“Are you done talking?”

With tears in her eyes, Seol Ah glared at Seung Jun.

Seung Jun faced her without touching where he had been hit.

“The more I see you, the more trashy you are. Don’t ever set foot here again.”

Seung Jun silently opened the door and left.

As the bell on the door chimed, Seol Ah felt his voice coming alive in her heart again.

– That bastard Shin Young or whatever his name is, he teased Yu Min for not having a father.

– He may not realize it now, but eventually that child will be completely ostracized. People tend to meet those of their own level.

The fragmented words collided in her chest. Red blood flowed from her torn heart.

– I’m sorry, mom.

He was only seven years old. Not even school age yet. An age when other children would beg for toys and tasty treats.

The precocious Yu Min didn’t know how to ask for such things. He always checked first if mom was tired, if mom was okay.

How much must it have hurt to be teased for not having a father? How lonely must he have felt, suppressing that pain and keeping quiet to avoid hurting mom?

“Hic, sob.”

Seol Ah couldn’t hold back her tears. Thinking that she was ultimately the one who caused her friend to be treated harshly, she felt like cursing her own life.

Plop.

Something fell in front of the counter, and she saw it was a handkerchief. Seol Ah looked up.

“What’s wrong, noona?”

It was Jin Cheol, who had come for the next shift.

Seol Ah lowered her flustered face again.

When she saw the handkerchief, she had unconsciously thought of Seung Jun.

What was I expecting?

After yelling at him to leave. After getting angry and saying I’d never see him again.

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t finish closing up. I’ll wrap things up quickly.”

“It’s okay. But did something happen? Why suddenly.”

“It’s nothing. I was just watching a drama since there were no customers. Haha.”

Seol Ah laughed awkwardly and fanned herself.

“Ah, I see. Then I’ll go change into my uniform.”

Jin Cheol said that and went inside to put on his uniform. Seol Ah sighed and pressed her eyes with her hands.

“Noona, we’re here!”

Just then, the convenience store door opened with a noisy clamor.

“Hey, we’re late. I’m hungry.”

“How much do you have? Is fire chicken okay?”

In an instant, the small convenience store became bustling.

They were students from a nearby academy.

Seol Ah smiled cheerfully, as if she had become a different person from moments ago.

“There are two fire chickens left. Hurry up and get them.”

“Ugh, math must be crazy. The class wouldn’t end.”

“I thought I was going crazy because I had to pee so bad.”

Seol Ah felt her mood improving thanks to their liveliness as she scanned the barcodes of the products they brought. As she handed over the items, Seol Ah didn’t forget to say one thing.

“You’re not just eating this stuff, right? You need to eat proper meals at home, okay?”

“Always nagging. Are you our mom?”

The male students grumbled but grinned, seeming to like how Seol Ah looked after them. They occupied a corner of the convenience store and ate noisily.

“Noona? Ha. It’s like a family convenience store, really like family.”

Seol Ah’s eyebrows furrowed as she heard the low muttering.

When she turned her head, surprisingly, Seung Jun was standing there.

“You haven’t left yet?”

Seung Jun fiddled with the chocolate in his hand and lowered his head.

He had meant to just leave.

But he happened to see Seol Ah crying through the glass. As he was unconsciously cursing under his breath, someone passed by him.

It was that good-for-nothing from the playground before.

That good-for-nothing held out a handkerchief to Seol Ah.

He couldn’t bring himself to walk away. But then a group of high school students rushed into the convenience store.

“Isn’t the convenience store noona really pretty? She’s a goddess, a goddess.”

“Hey, let’s hurry up and go.”

Seung Jun couldn’t stand it anymore. After they went in, while Seol Ah was distracted, he slipped into the convenience store.

Feeling it would be strange to come empty-handed, he happened to grab a chocolate.

“Have the next shift ring it up. I have to go.”

Seol Ah glanced at what Seung Jun was holding and left the convenience store.

*

“Thank you, for doing this so often.”

“It’s nothing. Still, home is better than being in a corner of the convenience store. We drew pictures and had fun.”

Today, In Sook had looked after Yu Min. As Seol Ah returned home with Yu Min, she remembered what Seung Jun had said and tried to hold back the emotions welling up inside her as she asked.

“Were you very bored today?”

“No, it was fun. Mom, look at what I drew.”

Yu Min opened his sketchbook.

A smile spread across Seol Ah’s face as she looked at the drawing.

His drawing skills are just like mine.

As Yu Min grew, he reminded her more and more of his father. Not only was his appearance a spitting image of Seung Jun, but even his eating habits and his habit of keeping things tidy were similar.

While his growth was admirable, it also pained her heart. However, his drawing skills were just like Seol Ah’s – truly a mess.

“What’s this?”

“This is mom.”

“And this?”

“Me.”

Two people drawn crookedly. Though they weren’t exactly recognizable, it was vividly clear that the two were holding hands.

Seol Ah saw a crooked diagonal line next to them. What on earth could this be? A telephone pole? After pondering for a while, Seol Ah finally blurted out.

“Is this a tree?”

“No, it’s a house. Doesn’t it look like a house?”

No. I barely thought it might be a tree. How could this be a house?

As Seol Ah let out a small laugh, Yu Min poked her waist with his hand as if he knew why she was laughing.

“Mom, that’s mean. It is a house. Are you saying I can’t draw well?”

“No, no. Um, honestly, it’s not drawn well, but.”

As Seol Ah, who couldn’t lie, spoke, Yu Min hung his arms around her neck.

“How can you say that too, Mom! Waaah.”

“It’s okay, Mom can’t draw either. At least this,”

Seol Ah was about to say that at least his inability to draw well was something he got from his mom, but she bit her lip.

She had almost said everything else was like his dad. That really wasn’t right.

“Hm?”

“Never mind. But why did you draw this?”

Seol Ah quickly changed the subject so Yu Min wouldn’t notice. Fortunately, Yu Min didn’t ask further and answered her question.

“This is the house where you and I will live. Let’s live in a big house like this later. We’ll plant trees in the yard and raise a puppy too.”

At Yu Min’s words, Seol Ah lowered her head, feeling a tightness in her nose.

The current half-basement single room was too small to raise a dog. The landlord would complain even if a dog just barked.

But Yu Min always wanted to have a dog.

What if Yu Min lived with Seung Jun? If nothing else, at least materially, he would have been well-off.

They could have had not just one dog, but ten, without any problem. The yard would have been so spacious that taking them for walks would have been easy.

And maybe, as Seung Jun said, he would have been more confident.

“Do you.”

Seol Ah piggybacked Yu Min, putting her arms behind her back, and continued speaking.

“Like living like this with mom?”

As soon as she said it, she regretted it. It was too abstract a question.

She had said it because she couldn’t bring herself to mention ‘dad’, but Yu Min might not understand.

“I mean, just the two of us like this.”

Seol Ah moistened her lips with her tongue. Her lips kept drying as she tried to speak. What should I say if he says he doesn’t like it? Her heart was racing uncontrollably.

“I like it.”

Yu Min slid down from Seol Ah’s back.

“Really. I like it.”

Yu Min caressed her face with his palms.

Then he whispered softly.

“We don’t need a dad.”

Seol Ah’s eyes widened, then narrowed again. The clever Yu Min had guessed what Seol Ah had ultimately been unable to say.

Seol Ah hesitated for a moment, then opened her mouth.

“But, don’t you feel envious when you see friends going out with their dads?”

Yu Min lowered his gaze. Those eyes were clearly wavering.

Seol Ah swallowed hard.

Did I ask an unnecessary question? Her heart pounded. If he says he’s envious, what should I answer? Without any real alternative.

“Of course I’m envious.”

At Yu Min’s words, Seol Ah let out a low sigh. Of course. Is there a child in the world who likes not having a dad?

“But you know.”

Yu Min took Seol Ah’s hand.

“Still, I just want mom to be happy.”

“Huh?”

“As long as mom is happy, that’s enough. If mom is happy without dad, I’m fine.”

Seol Ah was at a loss for words at his statement, his eyes sparkling.

She had been focusing only on Yu Min’s feelings. What if he said he was struggling without a dad, what could I do to fill that void for him?

Go out every week, play physically, play like dads do, would that work? Would that fill his heart a little, she had thought.

But Yu Min was thinking on a higher level.

He was actually worried about Seol Ah.

Seol Ah felt choked up. Children are always growing a span taller than their mothers think.

“I’m happy too, as long as Yu Min is happy.”

Seol Ah smiled brightly.

“Then mom is happy too.”

Yu Min opened his arms wide and hugged Seol Ah’s waist.

He sniffed at the nice smell coming from Seol Ah.

Until now, Seol Ah had never talked about dad. Yu Min also avoided it, feeling somehow that it was a topic he shouldn’t bring up.

But why did she bring up dad first?

‘Does mom wish she had a dad too?’

Yoon Sung’s dad was a very fun person. When he visited Yoon Sung’s house before, Yoon Sung’s dad was so funny that the whole family was doubled over with laughter. Especially Yoon Sung’s mom, who laughed until she was out of breath.

If there was a dad, could they laugh often like that?

Yu Min had thought it would be nice if mom could laugh like Yoon Sung’s mom.

While Yu Min was lost in thought, the doorbell suddenly rang.

“Mother said she forgot to give you kimchi earlier.”

The visitor who came to the house was Jin Cheol. Holding a large kimchi container, he smiled gently as always.

“Oh my, you must be busy preparing for job applications. You could have called and I would have come to pick it up.”

“It’s okay. Yu Min, were you good? Uncle was too busy to play with you today.”

As Jin Cheol patted his head and spoke kindly, Yu Min’s eyes shone.

“Thank you. We’ll enjoy it. Oh, I ordered some mangae rice cakes, please take some. They’re chewy and delicious.”

Seol Ah took out a box of rice cakes from the freezer and put them in a shopping bag.

“Thank you. I really love those rice cakes.”

Jin Cheol smiled innocently as he received the shopping bag. Watching him, Yu Min grinned.

‘I found him. Our dad.’

If there really had to be a dad, Uncle Jin Cheol would be perfect.