Seia's Fifth Birthday
The sorrow of the cute rabbit becoming a star. Yet the triumph of the cute cat succeeding in its hunt. Seia had cheered for both, but the tangled emotions that had once stormed in her eyes had now completely vanished.
She didn't run over and hug him the way she did with Jungwoo, but it showed in her voice. The people gathered here were special to her too. Even if today hadn't been Seia's birthday, it would still have become a special day—simply because so many people she loved had come together.
“Sweetheart. I hear it's your birthday today?”
“Yes! Today is Seia's birthday!”
The building owner had no trouble noticing the signboard—he passed through the building every day. Even yesterday, on his way home after his workout, the slightly changed signboard had greeted him. Seia's birthday. The memory of eating pork cutlets that day was still fresh, only a few days old. Yet strangely, the emotions he'd felt then already seemed distant, as if they'd happened long ago.
Ever since that day, Seona's Restaurant had kept catching his eye. Of course it would—he owned the building—but thinking about it even before bed was something new for him. At his age, there were still feelings he didn't fully understand. Perhaps because he was old, new things felt frightening. That was why he hadn't come to Seona's Restaurant before. But now that he was here in person, he was glad he'd come.
It felt as though simply offering congratulations to someone else was the same as sending congratulations and praise to himself. Watching Seia's harmless, innocent smile, his heart seemed to melt. Park Geon-su and Seong Ye-eun felt much the same. Just as Seong Ye-eun had once felt, they too were slowly being colored by her presence.
“Big Grandpa, what's this?”
“Hm? Big Grandpa?”
At the words “Big Grandpa,” the building owner and Park Geon-su looked at each other. Setting everything else aside, the building owner's frame—honed by exercise in his later years—was nearly twice as large as Park Geon-su's.
“Hoho. It seems the young lady calls you Big Grandpa.”
“Oh my. It's been a long time since being big was a good thing. Hoho. Well then, this is… you see…”
Seia's gaze was pure and innocent, but that didn't mean it only held virtues. When she wanted to hide something—like now—her eyes became impossible to ignore. They were filled with an earnest plea: Please say it's your present.
“It's a secret.”
“A s-secret…!”
The building owner smiled faintly and brought a finger to his lips. Seia mirrored the gesture with a solemn expression. With natural ease, he had diverted her attention. Age truly couldn't be underestimated.
“More importantly, what's on the menu today?”
“Chicken. Seia loves it very much.”
“Ohoho. Chicken, is it?”
The building owner glanced into the kitchen with his tall frame and immediately recognized that the chicken was handmade. The portions looked generous too.
“Seia.”
“Yes?”
“How about telling the guests about the cat you saw earlier?”
“Seia likes that!”
It was a little unfair to Seia, but Jungwoo was entrusting her with entertaining the guests. With so many people gathered, he needed to start cooking soon, and he couldn't afford to neglect anyone. These were people who had come for Seia's birthday, after all. He couldn't let that happen.
“Hoho. Very well. Let's hear it, then.”
“A story from our little boss, is it?”
“So you like cats.”
Leaving their varied reactions behind, Seia began explaining the Pallas's cat documentary.
“There was a kitty this big!”
She spread both hands wide, showing how fluffy the cat had been. She even tried to recreate its slightly grumpy expression. With her cheeks puffed out like the fluffy cat, Seia was so adorable that smiles naturally appeared on everyone's faces.
“And there was a little rabbit too.”
Though everyone had hoped for a reenactment of the rabbit as well, it was sadly replaced by one of Seia's stuffed animals.
“But then the kitty ate the rabbit.”
Seia made a gloomy face, and everyone burst into laughter.
“But the kitty was still really cute! Super cute!”
That was the end of Seia's explanation about the documentary she'd watched. Everyone applauded as if they'd been waiting for it, and Seia smiled with pride at having perfectly conveyed the documentary's content.
“What was the cat's name, sweetheart?”
At that moment, Big Grandpa's sharp question came. In Seia's eyes, it was simply a chubby cat.
“M-Marun-cat…?”
The word “Pallas” had instantly turned into “garlic,” and “wild” had become a hard pebble. “Pallas's cat” became “Garlic-rock-cat.”
“Ohoho. A Pallas's cat, you say.”
This time, Little Grandpa's quick-witted correction came to the rescue. Thanks to him, Seia was able to recall the cat's real name.
“Yes! Pallas's cat!”
“Pfft.”
Seong Ye-eun's laughter slipped out softly—not mocking, but full of affection. Seia seemed to sense it and walked over to her.
“Hehe. You laughed, Noona.”
“…Yeah. I did laugh.”
For some reason, Seong Ye-eun's hand, which had been reaching for Seia's head, paused in midair. Seia looked up at her with a puzzled expression. Seong Ye-eun gazed down at her for a moment, then withdrew her hand. A brief silence lingered.
The silence was broken by the arrival of unexpected guests. Amid the sound of the bell, bickering voices could be heard.
“I keep telling you, kids don't like this kind of thing.”
“What do you know, old man? I raised every single one of them myself.”
“Here we go again. What, did I just play around? I went out and earned money, didn't I?”
The owners of those voices were the former building owners—the couple Jungwoo used to live under.
“How much money could that have been… Oh my, there are quite a few people here.”
“Ahem. My apologies for the commotion…”
“Grandpa! Grandma!”
“Oh my, our little puppy. Have you been well?”
The couple, who had seemed slightly awkward at first, quickly brightened at Seia's welcoming voice. Everyone Jungwoo had expected had arrived. Most of them were elderly, but given their past connections, that was only natural. And it wasn't a problem at all.
“Our little puppy. Birth—”
The grandfather was about to hand Seia the large bundle he'd brought when the grandmother nudged his side and gave him a meaningful look.
“Birth— You looked so lively when you were little, and now you've already grown this much!”
It wasn't a very fitting thing to say to Seia, but it was the only thing that had come to mind. Since the others were still holding their gifts, the grandmother had signaled him—if he gave his first, everyone else would have to follow.
“Huh…? Seia?”
“Y-yes! I meant when you were even younger than you are now.”
Was there such a thing as younger than “little one”? Seia thought hard, but nothing came to mind. Still, if Grandpa said so, then it must be true!
“What was Seia like when she was little?”
“Hm? When our little one was little?”
Being asked what she was like when she was little was quite the question.
“She was… cute, wasn't she?”
“What about now?”
“She's still cute. Our little one is.”
“Hehe.”
While everyone was completely captivated by Seia's cuteness, Seong Ye-eun's gaze turned toward the window. Soon after, Park Geon-su's eyes followed. In the distance, someone was walking slowly with their hands clasped behind their back. The market lady was approaching, carrying something in one hand.
She had reached just outside, but instead of coming in, she only peered into the restaurant from afar. Then she gestured to Seong Ye-eun.
“I'll… be right back.”
“All right. Take your time.”
Once outside, the market lady handed her the item she'd been carrying.
“What's this?”
“What do you think? Go give it to her. And say you brought it.”
“Okay. I will.”
What Seong Ye-eun held was a small hand mirror. It might have looked ordinary, but it wasn't. From the handle to the back of the mirror, everything was covered in knitting—the market lady's own handiwork. Long ago, Seong Ye-eun had received something similar too. She still kept it carefully stored at home, but back then, she had worn the scarves the lady knitted every winter.
She must not have had enough time.
If the market lady had known today was Seia's birthday, perhaps Seia could have received a scarf like hers. The bandage on the market lady's—on Grandma's—hand as she passed over the mirror weighed heavily on Seong Ye-eun's heart. This wasn't the kind of person who got hurt doing things like this. So much time had already passed.
“Well then. I'll be going now.”
“At least come in and say hello…”
“Seeing her face was enough. I'm off.”
With that, the grandmother left—after giving only the hand mirror.
Seong Ye-eun returned to the restaurant with the compact mirror tucked in her arms. In her absence, meal preparations had begun; the smell of frying chicken now filled the restaurant. Golden fried chicken sat on plates, and on the table was a cake unlike any Seong Ye-eun had seen before.
“Seia made this cake herself!”
Seia declared proudly. Thanks to the cake shop owner, the cake retained the exact shape it had when Seia first made it. Alongside Seona's Restaurant were Jungwoo, Seia, and even the snowman—capturing the winter scenery of the neighborhood perfectly.
“My word. Did our little one really make this?”
“Yes! I did good, right?”
“Hoho. It seems our little boss takes after her father in having skillful hands.”
It almost felt a shame to put candles on it. But Seia didn't seem to mind at all and began placing candles on top herself. It was Seia's fifth birthday. Five small candles stood on the cake, and Jungwoo lit them. Big Grandpa quickly turned off the restaurant lights, but the windows were so large that it didn't make much difference.
“Now, then…”
The next step needed no explanation—everyone knew what came next. After exchanging glances and nodding a few times, they all began to sing together.
“Happy birthday to you—”
“Happy birthday to you—”
“Happy birthday, dear Seia—”
“Happy birthday to you—”
Applause and laughter followed, and then it was Seia's turn.
“Puh-buh-boop!”
How hard had she blown to make that sound? She blew with all her might, but unfortunately, not all the candles went out.
“Haha. Try again, Seia. Nice and calm this time.”
Encouraged by Jungwoo, she blew again, and the last candle went out.
“Wow!”
Seia's expression was happier than ever. Her birthday party felt completely different simply because so many people were there. With the candles out, the moment everyone had been waiting for had arrived—the time for presents.