A Marriage with A Reason - Chapter 57

Hyunsoo first met Dayun when she moved into the house next door.

“Hello, we just moved in next door today. This is some rice cake—my dad told me to give it to you.”

“Oh, really? Thank you. Let’s get along well from now on.”

“Yes.”

It was late in the afternoon. When the doorbell suddenly rang, Hyunsoo thought it might be his dad and followed his mom to the door. And that was when he met Dayun for the first time.

“By the way, is this your younger sibling?”

“Yes, this is my sister, Dayun. Choi Dayun.”

“Oh my, she’s so pretty! The older brother is handsome, and the younger sister is pretty~”

“Haha, thank you.”

How should he put it…? Hyunsoo’s first impression of Dayun was, in one word, like a rice cake. Not in a bad way, like saying she looked like a rice cake—more like she gave off a soft, white, squishy kind of feeling. And seeing her stuck close to her brother, Daon, like she was shy, made her look even more like a baby rice cake. Small and squishy…

“So, how old is your sister—no, I mean, Dayun?”

“She’s ten years old.”

“Oh wow, the same age as our Hyunsoo! You two should become good friends. Hyunsoo, what are you doing? Say hello to Dayun.”

Hyunsoo’s mom, who only had him as a child, seemed to really like Dayun. Her eyes sparkled with affection as she looked at the cute little girl. She even poked Hyunsoo in the side, saying he, as the boy, should be the one to say hi first. So, reluctantly, Hyunsoo greeted her.

“Hi.”

“…”

“Hi! Hello!”

“…”

But when Dayun didn’t respond, Hyunsoo became a bit stubborn and said it even louder and clearer. Still, there was no reply. In fact, Dayun just looked scared, which left Hyunsoo feeling a little lost and confused. Daon must have sensed it too, because he stepped in to explain.

“I’m sorry. She’s really shy around new people… and there’s a bit of a situation.”

“Oh no, it’s fine. She’s probably just feeling awkward.”

“Dayun, he’s saying hi. You should say hi back, okay?”

Then, after hesitating for a moment, Dayun softly said, “Hi… hello?”

“Oh my, her voice is so pretty—must be because she’s a girl.”

“Haha, thank you. Hyunsoo’s voice is strong too, though.”

The mood around them suddenly became lively after hearing Dayun’s voice, but Hyunsoo didn’t really notice any of that. All he could think about was how Dayun had looked straight at him and how her quiet “hello” kept replaying in his mind. He felt a bit embarrassed, but, just like his mom said, he thought her voice was really pretty.

And so their short first meeting ended. Though something felt a little unfinished, Hyunsoo didn’t even realize it was actually a feeling of longing. The day passed, and the next day, as always, he went to school—only to be completely surprised.

“We have a new friend joining our class today. Her name is Choi Dayun. Dayun, can you say hello to everyone?”

“Um… hi…”

He had guessed she would start going to a new school, but he never expected it would be his school, let alone his class. The surprise didn’t last long though. Before he even realized it, a smile appeared on his face. He hadn’t expected it, but seeing her there again made him oddly happy.

Three weeks passed since Dayun’s family moved in. But in those three weeks, nothing really changed between Hyunsoo and Dayun. Unlike Hyunsoo and Hyunjae, who were so close they were called inseparable, Hyunsoo and Dayun barely spoke, despite being neighbors and classmates. The only words they exchanged were polite greetings when their families happened to bring them together. It made sense, really. Dayun was shy, and Hyunsoo still found her a bit awkward.

But not long after, an event occurred that made Dayun and Hyunsoo become like a needle and thread—tightly connected. It was a typical kind of elementary school incident: a fight.

That day, like always, Dayun was quietly reading during break time. Since she was shy, she didn’t have any close friends—just a few girls she occasionally talked to. So books were like friends to her. But then, some mischievous boys came over and started teasing her.

“Choi Dayun, why don’t you ever talk?”

“Yeah. Do you even know how to speak? Are you dumb?”

“Hehe, she must be dumb. Remember last time? The teacher told her to speak, and she just stayed silent.”

“Dummy~ Dummy~”

Dayun already found people hard to deal with. Being pointed at and called dumb by boys made her face crumple like she was about to cry. Now that she was older, she knew they probably liked her and were just acting out to get her attention. But back then, all she felt was fear—that they hated her and were being mean on purpose.

Just as tears were about to fall from her eyes, someone placed a hat over her head and gently pushed it down.

“Hey. Don’t cry.”

It was Hyunsoo.

“What the—Kim Hyunsoo? Do you like her or something?”

“Yeah, why are you defending her?”

Even Dayun was surprised. Hyunsoo had never seemed interested in her before. But now, here he was, standing in front of her like a shield.

“You guys are the ones being mean to someone who didn’t do anything. Is it okay to pick on a quiet girl just because you’re stronger?”

“What’s it to you?!”

“Of course it’s my business! I promised her big brother, Daon, that I’d look after her. So yeah, it is my business!”

Above all else, Dayun was grateful. Whether Hyunsoo was acting on Daon’s request or not, the fact that someone she never expected stood up for her meant the world. It touched her deeply.

After that, Hyunsoo started protecting her more, like a second big brother. Thanks to him, Dayun slowly opened up.

So when did Hyunsoo start having feelings for Dayun?

Was it the day they first met? No, definitely not. Back then, it was just curiosity—something new. He protected her partly because of Daon’s request, but mostly because she seemed small and fragile. His parents must have heard something from Dayun’s parents too, because they often told Hyunsoo to take care of her, saying she was very sensitive.

There was only one reason Hyunsoo started liking her.

“Hey, Kim Hyunsoo~”

“…Huh?”

It was simple—one day, Dayun looked completely different. Everything about her seemed to glow. That’s when he fell for her.

“Sorry, I’m super late, right? Did you wait long?”

“…Uh…”

“Hmm? Hyunsoo!”

“…Yeah?”

“I asked if you waited long.”

“Oh… no, I just got here too. But… your…”

“Huh? What?”

“Your uniform… skirt…”

Until now, Dayun had always seemed like a small, innocent little sister he had to protect…

“Oh, does it look weird? It’s my first time wearing a skirt, but I have to get used to it for school. Is it bad? Do I look weird?”

But now she looked so pretty, he had to swallow back the words “you look beautiful.”

“Hmm… I guess it really does look strange, huh? Oh well, you better get used to it, Kim Hyunsoo. You’ll be seeing it a lot from now on.”

Looking at her bright smile made him feel like butterflies were tickling him from head to toe. And just like that, Hyunsoo’s happy but painful first love—his one-sided love—began.

Now, back to the present…

Using the excuse of having a class, Hyunsoo had rushed out of Dayun’s house and collapsed onto the floor of his quiet home, letting out a long sigh.

“But Hyunsoo… I’m okay. I want to believe. I just… I want to believe in you. You told me you liked me, and I like you too… Things are so different now. So I want to believe in you one more time.”

He couldn’t stop thinking about her words. That she liked Jaehoon. That she wanted to believe in him one last time. Those words kept echoing in his head like thorns pricking at his heart.

“Why can’t it be me…”

Hyunsoo looked at the photo frame beside him. A picture of him and Dayun smiling together. Seeing her bright smile made him feel bitter. Of course, she never once asked him to like her. But during all the time they spent together, she had never just been a friend to him—she was someone he loved. And realizing she had only ever seen him as a guy friend… made his heart ache even more.

But this was all just an excuse.

Sigh…

If he was being honest, he didn’t hate Dayun for not understanding his feelings. He hated himself.

“You idiot…”

Suddenly, he wondered: If Dayun hadn’t liked Jaehoon, hadn’t married him—would he have been able to confess? But right after, he shook his head.

“Probably would’ve stayed a coward forever.”

He knew he wouldn’t have done it. He didn’t want to break her trust. Didn’t want to lose her. Even though he had many chances over the years, he never took them.

And so, Hyunsoo decided to bury his deep, aching first love—his one-sided love—deep in his heart. It wasn’t a love that could be forgotten quickly, but he didn’t want to destroy the trust she had in him as a friend. And maybe, just maybe, her love for Jaehoon was even stronger than his love for her.

While someone’s heart burned with love, another person quietly swallowed their love whole as another day passed.

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