My Girlfriend Is Very Good To Me [EN]: Chapter 25

Ep. 24

A peaceful Sunday. Unlike the hustle and bustle with Heena at the tail end of yesterday, our house was the epitome of tranquility. Dad, whose job occasionally requires him to work on weekends, went to work today with a rather disappointed look.

Mom was leisurely doing housework as usual, waiting for Heena to arrive. However, after I subtly buttered her up with stories about how Heena was agonizing over choosing a gift, I noticed she put a bit more effort into her attire.

“Son.”

“Yeah?”

While we were sitting on the sofa watching TV, waiting for Heena, Mom called me.

“Do you have enough money for the trip to the beach?”

“I’ve saved up my allowance, and I got a pretty good paycheck from my part-time job last time. I think I should be okay.”

“Have you booked a place to stay?”

“No, I don’t think there’s a need to do that already. I haven’t even planned the itinerary yet.”

“You said you’re going as soon as vacation starts, right? It might be a bit late already.”

“Come on, there are so many accommodations at the beach…”

Mom scoffed at my absurd remark.

“If you want to let your girlfriend sleep in a place crawling with cockroaches, go ahead.”

“…Really?”

To be honest, I’ve never booked accommodation separately except when traveling with my parents, so I didn’t think much of it, but hearing her say that suddenly made me worried. My mom wasn’t the type to make things up just to tease me.

No way, even if the beach is crowded in the summer, can reservations really be that booked already?

“Should I book now?”

“Forget it. Mom already booked a hotel in Sokcho [a city on the coast of South Korea] yesterday, so go there.”

Huh, Mom?!

“Are you serious, Mother?”

“Don’t talk like that, it’s creepy.”

“No! How could I dare to speak carelessly to my mother!”

“Before I cancel it.”

“Sorry…”

She said coolly and then focused on the TV again as if nothing had happened.

I watched Mom with eyes full of respect for a moment, then prepared to go out as soon as I saw my phone ringing.

It must be Heena calling.

—

I brought Heena. To my house.

Heena, who was greeted by Mom at the entrance, bowed almost 90 degrees before even taking off her shoes.

“Nice to meet you, Mother. I’m Heena Lee.”

Mom watched Heena, who greeted her with a gentle smile, without moving an inch, as if her feet were nailed to the ground.

She used to wear skirts a lot when we went on dates, but today she was wearing wrinkle-free black slacks and a light beige linen tee, creating a very neat look that was simple yet elegant.

Her hair was silky smooth, as if she had styled it since morning, and her face had very, very subtle makeup.

I could tell her concept instantly. Effortlessly chic, yet neat. A ‘no makeup’ makeup look for elders.

However, today, Heena gave off a strong mature vibe, setting aside her outfit.

She usually had an older vibe, but today it felt completely different. If I passed her on the street without knowing her, I would have definitely thought she was a college student.

Even after raising her head, her gestures and expressions remained composed, and she looked at Mom with a faint smile.

Only then did Mom respond to Heena.

“Welcome. It’s been very hot lately, was it hard to get here?”

She greeted Heena with the brightest smile I had ever seen and even used *banjondae* [a mix of formal and informal speech in Korean] while leading her inside.

I stared at Mom with a question mark in my head, wondering what was going on.

“Yes, the weather was nice and cool today, so it was okay. Mother, would you accept this?”

Heena also replied nonchalantly and handed over the gift she had spent hours agonizing over yesterday.

Honestly, I didn’t think there was a need to prepare a gift in the first place, but Heena didn’t think so, so she was trying to pick something and ended up buying a diffuser set.

Mom liked these things a lot, and Dad was also interested enough to keep one in his car, and most of all, it was perfect because you could buy it without spending a lot of money.

“You shouldn’t have… Thank you.”

“It’s nothing. And please, speak comfortably.”

“Should I?”

“Yes, Mother.”

I couldn’t say a word as the two of them naturally headed to the living room while talking. I just followed behind Heena like a background prop.

Even after they sat on the sofa and chairs, the conversation didn’t stop, so I was just busy carrying the drinks and fruits that Mom had prepared in advance.

“Oh my, did you really confess first?”

“Yes… I liked Yeonhoo so much that I couldn’t help it…”

“I thought he confessed first and was just embarrassed and making it up…”

“What?! You pretended to believe me but secretly thought that?”

I feel a bit betrayed.

But no matter how I reacted, they didn’t even look at me. They were having a conversation as if they were alone.

It was the first time I saw Mom smiling so brightly and responding to someone, and Heena’s attitude towards my mom was so polite that it even felt unfamiliar.

It was as if two strangers I didn’t know were talking in front of me.

For a while, they summarized our relationship of about a month, starting from the day we first met, to dating stories, and how Heena came to my part-time job every day.

The gradually progressing story eventually reached the beach trip that was scheduled for the first week of summer vacation.

“I heard from Yeonhoo on the way here that you booked a hotel for us, Mother…”

“I was worried about Yeonhoo, so don’t worry too much about it.”

“Thank you, Mother. I’ll have a good time with Yeonhoo.”

I thought Heena would decline at least once, but surprisingly, she just bowed slightly and thanked her without saying anything else.

Mom looked surprised once again at that.

“Really… how can she be so polite?”

“It’s nothing~”

“It is. I was worried about you two going alone, but after seeing you, I don’t think I need to be.”

“I’m glad you think so. Oh, may I use the restroom for a moment?”

“Sure, it’s next to that door, feel free to use it.”

Taking advantage of the brief pause while Heena went to the bathroom, I moved to Mom’s side like a sycophant and sat close to her.

“Mom, what do you think of Heena?”

“Yeonhoo.”

“Yeah?”

However, before answering my question, Mom, with a stern face, called me by my name, which was unusual, and continued in a serious tone.

“Is she really a high school student?”

“Well… I thought so, but after seeing her today, I’m not so sure…”

It wasn’t entirely out of the blue for Mom to ask this question, because Heena today was so mature that it was hard to believe she was the same age as me. Even her conversation with Mom felt mature.

When we were hanging out, she was a bit mature, but I could still feel that we were around the same age, but today, there wasn’t even a trace of that.

I wondered if she had failed a few grades, like maybe 4 years?

“She’s so smart and polite. Why my son…”

“I understand, but doing that in front of me is a bit much, don’t you think?”

“Son.”

“Yeah?”

“Hold on tight. If you live with her, you won’t have to worry about your son for the rest of your life.”

“I’ll try my best…”

I have to try not to make Heena lose interest in me.

I’m not stupid, so I know that I wouldn’t be able to find a girlfriend like Heena even if I searched the whole world.

After a while, when Heena returned, we were finally able to have a conversation together, including me.

However, I couldn’t share too many personal stories in front of Mom, so the conversation mainly revolved around everyday stories like school life.

“I heard that Yeonhoo’s math scores have improved a lot thanks to you?”

“Yeonhoo studied hard, that’s why his scores went up.”

“I thought you two would just be dating instead of studying.”

“We did date too…”

Anyway, I was glad that Mom liked her so much. Well, there was no way she couldn’t like her.

She’s pretty, studies well, is kind, and polite.

She’s perfect in every way.

I was reminded of that fact once again and felt happy, but suddenly, an ominous conversation began.

“Do your parents know that you two are going to the beach together?”

“Yes. Actually, my mother also said she would find a room for us.”

“Really? …One?”

“Yes, one.”

“Hmm…”

“Wait, this is the first time I’m hearing about this? You’re only booking one room?”

I shouted in surprise at the unexpected words, but there wasn’t even a hint of wavering on Heena’s face.

At the contrasting reactions, Mom narrowed her eyes and looked at us alternately, then fixed her gaze on Heena and opened her mouth again.

“I booked two single rooms… Should I change it?”

“It would be less of a burden for you to book one double room, so if it’s possible to change it, could I ask you to do that?”

“It’s still possible…”

“Of course, nothing you’re worried about will happen. We’re still students.”

“I’m not worried about anything… But shouldn’t your son be the one saying this?”

“That’s what I’m saying…”

I couldn’t keep up with the rapidly unfolding situation.

When Mom said she booked a room, I naturally thought it would be two single rooms, and I was shocked that Heena’s mother was only going to book one room.

Did they trust me, or did they think it was okay even if an accident (?) happened?

Moreover, I was amazed at Heena for talking about such things so casually.

My face was burning just listening to it.

Oh well, whatever. Even if there’s only one room, there will be two beds, so I’ll just think of it as a school trip.

However, the two people in front of me didn’t consider me at all, who was starting to rationalize it in my mind, and gradually wrapped up the conversation.

“Then let’s change the room. What are you going to do today?”

“If it’s not too much trouble, would it be okay to see your father too?”

“He’s coming home late today, so that’ll be difficult.”

“I see…”

It’s not that I’m relieved that the burdensome situation has lessened, but she genuinely looks disappointed that she can’t see my dad.

“Then I’ll go out for a while, so you two hang out and then go.”

“Huh? Where are you going?”

“To see my aunt.”

Ah, she’s going to see her again because of the room change. My little aunt lives nearby. I think my uncle has some connections with the hotel reception.

“Heena, make yourself comfortable.”

“Yes, Mother.”

With those words, Mom got up from her seat. Seeing her put on her clothes and leave, I’m sure she’ll be going to tell my aunt all about meeting Heena.

We looked at the album a bit in my room, and then we made the exchange that we talked about last time.

A photo exchange from middle school. I cheered inwardly at the great deal and immediately put it in my wallet. I have to look at it whenever I think about it.

After that, we spent about an hour looking around my room and the album before leaving the house.

I didn’t want to just stay at home because I didn’t know when my brother would be back. It seemed like Heena wanted to see my brother’s face too, but I didn’t want that.

I didn’t want them to meet yet, as there was a high chance that Yoonjung would be with him.

I also didn’t want to introduce my girlfriend to my brother.

Today, instead of walking around, we went to a cafe and made a rough itinerary for the trip. It was embarrassing to even call it an itinerary for a one-night trip.

Still, it was my first time going on a trip with someone my age, and that someone was my girlfriend, so everything was new to me.

I couldn’t hide my fluttering heart in many ways.

Heena also had a flushed face as we talked.

The final exams were over, and the vacation was just around the corner.

Our first trip was about to begin.