Epilogue: As Time Passes
In the end, despite my wishes, I ended up going out with Park Ye-eun.
Why is that?
My wives... generally grant me a great deal of freedom in other areas.
Whether it's food, free time, or my opinions, it's safe to say they go along with most of what I say.
A prime example: if I say, "I'm tired today, I want to rest," they really don't make me do anything that day.
No, they take the work away from me.
After I once carelessly said I was tired and they proceeded to treat me almost like a baby, not letting me do anything and looking after me perfectly, I've been trying my best never to say that again.
However. There are two things these people, who permit everything else, absolutely will not accept my opinion on.
The first is sleeping together.
It's not like it's no matter what... but they really try not to give up on sharing a bed unless it's absolutely necessary.
A prime example: after our honeymoon, when I felt like I was going to die and asked to rest for just a week...
"..."
"Oppa, why are you suddenly trembling?"
"It's nothing."
They did let me rest.
After a week of feeling comfortable, I died the following week.
In the end, me resting was just a postponement; it all comes back to me like a calamity in the end.
When I think of Yu Daon's face on the first day after my rest...
"..."
"No, why do you look so upset?"
"I told you I'm not."
"Anyone can see you're making a face like you're carrying all the unhappiness in the world right now. Who are you thinking about? The other sisters, right?"
"No."
"Yes, you are. Why?"
"Even if I am, it's not something to tell you."
"Why not? Is it because I'm not Oppa's wife, uhbub!"
"There are a lot of people around, please don't say things like that."
People are staring.
Anyone would think it's compensated dating or something.
"Pfft! No, Oppa."
Park Ye-eun stares straight at me.
"I know exactly what you're worried about, you know?"
"..."
"But that seems like a really pointless worry to me."
"What does?"
"I mean, what if people find out? So what?"
"Hey. That's problematic for a lot of reasons."
"I should be able to show off a little. Hey, everyone! Over here! Ack!"
"You're really dead."
So this is how difficult people are to handle.
When I take my hand away from Park Ye-eun's mouth, she glares at me and pouts.
"That's really too much."
"I think I'm the one who's being treated too harshly."
"..."
Park Ye-eun closes her mouth again and falls into thought as we walk along.
Anyway, to get back to the point.
The things my wives absolutely will not tolerate.
Sleeping together, and the next is meeting other people.
It's an obvious point.
To begin with, if I were to meet someone else, I'm the kind of person who wouldn't have a leg to stand on even if I got stabbed in the name of justice somewhere.
But even scarier than that is the fact that even if I do nothing, the others caution me.
A prime example: if I bump into a stranger while walking, apologize, and get scolded for it. Or being told I shouldn't do that.
There was even a time I got told off for just handing over some documents to someone inside the Management Bureau.
Of course, I don't really have any complaints.
It's not like they tell me not to talk to other women while they themselves talk to other men.
On the contrary, they terrifyingly avoid talking to them.
No joke, the most recent thing I can remember...
I think back to an incident a few months ago.
While I was walking with Jang Chae-yeon, there was someone who spoke to her.
It wasn't like a pickup attempt or anything.
If my memory serves, it was a debut offer for an entertainer, or maybe a modeling proposal. Something like that.
I still remember what Jang Chae-yeon said.
She suddenly grabbed my arm, hugged me, and said, 'I'm going to be a mom, so I can't,' before leaving.
"What are you thinking about now to be smiling like such a pervert?"
"Shut up. I wasn't smiling like a pervert."
I was just smiling.
I recall things that happen when I'm with the others.
In Song A-rin's case, when we walk together, she makes it so other people absolutely can't see us. Eileen or Manual usually attract the attention when we're out together.
Lee Ha-neul clearly has the looks to attract others' attention, but perhaps because of the aura that comes with her experience, no one ever approaches her.
Yu Daon...
"..."
When she's with me, she smiles brighter than anyone, but if someone else talks to her, she doesn't say a word.
She looks at them with a gaze as if she's looking at trash.
To the point where I think I'd feel a little sad if I were on the receiving end of that look.
Of course, when I mentioned that to Yu Daon, she insisted over and over that even if the sky fell, she would never look at me that way.
Anyway, our... all of my wives, without exception, are not the type who enjoy conversing with outsiders.
Especially with men.
Even if it's not a man, they usually only chatter amongst themselves, I suppose.
It seems like they only talk to what you might call close friends...
No joke, aside from our Team Leader, I don't think I've ever seen them have a conversation with anyone else.
While I was thinking that.
"Ouch."
Someone poked me in the side. I looked and saw Park Ye-eun staring at me with a pout.
"Oppa. When are you going to talk to me?"
"Sorry."
Apologizing to the sulking Park Ye-eun, I started walking again.
Time passed quickly.
Park Ye-eun herself is very good at keeping a conversation going, and she and I had a fair amount in common.
Time flew by, and before I knew it, the sun was setting low, and the two of us were sitting on a bench in a quiet park.
"..."
"..."
Park Ye-eun quietly looked up at the sky.
"Oppa."
"What."
"Thank you for playing with me today."
"..."
I turned my gaze to look at Park Ye-eun. She was looking back at me.
"I know. Oppa feels uncomfortable about this."
"..."
"Honestly, everyone else probably felt uncomfortable too. It's because that's just how you are, Oppa."
Grumbling, Park Ye-eun continued.
"It's just a bit annoying that the others succeeded because they were faster than me, and I failed because I was slower than them."
"Honestly, I didn't even know until right before we got married."
Wasn't she the Park Ye-eun who, right up until the wedding, was asking if it was okay to only give 50,000 won as a wedding gift and take home buffet food?
"...That's not..."
It seemed she remembered it too, as Park Ye-eun trailed off and started twisting the ends of her hair.
"I mean, what. At that time, it was possible. I might not have been self-aware yet. My romance cells were dead..."
"..."
"Hey, are you going to bring up something from the past like that? That's mean."
"Who would think it was something that happened ten years ago?"
It hadn't even been ten months, let alone ten years.
"Ugh. Anyway."
Park Ye-eun kept clearing her throat and started speaking again.
"Just. Well. How do you feel about me, Oppa?"
"About what?"
"Me."
"..."
How do I feel?
Honestly, I don't dislike Park Ye-eun.
Of course, I don't mean I like her in a romantic sense.
Above all else...
"..."
I briefly turned my gaze to look into the distance.
Park Ye-eun's father.
He was someone I could have saved if I had been just a little more capable.
If I had gone to the hospital just a little later.
If I had at least learned another Joint Technique before going, couldn't I have saved him?
And it's not just that.
"Oppa?"
I look at Park Ye-eun for a moment.
When her father asked me to take good care of her, he didn't mean it in this way.
Wouldn't he hate me if he knew?
If it were me, I think I would have slapped him across the face first.
While I was thinking that,
"Oppa."
"Ouch!"
Park Ye-eun pinched my side.
When I turned to look, Park Ye-eun was smiling at me.
"Really. I think I understand perfectly what the sisters mean now."
"What did they say?"
"The sisters said something, you know. They said Oppa is really easy to read."
"You couldn't read me before."
"Right. So I asked them how to read you, and Daon unnie said this."
Ahem, Park Ye-eun cleared her throat and imitated Yu Daon's voice.
"You can tell if you love him!"
"..."
"Was it not similar?"
"Anything else?"
"Anyway. That's the gist of it, right?"
Park Ye-eun turned her gaze back to me.
"Oppa. You're thinking about my dad, aren't you?"
Cough! Cough!
How did she know?
"I heard everything too. About what happened to my dad."
Park Ye-eun muttered while looking at the ground.
"And, I thought... someone like Oppa would... definitely feel guilty."
Her gaze remained fixed on the ground.
"Oppa... wants me... no. You want... me to be happy, right?"
"That's right."
That is true.
I want Park Ye-eun to be happy.
"But Oppa is worried that because I'm young, I might mistake a wrong choice for happiness right now."
"That's right."
We always end up making the wrong choices.
People are surprisingly foolish; if they gaslight themselves, they quickly start believing they're happy.
"So I've been thinking a bit."
After hearing my answer, Park Ye-eun grinned.
"Originally, I was the one who was supposed to seduce you."
"Yeah."
"But my thoughts have changed a bit."
Still smiling, Park Ye-eun continued.
"Let's just stay like this."
"Yeah. That's right."
It's right to give up.
As I thought that and nodded,
"See, you're misunderstanding again."
"What?"
"I'll prove it."
Park Ye-eun smiled.
"What's the big deal? I'll just wait, become an adult, and prove it then."
"What did you say?"
"I've decided!"
Then, Park Ye-eun sprang up and started hitting my shoulder repeatedly.
"Until I become an adult, let's stay like this, as close oppa and dongsaeng."
"..."
"And when I become an adult, if my feelings haven't changed."
She stared straight at me.
"Will you accept me then?"
"..."
Hearing that far, I had nothing left to say.
In the end, I could only nod.
"Aja!"
Park Ye-eun grinned, punched my shoulder again, and started walking in the opposite direction.
"Then. Just watch."
"..."
"Watch how sincere I am."
As she said that, her face was bright red.
All I could do was sigh and nod.
*
A little more time passed.
"Wow, walking is getting a bit difficult now."
Time passing... in a way, also meant the time had come.
Yu Daon laughed while stroking her belly, and I looked at them.
"..."
Somehow, the feeling was just too strange.