Brother, Am I Cute? [EN]: Chapter 302

“Hyung, aren’t I cute?” Episode 302 (302/500)

A boy, who looked to be around middle or high school age, glared at a man.

“Why do I have to inherit this store! I have things I want to do!”

“You little punk. How can anyone live doing only what they want!”

“Then why did you send me to school! I’m just going to be making noodles anyway.”

“I sent you so you wouldn’t be looked down on. I was thinking of you. And what’s wrong with making noodles! Your father raised you all on this.”

The boy glared at his father once, then opened the door and ran out.

Without looking ahead, he bumped into a man’s shoulder.

“Aish!”

“Hey, you! You should at least apologize if you bump into someone! Tsk, tsk. Sorry about that. The kid’s still young.”

The man nodded slightly and entered the store, sitting down on a chair.

It was a common father-son situation, so he didn’t mind.

“It seems you’re even hiding your face from your son.”

The store owner’s face stiffened, then relaxed.

“No need to know. This is a matter for adults. Children just need to dream of a hopeful future, don’t they?”

“That’s true.”

“I’ll make you a refreshing bowl of noodles.”

“Still, it would be good to know.”

“I want it to end with my generation.”

The owner brought the noodles and placed a thick white envelope instead of side dishes.

The man naturally put it in his pocket.

“Actually, he’s a proud father.”

“We have no faces. You too, don’t you?”

“My face is the nation.”

“Same here. But I hope my child’s face is a nation blooming with forsythia-like smiles.”

“That sounds good. I’m always grateful.”

He quickly finished a bowl of noodles and got up from his seat.

Opening the door slightly, he said,

“Even if I have no face, I will remember you.”

“That’s an honor.”

He went outside and recited inwardly.

[Faceless birds are everywhere, but it’s hard to make a smile bloom.]

[Will spring ever come?]

[My steps to collect independence funds are so heavy.]

[It feels like I’m just walking aimlessly.]

The scene changes.

Hangeul [Korean alphabet] signs and Korean faces passed by endlessly on the street.

Suddenly, the era had changed.

But that was only for a moment.

Coming back to his senses, the man blinked.

“Was I seeing things?”

But he shook his head, denying the thought.

“The air is stuffy, but it wasn’t an illusion.”

His eyes shone brightly.

He had a look as if he had awakened from a dream.

From there, the scene changed, and the dialogue of the train Si-hyuk had composed was exchanged.

“To be so naive.”

“What?”

“That’s why you try to burn so brightly. I’ll just quietly smolder.”

“Looks like I didn’t need to protect you. You seem so confident.”

“Let’s go our separate ways. We’re on different paths anyway.”

“The final destination will be the same.”

“It’s different….”

The screen changes again at the part where the woman is about to say where she hid the information, and a theater poster appears.

Two people as black as shadows.

The man is connected to a flamboyantly burning flame, and the woman is connected to a quietly smoldering flame.

Reservation times and performance times appear in large subtitles, and the video ends.

-Wow, what is that? Did he see the future?

-I’m curious to see how he’ll act after seeing that.

-But where did the woman hide the information? He cuts it off, making me curious ㄷㄷㄷ [onomatopoeia for suspenseful anticipation]

-He’s telling you to come and see if you’re curious. I sighed there. That doesn’t come out.

-Almost like a morning drama lol [Korean daytime soap operas known for their dramatic cliffhangers]

Everyone was curious about where the female lead hid the information.

And there were comments about the poster’s story.

-What’s with the poster at the end? It’s creepy? They deliberately drew it without faces ㄷㄷㄷ

-I got chills there too.

It’s just that Si-ha saw the dark Lee Si-hyuk and thought of it.

They didn’t deliberately aim for a faceless appearance.

-The different sizes of the flamboyantly burning flame and the quietly smoldering flame are also chilling ㄷㄷ

It’s just that he expressed Lee Si-hyuk’s messy hair like that.

But people can’t know those facts, so they’re just admiring it.

-Wow. But isn’t the background music good too?

-The source was at the bottom? I listened to it and there are songs too.

***

Second day of camping.

Si-ha and I ate breakfast and watched the promotional video together.

I watched it at night too, but it seems really well made.

The people acting on stage also feel like they’re doing it perfectly.

“Si-ha, are they all good?”

“Good. Fun.”

“Doesn’t Si-hyuk hyung do plays?”

“Si-hyuk oppa is good too!”

You guys haven’t even seen me act, have you?

I wonder what the basis is for saying this.

“Hyung is good at acting. Si-ha saw. And he did pabak again.”

A fragment of the basis was seen here.

The culprit must have been Lee Si-ha.

It seems like he told the kids about when I went to the play audition.

“Hmm. I put Korean subtitles here like this. Of course, I put subtitles in other languages too.”

Let’s just gloss over my acting skills.

Compared to those who work so hard, I don’t even know the *yeon* [connection/affinity] in acting.

“Hyung. Amazing! Letters come out!”

“Si-ha. Can you read it?”

“No! Si-ha will read well later. Si-ha is putting on a lot of stickers.”

“That’s true.”

Sticker learning seems fun. Of course, I don’t know if it’s helping with studying.

I’ve been reading the pronunciation next to her every time Si-ha puts them on.

“Okay. Then shall we take a walk to our hideout?”

The children got up, saying they liked it.

It’s too bad to use the hideout for just one day.

And we couldn’t walk the cherry blossom path in the light yesterday, so it will give a different feeling.

But I could definitely tell that the second day was really just a day to enjoy.

It feels like camping is a little more comfortable.

Yesterday, I was busy setting up and preparing this and that, but now I’m too relaxed.

“We’re going to draw today, so everyone brought their sketchbooks, right?”

“Hyung. It’s in Si-ha’s bag.”

“Isn’t that a pad?”

“Si-ha draws on the pad.”

“I see.”

I guess Si-ha has become a professional now.

Seung-joon and Hana seem to have already prepared their sketchbooks.

“Then let’s go to the hideout!”

“Let’s go!”

The children were carrying their bags, so it felt like they were at daycare.

Only the background has changed, but it feels like the same as usual.

Rather, these ordinary daily lives and landscapes might be spring.

“Hyung. Hurry. Hurry.”

“Okay. I’m going.”

I hurried my steps, watching the children who were going ahead, excited.

Adults are just watching from behind, allowing them to move forward.

“It’s the hideout!”

Seung-joon started running quickly as if he hadn’t seen it in a long time.

When someone starts running, they run together.

The children slipped into the hideout.

“Hyung. Hurry.”

“I’m going~”

Si-ha’s face peeking out is cute.

I came to draw, but I wonder if I can go inside the tent.

“Did you guys already take off your shoes and come in?”

“Yeah!”

The children were jumping up and down on the mat.

I smiled and went into the hideout.

Baek Dong-hwan is already sitting in a chair, enjoying spring.

I shouldn’t disturb him.

He’s worked hard in many ways.

“Hyung. What should I draw?”

“Wouldn’t it be nice to draw something related to spring? Flowers?”

There are so many flowers here, so wouldn’t that be the only thing?

“Si-ha will draw a combined flower then!”

“Combined flower? Ah!”

We made cherry blossom new friends yesterday.

I had forgotten, but it seems that’s what Si-ha remembers the most.

But she’s lying face down on the mat without looking at the scenery and using the pad right away.

But Si-ha? Isn’t that a penguin?

The shape of the lines is familiar?

“Si-ha. That’s Pepe, isn’t it?”

“Combined flower Pepe.”

“???”

As expected, Pepe must be included even when drawing flowers.

Something that can’t be left out.

“What are you going to draw, Seung-joon?”

“I’m going to draw the hideout! The petals are attacking the hideout.”

“Wow. Amazing.”

Scatter! Senbon… Never mind. He’ll do it on his own.

Isn’t there a child who draws ordinary flower scenery!

There’s only one thing to believe in.

“What are you going to draw, Hana?”

“Hana is going to draw a tree. I’ll draw pretty flowers too!”

“Ooh.”

The most normal picture.

Creativity is good, but I like this orthodox thing too.

Will I be able to see an ordinary child’s landscape painting?

Of course, she’ll draw three branches and draw big flowers on top of them, but.

“What are you drawing, Si-hyuk oppa?”

“Me?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t have a sketchbook?”

“Hana will give you one.”

Hana tore a sketchbook page and gave it to me.

She also lent me a blue crayon next to her.

“Why blue?”

“It suits Si-hyuk oppa well.”

“Really?”

At that time, I saw Si-ha standing up next to me.

She was staring at me intently.

“What’s wrong? Si-ha?”

“Hyung! Si-ha will lend you!”

Whether it was because she was too eager, the pen poked my cheek.

“But if you don’t have this, Si-ha can’t draw.”

“No. Draw.”

“No. You won’t be able to draw.”

“Si-ha will lend you the pad too!”

“If you lend me that, Si-ha can’t draw?”

“No. Draw.”

How on earth! The pad doesn’t have a pen, so where are you going to draw? Are you thinking of borrowing the sketchbook?

“Si-ha drew everything on her head.”

Isn’t that what the female lead in the play has information in her head?!

Were you impressed?!

But if you draw it on your head, other people can’t see it…….

“Hyung will draw on the sketchbook.”

Koong [onomatopoeia for a thud].

Si-ha made a shocked expression.

“I’ll draw it *meotjige* [coolly/stylishly] here and send it to Si-ha’s pad. Shall we make it the background?”

“!!!”

Si-ha nodded, feeling better again.

She took the pad from me again and started drawing.

I’m recording this, but the pen has stopped…. Well, I can fast forward or edit it.

“What are you drawing, hyung?”

“Ah, I didn’t answer that?”

Everyone is looking at me, curious.

Well, it’s not a secret, so I just said it casually.

“Clouds.”

Actually, I was too lazy to draw.

***

The blue crayon seems to be a divine move.

If you draw clouds and color the outside, it becomes a perfect sky.

But there are one, two, three burdensome gazes glancing at me.

You guys are too interested in my drawing! I’m about at the level of an elementary school drawing!

My drawing skills are probably not much different from everyone except Si-ha!

I can’t draw the sky like someone who majors in art like that.

I couldn’t create a feeling like Monet’s paintings either.

Of course, our Si-ha will do everything well though.

She’ll be a specialist in the drawing world. Even though she only uses emoticons like drawings yet! Still!

It’s just that she’s not revealing it with a feeling like a genius who’s still hiding her power!

‘Come to think of it, how good is my stepmother’s drawing skills? How much did she learn about art?’

I don’t really know anything about that.

Still, I have a feeling that she majored in that kind of thing.

I didn’t really ask or hear anything in detail.

At that time, the existence of a stepmother was actually very awkward.

I was just an adult, and I didn’t need a mother.

No, to be exact, I didn’t need a mother anymore.

So I just took a long time to get close.

These memories that I can spend like a car accident have become shorter.

Even the period I went to the army was there…….

‘It was difficult to have time to talk alone.’

It was a natural course since Si-ha was born.

Raising a baby is a very busy and tiring thing.

Still, if I had taken the time, I might have known more.

Suddenly, the dialogue from the video comes to mind.

‘Children just need to dream of a hopeful future.’

Honestly, the scene showed the dialogue, the situation, and the writer’s thoughts well.

But is Si-ha dreaming of a hopeful future?

Am I showing that well?

I’m the only one who worries about Si-ha’s future, and I hope even Si-ha doesn’t worry.

The parents’ hearts worrying about the child’s environment at that time will be the same as the parents’ hearts now.

However, it is certain that that time was a more bleak time.

I know that comparison is meaningless, but I can’t help but think about it one more time.

A brilliantly hopeful future is made from ‘now’.

That’s why the uncle who gave the funds, the male lead who went to assassinate, and the female lead who quietly supports acted, right?

“Hyung!”

“Yeah?”

“Si-ha drew everything.”

“Ah, really? Did you draw all the flowers?”

“Ah ah. Pepe *kkochi* [flower].”

“Let’s be careful with the pronunciation, Si-ha.”

“Ah?”

I looked at the Pepe flower that Si-ha drew.

But no matter how much I looked, there were no flowers.

“???”