After enjoying about an hour of fishing, Shi-a and her friend arrived.
"You're here?"
Instead of Shi-hyun, who seemed to be in a foul mood, I greeted the two kids.
"Yes, we're sorry we're late."
"It's okay, would you like to try fishing too?"
Was it because Shi-hyun was standing behind them, looking displeased? The kids were being cautious.
"Shi-hyun-ah? What are you doing? You should teach the kids how to fish."
"Hoo, alright."
Shi-hyun sighed and then relaxed his expression. Shi-a and her friend also learned to fish and found it fun. After about three hours, though, they got too cold to enjoy it anymore....
"What do we do with these?"
Jae-won asked, looking at the container filled with the fish they had caught. There were 15 of them, which was quite a lot.
"You can get them cleaned at the seafood center, but..."
Shi-hyun looked at me. Why is everyone looking at me, including the kids?
"Wouldn't it be better to release them?"
I didn't even eat seafood that often anyway; getting them cleaned would just be a pain in the ass. We released the caught fish and returned to the car. The kids chatted about how fun fishing was.
"I thought fishing was just something guys did, but it's more fun than I expected."
"Yeah, but it was so cold it was tough."
The sea breeze definitely felt salty and sticky, and it seemed to cut right through you. We drove from the coast through the city and into the interior, where the condo appeared.
As the sun set and it began to get dark, bright lights illuminated the ski resort.
"Are we going to play there tomorrow...."
The kids all showed interest.
"You can even go tonight."
It would cost money since we'd have to rent the equipment twice, though. First, we went inside the condo. The place we rented this time had three rooms.
"Let's have Shi-a and her friend use one room, and Saet-byeol and Jae-won share another."
"Okay."
After unpacking in our respective rooms, I asked Shi-hyun what we would do next.
"First, free time, then dinner."
Hmm... skiing would be nice, but doing what we want also seemed good.
"Oh, then we'll rest in our room."
"Do as you please."
Saet-byeol and Jae-won said they were going to check out other places in the condo. There was an arcade and a mart. If they're kids, they'll probably go to the arcade?
"Then let's all have fun and make sure to be back in our rooms before it gets too late."
I went out to play with Shi-hyun.
"It's cold...."
Was it because it was Gangwon-do? It felt colder than Seoul.
"Should I take off my coat for you?"
"No thanks."
Shi-hyun looked worried. We walked around the condo together.
"The night view is pretty decent."
The sun set quickly because it was winter. Of course, the surroundings were bright because of the ski resort's colorful lights.
Shi-hyun held my hand, so I felt warm despite the cold weather.
"It's so nice to come out and play."
"I'm glad to hear that."
"What are we eating for dinner?"
There were restaurants in the condo, but the food at places like this often wasn't very good.
"It'll be hard to eat anything that's completely satisfying, so I'm thinking of ordering chicken or pizza."
"That sounds good too."
The kids would definitely love chicken and pizza.
There was a fountain in the middle of the garden, but it wasn't working because it was winter.
"It's a pretty well-decorated garden, but there's nothing to see in the winter."
"Is there?"
Shi-hyun didn't seem interested in the garden and just kept looking at me. He had a remarkable talent for making people feel embarrassed.
"I wonder if the kids are having fun."
"They probably are."
"You know, I almost ruined the mood earlier today."
We did have fun fishing, but... it wasn't exactly something the kids would easily find interesting.
"I know... that's why I didn't say anything."
"I hope you'll be like that tomorrow too."
"That's too much...."
Seeing Shi-hyun sulk made my heart twinge.
"Aww, why is our husband like this?"
I pressed my chest against him and hugged his arm tightly. I don't know why he's acting like a child as he gets older... but he's cute and lovable, so I'll put up with it.
We passed through the garden and went near the ski resort.
"Come to think of it, do you know how to ski?"
"Me?"
"Who else would I be talking to?"
"Would I know how to?"
Come to think of it, even though I've traveled to many places with Shi-hyun, I didn't remember ever going to a ski resort. At least Shi-hyun has good athletic ability and is skilled, so he'll adapt quickly, but....
"So, does that mean we're all skiing for the first time?"
"Well, how hard could it be?"
"Only you could say something like that."
As we walked, we arrived at a convenience store, so I bought some hot coffee.
"Hoo, as expected, something warm is the best when it's cold."
Shi-hyun was looking at me and smiling.
"It's nice that the kids are older now."
Definitely... when the kids were young, I couldn't take my eyes off them.... I guess I only need to worry about Jae-won tomorrow?
"Let's head back now."
"Okay."
On the way back, I contacted Jae-won in advance. He said he was at the arcade, so we stopped by there, and the facilities were quite impressive.
"Wow, there's so much variety."
I thought there would just be the usual claw machines and punching machines... but it far surpassed that level.
"This is a proper arcade, isn't it?"
"It is."
There's even a betting area and VR machines; these two must have had a lot of fun.
"Mom!"
Jae-won found us and ran over.
"Did our cute son have fun?"
"Yeah! I did a lot with my sister."
"That's good."
He's grown so tall that he's taller than me, but he's still a kid.
"Good job."
Shi-hyun praised Saet-byeol, who had come with him.
"Are we going to eat dinner?"
"Yeah."
When we entered the condo room, Shi-a and her friend were watching TV and playing together nicely.
"We're back."
"You're back?"
"What were you doing?"
Looking at the TV screen, it seemed like they were watching a movie.
"They were showing a movie we hadn't seen before, so we were watching it."
"Is it good?"
"Yes."
Then should we watch it while eating dinner? I had ordered in advance, but the delivery was late because of the time. The kids were happy to see the delivered chicken and pizza.
"Sis, the arcade here is awesome?"
"Really?"
"Yeah, you guys should go too."
Shi-a and her friend exchanged glances.
"Should we?"
Shi-a reluctantly agreed after her friend spoke up first.
"Let's do that."
After dinner, we decided to spend some time relaxing and then go to bed early. Jae-won whined that he wanted to play more at the arcade, so I persuaded him that he needed to conserve his energy to ski and play tomorrow.
*
We woke up early in the morning and ate the lunch boxes we had bought from the convenience store for breakfast. I wanted to eat something better, but there wasn't really a way since it wasn't a hotel.
"We're going to the equipment rental shop now; does anyone not know their size?"
"No."
Clothing size, shoe size, height-everything was important. And the shocking truth! When we matched our body sizes, Saet-byeol and I couldn't find anything that fit our chests!
"Ugh, is it because the size is too big? It's a bit uncomfortable."
In my case, I had to wear something two sizes larger because of my chest. Even then, my chest stuck out, showing off its presence. Saet-byeol managed to solve it with one size larger.
While we were choosing and putting on our clothes, there was some whispering around us, but we ignored it. After getting our ski suits and equipment, we bought lift tickets and took photos before heading to the ski resort.
"This is what makes memories."
It was easy to take family photos thanks to Shi-a's friend.
"Okay, now you two have to take a photo together."
Shi-a seemed shy and hesitant, but her friend actively moved and took care of Shi-a. They even linked arms and seemed to be getting along very well.
"Say cheese."
When I showed them the photo taken with the ski resort's name, they made a fuss.
The ski resort was crowded even though it was morning.
"So, should we go up and learn slowly while skiing?"
There were courses where you could get lessons from an instructor, but we didn't choose that. Skiing isn't that difficult, and Saet-byeol is going to see Geon-u, and Shi-a is going to play with her friend, so why bother taking a class?
Jae-won was grinning from ear to ear, finding the lift fun.
"Jae-won-ah, you have to be careful when you get off."
"Okay."
Looking behind me, Saet-byeol was busy messing with her phone. Is she contacting Geon-u?
When we arrived at the top, we got off the lift and moved to a corner. There was a lot to learn: how to walk, how to turn, how to move, how to fall, and how to get up.
"When did you research all this?"
"Since you said we were going to a ski resort."
He was really well-prepared. The kids each tried walking or turning in place. Shi-a's friend said she had skied before and taught them diligently.
"Okay, you try it too."
"Okay...."
We used the poles to try gliding, or we fell and got up repeatedly as Shi-hyun instructed.
"Hmm, it's easy since you're strong."
Usually, it's not easy to get up using only the strength of your waist and legs. But an Awakener doesn't have to worry about that!
Actually skiing was thrilling. Rather than going at high speeds, I skied in a zigzag pattern, adjusting my speed appropriately.
"The kids are skiing well too."
Not to mention Shi-a, but Jae-won was also skiing well. Shi-a's friend, who said she had skied before, even showed off some fancy techniques.
"Except for Saet-byeol, that is."
Saet-byeol couldn't come down properly and kept falling.
"Wow, did she always have such bad athletic skills?"
Come to think of it... she's always just been sitting at her desk studying.
"I'm worried."
Shi-hyun skillfully climbed the slope and approached Saet-byeol. I followed, stumbling slightly.
"It's okay, slowly, slowly."
When I climbed the slope diligently, Shi-hyun was teaching Saet-byeol kindly. If he was always like that, the kids would like him... I was pleased. I thought I only needed to worry about Jae-won, but Saet-byeol was the problem! More than that, when is she planning to meet Geon-u?
We skied and played for about an hour. We took the lift back to the top, and when we arrived at our destination, Saet-byeol looked around.
It seems he's here. Before long, Geon-u appeared, spotted Saet-byeol, and toddled over. If he didn't have skis, he probably would have run over faster, but the skis made him look funny.
"What's that?"
Shi-hyun looked at the scene strangely.
"It looks like she ran into a friend by chance."
"I, see?"
He looked a little suspicious.
"Just let it go, it seems like they're into each other."
Since the other kids weren't around, I spoke honestly. Shi-hyun glared at me for a moment and then sighed.
"You knew?"
"Yeah, I was suspicious from the start, so I asked."
"Hoo-i-gu...."
"Why? He might be our future son-in-law."
At my words, Shi-hyun shook his head from side to side.
"The future is uncertain."
It seemed like they were more than just friends....