Episode 25. What I Love to Do (1)
Living with his daughters all this time, Kang Dae-oh realized one thing.
If Kang Yera, Kang Yebin, or Kang Yeyoung suddenly asked Kang Dae-oh if he had time because they had something to tell him, it meant he would hear important stories about the future.
So, whenever such an opportunity arose, Kang Dae-oh made it his top priority.
Whether there was anything Kang Dae-oh might be missing, or what important events might unfold in the future.
Because his daughters already knew everything.
Kang Dae-oh, heading to the tower-style parking lot located behind Amare’s main branch, pulled out a new car key from his pocket.
Kang Dae-oh, who had disposed of his old car that he’d driven for over 10 years and taken this opportunity to switch to a new SUV, gave a bitter smile as soon as he got in.
“A new car is nice, indeed.”
The distinct smell of a new car, only a week old, stimulated Kang Dae-oh’s nostrils.
In places, there were still visible parts where the plastic hadn’t been peeled off yet, due to his busy schedule.
Since he had three children, when looking for a car suitable for a family of five, only a large SUV came to mind.
Kang Dae-oh, taking the wheel, drove to Kang Yera’s elementary school, timing it with the end of her classes.
The target was the main gate.
As he neared the vicinity.
Kang Dae-oh turned on his hazard lights and briefly parked his car by the roadside.
Kang Yera was visible up ahead.
He could have honked, but Kang Dae-oh deliberately chose not to, fearing he might startle the passing elementary school students.
Kang Dae-oh briefly got out of the car, raised his voice, and waved his hand high.
“Yera!”
“Dad!”
Only then did Kang Yera, realizing Kang Dae-oh had arrived, wave back.
Even though she was now in the 4th grade of elementary school, Kang Yera was still cute.
Kang Yera wasn’t the only one waiting for Kang Dae-oh.
His second daughter, Kang Yebin, was also with her.
At first, he thought they had met by chance.
It seemed that wasn’t the case.
“I thought you said you had something to tell Dad.”
“Something came up that I need to tell you with Yebin.”
It was as he expected.
Kang Dae-oh nodded and led his two daughters towards the car.
After seating the children in the back, Kang Dae-oh headed back to the Amare headquarters building.
When Kang Dae-oh returned to the company office with his two daughters, the employees greeted the children with bright smiles.
“Hello, Yera.”
“Hello, Yebin? I’m enjoying the drama. You look so cute in it!”
“Thank you.”
Kang Yebin maintained a poker face and gave a slight nod.
Then Kang Yera glared and quietly whispered.
“Would it hurt to react a little cuter?”
“It doesn’t matter, because even like this, adults will find it cute.”
Kang Yebin was right.
Since her appearance itself was cute, the employees reacted enthusiastically even without her showing much change in expression.
Watching Kang Yebin appropriately use her childlike appearance, Kang Yera clicked her tongue briefly, Tsk.
“She’s a younger sister with no cute charm.”
“It’s fine as long as I’m comfortable.”
Perhaps because they were in front of people, their bickering didn’t last long.
Kang Dae-oh, having seated his two daughters on the office sofa, pointed to the refrigerator and asked.
“Would you like something to drink?”
“Yes!”
Kang Yera answered, her eyes sparkling.
A drink she could never have when her mom was around.
It was because of the expectation that she might be able to drink coffee.
However, what was placed in front of Kang Yera was a drink far from what she had expected: coffee.
“Here. Chocolate milk.”
“……Is this the best you can do?”
“It’s the best. If I gave you coffee, your mom would obviously scold me terribly.”
“Haaah······.”
Kang Yera, who had expected otherwise, was foolish.
Kang Yebin, perhaps knowing this would happen and not even considering coffee from the start, didn’t show as much disappointment as her older sister.
Perhaps thinking of her father’s thoughtfulness in even putting a straw in the chocolate milk, even though Kang Yera grumbled verbally, her hands picked up the milk and prepared to drink.
Gulp, gulp.
Kang Yera’s chubby cheeks moved like a squirrel’s.
“Still······ it tastes good.”
“Right?”
Kang Dae-oh smiled faintly and sat opposite his daughters.
“So. What was the important story you wanted to tell Dad?”
Kang Dae-oh’s office was well soundproofed.
Because of this, they didn’t have to worry about their discussions about the future being overheard outside.
That’s why Kang Dae-oh chose to bring his daughters here rather than to their distant home.
Kang Yera spoke first.
“There’s something I’d like to consult Dad about.”
“Consultation?”
“Yes.”
Perhaps not expecting the word ‘consultation’ to come from Kang Yera’s mouth, Kang Dae-oh looked bewildered for a moment.
However, he quickly regained his composure and nodded.
“Tell me.”
“A little while ago, Yebin and I received an offer for a photoshoot.”
“Oh? That’s good.”
There didn’t seem to be any particular problem with a photoshoot.
So, at first, he wondered if there was even a need to request a consultation about this.
But there was a separate main point.
“It was an offer from a luxury clothing brand, but actually, the offer wasn’t just for Yebin and me. There’s one more person.”
“Who is that?”
Kang Yera turned her head towards Kang Yebin.
It was a signal for her to speak.
Kang Yebin, nodding briefly, replied.
“Mom.”
The request was to entrust Kang Yera, Kang Yebin, and Min Seung-yeon—the three of them—with a clothing photoshoot.
Kang Yera and Kang Yebin didn’t mind.
As entertainers, they had done many photoshoots like this.
The problem was Min Seung-yeon.
“Your mom probably doesn’t like being in front of the camera much.”
Although she had improved somewhat compared to before, she still occasionally showed signs of being unfamiliar and uncomfortable with cameras.
This was a fact that Kang Yera and Kang Yebin both knew.
That’s why they had requested a consultation with Kang Dae-oh in this manner.
“It seems you two want to do a photoshoot with your mom.”
If they hadn’t wanted to do the photoshoot, they could have simply refused on the spot.
But the daughters didn’t do that.
Just by this, Kang Dae-oh could tell what his two daughters were thinking.
His prediction was spot on.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“We want to do a photoshoot with Mom.”
Kang Dae-oh usually sided with his daughters, but.
Here, he wanted to take a different stance.
“I wonder if there’s a need to force Mom to do something she dislikes.”
To Kang Dae-oh, his daughters were incredibly precious, but his wife was equally precious.
He felt that, as a husband, it was right to side with his wife here.
At the same time, he was curious.
And Kang Yeyoung too.
About why his daughters were so insistent on putting their mom in front of the camera.
It wasn’t as if the daughters disliked their mom either.
It was an unsolved mystery.
Kang Yebin opened her mouth to reveal the identity of this mystery.
“Mom actually wants to work as a model again.”
“Really?”
“Yes. You remember that Yeyoung and I lived with Mom before we regressed, right?”
“Of course.”
Kang Yera with Dad. Kang Yebin and Kang Yeyoung with Mom. He was well aware of how the family had been scattered like this.
Perhaps because of that, Kang Yebin had many opportunities to have honest conversations with her mom.
This included Min Seung-yeon’s unfulfilled dream.
“Mom said that she wanted to try modeling again later. But she just kept agonizing over it, couldn’t muster the courage, and eventually missed the timing. Those words have stayed with me.”
“······.”
Kang Dae-oh had naturally never heard this before.
But Kang Yebin must have encountered Min Seung-yeon’s worries like this countless times.
Mom’s wish.
At some point, it became her daughter’s wish.
Kang Dae-oh turned his head towards Kang Yera.
“Did Yera know too?”
“Vaguely. I learned the exact details after we regressed.”
“······I see.”
Only then did Kang Dae-oh understand the reason for his daughters’ persistence towards their mom.
“Mom probably needs someone to give her a push right now. I hope that someone can be Dad.”
The small stone Kang Yebin threw created a great ripple in the lake that had settled in Kang Dae-oh’s heart.
His wavering mind finally settled.
“Alright. Dad will talk to Mom.”
Bearing his daughters’ wishes.
Kang Dae-oh decided to step forward.
As soon as he returned home, Kang Dae-oh saw his wife, Min Seung-yeon, wearing an apron and rushing to prepare dinner.
Min Seung-yeon smiled brightly and welcomed her husband home.
“Welcome home, honey. Are you hungry? I’ll have dinner ready quickly.”
“Where are the kids?”
“They already ate. Oh, right. Yera and Yebin said they stopped by your company before coming home.”
“Yeah. There was something to talk about.”
He decided to keep that story a secret for now.
Kang Dae-oh, having changed his clothes, looked at the darkened living room and quietly said.
“Are the kids asleep?”
“Yeah. They must have been tired today.”
“Really?”
Due to his work, Kang Dae-oh often returned home late, long after dinner time.
Today was no different.
Given the circumstances, he mostly ate alone like this.
It was Min Seung-yeon’s role as his wife to stay by his side so he wouldn’t feel lonely.
“How are things these days? Your work, I mean.”
“People around me help a lot, so I’m managing somehow.”
“That’s a relief. You used to dislike sitting still and looking at documents, didn’t you? I was worried it wouldn’t suit your nature.”
“Because there’s a difference between work someone else tells you to do and work you want to do.”
“Indeed. That’s true.”
A deep smile settled on Min Seung-yeon’s lips.
Kang Dae-oh knew.
That for Min Seung-yeon, modeling wasn’t ‘work she was told to do,’ but ‘work she loved to do.’
That’s why Kang Dae-oh had decided to actively cooperate with his daughters’ request.
Kang Dae-oh, having finished his meal quickly, asked Min Seung-yeon.
“Shall we go for a short walk to help with digestion?”
“Suddenly?”
“Yeah. It’s nice to go for a night walk sometimes, especially at times like this.”
Min Seung-yeon showed a reaction of not quite understanding what ‘times like this’ meant.
Still, perhaps not disliking a date with her husband, Min Seung-yeon nodded briefly and said.
“Alright. Wait a moment. I’ll go change.”
“It’s fine. You can go out as you are. Just grab a coat. I’m driving.”
When Kang Dae-oh held up the car key, Min Seung-yeon let out an incredulous laugh.
“You said night walk? That’s not a walk, it’s a drive.”
“It’s all the same, you know.”
Kang Dae-oh shrugged his shoulders.
Min Seung-yeon laughed once more at her husband’s playful attitude.
“Alright. I’ll be ready soon. Just wait a little.”
A long-awaited date just for the two of them.
Thanks to it, a forgotten excitement returned to the couple.
