Chapter 169
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 169
Eun-chae’s gaze was fixed on the lake, on the bobber floating somewhere on its surface.
Her face was filled with a blank expression. But if one looked a little closer, they would see it was a face showing a rare, intense focus.
Unlike when she was truly dazed, her mouth wasn’t hanging open in a dopey ‘heh,’ nor were her eyes half-lidded. Her brow was slightly furrowed as she stared at the bobber, and her fists repeatedly clenched and unclenched, revealing her tension.
Dokyun watched her, letting out a few quiet chuckles.
“Staring at it like that won’t make the fish bite.”
“Huh?”
“You have to relax your body and wait. Fishing is a game of waiting.”
Eun-chae tilted her head.
“Why is waiting a game?”
A troubled smile touched Dokyun’s lips at her question. “Hmm,” he hummed, pondering.
How should he explain it? How could he define fishing? The thoughts ran through his mind.
Of course, it wasn't like an answer would just appear. Dokyun was no philosopher, nor was he a great thinker. In other words, he lacked the talent to elegantly package and describe the game of waiting that was fishing.
With a completely flustered expression, he met Eun-chae’s gaze and, as always, decided to just tell her what he was thinking. He opened his mouth.
“Because the more agonizing the wait, the sweeter the fruit at the end.”
“Fruit?”
“Um, well… it’s like this. What do you do when you want to eat meat, Eun-chae?”
“Honeybee cooks it for me.”
“Right? And what do you do while I’m cooking the meat?”
“I wait.”
“And how do you feel while you’re waiting?”
At Dokyun’s words, Eun-chae made a small “Euumm” sound as she carefully recalled that moment.
Honeybee cooking meat. Me waiting for the meat to be cooked.
A scene surfaced in Eun-chae’s mind. She’s sitting in front of the aquarium in the living room, watching the fish, when the smell of cooking meat makes her turn her head toward the kitchen. In the kitchen, Honeybee is grilling meat with a sizzle. His back is so big and broad as he cooks that it makes her feel safe, and watching him makes her heart start to pound.
“Thump-thump.”
“Huh?”
“My heart goes thump-thump.”
Hearing her words, Dokyun studied her expression. Her flushed cheeks and sparkling eyes were filled with delight.
A smile spread across his lips at the sight, and he added, “Right, that thump-thump feeling is anticipation. The feeling of ‘Once Honeybee is done, I’ll get to eat delicious meat.’ The joy of waiting with that kind of anticipation is the reason we fish.”
Truthfully, people did it for the thrill of the catch, but there was no way Eun-chae would understand that. So instead, Dokyun used an explanation that would be a little easier for her to grasp.
Eun-chae tilted her head at his words, but after hearing his example, she nodded.
The meat Honeybee cooked was delicious, so waiting for it was fun, too. Fishing was the same.
“Fish are yummy, so waiting for fish is fun, too.”
“Exactly.”
Kikik. A laugh escaped Dokyun’s lips. It was such a classic Eun-chae way of putting it. As he nodded in agreement, Eun-chae’s expression turned strange.
Her face, slightly flushed, began to scrunch up this way and that.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
Eun-chae was holding back a laugh. Because if she laughed, she’d be embarrassed. Her heart might just burst. She couldn’t laugh where Honeybee could see.
Eun-chae shook her head vigorously to shake off the laughter, then moved closer to Dokyun and plopped down on his thigh.
Half-crouched, she squeezed herself into his arms, and only then did she feel her heart begin to settle.
“Here is the best.”
Whoosh—. Eun-chae’s expression began to relax into one of comfort. Dokyun scratched his cheek, looking a bit troubled, but figured he couldn’t do much if she liked it. He stretched out his legs to make it easier for her to sit.
It was at that exact moment that the fishing rod twitched with a swoosh.
“Whoa!”
Jolt! Dokyun’s body shot up, and Eun-chae jumped to her feet as well, her eyes on the bobber.
At the end of her gaze, the bobber plunged beneath the surface with a plop and began to thrash back and forth. A thrill rose up in her automatically. Eun-chae let out all that excitement, shaking Dokyun’s arm and urging him on.
“Fishy. Fishy. Fishy.”
…It was the most urgent she could be.
Dokyun nodded firmly at her tone and, just as he’d learned once before, began to work the lure to reel in the fish.
The thrill of the catch. The very thing fishing fanatics were crazy about. As that sensation shot through his entire body, Dokyun wrestled with the fish for a good while before he suddenly felt it leap with a powerful flop!
Dokyun’s body staggered back slightly. Regaining his balance, he saw a large fish hooked on the end of the line and broke into a bright smile.
“I caught it!”
“Fishy.”
Dokyun and Eun-chae looked at each other. Dokyun’s face was radiant as he looked at her. Eun-chae’s face, in turn, puffed up like a soft bun as she scrunched up her expression and shook her head.
Seeing her face, Dokyun burst out laughing.
“Should we catch some more?”
“Yeah.”
In response, Eun-chae nodded her head enthusiastically.
*
After that, they caught two more. A total of three fish.
In terms of size, the first one was the biggest. The second and third were just large enough to be considered decent.
Dokyun took the fish to a sashimi restaurant right next to the fishing spot. He ordered one to be prepared as sashimi and the other two to be made into a spicy fish stew, then took a seat.
A short while later, as Eun-chae’s eyes sparkled at the sight of the finished dishes, Dokyun picked up his spoon and chopsticks.
“Shall we eat?”
“Thank you for the food.”
“Go ahead.”
Eun-chae picked up her spoon. As if intending to try the soup first, she dipped it into the spicy stew, scooped up some broth, and brought it to her lips.
Jolt. Seeing her flinch, Dokyun let out a soft laugh.
“It’s hot, you have to blow on it.”
How could she put something boiling hot straight into her mouth?
Dokyun, wearing a troubled expression at her antics, picked up his chopsticks, lifted a piece of sashimi, and placed it in Eun-chae’s mouth.
“Let’s eat the sashimi first while the stew cools down a bit.”
Eun-chae nodded at his words and chewed on the sashimi before swallowing it with a gulp.
“It’s yummy.”
“Is it?”
“Yeah, the fishy is yummy.”
A look of happiness began to spread across Eun-chae’s face.
Savoring the chewy texture in her mouth, she looked at Dokyun.
She loved it when Honeybee smiled and placed pieces of sashimi in her mouth, one by one. When she opened her mouth with an ‘ah,’ he would dip the next piece in sauce before giving it to her, and the salty flavor made it even better.
After being fed by Dokyun for a while, Eun-chae picked up her own chopsticks. With an awkward grip, she picked up a piece of sashimi. Her hand trembling, she brought it to Dokyun’s mouth.
“One for Honeybee, too.”
Good things are even better when you share them. Eun-chae was someone who knew how to share.
Watching her trembling chopsticks, Dokyun felt a wave of emotion for some reason as he accepted the sashimi into his mouth.
“It’s delicious.”
“Yeah, the fishy is yummy.”
Whoosh. Dokyun’s expression brightened. Seeing his face, Eun-chae’s heart went thump-thump again.
Eun-chae thought to herself.
Every time Honeybee smiled like that, she became the happiest Eun-chae in the world.
A pulse beat through her entire being. Another laugh threatened to burst out.
As she trembled slightly with the overwhelming emotion, she suddenly wondered if the ‘dad’ that Uri had spoken of was someone like Honeybee.
She didn’t know what a dad was, but it probably was.
As she was thinking this, kikik, Uri laughed. Uri laughed like that for a long moment before asking Eun-chae a question.
‘Are you having fun?’
To that question, Eun-chae gave her answer.
‘I’m happy.’
Eun-chae was happy. Of course, it was fun, too, and the whole day had been joyful, but if she had to describe the feeling, ‘happy’ was more accurate than ‘fun.’
Hearing Eun-chae’s answer, Uri was silent for a moment before speaking in a clear, bright voice.
‘I’m glad.’
Nod. Eun-chae’s head bobbed. At that, Dokyun tilted his head.
“Why?”
“It’s yummy.”
Was it really that good? Dokyun chuckled at Eun-chae’s flushed face, then placed another piece of sashimi in her mouth.
As Eun-chae accepted it and chewed, she realized that Uri was gone and tilted her head in confusion.
Uri hadn’t fallen asleep. Eun-chae could feel it.
‘Ah.’
Uri left.
It felt as if a warm energy was filling her from within. Eun-chae savored the warmth Uri had left behind for a moment before looking back at Dokyun.
He put a piece of sashimi in her mouth, then popped one into his own. Then his gaze would return to her, and the smile on his face looked so handsome.
Eun-chae linked ‘Dad’ and ‘Honeybee’ in her thoughts for a moment, before concluding internally that Honeybee was just Honeybee.
Eun-chae preferred Honeybee, who made her the happiest Eun-chae in the world, over some ‘dad’ she didn’t even know.
“Honeybee.”
“Hm?”
“I like you.”
Dokyun blinked at her words, then burst out laughing. “Pffft.”
“I like you too, Eun-chae.”
“Okay. Can I eat the spicy stew now?”
“Ah, right. Let’s eat.”
Dokyun picked up the ladle and began serving the spicy stew into a bowl. In that brief moment, while Dokyun’s attention was elsewhere, Eun-chae let out a tiny laugh.
Holding it in wasn’t good. She had to let it out when she could.
“Here you go.”
Eun-chae’s gaze fell on the bowl piled high with stew. Taking it, she picked up her spoon and scooped up a mouthful—half fish, half broth—and put it in her mouth.
A sharp, spicy flavor rose up. Then, as she chewed the tender meat, a savory taste blended in, filling her entire mouth with happiness.
As expected, the fish was just so delicious.
“Yummy.”
“I’m glad.”
Kikik. Hearing Honeybee’s laugh, the spicy stew somehow seemed to taste even better.