Brother, Am I Cute? [EN]: Chapter 50

I woke up to a refreshing morning, the first in a long time.

I was usually tired, but this time I felt like I’d actually had a good night’s sleep.

I was humming without even realizing it while making breakfast, and Siha stuck to my leg.

“Siha, did you sleep well?”

“Ah ah.”

“I feel like I slept really well today for some reason.”

“Ah ah.”

“I guess having money coming in gives you some leeway [financial breathing room]. Is this happiness?”

Money doesn’t bring happiness, but it seems to bring *yoyu* [余裕 – Japanese for ‘leeway,’ ‘room to spare,’ or ‘peace of mind’].

Even though I’m doing translation work, I’m not rushed and I have plenty of time, so money is definitely a good thing to have.

Not that I’m making a huge amount of money, though.

My work as an interpreter is just working as an unstable freelancer.

“Hyung.”

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

“Seungjun. Hana.”

“Huh?”

Siha ran off somewhere and showed me the invitation he had given me.

Right, that invitation. The video was so amazing that I couldn’t say anything.

I edited Siha’s parts several times, no matter what else.

I already made it into a 3-hour video so that it could be played repeatedly.

Siha was so cute.

“Hyung~ Invitation~”,

“Yeah. It’s an invitation.”

“Seungjun, Hana. House.”

“Yeah. Seungjun and Hana’s house is…. Huh?”

I asked with a doubtful heart.

“Are you saying let’s go to Seungjun and Hana’s house?”

“Ah ah. Invitation.”

“Yeah. Are you saying we have to go because they invited us?”

“Ah ah.”

Nod nod.

Siha grabbed my pants and shook them.

I see. We have to go. Surely Seungjun and Hana didn’t give it to them like that.

The video is given to everyone, but surely they wouldn’t have given it as an invitation to their house….

Then a KakaoTalk [South Korean messaging app] message came to my phone.

[Seungjun’s mom: Si-hyuk. Would you like to come to our house with Siha? Hana and Seungjun said they invited you?]

They *did* give it like that?

I guess that’s what it meant.

I sent a reply saying I would go.

“Siha, then let’s get ready and go to Seungjun and Hana’s house.”

“Ah ah!”

Siha was so excited that he raised his hands in the air.

He ran off somewhere and dragged his penguin bag to the living room.

He started packing things here and there.

Penguin car, tissue box, remote control, ballpoint pen, etc.

No, why are you packing the remote control and ballpoint pen?

I just watched because it was cute.

Siha, who had packed everything, sat down in front of the shoe rack.

“Hyung~”

“Shouldn’t we start with washing up first?”

“Ah?”

“Let’s eat, wash up, and go out later. Okay?”

“Siha. Go~”,

“No. Don’t go. Hehe.”

“Siha. Go~”,

“No, I told you not to go. Ahahaha. I can’t stop him.”

I grabbed Siha, who was trying to put on his shoes.

I guess he was excited because it was his first time going to a friend’s house.

We got ready and left the house.

***

I was nervous because it was my first time going to Seungjun and Hana’s house.

As I went inside, a house that looked about 32 *pyeong* [approx. 1,138 sq ft] appeared.

Seungjun’s mom greeted me.

“Welcome.”

“Yes. Hello. This is nothing much, but I bought it because I thought the kids would like it.”

“Oh my. You didn’t have to bring anything.”

“No way. How could I do that? I’m looking forward to learning something good today.”

“Then I’ll have to teach you even harder, right?”

I was going to learn a little cooking today, something we arranged via text messages before coming.

To be exact, I’m learning how to make a cake.

It was a gift for Siha on Children’s Day, May 5th.

An illustration technique cake.

The goal for today was to draw a penguin on the cake bread.

We’re going to do it on the table, so Siha won’t be able to see it.

And one more thing.

I’m also planning to make rice cakes together to divert the children’s attention.

“Then please take good care of me.”

“Yes. Come on in.”

As I went inside, Seungjun and Hana greeted me from the entrance.

“Siha~!”.

“Si-hyeoki *oppa* [term used by younger girls to address older brothers or male friends]!”

“Ah ah. Seungjun. Hana.”

Didn’t Hana just call my name?

Siha hugged the two of them as if he didn’t care.

It was nice to see them being so close.

If I think about the past, I never imagined that these friendships would develop.

I’m glad I sent him to daycare.

Maybe if Moon Do-hwan hadn’t advised me at that time, I might have gone down the wrong path.

Seungjun’s mom said.

“Okay. Today we’re going to make rice cake macarons. Everyone wash your hands first.”

“Yes!”

The children went to the bathroom in a row.

What’s amazing is that the showerhead had three places where water came out.

The part that comes out from above for showering on the head.

The usual showerhead part with a hose.

Below that, there was a place where water came out so that children could wash their hands.

“That’s amazing?”

“Isn’t it amazing? It cost me a lot of money to install that showerhead. I ordered it because I thought it would be convenient to wash pets later after seeing that.”

“Wow.”

I wondered if I should install something like that so that Siha could wash himself.

Not necessarily something like that, but something small.

Well, if he washes his face by himself, his top will get all wet.

But that’s cute in its own way.

Then the kids came out and said.

“All done!”

“Hana too. Hana too.”

“Ah ah. Hyung.”

It was fun to watch because everyone had a different way of wiping their hands.

Seungjun roughly rubbed his hands on a towel, Hana wiped them carefully, and Siha just dipped them like a real man and was done.

Siha is the best after all.

That’s not it.

“Everyone did a good job.”

“Then kids, let’s sit at the desk in the living room.”

“Yes~”

We sat down in a row like baby birds waiting for food.

Seungjun’s mom brought the dough that she had prepared in advance.

The colors were various, using natural powder.

Pumpkin, cocoa, broccoli, beet.

Yellow, brown, light green, pink, white.

It looked delicious already, even though it was dough.

“Okay. Then you can make various rice cakes with the color you want. Like this. Like this.”

I also fiddled with a rice cake with Siha.

Flatten the white rice cake and decorate it with other colored rice cakes on top.

I made a long pink rice cake and made a heart.

Named Heart Rice Cake Macaron.

“Siha, look. It’s a heart.”

“Ah ah!”

Siha also started making something diligently.

As expected, it’s not a picture, so it’s a clumsy shape.

What is this?

“Hyung. This.”

“Huh? What shape is it?”

There was a black circle attached to a strangely distorted shape.

At first glance, it looks like a person’s face, but it can’t be.

“Moon Do~”,

“Uh…. Is it Moon Do-hwan uncle’s face?”

“Ah ah.”

Moon Do-hwan looked so ugly in Siha’s eyes!

Let’s give this to Moon Do-hwan as a gift.

Maybe Siha wants that too.

“You’re doing a good job~”

Seungjun, who was next to me, boasted that he had finished making his own.

“Siha, look. It’s a soccer ball!”

“Ah ah.”

It was surprisingly well made.

You could see the skill from playing with clay.

Hana, who was next to me, said.

“Hana is Alisa *unnie* [term used by younger girls to address older sisters or female friends].”

She made the details of her hair with yellow rice cake.

Alisa, who had dreadlocks because of the round shape, would probably like it.

Really maybe?

“Hana, you did a really good job.”

“Hehe.”

The three of them reached out for the next work with excitement.

Taking advantage of the distraction, I got up.

Seungjun’s mom also got up and moved to the table in the kitchen.

“Usually, I print out the picture like this and stick it on the cutting board.”

She put it in a transparent cutting board and the picture was visible as it was.

After wrapping it with something like cloth and fixing it with tape, she held a black cream that could be squeezed out.

“Now, draw the picture with cream according to the color and color it in. Penguins are easy, so you can use blue for the eyes, black for the eyes, and white cream for the belly.”

“That’s right. It would have been a big deal if I had done several colors.”

I drew along the lines drawn in the picture.

It was easier than I thought.

“You can color it like this and freeze it. Then you can print it on the bread sheet and it’s done.”

“Oh! Then the picture will come out on the opposite side of the side you see now.”

“Yes. You can boldly cover it with other colored creams.”

“That’s right.”

It was a really easier task than I thought?

But I need to practice a little.

The lines are crooked.

Just like when drawing a picture, I need to practice drawing lines first, I also need to practice drawing with cream a little.

“But do you make cakes like this for Seungjun and Hana too?”

“Only on birthdays. Sometimes? Because the kids like it.”

“Wow. Really. You’re amazing.”

“I like to do it too. I even have a pastry chef license, you know.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Korean, Japanese, and Chinese food too.”

“Wow. Are you a chef?”

“No. I just ended up doing it?”

Was that something you ended up getting?

Seungjun’s mom smiled softly.

“Actually, I was thinking of opening a side dish store later, so I got it. Then it was fun, so I ended up getting a lot of things.”

“You’re amazing.”

Come to think of it, Seungjun’s mom was a talented person.

“I have my husband’s stomach in my hands, so he can’t get away from me. Hehe.”

“Hmm. Is that a tip?”

“Si-hyuk, learn this and grab your wife’s stomach.”

“Yes? Haha.”

Well.

I don’t know if I can get married.

I just want to focus on Siha right now.

I have to grab Siha’s stomach.

So that he knows the gratitude for food during his puberty.

“It’s all done.”

Before I knew it, a wonderful penguin was completed.

Now I just need to freeze it, right?

“I hope Siha likes it a lot too.”

“But Si-hyuk, you’re the only one who makes cakes with such care for Children’s Day, right?”

“Yes? Haha.”

I said looking at the penguin.

“I just want Children’s Day to be a really good day for Siha.”

“Yes? What does that…….”

“Ah, it’s nothing. Haha.”

Good memories and painful memories always existed on Children’s Day.

That time that I always think about and think about.

I didn’t want Siha to be like that.

I hope he only keeps happy memories.

I hope there are more happy times than painful times.

I’m hoping.

“Then today’s class is over with this, right?”

“Yes. You can practice a little more later and make it.”

“Thank you. There’s not much time left until Children’s Day, so it’ll be better if I practice a little more.”

Seungjun’s mom thought for a moment and said this.

“Then shall we go to the event on Children’s Day? They do something really fun there.”

“Children’s Day event?”

“Yes. They said they’re holding an event on Children’s Day in front of the Han River Park pier. For two days too.”

“Wow. That sounds fun.”

“I’m going to take my kids there at that time too. There’s a park, so how great is that.”

“That’s right. I like it too. It’s a holiday too.”

“Then it would be a perfect day to play on Children’s Day and give them cake at home at the end, right?”

“That sounds really fun.”

Then Siha called me.

“Hyung~”

“Yeah? What’s wrong, Siha.”

“This. This.”

Siha showed me what he had made.

Seungjun and Hana said.

“Si-hyeoki *hyung* [term used by younger boys to address older brothers or male friends]. Look at mine too~”

“Si-hyeoki *oppa*. Hana too~”

There were rice cakes that everyone made with their own personality.

“Everyone made it well. Then shall we pack it now?”

“Ah ah.”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

We packed it so that we could give it as a gift and put in a card.

I wrote this under the card.

[Returns are not allowed.]

***

-Rice cake presentation.

[Baek Dong-hwan]

Baek Dong-hwan received a rice cake with a picture of an arm muscle with a yellow arm on a white background.

“Wow! It’s the same as my muscles? Thank you, Siha!”

Baek Dong-hwan raised his arm and showed his muscles.

“Ah ah!”

Still muscular.

[Moon Do-hwan]

Moon Do-hwan had a subtle expression on his face after receiving his face rice cake.

Then, looking at Siha’s expectant expression, he said this.

“It looks like me. It’s just me. The reality is reflected so much!”

I felt sorry for Moon Do-hwan, who was dissing himself.

[Alisa]

Alisa was happy to receive her face-shaped rice cake from Hana.

“Heu-heung~”

While still humming.

[Hwang Ki-jun]

Hwang Ki-jun, CEO of Lawrence Medical Translation Company, was happy to receive a stethoscope-shaped rice cake.

“I’ll give you a syringe to play with next time. Thank you.”

[Hong Jin-soo]

Hong Jin-soo said to me while looking at the rice cake.

“Si-hyuk. Do you know that?”

“What?”

“Si-hyuk, your work as an editor and rice cake are a perfect match. A good opportunity has come up this time, would you like to join me…….”

“Ah! I’m busy. I’ll be on my way!”

Hong Jin-soo shouted as he watched me leave.

“I’ll order a good desk~ A chair too! Herman Miller~”