Chapter 49: Until the Blue Sky Comes (9)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 49: Until the Blue Sky Comes (9)
The train to Gangneung. Eunji and Hoyoung sat on one side of the facing seats, while Blue and I sat on the other. The two children were excited, watching the scenery outside the train window change.
Even though it was a trip during the rainy season, the children were simply happy to be there. Blue and I watched them in silence.
Blue held her smartphone in her hand. It was turned off, so there was no real reason to hold it, but she couldn't seem to let it go, as if something was weighing on her mind.
"Did things go well at home before you left?"
I was the one who had pushed for this, but I couldn't help but wonder how she had managed to come on a trip her family hadn't authorized.
"Yes. It’s fine."
Blue answered with a smile, but I didn't feel entirely at ease, certain that something must have happened.
Still, we couldn't spend the whole trip like this, so I turned my gaze out the window to change the mood.
The train sped along relentlessly and soon arrived at Gangneung Station. I checked the pension Kirk had booked on my smartphone. The four of us got into a taxi, and I gave the driver the address.
"Lots of travelers, even with the monsoon season."
Sitting in the passenger seat, I listened to the driver's remark. It seemed that despite the rain, there were more people out on trips than expected.
"Have you had a lot of customers?"
"Of course. People coming with friends, families... Is this a family trip for you all?"
It was an awkward relationship to explain. The children were friends, but as for Blue and me, anyone looking at us would see a family of four rather than just guardians.
"Yes! That's right!"
Just as I was thinking of giving a vague, non-committal answer, Eunji’s voice cut in. Her remark instantly turned the four of us into a family, and I turned my head to look at her.
Eunji was smiling at me. Since it was complicated to explain anyway, I figured letting him think we were a family wasn't a bad idea.
"Your daughter is quite spirited."
"Yes. Well, I suppose so."
I thought it wasn't a bad idea, but once the driver actually started talking to me, I found myself mentally scrambling for how to respond.
Looking in the rearview mirror, Blue seemed to be having trouble adjusting to the situation as well, sitting there in silence.
Meanwhile, Eunji and Hoyoung were so excited that they kept staring out the window, thrilled by the sight of even a single building.
"You shouldn't be too loud, okay?"
When the children started getting rowdy, Blue stepped in to manage them, and the two kids nodded.
Blue smiled and stroked their hair. Seeing the atmosphere gradually relax put my mind at ease.
We arrived at the pension and were shown to our room. The two children pressed themselves against the large window, looking out at the rainy sea. The sky was overcast and the waves were rough, but they seemed to enjoy just watching it.
"Do you like it even though you're just looking?"
I walked over to Eunji and asked. She looked up at me and nodded.
"Yeah. When we're at home, I can't play with you and Hoyoung like this, Uncle."
I patted her head and walked over to Blue, who was organizing the groceries we had bought in the kitchen.
"Is there anything I can help with?"
"I'm fine for now, but I think it would be good if you could play with the children first."
I nodded and pulled a board game out of my bag. I knew there were many types of board games, but I had prepared relatively simple ones so the kids could enjoy them right away.
They were just card and dice games, but as soon as Eunji and Hoyoung saw them, they came and sat beside me before I even asked.
"Uncle. We're playing a game, right?"
"Yeah. We're going to play."
We were enjoying a light game of Old Maid when I heard the sound of Blue starting to prepare lunch.
Since we had left in the morning and hadn't had a proper meal in between, everyone was hungry.
We stopped mid-game as the aroma began to waft over, and we set the table to eat. It didn't look like she was quite finished, so after setting the table, I approached her.
"Do you need anything?"
Was she not used to someone offering to help? Whenever I asked a question, she seemed to freeze for a moment, as if her thoughts had stalled.
"Please heat the rice in the microwave."
I nodded and put the instant rice into the microwave. I watched Blue as she slowly prepared lunch, dish by dish.
Usually, when people go on trips, they eat something simple or buy food, but Blue’s cooking was quite serious. She was making everything from a stew simmering in a pot to various side dishes.
She said she liked reading cookbooks but hadn't really cooked much, yet watching her prepare everything, she looked quite experienced.
"Could you try this...?"
She held out a spoon from the stew. I took it, blew on the broth to cool it down, and tasted it. It wasn't too spicy and had a pleasant, well-rounded flavor.
"It's great."
Blue’s expression brightened instantly.
A day on a trip is long. Everything feels like a drawn-out moment.
But a day on a trip is also short. Once you enjoy something, so much time has already passed.
As the moment to return approaches, the joy of the trip turns into regret, and the more memories you make, the more you find yourself thinking.
The rain stopped toward evening. The sun had set, but the streetlights throughout the town made it feel as bright as day.
After hearing from the pension owner that there was a walking trail nearby, we grabbed umbrellas just in case it rained again and headed out.
We hadn't expected to be able to go out because of the rain, so the unexpected outing lifted everyone's spirits, children and adults alike.
The walking trail was beautiful. Lanterns hung from the trees along the forest path by the beach, so it wasn't dark at all.
Many people were already out playing, but the four of us had no trouble walking along the path.
"The path is beautiful."
Blue marveled at the simple beauty of the forest trail.
"It really is."
Was it because we were on a trip? To be honest, the well-maintained walking trails in Seoul had more to see. However, this simple scenery without any flashiness made one feel more sentimental than a grand landscape.
Eunji and Hoyoung, walking a bit ahead, were whispering to each other.
"Don't go too far ahead. It'll be trouble if you get lost."
"What's there to worry about? We have phones."
Eunji grinned and hurried further ahead with Hoyoung, while Blue and I followed quietly behind.
"The day went by so fast."
I nodded at Blue’s regretful tone. Was it because it had been a while since I'd traveled? We hadn't done much, yet the sun had already set.
"I know. I didn't realize the day could be this short."
Once this trip was over, Blue would likely return to her daily routine of looking after the children. I, too, would surely return to my days of investigating Team Hunter Killer and Superhumans.
"It must be quite hard to look after the children. You're amazing."
I meant it. Even a Superhuman feels fatigue and stress.
Superhumans are human, after all, so they get tired and stressed.
"It's okay. I'm used to it now."
Was she used to it? Or had she just become numb?
Perhaps being numb is what it means to be used to it. But it was clearly different.
And I had realized that the source of her stress wasn't the childcare.
Undoubtedly, her brother's wife—Blue’s sister-in-law—was the primary cause of her stress.
That was just my thought, and there could certainly be other factors. But considering the circumstances and the bits of the situation I'd heard from Blue, it wasn't hard to guess that the sister-in-law was the problem.
"Are you going to keep living like that when you go back? Even for a Superhuman, it must be exhausting."
At the mention of "Superhuman," I felt Blue’s gaze turn toward me. I didn't take my eyes off Eunji and Hoyoung walking ahead as I spoke to her in a firm voice.
"Don't worry. I'm not the type of person to discriminate against someone for being a Superhuman."
"How did you...?"
From her perspective, she must have wondered how I knew she was a Superhuman. Part of it was because I was with Spacetro, but even without that, finding information on Superhumans wasn't difficult.
"I saw you on the news once. It was a long time ago."
Nowadays, reporters don't pay much attention to Superhumans, so it's hard to see their faces in news articles, but until just a few years ago, articles about Superhumans were common.
"This is just me meddling, and it might be overstepping, but I'm curious if you're really okay."
"..."
She was silent. Whether she was okay or not—she wasn't even sure herself.
"There's nothing I can do to help, but still, can I ask you one thing?"
"Yes."
I looked at Blue, who answered in a low, subdued voice.
She had stopped walking as well. She just stood there, her head bowed.
"What do you want to do, Hayoung?"
If I had clearly recognized the truth about Superhumans from the beginning—that they weren't just enemies but people in difficult situations like this—I would have asked everyone this question.
Yubin, Yura, Green.
What they wanted to do.
But it's a cruel question. How many people in the world can answer when asked what they want to do? People don't even know themselves very well.
Especially Superhumans, who carry a social burden; their own subjectivity becomes blurred, and they lose their sense of direction even more.
I knew it was a question that would cause a headache and become more painful the more she thought about it. It might even cause her stress. But I wanted to ask. And I wanted to make her think.
"...A little."
Blue, who had been keeping her mouth shut, finally spoke.
"Can I talk about myself for a little bit?"
"As much as you want."
We started walking along the trail again and had a long conversation.
Blue had moved into her brother's house after a child was born to him and his wife.
Since they were siblings who had lost their parents at a young age, her brother was the only person Blue could rely on.
But her sister-in-law had set a condition. In exchange for not charging rent, Blue’s Superhuman salary would go toward raising the children.
Blue’s salary went into her sister-in-law's bank account, and she looked after the children with the money she received monthly.
After that, she ended up having to look after a total of three children, including Hoyoung, and Blue told me about the things that had happened during that process.
And I realized one thing. She didn't know what was wrong.
Under the guise of responsibility, Blue’s sister-in-law had made her take on all the household chores, and Blue had been tied to the house for about ten years without even having time for herself.
I told her clearly what I felt—that she was being subjected to a form of 'gaslighting.'
Blue, who had been listening quietly, closed her eyes and sank into thought. Then, she opened them and looked at me intently.
"You asked me what I wanted to do two days ago as well, didn't you?"
When I had called Blue two days ago to talk about the trip, I had asked her what she wanted to do.
"I realized I'd never thought about it. What I want to do."
Just as I was wondering what to say, I saw her eyes as she looked at the sky, and I felt that she didn't need any words right now.
"So I thought about it. What I want to do."
Her eyes were filled with conviction. It was the kind of look a kind, gentle person has when they've made a firm resolution. I felt momentarily overwhelmed by the atmosphere, which was different from before.
"I'm going to move out. I'll have to find a place, and there will be many more difficult situations. But still, I think that would be better for me."
Leaving an existing home to find a new environment would certainly be a difficult task. But for her, there would be no better path. There might be better paths if she looked, but those wouldn't be paths she found herself.
The path she had found now was the best path for her, the best way forward.
Before we knew it, we had fallen quite far behind the children. As we walked along the path, we found them sitting on a bench.
"Were you waiting for us?"
"Yeah. How was it, Uncle?"
I couldn't tell what Eunji meant by her question, as she looked at me with a meaningful expression. How was what? Was she asking about the walking trail? I hadn't looked at it properly because I was talking to Blue.
"It was good."
I couldn't say it was bad, so I said it was good. Eunji made eye contact with Hoyoung, and they both smiled at each other.
"What about you, Auntie?"
"Yes. It was good for me too."
Hoyoung asked Blue as well. Blue didn't seem to know exactly what was good, but seeing her answer that it was good anyway, it seemed she had been looking at the trail here and there while talking to me.
We returned to the pension and went to our rooms to sleep. Blue and Eunji went into one room, while Hoyoung and I went into the other.
Hoyoung was quiet, so I was just going to try and fall asleep since I didn't know what to say, but Hoyoung spoke first.
"Uncle."
"Yeah?"
Like Eunji, I wasn't Hoyoung's real uncle, but he seemed to call me that in the same context as Eunji. Of course, I didn't find it uncomfortable.
"Thank you for bringing us on this trip."
"You should thank Eunji, not me. Eunji's the one who said she wanted to go on a trip with you."
"No. Not for me, but for taking my auntie."
Hearing the six-year-old's words, I thought he was quite admirable. Unlike the sister-in-law, who only gave Blue burdens, Hoyoung was properly thinking about his aunt and wishing for her happiness.
"I see."
A smile touched my lips despite myself, and the two socially awkward males soon fell asleep.
In the women's room, they were also ready for bed, but Eunji didn't seem to have any intention of sleeping. She lay on her stomach, staring intently at Blue.
"What is it?"
Blue spoke as she looked at Eunji, who was staring at her to a somewhat burdensome degree.
"Unnie. What do you think of Uncle?"
"Huh?"
At the direct question, Blue hesitated for a moment on how to answer. She recalled his words and their conversation, remembering his expression and his eyes as she reflected on what he had said.
But Blue also knew that wasn't what Eunji was asking about. It was clear she was asking what she thought of him as a man, even if she hadn't consciously realized it.
"My uncle is really kind."
"Yes. He seems that way."
Through their conversation, Blue could feel it. Eunji’s uncle—not her real uncle, but someone that close—A was definitely a good person.
"It would be so nice if you and Uncle dated, Unnie."
The thought of getting close to and meeting a good person didn't feel bad at all. However, imagining it being pleasant and actually dating were two entirely different things.
"Is that what you want, Eunji?"
"Yes."
It was something young Eunji said without much deeper meaning.
I knew that, but having heard it, I couldn't help but be momentarily conscious of it.
"Never mind me, I just hope you and Hoyoung stay together for a long time."
"Don't worry. Hoyoung and I are going to get married."
It was the kind of thing young children say easily. That they'll marry the person they're dating.
Of course, their thoughts will change as they grow up, and there's no telling if the two children will still be dating when their thoughts do change.
But I couldn't help but smile at the innocent love story of young children.
*
We arrived in Seoul on the evening of the second day.
There was a lot of lingering regret about the trip, but the four of us thought it would be really nice to go on another trip when the weather got better.
"Get home safely."
I wondered if Blue would be okay going home like this, but there was nothing more I could do. All I could do was throw a question at her and make her think about herself at least once.
What happens after she returns is up to Blue.
"Yes. See you again next time."
Promising to meet again, we said our goodbyes and headed to our respective homes.
My priority was taking Eunji home before going to my own place, but Blue would be heading home with Hoyoung now.
As soon as she pressed the door lock and entered the house, a loud voice erupted from inside.
"Yoo Hayoung!"
Her sister-in-law, looking thoroughly enraged, came out to the entryway. Blue looked at her with unwavering eyes.
"Are you crazy? I told you not to go, and you go on a trip and keep your phone off for two whole days? You've completely lost your mind, haven't you?"
"Where's Oppa?"
Blue, not answering her sister-in-law, first sent Hoyoung inside and looked for her brother. The sister-in-law grew even angrier at Blue’s behavior, as she was being completely ignored.
"You crazy bitch, seriously!"
Just as she raised her hand high to swing at Blue, Blue caught her flying arm with one hand.
What did she want to do? She hadn't found the answer yet.
But Blue could tell for certain that, at the very least, what she was doing now wasn't what she wanted to do.
No. She had known all along. She just hadn't had a small catalyst to realize it once more.
Now, through a small catalyst, Blue had begun to gradually find what she wanted to do, and that will was intensely reflected in her eyes.
"Hey. Didn't you hear me? I asked where Oppa is."
The Blue reflected in the sister-in-law's eyes.
Yoo Hayoung had a look in her eyes that was completely different from usual.