Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: Our Family Room
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Through the hospital documents on the desk, I learned even more detailed information.
About four years after I'd become a vegetable, something must have gone wrong with my body.
Because of that, Hyorin would've had to decide whether to let me die right there or cling to the faint hope of surgery.
And the path she chose was surgery.
But that decision came with a brutal ordeal.
By then, three years in, money would've run dry for Hyorin—no way she had tens of millions of won for the operation.
Even so, it looked like she'd pushed to make it happen somehow, piling on extra work.
On her way home late that night...
"......"
That's when the car accident struck.
Gulp.
That alone was agony enough, but sadly, it wasn't over.
So here's the question.
How.
Did I.
Manage to.
Survive.
Hyorin's death. The massive surgery bill. My improbable survival.
It all pointed to one inescapable truth.
The one who pulled me from those deep, suffocating depths right before I woke... was Hyorin.
Thud.
The paper in my hand slipped free and fell.
Hyorin's insurance payout record...
That money paid for my surgery. That's how I lived.
Clench.
Tears threatened again, so I bit down hard on my lip.
How could our family be forced to endure something so horrific?
I'd never once sought out God in my life. Never cursed Him. But right then, I hated Him with every fiber of my being.
Why not just kill me? Take me instead and spare Hyorin.
How could it be this cruel?
As my heart plummeted into an endless abyss of darkness...
A voice pierced through it like a beacon.
"Daddy..."
Ah...
I swallowed my tears at the sound of Daeun's voice.
Hyorin's final words, the ones that had saved me one last time.
[I definitely said... please take good care of her.]
She'd been talking about Daeun. Entrusting our daughter, the one who'd be left all alone.
"Daddy... you're sad."
Swish.
I couldn't let tears fall in front of Daeun, who was gazing up at me.
If I was sad, she'd be sad too.
So I turned away quick, shifting the mood.
"Wow, is that where Daeun studies? Mind if Daddy takes a peek around?"
I glanced at her face—her stiff little expression softened right away. Relieved, I started properly exploring the house.
Swish.
Two bedrooms off a living room that doubled as the kitchen.
One corner held a bookshelf stuffed with children's picture books. The other had a low desk and chair for homework.
The space was small, so it felt a tad cluttered. But everything was so neatly arranged...
It didn't bother me much.
['This the master bedroom?]
Click.
Next, I opened the door nearest the entrance. A big bed without a frame welcomed me.
Maybe she'd only salvaged the mattress from our old place.
Low to the floor without legs, but that familiar shape warmed my chest anyway.
['Then the last one's...]
The room felt narrow.
Just the bed—no other furniture.
I stepped back into the living room to head for the next door. That's when...
Swish.
"Huh?"
There was Daeun, standing in front of the other bedroom door.
['Daeun's room?]
Smiling, I asked,
"Is this your room by any chance, Daeun?"
Back to the door, she shook her head no.
"This is... our family room."
"Our family room?"
I'd figured it'd be her bedroom, but "family room" piqued my curiosity.
So I asked,
"Why call it the family room?"
Her eyes sparkled as she flung her arms wide.
"Because Mommy and Daeun and Daddy are all in here!"
"All our family, huh?"
Now I was dying to see inside.
What was "all" in there?
"Mind if I check it out?"
Daeun nodded like her life depended on it.
Nod! Nod!
"Alright, here goes."
She stepped aside. Tension building, I eased the door open slow.
Click.
The sight that greeted me...
Gulp.
['Th-this is all...]
I was speechless.
Every inch of visible wall plastered with paintings.
Sure, a touch of childish awkwardness, but it only added to them—like it belonged. Extraordinary didn't cover it.
Plainly not ordinary at a glance. For a second, I wondered if Hyorin had done them instead.
"All by Daeun, all alone!"
No way she'd lie.
Five years without painting, but a lifetime's eye doesn't rust that fast.
To me, these weren't kid scribbles.
Gulp.
...Each one was already a work of art.
['All these... Daeun's doing?]
Deceptively simple brushwork.
Colors through a child's eyes—naturally breathtaking.
The way she rendered subjects? Well...
['Unique.]
Nod.
Unique. Especially the style infused with her feelings—it pulled you right into her mood while painting.
Could a five-year-old really do this?
Gulp.
['Whew... can't even catch my breath.]
Dozens of them—not one or two—filled the room.
Impossible to pick a favorite. But those subtle emotions embedded in them... they lingered.
What were they, exactly?
Swish.
Hand on chin, lost in thought for ages. Then it hit me—Daeun's very first words about the room.
Our family room!
['Ah!]
The paintings' meaning finally sank in.
Haphazardly covering the walls, yet each held purpose.
Sky and sea. Insects sprinkled throughout. Everyday street walls. Even one of herself.
What tied them into a single theme?
['Family...]
Starting left wall, following the sequence—they culminated in a smiling portrait of Hyorin.
Next to it, what looked like me—someone she'd never even met.
Maybe through these, Daeun was sharing her heart.
Just like that room name she'd given me first.
"A happy... family."
"Happy family."
No way I could touch those paintings.
Already perfect as-is—one cohesive piece. How could I?
Hyorin, hailed a genius like me, had to have grasped their meaning.
That's why she'd covered every wall.
Swish.
Back in the living room, the family room's echo clinging to me, I sank into a dining chair.
Daeun sidled up, tugged out a chair, and plopped down.
That move sparked a memory.
Back in college, Hyorin's words.
Honey, you know art holds the artist's philosophy and emotions, right?
Yeah, I know that better than anyone.
So what philosophy and feelings would you pour into your own work someday?
Me...
I'd had no answer then.
Hadn't figured out what to infuse mine with.
But the girl beside me now? She'd already done it.
Poured "happy family" into hers.
That's when...
Grrr.
A cute rumble from Daeun's tummy.
"Huh?"
I looked—her face went red as she ducked her head.
"Daeunnie's hungry."
Ah, idiot. The late hour should've tipped me off.
"Hang on."
I yanked open the fridge.
"Gotta be something in here."
Whoosh.
Peering in... spotless.
['Right—Sister said she'd cleared it out.]
Bone dry.
Hyorin's crash was two months before I woke—over half a year empty now.
Lucky Sister had popped in to clean now and then.
Otherwise, choking dust would've been my welcome.
['Delivery tonight, shop together tomorrow.]
Five years solo living meant I could handle basics.
Not pro-level, but surely kid-friendly stuff.
Shut the door—and spotted...
"Oh!"
A Chinese takeout flyer magneted to the side.
Grinning, I held it up for Daeun.
"Like jjajangmyeon, Daeun?"
Her face lit up.
"Yup! Daeunnie loves jjajangmyeon!"
Thud.
"Man, quicker than I thought."
Set the delivery bag on the table—Daeun beamed pure joy and dashed to the kitchen.
Rifled a drawer like a pro, grabbed a cartoon fork, plopped back down, and eyed me.
"Eat fast! Daeunnie loves jjajangmyeon!"
Her bright chirp got me smiling—I peeled her plastic off.
Stirred it up good with chopsticks, handed over the bowl. Bliss on her face, she dove in.
Chomp!
Huge scoop, mouth stuffed—grinning like she owned the world.
That image dulled the raw horror of truth a bit.
Consolation, maybe?
['How'd Hyorin last five years?]
Daeun. That's how. And that's why I lived.
Bottom line: Daeun saved me too.
Maybe that's why.
['Wanna make her happy.]
No clue on her exact "happy family" vision.
But knowing the feeling in her art... couldn't ignore it.
I'd build that happy family for her. Keep that smile glued on.
No—give her bigger joy.
So I...
Rip!
Peeled mine, stirred quick, crammed a mouthful.
Chomp!
Daeun's eyes went wide, then she burst into giggles.
"You're suuuper slow. And messier right there!"
"Huh? Wh-where?"
(Mouth stuffed—slurry mess.)
She cracked up harder, like it was the funniest thing.
Laughing so hard tears welled, tummy aching maybe.
"St-stop! Hurts!"
Tried shushing her—no dice.
Pfft.
Couldn't help it—I cracked up too.
Horrid memories be damned. Her face fixed it all.
Never dreamed a kid could console me like this...
Gulp.
"You got some on your mouth too, Daeun!"
"Nuh-uh! Daddy's got waaay more!"
Second chance at life, courtesy of Hyorin.
For her up in heaven watching... I'd be happy.
And raise Daeun happy, like she was daring the world to say otherwise.
Swish.
Still grinning, I leaned close to her sauce-smeared face.
Smiling, I said,
"Hey, Daeun. Think you could talk casual with Daddy too?"
"Talk?"
"Yeah. Banmal with me? Pretty please?"
She pondered a sec...
Beam!
"Sure thing, Daddy!"