Chapter 13

Ha-yeon opened her eyes. Today was the weekend, so there was no need to get up quickly. But for Ha-yeon, who went to bed early and woke up early, that didn’t apply.

Ha-yeon glanced to the side. Her mother was sleeping with an angelic smile. Ha-yeon stared blankly at her mother’s face. No, rather than staring blankly, she burrowed deeper into her mother’s embrace. The bed seemed too small, making her mother’s sleeping posture look uncomfortable. It was originally Ha-yeon’s bed, after all.

Seeing this, Ha-yeon felt like buying a new bed. If only the bed were a bit bigger, she was sure there would be no problem sleeping with her mother.

Anyway, Ha-yeon snuggled deeper into her mother’s arms. It was something only she could do. How lucky she was to be so happy in her mother’s embrace. She felt grateful to have been born as her mother’s daughter.

She closed her eyes again. Her mother was holding her tightly. Ha-yeon wished she could stay in her mother’s arms forever. How wonderful it would be if every day could be like this, with her mother by her side, instead of going to kindergarten or her mother working at the café.

But at least on weekends, it was possible, so she took comfort in that.

An hour passed, and her mother still showed no signs of waking up. Ha-yeon got out of bed. She couldn’t fall asleep anymore, even with her eyes closed. She had recharged enough of her mother’s energy, so it was time to move.

Ha-yeon stared at the now-empty spot where her mother had been. Then she picked up the teddy bear on the floor and placed it in her mother’s arms. Her mother, still asleep, hugged the bear tightly, mistaking it for Ha-yeon.

Her mother was a sleepyhead.

On weekdays, her mother woke up earlier than Ha-yeon, but on weekends, she slept in longer. Of course, it was understandable. Her mother worked hard at the café all week, and it wasn’t an easy part-time job—she had to keep making coffee, which was exhausting.

Ha-yeon went to the living room and turned on the TV. Others might have wall-mounted TVs, 70 or 80 inches, but Ha-yeon didn’t care about that. As long as the TV programs worked, that was enough.

She switched to the news channel. She planned to watch whatever she could before her mother woke up. Once her mother was up, she’d have to switch to the programs her mother liked. Of course, her mother would put on children’s shows for Ha-yeon, but Ha-yeon wasn’t very interested in them.

Watching kids her age on TV acting cringey and trying to be cute made her wonder, “Is this really fun?” She’d rather watch the news to see how the world worked.

She had to watch everything she could before her mother woke up. Once her mother was up, it would be time for children’s shows.

—

“Huh?”

I opened my eyes. Rubbing my sleepy eyes, I checked the time on my phone. It was 11 a.m. I needed to make breakfast for Ha-yeon… I really wanted to go back to sleep, but thinking of Ha-yeon, I got up. When I went to the living room, Ha-yeon was watching TV.

“Mom, are you up?”

“Ha-yeon, you’re already up?”

“Yeah!”

Ha-yeon was already up and watching TV. Seeing her like that, I said, “I’ll make breakfast… Just wait a bit.”

I rummaged through the fridge. There was nothing to eat. Of course, that made sense. I was supposed to go grocery shopping yesterday, but I was too busy playing with Ha-yeon, so there were no ingredients left. Still, I didn’t regret spending time with her.

“Guess we’ll have cereal.”

In times like this, simple cereal was the best. I looked at the nearly empty fridge and found a pack of milk in the drinks section. With slow hands, I took out the milk and opened the cereal box on the table. It was cereal from the community center.

When I told the community center that Ha-yeon and I lived alone, they gave us rice and other food items from the food bank.

*Crunch crunch—*

The sound of cereal pouring into the bowl echoed clearly. Ha-yeon had already come to my side.

“Mom, are we having cereal?”

“Yeah. Do you not like it? Should I order delivery?”

“No, no! Anything you make is good!”

That was a relief. I planned to have a simple breakfast and then a big lunch-dinner combo, and it seemed Ha-yeon thought the same. I sighed in relief internally. If Ha-yeon had refused to eat cereal, I wouldn’t have known what to do.

“Let’s eat!”

The cereal was ready in no time. Just pour it into a bowl, add milk, and it’s done. I handed Ha-yeon her tiny spoon. She took it and started eating.

“It’s yummy!”

Ha-yeon ate the cereal with a smile. I didn’t know who she took after to be so adorable. People say little kids are like angels, and that was exactly right. I could see why parents draw strength from their children. How could anyone say life was hard when they had such a cute and lovable Ha-yeon?

Even after a tough day at the café, dragging my exhausted body home, just seeing Ha-yeon recharged my energy like a battery. And her little acts of affection were so endearing. No wonder people prefer daughters over sons.

Of course, I’ve never raised a son.

As we chatted, we finished the cereal. I took Ha-yeon’s empty bowl and placed it in the sink. The good thing about cereal was that it didn’t create much dishwashing. Just one bowl and one spoon to clean.

Even though housework wasn’t too hard, juggling it with the café part-time job was a bit overwhelming. But Ha-yeon always helped me out.

After finishing the dishes, I sat with Ha-yeon to watch TV. She crawled into my lap, and I didn’t refuse. I hugged her tightly. On TV, an animation that kids would love was playing.

I found myself engrossed in the animation. Even though it was made for kids, it suited my taste too.

“Wow…!”

I couldn’t help but marvel at the protagonist’s feats. I wished I could live like an anime protagonist.

“Mom…”

Ha-yeon looked up at me.

“Huh? What is it, Ha-yeon?”

Was the animation not fun for her? We’d been watching it together for a while… But what came out of Ha-yeon’s mouth was something else.

“Can we buy a new bed?”

“A bed?”

It was true that the bed was too small for the two of us to sleep together comfortably. The bed we were using now was more like a single bed for a small apartment. When both of us got on it, it was so cramped that our bodies almost hung off the edges.

I opened my banking app at Ha-yeon’s request. The available balance appeared. You might think, “You have over 100 million won, so you’re fine, right?” but Ha-yeon would be starting middle school in at least eight years, so I had to make it last.

Of course, money was still coming in. The government provided subsidies for raising a child, and I also earned from my part-time job. But the subsidies were really a last resort.

Until last year, I couldn’t work, so my income was almost zero. But now, with the café job, my income was over a million won.

The pressure of having zero income versus some income was worlds apart. My goal was to make it until Ha-yeon started middle school. If I didn’t earn money, it would be tough, but with the part-time job, we could live somewhat comfortably.

I nodded at Ha-yeon’s request.

“Then let’s go pick out a new bed today.”

“Yeah! Awesome!”

Choosing a bed that Ha-yeon and I could sleep in together was important. After all, we weren’t sleeping separately, and it would be even better to sleep together. Honestly, on stormy nights, going into Ha-yeon’s room to sleep felt like a crack in my parental dignity.

But if we bought a bigger bed and could sleep together from now on, that wouldn’t happen.

“Then let’s get dressed!”

“Yay!”

Ha-yeon and I got ready to go out. Our destination was a furniture store with beds.