Brother, Am I Cute? [EN]: Chapter 154

Hey, aren’t I cute, hyung? [A Korean honorific used by younger males to address older males, often brothers or close friends.]

A yellow bee flies over and lands on a flower.

Under their unspoken agreement, the flower offers nectar, and the bee helps it bear fruit.

The swaying petals remain unharmed, and the departing bee promises a future meeting.

To do good business again.

The petals sway in the wind, missing the departing bee.

The endless wait is only met after a year has passed.

The season when the market of flowers and bees opens every year.

That season gently reaches the daycare center as well.

“Hey, Siha.”

Jongsu shakes a shopping bag.

The fact that it wasn’t a black plastic bag meant that his mother’s touch was involved.

Siha tilted his head at the call.

“Huh?”

“What do you mean, ‘Huh?’ Here! I brought snacks as promised. I lost this time. It’s 1-1.”

Jongsu arbitrarily set the announcement time as the standard.

Because it was the great first day he beat Siha.

“Ah, thank you.”

“Choose from these snacks. I didn’t know what you’d like, so I brought several.”

“Siha. This. Thank you~”

Siha chose [Maatdongsan]. [Likely a brand name of a Korean snack.]

He loved the snack that his dad liked.

The pink light lingering on his fingertips weakened slightly.

As if sulking.

But Siha didn’t notice that signal.

“Then Seungjun, you choose too. One.”

“Awesome! I won too! Oh! Hmm? No, I’m okay!”

“Why?”

“Ah. Because there’s nothing I like.”

Seungjun grinned.

Jongsu trembled as he watched him.

He would definitely win next time.

He would never lose.

It was only a little upsetting when Siha won, but he couldn’t tolerate losing to Seungjun at all.

“Hana, Hana, this! Pepero!” [A popular Korean chocolate-covered pretzel stick.]

Fortunately, there was Pepero, which Hana liked.

Even after giving everything away, there were still snacks left in the shopping bag.

These were for Jongsu to share with his friends.

“Here, guys. Take this. Jaehwi, choose one too.”

“Okay. Thanks.”

The teacher smiled contentedly as she watched them sharing snacks amicably.

She moved to the director’s side and pulled on her arm.

The director looked at her with a puzzled expression.

“Director, now is our chance.”

“For what?”

“While they’re sharing snacks like this! To bring up the annual event!”

“Ah! That?”

“Yes! The kids will love it too, right?”

“Most of them liked it. Actually, I was going to write it on the notice to send home today. Tell the kids nicely.”

“Don’t worry!”

Teacher Yoo Dahee winked.

The director turned her eyes away as if she had seen something she shouldn’t have.

“Aww, why are you like this!”

“Go away! Shoo. Shoo.”

She waved her hand as if chasing away a fly.

Teacher Yoo Dahee didn’t care and folded her arms.

“Why me?!”

“You have to help too, Director. Do you think I came next to you for no reason?”

“Ugh. Fine. Do it.”

She approached the children who were cautiously looking at the teacher, wondering whether to eat the snacks or not.

Siha had already asked Seungjun to open it for him, and he had two snacks in his hands.

“Okay! Everyone, freeze! You can’t eat the snacks already!”

“I didn’t eat it!”

“Yes, Jongsu didn’t eat it. Siha, put down the snacks, okay?”

“Ah, eebae?” [Baby talk for ‘eat’.]

“No. You can’t put it in your mouth.”

“No. Two. This. This. End!”

Roughly expressing that he would only eat two.

When Siha gently made a V shape with [Maatdongsan], the teacher almost let it slide.

Because it was too cute.

“No. Let’s eat later.”

“Ah.”

Siha put the snacks back in the bag, looking disappointed.

Only then did the children seem to calm down and look at the teacher.

“Ahem. Everyone, Jongsu shared snacks, right?”

“Yes!”

“But do you know how much the snacks cost?”

“Grandpa!”

“Huh?”

Siha nodded as well.

“Ah! Grandpa. Grandpa!”

Everyone seemed to understand and shouted ‘Grandpa’.

A sudden ‘Grandpa’ situation.

The teacher tilted her head, wondering what was going on, and then remembered that there was a portrait of Toegye Yi Hwang [A prominent Korean Confucian scholar of the Joseon Dynasty] on the thousand-won bill.

‘Guys, it’s a big problem if you say you’re buying snacks with Grandpa…’

“Everyone, you have to say ‘thousand won’. You’re not exchanging Grandpa for snacks.”

“No. Give Grandpa.”

“Oh. There is a grandpa drawn on it. That’s true, but…”

The teacher looked at the director.

The director was also at a loss as to how to explain this.

“Ahem. There’s a very, very great person drawn on the thousand won. So, you shouldn’t say you’re giving Grandpa. You should say you’re giving money. Got it?”

“Yes!”

She somehow got through it and started the full explanation.

“Okay! Then the director and teacher will show you how to earn a thousand won.”

The teacher took out her phone and pretended to make it diligently.

“Beep! Clunk. Clunk. Wow. It’s all made. Now, sell this phone.”

The teacher handed the phone to the director.

“Come on, cheap, cheap! Oh, you handsome young man over there. Take a look at this. Young people these days love it. Oh, oh! You pretty lady over there! It’s a popular model these days.”

She wouldn’t actually do that when selling a phone, but she transformed into a character in the market to help the children understand.

The teacher came as the buyer this time.

She tucked her hair behind her ears and said,

“How much is this?”

“This? It’s a thousand won.”

“Really? Wow! It’s really cheap.”

“Right? It’s a new model, but a thousand won is practically free.”

“I guess so. But don’t you need to have a really expensive plan to get a lot of subsidy? That’s the only way it would be a thousand won, right…?”

The director frowned and hit the teacher’s arm.

Slap.

“Ouch.”

The director’s quiet voice.

“How would the kids know that? Do it right, okay?”

“I thought the kids should know about the realistic parts…”

“Do it right. Okay?”

“Okay.”

The teacher safely bought the phone.

Unexpectedly, the children’s eyes were sparkling as if they were watching a skit.

“Ahem. So, our moms and dads earn money through this incredibly complicated process. Do you understand?”

“Yes!”

“Then shall we try to earn money too?”

The children tilted their heads at the teacher’s words.

“There might be unnecessary things or toys at home. We’re going to bring those things and sell them.”

The children thought hard about whether they had such things.

They couldn’t think of anything right now, but there would be toys that they no longer played with.

Or clothes.

“Go home and talk to your mom, dad, and older brother. They’ll know very well. It’s only held here at Kangin University once a year, so let’s all have fun earning money!”

The children chattered excitedly as if it would be fun.

Seungjun smiled and said to Siha,

“Siha, I have a deflated ball at home. I’m going to sell that.”

“Ah.”

The teacher smiled bitterly when she heard that.

‘Seungjun, that’s just garbage to be thrown away.’

“Siha? What are you going to bring?”

“Huh?”

Siha wondered if he had any unnecessary things, but he couldn’t think of anything.

Because everything was necessary for him.

Hana, who was next to him, suddenly shouted,

“Siha, bring Si-hyuk oppa! [Older brother, used by females] I’ll buy him!”

Siha was surprised and shouted loudly!

“No!!”

“Tch! I wish Si-hyuk oppa would live in our house!”

“No! No! Hyung. Siha. Together!”

The teacher told Hana that she shouldn’t do that.

Si-hyuk oppa was not an item to be sold.

From Grandpa to Si-hyuk today.

It felt like things that shouldn’t be sold were being sold.

The teacher rubbed her eyes.

What is it? Why am I so tired today?

***

After bringing Siha home, I tied up the garbage bag tightly.

The habit of throwing away garbage bags as soon as they were full had been with me since I lived with my father.

You have to throw away unnecessary things from time to time so that you don’t end up cleaning up all at once later.

In fact, it might be easier to set a day and clean up all at once.

But if you pile up like that, you tend to get lazy.

And it takes quite a bit of time.

It was less annoying to throw it away from time to time.

“Hyung~”

“Yeah? Just a moment. I’ll throw away the trash.”

“Siha too~”

“Siha, stay home.”

“No. Siha. Together!”

“Okay.”

Who would refuse what he said?

I had Siha carry a small box.

Because today was the day to throw away the boxes.

He seemed happy that he was given a job, and he was tapping in front of the door with the box.

The box gently went inside and came out.

“Haha. There’s no need to go so fast.”

“Hyung! Hurry!”

“I’m going. Going!”

Siha put on his exclusive slippers.

He knew that these were comfortable when going in front of the house like this.

I put on my slippers and opened the door.

Now, it seemed like a chilly wind was blowing outside.

The daily temperature range was getting bigger, and I could feel the season coming.

‘Still cool, though.’

So we threw away the trash together and came back home.

“Siha, you have to wash your hands.”

“Siha. Ara.” [Understood]

Siha went into the bathroom and washed his hands.

He was washing in a place that was only as tall as him, and his feet were getting all wet.

‘If he does that, won’t he wash his feet too?’

Well, if you go outside, washing your hands and feet is basic!

Siha already knew that.

Although he didn’t put soap on his feet.

Still, it’s good to sprinkle water!

That alone will remove 70% of the germs.

“Siha, let’s put soap on your feet too.”

“Huh? Hyung. Jaba!” [Hold me!]

“Okay. I’ll hold you.”

Siha lifted his leg and soaped each foot.

Rub, rub.

Once on the sole, once on the instep, once on the toes.

Not putting it on twice is manly.

That’s not it.

“Siha, let’s lather it carefully.”

“Ah.”

In the end, I ended up washing Siha’s feet while washing my hands.

Now, I turned on the water, and Siha rinsed his hands and feet.

When I held out a towel, he dipped his hands in it and came out, wiping only the soles of his feet on the doormat.

Then he ran to his room.

“Siha, you haven’t wiped everything off yet!”

“No. Siha. Hasseo!” [Done!]

“Well, he did, but…”

I was embarrassed, but I had no choice but to come out.

When I roughly wiped his instep, Siha handed me the notice.

“Hyung. Siha. Work.”

“Huh? You’re working?”

“Ah. Para.” [See]

“Para? Let’s see.”

When I opened the notice, the daycare center’s education schedule was out.

A flea market at Kangin University.

It was a weekend event held once a year, and surprisingly, many people came.

It was about setting up stalls by the lake and selling things.

Of course, the daycare center also participated in this event.

“Oh… I don’t have anything I don’t need?”

I threw away most of the things when I moved, and I also threw away clothes that didn’t fit Siha when I came to this house.

The only old items were my father’s laptop and external hard drive.

My stepmother’s LCD tablet and tablet PC.

I was using all of these, so of course I couldn’t sell them.

And I didn’t want to sell things that held memories.

“Um. Siha, we don’t have anything to sell? But don’t worry. If we don’t have anything to sell, Hyung will make it!”

“Huh? Moya?” [What?]

“What are we going to sell?”

“Ah.”

“Um.”

Let’s think. What would be good to sell?

There must be something suitable.

I don’t want to betray Siha’s expectant eyes.

The longer the answer is delayed, the more disappointment will build up, right?

As a hero-like hyung, I can’t allow that.

That’s when it happened.

The work written on the notice suddenly came to mind.

“Siha, you learned something at daycare today, right? Making and selling things.”

“Ah.”

“Then shall we make and sell Siha’s pop-up book?”

“Huh? Ah!”

“Right. That would be really fun, right? Let’s leave one for Siha to have and make more to sell.”

“Seoi? Neoi? Siha. Para.” [Book? You? Siha see.]

“Yes, that’s right. Siha has almost finished drawing now, right? Hyung has made all the stories.”

“No. Jogoom!” [A little!]

“Ah. A little left? There’s a lot of time left, so draw slowly. Until then, Hyung will find a place to make the book.”

“Ah!”

I thought it was a really good idea.

I have to run around hard to sell Siha’s pop-up book.

My heart is pounding at the thought of selling something together.