Chapter 29
Chapter 29
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: My Daughter Is a Genius Painter 029
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The next day.
I got up early in the morning and prepared breakfast right away.
Chop chop chop.
'Come to think of it, Daeun liked doenjang stew.'
I put beef in the earthen pot and boiled water. Once it started bubbling away, I skimmed off the foam that rose to the top and dissolved the doenjang.
Then I trimmed the green onions I'd bought yesterday...
'Ah, right. Daeun said she hates green onions.'
Thanks to the note Hyorin had left, I could figure out Daeun's tastes on the spot. What a relief.
I chopped the green onions so finely they were practically unrecognizable and tossed them in with the onions and radish I'd already cut up.
Then, with zucchini to finish it off, the doenjang stew was complete.
Clack.
It's breakfast and all, but you still need a proper spread, right?
Bubbling doenjang stew, fluffy white rice, and those pink sausages we'd picked up on the way home yesterday.
Once I'd set out the side dishes too, it actually looked like a pretty decent breakfast.
With everything prepared to Daeun's tastes, I wiped the water from my hands and headed into the master bedroom to wake my sleeping daughter.
Click.
Snore, snore.
Even with me coming into the room, Daeun was still fast asleep, letting out those tiny little breaths.
'She really looks like an angel.'
How could something so small and cute even exist?
I was gazing at her sleeping face with a smile when...
Twitch.
Daeun's mouth corner suddenly twitched.
Was she having a dream or something?
I focused intently on her mouth, and that's when I caught her slyly cracking her eyes open just a bit.
'Huh, what? Is she awake?'
If she was awake, she'd sit right up... but she didn't.
Twitch.
As that thought crossed my mind, her mouth corner twitched again.
'Ah, I get it.'
Looks like Daeun was gearing up to scare me.
The kind of surprise a kid her age could pull off? Probably just yelling at the perfect moment.
'If I don't act scared, she'll be disappointed.'
Probably.
She was trying to freak me out, after all.
In that case, no choice but to play along.
I steeled myself to be shocked no matter what...
'Hmm, when's she gonna do it?'
I ended up waiting for her surprise for quite a while.
Had to be at least five minutes by the feel of it, and the whole time, she kept sneaking peeks at me.
'Cute. Does she seriously think I haven't noticed?'
The fact that she thought that was adorable in itself.
Figuring maybe she was waiting for me to leave, I said,
"Ah, Daeun's still sleeping, so I should come back later."
Right as I started to awkwardly stand up from my spot...
"Wah!"
"Eek!"
She bolted upright with a yell, and I let out a startled yelp as I flopped straight back onto the floor.
'Ah, did I overdo it?'
Maybe it would've been better if I'd just pretended not to notice.
I'd been so focused on reacting properly that every move felt stiff and unnatural.
A bit worried, I cracked my eyes open to check her reaction.
Hehe.
Daeun had her hands clasped together, grinning ear to ear.
"Daddy got scared!"
Thank goodness—she didn't seem to find my acting awkward at all.
"I was super scared! You weren't sleeping?"
"Yeah! I was waiting to scaw you, Daddy!"
She beamed up at me with the cutest smile.
Moments like this really showed Daeun was just like any other kid.
"But thanks to you, I'm wide awake now."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Wanna go eat? Daddy made all your favorites."
"My faves?"
With that, she shot up from her spot and bolted to the living room.
At the table laid out with all that tasty food, Daeun hurried to her seat, grabbed her chopsticks.
"Daeun's hungwy!"
Scrape.
I sat down across from her and said,
"Then let's dig in."
"Yeah!"
With an enthusiastic nod, she slipped on her toddler chopsticks and went straight for the pink sausage, dipping it in ketchup with her clumsy grip before popping it in her mouth.
Battered and savory, with that signature sausage flavor...
Daeun's cheeks puffed out as she marveled at it.
"So yummy!"
Next, she grabbed her spoon and scooped up a bite of the doenjang stew I'd ladled out and cooled for her.
But...
"Ugh, green onion smell..."
'G-Ghost senses.'
She shoved it away after one bite, claiming she could taste the green onions.
I panicked a little.
"D-Daeun, you gotta eat your stew too."
"This tastes like green onions."
"N-No, there aren't any..."
I stirred the stew around with my chopsticks to prove it.
"See? No green onions. So it's safe to eat."
Tilt.
Daeun cocked her head.
"Weird... I swear I tasted green onion..."
Still eyeing it suspiciously, she took another bite.
Right then.
"Ew!"
She stuck out her tongue and made a face.
"Green onion! Green onion wight here!"
"Look, there's really none."
"No! It's weally there! Something's wrong with it."
She was like a ghost when it came to this.
How on earth could she detect the taste of green onions I'd minced to oblivion?
I tried to coax her again, but she shook her head stubbornly.
"No eat stew!"
With her incredible palate picking up even the powdered green onion flavor, rational convincing was hopeless.
Of course, rationally speaking.
But if I threw some emotion into it?
Maybe she'd go for it in the end.
Slump.
I let my shoulders sag and said in a glum voice,
"Poor green onion."
Huh?
Daeun blinked rapidly.
"Green onion sad?"
"Yeah. All its veggie friends in the stew were waiting to meet Daeun... but because you don't like green onions, now the others can't meet you either."
"C-Can't meet?"
I could see her eyes trembling, but I pressed on.
"If you just tough it out and eat a little, I bet the veggie friends would be so happy."
Nothing was more important for a growing kid than eating right.
Picky eating, though...
I could force it, but I didn't want to.
These little moments would stick with her forever.
So I decided to coax her gently.
"Can you help the veggie friends meet up?"
Daeun looked like she was pondering this deeply.
After a long stretch of thought...
"Then can I just eat the other veggies?"
'Genius.'
She was sharper than I'd given her credit for.
Picking out just the other veggies and skipping the broth with the green onions.
I nearly said sure.
But I held back and asked,
"They're super close friends with the green onions—they wouldn't wanna be separated."
"Ch-close fwiends?"
Her innocent expression made me smile without thinking.
"Best of friends. They wanna stick together. It'll be tough, but can you help them stay together?"
She pondered again. She hated green onions, but for her veggie friends' bond... what would she choose?
I was on the edge of my seat when.
Whoosh.
Daeun's face hardened with resolve as she declared,
"I'll make my fwiends happy!"
Oh! That was basically her saying she'd eat the green onions too.
"Really?"
Nod!
"Yeah, 'cause Daeun wuvs her fwiends."
She scooped up some stew with her chopsticks.
'Gonna eat it?'
Was she really going for it?
Tension hung in the air.
Daeun squeezed her eyes shut and shoved the chopsticks into her mouth.
A moment later...
"Daeun did good!"
"......Y-Yeah."
She forced a grin through her scrunched-up face.
Not long after breakfast, my phone rang—Director Go.
Right, you got home okay yesterday?
"Yes, thanks to you—we made it comfortably."
If I had my way, I'd get you a little car or something, but given the neighborhood...
You're already supporting us so much—I'm grateful enough as it is. No need to make me feel pressured to death.
"Ugh, don't say such scary things. I'm happy with how things are."
Or if you need, I could set you up with lodging near the gallery.
"No, we're really fine. Please don't worry about it."
Hmm.
I quickly changed the subject at her dissatisfied-sounding sigh.
"But why'd you call?"
Why do you think? You already forgot what we talked about yesterday?
Yesterday...
"Ah, the hospital."
Right. I made the reservation ahead of time, so you can head straight there.
Her efficiency was something else.
She'd said tomorrow, but I hadn't expected her to lock in a spot this fast.
I'll text you the address after we hang up. Don't forget to take Daeun.
"Got it. Thank you for going to the trouble."
I have to. She's going to be a brilliant artist someday.
She said it like she wasn't joking.
It left a strange feeling.
"You do jokes too, huh."
Not a joke—I'm serious. Don't brush off my sincerity as a punchline.
Serious, huh...
Sometimes looking at Director Go made me wonder what a fun life must be like.
And it feels like the day to assign your next task is coming up soon. Just hold on a bit—I'm picking out something good right now.
'Not the professor thing?'
Curious, I asked,
"Is it about the social contribution special exhibition by any chance?"
Yeah, Aram mentioned it?
"Ah, yeah. She said you'd asked about it..."
I could've sworn I heard a faint mutter over the line:
'Unnecessary chatter...'
Exactly. I was just checking if there was something suitable to have you do. Haven't decided yet—I'll let you know by tomorrow at the latest. Go to the hospital first.
You don't have to go that far.
But it's her call anyway.
"Then just let me know once it's decided."
Got it. Update me on the hospital results after.
"Yes."
Click.
The call with the director ended, and as I turned to tell Daeun about it...
"Daeun go... hospitaw?"
I came face-to-face with a terrified Daeun.
'Hmm, how do I explain this...'
[Sarang Mental Health Clinic]
'Hmm, I thought she understood... but she's still scared.'
I'd explained it in a way she should get, but Daeun still looked uneasy.
Probably because she remembered stuff from when she was really little. Hospitals meant pain or shots—places tied to hurt.
"It's okay, Daeun."
The moment we stepped inside, she'd glued herself to my leg and hadn't let go since.
"U-um... D-Daeun's okay."
She didn't look okay at all, but since she insisted, there wasn't much I could do.
We waited like that in this awkward half-standing, half-sitting pose when...
"Lee Daeun? Come on in."
Thanks to the reservation, we didn't have to wait long.
Click.
With her still wrapped around my leg, we shuffled slowly into the exam room, where a kindly older doctor greeted us with a warm smile.
"Come on in. This must be the Daeun that Yunmi told me about."
Yunmi—must be a friend of the director's.
The doctor stood with her bright smile still in place, then crouched down in front of leg-clinging Daeun.
"Daeun, if it's okay with you, wanna play a game?"
At the word "game," Daeun peeled slightly off my leg.
"Game...?"
"Lots of fun ones—like find the picture. How about playing with the nurse sister here?"
'Wait, is this the evaluation the director mentioned?'
Seemed like it.
Easing her nerves before the consult with some testing made sense.
The nurse approached with a gentle smile and extended a hand to Daeun.
"Daeun, shall we go play the picture game?"
Daeun glanced up at me once, then nodded.
"Yes."
"Alright, have fun."
Looking way more at ease than before, she followed the nurse out.
Clack.
Now it was just me and the doctor in the room.
"Have a seat for now."
"Ah, yes. Thank you."
I settled into the chair in front of her desk, and the doctor—who'd been reviewing the chart with a serious expression—turned to me.
"We'll know more after the evaluation, but from what you've told me... it sounds a lot like the same symptoms as Yunmi's child."
"Yes!"
I blurted out in shock.
'D-Director Go had a ch-child?'
I'd just learned a whole new fact.