Chapter 43
Chapter 43
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: Sunja's Rice House
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Sunja's Rice House held a somewhat special place in my heart.
It was the part-time job introduced by Professor Kwon. In a way, that was when I first realized Hyorin's feelings for me.
"Here it is."
I nodded slightly at Daeun's question.
"Yeah, that mural you see over there... Mommy painted it..."
Huh, what?
The mural itself hadn't changed much.
But strangely, it felt different from how I remembered it.
Murals naturally fade over time. Yet at Sunja's, it was in remarkably good condition.
No matter how carefully she'd painted it back then, for it to be preserved this cleanly...
'Did they touch it up?'
The mural was on the shop's outer wall, easily reachable by people, which should have made it wear away faster.
It was known around here as the diner with the mural, so folks probably snapped photos in front of it all the time.
Of course, from the shop's perspective, faded paint might look unsightly, so they could have repainted. Still, I felt a pang of regret that I couldn't show Daeun the original Hyorin had done.
'I wanted to show her the picture Mommy painted...'
I glanced at Daeun with those thoughts.
Fortunately, she seemed oblivious and stared intently at the mural.
"That's the one Mommy painted..."
Daeun approached the wall slowly to get a closer look.
She examined it carefully, then broke into a bright smile.
"It's pretty."
Was she just saying the picture was pretty, or the feelings inside it?
There might have been some touch-ups, but the base was definitely Hyorin's work.
I smiled and agreed with her.
"Yeah, Daddy thinks so too."
The picture Hyorin painted really was beautiful.
We stood there admiring the mural together for a good while when—
Clatter!
The old metal door slid open, and a lady in an apron stepped out.
Spotting us in front of the mural, she exclaimed in surprise.
"Oh, you..."
She had a sharp memory.
She seemed to know exactly who I was.
I started to bow in greeting, but then—
The lady said something completely unexpected.
"Oh my goodness! What took you so long!"
"Pardon?"
"Why'd you come so late, Daeun's daddy!"
So... not the student who painted the mural.
'Daeun's... daddy?'
Her words left me stunned, unable to calm my racing heart.
"Here's your meal."
"Ah, thank you."
The lady who'd called me Daeun's daddy served us two set meals.
Daeun's eyes widened at the appetizing spread.
"Wow, yummy! Thanks for the food!"
"Eat up, lots of it."
Then Daeun picked up her spoon and looked at me.
Waiting for me to start, huh.
She did the same at home, so Hyorin must have taught her table manners at some point.
And she remembered to keep doing it.
"You can start first."
"Okay!"
At my okay, Daeun scooped up a big bite and shoved it in.
Chomp!
Fresh white rice with sides mild enough for Daeun.
And the star side dish that made this set meal perfect: bulgogi.
"Mmm! So good!"
"Really?"
"Yeah! Super yummy. Daddy, try it."
When Daeun urged me to try, I glanced up at the lady.
She looked like she had a lot to say but wanted us to eat first.
So I took a bite of the bulgogi Daeun had been eating.
Chomp.
'Oh!'
The initial sweetness surprised me, followed by the savory bulgogi blissfully filling my mouth.
'Just as delicious as ever.'
It was a distant memory, but tasting it brought back old nostalgia like a wave.
"Daddy, try this too! It's really yummy!"
Daeun even recommended other sides for me.
"Ooh, it really is. So good."
I chimed in with her, and before I knew it, I'd polished off a whole bowl of rice.
They say hunger is the best sauce, but even without that, set meals were the best.
That's when the lady, who'd been watching us fondly, spoke up.
"Daeun's mommy was right."
"Pardon?"
Surprised by her sudden words, I asked back, and she pulled up a chair and sat.
"She said Daeun was such a sharp cookie, praised you nonstop till my mouth went dry."
"Mommy praised me?"
"Of course. She talked about you a lot while working here. Never met you, but it felt like I saw you yesterday."
Wait, just now...
"Hyorin worked here?"
"Yeah, you didn't know?"
"No... I didn't."
"Hmm, she said she was back from an overseas business trip, but looks like she kept everything about Korea from you."
Overseas business trip. She probably said that instead of telling them I was in the hospital.
No need to spread the sadness around.
"Even if she went abroad to earn money, she should've checked on things back home. She worked here over six months, after all."
"..."
I couldn't say a word at the mention of over six months.
Sending Daeun to daycare, how must Hyorin have felt working here?
"So, how'd the trip go?"
"Yes, fortunately, no big issues."
At my answer, the lady pursed her lips and shared one fact.
"Hmm, that explains it..."
"Pardon? What?"
"I called a while back for something, but no answer."
Not no answer, couldn't answer.
I glanced at Daeun, still eating, and changed the subject.
"Ah, yeah, there were some things with work. But what did you need to call about?"
At my question, she blinked.
"You didn't come for that?"
"Pardon?"
"For Daeun's mommy. She left her bag here."
"Her bag?"
"You didn't come for the bag?"
"No, we were nearby on other business and stopped by on a whim."
She looked a bit exasperated but soon smiled.
"Good thing. I was worried how to get it to her with no answer. Wait a sec."
She went into the diner and came back with a small bag.
Daeun, mid-bite, spotted it.
"Oh, Mommy's bag!"
"Daeun recognized Mommy's bag right away. Such a smart girl. Here, take it."
An old-looking bag.
I knew it too.
On university graduation day, after setting the first exhibition date and getting an advance from Director Go...
I'd bought that bag with the money.
Not designer, from a mid-range store, but Hyorin said she loved it.
"I thought a customer left it at first and peeked inside. Saw it was Daeun's mommy's. Called, but yeah. Glad I could return it like this."
Taking Hyorin's bag, it felt quite heavy.
"Looked like important stuff inside."
At "important," I opened it right away.
Inside: a makeup pouch, notebook, and small card wallet.
Even though Hyorin couldn't be reached due to the accident, I thanked her profusely.
"Thank you so much for keeping it safe."
"Oh, no biggie. Nothing compared to what Daeun's mommy did. She even did stuff beyond what was needed."
"Beyond what was needed?"
"You saw it on the way in."
What was she talking about? Then Daeun, who'd been listening, piped up.
"Daddy! The mural!"
"The mural?"
"Oh, Daeun spotted it right away."
"Yeah! Daeun knows everything! Mommy fixed the mural!"
Daeun's eyes would've known it was Mommy's.
But the issue was it wasn't the original, but touched up...
The lady's next words shocked me again.
"So she knew Mommy fixed the picture too?"
"Yeah! Daeun knows it all!"
Hyorin fixed it? So the overpainting was Hyorin's doing.
"As expected, Daeun's their daughter alright. She knew the first time they came to paint the mural."
The first time painting the mural.
Pfft.
Thinking back, I burst out laughing involuntarily.
"Why's Daddy laughing?"
"Ah, sorry. Old memories."
"Old memories of Mommy?"
Daeun seemed curious about old stories.
"Why, curious about Mommy and Daddy's stories?"
The lady asked Daeun, amused by the situation.
"Yeah! Daeun loves Mommy and Daddy stories!"
"Alright, well, when Mommy and Daddy first came here... I never imagined they'd end up married."
Nod.
I agreed with the lady.
"Yeah, back then."
"Daddy! Tell Daeun too! Daeun's curious!"
"Shall I?"
"Yeah!"
Well, old stories were a bit embarrassing, but no reason to hide.
Then the lady pulled her chair closer and described our first impressions.
"Hmm, when you two first came... you were like sworn enemies."
The lady too.
Daeun asked curiously at that.
"Daddy, what's sworn enemies?"
"Sworn enemies..."
I pondered how to explain when the lady answered.
"It means hating each other."
"So Mommy and Daddy hated each other?"
"Well, it was more like lovers' quarrel."
Her story took us back to those old memories plenty.
"Got the paints?"
"Of course."
"Professor said to bring plastic sheets in case of complaints."
"Got those too. Man, why you nagging so much? Just trust I got it."
"Hey, if I didn't know you, I wouldn't nag. You forget stuff all the time."
Lately, Hyorin's nagging felt extra intense.
But I couldn't say that straight.
Instead, I switched topics.
"Anyway, how'd midterms go? Good?"
Midterms had just ended yesterday.
The mural gig came up before, but we delayed for exams.
"Decent."
"'Decent'? You didn't bomb, did you?"
"Worry about yourself. Professor went easy on you, or you'd be repeating the semester."
One jab from me turned into ten back.
Realizing nothing worked, I shut up and walked.
We arrived at the spot Professor mentioned.
Thud.
Hyorin and I set down our armfuls of supplies.
Then a voice from behind.
"Whew, thought it'd be grimy old guys, but it's a handsome pair. You two dating?"
Hyorin panicked at the lady's sudden question.
"N-No, y-you s-saw wrong. I'm n-not like that."
Her face flushed beet red as she glanced at me.
'Not like that... then what kind?'