Cheating way through to Stardom chapter 9- Towards success

“Honey, don’t…”

“Don’t stop me, dear. This isn’t an everyday opportunity.”

Auntie rested her chin on her hand and looked at me.

I avoided her gaze like a guilty puppy.

‘Wh-what is it?’

Why am I so scared?

It felt like a huge beast was looking down at me.

“Dowon.”

“Y-yes.”

“Act cute for me.”

For a moment, I was at a loss for words.

I stared at her with wide eyes.

Auntie smiled leisurely and waved her hand.

An awkward silence fell. I barely managed to say,

“A-auntie? (Polite)”

“‘Please, Aunt (Casual), is fine too. Go ahead.”

“Honey, that’s enough.”

“Don’t stop me. Do you think you can see a cute boy act every day?”

Uncle shook his head and patted my shoulder.

“Aunt likes to joke around when she gets close to someone. You don’t have to do it, Dowon.”

“No way! Who said you don’t have to? I must see it!”

I blinked. It was very embarrassing, but honestly, somewhat…

‘I’m used to this.’

When I asked for more allowance, mom often did this.

Thanks to that, I was somewhat used to it.

‘You two really are sisters.’

“I was so envious when your mom bragged about you. Our Dowon. It’s been a while, and you’ve grown a lot. But you’re still such a cute boy.”

I scratched my cheek slightly.

“I am a bit cute.”

“Right. So, just once, please. Aunt really wants to see it.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. She was so cheerful.

After laughing heartily and wiping my tears, I felt their gazes.

‘They’re warm.’

Why didn’t I notice this back then? If I had, my sister and I wouldn’t have struggled so much.

I quietly held Aunt’s hand.

Then, placing her slender fingers on my cheek, I smiled shyly.

“Please, Aunt.”

“Oh my!”

Aunt covered her mouth and laughed heartily.

‘I should write my name with my butt here…’

But I can’t do that, Aunt.

“Oh my! Oh my, how cute!”

My aunt hugged me, then let go.

‘Wow, this is really embarrassing.’

As I turned my face away in shame, my aunt patted my shoulder.

“Sora would be so jealous if they saw you like this.”

“A-Aunt…”

“But Dowon, don’t do this anywhere else. It could cause big trouble. Oh, my heart’s racing. I just love this so much.”

Unable to watch any longer, my uncle gently intervened.

“Honey, that’s enough. Dowon’s turning red.”

“That’s even better. A shy pretty boy!”

“Oh dear. Dowon, don’t mind her. Your aunt’s just a bit excited.”

Was she always like this?

‘In my memories, she was a strict person…’

But right now she was incredibly cheerful.

“It must be tough for my sister. How could she leave such a beautiful flower boy behind?”

Calling a boy a flower?

“Dowon, be careful when you’re out at night. Watch out for cars and stay away from strange men and women, okay?”

“Yes? Got it.”

I tilted my head in confusion.

Wasn’t that something you should be telling my sister?

After all, I’m a perfectly healthy guy…

‘Oh!’

I looked down at my hands. They were still underdeveloped.

‘Even though I’ve learned Taekwondo, it’s not like I get beaten up anywhere.’

To be fair, my appearance during this time was somewhat androgynous.

‘My body is quite skinny.’

I kneaded my shoulders and arms.

I had muscles, but they were incredibly thin.

A gentle voice came from behind.

“Are you feeling stiff anywhere?”

Turning around, I saw my uncle massaging my shoulder.

I shook my head to indicate no.

“What time is the funeral procession?”

“Oh, it’s scheduled for 5 o’clock.”

“There aren’t many people here. Should we stay with you until then?”

“You have to go to work.”

“I’ll take a day off.”

Staying up all night, they were truly kind people.

‘They helped us back then too.’

Before my regression, they were the only ones who helped us find our family’s property.

‘Though we never found it.’

Suddenly, rage welled up inside me. I clenched my fists, wanting to show those bald men a piece of my mind right away.

‘No.’

I took a deep breath.

‘Revenge should be planned. Cha Dowon.’

I smiled brightly, fiddling with the smartphone in my pocket and looking around.

Food remnants mixed with hair caught my eye.

‘A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.’

I started cleaning up the food on the table.

“Do you need help?”

My aunt asked, but I shook my head.

“No.”

I smiled as brightly as my anger boiled over.

“I’ll do it.”

I need to clean up the trash myself. In this life, I will make sure my sister never touches this filth and stench.

‘I will move forward.’

I might go slowly, but I never planned to stop. So I kept smiling.

***

My mom’s columbarium was on the third floor out of five.

‘Having a proper adult around makes such a difference.’

While my sister and I were deliberating on where would be best, my aunt gave us crucial advice.

My uncle talked to the columbarium manager, and as a result, we got a better spot for a similar price.

We placed the still-warm urn on the shelf.

The lingering warmth of my mother’s last moments made me grimace.

The funeral was over.

As we closed the door and turned around, my sister finally burst into tears.

I gently wiped her tears and walked slowly. The marble floor was unusually smooth.

***

Back home, I took off my mourning clothes and lay on the bed.

Returning to a place we lost long ago felt surreal.

‘We lost this house to those bald men.’

Thinking about the things they took bit by bit made my anger surge.

Remembering their grandiose talk about being the eldest grandson, I couldn’t stay lying down.

I sprang out of bed.

“Ugh.”

I let out a deep sigh.

‘I probably won’t be able to sleep…’

What should I do?

The answer came quickly.

‘I should cook.’

My sister hadn’t moved since she went into her room.

I bitterly recalled how we used to order delivery food when Mom wasn’t home.

‘It tasted awful.’

I didn’t want to repeat that.

I rushed to the kitchen.

Rummaging through the pantry, I found some decent ingredients.

‘Potatoes, carrots, onions, pork…’

Curry it is.

I skillfully chopped the vegetables and turned on the gas stove.

It was only after I added the onions to the meat that I realized there was no rice in the cooker.

‘Oh no, oh no.’

Forgetting the most important thing, I quickly started washing the rice.

Just then, my sister came out of her room, hearing the noise.

“Dowon, what are you doing?”

Smiling brightly, I put the washed rice in the cooker.

“Cooking.”

“You?”

“I told you, I’m good at cooking now. Do you want curry?”

My sister nodded.

She does like curry.

I set the timer on the rice cooker and mixed the curry powder.

Turning around, I saw my sister watching me curiously.

She pinched her own cheek and then came over to pinch mine.

“Noona?”

“It’s not a dream.”

“It hurts…”

She let go of my cheek and looked at her hand. I chuckled and said,

“Have a seat.”

“Did you eat something weird? You never act like this.”

I’ll be like this from now on. You know, Cha Sora, I am now older than you.

“Actually, noona, I need to discuss something.”

She obediently sat at the table.

I added the curry powder to the pot and lowered the heat.

“I think we should rent out this house.”

“What?”

Her eyes widened.

Why so surprised?

“Even if I move to a dorm when I go to college, where will you live?”

“I’ll go to an agency. They usually provide lodging.”

Her expression twisted completely.

“That audition you took? Did you pass?”

I grinned.

“No! Not yet!”

“Then why are you talking like you already did?”

I tapped my chest.

“I will pass.”

“You, really!”

“It’s true. Want to bet? I have a good intuition.”

“Good intuition? Are you our mom?”

I chuckled.

Maybe coming back brought some intuition with it.

“Anyway, let’s rent out the house. We can use the rent to cover your tuition and keep the house.”

“How much money did Mom leave us?”

“We have about 100 million won in cash. But med school will cost more than that in six years.”

I wasn’t sure, but living expenses wouldn’t be cheap.

“Plus, I’ll need money too. I’ll try to get into the debut group, but the cash will run out quickly.”

My sister frowned.

“What is a debut team?”

“Oh, it’s a team chosen by the agency to debut? I’ve heard that Friends Entertainment is a big company, and even just being on the debut team gets you paid.”

This showed how good that company was.