Chapter 12
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: A Dad Who Turned Over a New Leaf(?) Kang Tae-gu
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Let's skip ahead and fast-forward through time here.
I can't really express the thoughts I harbored about Mom as I grew up, thanks to those solemn heavenly laws.
So, I'm rewinding the story to the year I became a high school senior.
What? Skipping doesn't matter anyway.
Because even after a few years had passed...
our family was still crammed into the same dingy semi-basement studio apartment, living our same trashy lives without a single change.
Especially our family—no, more precisely, our proud parents—hadn't changed one bit despite all that time.
Dad was still flip-flopping between a useless bum and some shady gangster with mysterious income sources. He'd quantum-leap into bum mode whenever Mom wanted money, but switch to gangster mode whenever it suited him. A real K-science dad.
Sorry... I think the academic stress has me losing my mind lately.
And Mom...
Surprisingly, even though she was now 32 with the first digit flipped, she still looked like she was in her early to mid-twenties, like a college girl. Ever since I was in middle school, she'd been hitting the free swimming classes at the community center and putting real effort into maintaining her figure, so she still had that tight, toned body without an ounce of flab.
And... their married life? Zero changes. I mean, after 17 years of marriage, shouldn't things have cooled off a bit...? With their perfectly healthy teenage daughter and son right there in the next room, they still went at it every single night.
Because of that, my puberty dragged on forever, and these days, I could barely even look Mom in the face.
"Hey, kid. Aren't you being a bit too curt with Mom lately?"
"What?"
"You barely even look at me properly anymore and just give half-hearted replies."
"..."
It must feel disappointing from Mom's side, but honestly, it was just too embarrassing.
She was wearing those skin-tight dolphin pants that showed off half her ass right now—how could it not be?
"Hello, ma'am!"
"Oh, Gyu-tae! It's been a while, hasn't it?"
"Haha. I'd love to come over more, but this guy always says no."
"Why's that?"
"No idea. Scared I'll fall for you?"
"What? What's so great about an old lady like me?"
"Old lady? You look younger than my cousin sister."
And Gyu-tae was still dropping by our place whenever he got the chance. Shockingly, we'd been assigned to the same elementary, middle, and now high schools, making us even tighter bros than before. He was the only friend who'd been coming over since we were kids, so he and Mom had gotten pretty close too—he'd chat her up all casual-like.
We'd both grown up enough to know it was awkward talking porn with each other now, but we still hung out at the PC bang and got along great. Similar hobbies, tastes, thoughts—we just clicked.
As long as you ignored him sneaking those peeks...
"...Hey, you perv, quit staring."
"Sorry..."
At least now he knew it was wrong and would duck his head quick if I called him out... but man, it was annoying as hell.
"Ugh, Gyu-tae's here again."
"Crazy. Call me Gyu-tae oppa."
"You nuts? We're the same age."
"He's my oppa's friend, hehe."
Mi-hyun had gotten a lot more girly since starting high school too. She went to the same school as me and Gyu-tae, and with her decent looks—thanks to Dad's genes (though he looks rough) and Mom's—she was apparently super popular there. Not that I cared.
But like Mom and Dad, Mi-hyun had zero interest in studying. She'd stopped coming home early ages ago and was hanging with a rowdy crew. Mom finally snapped and told her to hit the books, but she shot back that if they wanted her to study, send her to cram school first.
The total opposite of me—I'd always had a bit of a knack for it and brought home decent grades every time.
We kids grew up like that, but Mom and Dad barely changed at all. Makes you realize a kid's year and an adult's year are worlds apart.
Anyway.
It was July. The peak of summer, with the heatwave dragging on.
That day, Dad finally dragged himself home after roaming around for days. Like I said before, his schedule was all over the place—some days glued to the house, others vanishing outside. This time he'd been gone a good while, so I was weirdly glad to see him.
"Oh, hey, Dad's back."
"What's with the 'oh'? You not happy to see your dad?"
"Huh? Oh, no."
Dad was a complicated figure to me.
Objectively, he was the guy who got drunk and swung at Mom or us, but I didn't exactly hate him either. Just like kids aren't purely hated by their parents, even the worst dad becomes a love-hate thing for his son.
Like how people are multifaceted—Dad was totally irresponsible trash, sure, but on the flip side, he never forced me to study like normal dads. Indulgent neglect, technically, but you could call it freedom too.
Sober Dad wasn't all bad, at least from my view. Mom took beatings from him often but never fully cut ties—probably great sexual chemistry mostly, but there had to be other reasons too.
Anyway, that day Dad seemed no different from usual. So after dinner, I pretended to study hard in front of him. Figured he might praise me for buckling down when he hadn't.
It was just my little hope—no real rewards ever—but that day, Dad was different. He stared at me studying for a bit, then out of nowhere asked in this surprisingly gentle tone.
"Hey, Hyun-seong. Want me to get you a smartphone?"
"Huh? For real?!"
"Yeah."
Lucky day—Dad was in full 'cool dad' mode. Mom, watching from the side, went wide-eyed.
"Oppa, we're broke."
"Broke my ass. I've been working lately."
I still had no clue what Dad did for cash, but big chunks came in sometimes. Of course, he'd blow it all on booze and gambling quick, but on days like this when money rolled in, he'd loosen up.
"Whoa, Dad! Thank you!"
My mood right then? I wanted to stand on my head and kowtow. Other kids got phones in kindergarten, but here I was, a high schooler without one—how humiliating. Got teased as "no-phone chump" all through middle school. And now Dad was offering to buy one.
"Here ya go. Mi-hyun, you too."
"Whoa... seriously?"
Dad was in such a great mood he even handed out pocket money—something we barely got twice a year. To my blank-faced little sis too.
My feelings? No need to say. I was floating. Not just the cash, but from the rock-bottom dad? And a gift? It sparked hope—maybe Dad was turning into a normal family man?
"Dinner out tonight? What's hot these days?"
"Oppa must've struck it big. Since when do you do husband stuff?"
"Shut it, you bitch. What's weird about me being a dad?"
"It's weird... Kang Tae-gu acting like this is super weird."
Our deadbeat dad, Kang Tae-gu—if his personality was a die roll, it was usually 1-3, but this was one of those rare 6s.
To check if he meant it, we hit the carrier store right away and set up my first smartphone ever. Afterward, we even went to a family restaurant—fancy for our budget—and chowed down. The flavor of that pork ribs still haunts me.
Mom beamed the whole time at this domestic side of Dad, and even Mi-hyun—who's usually stone-faced and hides her feelings—cracked a little smile.
Of course, it didn't last.
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First time in a pricey family restaurant, plus a phone as a gift.
Still early summer, but to me, it felt like Christmas.
"Thanks, Dad!"
"Yeah, yeah. Study hard and become a doctor someday, got it?"
"Yes, sir!"
Dad grinned all pleased, playing dad for once, when Mom poked his side.
"Oppa, you finally coming to your senses?"
"Senses? When was I ever a deadbeat?"
"What...? You'd have no conscience saying otherwise."
"The hell, you bitch. Like you're so great."
It nearly turned into a fight despite the praise, but he was too upbeat for that. Instead, it shifted gears.
We left the restaurant, took a family stroll in the park (another first), and got home around 11 p.m.
"Kids, bed now."
"Can't I play with the phone a bit?"
"No, tomorrow. Tomorrow."
Late night, so she hustled us to bed in the corner, then set up a simple booze spread. I pretended to sleep and watched.
"Ooh, booze setup. Been a while."
"Yeah. We hardly ever drink alone with the kids around."
At this rate... they'd get in the mood and hook up again. Ugh... kill me now.