17. Should have dried it then

Papa?

Did I really hear that right?

Papa means the father?

A random designation given to Sujin by her mother.

When I heard that name, my mind was very confused, and I couldn’t react.

If this were a cartoon, there would have been countless question marks drawn over my head.

What woke me up from my confusion was none other than Sujin’s mother’s short exclamation, like a scream.

“――Ahh?!”

“… Eh?”

She was still looking at me with an enchanted expression. That is until our eyes met properly.

But after looking into my eyes for a while, I wonder if he immediately remembered something.

Suddenly, an exclamation burst out of her mouth, and her face rapidly turned into contemplation.

Her face was almost pale, her hands hovering disoriented in the air.

And it was none other than Sujin who reacted first to her strange behavior.

“… What are you doing mom?”

Sujin looked at her own mother as if she were a strange person and left her questioning voice.

Sujin’s question made her face startled and she shouted in an urgent voice.

“Su, Sujin! Come down quickly! Hurry!”

Su-jin must have been in pain at her impetuous voice, so she began puffing out her cheeks once more.

“No! I’m not going down.”

“Sujin! Please! ―Eww.”

Sujin’s mother took a step in front of her and then she stepped back behind her again with a sorry look on her face.

“Now, hurry~ Come to Mom! Aren’t you nice?”

Stepping back from her, she knelt down on one knee and began calling out to Sujin.

But Sujin didn’t move at all, as if she had no intention of doing so, she cried out.

“No! I will be with you.”

“Please, Sujin! Huh? Let’s go buy our toys. What I wanted last time, let’s go buy it now.”

“I don’t need it. I will be with you.”

“Sujin!”

Su-jin’s mother was now half-crying, and she just called out to Su-jin.

Sujin put her mother away from me,

Seeing that she couldn’t approach Sujin,

She seemed to be doing it because of the male protection law, which prohibits approaching or talking to men without permission.

Gee, I’ll have to step in here.

“Hey, Sujin’s mother.”

“――!”

As she quietly called her, she turned her gaze to me with her startled face on her face.

I didn’t want her to be surprised anymore, so she spoke slowly in a calm voice.

“It’s okay if you come this close. And it’s okay if you tell me.”

“…… Yes? That, really… Roy?”

“This isn’t even a safety zone in the first place, right? Furthermore-“

I glanced at Sujin and continued her words.

“If I had claimed the right to protect men, there was no way I would hold Sujin like this.”

“Ah… ….”

She seemed to understand what I was saying.

An exclamation mixed with relief flowed from her mouth. Then, as if the strength in her legs gave way, she collapsed into place.

She was sighing heavily, apparently exhausted. Soon, her face said that she was relieved, and a small mutter was heard saying, “Thank you.”

“Mom? What’s the matter? Are you sick?”

“No, it’s okay. It’s because my mom is weak in her legs.”

“Out of strength? Why?”

“… hahahaha, who could it be for?”

“Um, I don’t know!”

A small, hollow laugh flowed from Sujin’s mouth as if she was full of energy at Sujin’s innocent answer.

After getting up from her seat, she brushed off the hem of her dress and carefully spoke her words.

“Hey, I’m really sorry. Because my daughter was being rude.”

When she bowed her head and apologized, I answered with a smile.

“Ah, it’s okay. All kids are like that.”

Then Sujin, who was in my arms, raised her voice to me with a heartbroken face.

“I am not a child!”

“Huh? Aren’t you a kid?”

“Mom said I was all grown up! Now I know how to wear her clothes by myself!”

“Really? That’s amazing~ Is Sujin all grown up?”

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“Yes! She is all grown up!”

“Then, I shouldn’t be held like this like a child~ Shall I drop you off now?”

“Oh no! Sujin is still a baby!”

“Whoops.”

As I was having a short talk with Sujin, I heard a small laugh from the front.

Of course, Sujin’s mother was the protagonist of the laughter, and she was smiling while covering her mouth.

Making eye contact with me again, she started to organize her expression, avoiding her eyes as if slightly embarrassed.

“Huh? Mom is laughing now!”

“Hmm. No.”

“Isn’t it? Did she laugh?”

“No. Rather, you should stop coming down now, Sujin-ah? Papa… Brother, it must be hard.”

“No! I will be with you!”

“He really… Ha, I’m sorry, but excuse me for a moment.”

After asking for my understanding again, she slowly approached Sujin and me with a determined expression.

She came to the front of the bench where we were sitting and spoke as if admonishing Sujin.

“Hey, stop pushing yourself. Aren’t you nice?”

“Oops, no! I will be with you!”

“He really….”

Sujin really didn’t want to be separated from me, so she started digging deeper into my arms.

Sujin’s mother looked at Sujin and me alternately with a puzzled face.

Within a moment, he took a step closer with an expression of regret and the understanding that he was sorry to me once again.

She urged me, putting her hand between the armpits of her Sujin, as if trying to get her Soojin out of my arms.

“Now, Sujin-ah, aren’t you nice? Let’s listen to mom.”

“No! I hate you mom!”

Sujin shook her body greatly and shook her hand.

As her hand fell, I could feel that her expression, which had been friendly until just now, was getting more and more hardened.

Seeing that Sujin’s pampering was wrong now, she seemed to think that she couldn’t just watch it.

Isn’t Su-jin getting scolded for doing this? And she was worried all over again.

I didn’t want to see a crack in the harmonious mother and son relationship, so I decided to intervene between the two of them, and soon smiled and opened my mouth.

“I’m really fine. So please leave it like this for a while.”

“… Ha ha, I really have no face.”

She started bowing her head at me as if she was very apologetic.

I waved my hand to dissuade her from acting and added her words.

“Who will break the stubbornness of the child? When I get bored with this, I will come down.”

Hearing my words, Sujin buried her face in my arms and started screaming.

“I’m not bored! I will never go down!”

“Sujin! You really!”

Sujin’s voice began to rise slightly as if she couldn’t stand to watch her any longer.

I raised her hand and stopped her before she continued her next words.

Seeing my gestures, she just looked at me, unable to hide her puzzled expression.

First of all, I lightly patted Sujin on the back and spoke to her kindly.

“Yes, okay. It’s okay to sit on her brother’s lap.”

“… Really?”

“Yes, really. Instead, can you come down if your leg hurts?”

“… Mmm.”

“You said that our Sujin would be a wonderful princess, right? Then you won’t hurt your brother?”

“…… When do you get sick?”

“Ahahahaha, well? It doesn’t hurt at all right now, so it’s okay, but I’ll tell you when it hurts.”

“Heeing… okay.”

“Ayu, be nice.”

After I stroked Sujin’s hair, she looked at her mother again.

When I looked at her, she was looking at me passionately with a very moved face.

I was very burdened by her gaze, so I slightly avoided her eyes and said.

“… Uhm, over there It will be difficult if you keep standing, so please sit next to me.”

“――Really, is that okay?”

I nodded her head and she thanked me and moved to my side.

She began to take a seat on the same bench with me at a distance.

She sat in a rather calm posture and had already expressed her gratitude several times.

“Thank you again for your sincerity.”

“Ahahahaha. You’re welcome. Umm, I’ll start with a brief self-introduction. My name is-“

“Jin Hyo Oh! Brother Jin Hyo-oh!”

“―Yes, you remembered. Great.”

“Hee hee, am I amazing?”

“Yeah, that’s great.

As Sujin said, my name is Jinhyo.”

“… ….”

Upon hearing my introduction, she just looked at me with her eyes wide open.

She had been making eye contact with me for such a short while, but she started to open her mouth in a hurry.

“Well, I am Sujin’s mother, Eunjin. I’m really sorry for the late introduction-“

I hurriedly brought her out as she wanted to bow her head once more and apologize to her.

“Aha, that’s right. You have a very pretty name.

That… Umm, how should I call it in this case? Should I call her Eunjin?”

“Hasssss-“

Worried about what to call her, as she muttered to herself, the girl next to her groaned and bristled her back.

Oops, did you hear me even though I said small things?

She hated him so much that he overreacted like that. I made a big mistake.

Recognizing her mistake, I addressed her again to correct her title and get her opinion on her title.

“Ahahahaha, sorry. Wasn’t it too classy to call you Eunjin? Ummm, then just call Sujin her mother—”

“No. So good. I will be very grateful if you continue to call me Eunjin.”

Before I could finish my words, words spewed out of her mouth like a rapid-fire cannon.

It was really great momentum.

“Uh… Will it be all right?”

“Yes, please.”

“Then, it’s okay for me to just call you comfortably.”

“… Relax, you mean? Are you really okay?”

“Yes.”

“Yes, I will. That… blood….”

She mumbled for a while, only moving her lips, then spoke as if letting out her breath.

“P, P… Papa!”

“… To?”

She said you could call her comfortably, but…

There must be a name or many other titles, but why Papa?

Is there a different meaning of papa that I don’t know about?

Her I couldn’t stand her curiosity so I asked her directly.

“Hey… I’m really sorry, but I’m asking because I’m curious.”

“Yes, yes?! Goo, are you curious?

Where are you curious?! Ask anything! I can tell you anything, Papa!”

She was so close to me that her shoulders touched before I knew it.

Then she was sticking her face out to me with a very excited face.

Feeling burdened by her sudden action, I hurriedly opened my mouth.

“What, that papa? What does that mean?”

“… Oh, that’s it.”

When she heard my question, she couldn’t hide her regret, and she just turned her face, which was full of her regret, behind her.

It was to the point where I felt sorry for everyone. Should I ask another question next time?

“Huh? Oppa is a man, but you don’t even know Papa?”

“Oh, boy!”

“Ah~ Do you know Sujin?”

“Yes! Of course you know!”

Sujin proudly explained as she straightened her shoulders proudly with a confident face.

“Papa is a word used to address a nice and kind person like an older brother!”

“Hey, is that so?”

Is this like that?

Is that the kind of thing you call someone who’s great on the internet in your previous life by giving them honorific names, such as big brother, father, big man, etc.?

“Yes! And what about papa, isan? Topological? Anyway, that’s what women do.”

Aha, are you talking about your ideal type?

It’s a bit difficult for a child.

“Hmm, there was one more thing besides that…

That’s difficult, so don’t be unaware!”

Actually, at this time, I should have heard the other one through Eunjin.

I found out about the other meanings a long time later,

If I had known that at the time, I would have stopped Mr. Eunjin from calling me Papa.

“That is enough. Thanks for letting me know.”

“Hee hee hee.”

I thanked Sujin for trying so hard to explain and stroked her hair as a prize.

Sujin seemed to like my touch, as she leaned her head on my shoulder and smiled contentedly.

“Hey, did you feel uncomfortable? Name.”

“Yes? Oh, it’s not like that. I just asked because I didn’t know what it meant.”

“I see…” . Excuse me….”

She hesitated while examining my appearance, then opened her mouth with difficulty and asked me a question.

“Are you the person who voluntarily left prison on the news?”

I expected it just in case, but

I guess this was the question too.

I thought it wouldn’t matter too much if I answered.

Because the brief news I watched before I went out for a walk confirmed that an official government announcement about me was coming soon.

“Yes. I am right.”

“Huh.”

She took a deep breath in disbelief, looking very surprised.

“The news is, it was real.

… So, where do you live….”

“Yes. I live here.”

“――!!”

Was my answer that shocking?

She raised her hands to cover her mouth and gave her body a big shake.

Then, a small scream escaped between her hands, which covered her mouth.

It was a small sound because she was blocking it with her hand, but it was a very excited and high-pitched scream.

“Brother, do you live here? What neighborhood do you live in?”

I’m a little worried about whether I should say this or not.

Well, everything will be known later anyway, so it doesn’t matter? After all, because of the Male Protection Act, the place of residence will be announced.

“Yes. I live in 120 Dong over there.”

“Really?! Sujin also lives in 120 Dong! What floor do you live on?!”

… Oh, what a coincidence.

It must have been a neighbour.

“Really? My brother lives on the 17th floor.”

“Sujin is on the 12th floor! Hey, can I go play later?”

“Um, maybe?”

“Wow! You promised! I will definitely go play!”

After patting the head of the excited Sujin, I looked at Eunjin and talked.

“In case you don’t know, could you call me on the intercom the next time you visit? I also have to tell my mother in advance.”

“I’ll do it—I’ll do it, Papa.”

Her face had changed to the ecstatic expression she had shown when she first met her.

Although it feels very bewitching,

It was an expression that gave off an eerie feeling.

This feeling,

I think I felt the same thing somewhere recently…

Where was it?

Ah! Okay!

It’s similar to what I felt in the eyes of security officer D-Seven.

Feels like a fierce predator!

……

Are you okay?

“So, Papa, do you live with your mother?”

“Yes, I live with my mother.”

“Okay. I really want to say hello to my mother sometime.”

Huh? I think I heard this somewhere else.

Did you hear from Security Officer C8?

The same thing happened yesterday.

Could this be deja vu?

So I talked with Eunjin for a while until Sujin fell asleep in my arms.

Most of the stories were in the form of Eunjin asking questions and me answering them.

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And then I didn’t know.

The fact that someone was watching us.

No, not exactly us, but ‘me’.

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