First Impression.
First Impression.
On the way home in Dad's car, Dad glanced over at me while I was on my phone.
"Si-yoon, did you have fun today?"
"Right, you packed cookies, didn't you?!"
Dad fished out a bag of cookies while driving.
"Ta-da~ They packed a lot for us. Said to keep them in the fridge and eat them later."
"Ooh... so the hard work paid off, huh?"
Dad chuckled and asked me.
"What hard work did you do?"
"Hmm... getting Da-yeon's family to approve of me?"
"...?"
I looked at Dad making a face that seemed to ask what I meant.
"Now even if Da-yeon goes crazy over me, her family will be delighted, right?"
"I... I see..."
"Yeah, that's about right."
What I'd said to Dad turned out to be spot on.
Kim Seon-hwa kept inviting us over to her place, and Dad found it overwhelming.
She wanted Dad to at least let me come over alone, but Kim Seon-hwa gave up when Dad said I was still too young and he was uneasy about it.
At kindergarten, I started tutoring Da-yeon in Korean while eating the cookies she'd brought.
"You've gotta know Korean perfectly."
"Why? I wanna do English..."
"Your mom and dad are Korean, right?"
"Yeah!"
"Then you should do Korean first."
Da-yeon stared at me with big round eyes.
"Hmm... is that how it works?"
"That's how it works."
Da-yeon only showed interest in studying when she was with me.
Eventually Kim Seon-hwa started bringing Da-yeon over to our place often.
She said she couldn't come empty-handed, so she brought clothes.
Every time Kim Seon-hwa came, all kinds of designer clothes started piling up in my closet.
'We already have so many clothes at home...'
And this little body was growing fast, so I wouldn't be able to wear them for long.
I resolved to at least wear each one once, just so they wouldn't go to waste.
After Korean study time with Da-yeon, we ate lunch at kindergarten.
Maybe the kindergarten was determined to justify its fees, because all the vegetables were organic and the menu was fancy too.
The young teacher clapped her hands to get our attention while we were eating.
"You all know we're going to the pool tomorrow, right?"
""Yes!!!""
"Bring your swimsuits~"
""Yes!!!""
"....."
Hearing the young teacher say "swimsuit" made my head start to ache.
The moment I got home, I stared at the swimsuit Dad had bought.
"Haah..."
Dad looked at me with worried eyes.
"Si-yoon... do you maybe not want to go to the pool?"
"No... that's not the problem..."
"Huh?"
'Wow... fuck... I'm supposed to wear this?'
The overwhelmingly cutesy, frilly, bubblegum-pink swimsuit made my head ache.
"I don't think this is it."
"What is?"
If I'd been born into a poor family, I'd have worn it without a word of complaint.
Because wearing literally anything is better than going around naked, after all...
But this was a swimsuit that looked like something neither 'Secret Shareholder' nor 'Kongsooni' would ever wear.
"I seriously cannot wear this. I'd rather swim in just my underwear..."
Dad made a face like he'd been shocked by what I said.
"Si-yoon..."
"Dad, get dressed."
"...Huh?"
"Haah... Get dressed. We're going shopping. I think it'd be better if I picked one myself..."
"Why... but this one's pretty..."
I drew the line with Dad, who still refused to face reality.
"Dad, your taste is way too janky. At this rate your daughter's gonna die of embarrassment."
"...Okay."
In the end, I dragged Dad out to buy a swimsuit.
At the children's swimsuit shop, I looked around and was dumbfounded.
"I mean, there are this many decent options, and you specifically went and bought THAT?!"
Dad carefully spoke up while watching my mood.
"...I thought our Si-yoon would look... adorable wearing it."
"Hideous, you mean?"
"....."
Only after I picked out a less embarrassing swimsuit were Dad and I both satisfied.
Dad kept trying to put me in ones with lace, and I nearly cussed him out,
but I barely held it in, worried it'd shock this young rookie dad.
I did cuss him out with my eyes, though.
Only when I put on the rash guard I'd chosen did I nod to myself, satisfied.
"This is it. Remember this well."
"Okay..."
"Look closely! This is what your daughter wants!"
"Got iiit..."
I hummed to myself as I got into the car.
"Right, I was planning to release the song tomorrow."
At Dad's words, a few sneaky gears started turning in my head.
"Really?"
"What do you think, Si-yoon?"
I made my eyes as round as possible and nodded as I answered.
"I'm really looking forward to it."
"Really?"
"Yeah!"
"Then should we skip kindergarten tomorrow?"
Sure enough, I thought my plan had worked, so I nodded like it didn't make much difference either way.
But what Dad said next made my face go dead serious.
"No matter how much of a moron your dad is, I didn't forget that our Si-yoon is going to the pool tomorrow."
"....."
"Truth is, I'd scheduled the song release for the day after tomorrow~"
In the old days, I would've smacked him first, but remembering that he was my dad brought me back to my senses.
I ignored Dad and pulled out my phone.
"....."
"... Si-yoon?"
Dad stopped as he was pulling out of the parking lot and watched my reaction.
"....."
When I ignored his gaze, Dad spoke up urgently.
"I'm sorry!!!"
"....."
Dad started clinging to me, and while looking at my phone, I pushed him away with one hand.
Do I hate water? It's not really that.
As proof, I was currently gliding through the water like a fish.
This little body was stronger than I thought, capable of holding its breath for over five minutes.
"Wooow..."
The pool was less than 70 centimeters deep at its deepest so the kids wouldn't get hurt.
Deep enough to reach the young teacher's thighs.
I was out of the water, gazing at the young teacher, my designated instructor, with deep admiration.
"Wow~ why is someone like this working as a kindergarten teacher?"
If I poked her, would powder come off on my finger? Her skin was snow-white and her face was quite pretty too, to the point that she probably would've been successful even as a magazine model.
Thinking back to my past, plenty of celebrities were uglier than this young teacher.
But seeing how much she seemed to like children, it looked like she'd chosen her career well.
Hanbit Kindergarten was known to have an extremely competitive hiring process.
'She may not look it, but she's probably quite a promising talent.'
The young teacher had been playing with the kids, when her endorphins must've suddenly surged or something, because she started frolicking around by herself.
'...?'
From the distance, Da-yeon came swimming up like a puppy with a bright expression, holding onto a floating pad.
"Si-yoon~"
Da-yeon swam for a long while and finally made it right in front of me.
"Si-yoon, whatcha doing?"
I propped my chin in my hand and watched the young teacher's dynamic movements.
Water droplets from the young teacher's black hair trickled down along the curves of her body.
"Gazing at the flowing future and watching its end, pondering and fantasizing about what sort of oasis might be hidden in that concealed valley... confirming what exists at the pinnacle of perfection."
"...?"
Da-yeon followed my gaze, glanced once at the young teacher, then got out of the water and sat down next to me.
"I wanna be good at swimming too!"
I met eyes with Da-yeon, who was looking at me with round eyes.
"Hmm... I'm actually a mermaid."
"Really?!"
"Truth is, I liked my dad so much I grew legs, so I've been pretending to be a human."
Da-yeon's round eyes grew even bigger, and she covered her mouth with her hands.
"Gasp!!!"
"It's a secret, okay?"
"Okay!"
"I'm a mermaid, so it'd probably be hard for Da-yeon to swim as well as I can, right?"
"Yeah!"
"Then from now on, practice so you can swim as well as a mermaid."
"Got it! I'll work hard!"
Da-yeon grabbed her pad and, full of enthusiasm, started practicing swimming.
I pulled my phone out of my pocket.
A phone that was supposedly fully waterproof.
Musing on how the world had really gotten better, I put it back away before the kids could see.
To exploit the privileges of being a little kid, I glided through the water toward the young teacher.
"Teacher, pick me up."
"Hm? Is that Si-yoon? Alright."
I got the young teacher to carry me often.
If I had to put it one way, it was just because walking was a hassle.
Now that we were in the pool, I suppose it was because swimming was a hassle.
Whatever the reason, the weight I felt every time she held me drew an admiring sound from my lips.
"Wow..."
"...?"
Back home, Dad asked while bathing me.
"Was the pool fun?"
I briefly thought back over what had happened at the pool.
Hmm... deciding it had been plenty enjoyable, I nodded.
"It was fun."
Dad looked at me and smiled.
"That's a relief~"
"Turns out I'm good at swimming too."
"Is that so~ Then should we go to the pool with Dad sometime?"
"Too much hassle."
Dad looked dejected after my firm answer.
"...Okay."
Dad had apparently made dinner in advance, because he sat me down in my chair.
"Tomorrow's the day our song comes out, huh?"
"That's right~ It's 'our' song~"
Dad was grinning from ear to ear, happy about something.
"Dad's so excited his heart's pounding, you know?"
"If it stops, you die."
Dad flinched at my extreme remark and slowly looked down at me.
"...Right."
"I got what you meant. I'm looking forward to it too."
"Really?"
"Yeah! With 285,715 mustache cookies, I could build a castle too~"
Dad seemed to remember the conversation we'd had in his studio and fell silent.
"....."
"If we include overseas, at least 3 million... whoa... the castle gets ten times bigger..."
"Si-yoon...?"
"Hm?"
"Don't you think that's more than we need?"
Since Dad was the kind of person who'd buy them for me if I asked, I smirked.
"If you buy that many, people'd probably hate it."
"Right?"
"Yeah."
After we finished eating, Dad brushed my teeth and then started doing the dishes.
And after he'd washed up, he came out and deliberately sat me on his lap.
Dad always wanted to do everything for me, so I didn't refuse.
It felt bitter to be rejected when you were trying to do something for someone...
Unless Dad realized it himself and stopped, I probably wouldn't be the first to reject him.
"Si-yoon's little belly is sticking out, huh?"
"That's why it's pretty."
"Ahaha, that's right~ That's why it's pretty~"
Maybe because I'd been eating a lot of snacks lately, it did seem like I was putting on some weight.
But I knew even better that this wasn't the age to be worrying about that.
Whenever I watched TV with Dad, he often put on animal shows because he liked them.
Well, not that I dislike them either.
Dad's eyes sparkled as he watched TV.
"Should we get a cat?"
"Really?! Si-yoon wants to raise a cat?"
I looked at Dad with a dead serious face.
"Isn't it obvious who wants a cat?"
"Ahem..."
"A cat could get lonely by itself, so two of them."
"Should we?"
"Spayed and neutered, since babies would be a hassle."
"...If there are babies, couldn't we just put them up for adoption?"
I gave Dad a disappointed look and said.
"Why don't you just put me up for adoption too? You look like you're having a hard time."
"No! Si-yoon, I'm sorry!!!"
At my words, Dad seemed to have a major revelation and started seriously thinking about raising cats.
He seemed to be thinking through whether he could raise them well with me and what problems might come up.
"Wake up about 30 minutes early every morning, brush them... feed them before Si-yoon and I go out... bathing them... once every two weeks....."
After mulling it over for a while, Dad looked at me and nodded.
"Let's get them!"
"Okay."