Brother, Am I Cute? [EN]: Chapter 12

Hyung, Am I Cute? – Episode 12

A peaceful morning.

I woke up with Siha still sprawled on my stomach.

More effective than any alarm clock, really.

Because if I don’t open my eyes, I feel like I’m going to suffocate.

I carefully shifted him off and got up.

Snooze.

Siha remained fast asleep.

‘I’m tired.’

Last night…

I didn’t get enough sleep because I was working hard on the translation.

But when you’re raising a kid, being diligent is just part of the deal.

I needed to wash up and prepare breakfast before Siha woke up completely.

‘Should I make fried eggs today?’

I put oil in the frying pan and cracked the eggs.

Sizzle.

The sound of them cooking was audible, but my mind was still foggy.

Then I remembered.

‘Come to think of it, I need to find Siha’s health checkup results…….’

Looking into it, the schedule for health checkups was clearly outlined.

My stepmother must have known he couldn’t speak well, so there must be a printed result sheet somewhere.

‘Ah. Could it be there?’

Thinking about it, one place came to mind.

The box where the tablet is kept.

I remember putting Siha’s childcare diary and various documents there.

I’d put my mother’s belongings in there as they were, so I figured I could find it there.

I quickly made two fried eggs and ate some rice.

It was almost time for Siha to wake up.

I had to inhale the rice aggressively and get ready to take care of him.

“Hyung.”

“Oh. You’re awake?”

“Aah.”

Siha came out of the room, rubbing his sleepy eyes.

He ran to me and rubbed his face against my leg.

I picked up Siha and hugged him.

It felt good to feel his warm body temperature.

“Siha, you have to eat.”

“Aah.”

I sat Siha in his special high chair.

It was attached to the table, making it easy to put down the food.

“Here. Ah.”

He’s often dazed in the morning, so I have to feed him like this.

I still had about half of my rice left, but Siha’s eating came first.

Munch munch.

Daze…….

Siha’s jaw stopped moving.

I found it cute.

When I touched his soft cheek, Siha seemed to come to his senses and started chewing again.

“Is it delicious?”

“Aah.”

“You’ll probably eat egg rice often even when you grow up? Eggs are always a safe bet.”

“Aah.”

After feeding him a few times, Siha seemed to come to his senses and asked for a spoon.

“Hyung.”

“Huh? You want to eat by yourself?”

“Aah.”

He grabbed the spoon and started scooping rice.

“Hyung.”

“Huh?”

Siha held out the rice to me.

I was touched by the sight.

“Are you taking care of Hyung’s meal?”

“Aah.”

“Thank you so much.”

“Aah.”

Siha is truly an angel.

There’s no way such a child could exist in the world.

The breakfast table felt so full of happiness.

Siha and I ate rice, holding our spoons together.

After finishing the meal, I took down the box with the tablet.

I was sure the file would be here.

“Found it.”

I was lucky that my stepmother had a neat personality.

When I looked at the health checkup results, I found out that he had been tested quite recently.

First of all, it said that everything was good.

There was a slightly concerning point in the doctor’s opinion.

[Language development is slow, so we need to keep an eye on it.]

I fell into 고민 [gomin – a Korean word for “worry” or “concern”].

If the doctor gave this opinion, wouldn’t they say the same thing even if I went again?

‘Now that he’s starting to talk, let’s watch him a little more.’

I was sure he would say that.

I’m thinking the same thing right now.

I heard somewhere that it’s good to wait and see with children.

So I keep talking to him and making him aware of the names of various objects.

‘Hmm.’

I had a lot of 고민 [gomin – worries].

Who should I consult about this?

‘Ah!’

I thought of someone to consult with.

It’s the head teacher of Gangin Kindergarten.

She would give me a good answer.

I picked up my phone and made a call.

“Hyung.”

“Yeah. Just a moment. Let’s have our Siha play with this.”

When I gave Siha a tissue box, he took it and went to the penguin bag.

Today is the start of his ‘work’ [referring to kindergarten].

「Hello.」

“Ah, hello. This is Siha’s older brother, Si혁.”

「Ah. Si혁, Mr. Si혁. Yes. Why aren’t you bringing the documents?」

“Haha. I’ve been doing this and that. I’ll bring it to you soon.”

「If you’re busy, you can send it by fax.」

“No. I thought it would be good to stop by one more time to familiarize Siha with the place. The opening isn’t far away now.”

「That’s right. It’s a fresh start.」

“But. Oh, no. I’ll see you in person today and tell you. Are you at work on a weekday?”

「Yes. I have to prepare little by little.」

“Then. I’ll see you at the kindergarten.”

「Okay~」

After hanging up the phone, I had a question.

But why was the head teacher always at the kindergarten?

Maybe there was some 업무 [eommu – business/work] processing I didn’t know about.

***

2 p.m. Gangin Kindergarten.

So many things have happened in the meantime that it feels like it’s been a long time.

“Siha, let’s play here for a while today.”

“Aah.”

Nod nod.

Siha went inside.

But there were other shoes in the shoe rack besides the head teacher’s.

I also saw baby shoes.

‘Who came besides me?’

I took off Siha’s shoes and put on slippers.

Siha was already so excited to play here that he ran inside.

Stop.

But Siha stopped without going in.

“Huh?”

I wondered what was going on and looked into the room.

“Ah, hello.”

“Hi.”

There was a mother and a boy smiling awkwardly.

“Hyung.”

“Huh? Ah, right. I guess he’s going to be Siha’s friend?”

“Aah?”

“Friend. Friend. A friend who plays together, eats together, and sleeps together.”

“Hyung.”

Siha pointed at me with his finger.

Right. I play with him, eat with him, and sleep with him.

The explanation is too difficult.

Let’s just let him learn naturally.

“Hello. My name is Lee Si혁. This is Lee Siha.”

“Oh my. Siha’s father. You’re so young.”

“Ah. I’m not his dad, I’m his older brother.”

“Oh my, oh my. Is he a late child? The age difference must be 15 years. Do you go to high school?”

“Ahaha. No. I’m a college student.”

“Ah, you look so young. I’m not good at distinguishing like this. This is my troublemaker son, Oh Seung준. You can call me Seung준’s mom. Hoho.”

“Ah. Yes. Seung준’s mother.”

“Mom! I want to play with him!”

Seung준 pointed at Siha.

I looked at Siha.

He was stuck to my leg and didn’t think about letting go.

“Hyung.”

“Siha. Seung준 wants to play with you?”

“Aah.”

Shake shake.

He must still be awkward.

Is he shy?

Seung준’s mom said.

“My son said he was bored, so I came to the kindergarten. He said he wanted to meet friends here. But it’s not the kindergarten opening yet.”

“That’s right.”

“Other moms said they couldn’t meet today because they had work. I had no choice but to come to see the head teacher as well.”

“Ah. Yes.”

“Seung준. Siha must be shy.”

“It’s okay. I can do it.”

“Really?”

What can he do?

I was wondering, but Seung준 came to Siha.

“Here. Let’s play! It’s my favorite soccer ball.”

“Ah?”

“Like this! I’m kicking it.”

Thud.

The soccer ball rolls around.

Siha also became interested and looked at the ball.

He took his hand off my leg.

At that time, Seung준 quickly grabbed Siha’s hand.

“Let’s go. I’ll teach you soccer.”

“Aah.”

Siha seemed to feel relieved and the two ran around.

But is it okay to kick a ball and play in this room?

Of course, they won’t kick it very hard, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to kick it here.

“Oh Seung준! You have to kick the ball outside.”

“Okay. Let’s go out. Siha.”

“Aah.”

“But can you only say aah?”

“Aah.”

Seung준 is about to take Siha outside.

“Uh……”

“The kids are so innocent, right? I think you came here to see the head teacher, but I’ll take care of them.”

“Ah, thank you. I’ll leave it to you.”

“Hyung!”

I put on his shoes at the call.

“Siha. Hyung. I’ll be back soon after seeing the head teacher, so play.”

“Aah.”

“I’ll be back soon. Don’t follow strangers even if they give you candy.”

“Aah.”

When I turned around, Seung준’s mom was giving a bitter smile.

“I’m watching him well.”

“Haha. That’s right.”

I smiled awkwardly, turned my back on Siha, and headed to the head teacher’s office.

“Head teacher.”

“Yes. Come on in.”

“It’s been a while.”

“How’s Siha?”

“He’s already playing with his friend.”

“Ah. Seung준?”

“Yes.”

“That’s good. The child won’t cry when we break up later. But I don’t think he’ll cry even if it’s not.”

“I think so too.”

Siha sometimes shows a more 상남자 [sangnamja – a very masculine or macho man] style than I thought.

“Ah, that’s right. Here are the documents.”

“Yes. Let’s see.”

As expected, the first thing she looked at was the health checkup results.

In particular, she carefully checked the health condition and any possible allergies.

Our Siha is healthy, so there’s nothing like that.

“Hmm.”

“Actually, this is what Siha received before he started talking. Now he’s good at saying Hyung. So I don’t know whether I should just watch him or go to the hospital again.”

The head teacher 고민 [gomin – worried] and made a suggestion.

“Actually, Siha is very difficult even for me to understand fully. He started talking relatively late. The doctor’s opinion seems to be similar. Then, would you like to get him checked by my acquaintance?”

“Acquaintance?”

“Yes. That person is a doctor. To be honest, he shows off a lot, but he’s just as skilled. Should I say he’s a researcher type? That’s why he can’t date. Hmm. Forget the 뒷말 [dwitmal – gossip/what I just said].”

“Ah, yes…….”

I was quite curious about who it was, even though I didn’t know who it was.

“Her name is Song 예나 [Song Yena]. You can save it as Dr. Song.”

“Ah, Song 예나 선생님 [Song Yena-sensei – Ms. Song Yena]…….”

“I’ll contact you in advance, so you can set a date with Siha.”

“Thank you so much for taking care of me like this.”

“You’re welcome. She works at 강인 [Gangin] University Hospital. What.”

“Ah ha. So…….”

“I found out while doing this job, but she’s famous. Is she one of the three beauties of the university hospital?”

“She must be very pretty.”

“What’s the point of being pretty? She’s crazy about research.”

“Usually, doesn’t a talented or warm senior doctor appear and fall in love with her?”

“Si혁, Mr. Si혁. You’ve watched too many dramas.”

“Ah, is that so? Haha.”

Can’t I sometimes dream of dramas?

I talked to the head teacher a little more and came outside.

Siha was very friendly with Seung준 and was kicking the ball hard, moving his legs.

Thud. Roll roll.

When Siha kicked it, Seung준 grabbed the rolling ball with his hand.

탓 [tat – sound of a light touch].

“I’m going too!”

“Aah.”

Thud. Roll roll.

Seung준’s mom was watching the 모습 [moseup – sight/scene] of them passing the ball to each other with a happy smile.

I couldn’t help but smile at the scene.

The size of the soccer ball was too big for Siha and Seung준 to kick properly.

That 모습 [moseup – sight] was funny.

“Siha, this is a Ueppeu [Ueppeu – slang for “pretty”] shot.”

Thud. Roll roll.

Unlike the curve of a UFO bending, it went exactly diagonally.

“Aah!”

Siha moved to the side as if surprised and grabbed the ball.

“Aah. Hyung.”

응 [eung – a casual way of saying “huh” or “yes”]. Did he see me?

“Ahaha. Siha’s Hyung shot doesn’t work on me!”

Ah…. Did you name the shot after me?

“Hyung!”

Siha loosened his body and took a step back from the ball.

‘Oh! Where did he see that and learn it?’

I was gripped by tension as if watching a 승부차기 [seungbucha-gi – penalty shootout].

What is this? My hands were clenched tightly.

‘Siha. Fighting [a Korean expression of encouragement]!’

Siha’s eyes narrowed by 1mm.

Of course, it doesn’t look much different to other people, but I knew that Siha was exerting a high level of concentration.

Siha ran, moving his short legs.

Thud. Floating.

The ball was lifted and hit Siha’s forehead.

I shouted as I watched the 모습 [moseup – scene].

“Header shot!!!”

I ran to Siha, hugged him, and stroked his head.

“Good job. To use that difficult technique.”

Siha didn’t fail.

He did very well.

I was 신경 쓰였지만 [shingyeong sseuyeotjiman – concerned/worried] about the gaze of the two people and one child behind me, but I decided to ignore it.

“Future striker.”

Originally, praise should be shameless.