“142.2”
Mother and I are measuring our heights.
“Is that all you grew? Measure again properly.”
“It’ll be the same.”
Mother stretched the measuring tape and checked my height again.
“Hehe. This time it’s 142~”
“No way, that’s unfair. How did you measure it to make me shorter? Are you doing it right?”
“Yep, did it properly~”
“Ah. I thought I’d be taller.”
I still have 28 centimeters to go to reach 170.
Dear growth plate, please hang in there.
“Okay, Do-ah, come over here and let’s measure you too.”
Mother waved her hand, calling Do-ah.
“Okay~”
Do-ah stood against the wall for her measurement.
“Do-ah is 116.2 cm. Our little one is growing up fast, huh?”
“Yep, I’ll be taller than you.”
There’s no way she can outgrow me!
“No way, our Do-ah has to stay smaller than her sister forever. I’ll always think she’s cute, got it?”
“Nope, I’m going to grow.”
“Wah, no… even now, you’re too big.”
Somehow, Do-ah has gotten way too big.
I can’t even pick her up anymore!
I hugged Do-ah while sobbing.
“Our little one will someday grow up and leave her sister’s arms to become a student, right?”
“Yeah, I’ll be 8 next year!”
“And what if our little one gets a boyfriend? I’m already sad, wah…”
Mom, who was listening from the side, chimed in.
“Why is Do-ah your little one? She’s mine! Come here, my baby!”
But Do-ah is stuck with me.
In the end, Mom came over and hugged us both together.
Suddenly, Do-ah, caught between Mom and me, complained about her discomfort.
“Ah, let go, I can’t breathe.”
“Do-ah, you can’t get a boyfriend until you’re an adult, okay? Even when you’re an adult, you must ask for your sister’s permission!”
“Do-hee, it’s the same for you. You also can’t date until you’re an adult, and even then you must get Mom’s approval.”
I released Do-ah and, stroking my face, spoke flirtatiously.
“Who dares to possess me? No one can have me. I’m simply too precious to give away.”
“Ugh…”
Then, as if lost in self-admiration while gazing at the nearby mirror, I recited.
“Mirror, mirror, who is the prettiest in the world? It’s Princess Do-ah. Kekekeke.”
“Do-ah, close your eyes, please.”
“Okay.”
Mom, realizing I was embarrassing myself, changed the topic.
“So, school starts next week. Are you ready?”
Ah.
Back to reality.
“Yeah… I’m going into fourth grade… When will I graduate?”
“Soon, it’ll be quick. Isn’t that a good thing?”
“No… An extraordinary talent like me is too big for elementary school. A bigger world is desperately calling for me.”
“Geez, go practice the piano. The competition is coming up soon.”
“I don’t need to practice now. The target is obvious, so what for?”
Then I covered my mouth with my hand, feigning shock, and asked Mom again.
I looked at my mom with a surprised expression and asked her again.
“Oh my, no way!”
“What do you mean no way?”
“You don’t know the genius little girl Lee Do-hee, who has won the piano competition 11 times in a row?”
“Ugh, how brazen. I can’t believe whose daughter you are.”
“Hehe, having confidence is actually charming, Mom. I hope you’ll recognize my charm from now on.”
“Just keep your mouth shut.”
– Ding dong –
“The teacher is here, go open the door.”
“Yay~”
I went to the front door, opened it, and rushed to hug the teacher.
“Teacher, you’re here?”
“When is our Do-hee going to stop hugging? You’re still a baby at this age.”
“But…! Your maternal instinct awakens my infant instincts!”
Then I looked over at my mom’s chest.
“Mom has maternal instincts…”
“Come here.”
As usual, I ran under the bed to escape.
Hold on.
My head went in, but my body wouldn’t fit.
I ended up getting stuck under the bed with just my head poking out.
“Mom, let’s have a truce.”
But mom started pulling on my legs without saying a word.
“Ahh, Mom, wait! My head is stuck!”
“You need a bit of discipline.”
In the end, I was pulled out by my head and dragged into the living room to get scolded.
After the punishment ended,
Mom went to the teacher, who was waiting while holding Do-ah, and said,
“Haha, I’m sorry for showing you such a sight, teacher. Do-ah, come here, the teacher is tired.”
“This place is cozy.”
It seems Do-ah also realized how wonderful the teacher’s chest is. It looked like she had no intention of leaving it.
“No, really, Mother, I envy how close you are with Do-hee. I wish I had a daughter like her.”
“Even if it’s just empty words, I appreciate it. Do-hee is such a troublemaker, worse than the boys, sigh… If it weren’t for Do-ah, I would have thought all daughters were like this.”
“Haha, that’s better than being timid.”
“Right? Do-ah, come here now, you need to study with the teacher.”
“Okay.”
I went into the room with the teacher to start the lesson.
The only thing I regretted about quickly growing up was that I could no longer sit on the teacher’s lap and lean against her chest for lessons. I had gotten too big and heavy.
“Do-hee, have you chosen your concerto piece?”
“I’m going to do Chopin’s Etude No. 10.”
“You’ve even learned to select pieces on your own. I guess I don’t need to help you anymore.”
“Hey, how can I play the piano without you, teacher?”
“No, you can do well enough. Besides, I don’t think we can have lessons together anymore.”
“What? Why not?”
“Because the teacher decided to get married to her boyfriend…”
“Really…?”
“Yeah, do you think I would lie about this? I’m 29 now; it’s time to get married.”
Right, the teacher has her own life too.
“Teacher has her own life too.”
“By 29, you should be getting married…”
“But I’m really mad at the guy who’s taking my teacher away.”
“The only person I thought could be mine was the teacher.”
“Can we not continue classes?”
“Sigh, Do-hee, remember our promise? If we get married, I’ll quit. I get your feelings, but that’s not possible.”
“It seems like the teacher is really set on quitting after getting married.”
“I’m sorry, but when are you getting married?”
“In a month and a half, on April 7th.”
“But you’re still finishing the competition next week before the wedding.”
“Yeah, it feels like it’ll be the last competition with you.”
“…”
“Do-hee, don’t be too sad; it’s not like we’re never going to see each other again. We can hang out anytime.”
“Okay…”
“Oh, come here, my Do-hee, I’ll give you a hug.”
I hugged the teacher and said,
“Teacher.”
“Yes?”
“Can I meet the person you’re going to marry before you actually get married?”
“I really want to see what kind of guy is taking you away.”
“Sure, actually, the teacher said she wanted to meet you because I’ve talked about you a lot.”
“When are we meeting?”
“Is tomorrow okay?”
“Yes.”
“The teacher and her fiancé will be shopping for furniture in the morning, so I can meet you in the afternoon.”
After class, my mom and the teacher chatted.
“Oh my, you’re getting married? Congratulations!”
“Haha, thank you. So, I think this will be the last competition, and I’ll have to quit tutoring.”
“There’s nothing you can do about it. Do-hee will be really sad.”
“I already talked to Do-hee. That’s why I’m planning to hang out with her tomorrow, is that okay?”
“Of course.”
The next day,
I sat at the bus stop waiting for the teacher.
I said I would take the bus to the meeting place myself, but the teacher said she’d come get me in the car.
A little later, a black sedan pulled up in front of me, and I got in.
“Hello.”
“Oh my, our Do-hee is dressed beautifully today!”
“Of course, it’s a date with the teacher.”
“Haha, it’s not a date. The teacher has a fiancé too!”
“…Right. So where is your fiancé? Isn’t he supposed to be with you?”
“He said he’d wait at the café after deciding on the furniture.”
“Oh.”
“So, what kind of café do you like?”
“I’m not familiar with cafés, so I like them all.”
“The place we’re going to is super famous.”
Before I knew it, we arrived at the café while chatting with the teacher.
As we entered holding hands, I spotted a tall, handsome guy.
“Sweetheart~”
Ugh…
Sweetheart, huh…
Hearing the teacher call someone ‘sweetheart’…
“Oh, you’re here? So you must be Do-hee! You’re even prettier than I heard!”
I tried to say something nice, but I just couldn’t muster any good feelings.
“Yes.”
“Hahaha… Shall we order drinks first? What do you like?”
” Anything goes. ”
The teacher talks to the thief with my prickly response.
” Do-hee likes iced chocolate. ”
” Is that so? Should I order a cake too? ”
” Yes. ”
While the thief went to place the order, I sat down, pondering what question to ask.
” Do-hee, why are you so prickly today? ”
I guess I showed it too much.
” I’m sorry. ”
” No, I know it’s because you like the teacher. But can you hold back just a little? ”
” Yes. ”
The thief comes back with the drinks.
He came back quickly.
The thief, pretending to be gentle, places the cake and iced chocolate in front of me.
” Here you go. ”
I wonder if the teacher fell for that act.
I’m worried.
” Yes, thank you. ”
After the thief sits down, I start the interrogation.
” So Do-hee has won first place in piano competitions eleven times in a row, right? ”
” Uncle. ”
” Huh…? Me? ”
” Yes, Uncle. ”
” Hahaha, am I really an uncle already? It’s true if there’s an 18-year age gap. ”
Is his personality also charming?
I can’t accept that.
It’s 100% an act.
” What do you like about our teacher? Of course, there are countless things. ”
” Well, she’s kind and considerate to everyone? ”
I grabbed the teacher’s chest and shouted.
” Don’t lie! I know it’s about this chest! ”
The teacher’s face turned red in embarrassment.
” Do-hee, what are you doing outside! ”
” I know… I’m also charmed by the chest. If you had just said ‘chest’ confidently, I would have understood you were being honest, you hypocrite. ”
The thief also seems flustered and doesn’t know what to do.
” No, of course, there are those attributes of Yeon-ji too. ”
” I knew it. You’re just looking at the appearance, hypocrite. ”
” N-no… ”
” Lee Do-hee! What kind of words are you saying to an adult? The teacher didn’t invite you to play like this. ”
Looks like I went off on a tangent without realizing it.
Okay. Relax…
” Huh. I guess I was very rude? I’m sorry, Uncle. ”
” It’s okay, Do-hee. I can really feel how much you like our Yeon-ji. ”
It’s definitely an act.
No one could smile after being treated this rudely.
” So, Uncle, what do you do? ”
” Job? For now, I’m working as a doctor at a university hospital. ”
Damn.
I lost.
He’s got it all: looks, personality, and abilities.
” Please take good care of our teacher… ”
Suddenly lowering my stance, the uncle looks flustered too.
” Uh… ”
As a man against a man, I was defeated.
” Hah… ”
Feeling drained, I lay back into the plush café chair and closed my eyes.
‘ Today, I really hate being born a girl. ‘
” Student, hello. ”
As I opened my eyes to a voice calling me, a stranger uncle was staring at me.
” Me? ”
‘ What is it, is he a lolicon? ‘
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