174 - She Loves Her Dad So Much

    TL/Editor: looloo

    Status: ongoing

    Illustrations: posted in discord

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    A pleasant spring day.

    How many springs had passed since I first met Heena and since Sarang was born? Sometimes, reflecting on this brought an involuntary smile to my face.

    Ten years.

    It seemed unbelievable. That so much time had already slipped by. Perhaps because every day had been so fun, it felt like it had passed in the blink of an eye.

    Saying this makes it sound like I''m already middle-aged, but surprisingly, Heena and I were still only twenty-eight.

    Well, we did have Sarang early.

    While our family remained unchanged, our surroundings had gradually shifted.

    My oldest brother and sister-in-law had a cute son, Heeseong hyung married and moved out, and his vacant room now belonged to Sarang.

    Of these changes, Heeseong hyung''s wedding stood out as the most significant event. Given our closeness, I had anticipated feeling bittersweet and somewhat lonely when he married and left.

    Heena and I ended up shedding tears at Heeseong hyung''s wedding. Despite his frequent teasing that often earned him scoldings from Heena, he had always been a pillar of support for both of us.

    Now I had adjusted, but when hyung first moved out, the emptiness was palpable. Sarang felt quite lonely too.

    Of course, that was all in the past now.

    "Dad! Stop using items!"

    "Nope~ I''m going to keep using them~"

    "No fair!"

    Now eight years old and noticeably bigger, Sarang sat on my lap, furiously using the game controller. We were playing the racing game we used to enjoy as a family - the one where you could use items to interfere with each other.

    Bang! Bang!

    As Sarang''s character tumbled after being hit by my item, she lifted her bottom in protest. Sarang rarely got angry with me, so this was just light complaining.

    "Looks like Dad''s going to win this time?"

    "Ah! Dad! Wait for me!"

    "Should I wait here then?"

    "Absolutely not!"

    I checked Sarang''s position on the minimap as she frantically tried to catch up, and stopped my character about 3 meters short of the finish line.

    Even if it was my adorable daughter''s request, I had no intention of conceding victory. I planned to teasingly cross just as she was about to arrive.

    As we approached the final straight, Sarang suddenly stood up and turned around, hugging my face.

    My vision was completely blocked.

    "That''s cheating...!"

    "Sarang won! Dad! I won three times, right?!"

    By the time Sarang released my face, she had already overtaken me and finished first. I could have crossed first if I wanted to since my hands were free, but I couldn''t bring myself to do it when my daughter was trying so hard to win, even resorting to such an adorable cheat.

    Sarang jumped up and down in front of me, celebrating her victory.

    "Grandma! I beat Dad!"

    "Sarang''s good at games~"

    "Dad kept throwing turtle shells at me! But Sarang won!"

    "Is that so?"

    She immediately ran to my mother-in-law sitting behind us to brag. Mother-in-law stroked Sarang''s head, clearly finding her adorable. Seeing that, I felt reassured about our decision to continue living together rather than moving out.

    Originally, we had considered moving out around this time. Sarang had grown up quite a bit, and both Heena and I had established ourselves at work.

    Living with family had allowed us to save a substantial amount. With a hefty loan on top of that, we could probably find a decent place.

    It wasn''t a subscription housing though. The conditions for newlyweds to apply for that had many restrictions, like being within 7 years of marriage or income requirements.

    We could have found a place, but my in-laws asked us to reconsider. They said it would feel too lonely if we moved out after Heeseong hyung had already left.

    Moreover, their joy was in caring for Sarang. Her good behavior, kindness, and lovable nature made them reluctant to part with her.

    Consequently, our plans to move out fell through. We also felt more at ease knowing someone could look after Sarang when we worked late.

    With that response, Sarang fell silent.

    Sarang had a very regular lifestyle, so being this late, she must have been quite tired. She quickly fell asleep, breathing evenly.

    I moved my hand from stroking her head to her back, gently patting it as I closed my eyes.

    How much time had passed? I think I dozed off for a bit too.

    I heard rustling sounds from behind. Opening my eyes and turning my head, I saw Heena in her pajamas, tying her hair.

    I spoke softly to avoid waking Sarang.

    "You''re back?"

    "Ah, sorry. Did I wake you?"

    "No, it''s fine. You must be tired."

    "Yeah~ Today was really tough~ So give me a kiss."

    "That''s fine, but I can''t move."

    "Geez, Han Sarang. Leaving her own room empty every day..."

    Smooch!

    Heena, who had been pouting for a moment, came over and softly pressed her lips to mine. Then she climbed onto the bed and lay down. We faced each other with Sarang in the middle.

    Lying like that, looking into my eyes, Heena spoke softly.

    "Did anything happen to you today?"

    "Hmm..."

    "Why? Did something happen at work?"

    "Nothing happened, but..."

    "But what? If nothing happened, isn''t that good?"

    "It was a problem that nothing happened."

    Heena tilted her head at my words, probably wondering what I meant.

    "Usually when you''re coding, bugs naturally happen."

    "And?"

    "But everything worked too well."

    "...Huh? Isn''t that a good thing?"

    "No... It''s weird. There''s no way there weren''t any problems..."

    "What the~"

    Even after years, you can''t trust yourself, and even as a professional developer, you can''t stop studying when it comes to programming.

    Well, I guess I''ll just fix it when problems arise later.

    I stopped thinking about work and reached out to caress Heena''s cheek. Still beautiful despite getting older... well, we''re only 28. Anyway, Heena seemed to grow prettier with each passing day.

    It''s not just rose-colored glasses - she still turns heads when we go out. The same goes for our Sarang.

    "I promised to take Sarang out tomorrow, where should we go?"

    "Wherever you want to go~ Sarang would like that more too."

    "I prefer wherever you or Sarang want to go..."

    "We''re happy anywhere as long as we''re with you."

    Heena said with a sweet smile. I gave a wry smile in response. I felt the same way, so continuing this conversation would just lead us in circles.

    We ended the conversation there and closed our eyes. Heena must be tired from working late, and if we talked for too long, we might wake Sarang.

    And tomorrow... Well, I guess I''ll just follow Sarang''s lead.

    The next day... Well, as expected, a problem did arise, so I had to go into work briefly in the morning.

    Author''s Note:

    Suddenly I want to draw Heeseong...

    And elementary school Sarang too...

    And this is a side story. It''s a side story. Not part --!!

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