“Siwoo~! Here! Here! Come this way! There’s a snack here! Snack!”
Hyunjoo put puffed rice on a plate in the living room mat to lure her son.
Swish- Swish-swish-
Six-month-old Siwoo eagerly crawled on his belly towards the puffed rice, waving his chubby arms and legs.
Flop, flop.
Swish-
“Good job! Well done! Here too! Here’s a snack our Siwoo likes~!”
Swish-swish-swish-
Siwoo, moving like a caterpillar, finally reached the spot where the three pieces of puffed rice on a plate was.
With his tiny hands, he barely managed to pick up one piece and shoved it into his wide-open mouth, hand and all.
“Yum-yum! Tasty? There’s more! Let’s eat this too!”
As Hyunjoo tapped her finger to point out another puffed rice, the phone rang in the bedroom.
“Siwoo, Mommy will get the phone. Eat this while I’m gone.”
As Hyunjoo got up and headed to the bedroom, a brown poodle that had been lying quietly in one corner of the living room suddenly stood up.
Running to the bedroom, Hyunjoo called back to the poodle, “No! Don’t eat the baby’s food! Be good, Boksil!”
– Woof!
Boksil, honestly admitting she wasn’t that well-behaved, stealthily stepped onto the mat while Hyunjoo went to get the phone.
It had been over ten minutes of Boksil swallowing her drool, eyeing the puffed rice scattered on the mat.
The moment Boksil stepped onto the mat.
Bang!
Siwoo’s tiny hand smacked the mat hard.
Startled, Boksil froze with one paw in the air.
Three-year-old Boksil and six-month-old Siwoo locked eyes in mid-air.
And then…
With both hands on the mat, Siwoo slowly raised himself up.
Then he bent his right leg, planted his foot on the mat, and stood up completely.
The sight of a six-month-old standing on his own two feet was witnessed only by speechless three-year-old Boksil, whose eyes grew round.
While standing, Siwoo pointed to a corner of the living room with his finger.
It was where Boksil had originally been lying.
– Whimper…
Sensing a great threat through her animal instincts, Boksil quickly turned and returned to her spot.
“Hello! Yes, sister!”
Hyunjoo’s voice came from the bedroom.
Like a flash, Siwoo launched himself forward in a sliding motion.
Thud-!
“Siwoo? He’s practicing crawling and playing with puffed rice. Yes, he’s eating well. He likes it. Siwoo~! Say hi to your auntie!”
“E~! Bababa! Mam-mam!”
After greeting his aunt, Siwoo resumed crawling and eating puffed rice.
Hyunjoo, while chasing after Siwoo, continued her phone call with her sister.
[He’s already eating? Siwoo’s speech will develop really fast.]
“No, he can only say ‘mam-mam’ for now. He can’t say ‘mom’ or ‘dad’ yet.”
[Once he starts talking, it’ll be quick. Our Siwoo is so smart and incredibly beautiful. I see a lot of babies when I’m out, but none as pretty as Siwoo.]
Hyunjoo felt pleased with her sister’s praise but tried not to show it.
“Oh, come on. All babies are cute. Is there any baby that isn’t?”
[You don’t get it? A baby like our Siwoo is really rare. Maybe… he’s the most beautiful baby in the whole country.]
Hyunjoo started to feel something strange.
“Sis, why are you overdoing it today? What’s up?”
Over the phone, Hyunjoo’s sister, Heejoo, spoke cautiously.
[So, about the drama I’m working on…]
Heejoo’s job was as an assistant drama writer.
[They need a baby for the ending, one that the main character, Lee Soojin, will carry out. The script changed suddenly, and it’s hard to find a baby the right age…]
“……”
[But then I remember that Siwoo is just the right age! And at that moment, Beethoven’s “Fate” started playing in my head.]
“Sigh…”
[I thought, let’s have Siwoo in the drama!]
“Who do you think you are? He’s my baby!”
[Think about it, please. It’s really urgent. Let me know by 8 PM today, okay? Love you, Hyunjoo!]
Click.
“She’s always been so headstrong since we were kids. Ugh.”
* * *
After drinking his formula and burping, Siwoo giggled at Boksil for a while before falling asleep on the mat.
Hyunjoo picked Siwoo up and laid him in his crib.
Hush, hush-
Siwoo’s white face, while breathing softly in deep sleep, looked so adorable and lovable.
Maybe he really is the most beautiful baby in the country, just like her sister said?
Hyunjoo smiled to herself at the thought.
But what if he sleeps too much now and doesn’t sleep at night?
Despite her worries, it was a blessing to have some peace to prepare dinner.
Glancing at the clock, Hyunjoo headed to the kitchen and started cooking.
Sizzle-
Bubble, bubble-
As the sound of meat grilling and stew boiling filled the house, the front door opened, and her husband, Dojin, came in.
“Hey, you’re home? Thanks for your hard work today.”
Dojin was a tall, handsome man over 180 cm. Once an aspiring actor in the theater scene, he now diligently worked as a police officer for his family.
“Yeah, you too, taking care of Siwoo. Everything okay?”
“Same as usual. Oh, wait, not really.”
“What?”
“Uh, change your clothes first. I’ll tell you over dinner.”
“Alright.”
Dojin peeked at the sleeping Siwoo before quietly heading to the bedroom.
When he came back, dressed comfortably, he saw Hyunjoo setting the table.
“Need help?”
“No, it’s done. Sit down.”
“Let me help. It looks heavy.”
“I’m fine… thanks.”
Dojin helped move the pot of soybean paste stew and a few side dish bowls to the table.
In the meantime, Hyunjoo had finished preparing the meal and put down her spoon.
Facing each other, Dojin and Hyunjoo began to eat carefully so as not to wake Siwoo.
When about half of the food on the table had disappeared, Dojin asked,
“So, what was that thing you said you’d tell me earlier?”
🙂
♥️