Chapter 66
Chapter 66
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 66
Chapter Title: Forsythia Festival (1)
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Saturday arrived—the day we were heading to the Forsythia Festival.
“Haneul! Haneul~!”
Seol-i, who came running over to our house first, was waving with a beaming smile on her face.
I waved back at her, and Seol-i trotted right up to me.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Of course I did. What about you, Seol-i?”
“I slept great too! Oh, but what about Dasom?”
To Seol-i’s question, I gave an awkward smile and replied.
“Haha… well… who knows…?”
To understand why Seol-i was asking about Dasom, we have to go back to last evening.
Last evening, Seol-i and I were chatting on the phone about the Forsythia Festival.
We were talking about what to eat somewhere along the way, but to put it bluntly—I let my guard down way too much.
“Oppa, festival!?”
Dasom had snuck up beside me out of nowhere, her eyes sparkling as she asked about it.
It was my fault for not closing the door during the call, but in the end, Dasom overheard that we were going to the festival.
Honestly, I figured Dasom wouldn’t even know what a “festival” was, but surprisingly, she had some idea.
She thought of it as a “fun place,” which wasn’t far off.
Anyway, while I was flustered by her question…
“Is that Dasom’s voice?”
Seol-i on the other end picked up on it perfectly.
I had no choice but to give her a rough rundown of the situation.
Dasom had overheard about the Forsythia Festival and was showing interest, but I’d handle explaining it to her.
Despite saying that, Seol-i surprised me with her response.
“Just bring Dasom along. Wouldn’t it be more fun that way?”
She suggested taking Dasom with us.
Truth be told, it wasn’t like the idea hadn’t crossed my mind.
Dasom would have a blast at a festival, so why not?
But in the end, it was Seol-i who’d invited me out, and she wanted to go just the two of us.
Bringing Dasom along would feel rude, wouldn’t it? That’s why I hadn’t breathed a word of it to her…
but this was a scenario I hadn’t anticipated.
“You sure that’s okay? Didn’t you want to go just us two?”
“It’ll be more fun together. And I bet Dasom really wants to come.”
I glanced at Dasom’s face. She was leaning against me, gazing up with eyes brimming with anticipation. Desperate, pleading eyes.
With no other option, I tried to pry her off by explaining why she couldn’t come.
“But we only reserved for two people. Three might not work.”
The moment she heard that, Seol-i realized her mistake. After checking, we learned even infants needed reservations. In short, Dasom was out of luck for the festival.
“…Dasom, sorry. Looks like we can’t go together this time.”
“Why…?”
“Only two people can go…”
“Sniff… huu… Oppa… Oppa… I hate you! I hate youuu! Waaah!”
Dasom wailed that she hated me, and I held her close, trying my best to soothe her. Then she did something she absolutely shouldn’t have.
-Thwack!
She punched my cheek with her tiny fist.
And of all the timing…
“Kang Dasom!!!”
…Mom walked in and saw the whole thing.
I was okay with it. Sure, it annoyed me and stung a little, but it was just a kid being stubborn—I could let it slide. But letting it slide only works when Mom and Dad aren’t around to see. Since Mom caught it, there was no helping it.
“What do you think you’re doing to your oppa!”
“Waaah!”
In the midst of the chaos, I apologized to Seol-i and ended the call. Which is why she’s worried about Dasom now.
“I hope Dasom didn’t get in too much trouble…”
Seol-i seemed concerned for her, but her worry was aimed a little differently.
“I hope it wasn’t too harsh…”
Yeah. Seol-i had no real issue with Dasom getting scolded. She just hoped it wasn’t excessive.
Having witnessed Dasom’s punishment last night, though, I couldn’t bring myself to say, “It’s fine, she didn’t get it too bad.”
“She did get scolded, though?”
“Dasom needed to be. You can’t hit Haneul, no matter what.”
“Haha… it didn’t hurt that much…”
“It’s not about the pain, and you know it.”
Seol-i gazed at me, looking genuinely upset. Her eyes were so sincere, so pure, that I started feeling self-conscious for no reason. To wriggle out of it, I shifted the conversation.
“Anyway, you came dressed like that.”
“Why? Is it… too much…?”
“No, it suits you perfectly.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really.”
Seol-i was wearing a yellow top, the same shade as forsythia blossoms. It was the first time I’d seen her in yellow since kindergarten, but it suited her surprisingly well.
“Did you coordinate it for the Forsythia Festival?”
“Yeah…”
She nodded shyly, looking a bit embarrassed.
Now that I was really looking, Seol-i had put way more effort in than usual. Like… yeah, she’d dolled up a bit.
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You might not notice at first glance, but she’d definitely gone all out for this outing.
How could I tell? Easy. Seol-i usually goes completely bare-faced. No makeup whatsoever. But her skin looked even fairer now. And there was this faint, pleasant scent. Different from her natural aroma—a subtle, sweet note. She must’ve done a light makeup job.
She was that excited about our day out together.
Realizing that made the weight of responsibility sink in heavier. I had to make this outing she was pinning her hopes on a total success.
“Let’s have an absolute blast today.”
Seol-i nodded right away.
“Yeah, let’s have tons of fun…!”
She bobbed her head enthusiastically, flashing a radiant smile. Hand in hand with that beaming Seol-i, we headed for the bus stop.
We made it to the bus stop, hopped on the bus, transferred to the subway, and finally reached a mountain in Seoul hosting the Forsythia Festival.
The moment we arrived, Seol-i shivered lightly—maybe the weather hadn’t warmed up fully yet.
“Seol-i, you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine… uuu…”
She trembled now and then. The temperature wasn’t brutally cold. The problem was the mountain. Mountains drop cooler by nature, so you need layers warmer than usual. Seol-i must’ve been too focused on her outfit to think about that.
“It’ll warm up once the sun’s properly out.”
“Ugh… yeah…”
She nodded faintly, but I felt bad for her.
In the end, I started taking off my jacket to give to her.
Seol-i shook her head vigorously right away.
“I’m fine!”
“Really?”
“Yeah! See…?”
She flapped her arms dramatically to prove it.
Seeing her like that, I had no choice but to nod along. Seol-i could be just as stubborn as anyone, so when she insisted, I had to respect it.
“But tell me if it gets cold. I’ll hand it over immediately. Got it?”
“…Yeah, got it.”
I nodded back at her, and together we turned toward the mountain.
True to the Forsythia Festival name, a massive sea of forsythia blossoms greeted us.
“So pretty…”
Seol-i murmured, staring in a daze.
I’m not big on flowers, but hearing her say that made me look closer—and yeah, they really were stunning.
“Yeah, they are.”
I never imagined myself complimenting flowers like this, but they were beautiful.
I took hold of Seol-i’s hand again—having let go for a moment—and asked.
“So, Seol-i, ready to head up?”
“Ah… yeah…! Let’s go…!”
She nodded big and trotted up beside me.
Together, we started climbing toward the festival.
It wasn’t a tall peak anyway, and they said the event kicked off right from the base, so we took it easy…
…I didn’t expect the festival grounds to pop up after literally five minutes.
The good news? It was a full-blown festival.
Even at a glance, countless booths lined up to welcome us.
And right up front, a staff member greeted me and Seol-i.
“Welcome to the Forsythia Festival~ Do you have a reservation?”
Seol-i whipped out the back of her phone on cue, confirming it, and we got paper bracelets slipped onto our wrists.
“You’ll need the bracelets to join the booths~”
“Yes…! Thank you…!”
I couldn’t help smiling at Seol-i, who grinned ear-to-ear at the forsythia-printed bracelet.
Her pure joy only strengthened my resolve.
I had to make this a perfect, unforgettable day for her.