Chapter 7

*Boom rumble rumble— crash crash!*

Outside, the rain was pouring down heavily, and the sound of thunder echoed. Ha-yeon was staring blankly out the window at the scene. It was already dark outside as the sun had set.

Ha-yeon wasn’t scared of the thunder. In fact, she liked it. Why? Because whenever there was thunder, her mom would come to her room.

Ha-yeon lay down on her bed, waiting for her mom to come. Her mom always said she wasn’t scared of thunder, but to Ha-yeon, it didn’t seem that way. Her mom always tried to act strong and dependable in front of her, but Ha-yeon found her mom’s efforts adorable.

*Tap tap—*

Amid the thunder and rain, the sound of footsteps outside could be heard. Ha-yeon smiled, closing her eyes, knowing her mom was coming.

*Knock knock—*

A soft knock on the door, but Ha-yeon didn’t miss it.

“Mom?”

*Creak—*

The door opened, and her mom came in, clutching a pillow tightly.

“Ha-yeon, are you asleep?”

“Nope!”

“Then, how about sleeping with mom for a change?”

“Okay!”

She never admitted that the thunder scared her. Her mom quietly climbed onto Ha-yeon’s bed. Ha-yeon made space for her mom, though the bed was small, so it was a bit uncomfortable for both of them.

The bed was so small that it was almost full with just her mom lying down. Ha-yeon snuggled into her mom’s side. Her mom smelled nice. Thunder really was the best.

“Mom, are you scared of the thunder?”

“Ah… no! Not at all!”

“I’m scared!”

Of course, Ha-yeon wasn’t scared at all, but she decided to lose to protect her mom’s pride. And so, Ha-yeon fell asleep, breathing in her mom’s scent.

If only the bed were bigger, she could have stayed close to her mom all day. But she couldn’t just ask to buy a new bed. Her mom worked so hard to save money, and Ha-yeon couldn’t just ask for a new bed because she wanted it.

And so, Ha-yeon fell asleep comfortably in her mom’s arms. The thunder outside was like an orchestra’s symphony. While other kids might be scared of thunder, for Ha-yeon, it was a good sound. Sure, it was loud and hurt her ears, but it was the trigger that brought her mom to her room, so she couldn’t dislike it.

—

“Hi, Ha-yeon~”

“Hello, Teacher.”

*Bow—*

Si-eun had gotten used to Ha-yeon’s behavior over the past month. When her mom, Kim Ha-yul, was around, Ha-yeon was clingy and full of aegyo, but when her mom wasn’t there, Ha-yeon became calm and composed. Still, Ha-yeon was popular among the boys in her kindergarten class.

Her looks were outstanding, and some boys were influenced by her mature aura.

Of course, she got along well with the girls too. She followed her mom’s advice to make lots of friends. So, she didn’t have to worry about what she initially feared—being bullied by her classmates.

From what Si-eun observed, Ha-yeon was far from being bullied. In fact, she was like the boss of the group. She knew how to handle the kids and make them listen.

In a way, she seemed like a parent herself.

Anyway, Si-eun told the kindergarten kids:

“Tomorrow is the parent observation class, so let’s all practice~ We need to show our best side in front of our moms, right?”

The parent observation class was approaching.

At Sunflower Kindergarten, about a month into the semester, there was an annual event—the observation class.

They sent out notices to parents, inviting them to observe the class.

It was a chance for parents to see how well their kids had adapted to kindergarten life and how the teachers were teaching their children.

Of course, the teachers weren’t too thrilled. There was a lot to do. And even though Si-eun had been a kindergarten teacher for quite some time, she still got nervous during parent observation classes.

It felt like her teaching skills were being evaluated by the parents, and she worried about how she would appear in front of them.

‘What kind of class is mine? There must be good parts, but also parts to improve…’

Even though she had done observation classes many times, she wasn’t entirely sure what her strengths and weaknesses were. So, the pressure of having parents attend her class was unavoidable. But skipping it wasn’t an option.

Elementary, middle, and high schools also had parent observation classes, so kindergarten couldn’t be an exception.

—

“Mom, mom, wake up!”

“Ugh…”

I spoke without even opening my eyes. Judging by how tired my body felt, I probably didn’t wake up on time. And my phone alarm hadn’t gone off either. If it had, I wouldn’t be this tired. I was someone who slept a lot.

“Ha… Ha-yeon, what time is it now?”

“It’s 6!”

As expected, I usually woke up around 8, so Ha-yeon must have woken up too early. She grabbed my body and shook it hard. Why was she so excited?

“Mom, can’t you sleep a little longer?”

“Ugh… no!”

“Okay.”

If Ha-yeon said no, I couldn’t sleep. In our house, Ha-yeon’s words were like an unbreakable presidential decree. I rubbed my eyes and got up. My messy hair blocked my vision. Ha-yeon hugged me and said:

“Today’s the day we go to kindergarten together!”

“Ah…”

I think I knew why Ha-yeon was so excited today. It was the kindergarten parent observation class. Just the fact that she was going to kindergarten with me made her this happy. I had already asked the café boss for the day off, so I didn’t have to worry about work.

By the way, if it was 6, we still had three hours before we had to go to kindergarten. I hugged Ha-yeon and said:

“Okay. I’ll make breakfast.”

“Ah!”

Ha-yeon got all excited. My cooking skills were a bit lacking, but after years of practice, I could make decent food. Of course, in the beginning, even Ha-yeon couldn’t finish my cooking because it was so bad.

Come to think of it, when I worked at the café, a lot of people liked the drinks I made. Strangely, some customers even requested that I make their drinks instead of the other staff. Was this some kind of ability I got from being reincarnated?

What kind of ability is [Makes café drinks taste better]? What a useless ability.

Anyway, I got up and headed to the kitchen. Ha-yeon was rummaging through the fridge. I told her to stay still, but she still helped me with the cooking. I guess I was a bit of a lacking mom.

“Mom, I want fried rice today!”

“Okay? I’ll make kimchi fried rice.”

“Yay!”

Ha-yeon was bustling around me. I wanted to tell her to go watch TV in the living room, but she was just too cute. Fried rice was an easy dish to make. Unlike other dishes, you just throw all the ingredients together and mix them.

Fried rice was what kept me going when my cooking skills were terrible. At least Ha-yeon could eat it. Of course, now I could make other dishes too. I just couldn’t guarantee the taste.

“Yah!”

Ha-yeon sensibly set the table. I carefully placed the frying pan down, making sure Ha-yeon didn’t get hurt. She had already set the chopsticks and spoons on the table without me noticing. I patted her head and said:

“Good girl~”

“Hehe!”

Ha-yeon laughed and picked up her spoon. I also grabbed my spoon, holding my growling stomach. I had made plenty of fried rice, so there was enough for both of us.