Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols - Chapter 55
Only Krnovel
| Episode 55. Chuseok Holiday (2)
Come home.
Actually, it’s not difficult to answer.
You can just say, ‘I ended up getting kicked out of the house and that’s how it turned out.’
But when I thought about Park Joo-woo’s expression as he misunderstood that I couldn’t go to college because I didn’t have money, I felt ambiguous about that.
There is nothing better than changing the subject to pass over.
I cut a half of a Donggrangtaeng and put it on Park Joo-woo’s plate and asked.
“You who are like that.”
“yes?”
“Why didn’t you go home?”
If it were Lee Cheong-hyeon, he would have said, “I asked first!” and nitpicked, but Park Joo-woo was not in the mood for that.
As expected, Park Joo-woo opened his mouth after repeatedly picking up and putting down the halved Dong-Grang-Ttaeng with his chopsticks.
“… …Somehow, I feel like holidays are days that should be spent with family.”
It was a contradiction to his own situation, where he did not go home and remained in his dorm.
Park Joo-woo continued speaking, perhaps noticing my confusion.
“I lived at my aunt’s. It’s been about 10 years… … .”
It was the first time I heard this story.
Looking back, it seems that among Spark’s TMI, there was no story about Park Joo-woo’s family.
There must be a reason why you don’t mention your parents, so I didn’t ask about that part.
Instead, I asked useless questions, pretending it wasn’t a big deal.
“How many people are in your family?”
“Four people. My aunt, my uncle, my older cousin, and my older sister… … .”
“You must have been the youngest at your aunt’s house. You must be tired taking care of two younger siblings here.”
“No. I like it because it’s noisy.”
There was a smile on Park Joo-woo’s lips as he spoke. It seemed like his life at his aunt’s house wasn’t so bad.
‘If it’s not that you avoid it because it’s uncomfortable, then it’s more like you’re being considerate of your aunt’s family and not going yourself.’
Just as that thought crossed my mind, Park Joo-woo spoke.
“After living together for a long time, I somehow feel like I should let go on days like this.”
“… … That could be the case.”
The sound of frying pan filled the quiet kitchen like background music.
I’m embarrassed. Did you know that such a heavy story would suddenly come up?
I know very well what it feels like to be a dependant.
Because I was the one who got a room and lived there with the money my older sister lent me.
But it was a bit sad that I had no one to see even during the holidays. I met my older sister when I didn’t have to work overtime.
I sighed inside.
I hesitated for a moment and then said while flipping the skewer.
“I don’t go because I don’t get along well with my family.”
Oh my, they only listen to the reason and don’t let me take it out.
“It’s not that it’s bad, it’s just that it’s a bit awkward. That’s why I didn’t go.”
Park Joo-woo, who was laying a new kitchen towel on a plate, opened his eyes wide and looked at me.
Even though I spoke in a somewhat vague manner to avoid another major misunderstanding, he seemed quite surprised.
“… … Did you fight?”
“It wasn’t to that extent. I became independent as an adult.”
Even if your mouth is crooked, you should speak straight. I didn’t fight with my family, I was beaten unilaterally. It’s 100% their fault, that’s what I’m saying.
“So that’s why you never called… … ?”
“How did you know?”
“When we all pick up our phones once in a while… … you’re the only one who doesn’t call anyone.”
UA gave us our personal cell phones back for about 30 minutes once a month to check in with our families.
During that time, the guys used to contact their families.
A guy like Jeong Seong-bin, who had a lot of friends, had to use his 30 minutes wisely.
So what did I do during that time… … .
‘What are you doing, you just blankly staring?’
I occasionally received a phone call from my manager whenever I wanted, and since I had no one to call, I naturally had nothing to do.
I have buried most of my stocks in my core. That means I don’t have to receive any phone calls.
“I didn’t know you were watching that.”
“I just happened to see it. … … I’m sorry if it offended you.”
“No, I’m just a little surprised.”
Actually, I was very surprised.
I thought everyone was so dazzled by the civilization they had only encountered in 30 days that they wouldn’t even care about me.
I was too complacent. I don’t want to stand out, so next time I should at least answer the phone for a poll.
“Who do you usually call?”
“Aunt. Or… brother or sister?”
“What? Why are you excluding your uncle?”
Park Joo-woo smiled slightly at my words. It certainly seemed like his relationship with his aunt’s family wasn’t bad.
“I’ll call your uncle next time.”
“Yeah. Be sure to tell them you ate the tofu dumplings.”
Our warm conversation brought our previous meeting to a close.
In the kitchen, which has been filled with daytime food, there is a basket of jeon, three Lock & Lock boxes filled with neatly arranged side dishes, and… … .
“Juuya.”
“……yes.”
“Washing the dishes… Can I finish it today?”
… … There was a huge amount of dishwashing left.
I looked at the frying pan soaked in oil and pulled out a paper towel with a sad look.
* * *
“under…….”
After two full hours of dishwashing, Park Joo-woo and I were freed from the cleaning up.
As soon as we finished cleaning up, we closed all the windows we had left open for ventilation and took refuge in a cafe near our accommodation.
I thought there wouldn’t be many places open because it was a holiday, but that wasn’t the case. I didn’t know because I always just rested at home after the ancestral rites.
Joo-woo Park and I each ordered a yogurt smoothie and sat down on the terrace.
Park Joo-woo asked me as I was sipping a smoothie to relieve my sore throat from the long hours of cooking.
“By any chance… …is that also a menu for preventing tooth discoloration?”
“uh.”
“and…….”
Park Joo-woo let out an exclamation whose intention was unclear.
I thought he was being sarcastic, but the look on his face seemed to say, ‘I’m just genuinely impressed.’ Hey, just let it slide this time.
“You worked hard today. Even setting the table is no ordinary task, really.”
“No. But I know it’s hard for you, hyung… … I’ll buy you some for the Lunar New Year when I come back.”
“I want to do it in my head, but I can’t do it in my heart.”
If it were someone else, I would have said, ‘Why bother taking care of everything when it’s so hard? You can just buy it and do it yourself.’
But when it comes to my job, it’s different.
“Well, I might not be able to do it against my will.”
“why……?”
“Prices have gone up too much… … .”
I was surprised when I went to buy green onions.
It’s a price that’s fallen after 9 years, but that’s the price for a bunch of green onions.
I realized once again that as time passes, memories tend to beautify themselves.
It was the moment when the small thought of buying some meat while shopping scattered like dust.
“I’m glad I only bought apples and pears. If I had bought chestnuts and persimmons, I probably wouldn’t have been able to drink my yogurt smoothie today.”
“… … It’s even more so because it’s a holiday?”
“That’s right. But prices don’t go down after the holidays.”
“My aunt always said that.”
Park Joo-woo laughed silently. It seemed as if he was recalling a scene from a holiday.
It seems like Park Joo-woo is keeping an eye on things, but as I expected, the atmosphere at my aunt’s house was harmonious.
When I thought about it this way, I felt a little sorry for Park Joo-woo, who didn’t get to eat much holiday food.
“I should have made japchae too.”
Regret spilled out in vain. Park Joo-woo, who had managed to hear it, asked.
“Brother, do you know how to make japchae?”
“I know how to do it. I can’t guarantee that it will taste good. I didn’t do it this time because I heard it’s high in calories… … .”
“ah…….”
I wish I had just left them a little bit to eat.
While we were talking about how much this time’s meal was and how the transfer was boring because I didn’t do liver treatment, I suddenly felt a prickle in the side of my face.
When I turned my head, the ladies sitting next to me were looking at us.
I quickly avoided eye contact, lowered my upper body, and asked Park Joo-woo.
“… … Was my voice too loud?”
Even though there aren’t many people, it’s unacceptable to be loud in a space used by many people.
Fortunately, Park Joo-woo shook his head.
If you’re saying that I’m not the type of guy who prefers quiet, then I guess I wasn’t a nuisance.
The ladies quickly looked away as if they sensed that I was watching them.
Instead, I heard the conversation next to me that had been interrupted for a moment.
“Sister, where did you buy songpyeon this year?”
“You know the rice cake shop below the apartment complex? Over there.”
“My sister lives there every year.”
aha.
I heard two boys sitting there like blanched spinach, talking about the same thing as the ladies.
Even I, two elementary school children, were drinking millet powder sitting next to me… … .
Will the recruitment of new students go well this year?
Well, I don’t know if I can fill in TO.
… … If you were to talk about this, your gaze would naturally go there.
“… … Do you want to buy some songpyeon too?”
“I like it.”
Feeling somewhat embarrassed, I cleaned up the place with Park Joo-woo and quietly left the cafe.
* * *
There weren’t many songpyeon left since the quick-moving people had already gone to the market, but Park Joo-woo and I successfully obtained some songpyeon.
After enjoying the Jeon and Songpyeon so deliciously, we headed to the Han River at 10 PM to pay off the karma of eating only five Songpyeon, which is equivalent to the calories of a bowl of rice.
Now that you’ve eaten, it’s time to run.
Since it was a holiday and the gym was closed, running along the Han River was the only option.
As I was warming up, ready to run for about two hours, the phone rang. Then, Park Joo-woo took out his personal cell phone, which he had received as a vacation souvenir, from his pocket.
“uh…….”
Park Joo-woo stopped after checking the screen.
“Why? Is it a poll number?”
“No. I got a call from my aunt… …. Brother, can you answer the phone… … .”
“Why are you asking for my understanding? Accept it now!”
You made me wait for an adult’s call. If it were Manager Nam, he would have thrown a tantrum as soon as I answered the phone.
‘Manager Kim! You left your phone behind and are making soup to eat?! Why aren’t you answering your phone?’
‘Manager Kim, why didn’t you answer the phone? If I called you about something really important, why did you do this?’
… … You must have heard this once or twice.
Even those calls weren’t all for business purposes. The reasons were varied, but I don’t want to remember them all.
I kept nagging Park Joo-woo, asking him what he was doing instead of answering the phone.
Park Joo-woo, unable to resist my urging, answered the phone with a trembling expression.