Chapter 31
Chapter 31
“h.e.l.lo, s.h.i.+nhae . ”
Jimin bent down slightly as she did her best to get on eye level with s.h.i.+nhae . It seemed s.h.i.+nhae was still suspicious . She had unfastened the door’s chain lock, so Jimin could only see her through the small crack . Still, it was enough for Jimin to see s.h.i.+nhae .
‘She looks just like her picture . She is a cute girl . ’
No, she looked better in real life than her picture . However, Jimin could see a darkness shadowing her face . It must be because her father wasn’t here . s.h.i.+nhae’s mother had abandoned her, and the only person she could rely on was her father .
“Are you Jimin ajumma?”
Jimin’s eyebrows twitched . Unlike her usual self, she had done her best to put on a smile . However, a crack appeared on her face . Of course, she didn’t outwardly express her true emotions, and she decided not to push it too much .
“Yes, I’m Jimin unni . ”
However, there was one thing she wouldn’t allow . She didn"t want to be called an ajumma .
Never .
“Unni made a promise with s.h.i.+nhae’s father . I told him I"ll make sure you are doing ok . May I come into your house?”
s.h.i.+nhae stared at Jimin’s face for a moment . Jimin worried Sungyoon had not told s.h.i.+nhae about the promise she had made with him . Jimin was close to being fl.u.s.tered when it happened .
“Wait a moment . ”
s.h.i.+nhae closed the door after she spoke those words .
Click!
The last lock was the chain lock . Jimin heard it unfasten from the other side of the door, and in the end, the door was fully opened .
“Please come in . ”
“Pardon me . ”
Jimin was careful as she entered the house .
She took off her shoes and placed her feet on the wood floor . She looked at her surroundings .
There wasn’t much furnis.h.i.+ng in the house other than the essentials . In some ways, it was a practical yet boring house . At the very least, her hired help was doing their work well as the house was clean, the dishes had been washed and put away in the cupboard, and not a single mote of dust could be found on the floor .
After her visual inspection, she lowered her gaze . s.h.i.+nhae reached her waist in terms of height, and she kept fidgeting in place in response to her scrutiny . It seemed she felt awkward since an unfamiliar person had visited her home . Of course, Jimin felt awkward too .
“Mmm . Do you find anything lacking? Do you need anything”
That was all she could come up with . s.h.i.+nhae shook her head from side to side .
“Do you mind if unni looks around the house?”
From what she could see right now, everything looked good . However, there might be problems somewhere else . As a stranger, it would be rude of her to search the house without consent, so Jimin asked for permission from s.h.i.+nhae .
This time s.h.i.+nhae moved her head up and down .
When she received consent, Jimin immediately inspected the house . The rooms were clean, and the refrigerator was clean . Food had been prepared in containers, so s.h.i.+nhae could eat whenever she wanted . The sheets and blankets were washed not too long ago, so Jimin could smell the scent of the laundry detergent .
In the course of her inspection, she located a sketch book placed on a desk in the smallest room . There were several crayons next to it . It seemed s.h.i.+nhae had been drawing pictures . Naturally, her eyes were drawn to the sketch book .
s.h.i.+nhae had drawn two people . A man with short hair was smiling, and a small female child with bobbed hair stood next to him .
‘Did she draw her family?’
It was obvious that it was a picture of Sungyoon and s.h.i.+nhae . Normally, a child would draw the mother alongside the dad . However, the mother didn’t exist within the picture, but it wasn’t as if the picture was incomplete . s.h.i.+nhae had been coloring in the background, and it was more than halfway done .
Her mother was no longer her family . s.h.i.+nhae’s picture made this abundantly clear .
Jimin came back out to the living room and found the little girl sitting in the main room, watching TV . When she realized Jimin had come out of the room, s.h.i.+nhae quickly got up from her seat .
“Mmm! Were you drawing pictures today?”
“…yes . ”
s.h.i.+nhae’s voice was cute . It matched her cute face . However, behind her cute appearance, there was pain and loneliness .
It was as if Jimin was looking at her past self .
“…do you mind if unni sleeps here today?”
Maybe that was the reason why she blurted out those unexpected words .
s.h.i.+nhae looked a little bit surprised . Jimin was surprised too . Of course, a child would be surprised by such a statement made by a stranger . In fact, it was quite rude for a stranger to ask to sleep over at someone"s house .
“This was one of the ways I promised I’ll take care of you . ”
She quickly came up with an excuse . s.h.i.+nhae looked conflicted, but in the end, she nodded . Jimin’s excuse had worked .
“Thank you . ”
Even as she said those words, she inwardly wondered if she was doing the right thing . She didn’t have any spare clothes, and she didn’t have any make up . She didn’t even have pajamas that she could wear to sleep . She had no choice . She would have to visit her house early in the morning before going to work .
s.h.i.+nhae entered the main room .
“Hnngh!”
s.h.i.+nhae let out a cute noise as she quickly dragged something out of the room . It was a blanket . s.h.i.+nhae’s cute little hands brought out the blanket, and she started unfolding it on the floor of the guest room .
“This is ajumma’s blanket . ”
s.h.i.+nhae spoke those words, and then she went in to get her sketch book and crayons from the desk .
“Oh my! Did you bring this blanket out for me?”
“Yes . ”
s.h.i.+nhae replied as she placed the sketchbook and crayons on top of the dining room table . The girl was so cute and well behaved . Jimin knew that s.h.i.+nhae’s heart had been wounded, and it had made the child mature more quickly . Jimin felt sorry for her .
‘Anyways, I should wash myself before I do anything . ’
Jimin received permission from s.h.i.+nhae before she used the bathroom .
Nothing remarkable happened afterward . Jimin and s.h.i.+nhae didn’t have a personality where they became attached to someone they met for the first time .
The silence continued . s.h.i.+nhae swung her legs on the dining chair as she colored her picture, while Jimin brought out a book she carried around in her purse . She sat in the dining chair as she read the book .
Flas.h.!.+
A light flashed once again outside the window .
Rumble!
The lightning must have occurred nearby since the lightning and thunder almost simultaneously . Moreover, the thunder was clearly louder now .
‘Is it about to strike again?’
It continued to rain outside even after she arrived here . However, the frequency of the thunder and lightning strikes had decreased . It seemed the thunderstorm was about to pick up once again .
Flas.h.!.+
Another lightning appeared . It lit up the night sky .
“Oooh…!”
Jimin heard an odd sound from next to her . It sounded like a suppressed cry . Jimin turned to look at the source of the sound .
s.h.i.+nhae was slightly hunched as she continued to draw her picture . However, something was wrong . Until a moment ago, her crayon had been moving constantly . Her hand had come to a stop .
Flas.h.!.+
Another lightning flashed, and thunder accompanied it . It sounded as if the sky would fall .
Flinch!
Jimin could clearly see s.h.i.+nhae flinch, and her body started shaking violently .
“Sniff!”
s.h.i.+nhae’s shoulders shook . Jimin could also hear small sniffles .
She was only 5 years old . She was at an age where she should be shaking in the arms of her mother from being afraid of the thunderstorm . However, s.h.i.+nhae didn’t have a mother or a father that she could rely on right now . s.h.i.+nhae did her best to curl in on herself as she waited for the frightening event to end .
Jimin stood up . She saw her past self when she saw s.h.i.+nhae . Jimin’s father had always been at the labyrinth, and her b.i.t.c.h of a mother had divorced her father early on . Fortunately, there had been other female figures, who had been like a mother to her . Their presence had made her childhood bearable .
On the other hand, s.h.i.+nhae had no one .
Jimin calmly placed her hand on s.h.i.+nhae’s shoulder . s.h.i.+nhae turned around in surprise . Jimin could see s.h.i.+nhae’s crying face .
“Are you scared?”
Jimin knew she didn’t have a motherly bone in her body . However, she did her best and tried to put on a soft expression . If Chelsea saw this, she would have run away claiming that she wasn’t the real Jimin . Her current expression differed so much from her normal expression .
s.h.i.+nhae hesitated before she nodded .
Flas.h.!.+
Another lightning flashed, and s.h.i.+nhae’s body jumped in place once again .
“It’ll all be ok . ”
Jimin hugged s.h.i.+nhae .
“It’ll all be ok . It’ll be fine since ajumma is here . ”
Jimin used the word she hated the most . She called herself ajumma as she consoled s.h.i.+nhae . It was such an unexpected gesture that s.h.i.+nhae’s body turned stiff . Jimin could tell that s.h.i.+nhae didn’t know what to do . However, it only lasted a second .
Flas.h.!.+
Another lightning flashed, and s.h.i.+nhae instinctively moved closer into Jimin’s arms .
Jimin thought about her childhood as she patted s.h.i.+nhae’s back . Of course, she couldn’t dispel all the terror felt by the child . However, Jimin blunted the fear felt by s.h.i.+nhae . s.h.i.+nhae realized that there was someone next to her that she could rely on . This fact brought immense sense of security to s.h.i.+nhae .
s.h.i.+nhae’s trembling lessened . Of course, she continued to jump whenever she heard thunder . However, she was much more grounded than before .
Jimin continued to hold s.h.i.+nhae for almost an hour . Jimin didn’t look annoyed that she had to do this . Instead, there was a benevolent smile on her lips .
At some point, Jimin heard even breathing . Jimin carefully moved s.h.i.+nhae away from her bosom . s.h.i.+nhae’s tear stained eyes were closed . Her chest rose and fell in a rhythmic fas.h.i.+on . It indicated that s.h.i.+nhae was asleep . Jimin’s blouse was tear stained, but she didn’t care .
Jimin quietly carried s.h.i.+nhae into the main room and lay her on top of the bed . She placed a blanket over her, and she stroked her hair once . s.h.i.+nhae muttered in her sleep as she re-positioned herself . Jimin let out a small smile as she stood up . She quietly closed the door as she exited to the living room, which was attached to the kitchen .
‘What should I do now?’
It wasn’t that late . When she looked at her watch, she saw that it had just turned 10 PM . She could head back home . However, she hesitated . She looked at the blanket that had been spread on the floor by s.h.i.+nhae .
‘Also, the thunderstorm hasn’t stopped’
s.h.i.+nhae might be woken up by the sound of thunder . She might cry again . This thought rooted Jimin to the floor .
‘I did tell her that I am sleeping over . ’
She didn’t care if it was an excuse or a legitimate reason . She gave up on the thought of going back home . She tucked herself into the blanket provided by s.h.i.+nhae . In the end, her breathing became even as she fell asleep .
* * *
She had a dream . It was the time when her father wasn’t as handsome, and her mother wasn’t scary . It was a time when everyone laughed brightly in their big house . When it was morning, her mother would quietly wake her up, and she would grumble that she wanted to sleep more . Then her father would let out a big laugh, and he would pick her up into his arms . Her father would brush his scratchy beard against her cheeks, and she would desperately try to avoid it . She would get up . After eating a hot breakfast, she would say goodbye when her father left for work .
It hadn’t lasted long, but it was the happiest period of s.h.i.+nhae’s life . However, s.h.i.+nhae knew this was a dream . It was a memory that she’ll never experience again . s.h.i.+nhae was young, but she knew this to be true .
“s.h.i.+nhae . s.h.i.+nhae . ”
Was she still in her dream? Someone was shaking her awake like before . The voice was warm and kind . s.h.i.+nhae rubbed her eyes as she woke up, and she unconsciously spoke out .
“Mom?”
s.h.i.+nhae’s vision came back into focus, and she caught sight of Jimin’s face . She had an awkward expression on her face .
“Mmm . h.e.l.lo, s.h.i.+nhae . ”
She let out an awkward smile as she pointed towards the kitchen .
“Would you like to eat some breakfast?”
Before s.h.i.+nhae could think, she subconsciously nodded .