“You take care and fix it. It seems like it will take a hundred years according to my thoughts.”
Looking back, you said a lot to me.
Don’t go. Stay by my side. Hoping I would notice.
I only realize it now.
Like a fool.
Since I came out after washing, the savory smell of seaweed soup vibrated from the bedroom to the room.
After spending quite a long time upstairs, I thought Sung-san might have waited for a long time. So, without even drying my hair, I hurriedly headed downstairs.
Sung-san watched Eun-jae quickly coming down to the first floor and, saying, “You came down quickly,” smiled.
“At that time, it was alive, but now it’s frozen once, so the taste might be less.”
Anything tastes better when it’s fresh. Sung-san hummed a tune while ladling soup into the bowl.
Just a bowl of seaweed soup would have sufficed.
Looking at the table filled with side dishes, Eun-jae sighed deeply. He had overlooked the fact that she wasn’t just an ordinary person.
It seems I went crazy for a moment. To say such things. On top of that, I caught a busy person. What on earth am I doing? Regret rushed in belatedly.
As Eun-jae hesitated, Sung-san brought him to the table and made him sit.
“Please sit quickly. I had seaweed soaked because I was going to make seasoned seaweed for dinner. I just boiled it, so you need to cool it down a bit; it’s hot.”
“Thank you. I’ll eat well.”
Eun-jae took a spoon from the kimchi bowl with steaming hot soup. His body, soaked in rain and the smell that had been irritating his nose since earlier, couldn’t wait until it cooled down to eat.
The hastily spooned seaweed soup passed through his throat.
The fragrant scent of sea urchin wasn’t much different from back then. He didn’t lick his lips as before. It was when he thought it was just warm enough and raised the spoon again.
“Now you’re eating hot things well. You’ve become a real person of this house.”
Tears welled up at the simple words of the aunt. The seaweed soup she had quietly made tasted so delicious, fragrant, and warm.
With his head bowed deeply, swallowing back his tears, Eun-jae finally took another sip of seaweed soup.
He must have heard the sound of sniffles and sobs. Since he entered the annex soaked in rain, he probably knew already. Sung-san’s aunt was always like that.
“If you want to eat more, just let me know anytime, like today.”
“Sorry for suddenly asking for this…”
“We’re glad we don’t have to worry about what to make every day. And originally, you should eat what you want at that time. It’s good for your body to always keep it warm for the baby.”
“What? A baby?”
With his head bowed, Eun-jae, who had been answering in a nasal voice, suddenly raised his head. Wiping the tears that had unknowingly flowed down his cheeks with his palm, he opened his eyes wide.
“Why, are you talking about the Chobok then? The day everyone gathered to eat samgyetang. Wasn’t it because you felt uncomfortable and went out? Everyone knows that, right?”
“Oh, no…”
Sniffle.
“At that time, I just…”
Another sniffle. The heavily blocked voice was amusing. So, without realizing it, Eun-jae burst into a faint laugh. Seeing that, Sung-san also burst into laughter. They laughed at each other for a while.
“Aunt, I’ve always been thankful, but… Thank you. Sometimes, I think… about this taste.”
“You speak as if you’re going somewhere far.”
Whether to speak or not, Sung-san hesitated for a moment, glanced around, and slowly opened her lips. She lowered her voice as if telling a secret story.
“Last night, the professor had a drink. He’s originally a gentleman who doesn’t even touch alcohol.”
“Wine is something he always drinks.”
“What wine? It’s a beverage. Yesterday, he brought out vodka.”
Do you know vodka? A very strong liquor with more than 40% alcohol. It was said that she even made side dishes in the early morning because it was pitiful to see him downing the liquor without any snacks. But even that, he hardly touched.
Now that I think about it, in the morning, there was a fragrant scent from him that seemed different from other days. I didn’t think it was the smell of alcohol.
“If you two fought, you should reconcile quickly. It seems like the professor did something wrong.”
No… He didn’t do anything wrong.
“With a face that seemed very sorry, he looked at the baby’s mom. I’m good at reading people’s expressions.”
But why does he look at me with those eyes? I’m not the one who should be sorry. The one who should be is someone else.
“So, please, the baby’s mom, reconcile quickly. If you fight twice, the professor will get hurt.”
Aunt, who smiled happily, put acorns in Eun-jae’s spoon and said, “They say don’t get involved in other people’s affairs in life. I also had a restaurant in Jeju that went bankrupt due to financial difficulties. I had a lot of debt.”
Every day, loan sharks were loitering around the restaurant, and household items were broken. It wasn’t living.
“I came to Seoul with my two young sons. Just holding one bundle.”
It felt like a déjà vu, and that’s why I laughed again.
“We were very reckless at that time. Now, we’ve paid off all the debts, sent the sons to college in Seoul, married them off, and spend our old age in this cozy house. It might be considered a successful life.”
Satisfied, Sung-san swept through the annex and said, “This house is good, but it felt somewhat dull. Maybe because there are many blunt men.”
Sung-san, who laughed heartily, put a quail egg side dish on Eun-jae’s chopsticks.
“The house has become much brighter since the baby’s mom entered.”
So, I thought maybe they added more lights to the annex, Sung-san chuckled.
“Even just looking at the professor. He’s good at studying, outstanding in personality, and has a good character. He seems to lack nothing, but it feels like something is missing. I didn’t know what it was back then, but now I think I know what it is.”
“What was it?”
“Emotions. The professor is quite awkward in expressing emotions. Sometimes I couldn’t tell if he was saying something because he felt good or if he was angry.”
I said I’m really good at reading people’s expressions, but even so, I couldn’t read his expression. While continuing to talk, Sung-san put a side dish of seasoned vegetables on Eun-jae’s spoon.
“But these days, when I see the professor, everything shows on his face. Even though he doesn’t say anything, you can see it all on his face, so it’s embarrassing.”
Watching Eun-jae eat deliciously, Sung-san, who smiled brighter than ever, said, “It seems like the professor is now fulfilled.”
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
