Chapter 117
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 117
While washing the dishes, Dokyun turned his head to check on Eun-chae.
She was leaning back in her chair, patting her stomach. The meal must have suited her tastes; she had managed to finish a portion that was quite large for two people and was now patting her full belly.
He was glad she had enjoyed the food, but a small worry began to sprout.
Is it okay for her to eat that much?
None of the other personalities had ever overeaten in Eun-ah’s body, so it was hard to judge.
He narrowed his eyes, observing her for another moment, before deciding it was probably fine. Dokyun finished the dishes and started getting ready to go out.
“Going out” just meant the front yard, so all he needed was a coat to throw on.
“Lift your arms.”
“Okay.”
At his words, Eun-chae stretched her arms straight up. Dokyun slipped a thick sweater over her, pulled on his own coat, and then lifted her into his arms.
He had no intention of removing the handcuff on her ankle. A safety measure like that was necessary, just in case.
As soon as he picked her up, Eun-chae once again buried her face in his chest and began sniffing him.
After a moment, Dokyun saw her brow furrow and tilted his head.
“What’s wrong? Is there a problem?”
“You don’t smell like Honeybee-nim.”
Her reply was somewhat sullen.
Ah, so that was the problem.
“It’s because I was grilling meat.”
It was only natural to smell like meat after grilling it.
As he said this, Eun-chae whimpered and pushed herself upright. She pressed her nose into the crook of his neck, and only then did her expression relax.
Dokyun let out a faint, wry chuckle, then sighed softly and headed for the front door.
Outside, the early March air was still in the grip of a late winter chill.
Dokyun felt his mind clearing as he took a deep breath. The crisp morning air, tinged with a cool bite, filled his lungs. He felt a brief sense of satisfaction before looking down to check on Eun-chae.
The moment they stepped outside, Eun-chae had glanced around at the scenery before burying her face in his neck again, her eyes closed.
Dokyun felt a flicker of disappointment. He had hoped she would look around a little and show some curiosity, but Eun-chae seemed to have little interest in the world outside the house.
“Um, you don’t like it out here?”
“Huh?”
“You don’t seem to like it very much.”
Feeling a little awkward, Dokyun posed the question. Eun-chae tilted her head, then buried her face in his neck again and mumbled her reply.
“I don’t dislike it, but I like Honeybee-nim more.”
Was he supposed to be happy about that? An awkward laugh escaped him as the feeling of helplessness grew. Since they were already out, he decided they might as well feed the koi before going back in and started walking toward the pond.
The weight in his arms. The chilly air. The quiet surroundings. It all combined to create a comfortable atmosphere.
A comfort so profound it was hard to believe he was holding Go Eun-chae. Dokyun let out a soft breath and looked down at her again.
She really has put on some weight.
Compared to when he’d first seen her, she looked like a different person.
The unique coolness of her body temperature was the same, but her neatly combed hair and her pleasantly plump cheeks scattered the fear that coolness once inspired, leaving no trace of it behind.
It really is all about narrative plausibility.
Of course, the fact that she was being so docile played a huge part, but Dokyun figured the reason he no longer felt afraid of her was that her current appearance didn't match his memory of her from back then.
Lost in thought, he continued walking and soon arrived at the pond. As he looked at the koi, he got the first real reaction out of Eun-chae.
“What are those?”
“Hm? They’re koi. We’re raising them here.”
Pleased by her curiosity, Dokyun added, “What, are they interesting?”
There was no reply. Eun-chae was staring blankly at the koi swimming in the pond, her mouth hanging slightly agape.
A smile crept onto Dokyun’s face. He picked up the container of fish food from the corner of the pond and poured some into Eun-chae’s hand.
“Want to try feeding them?”
“Food?”
She looked at him as if to say, This is food? Dokyun let out another laugh, nodded, and explained.
“If you sprinkle this in the pond, they’ll come up and eat it.”
After he finished speaking, Eun-chae stared blankly, her gaze shifting between her hand and the pond, before she tossed the food onto the water’s surface.
Immediately, the koi swarmed the spot where she had thrown the food. Watching them, Eun-chae’s eyes widened slightly.
Dokyun felt a sense of satisfaction at her reaction. Just then, the koi, having devoured all the food, began to disperse. Eun-chae snatched the container from Dokyun and threw another handful into the water.
Once again, the koi swarmed.
As Eun-chae, who had been watching them blankly, reached for more food, Dokyun let out a small laugh and stopped her.
“That’s enough for now. You can’t give them too much.”
“Why not?” she asked, tilting her head. Dokyun felt a bit troubled as he tried to explain.
“If they see food in front of them, they’ll eat it even if they’re full. Then they can’t digest it, and they die.”
“Are they stupid?”
Coming from the person who had just eaten until her stomach was about to burst, the question made Dokyun let out a dry laugh.
“Yeah, they’re stupid, so the person feeding them has to be careful.”
Nod. Eun-chae’s head bobbed. She watched the koi swim for a while longer, but her interest soon faded. She looked away from the pond and reached her arms out to Dokyun.
She wanted him to hold her.
Dokyun picked up Eun-chae, who was stretching her arms toward him, and stood up, his mind already racing.
What should I show her now?
The yard was spacious, but there wasn't much in it, leaving him with few options.
As he pondered, he remembered the swinging bench where he and Eun-ah had watched the sunrise. Holding Eun-chae, he headed toward it.
When he reached the bench and sat down, he was overcome by a strange sense of nostalgia.
It had already been two months since he’d watched the sunrise from this spot.
Time flies, he thought briefly. He set Eun-chae down beside him and gently pushed off with his leg to start the bench swinging. Eun-chae tilted her head and looked around curiously.
She looked up, then to the side, then down at her own feet. After a short gasp, her gaze fell on him. She stared at his face for a long moment before leaning her head against his shoulder.
Dokyun smiled faintly at the sight, then closed his eyes and spoke.
“You should close your eyes, too. It’s really comfortable like this.”
“Okay.”
Eun-chae nodded and closed her eyes.
With her eyes shut, she focused all her senses on the warmth being transmitted to her.
She could feel a faint heartbeat. Beyond it, a soft shushing sound tickled her ears, and a slight chill crept up her fingertips.
It felt like the surface of her skin was slowly drying. She shivered slightly, and Honeybee-nim’s hand covered her own.
Feeling the warmth spreading from her hand deep into her core, Eun-chae kept her eyes closed for a long time.
This is comfortable.
Eun-chae now understood what Honeybee-nim meant by “comfortable.”
Being comfortable meant not hurting at all, feeling a little drowsy and hazy, a feeling similar to just waking up from sleep.
And yet, it was different from waking up. There was the sound that gently tickled her ears, the rocking of her body, and the warmth covering the back of her hand.
Eun-chae suddenly felt a strange sensation wash over her.
Her heart was pounding even though she hadn’t done a good deed. She felt like she should be doing something, yet she wanted to stay perfectly still.
Her body twitched slightly. She wondered if she should do a good deed now. But when she looked up at Honeybee-nim, the thought later popped into her head before she could stop it.
She squeezed Honeybee-nim’s hand and exhaled, shaking off the thoughts that troubled her.
She might have become a little bit of a bad child.
*
Dokyun’s eyes fluttered open as he felt a slight tremor.
Ah.
It seemed he had closed his eyes and fallen asleep.
Realizing this, he let out a wide yawn. A moment later, he felt a weight on his shoulder and turned his head to see Eun-chae sleeping soundly, breathing softly.
We fell asleep together.
A small smile touched his lips. He looked up at the sun, now shining brightly in the sky, and let out a wry laugh. It was already high noon.
No wonder he didn't feel the slightest bit of chill. The sun was so warm, it was only natural to feel drowsy.
It was the time of year for spring fever, after all.
Should we stay like this a little longer?
Since Eun-chae was sleeping so soundly, Dokyun decided it was okay to relax. He let the tension leave his body and closed his eyes again.
It was some time later when Eun-chae finally woke up.
Dokyun watched her stir and open her eyes, his voice tinged with a smile as he spoke.
“You awake?”
There was no reply. At the sound of his voice, Eun-chae slowly lifted her head, blinked at him, and let out a small yawn.
A moment later, with a soft grunt, she squirmed and climbed onto Dokyun’s lap, curling into a ball.
Wondering what she was doing, Dokyun watched as she closed her eyes again. He let out a wry chuckle and began to gently pat her back.
Had she not gotten enough sleep? Or was this personality just a particularly heavy sleeper? Pondering the question, Dokyun studied her face for a moment before letting out a deep sigh and settling in to kill more time.
The sun had moved a little further across the sky by the time Eun-chae finally shook off her sleepiness.
He had been thinking about getting up, but Eun-chae showed no intention of moving, so he remained on the swinging bench. Just then, Dokyun noticed her gaze fixated on one spot.
Wondering what she was looking at, he followed her line of sight. There were two praying mantises.
They were clearly mating.
As he watched Eun-chae stare intently, he wondered if he should cover her eyes. But before he could, a question popped out of her.
“What are they doing?”
“Uh, huh?”
Dokyun felt a surge of panic as Eun-chae’s gaze turned to him.
“Uh, um…”
What was he supposed to say? He debated for a moment, then decided it was probably best to be honest.
“They’re mating.”
“Mating?”
“They’re making babies.”
They were just insects, after all. It wasn't like he couldn't tell her. After he spoke, Eun-chae’s gaze returned to the mantises.
It wasn't a common sight, so she must find it fascinating. With that thought, Dokyun found himself staring blankly at the mantises alongside her.
A moment passed.
“Huh?”
The female mantis, having finished mating, began to eat the male.
Oh, no.
A wave of panic washed over Dokyun as he belatedly recalled the mating habits of praying mantises.
The female eats the male after mating.
At that realization, a cold sweat began to trickle down his back. He looked at Eun-chae with trembling eyes.
Her attention was completely focused on the mantises.
I have to make her look away. This isn't something an innocent kid should see. With that thought, Dokyun forced an awkward smile and tried to divert her attention.
“Sh-shall we go back inside now?”
His words reached her, and her gaze shifted to him.
She stared at him blankly. Just as Dokyun was about to ask what was wrong, Eun-chae bit down on his arm.
“…”
“…”
Silence followed. Their eyes met.
After gnawing on his arm for a moment, Eun-chae released him and posed a question.
“Now Eun-ah has a baby, too.”
“…No, she doesn’t.”
A sigh escaped Dokyun’s lips.
A wave of hopelessness washed over him. He had no idea where to even begin.