TWENTY 1

“That’s the kind of typical comment nosy aunties always make, but… look at Jiseo. With a face like that, shouldn’t he be made into a celebrity without even needing to think about it?”

“You’ve been saying that consistently ever since Jiseo was little.”

“No, think about it. It’s such a waste when he looks like that. He’s so striking that when he gets older, people are going to be lining up.”

Around the time when the flattering compliments right in front of the subject were in full swing, tiny footsteps came scurrying over in front of Jiseo. The face that had been busy tapping on a mobile phone immediately turned toward the person who had instantly captured his attention.

“What should we play?”

After impulsively grabbing and releasing a large hand at the affectionate question, Youngwon suddenly began lining up toys one by one behind his back.

A teddy bear he had brought from somewhere, a dinosaur figurine sprawled on the floor, a little person figure from the blocks, and even their mothers, who had been sitting quietly and chatting.

Youngwon, who had suddenly lined them all up in front of Jiseo, firmly grabbed his hand once again.

The mothers, led out by tiny Youngwon’s hand, also looked like they had no idea what was going on.

‘Are we playing supermarket or something?’

Similarly unable to read the exact meaning behind the soft yet determined gaze, Jiseo chuckled and opened his mouth.

“What can I get for you, customer?”

“Jiseo is playing so nicely with his younger brother again.”

“We moms don’t have anything to shop for, so we should get going. Take your time picking out items and checking out, Youngwon. Okay?”

The adults, gently cheering Jiseo on so as not to hurt Youngwon’s feelings, stepped out of line. Unfazed, the child’s gaze remained fixed entirely on Jiseo.

“Customer. You need to pick out your items first.”

“…”

“Did you just come running right as the mart opened?”

Although it seemed like he wanted to play, Youngwon simply stood there blankly. Jiseo, who had been playing along, held onto the tiny hand and gently shook it.

“What do you want to have?”

At the playful, accommodating whisper, those insanely soft and plump lips parted without a single moment of hesitation.

“Hyung.”

“…”

“Hyung only plays with me, right? Even with all these other kids waiting, I’m the very first?”

“…”

“I want Hyung. Since I got here first, Hyung is mine, right?”

When he mentioned other kids, he probably meant the toys lined up behind him. It sounded less like wanting to play together and more like wanting something much closer and exclusive with just him.

Or perhaps it meant he wanted to drop all the toys and go outside to play.

“Let’s see. It looks like Youngwon doesn’t want to play mart, but rather wants to go to the mart?”

Seeing that he wasn’t enthusiastically continuing the roleplay as usual, Jiseo was certain that the child wanted something else entirely.

After all, the tiny hand kept clutching the hem of his T-shirt and pulling with all its might. It seemed he wanted Jiseo to stand up.

Why did he want to go outside? Though it was just a guess, Jiseo slowly tried to figure out the reason.

Normally, they would have just gone to the nearby stationery store to buy a toy, but for some reason, his usually round belly looked a bit hollow today. It seemed like he was hungry.

Since Youngwon was now five years old, permission had long since been given for Jiseo to take him out alone occasionally to buy snacks. Judging by the look of it, he seemed to crave some junk food.

Now that he thought about it, Youngwon had been whining earlier about wanting some snacks.

“Youngwon, did you have your snack today?”

At the quiet whisper that the adults couldn’t hear, Youngwon shook his head fiercely. Without missing a beat, Jiseo lifted Youngwon up effortlessly and turned to the adults, who were once again deep in an entertaining conversation.

“I’m going to take Youngwon just outside for a bit.”

“Alright. Watch out for cars.”

Since this wasn’t the first or second time they had gone out, permission was readily granted.

Quietly checking to make sure his wallet was secure in his pocket, Jiseo put shoes on those adorable little feet. Even after successfully getting the shoes on, Jiseo scooped Youngwon up easily into his arms and stepped out of the entryway.

His busy footsteps hurried straight to a shop filled from top to bottom with colorful candies, ice cream, and chocolate display shelves.

With Youngwon’s eyes wide with wonder as he pointed out everything he wanted, Jiseo poured a waterfall of chocolate all over a small ice cream cake.

“Chocolate is delicious, isn’t it?”

Stepping up onto a chair with a spellbound expression, Youngwon shoveled a massive spoonful of cake into his mouth, digging in busily.

Since it was an amount no larger than Jiseo’s pinky nail anyway, a sound of amused laughter filled one corner of the shop. Whether Jiseo was looking at him and laughing or not, Youngwon bounced his feet as if he couldn’t contain his excitement.

“Hyung, this, this…”

“…”

“Do you only buy things like this for Youngwon?”

Perhaps because the taste of the ice cream cake was overwhelmingly, dizzyingly blissful, his widened eyes showed no signs of shrinking back down.

Seeing that, Jiseo felt like he finally understood why adults occasionally commit acts of minor rebellion that felt like they might get scolded for.

“They say memories like this stick with you for a long time when you grow up.”

“…”

“And Hyung doesn’t have any other younger siblings—well, even counting younger kids I know, you’re the only one I’ve got, so this is my first time doing something like this. I couldn’t do it earlier because you took too long to grow up.”

“…”

“I suppose other things will have to wait until you get a bit bigger, though. Like…”

It seemed they wouldn’t get permission to wander farther than the neighborhood radius until Youngwon entered elementary school.

Wanting him to simply feel satisfied for now, Jiseo scooped up a spoonful of ice cream himself and fed it right into Youngwon’s mouth.

An experience this dazzling and thrilling was probably a first in his entire life. It was so cute watching his body tremble with delight as he jumped up and down in joy that Jiseo couldn’t stop laughing.

Laughing out loud and telling him to enjoy it to his heart’s content, Jiseo grabbed Youngwon’s adorable fingers, which were smeared with chocolate, and continued.

“If Hyung makes a lot of money when I grow up, I’ll buy you even better things. Okay?”

As that irresistible whisper meant for a cute younger brother slipped out, Youngwon nodded vigorously with all his might.

Even as his munching lips swallowed down the snack without a break, they would occasionally part slightly as if he was trying to say something.

It was right after arriving back home that Jiseo finally caught Youngwon’s whispered words, which had been completely drowned out inside the shop. As Jiseo bent his knees to match the child’s small height to hand over the remaining cake, a tiny pair of arms suddenly wrapped tightly around him.

“Hyung, did you mean… um, what you said earlier?”

“About what?”

“That you like Youngwon.”

“Huh?”

“Not that… To do other things, do I have to grow up super big like Hyung too?”

Confused by the unexpected conversational turn, Jiseo met the eyes of Youngwon, who was still hugging him, and asked back.

“What does that even mean?”

“When I grow up, I’m going to marry Hyung!”

“…”

“Let’s marry me. Actually, I like Hyung way more than all my other friends. Will you do it?”

“You like Hyung? Why?”

“Because your face is cool, you’re super-duper tall, you buy me lots of yummy stuff, and you promised that later—um, even if I’m not a baby anymore—if you make lots of money, you’ll stay with me forever!”

“…”

“Eating ice cream today was just so, so good.”

“…”

“I hope Hyung and I can get married and do lots of fun things together. When I grow up, as soon as Youngwon becomes an adult, let’s get married right away.”

“…”

“Hyung likes Youngwon too, right? It’s even better when you both like the same fun things.”

Though completely out of the blue, it was a bold yet remarkably cheeky confession of sorts, and it brought a continuous stream of laughter straight from Jiseo’s lips.