Chapter 205
Chapter 205
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 205
Chapter Title: Chocolate Milk Magic
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It didn't take long to realize that my thinking had been wrong.
It might be too much for an adult like me, but for a child like Daeun, the sweetness of the condensed milk apparently wasn't that intense.
"More, more! Gimme more!"
I had to struggle to calm Daeun down as she said that.
"Daeun, how about we try something else?"
"No! This! I wanna drink this!"
"Um... well, eating too much of this will make your tummy hurt."
"Just a wittle more and Daeun won't get hurt 'cause Daeun wikes this!"
Why had I arrogantly assumed she'd hate it because it was too sweet?
But as they say, it's not easy to gather up spilled water.
In the end, I had no choice but to use a desperate measure.
"If we use all this up, we might not have enough ingredients to make chocolate milk!"
"Oh no! We can't do that! Daeun wants to dwink chocolate milk today too!"
"Then if there's any left over, I'll give it to you, so let's make the chocolate milk base first, okay?"
"Yeah! Yay!"
What a relief.
I let out a sigh of relief, thinking we'd gotten past it safely for now.
But just in case her eyes wandered back to the condensed milk, I quickly took the milk out of the microwave.
"Ow, hot hot."
"It's hot."
"Yeah, warmed milk is super hot, so you always have to be careful. Same with other hot foods."
Nod nod!
"Got it!"
Hearing Daeun's spirited reply, I poured the pre-melted chocolate—dissolved in a double boiler—into the hot milk and stirred.
Stir stir.
"See, stirring chocolate into warm milk like this prevents it from hardening when we add cold milk later. And then the condensed milk that Daeun had earlier."
Slurp.
I scooped up an appropriate amount and stirred it vigorously into the chocolate-melted milk.
In the meantime, Daeun's gaze drifted toward the condensed milk for a moment, but I'd quickly placed it on the far side of the sink, diverting her attention.
Then, as the chocolate milk base was finished, Daeun's eyes sparkled.
"Now can I dwink it?"
"Not yet. It's still hot and too sweet, so we need to chill it first. Just wait a bit."
With that, I took cold milk from the fridge and poured it into the base I'd just made.
It was made with hot milk, but since there wasn't much, the chocolate milk quickly cooled down.
But it still wasn't ice-cold.
"So now we'll put the lid on and stick it in the fridge."
At those words, Daeun's eyes went wide.
"Daeun wants to dwink it now!"
"Not yet."
"Why?"
"Chocolate milk by itself will be plenty tasty, but Daddy bought ingredients to make your favorite snack too."
With that, I pulled out the box with pancake illustrations on it and showed it to Daeun.
Naturally curious about the new food, she tilted her head.
"What's this?"
"It's like bread, but you cook it. It's really yummy."
"Really?"
"Yeah, especially perfect with sweet drinks like chocolate milk. Daddy will make it quick, so let's eat it together with that. Sound good?"
"Wow! Yay! Daeun wants to eat this!"
Hehe.
I knew she'd love it.
As I opened the box while asking Daeun that,
"Shall we make these together too, then?"
"Yay!"
And so, Daeun and I got to work together.
Sizzle! Swish! Sizzle!
"Wow! Wow! Wow!"
There were a few trial-and-error moments.
But thankfully, I managed to perfectly complete the pancakes to go with the chocolate milk.
Smooth.
"Okay, before we eat."
"Ah! Again?"
Daeun pouted at my words.
"Yeah, there's one last step to make it even tastier."
"Even tastier?"
"Yeah! We have to cast a spell!"
"Magic!"
"Wait just a sec."
I poured cold chocolate milk into Daeun's favorite cup.
Then, while grating the chocolate we'd bought from the mart and sprinkling it on top, I said,
At my shout, Daeun got excited too and echoed me.
With the final touch complete, we could finally enjoy snack time.
Since she'd been waiting so eagerly, we started with a sip of the chocolate milk we'd made together.
"Try it. How's the taste?"
Daeun swallowed hard, then slowly took a sip of the chocolate milk.
Her eyes went wide, and she said,
"Yummy! Super yummy!"
"Right? Super tasty, huh?"
"It's 'cause Daddy did magic! Super yummy!"
That might be part of it, but there was another reason the chocolate milk tasted so good to Daeun.
"Hmm, Daeun, shall we try this too?"
Slice slice.
I cut the pancakes into bite-sized pieces, dipped them lightly in the maple syrup on top, and fed her.
She let out another joyful cry.
"Yummy! Super soft! Did Daddy do magic on this too?"
"Hmm, I did cast a spell, in a way."
"Really really really Daddy magic!"
Hehe.
"Not a real magician, but I did cast a spell to make you enjoy it."
"How?"
Smiling at Daeun's question, I told her.
"Daeun, what were you thinking when we made this food today?"
She thought for a moment, then said,
"Hmm, bought ingredients, made with Daddy, and wanted it super super yummy!"
"Right. And Daddy made it hoping you'd enjoy it. I used to do the same when making food for Mommy."
"Mommy?"
"Yeah, actually, the chocolate milk you're drinking was one of Mommy's favorite things."
"Mommy wikes chocolate milk too?"
"Yeah, a lot. And among all the chocolate milks, she loved the ones Daddy made the most."
I wanted to tell Daeun this story today.
And one more thing.
"And Mommy used to say something like this."
"What?"
"That she hoped you'd love chocolate milk when you were born. And that her dream was to drink the chocolate milk Daddy makes together with you. It was Daddy's dream too."
"Really?"
"Mommy would probably love it a ton."
Thanks to these stories, the spot where Daeun and I sat face-to-face was filled with happy smiles.
Even though Hyorin wasn't here, it felt like she was right beside us.
That's when Daeun said with a grin,
"Then Daddy! Daeun wants to do something!"
"What?"
"Daeun wants to cheers!"
"Okay, cheers!"
"Yeah! Cheers!"
With that, Daeun lifted her chocolate milk cup.
Ha! Where did she learn this?
Probably from Jungeun again.
But hey, for moments like this.
"Alright. Let's cheers."
Then Daeun said with a mischievous look,
"Mommy cheers too!"
"What? Haha! Yeah, Mommy definitely cheers too. So our whole family cheers together?"
"Yeah yeah! Right! Family cheers!"
Family cheers.
"Alright!"
"Alright!"
And so, Daeun and I clinked our glasses with big smiles.
"Cheers!"
The next day, before heading to the studio,
'This should be enough for the day.'
Since there were leftovers from yesterday, I filled a thermos with the pre-made chocolate milk.
It had been in the fridge all night, so it should still be cold by the time I got there.
If it got lukewarm, I could just pop it in the studio fridge.
I grabbed the chocolate milk I'd prepared and called for Daeun.
That's when.
'Oh, right, that too.'
My eyes caught the cone-shaped snacks that Daeun had stubbornly insisted on buying at the mart yesterday.
So I said,
"Daeun! Remember those snacks we bought yesterday? I'm taking them!"
"Yeah! Daddy!"
They were snacks she hadn't eaten because the pancakes were even tastier.
I figured they'd make a nice snack at the studio, so I packed them up.
We headed straight out and soon arrived at the studio.
Click.
Even though I'd taken yesterday off, the staff who manages it daily must have taken care of it.
The studio was always spotless.
As soon as we entered, Daeun ran over to the easel without being told.
"Daddy! Daeun's gonna draw!"
The kid.
"Got it. Daddy'll set it up right away."
I hurriedly prepared everything for Daeun to start painting.
Thud.
"Okay, Daeun. You can draw now."
"Yeah! Thanks, Daddy!"
Then Daeun grabbed a pencil and started sketching right away.
It was a familiar sight, but thinking back to how much effort I put into starting a single piece.
'Man, I'm jealous.'
It was amazing—and enviable—how she could think of drawing the moment she sat down.
But then again, it was Daeun.
'Oh!'
Smiling at Daeun as she drew, I said,
"Daeun, in case you get hungry while drawing, Daddy'll open the snacks for you."
I opened the snacks from home, portioned some into a paper cup, and set it beside her.
Then I held one up on my finger toward her.
"Ah! Open wide."
Normally, Daeun would take it right away.
Swish.
'No.'
Daeun shook her head vigorously and said,
"I'll eat later."
"Huh? Eat the snacks later?"
"Y-yeah! Daeun's not hungry now!"
What? She usually goes crazy for snacks.
She hadn't eaten a huge breakfast either.
Just a normal amount, so I'd opened them just in case.
"Then I guess you don't need the chocolate milk Daddy made yesterday either."
Whoosh!
At the mention of chocolate milk, Daeun whipped her head around.
"I wanna dwink that!"
Her reaction was worlds apart from the snacks, so I couldn't help but chuckle.
'No way, she doesn't want them?'
It was obvious she just didn't feel like eating them.
That's what you get for buying snacks Daeun likes.
Of course, I knew full well what those snacks meant to her at the time...
"You're not full?"
"Um... tummy full! But I wanna dwink chocolate milk!"
"Really?"
"Yeah! Fow real! Daeun wants to dwink!"
With no choice at Daeun's insistence, I poured her a cup of chocolate milk with a resigned look.
"Then drink it while you draw, okay?"
"Yeah! Got it!"
As I stepped back a bit, Daeun chugged a big sip in an instant.
Seeing her happier than anyone, I ended up thinking,
'As long as Daeun's happy.'
I shook my head and walked toward the entrance.
That's when.
Knock knock.
Someone knocked on the studio door and said,
"Um, hello. May I come in for a moment?"
"Oh! Sure. Come on in."
It was the staff member who manages the studio.
"I was always meaning to thank you properly for keeping everything so tidy."
I'd always planned to thank her someday for the daily maintenance.
Perfect timing that she'd come up.
"Oh, no need. It's my job."
"Still, thank you. So, what brings you here today?"
"Oh! Well, there was a visitor to the studio yesterday."
"A visitor? Who?"
At my question, the staff replied with a slightly regretful tone.
"Um, I asked just in case, but she wouldn't tell me."
"She didn't say?"
"Yes, she just asked me to pretend I didn't see her, but I thought I should let you know anyway."
Who could it be?
At least, coming here meant she knew Daeun and I were here.
Sure, I'd mentioned doing an artist residency.
But hardly anyone knew about this place.
If they did, it had to be from a very limited circle.
"Do you remember what she looked like?"
I had to tilt my head at what the staff said next.
"Um, I don't remember much else, but she was an incredibly beautiful woman."
...A beauty.