Suhyeon’s parents got scolded by the nurse for being too noisy, but after receiving the doctor’s confirmation that there was nothing wrong, they went home.
Suhyeon managed to separate himself from his parents, who wanted to sleep together, and went into his room.
Family affection was nice, but sorting out his complicated thoughts was his top priority at the moment.
What I need now is…
He looked around the familiar yet unfamiliar room and carefully took out the item hidden in his clothes.
It was his dad’s cell phone, which he took while he was flustered.
Fortunately, Dad is careless.
There was no computer in Suhyeon’s room.
It couldn’t be helped since it was a room for a four or five-year-old child.
I don’t know if it’s possible to access the internet with such an antique. But if there’s no other way, I’ll have to make do with this.
He was confident before but now was suspiciously looking at the palm-sized feature phone.
A feature phone with buttons seemed like a walkie-talkie for someone used to smartphones.
Even after using it for over two years, the phone was still sturdy; it was practically a zombie.
But the security is a mess.
Suhyeon tried to think of the positive.
Unlike smartphones that recognize fingerprints, voice, and even irises, unlocking a feature phone only required a four-digit combination.
To exaggerate a bit, it was almost non-existent, making it easier to access the internet than with a smartphone.
Password. Isn’t the child’s birthday usually the password if they have a child?
Looking at the screen showing only time, Suhyeon confidently entered his own birthday, 1224.
And it was wrong.
“This… isn’t right.”
He couldn’t believe reality and entered his birthday again.
He tried his birth year, out of stubbornness, his mom’s, and of course, his dad’s birthdays.
However, none of the numbers were the password.
How can this be…?
Worried that his parents would barge in if he was too noisy, Suhyeon struggled and buried his face in the blanket.
His father, lacking in affection, was cruel.
Of course, I also set a completely unrelated number as my PIN! But Dad shouldn’t do that!
While it was okay for him, he pushed the double standard that his father shouldn’t do it and stared at the calendar displayed on the screen.
At least he knew his age, and that was a relief.
I’m five years old. And it’s July now.
Since the accident happened when he was twenty-five, he has traveled back in time about 20 years.
The future he had to rewrite felt both exciting and dauntingly blank.
I never lived an extraordinary life. I’ll do as much as I can, and then…
Suddenly, sleepiness washed over him, and he couldn’t help but lazily nod.
Despite his fierce resistance, his eyelids felt endlessly heavy.
…I should check my abilities a little more before sleeping…
At some point, Suhyeon’s thoughts stopped, and he collapsed onto the bed.
* * *
“Suhyeon.”
“…”
“Acting cute won’t work. Eat it all.”
“I’m not pretending. I really am cute.”
“You are really cute, but you still have to.”
Jiyeon tried to maintain a stern expression as she scolded Suhyeon while praising herself for being a loving mother who knew how to scold.
Why did he take the phone with him? Is he already at an age where he’s interested in things like that?
Unaware of the morning’s chaos, Suhyeon didn’t wake until nearly 10 o’clock.
Hochan belatedly realized his cell phone was missing as he was about to leave for work,
As an employee, he couldn’t go without it, so he searched the entire house and was frustrated by the unknown whereabouts of the phone.
Jiyeon was helping him prepare for work and also couldn’t help but feel irritated by the missing phone.
Their search for the lost phone led them to their son’s room, where they found the lovely but cunning culprit asleep, clutching the phone tightly in one hand.
“You shouldn’t take Dad’s things like that. As punishment, you have to eat ten anchovies and five pieces of doraji salad[1].”
“Hmmm…”
“You have to chew it well, okay? It’s good for your body.”
Jiyeon urged Suhyeon, but he only looked at the doraji salad on his rice, thinking he didn’t want to eat it.
Contrary to her own belief of being strict, she looked very lenient.
…This is normal, right?
Staring blankly at the side dishes, Suhyeon slowly brought the spoon to his mouth.
The slightly bitter taste of bellflower root spread in his mouth.
It’s been too long, so it feels a bit surreal.
If they were close, especially between parents and children, one could nag about putting side dishes on top of rice or eating a balanced meal.
It wasn’t a big deal.
Although he knew that in his head, Suhyeon’s heart was churning.
Come to think of it, we were like this until elementary school, so it’s nothing special.
He had received such affection before, but the fights leading up to the divorce were so long and hard that he had forgotten about it.
He looked again at the bellflower roots that had risen on top of the rice.
It was a side dish he didn’t like much, even after becoming an adult, but it tasted good for some reason.
…It feels good.
It was surprisingly enjoyable to have someone thinking about him and worrying about his meal.
Suhyeon received the side dishes from Jiyeon while having these thoughts and ate them obediently.
It was a very quiet and peaceful scene.
* * *
After the meal, Jiyeon handed Suhyeon an ice cream.
It was a snack she used to give him in small amounts as a reward for doing something well, saying that eating too much would upset his stomach.
No matter how cute a child is… isn’t this too soft?
Whenever his mom showed this side of her, Suhyeon wondered if he had fallen into a parallel world instead of the past.
For this, he hated much more the scammer that would eventually cause the breakdown of his family.
“Ah, who is it when I’m busy? Hello?”
Jiyeon had been watching her son but frowned when there was a sudden phone call.
She was irritated by the disturbances during the valuable time she had specifically set aside to spend with her son, away from her work.
However, when she heard the voice on the other end, the corner of her mouth rose.
“Oh. Isn’t this Team Leader Oh Hanna? Me? I’m doing well. Didn’t I send you a picture yesterday?”
Oh Hanna was one of the few former colleagues who kept in touch with Jiyeon after she switched to working from home.
It was a relationship where they could have private conversations and help each other when things were tough.
After resigning, Jiyeon once said, “The only thing I’ll miss is not being able to have lunch with you.”
This made it more fitting to call Jiyeon and Oh Hanna’s relationship as friends rather than colleagues.
– “Sunbae! Please help me!”
“Don’t joke around! You’re now a capable team leader, Oh Hanna.”
– “Stop joking around! You’re the only person I can think of to ask for help!”
“I can’t if it’s urgent. I have to take a picture of my son eating ice cream now. Do you know how important this is?”
– “Suhyeon! Suhyeon’s there too? Sunbaeeee!”
“Ah, you’re too loud.”
– “Just listen to me for a moment! Our child model bailed on us…!”
As Jiyeon showed a cold-hearted expression, Hanna clung to her desperately like a dumped ex-boyfriend.
She not only explained her pitiful situation but also continued to plead, promising to give Jiyeon more freelance work and to pay her well.
“Did you miss my child that much? You really…”
– “Sunbae, please?”
“Fine. Let me think about it.”
– “Sun—”
Jiyeon coldly cut off Hanna as the latter was about to say more.
It was a professional-like attitude, skillfully driving away the nuisance.
“…Sigh. There are so many places Suhyeon wants to go, so I’m worried.”
Jiyeon stroked Suhyeon’s head while spitting out worried words.
Unlike the attitude she just showed to Hanna, her face was filled with concern as she looked at her son.
“Why?
“Suhyeon, your Aunt Hanna wants to use you as a model because you’re so pretty.”
Jiyeon relayed what she had heard to Suhyeon.
Though her words contained a considerable amount of embellishment and distortion, like a mother hedgehog, she believed she was passing the message correctly.
“…So, it seems they wanted Suhyeon all along.”
Before he knew it, the original story about the child model was completely left out, and it was as if they had wanted Suhyeon from the beginning.
He might have believed that Hanna had abused her power just to see Suhyeon if he hadn’t heard the conversation between them.
…I don’t think that’s what she was talking about.
Of course, Suhyeon heard the entire conversation because of Hanna’s loud voice and, as such, didn’t believe his mother’s words.
Suhyeon stared intently at Jiyeon.
Her mother had an unexpected talent for making up stories.
…I was at a loss for how to start, but this isn’t too bad.
While curious about Jiyeon’s thought process, Suhyeon focused more on the offer.
Many child actors debuted thanks to connections.
Having the right connection at the right time was a stroke of luck.
“I want to go see Aunt Hanna.”
“She’s really something. No matter how much she wants to see you, she shouldn’t handle things like this without making room first. Suhyeon, do you really want to help your aunt?”
“I want to help Aunt Hanna.”
“How can you be so kind and adorable? Isn’t our son really an angel?”
Jiyeon hugged Suhyeon tightly.
She found her son’s efforts to act mature despite his mother’s worries endearing.
Even though Suhyeon’s actions were distorted significantly by the doting mother filter, the morning of the second day of regression was relatively ordinary and peaceful.
* * *
“You’re Suhyeon! You’re so cute! I can understand why the older ones have a soft spot for you!”
“Th-thank you.”
“Oh my, oh my. Where did you learn to be so flirty? Want some candy?”
“Where did you learn to covet my child?”
“Aigoo, others too? But Suhyeon is really cute. Is he really your child? Did he get that from his father’s side?”
Hanna handed a handful of candy to Suhyeon and loosened her stiff expression while joking.
As soon as Jiyeon’s approval came, she sent the location where they had to come via text.
She even went through the trouble of sending nearby photos via SMS in case they got lost.
“Do you know what that ajumma said? She said her kid should at least get 50,000 won more. When I asked her to come and talk, she quit saying, ‘Aren’t we going to shoot first and then talk?'”
“How much did you give her?”
“150,000 won. To be honest, I raised it that much because she said her kid appeared in two movie appearances, but I got duped. It wasn’t even a supporting role, just an extra. Ah, just thinking about that ajumma….”
Hanna, who had been grumbling up to that point, suddenly hugged Suhyeon tightly.
“But since I met Suhyeon, it feels like a happy ending.”
“Get away from my child. Don’t spread your germs.”
“Wow, am I a germ?”
“Worse than a germ. Scram, shoo.”
“What a cute kid!”
Suhyeon half-ignored the two playfully bickering and dashed toward the studio.
The familiar scenery from his idol days unfolded before his eyes, with the studio appearing even grander.
…But it feels strangely shabby.
Despite the high-end equipment, he couldn’t help but think of the studio he visited during his pre-debut days.
Feeling a slight unease, Suhyeon politely greeted the adults in the studio.
Perhaps Hanna had informed them of his name beforehand as some staff members greeted him with a warm “You’re Suhyeon, right?”
Just as everyone was trying to maintain the friendly atmosphere, a person who appeared to be the photographer impatiently interjected,
“Let’s quickly finish taking the photos.”
The photographer, adorned in luxury brands, openly expressed his annoyance at the delayed schedule.
He dismissed the gathered staff and gave a subtle hint to the child model…
Naturally, the once gentle atmosphere became awkwardly tense.
“Suhyeon, just follow that noona over there and change your clothes.”
“Yes.”
As the model change caused a delay, everyone hurriedly prepared.
As Suhyeon received his outfit and put on a coat that matched the autumn atmosphere, a hair designer on standby fixed his hair with spray.
Light makeup was a bonus.
“It’s just a little bit of powder… What on earth do you eat to be this cute? You’re like an angel.”
The staff member who helped with his clothes and hair gently pinched Suhyeon’s soft cheeks a few times, letting out words of envy.
As she said, Suhyeon looked adorable and lovely.
His neatly arranged hair with hair spray resembled clouds, the knit sleeves slightly covering his hands made him even cuter, and the childlike liveliness was evident in his rosy cheeks.
Even I think I look cute.
Although the hair spray made his once soft hair stiff and poke his forehead, Suhyeon paid them no mind.
Compared to the numerous times he had bleached his hair, having his hair set with a hair spray was nothing.
The fit is pretty, albeit a bit uncomfortable.
The design was more appealing to adults than children, but ultimately, it was the parents who would be the buyers.
His job was to accentuate the clothes as much as possible and increase the desire to purchase.
I’ve done some modeling, but children’s clothing… Well, I just need to follow the photographer’s instructions.
Knowing how the photos were taken and raising the appeal of the clothes was a slightly different story.
Therefore, Suhyeon decided to leave that part to the professional.
…That was the plan until about 10 minutes ago.
Did they really approve of that?
Smiling at the request, Suhyeon looked at the photographer.
Even he, a novice in children’s clothing, could tell that the photo they just took was ambiguous.
There was no room for doubt as he checked how the photos were taken.
I haven’t done children’s modeling, but I’ve done advertisements before.
It was harder for a non-successful idol to survive for four years than a successful one.
They had to accept regional events and even jobs that made them wonder, “Do idols do this too?” with a smile.
Advertisement photos were no exception.
He had participated in several ads for small and medium-sized enterprises, though he hadn’t done chicken or game ads.
No matter how I look at it, that guy just takes the photos half-heartedly.
When living a thin and ambiguous life, one tends to develop a sense of intuition.
Being able to quickly grasp the atmosphere and the mood of the “boss” on-site, as they were more likely to be scolded if they were not careful.
Suhyeon’s honed senses alerted him to the photographer’s insincerity.
Ah, it’s a bother, isn’t it?
He guessed the photographer’s thoughts.
Child models, especially those under 10, could not fully understand and follow the adult instructions.
The photographer had to fill in the gaps and put in more effort.
But the results were meager compared to the effort.
It was considered a somewhat ambiguous experience for a portfolio, and the fees were not much either.
So, they think children just have to smile at the camera, and that’s it.
The fact that Suhyeon was a rookie also played a part in the deduction.
It was common for a “pretty-faced” child to casually become a model.
I understand the feeling, but…
Suhyeon smiled at the camera.
Between his slightly opened eyes, a hint of anger flickered.
But that’s no reason to ruin my first job, right?
He wanted to take the best path, even if it wasn’t perfect.
It was just yesterday that he made that vow, and he couldn’t let his will be trampled on by someone else just one day later.
He didn’t want to be trampled on.
I’ll carry my own photos.
Suddenly, Suhyeon’s expression hardened as if wearing the mask of an innocent child.
If the photographer wanted to be a mere button-pusher, he would make it so.
[1] Spicy Bellflower Root Salad
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