Time really flew by quickly. Saet-byeol-i kept her promise and always came home right on time, never staying out late to hang out with friends or because of department events.
She was keeping the promise she made when she declared her return to school.
Of course, that didn't mean there weren't any problems. Still, maybe it was because she was a junior in college, about to be a senior next year, and was learning difficult things?
She spent more time studying at home.
Seo-hui and Seo-a, not knowing this, would cling to their mom while she was studying at her desk, disturbing her.
At first, Saet-byeol-i tried to just accept it, but worried about her grades, she completely ignored them during exam periods, which hurt the kids' feelings.
Jae-won-i would come home late from hanging out with friends and even went on MT (Membership Training) trips.
He got angry when I asked if he had made a girlfriend, though....
,"Mom, can you please stop nagging me about getting a girlfriend?"
,"Why? There's nothing lacking in our son, so it's strange."
,"I'm just not interested!"
Could that be it...? I guess I was mistaken because my two daughters started dating at a young age.
,"If that's the case, then...."
Still, I couldn't shake off the suspicion.
,"No, you have to go to the army soon, so what girlfriend?"
,"Is that so?"
Well... it's rare to find someone who will wait two years. It wasn't for nothing that the saying, "putting the rubber shoes on backwards," came about.
,"Are you enjoying school?"
,"Why all of a sudden?"
,"Just wondering?"
Seeing that he was doing well, it was pointless to ask, but I was still curious.
,"Yeah, it was tough, but I think I would have regretted it if I hadn't gone to college."
,"That's a relief then."
I was relieved that Jae-won-i, now an adult, seemed to have adjusted well to college.
Still, it wasn't good to see him causing trouble.
He came home past 1 AM, so drunk that he couldn't even support himself.
Staggering and unable to walk properly, he borrowed the security guard's shoulder and appeared in front of the house....
Hoo, I don't know how embarrassed I was.
After taking Jae-won-i from the security guard, I kept bowing my head, apologizing. The guard said it was their job and told me not to do that, but....
Jae-won-i, who came into the house, was still in a daze and, unable to come to his senses, made a fuss before throwing up on the bed.
Thanks to that, I had a hard time cleaning up....
Seeing me struggling from the morning, Shi-hyun-i scolded Jae-won-i.
,"If you're going to act like this, don't drink!"
Jae-won-i, knowing he had made a mistake, hung his head low and prostrated himself.
,"I'll be careful."
,"If being careful was enough, you should have done well from the start?!"
It had been a while since Shi-hyun-i had gotten so angry... but he didn't resist and apologized, so it ended at this level.
If he had rebelled like Saet-byeol-i, his hand would have gone up right away, right?
,"Shi-hyun-a, calm down. He probably did it because he doesn't know any better yet."
,"Hoo, I'll be watching."
,"Yes, I'll be careful."
Still, throwing up in his sleep and just sleeping like that wasn't good... If he wasn't careful, his airway could have been blocked, putting him in danger.
,"Stop coddling him too."
,"Okay,"
Shi-hyun-i stopped when I clung to him and pleaded.
Still, I couldn't just stand by and watch my son get hit.
After that incident, Jae-won-i refrained from drinking, but he still came home late sometimes.
Still, unlike Saet-byeol-i, he was a boy, so I wasn't too worried.
*
And in June, it was Seo-a's First Birthday Party. We didn't make it too big and just did it moderately. Seo-hui also received a lot of love, but Seo-a received even more.
Seo-hui was a little jealous of that... but nothing special happened.
Now that Saet-byeol-i and Jae-won-i would be having vacation soon, I was thinking about where to go play.
Seo-a was now one year old, so there were more places we could go, and I was very excited.
That anticipation was shattered by one word from Jae-won-i.
,"Mom, I decided to go to the army in July."
,"Jae, Jae-won-a? What did you say?"
,"I said I decided to go to the army."
Suddenly? He got his physical exam this year, but he's already going?
,"That's sudden."
It was a story that was absurdly sudden.
,"I heard from seniors and friends that it's better to go early."
,"No, I, I understand, but you could have consulted with Mom or Dad before deciding."
If he had just said one word, I wouldn't have been so flustered.
,"Uh, well, I heard that enlisting is also about luck, so I was going to apply first and then talk about it...."
,"And you did?"
,"Uh, I forgot."
I hit my forehead at Jae-won-i's words. Aigo, why is he like this....
,"Uh, but suddenly I got a call today telling me when to enlist...."
Jae-won-i lowered his head.
,"Well, I have to go anyway, right?"
I pressed down on Jae-won-i's head.
,"Jae-won-a, what should Mom do?"
I was relieved that Jae-won-i wasn't causing trouble, but now, following Saet-byeol-i, Jae-won-i is making things difficult?
,"Just go to the army."
,"Yeah, just go."
Saet-byeol-i, who was watching from behind, kicked Jae-won-i in the side, and Jae-won-i fell over.
,"Don't you know how Mom feels? She's going to be lonely because you're suddenly leaving."
,"Sae, Saet-byeol-a?!"
How did she know my heart?!
,"No, it's not like we won't see each other for that long...."
,"Tsk, tsk."
Saet-byeol-i kicked her younger brother one more time.
,"Mom, are you playing?"
,"Mom?"
Seo-hui and Seo-a also came running and stood around Jae-won-i.
,"Okay, let's punish uncle."
,"Uncle did something wrong again?"
,"No, Seo-hui-ya, uncle didn't do anything wrong."
Saet-byeol-i, thinking it was a good thing, had Seo-hui and Seo-a hit Jae-won-i.
,"Aigo, the nieces are bullying their uncle!"
I was feeling sad until just now, but now there was no time to feel that way. Jae-won-i's actions were just too funny.
,"You're going to the army in July?"
,"Yeah, they said I have to enter the training camp then."
,"You can come back safely, right?"
,"What else is there to do?"
Ehyu... being too optimistic also makes people tired.
When I told Shi-hyun-i about it at night, he shook his head.
,"Even though it's sudden, it's probably better to go early."
,"Do you think so?"
,"That way he'll come back early."
I wondered what the difference was. Still, going right after finishing the first semester seemed a bit too early, didn't it?
,"There's not much difference between going after finishing the first year or the first semester. It's better than not being able to match the return period because you went late."
That's true... They say that if the timing is off, you might have to take a whole year off....
,"So, which training camp are you going to?"
,"Nonsan!"
That's the most famous training camp....
,"There's not much time left...."
,"Well, exams are more important than that right now."
After finishing his words, Jae-won-i went to his room and started studying.
Well... it's the final exam period, right? Kim Seo-bang and Saet-byeol-i were also studying hard in their rooms.
Seo-a was quietly in Shi-hyun-i's arms, and Seo-hui was wandering around near the room where Saet-byeol-i and Kim Seo-bang were.
,"Seo-hui-ya, don't disturb Mom and Dad and come here."
,"Okay...."
I took out a jelly from the table drawer and gave it to Seo-hui.
,"Here, let's eat jelly."
,"Jelly!"
As expected, she was a simple child.
*
The university's exam period ended, and the semester was over. Jae-won-i, who was overflowing with leisure as a freshman, was the first to finish, but he said he was going to play hard before going to the army, so he rarely came home.
Coming home late was the norm, and he often stayed out overnight.
,"Even though he's a boy, I'm worried...."
,"Why worry."
,"Ahaha...."
Shi-hyun-i seems to dislike me worrying about Jae-won-i.
,"As long as he doesn't cause an accident, it's fine."
,"Is that so......?"
Well, he hasn't been involved in any violent incidents or caused any accidents. You could say he's playing in a healthy way.
,"He's probably playing in a healthy way, so there's no news."
,"Could that be it?"
,"Yeah, it's not like he's addicted to drugs or gambling."
No, isn't that going too far? There's no way our Jae-won-i would fall into something like that!
,"I heard that drugs from another world are rampant these days...."
,"Wha, what?!"
I felt like I had been hit in the back of the head by Shi-hyun-i's words.
,"It's a drug made from items collected beyond the Gate, and it's cheap because the supply of materials is easy."
,"Re, really?"
,"Yeah, well, the surprising thing is that it's less addictive and less dependent than regular drugs? In some countries where some drugs are legal, they seem to recommend it instead of dangerous drugs."
,"Crazy...."
I really couldn't hold back and cursed. It was a relief that the grandchildren weren't next to me.
,"It's so cheap that even middle and high school students buy it with their allowance."
,"Isn't it banned in our country?"
,"Can you completely block it just by banning it?"
Well... if that were the case, there wouldn't be any villains or criminals....
,"Surely he wouldn't do something like that, would he?"
,"If he did, he'd get his ass beat."
The corners of Shi-hyun-i's lips slightly turned up. But his eyes didn't at all.
,"Ehh, surely he wouldn't?"
Still, I'm a little worried?
While at home, I looked into the drugs that Shi-hyun-i had mentioned from time to time.
It's just that I wasn't interested in the world. There were a lot of news articles about celebrities and athletes being arrested for doing drugs.
,"Wow...."
There were even special broadcasts on TV.
I didn't bother to look for it... but when I looked at communities, I saw a lot of posts saying that their child seemed to be doing drugs.
In particular, many types said they used it to relieve stress.
They can't properly relieve the stress of studying and turn to drugs as a means... Is it because it has lower dependence and danger than existing drugs?
There are many people who use it without thinking.
It's even circulating in study groups, so that says it all....
,"The end of the world, the end of the world."
But when I was young, there were a lot of people who fell into delinquency.
I waited for Jae-won-i while worrying. I haven't asked him yet.
It was partly because I was afraid and partly because I trusted Jae-won-i.
But I felt like I had to ask him directly once.
Jae-won-i came home in the morning after playing all night. Kim Seo-bang and Saet-byeol-i had gone out to play with the kids, so they weren't home.
Today was the opportunity.
,"Jae-won-a, let's talk."
,"I'm tired...."
There were dark circles under Jae-won-i's eyes.
,"What did you do all night to be like that?"
,"I just played with my friends."
I could smell alcohol when I got closer.
,"Mom is worried."
Jae-won-i sighed deeply and sat down on a chair.
,"What is it?"
,"Well, Mom heard some bad stories recently and is worried, you see?"
,"So what is it?"
Jae-won-i's reaction was more prickly than usual, as if he wanted to finish the story quickly and sleep.
,"Well, there are rumors that drugs are spreading a lot these days."
Jae-won-i frowned.
,"Mom, surely you don't trust me?"
,"No, I trust you! I trust you, so I want to confirm."
,"Do you think I would do something like that?"
,"No? It's just that it's popular these days...."
I lowered my head at Jae-won-i's words. Looking back on my actions, it seemed like I was suspecting Jae-won-i.
It was natural for Jae-won-i to react like that.
,"I'm sorry... It's just that it's a mess these days."
,"Hoo, well, there are stories like that going around at school too."
,"Re, really?"
,"But I don't do it."
Right? How did I raise my child! There's no way he'd fall into something like that!
I felt my heart stabilizing.
,"If I did that, I'd be beaten to death by Dad, how could I do it out of fear?"
That's also true... He said that when I told him this story before.
,"Well, I can see kids at school who seem to be doing drugs...."
It was heartbreaking to hear Jae-won-i say that.
There are kids who only studied to death, so they don't know what to do and wander around before falling into drugs... They say they like it because they can just drink it and feel good, feel happiness, and satisfaction, so they don't have to worry....
,"That's a terrible thing...."
,"If I didn't have nieces and nephews, I might have fallen into something like that."
,"Jae-won-a?! Don't even say things like that as a joke."
Jae-won-i laughed loudly when I was horrified.
,"How much healing have my cute nieces and nephews given me."
Jae-won-i finished speaking and went straight to his room. Looking at that appearance, there seemed to be no need to worry.