Chapter 43
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: Awkward Homecoming
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It felt like someone had grabbed me by the hair and yanked me out of a sweet daydream.
You know that feeling when someone trying to psych themselves up with positive thinking suddenly gets slammed back into reality?
Even the slightest spark of excitement in my heart cooled to ice.
I froze in place, and before I knew it, I was instinctively stepping back and nearly tripping over my own feet.
“……”
Even as I stood there dying inside, the conversation kept going without me.
“That’s true, Hyunwoo’s dad. Times are tough these days, and the average age for getting a job is over thirty. All the kids around us who could get jobs already have. What if he never lands one?”
Big Aunt’s voice.
The earlier voice must have been Big Uncle. Come to think of it, my cousin Kim Hyunmin had proudly announced last year that he’d joined a big corporation. I remembered because I admired and liked him so much.
“Honestly, you don’t worry about Hyuna or Hyunmin at first glance. But Hyunwoo? He’s the one that worries me. Isn’t he aiming too high? Or maybe he’s just not trying hard enough.”
“…He’ll figure it out. Bro. When Hyunwoo gets here, I’ll say something to him, so don’t worry too much.”
Dad could be a bit authoritarian or rigid at home as the head of the family. But whenever we visited relatives, he was always polite and proper.
I’d picked up a bit of that from watching him.
“Yeah, a dad has to be able to say the hard things to his son. If you only say nice stuff, the kid turns soft.”
Right.
Bitter medicine is good for you, sure. But honestly, the “concern” from relatives was just empty nagging that tasted like ash. Self-satisfying meddling with no real substance.
“Exactly. Hyunwoo never showed much promise in studies, so back when it was time for high school, I said send him to a vocational school from the start. But no, they sent him to a university in Seoul…”
「Clack!」
It seemed like they might drag out the high school and college stories next. Feeling awkward about hiding on the stairs any longer, I deliberately made my footsteps loud.
The conversation cut off abruptly.
Poker face, poker face.
I chanted it to myself over and over as I climbed the rest of the stairs and faced the family.
“Oh my! Our city boy’s here!”
“Our grandson! Come here, come. Grandma’s been waiting so long, my neck’s about to snap.”
“Oppa, hi.”
“Hyunwoo, long time no see.”
“Son, you’re here? Good job. Cold out there? Come in quick.”
The same people who’d been gossiping about my job situation just moments ago now laughed and welcomed me like nothing happened.
For a second, the fragile poker face I’d forced on cracked. The corners of my mouth twitched from the strain. One slip, and my gloomy expression would take over.
“Oh, my grandson. Come here for a hug. Why are you so skinny? You eating okay?”
“Yes, Grandma. I eat well.”
Well, I wasn’t starving. The problem was the endless cycle of ramen and fried rice, ramen and fried rice. But I couldn’t splurge on delivery or eating out every day—not with income that unreliable.
Quests popped up on their own schedule, after all.
Big Uncle, Big Aunt, Grandma, Grandpa, little sister, cousin bro, Mom and Dad… and a few more.
The living room? The floor?
Whatever. Just greeting everyone sitting in the middle drained me completely. Every time someone saw me, they parroted the same question like parrots—“How’ve you been?”—and my responses turned into autopilot AI: the exact same lines on repeat.
“I’m good. Eating well.”
Yeah. At least I was living under one roof with two absolute stunners like Han A Bom and Oh Hana—not just that, but having sex with them too.
How much better could life get? If you’re so curious how well I’m doing, come see for yourself.
Or at least give me some pocket money if you want me to talk. Why should I take this mental stress for free?
Not that I was the only one, though.
“How’s Hyuna doing at the company?”
“Oh, fine. Just getting by.”
My little sister, Kim Hyuna, hated these gatherings too. Probably more than I did. That’s why she visited about as often as I did from Seoul. How many times had she lied her way out?
Didn’t the adults see her face? The one screaming ‘I’m exhausted’.
The only one really good with the grown-ups was cousin Kim Hyunmin, who’d even landed a spot at a big company. He was someone I’d admired and followed since we were kids.
“How’s Hyunmin doing?”
“Oh, me? No need to ask. Doing great. Gotta make bank to send Grandpa and Grandma on a cruise, right?”
“Hahaha!”
He always had a smile, never showed dislike, and said whatever he wanted to the adults.
And man, could he talk his way out smoothly. No wonder I respected him.
Just like I’d overheard on the stairs, he was one of those people you wouldn’t worry about even if the world ended.
“Oh! My boy here makes good money but doesn’t give his dad a dime for allowance.”
“If I gave you more, you’d blow it. Why would I?”
“This kid got over ten million in bonuses and still…”
“Ugh, seriously! Don’t bring that up. It’s all labor costs. Nothing’s free in this world. They squeeze you dry before handing it over.”
And since Kim Hyunmin and I were super close, I knew the truth. He was exhausted too—he just didn’t show it.
That’s when it happened.
“Now that the kids are here, let’s prep the ancestral table early, Mom.”
The third uncle—our youngest uncle—who’d been playing dead quietly in the room crawled out and said that.
He worked near Seoul, just like me.
“Hey, Hyunjong. You live in Seoul with Hyunwoo—help him get a job or something.”
“What can I do? I’m barely scraping by myself.”
What can I say?
Youngest Uncle lived in Seoul and was the only unmarried son in the family, so he got along surprisingly well with us young folks. Better than you’d think.
Plus, every time he came to the hometown house, he got an earful about marriage and dating until his ears bled. Kinda felt bad for him.
“Oh, when’s our Hyunjong gonna get married? Gotta bring home a sexy one.”
“Mom, I said no. Look at my age—what marriage?”
“Why not? You have to!”
Same routine every time. Grandma would blow up whenever he said no.
I watched and thought, now’s my chance. I carefully pulled an envelope from my pocket. Our family was big on respecting elders, so I approached Grandpa and Grandma first.
“Oh, looks like our Hyunwoo’s giving allowance.”
“Whoa, oppa. Impressive.”
Cousin bro and little sis cheered from behind. Thanks. Youngest Uncle lightened the mood too, joking ‘If it’s for Mom, give it to me’.
I was a bit excited myself. At 29, still jobless, this was maybe the first time I’d give pocket money I earned to Grandpa and Grandma.
Maybe they’d say I’d finally done something right. I had that hope.
“Oh! What’s this? No, I won’t take it. Nope!”
Grandma jumped back like I’d offended her, firmly refusing the envelope. Grandpa, smoking beside her, nodded along.
“Yeah. Give it after you get a job. Why’s a kid like you giving us allowance already? No need.”
“It’s not much. Just a formality…”
Because my little sister—three years younger but out in the world working part-time jobs before she even hit twenty—gave some sometimes.
Cousin bro went without saying.
Even as the family problem child who barely showed up for years studying abroad, he’d pop in occasionally with envelopes from part-time jobs overseas.
I was just imitating them.
To look like a proper person, even a little.
“Ah, enough! Really. No need. Buy yourself something tasty with that. What money does an unemployed kid have?”
Youngest Uncle chimed in, unable to watch.
“Mom, just take it if Hyunwoo wants to give. Come on? Don’t embarrass the kid.”
“Oh! I said no. If you wanna give Grandma allowance that bad, get a job first. I won’t take it even if I die.”
“Wow, look at this auntie’s stubbornness. Hyunwoo, if Mom won’t take it, give it to me.”
“Hey! Don’t even joke like that.”
For a moment,
dizziness blanked my mind. I knew. I wasn’t stupid. Grandma truly cared about me and didn’t want to take money from her struggling grandson.
Still, that kindness stabbed like a dagger.
“…I prepared some for Mom and Dad too. Please take it.”
“Thanks, son. Oh, Mom can finally buy that outfit I wanted.”
“Dad’ll buy a round for the buddies. Brag it’s from my son.”
Mom and Dad accepted warmly, at least. But with the first button sewn wrong, my eyelids felt even heavier than before.
I was drained.
And the damn rite wasn’t till 11 a.m.—still hours away.
“Mom, let’s do the rite early. What’s with 11 in 2025?”
“Hey! Do whatever after Grandpa and Grandma are gone. 11’s already early.”
Fair enough. When I was seven, we waited till midnight. 11 was progressive.
My breath caught; I craved a smoke. That’s when Hyunmin bro stood up.
“Ah, no clear rice wine.”
“Oh my, look at me. Forgot the cheongju.”
Grandma clapped.
Hyunmin bro grinned and beckoned me and Hyuna.
“I’ll grab it with my kids. Anything else needed?”
“Nope. Just a small bottle of cheongju.”
“Okay.”
He made a circle with thumb and finger playfully at Grandma, then smiled at us.
“Let’s go, siblings.”
“Wait, lemme grab a jacket.”
“Okay.”
No way not to like this bro. Great at studies, sports. Only good friends. Sure, dating seven girls made him seem a player.
But six of them confessed first, and even after he turned some down, a couple chased him from Seoul to Busan for one-nighters.
Really a good guy.
Even now, he naturally pulled us out at the perfect choking moment.
I wanted to be an adult like him.
“Oppa, I want those slippers.”
“Go ahead.”
Hyunmin bro casually handed Hyuna his slippers and slipped on Grandpa’s.
We skipped the nearby mart and walked farther, where he said,
“Let’s smoke one over there, stroll a bit, head back slow. No point going in now—just tired with nothing to do.”
“Cool.”
Me and Hyuna answered in unison, following him. We found a good spot, and the three of us lit up side by side.
“Hyunwoo.”
“Yeah.”
“Tough, huh? First time down in ages—must be exhausting.”
Hyunmin bro’s casual comfort nearly made me tear up.