Chapter 28

“Yah!”

I stabbed the knife in. If you just read it in text, it might seem cruel and inhumane, but in this board game, it was allowed.

Because…

“Eek!”

“Mom wins!”

As soon as the toy soldier was stabbed with the knife, it popped out with a *tok* sound. The game was about stabbing the knife into a spot full of knife marks to help the toy soldier escape from the barrel. And I ended up being the one who got caught.

Beside me, Ha-yeon and Yoo-in-a were clapping and cheering. As always, it seemed I had no talent for board games. No matter what board game we played, I was always the one who lost. And it wasn’t even a 1:1 match against Ha-yeon.

“Since Mom got caught, you have to do the penalty!”

“Pe… penalty?”

“Yep!”

Ha-yeon looked at me with a mischievous smile. I was curious what kind of penalty she’d come up with. But at the same time, I was a little worried. I didn’t know how terrifying the penalty Ha-yeon had in mind would be.

“Give me a kiss on the cheek!”

“Huh?”

Ha-yeon said the penalty, but… I wondered if this even counted as a penalty. Wasn’t it just an affectionate gesture? If this was the penalty, I could do it hundreds of times. Ha-yeon pointed to her cheek with her finger and said, “Here, here! Kiss me!”

“Alright…”

I gave Ha-yeon a firm kiss on the cheek. She was grinning ear to ear, clearly in a great mood. Seeing Ha-yeon smile like that made me think it was a good idea to join the board game. If it had just been Yoo-in-a and me, it probably wouldn’t have been as fun.

I glanced at Yoo-in-a. We had talked a lot, but Yoo-in-a seemed to have a quiet personality. During conversations, Ha-yeon did most of the talking, followed by me. Yoo-in-a just sat quietly, listening to our conversations.

Of course, Yoo-in-a’s quietness might not have been her personality. She might have been holding back because she was with a stranger. For all I knew, when she was alone with Ha-yeon, she might have been as talkative as a flowing river.

Yoo-in-a looked at me and said, “Um… can you kiss my cheek too?”

Yoo-in-a had the same wish as Ha-yeon. I nodded and gave Yoo-in-a a kiss on the cheek. Of course, it wasn’t as firm as the one I gave Ha-yeon. Yoo-in-a was a kid I had just met today. I didn’t notice Ha-yeon’s burning gaze as I kissed Yoo-in-a.

“Let’s play another board game! This time, a card game!”

I smiled brightly and pulled out another board game. Playing the same game over and over wasn’t fun. You had to keep switching it up to really enjoy it.

—

Yoo-in-a was playing the board game, trying to calm her pounding heart.

Yoo-in-a’s mother had passed away right after giving birth to her. So Yoo-in-a had never known a mother’s warmth. It was strange to even know about it when she had never had a mother from the start. But today, she could indirectly feel that warmth.

“You’re doing great, Yoo-in-a!”

*Pat pat*

Even though it was the first time meeting her, the bold physical contact was surprising…

“Ah! I lost!”

Even though it was a game that adults might find boring, she showed incredible immersion. It was hard to tell if she was really enjoying the board game or just playing along to fit in. Yoo-in-a didn’t know because she didn’t have a mother.

Struggling to stab the knife properly was just the basics, and the silly expressions she made didn’t seem very adult-like. To Yoo-in-a, Ha-yul seemed just like a peer. But that made her feel even closer. And she looked too young to be called an aunt.

Among the parents who came to the kindergarten, she was probably the youngest. At a glance, you could mistake her for a high school student. To Yoo-in-a, if Ha-yul wore a high school uniform, she’d look exactly like a student of that age. Maybe instead of calling her an aunt, she should call her an older sister?

Anyway, Yoo-in-a glanced at Ha-yul. It was time to receive the penalty since she lost the board game. Then Ha-yeon spoke first.

“Mom! Kiss me here!”

Ha-yeon demanded a kiss on the cheek from Ha-yul. Seeing that, Yoo-in-a also felt a desire. So she asked Ha-yul for a kiss too. Ha-yul just smiled brightly and carried out the penalty without hesitation.

When Ha-yeon saw Ha-yul give Yoo-in-a a light kiss on the cheek, she couldn’t help but be surprised. She had brought Yoo-in-a, a quiet and unassuming kid, but now Yoo-in-a was receiving her mom’s attention. And to dare ask for a kiss from her mom… They say the quiet cat climbs the stove first, and Yoo-in-a’s actions were exactly that. She seemed quiet, but she was bolder than Ha-yeon thought.

Seeing that, Ha-yeon had to suppress the urge to scream and separate the two. If Ha-yul, her mom, saw Ha-yeon acting like that, she’d be disappointed. It wasn’t a very friendly look.

While Ha-yeon’s insides were boiling, Ha-yul innocently smiled and continued playing the board game. Yoo-in-a noticed Ha-yeon’s gaze but didn’t stop. From Yoo-in-a’s perspective, when had she ever received such warmth? She didn’t want to let it go.

—

“You’re leaving already? Can’t you stay a little longer?”

I looked at Yoo-in-a with pleading eyes. Yoo-in-a hesitated under my gaze, then finally said, “My dad’s coming home soon, so I have to go… I’ll come play again next time!”

“Really…? If your dad’s coming home, I guess there’s no choice.”

“Mom, Yoo-in-a has to go! Let her go!”

“Alright…”

I waved goodbye to Yoo-in-a. We had so much fun, so it felt a bit sad to see her go. Yoo-in-a also seemed reluctant to leave, but going home was unavoidable. She opened the door, bowed, and disappeared.

I blankly watched her leave. Ha-yeon clung to my leg and said, “Mom! Isn’t Yoo-in-a getting a little too close? Should I bring a different friend next time?”

Yoo-in-a… Yoo-in-a…

A memory had been slowly surfacing in my mind since earlier. I had heard that name somewhere before. But I was too busy playing the board game to pay attention. However, when Ha-yeon brought it up again, it hit me like a lightning bolt.

“Oh, right!”

“Mom, what’s wrong?”

Yoo-in-a was the second lead in this novel. If Ha-yeon was the strongest hunter in Korea, Yoo-in-a was her rival. Of course, since this wasn’t a sweet potato-feeding novel, they maintained a good relationship and competed in a friendly manner. Yoo-in-a had appeared around the time Ha-yeon left the orphanage, so I wasn’t sure exactly when.

I didn’t know anything about Yoo-in-a’s childhood. But luckily, Ha-yeon had brought Yoo-in-a over. If I became close with Yoo-in-a, wouldn’t that be a huge advantage? With Ha-yeon as the lead and Yoo-in-a as the second lead, it was like having a solid insurance policy.

I couldn’t help but grin. Being close from childhood meant a smooth path was guaranteed. And it would help Ha-yeon too.

“No, Ha-yeon. You’re close with Yoo-in-a, right? Bring her over often! Mom will take good care of her!”

“Mom…”

When I smiled and said that, Ha-yeon looked a little sad. Did I say something that upset her? I couldn’t figure out why, so I knelt down to her eye level and asked, “Ha-yeon, why are you so sad? Did Mom do something wrong?”

“No… but you’re paying more attention to Yoo-in-a…”

Ah… It was something kids often went through. A kind of affectionate jealousy, you could say. To dispel this jealousy, I needed to be firm. I looked Ha-yeon in the eye and said, “I’m paying attention to Yoo-in-a because she’s your friend. Mom loves you the most!”

“Really…?”

“Yep! Mom loves you as much as the sky and the earth!”

“Hehe…”

Ha-yeon seemed to cheer up and smiled brightly. I hugged her tightly and showered her with kisses until she said, “Mom, that’s enough!”