Chapter 166
Chapter 166
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 166
Chapter Title: Warmth Amid the Winter Chill
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I burst out laughing right then and there.
"Hahaha!"
-...Don't laugh. I'm serious.
"It's just something you could casually ask like, 'I'm preparing a gift for my niece—what does she like?'"
Murmur murmur.
The people keeping a certain distance while watching me started whispering among themselves.
'Ah, they must have all overheard.'
I lowered my voice as much as possible.
"Yu-na doesn't have one favorite thing in particular. Toys, dolls... She loves any kind of gift."
-Is that so? Okay, got it. Then...
Click!
The call ended.
I stopped laughing and silently stared at the now-dark phone screen.
"......"
My pathetic face reflected back at me.
'Yu-na's birthday...'
It was truly embarrassing—as her dad, I'd learned her birthday was right around the corner through Yusia.
What if I'd let Yu-na's birthday slip by unnoticed? Just imagining it made me dizzy.
"Haa."
A sigh escaped me naturally.
At least that much was a relief?
Yu-na's birthday was still a ways off.
About two weeks from today.
"What gift should I prepare..."
I muttered softly, lost in thought.
Yusia would probably handle toys or dolls, so I should go with something else.
She'd be starting elementary school soon—maybe some cute clothes?
A bag wouldn't be bad either.
Murmur murmur.
"Did he just say 'niece gift'? Was that a call with singer Yusia?"
"Ah! Yu-na's birthday is coming up soon!"
"Birthday? Oh, right."
The murmurs grew louder.
This wasn't the place to mull it over. I turned and headed back into the pojangmacha.
"Ha-yul, you think so too?"
"Yeah! Uncle's even more handsome than my dad, taller too, and I like everything about him."
"Sob... My daughter has changed...."
"Stop crying already, honey."
Ha-yul, sitting next to Yu-na.
Yoon Si-won comforting Lee Jong-min, who was bowing his head and weeping pitifully.
'What happened?'
I'd just come in, so I hadn't caught the full conversation.
"Hehehe. Right, right."
"Wanna cheers like grown-ups? Clink!"
"Yeah! Clink!"
The spot where I'd been sitting.
Ha-yul was there now.
They clinked their paper cups full of drinks, laughing...
'I shouldn't interrupt, huh?'
I quietly approached Yoon Si-won and tapped her shoulder.
"Excuse me, Si-won?"
"Ah, yes! You're a bit late."
"Did something happen? Yu-na and Ha-yul seem even closer now than before."
She covered her mouth, laughing.
"Kids bond fast when they like the same things. Hehe."
"Huh?"
"Just watch. You'll see."
With that, Yoon Si-won turned to comfort the still-crying Lee Jong-min.
I clamped my mouth shut.
'Like the same things...'
What did that mean?
I grabbed the chair Ha-yul had used and quietly sat down in the back.
Then I watched Yu-na and Ha-yul playing grown-ups.
"Kuh! This orange juice is so good."
"Hehehe. Ha-yul? Earlier, wasn't Uncle's hand warm?"
"Yeah! When he petted my head, his hand was warm and cozy. And every time he smiled, I couldn't help but smile too."
Only then did I understand why Ha-yul and Yu-na had hit it off.
Ha-yul's fandom for me.
Yu-na's unwavering love for her dad.
They'd bonded over sharing stories about their favorite subject.
'Now I'm the one feeling embarrassed for no reason...'
Yoon Si-won led the way, holding tight to Yu-na and Ha-yul's hands.
Lee Jong-min and I followed slowly behind her. A chilly wind slipped through my thick clothes, making my body shiver.
"Whew... With all this snow piled up, it feels even colder today."
"Want to borrow my scarf?"
"Ah, no need..."
Before I could refuse, Lee Jong-min unwound his scarf and draped it around my neck.
Maybe because he'd been wearing it so long.
It still held his warmth.
Just the scarf was enough to keep the cold wind from sneaking in.
Should I buy one too?
"Feels warm, right?"
"...Thanks."
"No need to thank me. I'm the one who's grateful."
"Huh? Have I ever done anything for you to be thankful for, Jong-min?"
He smiled faintly and looked ahead. A fleeting sadness flickered in his eyes toward Ha-yul.
"...Actually, a few months ago, Ha-yul cried, saying she wanted to quit acting."
"Why was she crying?"
"Ratings are like report cards for actors, right? Or so I've heard."
I nodded at his words.
"Yeah, pretty much."
"The feature sitcom she shot following your lead only hit 2% for its premiere ratings."
"That's definitely low."
"Yeah, so she avoided TV for a while... She was really down. And she's only seven. Isn't that ridiculous?"
Lee Jong-min laughed it off like it was nothing, but I couldn't laugh at all.
It wasn't funny in the slightest.
He continued.
"She moped for a few days but bounced back soon enough—or so it seemed on the surface. But then..."
"......"
"Then, after watching the drama you were in, she changed. Know what Ha-yul said back then?"
I opened my tightly shut mouth.
"...What'd she say?"
"It was, 'I want to be a cool actor like Yu-na's uncle.' Ever since she got that goal, she's been diligent with acting classes... Brighter than before too."
Ah, so that's the story...
Now I got why he'd thanked me out of the blue.
Still...
'Why does my chest feel all tingly?'
The words about becoming an actor as cool as me tickled my heart.
Feeling bashful, I teased Lee Jong-min playfully.
"So she's got another goal now? Wasn't the first one to make a friend to last till old age?"
"......!"
Lee Jong-min whipped his head around.
His shocked face broke into a blooming smile.
"Hahaha! You knew about the cute reason she started acting? Yeah, that's how it happened."
"Dad! Hurry up!"
"Dad! You better not be saying weird stuff to Yu-na's uncle! Come on!"
The kids ahead called us from the apartment entrance.
We shrugged in unison and headed toward them.
Passing through the gate.
Entering the apartment complex, we stopped dead at the playground.
"Ha-yul! That's it! That one! The duck my dad made!"
"...Uncle really made that?"
Yu-na shrugged and pointed to a duck-shaped snowman that wasn't mine. I'd proudly claimed it as our collective kid-made masterpiece.
The shabby duck beak.
The lumpy body.
The protruding duck eyes.
Everyone eyed the ugly duck snowman, then glanced at my perfectly sculpted one on the left.
"No matter how you look at it, the one on the left seems like Jun-seo's..."
"Shh! You stay quiet."
Yoon Si-won silenced Lee Jong-min and knelt down to Yu-na.
"So the one on the left is the duck Yu-na made? It's great!"
Yu-na shook her head right away.
Then she beamed.
"Dad made it all. Hehehe."
"Oh my! Really?"
She'd claimed the right-side duck as mine too, to hype me up.
Yu-na's warm heart melted the chill from my body.
My daughter really is the best.
Christmas had arrived before I knew it.
Woken early by Yu-na's excited jumping around, insisting Santa had left gifts, I sat in the living room—unwashed—assembling a basketball hoop.
"Dad, hurry! Hurry!"
Her cuteness with the little basketball made me chuckle.
"Almost done. Just wait a bit."
Finally finished, I collapsed onto the sofa.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The ball bounced off the rim.
Yu-na's throwing form was so hilarious, it was fun just watching.
That's not how you throw it.
"...One more! Let's try again!"
"Heh. Okay, go for it."
Thump! Thump!
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Yu-na's face flushed redder.
She'd been failing to make the hoop and seemed frustrated. Trembling, she grabbed the ball again and tried.
Thump! Thump!
It bounced off the rim again. This time, she didn't even pick it up—instead, she ran to me.
"Dad! It's weird! It won't go in!"
"The weird part is your throwing form."
"Huh? Isn't the ball weird?"
Better to show than tell. I slowly stood, picked up the small ball.
"Watch Dad do i—"
I cut myself off.
My phone on the table was ringing. A quick glance—Yusia calling.
Oh, right.
Today was the release of Yusia's album and music video.
"Ah, Yu-na. Call from Auntie."
"Which auntie?"
"Sia Auntie."
"......"
Yu-na's face twisted.
It looked adorable to me.
She hates her that much, huh...
Smiling, I handed Yu-na the phone.
"Pick it up quick."
"I don't like Sia Auntie..."
"Remember that music video you filmed? It's out today. Just say congrats."
"...Okay."
Yu-na drooped her eyes but gripped the phone firmly.
"...Hello?"
-What, you little... No, Yu-na picked up? Where's Dad?
"Our dad? He's right here."
Did I bump the phone?
Yusia's voice came through loud.
-...Really? What're you up to?
"Playing with the ball Santa gave me."
-Santa?
"Yeah, Santa Claus."
-Pfft! Kids are kids, huh.
"I'm not a kid! I'll be in elementary school soon!"
Offended by "kid," Yu-na yelled back. Mentioning elementary school soon meant, in her book, that's above kid level.
-Hmm... Sure? Still a kid to Auntie. Anyway! Yu-na? Can you put Dad on now?
Tremble tremble.
Yu-na's hand shook.
After a moment.
The shaking stopped, and she spoke.
"...Congrats on the music video, Auntie."
Her grumpy congrats was hilarious and cute.
-Hahaha! Thanks, Yu-na.
Yusia's booming laugh echoed from the phone.
Pat pat.
Blushing, Yu-na approached and handed me the still-laughing phone.
"...Dad, here."
I took it, and she dashed off with the ball.
Suppressing a smile, I switched off speaker and held it to my ear.
"Yeah, I have the phone now."
-I called to ask something. You didn't get Yu-na clothes, right?
No way—she called early worrying about duplicate gifts?