu-ah said that and walked ahead.

I followed her.

And how long did I walk like that in silence?

Before I knew it, I arrived at the intersection where I had to part ways with her.

I’ve never been to the house she moved into, but I knew the general location.

“Shouldn’t you go this way?”

“…Yeah.”

“Then I’ll go first?

You worked hard making kimchi today.

You seem tired.

Go and get some rest.”

The reason she was absentminded might be because she was tired.

I was considerate of Yu-ah and turned around first.

That’s when I heard Yu-ah’s voice from behind.

“Yoon Ji-bin.”

“Yeah?”

I stopped for a moment as I tried to move when she called my name.

Then Yu-ah walks towards me and says, “…Thank you today. For coming to see my mom.”

As expected, she’s a good girl at heart.

That’s why I can’t hate her even though she does mean things sometimes.

“Okay. Let’s go together next time when you have time.”

“And thank you for helping me make kimchi. You must have just been tired.”

Of course, it was also her housework.

I didn’t really need kimchi, so I didn’t have to do it.

But it wasn’t that boring.

“It’s okay. You showed me a lot of good things, right? This and that.”

“Hey! Do you really have to say that now? Forget it! Please!”

“You don’t want to? Are you going to make fun of me for the rest of your life? As a naked  Yu-ah?”

It wouldn’t be any funnier than that.

Yu-ah looked around in an instant at my words.

It was clear that she was looking for a weapon.

Her dead eyes and dark expression created a very scary atmosphere.

“Naked  Yu-ah…? I guess the only way to do this is to have amnesia…”

“Don’t make that creepy face. I forgot. I already forgot!”

Let’s leave the joke at that.

Since I knew why Yu-ah was holding onto me like that, I slowly walked up to her and put my hand on her head.

And then I said, “Is this something you’re thankful for?”

“…If you’re not thankful, then aren’t you not human?”

That’s true, but the feelings she had toward me were closer to a sense of indebtedness.

“…Then how long are you going to do this?”

“What, what?”

“You feel guilty whenever I help you with something like this, don’t you? You.”

“It’s not just once or twice, but you’re going to keep doing this.”

“Don’t be like that. Now. You promised me back then, Yu-ah. I’ll take your father’s place.”

…at least until you don’t feel the pain of that empty space.

Even though we’re childhood friends, the reason I go to someone else’s house to help make kimchi.

The reason I visit my mother who lives alone under the pretext of nothing.

The reason I do such annoying things is all because of the promise I made with her that day.

I still vividly remember Yu-ah, who was crying sadly as if she had lost the world.

“It’s a promise I made alone and you never asked me to do it. I’m just doing it because I like it. So don’t feel sorry for something so trivial. Do you understand?”

“…”

Yu-ah didn’t say anything to me.

I just patted her head a few times and turned around again.

“Are you really going now?”

If I had said that much, she would have understood…

At least I didn’t want Yu-ah to feel sorry or indebted to her.

I did it because I wanted her to be happy as a friend.

So that she wouldn’t get hurt by realizing the empty space her father left behind.

How many steps did I take from her?

“Hey! Yoon Ji-bin!”

Yu-Ah, who had been silent, called my name loudly once again.

I looked back at her again, wondering what was going on.

Her cheeks were slightly red.

She wasn’t looking at me, but at the tips of her shoes.

Her fists were clenched as if she was nervous.

Her lips were shaking as if she was hesitating.

Yu-Ah’s last words, in a voice so small that I couldn’t even hear them, were,…..”Where do you want to go play with me next week?”

It was so out of the blue, I hadn’t expected it at all.