Chapter 53

As soon as I opened the door and stepped inside, the cool breeze from the air conditioner brushed against my slightly sweaty face. The sticky summer heat vanished in an instant. The interior was clean and tidy, with wooden tables and chairs everywhere, giving off the vibe of a nice restaurant. By the window, many people were already seated, enjoying their meals, and the aroma of pork cutlets filled the air. As expected from a specialty pork cutlet place, the smell alone was fantastic.

Even though I hadn’t tasted it yet, I’d say my inner score went up to 8 out of 10. I also liked how they cranked up the air conditioner. Lately, with electricity bills being high, some restaurants only turned on the AC moderately, which meant the heat never fully went away, even if the sweat cooled down. But this place didn’t seem to care about the electricity bill, blasting the AC like crazy. If you sat right under the AC vent while eating pork cutlets, you’d probably catch a cold from how cold it was.

“Let’s sit here, Ha-yeon!”

I spotted an empty table by the window and quickly claimed it. Outside, amusement park rides were visible in the distance, and faint laughter could be heard. Ha-yeon seemed to like it too, excitedly running over. Luckily, it was the last window seat. If we’d been any later, we wouldn’t have gotten it. This place seemed pretty popular.

Or maybe it was just because it was in an amusement park. You know how it is. Restaurants in tourist spots often survive not because the food is good, but because of the sheer number of people. Foot traffic is king.

That’s probably why even the terrible food at the Nonsan training camp made so much money. The memory of eating that weird, tear-soaked food before enlisting still lingers in my mind. Well, it’s too miserable to call it a memory—more like a slightly traumatic experience.

If a tourist spot restaurant opened near our neighborhood, it’d probably go out of business in a few months. Of course, since I hadn’t tried the pork cutlets here yet, I could be wrong.

“Mom, this looks really delicious!”

Ha-yeon’s eyes sparkled as she looked at the menu on the table. There were various pork cutlets listed: the basic one, a cheese-filled one, and even a curry pork cutlet. Just looking at it made my mouth water. I waited for Ha-yeon to make her choice. She kept glancing around, trying to decide which one she wanted. But time passed, and she still hadn’t chosen.

I casually asked her, “Ha-yeon, which one do you want?”

“Hmm… the cheese pork cutlet!”

As expected from a kid, she went for the cheese. I smiled, proud of her choice, and said, “I’ll have the same as you, the cheese pork cutlet!”

After placing our order, the waiter soon brought us cold water, along with a small plate of salad and pickles. Ha-yeon poked at the salad with her fork, her face glowing with happiness.

“Mom, today is so fun. I’m so happy to be at the amusement park with you!”

Seeing Ha-yeon’s smile made my heart swell. Spending time together like this, these little moments of happiness felt truly precious. Usually, we don’t notice the small joys, but being with Ha-yeon made me appreciate them. I looked at her and said, “I’m really happy to be here with you too, Ha-yeon.”

“Really?”

Ha-yeon seemed a little touched. Seeing her like that, I took out my phone. I had to capture her little self in a photo. Once she grows up, I won’t be able to see her like this anymore. Not that her growing up is a bad thing, but I wanted to have lots of photos to show her later.

“Kimchi!”

Ha-yeon noticed I was taking a photo and struck a pose like a model, holding up a peace sign. Her innocent expression was adorable. I snapped the photo.

A little later, the pork cutlets we’d been waiting for arrived. The golden, crispy cutlets made a satisfying crunching sound, stimulating our appetites. The cheese pork cutlet had melted cheese oozing out, looking both crispy and tender at the same time.

“Wow!”

Ha-yeon’s eyes lit up as she grabbed her fork and knife. Carefully cutting a piece and putting it in her mouth, her face brightened.

Following her lead, I took a bite too. The crispy coating and juicy meat were a perfect combination. It was crispy without being greasy, and the sauce added a delightful flavor. This wasn’t the kind of quality you’d expect from a tourist spot restaurant. To get pork cutlets this good, you’d probably have to wait in line for an hour. It must’ve been made with good ingredients and by a skilled chef. My homemade pork cutlets never tasted like this…

“This is really delicious! Ha-yeon, eat up!”

“Okay!”

Ha-yeon happily ate her pork cutlet, occasionally glancing at me with a bright smile. Her cuteness made me smile too. The fatigue from walking around the amusement park all day melted away. Though Ha-yeon struggled a bit with cutting the pork cutlet, her small hands not quite up to the task. I picked up my fork and knife again.

“Ha-yeon, let me cut it for you.”

I leaned forward and started cutting her pork cutlet into pieces. I had to be careful not to let my hair get in the way, so it was a bit awkward. But the pork cutlet was no match for an adult woman’s fork and knife skills. Soon, Ha-yeon’s pork cutlet was perfectly sliced. She looked at me with a bright smile and said, “Mom, you’re the best!”

“Mom, what should we ride after we finish eating?”

We hadn’t even ridden 10% of the rides yet. Of course, riding every ride in the amusement park in one day was nearly impossible. Unless you were a wizard from a movie taking 40 credits a week, it just wasn’t happening. So, Ha-yeon and I agreed to ride whatever caught our eye.

“Hmm… let’s think about it after we finish eating?”

“Okay! Let’s eat quickly!”

Ha-yeon enthusiastically took a big bite of her pork cutlet. Since I’d cut it into easy-to-eat pieces, she practically inhaled it. I watched her closely, imagining what she’d be like when she grew up. Would she still be this sweet, or would she slam her door shut and avoid me? I hoped for the former. The thought of Ha-yeon going through puberty made my heart ache.

Seeing her cute antics every day, I couldn’t imagine life without them. Even after a tough day at the café, seeing Ha-yeon’s smile made all the fatigue disappear.

—

“The zoo???”

“Yeah! I want to see the animals.”

After finishing our pork cutlets, Ha-yeon and I didn’t leave right away. We sat under the cool AC breeze, pulling out a map to discuss where to go next.

“The zoo, huh…”

I was surprised but soon smiled. The zoo? I hadn’t expected that. I thought she’d pick another ride since we were at the amusement park, but Ha-yeon’s eyes sparkled as she said, “I want to see all kinds of animals, Mom! Not just on TV, but in real life!”

Her voice was filled with excitement. It seemed like there was a specific animal she really wanted to see. To little Ha-yeon, the world was a playground full of mysteries, and animals symbolized that wonder. Though, of course, what’s mysterious is relative. People in Africa probably see way more animals than we do.

“Really?”

It wasn’t a bad choice. As Ha-yeon said, we only ever saw these animals on TV, and rarely got the chance to see them in real life. The only animals we usually saw were dogs and cats. Other animals were either deep in the mountains or rare creatures you’d only find in zoos.