#010

 

While Yoo-ah watched Pororo turned on by Jeong-hye calmly, Jeong-hye, who finished cleaning soon, said to Yoo-ah.

 

“Yoo-ah yah! Should we go to the playground now? Mom is done cleaning.”

 

Yoo-ah nodded. As he slowly came down from the sofa, Jeong-hye took her shopping basket and wallet. He guessed that she’s going to go grocery shopping on their way back from dinner.

 

Yoo-ah was stopped while trying to wear sneakers that Jeong-hye took out.

 

“Didn’t I tell you that you shouldn’t break your sneakers?”

 

“…Yes.”

 

He thought it was similar to when he wore slippers in kindergarten. Everyone’s eyesight was not normal. That’s why the teachers were there. Yoo-ah, who was far from delicate in nature, including birth and growth, was just amazed at times like this.

 

“Do you want me to tie it for you?”

 

“Eh… No. I’ll do it alone.”

 

Eventually, he sat with his butt on the porch and put it on again. Strapped sneakers were too cumbersome.

 

He should have just stayed calm when she told him about buying velcro. He regretted that he insisted on buying sneakers with strings just because he was proud.

 

He tied it up hard in his own way, but the shoelaces that he tied a few times only turned vertically, as if someone had grabbed his hair and turned it around. Is this a horizontal or vertical instinct?

 

Yoo-ah, who had a sour thought, stood up, shaking his buttocks. He’ll just wear whatever. The vertically tied sneaker strap tickled his ankle, but it was worth the shoes.

 

Yoo-ah took Jeong-hye’s hand and came out to the apartment complex.

 

“Since it’s not fun anymore, let’s just say, let’s not go to the playground.”

 

Why do you stop by the playground first when you’re on your way to eat? 

 

There was another story of its own.

 

“Yoo-ah yah, mom’s arm hurts now….”

 

“I don’t want to! I’m not going!”

 

“Let’s come back tomorrow, huh? Since it’s the weekend tomorrow, dad will be at home, and wouldn’t it be more fun for dad to push Yoo-ah swing than mom?”

 

“…No! I’m going to play more! Let’s play more and come back tomorrow!”

 

“But it’s already 7:30? Mom has to cook for Yoo-ah and Dad. Look. Yoo-ah’s stomach is rumbling, too.”

 

A spirit that is stuck in only one place is called Ji Bak-ryeong. And the presence of Yoo-ah in the playground was exactly like that.

 

Therefore, Jeong-hye, who pushed Yoo-ah’s swing for an hour after work, deserved to be tired. After they arrive, they play for two hours before returning, but one hour of that was spent pushing the swing.

 

Even if he came out alternately with Joo-hyuk, it would have been very tiring for him to work at the company all day and play with his young son too.

 

“…Then should we do it like this? If you make an appointment with mom to play at the playground for only 30 minutes on weekdays from now on, I will take you out of kindergarten next week and take you to an amusement park.”

 

“Amusement park?”

 

“Yes. You like merry-go-rounds, don’t you? It’s a shame for Yoo-ah because he usually comes home late because mom and dad go to work.”

 

With a white flag in hand, Jeong-hye first used bait at the theme park to subtly lure Yoo-ah. Yoo-ah, a kindergarten student who was not easily tricked, was worried.

 

“Well….”

 

“…Shall we go early in the morning to see the tigers that Yoo-ah likes and watch a dolphin show? Mom will also make a reservation for a tiger feeding experience.

 

“I can feed Roar? We’re leaving!”

 

Even if he said he wasn’t easy, he was blown away by the thought that he would feed the tiger because he was a child.

 

Thinking about the amusement park, he wiped his mouth as if he had never said no to the idea, but it didn’t work. Jeong-hye and Joo-hyuk were like knives in this respect.

 

‘It wasn’t unfair, but what can he do?’

 

They’ve already made a promise. So they went to an amusement park. He even gave food to the tiger. He even saw the fireworks while riding the roller coaster.

 

That’s what the average seven-year-old’s intelligence was, after all.

 

‘But feeding the tiger… that was fun.’

 

It was 200,000 won for a 25-minute tour, so if it wasn’t fun, that would have been the problem. Yoo-ah shook his head. He promised not to be an irreversible child. Now that he sees it, he thinks it’s already too late.

 

‘Umm.’

 

The more he thought about it, the more he dug his own grave and covered it with soil.

 

Yoo-ah, who was stabbed for no reason, pulled Jeong-hye’s hand.

 

“Huh? Why?”

 

“I don’t want to go to the playground.”

 

“……?”

 

Jeong-hye, who was staring at Yoo-ah, bent her knees. Jeong-hye put her wallet and shopping basket on the floor.

 

“……? Mom, what are you doing?”

 

“I was wondering if you were hiding that you were sick. Are you sure you’re okay?”

 

“…I’m not sick. I’m hungry!”

 

Yoo-ah shouted loudly. Jeong-hye, who was checking Yoo-ah’s body from head to toe, hesitated for a while and nodded.

 

“It’s a little early, but… Yoo-ah said you didn’t eat lunch properly, right? Then shall we have dinner early tonight?”

 

“I like it!”

 

“Alright.”

 

“All right….”

 

“That’s right.…When it’s around 6 o’clock, everyone goes to eat, so there aren’t many people at the mart. Stay calm while we go grocery shopping, alright?”

 

Yoo-ah nodded. Jeong-hye tapped Yoo-ah’s top of the head as if she were proud of him and said,

 

“Instead, I’ll buy you soft ice cream when we go grocery shopping later. You like soft corn sold at the supermarket, right?”

 

Wasn’t it on the third floor? Yoo-ah recalled the soft ice cream sold in front of the escalator. Whenever he found it, he begged her to buy it for him.

 

‘The vanilla-chocolate mix is the best.’

 

It was a pity that there was a lack of snacks in kindergarten. When Yoo-ah’s face brightened noticeably, the corners of Jeong-hye’s mouth twitched.

 

Yoo-ah twitched his cheeks after noticing that.

 

I’m telling you. She was really worried about him because he likes so many sweet things. Even if it’s because he’s young now, isn’t it dangerous when he gets older? There are children with diabetes, so maybe Yoo-ah is already at risk.

 

‘I should refrain from excessive snacks from now on.’

 

If Jeong-hye thinks he’s eating too much, she’ll cut him off from sweets anyway. Yoo-ah didn’t even notice the fact and made a serious commitment.

 

“Mom, food!”

 

“Do you like ice cream that much? But you have to eat and brush your teeth well. Mom will examine it before you goes to bed.”

 

‘I will eat it only today.’

 

Don’t you have to give what you’ve already promised to give? It’s not polite to take back what you’ve already given.

 

Jeong-hye took Yoo-ah’s hand again. It was Jeong-hye’s own control, as Yoo-ah would run all over the place the moment he was released.

 

She should have ordered shoes that make sounds when he walks. Jeong-hye sighed. He hadn’t worn shoes like that since he was six years old. What would Jeong-hye do when he said that he would rather go out barefoot instead of wearing them again?

 

She had forced them on, but he had taken them off and ran out barefoot once. Then, a while later, a piece of stone was stuck on the sole of his foot, and he came back.

 

“Hunghhhh…! Mom, It hurts…!”

 

“Why are you going out barefoot! Look. Are you hurting a lot?”

 

“My mom forced me to… Hnnghhh…! I don’t want to!! Sniffs… I don’t like that! It hurts!”

 

“…YooA, can you please tell me the subject? It’s like mom did something bad….”

 

“Mom, you’re bad! Hngghhhh….”

 

“Mom said no, but Yoo-ah took off his shoes as he wanted. If you keep doing this, Santa won’t give you a present? Should I tell him not to come this year?”

 

“Argh!”

 

Jeong-hye sighed, recalling the dark time.

 

Her back bone was so tight. In fact, she wanted to hit her own forehead, but her hands were tied, so she just sighed.

 

She doesn’t think that’s going to happen anymore because he’s become noticeably calm since he’s been sick… Jeong-hye, who thought it was better now than then, rebuked herself.

 

She can’t believe a mother thinks she’s lucky when her son is sick and quiet. Jeong-hye was just disappointed in herself.

 

If the cost of the Yoo-ah pain was a decrease in childrearing difficulty, it was useless. In that case, it was better to run around like before—no, more than before. As they say, if the body is comfortable, the heart won’t be uncomfortable. Jeong-hye didn’t want to be that kind of person.

 

Isn’t he a child that can’t get hurt, even if it’s in her eyes? Don’t get sick as often as possible. She doesn’t need anything else; he just needs to grow up healthy.

 

One time, Jeong-hye thought about whether to order anything because Yoo-ah seemed to be more distracted than his peers, but ever since Yoo-ah got sick, she has given up on that idea. It’s not too late to study in middle school, so she’ll just let him be while he’s young.

 

“Yoo-ah’s mom. I heard it’s good to do ballet, baduk, calligraphy, etc to make kids calm. What do you think?”

 

“What?”

 

“Or an abacus is fine. Taekwondo, piano, and violin would be good too. Kids these days learn things like that even at their age. Shouldn’t Yoo-ah learn something too?”

 

“Ah….”

 

“I saw that Yoo-ah was also fighting back. If you’re worried about sending him to an academy, how about after-school at kindergarten? I found out that there are piano and violin lessons. We’ve been applying our kid for piano since last week because we’re both working.”

 

So what if other mothers say something Isn’t it right to close your mouth because you didn’t add anything to the housekeeping? There was a fine line between advice and being nosy. As expected, it seemed appropriate to do childcare, as both Jeong-hye and Joo-hyuk think without being swayed by others.

 

“That house is that house, and we are us.”

 

“What?”

 

“Nothing. We’re already here? Yoo-ah yah, let’s go eat now!”

 

Jeong-hye, who deliberately made a bright voice, led Yoo-ah into the restaurant.

 

She was the one who gave birth to him, but really. He was pretty whenever anytime she saw him. Even when he had an accident and was hurt, but he was never not pretty. Even the hedgehog said her baby was pretty, not literally, but objectively.

 

Jeong-hye, who had a lot of thoughts, sat Yoo-ah in the opposite side.

 

And Yoo-ah thought.

 

‘…..What’s wrong all of a sudden?”