Siyeon is at that age where it’s hard to tell if she’s a kid or not.
Deep in thought about that, on the way back home from the park.
Right there on the path, overlapping the apartment complex, was a playground.
The cheerful laughter of children and their fast-paced running etched themselves into my eyes and ears.
Nearby that playground, a familiar family could be recognized from afar.
“Isn’t that Ji-eun’s family?”
My steps, which were comfortably heading home, hesitated as I called out to Siyeon, unable to resist asking.
Among us, there’s only one person we commonly refer to as ‘older sister.’
I half-suspected it was Ji-eun’s family, but I couldn’t trust my own eyes, so I pulled Siyeon into the mix.
Siyeon’s steps, which had been ahead, also paused as she turned her gaze toward the playground.
“Where?”
But quickly her gaze wandered, unable to pinpoint the shapes.
“Over there, by the slide.”
“Whoa, it really is!”
With the added context, Siyeon raised her voice, confirming that the familiar sight wasn’t just a figment of imagination.
Once she recognized them, she dashed ahead to the playground, looking pleased.
Her behavior reminded me of a Golden Retriever that greets anyone it sees.
Siyeon, who had gone ahead, kicked off a pleasant conversation with Ji-eun.
Seeing that a conversation between the girls who hadn’t met in a while was unlikely to wrap up quickly, I strolled over leisurely into the playground.
“Did you come out alone? Is Mari at home?”
“No, she’s over there…”
With each step closer, the sounds of their conversation grew clearer.
Seeing Siyeon out and about alone was rare, prompting Ji-eun to look for me immediately.
With her neck tucked in like a turtle, she waddled into the playground and quickly replied.
“I’m here.”
“Juwon, hello!”
Before Ji-eun could even recognize me, Juwon came running over, greeted with a hug, while pressed down in his furry jumper with a not-yet-perfect pronunciation.
A 4-year-old who can walk around well without being held back.
I guessed he’d graduated from squeaky shoes, as there wasn’t any noise with each step.
“Hey, Juwon!”
As I welcomed Juwon with a hug and lifted him up, I felt the heavy weight settle on my waist and shoulders.
Juwon was gaining some serious weight; soon enough, I wouldn’t be able to lift him like this anymore.
“Isn’t this heavy?”
“Not yet… It’s still manageable.”
Seeing me habitually lifting him, Ji-eun swiftly approached to take him from my arms.
Honestly, I was debating whether to set him down since it felt like he was more than I had bargained for.
It seemed Ji-eun caught on to the fact that I was underestimating Juwon’s weight as she added a few remarks.
“He’s not the little Juwon he used to be; he’s like a big one now!”
With Juwon in her arms, she swayed him up and down like soothing a baby.
“He’s a big kid!”
“Waaaaah, that’s not true!”
Juwon didn’t like being called a pig, bursting into anger.
Yet, Ji-eun seemed used to this attitude, patting Juwon’s bottom while still treating him like a baby.
Afterward, Ji-eun let Juwon loose in the playground, while we sat down on a nearby bench, catching snowflakes falling around us.
It had been a while since we’d met like this, so we decided to relax, enjoying a chat.
Of course, we didn’t gather specifically to share updates, but rather it naturally turned into a light conversation sparked by Ji-eun’s questions.
Well, for adults, there’s always one topic they’ll bring up for students: school.
“Starting this year, you guys are taking midterms and finals, right?”
“Yeah, we’ll have midterm and final exams now…”
“Wow, Siyeon and Mari are already in second year middle school?”
Count Dae-han, who had been quietly listening, suddenly sat up and muttered under his breath, a tone reminiscent of astonishment.
By the way, while Juwon and Ji-eun were out, why was Dae-han dressed in such thick padding at the playground?
Curious about the reason, I tossed a question over.
“So, what’s up with you all at the playground?”
With a glance at Dae-han sitting one chair over, I directed my question.
But for some reason, the response came from Ji-eun.
“Oh, because Juwon wanted to go out playing in the snow, so we got dragged outside.”
“Ah, I see.”
Dae-han nodded repeatedly with a pouty face, as if fully agreeing with Ji-eun’s statement.
Behind that pouting expression loomed a desire to escape back inside.
He seemed like he’d much prefer lounging on the couch watching TV in a cozy room.
Yeah, I could relate to that.
As school talk continued, Juwon caught my attention.
“Juwon’s going to kindergarten next year, right?”
“Yeah, I’m not sure where to send him… Can’t not send him too.”
As Siyeon and I were readying to be free from obligatory education, Juwon would be stepping into that shadow.
It wouldn’t be long before we’d see that innocent, joyful smile fade away.
Glancing at Juwon, Ji-eun threw another question.
“Where are you coming back from?”
Maybe it was because my previous question had asked why she was at the playground?
Ji-eun seemed to equally express curiosity about our presence.
“I’m just out for a short run at the park, since the holidays are coming up…”
The trailing thoughts about wanting to get slim beforehand hung in the air.
Though Ji-eun seemed to pick up on the implication.
“Oh, so you’re trying to prepare ahead of time?”
Without needing explicit confirmation, she deftly hit the nail on the head.
Nodding slightly and closing my eyes, I acted out a vague agreement instead of replying.
“Are you guys going down to your hometown for the holidays?”
In the shared unspoken understanding between a Magical Girl and a former Magical Girl, the mere mention of the holiday ‘Seollal’ made Dae-han ask casually.
“Ah… Yes, something like that.”
Not a complete affirmation, just a vague one fell from my lips.
Sure, we were going somewhere, but it wasn’t really our hometown.
We don’t hide the fact that we were orphans, yet we don’t flaunt it either, leading to a general feeling among the people around us.
There’s no need to reveal all that, so we just skirt around it.
As we continued talking, the snowflakes began to pile up white around us.
“This is going to pile up quite a bit.”
The conversation shifted as the heavily falling white flakes became more noticeable.
“Juwon’s going to have a blast.”
“With this much, we could make a big snowman.”
For some reason, kids get excited the moment it snows.
Was Juwon the same? Ji-eun smiled saying he would have fun, and Dae-han said with this much snow, we could easily make a snowman.
It seemed like Ji-eun remembered something and began flailing her fists like she was holding a giant claw, saying something.
“What’s that thing we use to make shapes? The strange claw-like thing.”
The only item that came to mind for such a hand motion was one thing.
“You mean the snow duck claw?”
“Ah, yeah, the snow duck claw! They say it’s a big deal!”
Ji-eun clapped her hands, agreeing it was right.
What kind of excitement do they have every year? The snow duck claw seems to be entirely sold out every season.
I casually commented, like I’d seen a similar sensation in the news years ago.
Do they really have that little to write about?
“When we were in elementary school, it was a big deal back then too.”
“Right… It’s cute and nice, but every time you go to the store, it’s sold out.”
Ji-eun seemed to have worked hard to search for the snow duck claw, saying it was sold out whenever she went to the shop.
Since Siyeon wouldn’t use it anyway, it had become a burdensome object taking up space on the balcony.
It was too precious to throw away, but too bothersome to use, reflecting our current predicament.
“We have all sorts at my place; do you want some?”
“Oh really? That would be great for me and Juwon!”
“Yeah.”
In that moment of exchanging lively suggestions with Ji-eun, a slightly perplexed voice sounded from beside us.
Glancing over, I noticed Siyeon’s expression had stiffened a bit.
“Are you really going to give that to us?”
As she looked over, her expression seemed like she was about to say, ‘is that okay?’
The moment I glanced over and noticed her face, I felt an instant realization that I had messed up something.
Since Juwon was part of this too, I thought surely she would readily agree and go along with it, so her reaction caught me off guard.
“Uh… Didn’t you say you wouldn’t use it?”
“Yeah, I did, but….”
She faltered in a confused voice, bringing up our earlier conversation about it on the way back from the park.
Even as she said that, her words trailed off with a hint of regret.
A thought crossed my mind.
Could it be that despite saying she didn’t want it, she also wanted to try making one or two?
After a brief exhale, I presented a second compromise to Siyeon.
“Then let’s just give them one or two, okay?”
“Ah, okay!”
Siyeon happily accepted the second compromise.
The snow duck army thus passed on to Juwon, bridging generations.
And indeed, Siyeon still seems like she’s a little kid after all.
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.