Maman (3)
Haram was an incredibly kind person.
[If there's anything making you uncomfortable, please let me know.]
"...I-It's f-f-fine, really."
[Then shall we talk about your avatar from now on?]
Thanks to Haram's constant gentle smile, I was able to relax a little and keep talking. I still kept tripping over my words, but she listened patiently without rushing me.
"...Th-This... the s-screen."
[You can speak slowly! You mean screen sharing, right? Just a moment... I'll record a video and send it to you!]
She explained how to use Discord step by step, taking her time and being so considerate that my body started trembling, tears threatening to spill.
"Ugh... I'm s-sorry."
[It's okay, it's okay...! Let's take it slow! We have plenty of time.]
Her warm encouragement gave me the courage to speak up.
"...I've joined the screen share."
[Ah, can you see it?]
"Y-Yes... I-I can see the mouse."
[Then we're good! You did great!]
She praised even the smallest actions, and I couldn't help thinking, She's a good person... Of course she is, she's Jiwoo's friend.
My little siblings had made such a kind friend instead of going astray. I felt a wave of relief. I'd worried they might pick up my gloomy habits, but it seemed they'd done a fine job shielding themselves from that.
...Well, we barely talk about feelings anyway, so there's no way they'd turn out like me.
After taking a deep breath, I watched the screen Haram was sharing. A little doodle of a smiling face (^0^) appeared on it.
"...Ehh."
[Can you see this?]
"Yeah... What is it?"
[Just something I drew.]
She giggled as she said it.
[Cute, right?]
Cute? Honestly, I wasn't sure. It had been so long since I'd seen anything cute that I'd forgotten what the feeling even was.
"...Uh-huh."
[Oh! I should be working! Sorry, I'll erase it right away and show you the rough sketch.]
She moved the eraser toward the smiling face.
"H-Haram... don't erase that."
[Huh?]
"...It's c-cute. Can you send it to me?"
Laughter came through the headset.
...Did I overstep?
Whenever I'd asked for something at school or work, people usually laughed like this. Their laughter had always been full of mockery, especially when they brought up my strange hair color. The memory surfaced, and I instinctively did what I always used to do.
"...S-Sorry! That was out of line. H-Haha."
I tried to laugh it off. Even if someone still hit me after that, at least they'd usually just give me a light tap on the head and move on. No matter how kind Haram was, I had no right to tell her not to erase something she'd drawn.
I'd crossed a line with someone who'd been nothing but nice. I apologized, but—
[What? No no, I just laughed because you were adorable. Want me to send the drawing?]
"...Ehh?"
The response was unexpectedly gentle, her voice still carrying traces of laughter.
[You thought I was laughing at you? How could I laugh at a client? And do I really seem rude enough to mock a friend's sister...?]
She sounded genuinely worried.
[I should be the one apologizing...! I'm sorry!]
"N-No...! Ugh......"
I was so flustered I bit my tongue. Tears welled up from the pain, and just then a Discord notification chimed.
The smiling face she'd drawn earlier had been sent.
[That's a peace offering! Please forgive me!]
"...Ugh... Th-Thank you."
[Are you crying!?]
Haram's voice was startled. I grabbed a tissue from beside me and blew my nose before answering.
"Sniff...! Hngh... I b-bit my tongue, that's why."
[Aww... Does it hurt a lot?]
"Y-Yeah......"
While I sniffled, she laughed and told me I could use the picture as my profile picture.
[I sized it right! You don't have to use the default one. Once your character is done, I'll draw another one for Discord too.]
"...Thank you."
I learned how to change my profile picture and set it to the little (^0^) face. Haram let out a delighted squeal.
[It's so cute! It suits you perfectly.]
"...Thank you."
[You can speak casually with me, okay? Let's start working now! I'll send the roughs, so tell me what you want changed!]
She began sketching lines rapidly. I watched her screen share while looking over the roughs she'd sent.
She's already got the concepts ready......
One was a modern design. Another was futuristic. The last was traditional.
The one that caught my heart was the traditional design.
A hanbok... Is it? It's pretty.
"Um... Haram."
[Yes, go ahead and say whatever you like.]
"I-I like number three......"
[Ah, the hanbok version? Right~ It's pretty, isn't it?]
"...Y-Yes......"
[Then let's go with that...!]
After checking all the concepts and roughs, I swung my soft feet that didn't quite reach the floor, watching the drawing take shape.
* * *
Haram was in an excellent mood right now. After all, the person looking at her smiley doodle was reacting with such adorable admiration.
[...Ehh, whoa......]
Cute cute cute cute cute.
[Ooh, it's so pretty.]
...She really does take after Minu's big sister. How can she be this endearing?
Every time she saw Jiwoo, Haram had wondered how someone so different could be part of the same family as the Minu she loved. Looking at Suhyun, that question had finally been answered. She was barely holding herself back now. If she let her desires run free, Suhyun would definitely feel overwhelmed.
"Do I really draw that well?"
She asked with a grin, and Suhyun made a startled sound before asking if she'd heard.
[Gah...! D-Did you hear that?]
"Yep, I heard everything~"
[...Y-You're just so good at drawing... Sniff, should I stop watching?]
Haram flinched slightly at the question, then answered in a gentle voice.
"Feel free to gush even more!"
[Ah, is that okay?]
"Yep."
She was happy. It had been so long since someone had looked at her drawings and reacted with such genuine awe.
These days when I stream, everyone just asks for weird stuff.
Haram had her own frustrations, which made this moment feel even more special.
This'll be done faster than three months.
When she was enjoying herself, her work speed skyrocketed. Given her habit of pulling all-nighters to draw and rig, this project was going to finish much quicker than expected.
"Unni, even after this is done, you have to keep in touch, okay? I'll be sad otherwise."
[M-Maman, right...? Then I'll contact you.]
It was something she'd heard plenty of times from other people, but Haram nearly let out an unpleasant laugh.
Damn it, how is there someone who triggers my maternal instincts this much? This is dangerous...!!
It really was dangerous. Suppressing the ache in her chest, she kept drawing for a long while.
"Should I make the color similar to the hair?"
[...Yes.]
"Got it!"
While taking requests and making revisions in real time, a sudden question occurred to her.
"Unni, you just say 'yes' to everything I ask, don't you?"
[...Huh?]
"Should I make the snake black?"
[Ah... Yes.]
"Or white?"
[Uh... Yes.]
"......"
[......]
Suhyun really did agree to everything without hesitation. Watching her, Haram felt like she was going to lose her mind.
It wasn't that she disliked anything.
Kyaaaaaaaah! She's so soft! So cute! Like a baby!
She liked it so much she couldn't even scream, just thumped her chest repeatedly.
[U-Um...?]
Suhyun called out anxiously. Haram pulled herself together, smiled, and picked up the mic again.
"Unni, it seems like we haven't really organized things properly yet, right?"
[Y-Yes, the call was so sudden......]
"Then how about we figure things out properly and call again later to match things up?"
[Ah... Then I'm sorry for suggesting we call today for no reason......]
She was shrinking back again. Haram answered in a warm voice.
"At first you were sniffling and could barely speak, but now you're talking comfortably with me! We called to get closer, didn't we?"
[...A-Are you going to charge extra or something...?]
Haram burst out laughing.
"I'm barely getting paid for this at all! Don't worry. I'm making it half as a hobby."
[...R-Really? Is that okay?]
"How long have I known Jiwoo?"
Technically it was because of her one-sided crush on Minu, but she used Jiwoo as a shield anyway. Suhyun let out a relieved sigh.
[Ah, okay... I'll call again tomorrow.]
"Oh, and Unni, you don't really know what I do, right?"
[Eh...? Yeah......]
Haram grinned knowingly.
"Search my Discord username on YouTube."
[...Ehh?]
"And don't get awkward after you see it, okay?"
[Y-Yes... Thank you.]
The call ended. Haram smiled and picked up her pen.
"...I roughly know her tastes now, so let's put some effort into this!"
With the mindset that she could always start over if it didn't work, she began swinging her pen.
* * *
Haram
