When summer vacation ended, the kids went back to school. Shi-a caused trouble again because her broadcast time was reduced. She said she wouldn't eat dinner for the sake of broadcasting.
,"You really won't eat dinner?"
,"Yes, I'll just eat something simple like bread."
I would have understood if she had said she wouldn't eat for diet control reasons....
,"No way."
Shi-a hung her head low. It seemed she expected it wouldn't work from the start.
,"Okay..."
*
As time passed, Shi-a created her own broadcast time. It was from 8 PM after dinner until she went to sleep. Does she really like broadcasting that much? I was worried seeing her reduce her sleeping time to broadcast. She won't grow taller if she does that....
Jae-won's growth was still slow, as if he wasn't in his growth spurt yet. Compared to Shi-u, who grew incredibly tall at that age, he was average. It seems he strongly inherited my genes rather than Shi-hyun-nim's. What if he's disappointed later because he's short? I'd feel very sorry.
Saet-byeol complained that she wanted to grow less. She had grown taller, but her breasts had grown even more, causing her discomfort. It was something I could relate to. No matter how much men liked it and it was a source of pride among women, being uncomfortable was still uncomfortable.
,"It'll get better later."
,"Later?"
,"Yeah, specifically after you turn twenty?"
But will it really get better? She might even become a target of sexual harassment? I haven't met many other people though.... If it doesn't, she can get breast reduction surgery later. Some people with excessively large breasts like me have surgery because it's inconvenient for daily life.
,"I don't know, it's so damn uncomfortable."
I could only pat Saet-byeol's head. Still, Saet-byeol had something better than me. That was her height. Her breasts were big, but she was also tall, so her proportions were better than mine. Seeing Saet-byeol like that made me wish I was taller too. But there's no point since I can't grow anymore....
,"Shi-a-ya, you seem to be sleeping late these days?"
,"Eut."
Shi-a's reaction wasn't good, as if she felt guilty.
,"I know you like broadcasting and want to do it for a long time, but..."
,"I-It's okay, it's not like I'm sleeping that late."
,"You've been sleeping past 1 AM, though?"
Shi-a was startled by my words.
,"You think Mom wouldn't know?"
,"O-oh, Mom."
,"Your midterm scores dropped last time too."
I don't know if it's because she's too into broadcasting or if the test was just difficult, but her scores dropped again. Is she not studying enough? It could become an obstacle even if Shi-a wants to do something else later.
,"Eueu."
I need to talk to her quickly when her siblings aren't around.
,"Are you planning to make money from broadcasting later too?"
,"W-Well, that's..."
,"You know it's hard to make money from broadcasting, right?"
,"Yes..."
,"What if Shi-a can't do what she wants to do later because of her grades?"
I was worried seeing Shi-a become silent. It was definitely nice to see her enjoy broadcasting, but was she too into it? But Shi-a had that side to her. Swimming was similar... she started because it was fun and enjoyable, and she dug into it and showed her talent. But swimming was supported because her talent was overwhelming and obviously outstanding, but broadcasting wasn't. Should I just let her do what she wants since she has an inheritance? I didn't think so.
,"Shi-a-ya, you're going to be a high school student next year."
The fact that she would be a high school student in just a few months made me anxious. I didn't study either and ruined my grades. Thanks to that, I couldn't even dream of going to college. Of course, there are local colleges you can go to if you pay, but I didn't think it would make a difference.
,"You might regret it later."
,"I won't regret it..."
It was a rebellious answer. Broadcasting must be that important to her.
,"Really? You won't ask Mom or Dad why they did this later, right?"
After finishing my words, I felt anxious and tried to calm myself down by drinking water. I was worried that what I said would have a negative impact on my child, even though I was the one who said it.
,"Ah, if that doesn't work, I'll become a Hunter like Mom."
I couldn't help but spit out the water I was drinking. It was such a shocking statement that I almost choked. I kept coughing and my throat hurt. And my head was spinning. I barely stopped coughing and asked Shi-a again.
,"H-Hunter?"
,"Yes, Dad said Mom was an amazing Hunter too."
I coughed again at those words.
,"Keuheum."
,"Ah, if that doesn't work, I can just become a Hunter like Mom..."
,"Hunter is a tough job, you know..."
She's bringing up troublesome things.... It felt like I was looking at my old self. The days when I was waiting for Awakening while doing nothing at home. The only better thing is that Shi-a has already Awakened?
Shi-a was silent. It seemed like she said it in a fit of anger. But it seems she doesn't want to give up broadcasting that much, and she doesn't want to study either. I'm sure she used to care about her test scores before....
,"Well, it's your life, so you should do what you want."
In the end, those were the only words I could say. I couldn't push Shi-a, who had lost her dream, any further. And she said she'd become a Hunter if that didn't work out, right? That's also a path. It's a dangerous path, so I didn't want to recommend it, but I couldn't help it. Is this how Mom felt?
,"But stop broadcasting until late at night."
,"Okay..."
,"You need to grow taller."
Shi-a checked her height. It's already been over 5 months since she Awakened. It seemed like she had grown a little taller after the change, but there was no noticeable difference.
,"Will I, will I grow taller?"
I couldn't help but avoid Shi-a's question. What will happen? I've had my breasts grow after Awakening, but I've never grown taller.
,"W-Well?"
Won't she grow a little? Shi-a is at the end of her growth spurt for girls. She's still at the end, so there might be a little more room.
,"Girls usually grow until they're 16, so."
,"I-Is that so?"
Seeing Shi-a's expectant face made me scared. What if she doesn't grow?
,"That's what they say."
Shi-a nodded and went into her room.
That night, I lay in bed and watched Shi-a broadcast. She wouldn't play games until late again today, right? I watched to monitor her, but Shi-a was trying to turn off the broadcast earlier than usual. Of course, viewers were posting chats saying to do it a little longer.
-"No, I need to grow taller."
As soon as Shi-a finished speaking, the chat window stopped for a moment and then started flooding with messages. There's nothing you can do about height, kids need to sleep early, yes, our little one needs to sleep early. Such playful chats.... It was a chat that came up because they knew Shi-a's age. Shi-a left a message saying she was sorry and ended the broadcast.
,"You turned it off early today?"
Shi-hyun, who was watching with me, smiled and looked at me.
,"Yeah, I said something earlier."
,"Well, she needs to sleep by 12 AM at the latest."
Shi-hyun hugged me tightly from the side.
,"Don't mess around."
I pushed the phone aside.
,"Why, it's nice to be like this."
It is nice. But the problem is that if I start accepting these things one by one, Shi-hyun starts crossing the line. She's been fearless since we started sleeping in the master bedroom together.
,"Uh-uh."
I had to stop Shi-hyun from climbing on top of me. Otherwise, it'll be hard for me!
,"Okay, I'll just stay like this."
,"If that's the case..."
Is it because I stopped her from doing more? Shi-hyun was just hugging me tightly with a sad face. Unlike Shi-hyun, I'm just an ordinary housewife now! I don't have as much stamina as before, so it's hard for me to accept Shi-hyun.
*
Before winter came, Shi-a stood at a crossroads of choices. It was about the high school issue.
,"Shi-a-ya, have you decided where to go to high school?"
,"W-Well, I haven't decided yet."
There were high schools near our house or around the middle school she's currently attending. The problem was that Shi-a's grades weren't good enough to go to those schools. Because her GPA was low, she couldn't choose the high school she wanted.
,"I wanted to go somewhere close..."
She said she wanted to go somewhere close, probably because she wanted to come home quickly and broadcast. What's the point of thinking that way? Her GPA is the problem....
,"There's another school nearby, though."
,"W-Well, that's true."
There was a school nearby that Shi-a could get into with her GPA. The only problem was that it was an all-girls school.
,"Will you go there?"
,"An all-girls school... me, an all-girls school..."
Shi-a is a girl now, so she could go to an all-girls school. But it seems she still has a sense of rejection.
,"But wouldn't an all-girls school be better?"
,"Why?"
,"The boys won't tease you, right?"
Shi-a laughed out loud as if my words were funny.
,"I guess that's true."
,"Do the kids joke around a lot?"
,"Yeah, well."
She said she's even been sexually harassed. I felt a little angry the moment I heard those words, but I held it in. I couldn't get angry about something Shi-a laughed off.
,"...You were sexually harassed?"
,"They just jokingly say things like they want to touch my breasts."
That was definitely a problematic statement. Middle schoolers aren't that young to call it kids' jokes.
,"Of course, the girls who heard it beat them up."
I should say it's fortunate that she seems to have good relationships with her friends.
,"If you don't mind the distance, you can go to a place where many of your friends are going."
,"My friends are mostly separated by grades."
I don't study well, so I don't know, but when I listen to people's stories, the study environment is also important. If everyone around you is studying, you can't help but study too. But what if everyone around you is slacking off? If you don't have good self-control, you'll get swept away and end up playing instead of studying, which makes it easy to fail. That's why students and parents who are obsessed with studying or grades prefer schools with high academic performance.
,"I guess that's true."
From high school onwards, people choose schools based on grades or purpose, so it's bound to be very different.
,"But is it okay for me to go to an all-girls school?"
,"There's no reason why not."
Of course, if Shi-a was a boy, some kids might not like it.
,"I'll think about it a little more."
There wasn't much time left to choose. She should have paid attention to her grades.