When Ji Hoo’s summer vacation came, Min Je would spend a few days at the Liam Art Museum to give Mi Ran a vacation.

This time too, he had moved to the annex next to the museum, but there were more than one or two things on his mind about just staying here.

“Is it okay if you don’t take a separate vacation?”

He was asking because Ha Yeon had given up her vacation. Saying that even if it was a vacation, she had nowhere to go.

“It’s fine. I didn’t have any vacation plans for this summer originally.”

There are short-term part-time jobs that thrive as more people flock during the holiday season. Originally, Ha Yeon had planned to do as many part-time jobs as she could, so she was satisfied with the museum annex that rivaled a resort vacation spot.

Min Je watched Ha Yeon and Ji Hoo, who were engrossed in putting together a puzzle with their chins resting on their hands. He couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight of them struggling to put together a thousand-piece puzzle with their heads together.

Perhaps because he had spent an unfortunate childhood himself, the habit of not wasting on unnecessary things was ingrained in him, but Ha Yeon seemed to be even more extreme about it. There was no trace of overconsumption in the clothes she wore or the things she used.

“Can’t be helped. I’ll have to take the lead. Come on, choose. Mountain, sea, or valley?”

“Ji Hoo, I think I saw a piece similar to this earlier… Huh? What did you say?”

Ha Yeon, who had been absorbed in the puzzle, raised her head abruptly as she belatedly understood Min Je’s words.

“I asked which you prefer among mountain, sea, or valley. Ji Hoo, you choose too.”

Min Je said with a very bright smile.

“I want the sea!”

“If I have to choose, I guess I’d say the sea too.”

While Ji Hoo cheerfully shouted for the sea, Ha Yeon realized this question was out of the ordinary and narrowed her eyes at Min Je.

At that moment, the door opened and Jun Won entered with multiple plastic bags in his hands.

“I bought some food.”

As he unloaded the groceries onto the table, Min Je suddenly asked.

“Do you want to come along too, elder brother?”

“Where?”

The unexpected invitation didn’t prompt an immediate acceptance. Jun Won’s eyebrows twitched subtly, wondering what kind of work he was trying to rope people into during their vacation.

“Uncle, he says we’re going to the sea.”

As Ji Hoo said this with a proud smile, Jun Won’s expression twisted strangely.

“The sea? The seaaa?”

What is this guy trying to pull now? Though he didn’t say it out loud, it was clearly written all over Jun Won’s face.

“Are you coming or not? You’ll just drink at home anyway.”

Hey you, that’s the true way to enjoy a vacation! Jun Won’s annual vacation scene had always been setting out a large spread of side dishes, drinking, and binge-watching movies he hadn’t seen.

“What’s wrong with drinking at home? It’s good, not bothering anyone and…”

Jun Won stopped mid-sentence, and Min Je waved his hand in front of Jun Won’s face saying, “What, did you get heatstroke? Are you broken?”

Regardless, Jun Won rolled his eyes, trying to figure out Min Je’s intention for suddenly wanting to go on a trip to the sea. At first, he thought it would just be troublesome, but it wasn’t that simple of an issue.

‘This is some high-level scheming!’

Having come to this straightforward conclusion, he felt something akin to a sense of duty as he answered.

“I’ll go! I’m going!”

“Now that you’re getting older, being alone must be lonely…”

“It’s not like that!”

Jun Won cut off Min Je’s words and glanced at Ha Yeon. He clearly wanted things to work out well between them, but why did the thought of them being alone make him so uneasy? It was the first time Jun Won had experienced such a fierce battle between two conflicting feelings, and he couldn’t get a grip on it.

Why on earth is he acting like this? Ha Yeon tilted her head, seeing Jun Won’s eyes darting back and forth.

“Well then, everyone look forward to it.”

Only Min Je smiled meaningfully, as if he knew something good was coming.

‘Didn’t he say we were going to the sea? How did he book tickets to Jeju Island so quickly?’

Once on the plane, Jun Won clicked his tongue while pressing his stuffy ears. He should have known from yesterday when Min Je had that unsettling smile.

That was the expression Min Je had when he was about to go all in on something without looking back, the slightly crazy smile just before he was about to splurge money recklessly.

When Jun Won arrived at the hotel Min Je had booked as their accommodation, he wasn’t even surprised that his premonition had been spot on.

“Wow, it’s the sea!”

Ji Hoo pressed himself against the window that offered a clear view of the sea. Seeing the child’s chubby cheeks pressed against the glass, Ha Yeon burst into laughter and joined him at the window to enjoy the scenery.

Jun Won shook his head at Min Je, who had nonchalantly booked a huge suite with four rooms. During peak season, a suite of this caliber would undoubtedly come with an outrageously evil price tag, but Jun Won tried to push such thoughts out of his mind.

“I never dreamed I’d come to a place like this. It’s so wonderful. I don’t know what I did to deserve such luxury.”

Ha Yeon expressed her gratitude in an excited voice.

‘Well, that kind of reaction makes the splurge worthwhile.’

Jun Won nodded slightly from the side, trying not to be noticed.

“It’s to commemorate our first vacation trip. You know, the people here are the ones I’m most grateful to and feel sorry for.”

Jun Won, who had been mindlessly drinking water from the refrigerator, spluttered. How can a person change so much? To hear words like ‘grateful and sorry’ coming from the mouth of the great Kang Min Je.

“Wow, I seriously got goosebumps.”

As Jun Won rubbed his arms and shivered, Min Je glared at him once.

“I plan to change a lot more in the future.”

When Min Je muttered in a suppressed voice as if he had clenched his molars, Jun Won, feeling a chill run down his spine, laughed nervously and replied.

“That’s the scariest thing I’ve ever heard.”

Seeing Jun Won’s expression as if he had just heard a ghost story, Ha Yeon and Ji Hoo burst into laughter.

*

After having a splendid dinner at the hotel restaurant Min Je had reserved, the group decided to take a walk along the beach, not wanting to return to the hotel room right away.

The sea, already dark, was submerged in darkness with limited visibility. Only the waves crashing on the beach illuminated by street lamps were faintly visible.

But unlike the noisy daytime, the sound of waves in the quiet night sea was much louder. The repetitive sounds of waves – splash, swoosh – and the salty smell unique to the sea laden with moisture gave a sense of liberation from having left the city.

“Ah, this is great!”

Jun Won shouted, spreading his arms wide like the protagonist in the movie The Shawshank Redemption.

Seeing the person who had grumbled the most about this trip now showing such enjoyment, everyone couldn’t help but smile wryly.

“Ji Hoo, try walking barefoot.”

Ha Yeon said as she took off her shoes and neatly placed them on one side of the sandy beach. Following her words, Ji Hoo took off his shoes but wiggled his toes for a while, seemingly unfamiliar with the feeling of sand on his feet.

“Shall we go where the waves are breaking?”

Ha Yeon smiled and pulled Ji Hoo’s hand.

Ji Hoo, who had mostly engaged in static play like reading books, drawing pictures, and playing with toys, needed this kind of tactile stimulation.

“Wait, just a moment.”

While Ji Hoo was waving his hands, not yet mentally prepared, a white spray of water suddenly approached and engulfed the child’s feet. Swoosh, the white foam and sand grains tickled between his toes and slipped away.

“Ah…”

Surprised, Ji Hoo froze like an ice statue. In the meantime, another wave came and swallowed the child’s feet.

Ha Yeon, watching from the side, chuckled and teased Ji Hoo.

“You’re not scared, are you?”

“Of course not!”

Provoked, Ji Hoo started splashing through the waves.

A contented smile appeared on Ha Yeon’s lips. Children should play enthusiastically, whether their clothes get wet or not. She had deliberately provoked the child in the hope that Ji Hoo would play without worrying about anything, like other children his age.

As Ji Hoo ran around the beach with an excited expression, Jun Won and Min Je also quietly took off their shoes. The shoes lined up on the beach were now four pairs.

“I never thought this would be fun at my age.”

Jun Won chuckled as he played a game of running away from the incoming waves with Ji Hoo.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen Ji Hoo running around so cheerfully.”

Min Je approached Ha Yeon and spoke while watching Ji Hoo with an intense gaze.

“Ji Hoo is a brave child. So he’ll grow up to be brighter and stronger in the future.”

Ha Yeon smiled warmly as she looked at Ji Hoo.

“For that to happen, you need to be with him.”

At Min Je’s heavy voice, Ha Yeon flinched and met his eyes, as if trying to gauge his intentions.

“I can’t do it alone. Not without you.”

Ha Yeon’s eyelashes fluttered once at Min Je’s serious expression without a hint of a smile.

This man had casually said something that could be misunderstood as a proposal depending on how it was heard. Ha Yeon forcibly suppressed her trembling heart and nodded slightly.

She just nodded, unable to say she would do it or set a time limit for how long she would stay. Because her relationship with him was not yet clear.

Min Je seemed satisfied with that much of a response from Ha Yeon, as he smiled slightly and raised his voice towards Jun Won and Ji Hoo.

“Play for a while. We’ll just walk to the end and come back.”

In other words, it meant he wanted to spend time alone with Ha Yeon.

Jun Won waved his hand casually, saying he understood, since they weren’t going to lock themselves up in the hotel room. After all, male-female relationships should be conducted in open public spaces, not in closed rooms.

As Jun Won nodded his head watching Min Je and Ha Yeon walk away, Ji Hoo spoke gently.

“Things are going well, right?”

“From what I see, they’re going so well it’s almost a problem.”

Ji Hoo tilted his head, not understanding.

“Isn’t it good if things are going too well?”

Jun Won struggled with how to answer the child’s question.

“Well, you see. Between men and women, things can suddenly catch fire. I’m worried they might suddenly commit a speed violation or something.”

Jun Won explained haltingly with a troubled expression. He wasn’t sure what he was saying in front of a child.

Ah, whatever. If I say it like this, he’ll just think that’s how it is. But there was something Jun Won had overlooked.

Ji Hoo was a curious child who read a lot usually and had to know about things he was curious about.

“What’s a speed violation?”

When those clear eyes full of pure curiosity looked up at him, Jun Won suddenly felt cold sweat running down his back.

“A, a speed violation is… when you can have a baby without getting married.”

He stuttered tremendously as he barely managed to provide an answer to the question.

“Hmm, then how are babies made?”

He hadn’t anticipated at all that Ji Hoo would ask such a question.

Jun Won’s eyes wandered aimlessly, shaking as if an earthquake had struck.