We Should Have Slept While Only Holding Hands, And Yet?! - Volume 2 Chapter 7

Chapter 7
7 . Quarrel

 

“Uhm, Miss Jihye? Jaim probably didn’t mean it that way . ”

“No······ . That was most likely the Miss’ true feelings······ . ”

Despite Saeyeon’s consoling words, Jihye simply answered in a low voice as she sniveled while fully inside of the cardboard box which she usually went into to recharge .

“It would be better, if something like me, were thrown into a scrap metal dump and turned into a frying pan or a pot······ . ”

Due to the hurtful words which, different to all of the previous malicious words until now, sounded as if Jaim truly wished for Jihye to go die somewhere, Jihye had become completely crestfallen .

And I was······ .

“Jaim, I told you it’s not like that!”

“Shut up! I don’t even want to look at you, Dad!”

······I was undergoing a similar situation as I pounded on the door of Jaim’s room .

Once I got home after following after Jaim, she had already locked her door and was staging a sit-in in her room . I asked Saeyeon, who was worried because she had just witnessed Jaim abruptly come home while crying and Jihye and I come home in a hurry, to watch Jihye’s condition as she was so crestfallen that the mere fact she was able to follow me home was praiseworthy .

I intended to pacify Jaim while Saeyeon was doing that, but······ .

“It was my mistake, so come out and have a talk with your dad, okay?”

Although I knocked on the door as gently as possible so it wouldn’t seem like I was yelling at her, there was no response .

Instead, the door opened . For a moment, I thought that she finally wanted to talk .

“W-Wait a second, calm down! What do you plan on doing with that?!”

However, I could only let out a startled cry due to the object that was being held in Jaim’s hand .

I put my hands underneath Jaim’s arms as she was about to go to my room with a hammer in her hand, and pulled her back into her room before Saeyeon could see . Jaim struggled and shouted .

“Let go! I’ll break her apart! Who cares about Multi!”

“I told you to calm down! You don’t have to go that far, do you?”

“I don’t have to go that far?”

Jaim stopped struggling and turned around to face me in reaction to my words which I had said in order to calm her down .

“Of course not . That thing is probably more important to you than me or mom . ”

Cold eyes . The tone of her voice was lathered with sarcasm .

“It’s a family experiment anyway, and since that piece of scrap metal is the robot maid that you wanted so much and had also created, it’s quite your ideal, isn’t it?”

“······I told you it’s not like that . ”

“What do you mean it’s not?!”

Jaim shouted as loud as she could while glaring at me who was being silent .

“Then what? What did you mean earlier, Dad?”

“I’m sorry about what I said, but that’s not······ . ”

“You’re not sorry . In the end, you’re admitting to being that sort of person . ”

Jaim retorted coldly with the same spiteful gaze which she had once shown before when she talked about my future self .

“In the end, mom and I aren’t important to you, Dad . Your work and job are important . The only reason you helped me last time, fought for my sake, was because you purely wanted to pretend to be a family and you only acted as if you got along with mom because you wanted me to quickly leave, right?”

“I told you that’s wrong!”

I know that I’m in the wrong, but I got annoyed by her attitude of not even wanting to listen to me, so I wound up raising my voice . Jaim narrowed her eyes further .

I brought my voice back down so I could continue trying to soothe her and spoke .

“······Did you, also know that Jihye resembles Saeyeon?”

“I don’t know something like that . I don’t want to know either . ”

Jaim retorted coldly to my words .

“I’m not even curious as to what you had in mind when you made that thing . Regardless, despite that······!”

After wiping the corner of her eyes once, Jaim opened her red eyes .

“How, how could you say something like that? How could you compare that sort of scrap metal with mom?!”

“Like I said, can you stop acting like this? Listen to me for a second . ”

Jaim shook her head .

“There’s nothing to listen to . It’d just be an excuse anyway . ”

Certainly, it may be an excuse .

But······ .

“Regardless, listen when someone speaks! You can get mad or whatever after you’ve heard me out!”

“······ . ”

Jaim’s mouth fell open slightly in reaction to my voice which I had raised inadvertently .

I didn’t want to raise my voice like this .

“Why are you only looking at things with a slanted view? I told you that you’re mistaken!”

Even though it was both the current me and the future me who had a slip of the tongue and was in the wrong .

I tried to restrain myself, but an incomprehensible irritation made me raise my voice .

No, this wasn’t what I wanted to talk about . The frustration of being unable to properly voice my thoughts made me scratch the back of my head roughly .

“I just thought that, if Saeyeon was good at housework like Jihye, and more mature than now, then we probably wouldn’t have broken up and you wouldn’t have had to go out of your way to come here······ . ”

I realized something in the middle of my spiel .

What I was saying right now, was exactly what Jaim had been worried about .

However, words which had already been spoken couldn’t be taken back . More importantly, I couldn’t organize the words that I wanted to say .

I was definitely the person who had made Jihye like this . Me . To resemble Saeyeon, but be more ideal as well . However, I didn’t want to unload these sort of thoughts onto Jaim .

“······So you’re just saying you like that thing more than mom . ”

And, in response to my words, Jaim spoke in a tone even colder than before .

“In the end, you’re saying that piece of scrap metal would be better for your family experiment than mom . ”

“I told you that’s not what I meant!”

This is frustrating . I know I’m only fanning the misunderstanding . However, I can’t just say everything that’s on my mind . Additionally, I don’t have the eloquence to make her not misunderstand .

I didn’t want to argue . Like a dad, I wanted to skillfully resolve the misunderstanding and reconcile, but .

“What I mean is, if Saeyeon becomes like Jihye, then we might become the family that you······ . Ack!”

“That isn’t, the sort of family that I want!”

In response to my words, Jaim threw her game console at me and shouted at the top of her lungs .

The portable game console that I had once fixed .

The portable game console that I had bought for Jaim .

It flew through the air and collided against my head before rolling on the ground . My head throbbed . I felt a dull pain .

“Why are you concerned about that thing when mom and I are here?!”

Jaim must have been unable to quell her frustration as she slammed her fist against her bed repeatedly as she spoke .

“You and mom reconciled after that fight, grandma and grandpa welcomed me, you started to worry about me more than before, and your relationship with mom gradually got better······, so I thought everything would be fine!”

Jaim wrapped her arms around her knees and lowered her head .

“But ever since that piece of scrap metal showed up, you started caring about that piece of scrap metal!”

Her body trembled, her voice was soaked, and she was most likely burying her face in her knees because she didn’t want to show me her face .

Jaim yelled at me who couldn’t muster to say anything .

“Why are you thinking about mom while looking at that piece of scrap metal when mom is here? How can you think of her as mom’s replacement? Even though you don’t know what I went through in the future and with what intention I came here for, how could you say that I probably wouldn’t have come here if mom was like that sort of scrap metal? After coming here, I, I······!”

It seems she finally couldn’t endure it any longer as Jaim went silent for a moment while only her shoulders trembled . I simply averted my gaze because I could hear silent weeping .

I wanted to at least embrace Jaim’s shaking shoulders, but······ .

“I’m, not going back . ”

Before I could even reach my hand out, Jaim spoke quietly .

“Everything would be the same even if I go back . Nothing would have changed . ”

I held my breath because of those words . A question wound up slipping through my lips .

“You······ knew?”

Jaim raised her face and answered .

“It obviously doesn’t make sense if you think about it a little . If you and mom don’t break up because I came to the past, then I wouldn’t have had a reason to come here . ”

Jaim rubbed her reddened eyes and glared daggers at me .

“So I’m not going back to that house . ”

As if she were telling that to herself . As if she were declaring that to me .

Jaim stood up and spoke while clenching her fists .

“Mom is here, you don’t worry about only your work, and you don’t condescendingly attach that thing to me here . I like it here . ”

“But, your school and your life there······ . ”

“I don’t care about those things!”

Jaim shook her head and shouted .

“If I go back, then I’d be back at square one! You won’t care about anything that happens to me, mom will be gone, and that piece of scrap metal which you had snobbily stuck to me will get friendly with me thinking she’s a part of my family! Going around acting like it would be fine if she replaced mom!”

I couldn’t say anything in response as she continued .

The only thought that went through my mind was ‘I knew it’ .

“I hate the very fact that, that thing pretends to be my mom and acts like she’s a part of my family!”

······As I thought, this kid, her thought process is as twisted as mine .

Since her reason was similar to why I had once hated Saeyeon .

Saeyeon, who went around acting as if she were a part of my family .

Jihye, who acted as if she were a part of her family .

It didn’t matter what reason they had for acting like they were our family . We hated it for that very reason . An existence that wasn’t even a part of our family, but acted as if they were our family simply because we didn’t have one .

We hate sympathy . We hate the very act of being pitied .

I couldn’t say even a single thing about the way Jaim treated Jihye .

Jihye truly wasn’t someone I had left Jaim in the care of because I was worried about Jaim . She was someone I had stuck her to in order to act like I was worried . I could tell just by looking at them . I considered that much to be fine . I regarded this as being enough .

Because someone is with her, taking care of her, she feels even more alone .

There was no way she would like her .

I know . It was probably because of this sort of reason . Since she’s like me .

“Of course, at first, since you were the one who told me, I thought that you brought a robot to look after me because you cared about me . ”

Jaim bit her lips and spoke .

“She’s not my mom, but since she’s looking after me like a mom, I tried to get along with her, or at the very least, obey her as much as she worried about me . Because, you were worried about me, so in order to not make you worry . ”

‘But,’ Jaim’s lips trembled as she mumbled .

“But, that’s not my mom! She’s not!”

Jaim yelled as she shook her head .

“How could you tell me to think of a robot, which you made to resemble mom, as my mom after you had broken up with her? How could you pretend to care about me by doing that? Dad, how could you······?!”

These words weren’t being directed towards my current self . She was saying it to my future self . She was talking as if I was the one who had said those words .

Did my current self appear like that to Jaim?

But, because of this······ .

“······ . ”

I couldn’t say anything .

Explaining to Jaim what I felt and realized when I looked at Saeyeon was impossible . Persuading Jaim to stop hating Jihye was impossible .

Because I had already said those words .

And, since I’m the parent who had made and assigned the very robot she hated so much to her . The robot who acted like it was a part of her family and as if it were her mother .

Furthermore, Jaim now also knew that, of all things, I had made the robot resemble her mom who had left .

“······If you don’t have anything more to say, then get out of my room . ”

Jaim looked at me for a moment before turning away as she said that to me who was being silent . She pulled her blanket over her head as if she didn’t have anything more to say and laid down on her bed .

I left the room and closed the door behind me .

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“Jjaro . ”

Once I exited the room, Saeyeon called out to me hesitantly .

“Uhm, you might not want to talk about it, but······ . Why did you fight with Jaim? Why is Miss Jihye so depressed?”

Saeyeon asked while worryingly as the ends of her gathered fingers fidgeted .

“······It’s nothing . It isn’t a big issue . ”

So I couldn’t say anything .

Saeyeon looked troubled because of my answer and spoke .

“But······ . ”

“I said it’s okay . You don’t have to worry . ”

If I want to explain to Saeyeon the reason why I had an argument with Jaim, then I would have to tell her about what happens in the future . If that happens, then I would have to tell her about how we break up . About Jihye as well .

I couldn’t do that .

I patted Saeyeon’s head and asked .

“More importantly, what about Jihye? Is she a bit better now?”

“Hm? Ah, yeah······ . I comforted her as best as I could and she fell asleep . ”

Saeyeon seemed to have noticed my obvious attempt to change the topic as she appeared disappointed for a moment, but she still nodded her head and answered .

I turned my head and noticed that Jihye had certainly gone into charging mode inside of the cardboard box . It seems Saeyeon interpreted this as falling asleep .

“How about Jaim? Did you calm her down well?”

“······No, I’m going to need a little more time . ”

I don’t know

if this is an issue that’ll be resolved through time, but similar to myself, I want to believe that Jaim will get better once her head cools down . Saeyeon nodded in response to my answer and spoke .

“Then Jjaro, what if I have a talk with Jaim?”

“You will, Saeyeon?”

“Yeah . You asked me yourself, Jjaro . You asked me to help you make Jaim and Miss Jihye reconcile . I’m the mom, after all . If I have a talk with her, then she might stop being mad . ”

Saeyeon clenched her fist and smiled as if she were brimming with confidence .

“If I have a talk with her, then I might be able to convince Jaim that Miss Jihye is her second mom . ”

“······Saeyeon, are you fine with that?”

“Huh?”

Saeyeon tilted her head at my words which I had accidentally blurted out . As if she didn’t understand what I meant . Obviously . I shook my head and spoke .

“No, I’ll have a proper talk with her and calm her down myself . You don’t have to worry about it, Saeyeon . ”

“But······ . ”

“It’s fine . I said you don’t have to worry . ”

If possible, I don’t want to involve Saeyeon in this . Whether Saeyeon finds out about the truth or what I end up saying in the future, both options are bad . Even more so if there’s the danger that Saeyeon might use her sharp senses which she occasionally utilizes whenever I’m involved .

“······Stupid Jjaro . ”

However, in response to my answer, Saeyeon pouted and raised the corner of her eyes .

“Huh?”

She looked as if she were sulking, no, if anything, she looked like she was blatantly advertising the fact that she was upset . Even though she was being cautious up until now, what’s up with her all of a sudden?

“You clearly said so before, didn’t you, Jjaro? You said that you need me . But why are you talking as if you don’t need me all of a sudden?”

“No, it’s not like······ . ”

“If we’re a family, then we should work together as a family in order to solve our issues, shouldn’t we? Furthermore, it’s an issue that involves our daughter, so no matter how you look at it, it’s bad that you’re trying to take care of everything all by yourself, Jjaro! Bad!”

Saeyeon’s strong voice, which was different from her usual tone, startled me and made me take a step back . Saeyeon let out a ‘hmph’ after seeing my blank gaze and went over to where Jihye was before removing the cardboard box .

“Ja Saeyeon?”

“Mm······ . Huh, Madam?”

Jihye must have sensed that something was happening in her surroundings as she looked up at Saeyeon and muttered in a drowsy voice as she hadn’t recharged completely yet . Saeyeon spoke while pulling on Jihye’s arm .

“Miss Jihye, get up . We’re going out for a bit . ”

“Pardon? But it’s still······ night time?”

Despite having been crestfallen a little earlier, Jihye tilted her head in confusion . Saeyeon forcefully pulled Jihye up and continued .

“Follow me anyways . Bring the bare minimum of your stuff . ”

“Huh? ······Ah, don’t tell me, Madam, do you really intend to throw me out?!”

Jihye became bewildered . She opened her eyes wide and clung onto Saeyeon’s leg .

“M-Madam! Please don’t throw me out! I was joking about becoming a frying pan or a pot! You won’t get a lot even if you sell me!”

“I’m not throwing you out . We’re going back to my parents’ place for a while . ”

“······What?”

I was simply watching them up until this moment, but those words woke me up from my stupor . Her parents’ place? Go back? Saeyeon turned back towards me and stuck her lips out .

“If you’re going to do whatever you want, Jjaro, then I’m going to do whatever I want as well!”

“Wait, why are things turning out like this?”

While ignoring Jihye who was still utterly confused, Saeyeon went to her room and answered my question once she finished packing some of her clothes .

“You don’t try to work together even though we’re a family! I’m disappointed! Jaim probably doesn’t want to be with Miss Jihye, so we’re going to go back to my parents’ place together . You can come and find me once you’ve made up with Jaim, Jjaro . Hmph!”

“No, wait, you haven’t answered my question . ”

“Now then, let’s go, Miss Jihye!”

“Madam? Wait a moment, I’m Master’s······ . ”

Saeyeon dragged Jihye out the front door and closed it behind her before I could do anything to stop her . I could hear footsteps and the two of them speaking in the hallway for a moment before I heard the neighbors’ door open, in other words, Saeyeon’s place .

“What’s up with her all of a sudden······?”

Normally, no matter how upset she was, Saeyeon wouldn’t behave like this . Was she that upset? What does she intend to do?

“······What’s with all the noise?”

While I was idiotically sitting by the front door, I heard Jaim’s voice from behind . The tone of her voice still clearly sounded mad .

“······Saeyeon and Jihye left . ”

Jaim laughed weakly in response to my answer .

“In the end······ mom left again . ”

‘In the end’, ‘again’, I didn’t understand the situation yet, but at the very least, those words were enough to send a stabbing pain through my chest .

The scale of the fight wasn’t as big as last time . However, once more, Saeyeon got upset at me and went back to her home . Even though I wanted to prevent this from happening again . Even though I didn’t want this to happen twice .

I was abandoned once more . This was only a family experiment, but I was abandoned by my family .

However, instead of shock, my body felt as if it were being held down by helplessness this time . Because it was my fault . Because it was my fault this time as well .

Nevertheless, I couldn’t tell Saeyeon . I couldn’t tell her that we broke up, that I had a fight with Jaim because I made Jihye, a robot maid that resembled Saeyeon, after Saeyeon had left .

I turned towards Jaim and spoke in order to cool down my own annoyance towards myself .

“······It seems she left so that we could talk . Since things have turned out like this, we have no other choice but to properly······ . ”

Bang, the door to Jaim’s room shut closed . This probably meant that she had nothing to say .

That fact made my chest throb once more .

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“······ . ”

“······ . ”

The morning breakfast table was filled with only silence .

If you think about it, this is the first time Jaim and I had a meal with just the two of us . However, this fact felt much too heavy .

In the end, Saeyeon really didn’t come back . Of course, Jihye as well .

It was almost like the time I told her that I hated her .

The grains of rice felt like grains of sand in my mouth, so it was even a struggle to chew . I wasn’t able to get a wink of sleep last night so the fatigue made my appetite disappear as well .

“······Are you going to come to school?”

I was barely able to utter that question . Jaim glared at me .

“Why? So you can tell everyone that you don’t need something like me like last time?”

Ice-cold words . Words meant to hurt me .

“You know that’s not what I meant . ”

“Nope . I don’t know . Wasn’t I a bothersome existence to you, Dad? You’ve been trying to chase me out since day one . ”

Her sarcastic tone . It hurt more because those words weren’t particularly untrue .

“······That was a long time ago, it’s not like that now . ”

“What do you mean it’s not like that?!”

Clang, Jaim dropped her spoon so that it would make an audible sound before shouting .

“I’m just a burden to you anyways, right?! You’re saying that it would be great if I disappeared! Both you and mom!”

I was surprised by her tone that didn’t even try to hide her annoyance .

“No, Saeyeon didn’t······ . ”

“She left without saying anything to me, didn’t she?”

I was about to say that that was because of me to Jaim, who was on the brink of tears, but Jaim shot up from her chair and went to her room .

“No matter what you and mom are planning, I’m not leaving!”

I couldn’t say anything in response to Jaim’s actions as she slammed the door shut with a booming ‘bang’ .

······This can be interpreted like this, huh? My mouth was dry, so I drank some water .

It’s not like I don’t understand Jaim’s feelings . The fact that I said she wouldn’t have had to come here and the fact that Saeyeon left without saying anything to her, both of these things must have upset her .

I let out a deep sigh due to my frustration .

If I think about it, she went silent like this when Jihye first arrived as well . Albeit only for a few days .

At that time, it was at the point of only being troubling, but now it made my chest ache .

I didn’t want for things to turn out like this . I wanted to at least solve the issue a bit better like a dad should .

“······Then, I’ll be heading to school . ”

“······ . ”

As I expected, no response came when I said that after carefully knocking on Jaim’s door . I let out another sigh and opened the front door . I went over to Saeyeon’s place and knocked on the door . With a vague hope .

“Ja Saeyeon, let’s go to school . ”

“Ah, Master······ . ”

And the person to open the door and respond wasn’t Saeyeon or her parents, but Jihye . With a crestfallen face, Jihye spoke cautiously .

“Uhm, the Missus went to school saying that she’ll be going first . ”

“······Already?”

This was 30 minutes earlier than usual . Normally, she would still be asleep around this time .

“Does she not even want to see me······?’

I could only smile bitterly . I could feel that she didn’t particularly want to run into me . I let out a small sigh .

“······Uhm, Master?”

Jihye carefully called out to me as she was watching me, so I raised my head . Jihye continued hesitantly .

“As I thought, is the Miss really upset?”

“······Well, it seems so . ”

She was probably as upset at Jihye as she was with me . She did say that she was going to destroy Multi . Now that I think about it, Multi might be destroyed by the time I get home . I can only hope that that doesn’t happen .

·····For me to worry about Multi in this situation . Seriously, people like me are······ .

“So she really is······ . ”

Jihye became even more crestfallen due to my answer, but I couldn’t think of anything to say that could comfort her, so I didn’t say anything at all .

“Am I a needless existence to the Miss?”

“That’s······ . I don’t think so . ”

My answer became slightly hesitant . Jihye muttered weakly .

“A home appliance becoming a substitute family member is impossible, isn’t it?”

“······ . ”

I couldn’t find an answer to that question .

“······Pardon me . You should be on your way to school now . ”

Jihye bowed courteously . This was probably her way of ending the conversation politely . I gave her a nod .

“······Haa . ”

On my way to school by myself . I don’t even know how many times I’ve sighed now .

Our family had collapsed in a slightly different way than before . Despite this definitely not being a collapse as inevitable as last time, it didn’t make me feel any more relieved .

“······Obviously, this is my fault, but······ . ”

I know that, similar to last time, this all happened because of my slip of the tongue, but······ .

At the very least, that isn’t what I meant this time . Though, I’m not confident that I could properly explain myself to someone .

A lot of thoughts were going through my head, but this didn’t mean I had a good idea on how to handle this . I didn’t know what I could do in order to resolve this matter as the head of the household, as a dad . I have no experience, after all . In other words, I lack data .

I eventually arrived at the classroom while I was thinking to myself like that .

“Hey, Jjaro . Let’s talk for a bit . ”

And sure enough, Nanda had been waiting for me . Saeyeon must have gone somewhere because I couldn’t see her in the classroom .

Unusually, none of my classmates were particularly paying attention to me . Normally, the fact that Saeyeon and I had come to school separately would have been enough to make them start teasing me and ask if we got into another fight . I felt strangely anxious because the atmosphere felt similar to last time .

“Stop looking around like that . There’s something I want to talk about with you, so can we go to the clubroom for a bit?”

“Huh? Okay······ . ”

I was led towards the clubroom as Nanda wrapped his arm around my shoulder and started to drag me along . As I expected, Nanda locked the clubroom door behind him . I took my glasses off .

“Huh? Why are you taking your glasses off?”

“I just thought, like last time······ . ”

Nanda chuckled at my response .

“If someone else heard you say that, then they’d probably think that all I do is hit you . Put your glasses back on . ”

It seems he really was only planning talk to me . I sat down at the table .

“So, what did you mean by what you said last weekend? From what I saw, the little lady got seriously pissed because of what you said . Saeyeon seemed upset as well . ”

Comfortably, he was speaking in a relaxed tone, but the glint in his eyes was serious, so I smacked my lips and contemplated about how I should answer him .

“······For starters, it’s not what you think . ”

And, after a lot of thought, I thought that it would be all right to get some advice from this guy .

“Except, how should I say it, it’s just······ . ”

“You weren’t trying to say that Jihye and Saeyeon are alike?”

“······Was it that obvious?”

I felt my energy being sapped away due to the fact that Nanda had said that as if it were obvious . I wasn’t the only one who thought that? Upperclassman Nabom and Jaim seemed to realize it as well, but now Nanda knows as well? Nanda chuckled .

“Well, if it’s about Saeyeon, then I have a rough grasp of things . ”

Though I think this is about Jihye and not Saeyeon .

Nanda let out a small sigh and spoke .

“In any case, your future self isn’t normal either . Creating a robot that’s completely based on his wife . Should I say that he loves her that much, or should I call him a pervert······?”

“T-That’s not it! Both of those are wrong! ······Probably

wrong! ······Probably . ”

Nanda must not have noticed that my voice started to go down during the last part of my sentence as he continued .

“Still, you’re in a bad situation . Jaim most likely misunderstood . I understand your intent, Jjaro, but the way you phrased it was bad . What you said makes it sound like you’re completely ignoring everything Jaim had done until now . ”

“······I know . But it was just a jest . ”

“Fights normally start because of things that are said thoughtlessly . ”

His argument was so sound that I couldn’t say anything back .

“Did you try to explain yourself to Jaim?”

“It didn’t work out well . Jaim didn’t even listen to what I had to say because she was so upset . ”

“Of course not . She came here because you and Saeyeon fought in the future, so hearing something like that would definitely anger her . ”

“······Probably . ”

I let out a deep sigh . I know what the problem is, but I don’t know how to solve it . At the very least, this may not be something that I can solve .

If that’s the case, if this is an issue that I can’t solve, then······ .

“Hey, Shin Nanda . ”

“No . ”

“······I didn’t even finish my sentence, you know?”

Nanda responded to me while smiling brightly .

“You were about to ask me to explain things to her for you, weren’t you? No . ”

“You know that I normally don’t ask others for help . I’m asking you as a friend . Talk with Jaim for me . ”

Nanda shook his head with a smile still on his face .

“Being friends doesn’t mean that I always have to help you, right?”

This guy, who knew he could say something so cruel with a smile on his face . This was a bit shocking . Don’t tell me, is he plotting something like I am?

“Because I’m your friend, I can’t help you if you ask as a friend . ”

Nanda said that towards my doubtful gaze .

“If you were an acquaintance, Jjaro, then I would help you, but that’s because it wouldn’t matter to me what happens to you . However, since you’re my friend, what happens to you matters to me a lot . ”

“······What is that supposed to mean?”

“Literally just that . It means that family issues aren’t within my range of things I can help you with . ”

Nanda sat down on a chair and leaned back comfortably before continuing .

“I like the little lady, I like Upperclassman Nabom, I like you, Jjaro, and I love Saeyeon . That’s why you have to solve this with your own strength, Jjaro . Because I believe that would be best for both you and everyone else . ”

“······ . ”

I didn’t say anything about the incredibly concerning line he had just said since this was something which we mutually understood . Nanda grinned and stood up .

“In any case, since you’re the dad, the head of the household, do your best . Saeyeon probably didn’t go back to her parents’ place because she dislikes you . ”

“Wait, how do you know about that?”

“Saeyeon explained everything in the classroom earlier . She even asked the other kids to not get involved so that you can handle this yourself . ”

“······ . ”

That girl .

Nanda must have read my expression as he then added,

“Saeyeon is most likely trying to help you since she has hope in you as well . You wouldn’t like it if the other kids tried to meddle in your family matters at a time like this, would you? Since she believes in you, she’s probably waiting for you to take care of this with your own strength . You’re the one who said that you would, after all . ”

‘Well, she probably is mad at you, though . ’, Nanda said that with a laugh . A bit mischievously .

“Above all else, Jjaro is a prince on a white horse to Saeyeon, after all . ”

“······I said it’s not like that . ”

I turned away slightly and muttered .

“Don’t make her wait for too long . Although there are a lot of people who like Saeyeon, the only person Saeyeon likes is you alone, Jjaro . ”

Nanda opened the door to the clubroom and left with a grin .

“Good luck, friend . ”

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“So that’s why you came to me?”

After school . Upperclassman Nabom let out a sigh and shook her head .

“You really don’t listen to others, Underclassman Jin Jaro . If you consider the past, then asking for help from those around you when you’re in trouble is a good development, however, do I look like a pushover who would help you every time you ask for help?”

“No, that’s not the case, but······ . ”

“More importantly, why did you come to me for help? Do you think I’m some sort of family counselor? Answer me this . ”

“It’s······ . Uhm······ . If it’s Upperclassman Nabom, then I thought, that you might know an answer······ . ”

My kneeling legs were starting to go numb . The feeling at the end of my toes was gradually disappearing, so I wiggled them . Upperclassman Nabom then glared at me, so I stopped .

Haa, Upperclassman Nabom let out another deep sigh and spoke .

“In this situation, the only thing I can do is send a report that there’s a problem and take both Miss Jaim and Miss Jihye back to the future . If that’s what you want, then I could, but······ . ”

“I’d prefer another option if possible . ”

“Then there’s none . ”

Upperclassman Nabom declared firmly .

“I consider the sole fact that I’m turning a blind eye towards Miss Jaim’s information contamination as the largest assistance that I could possibly give . ”

“······Information contamination?”

I didn’t know what she meant, so I asked back . It didn’t seem like she was referring to the previous incident either . Upperclassman Nabom knit her brows and spoke .

“Have you not realized? I’m certain that I told you to be a bit more concerned about Miss Jaim . ”

“No, this is different from being a bit concerned······ . ”

I wasn’t able to finish my sentence . Upperclassman Nabom had narrowed her eyes at me .

“She’s experienced her mother leaving and a robot that resembled her mother being brought to her as her mother’s replacement, but when she came to the past to find her father who had said ‘I’ve never seen your mother as a woman . ’, he said something along the lines of ‘If she were like that robot, then we wouldn’t have broken up . ’ . ”

“······ . ”

“If you have a brain, then try thinking for yourself, Underclassman Jin Jaro . ”

Is that, how it turns out?

Did I replace her mother, who I couldn’t see as a woman, with a better robot?

I smacked my lips and Upperclassman Nabom spoke as if she were fed up with me .

“You may be undeserving of this, but, Underclassman Jin Jaro, the good news is, this situation isn’t as severe as last time . At most, this is at the level of a kid being rebellious after hitting puberty, so there’s no need for me to step forward immediately . I’m not sure if this would be good news to you, though . ”

“······That’s more than enough . ”

“If you truly think that way, then I sincerely have nothing more to say . ”

Upperclassman Nabom shook her head as if she found me to be pitiable before speaking .

“On a side note, it must be quite troubling for Miss Jihye as well . She ended up hearing something like that despite having attentively taken care of Miss Jaim . Even though she probably didn’t want this either . ”

How much does this person know, exactly? While I listened to her talk to herself in a tone obviously meant for me to hear, that thought went through my head .

Upperclassman Nabom turned back towards me and spoke .

“But are you not going to go home? I don’t think this is the time for you to be here like this . ”

“······I don’t want to go home . ”

“Words from the head of a household who had been shunned by his family . ”

“Please don’t say that while laughing . You’ll hurt my feelings . ”

“Still, isn’t the very fact that you have a family to go back to much better than before?”

“······ . ”

Seriously, how much does this person know?

I let out a sigh and opened my mouth hesitantly .

“Honestly, if someone were to run away from home, I thought that it would be Jaim . ”

“She did run away from home in the future as well . ”

“I never thought that Saeyeon would get that upset at that moment and declare that she’s going home . ”

“You’re the one who refused her offer to help, after all, Underclassman Jin Jaro . If you were in Underclassman Ja Saeyeon’s position, wouldn’t her anger be natural?”

“But I don’t want to tell Saeyeon . ”

“Even though you told her that you hated her and all sorts of other hurtful things last time?”

“······ . ”

Why is this person only stabbing at the painful parts today?

I sighed and stood up .

“Underclassman Jin Jaro?”

“What?”

I grumbled in response once Upperclassman Nabom called out to me . She smiled gently and spoke .

“It’s unlikely that Miss Jin Jaim doesn’t actually want to talk you . She even came here earlier . Regardless of whether Underclassman Jin Jaro becomes that sort of person in the future, whether Miss Jaim hates you or not, she most likely came here in order to at least reconcile with that father of hers . ”

Upperclassman Nabom chuckled and then added,

“Let’s consider this piece of advice as a special service . ”

“······Thank you very much . ”

I could only answer like that .

After Upperclassman Nabom saw me off, I went home . I let out a sigh as I rode on the elevator by myself . I could only smile bitterly due to the expression I saw on my face in the mirror . What a pathetic sight .

Saeyeon was probably home already . If I knocked on her door right now, then I might be able to talk to her .

I stopped in front of Saeyeon’s place . I thought for a moment . She did tell me to find her after I’ve resolved this issue, but, as I thought, would telling Saeyeon the truth and asking for her help be the actual right answer?

But, how will Saeyeon react when she finds out that we break up in the future? This worried me .

I was simply frozen in place with my arm extended and my knuckles hovering next to the door .

In that instant, the door opened . Saeyeon’s mom smiled .

“You’re here, Jaro?”

“······Yeah . I’m here . ”

I peered over her shoulder and into the house . I thought that I might be able to see Saeyeon . However, Saeyeon’s mom blocked my line of sight with her body .

“Not now . ”

Saeyeon’s mom shook her head and pushed me back slightly . She came out to the hallway with me and spoke after closing the door behind her .

“Saeyeon said that she didn’t want to talk to you right now, so she asked this old lady to talk to you instead . ”

Also, Saeyeon’s mom added and smiled brightly .

“There’s something I want to talk to you about which I don’t want Saeyeon to hear . ”

That smile was seriously scary .

“For starters, Jaro, I heard that you told Saeyeon you didn’t need her help even though you told her before that you needed her . What happened?”

“That’s because······ . ”

I heard laughter the instant I lowered my head in order to carefully select my words, so I looked back up .

“Sorry about that . I couldn’t calm down if I didn’t tease you a little . ”

A sad smile appeared on Saeyeon’s mom’s face as she shook her head .

“······For now, this may be sudden, but excuse me . ”

Saeyeon’s mom let out a small sigh and took out a cigarette packet from one of her inside pockets . She then put a cigarette in her mouth and lit it . It seems she really intended to have a more serious talk than usual .

“······You should quit that . ”

The faint scent of tobacco which Saeyeon’s mom only smoked at her workplace or occasionally in front of me when she had something important to discuss tickled my nose . She’d only do this in times like this in order to not get caught by Saeyeon .

“I heard about everything from Jihye without Saeyeon knowing . ”

Hoo, Saeyeon’s mom blew out some smoke and spoke .

“I was curious as to what Jaim’s identity was, but I never expected for it to be something like this, you know? Honestly, it’s still hard to believe . My granddaughter and a robot from the future . This is way different from what I originally thought . ”

“······What did you think they were?”

“Who knows? A homeless child you were looking after or a child who had run away from home? Something like that . ”

Saeyeon’s mom took a drag and then exhaled the smoke .

“That’s because the story you guys made up didn’t make sense . Be it the excuse that she was your and Saeyeon’s daughter, or that one of those people had that child after two-timing . Those people aren’t the type of people to do something like that . ”

“······That’s right . ”

They’re people who live for the sake of their work, after all . If they had the leisure to cheat or commit adultery, then they would use that time to focus on their work more .

Saeyeon’s mom chuckled lightly at my response .

“Don’t scold Jihye too much . I found out after persistently coaxing her despite her refusal to speak until the very end . She was even going to go as far as to stop recharging so that she wouldn’t say anything . She was really worried that you might scold her a lot, Jaro . ”

“······So you heard, about the future . ”

When she said she might be scolded by me, she was probably referring to that side .

Saeyeon’s mom nodded her head .

“Yup . I even heard about how you and Saeyeon break up . Saeyeon doesn’t know, does she?”

“Yeah . I don’t really want her to know . ”

“You did well . Who knows how Saeyeon would react . ”

Smoke spread throughout the air .

“I’ve said this several times already, but I really am grateful to you, Jaro . ”

Saeyeon’s mom spoke while tapping the ash from her cigarette .

“It’s thanks to you that Saeyeon calls me ‘mom’ . ”

Saeyeon’s birth mother was Saeyeon’s mother .

Saeyeon’s new mother was Saeyeon’s mom .

If anything, the names Saeyeon addressed them by should have been reversed, but they were names that I had instructed her to refer to them by in order to comfort Saeyeon and make her understand .

Names which meant that she should cherish her current family more than a family that was gone .

“I was surprised when she called me ‘mom’ the first time we met, but when I heard that you had purposely taught her to say that, it made me grateful . That’s why I left Saeyeon in your care . Because it was difficult . ”

Even though she doesn’t know what that had

that had caused .

While letting out a sigh filled with smoke, Saeyeon’s mom continued .

“No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t be Saeyeon’s birth mother . ”

I recall once hearing the reason why Saeyeon’s mom didn’t have a child of her own . She said that it was because she wasn’t confident that she would be able to love them equally if Saeyeon were to have a little sibling . The daughter she came to have one day and the child who she had personally given birth to . Since it wouldn’t be a simple sister and younger sibling relationship .

“Because I feel like I wouldn’t be able to love Saeyeon properly if I had a child of my own . I’m a bad person, aren’t I?”

I felt like her ability to say these words while smiling bitterly was the best representation of her personality .

Because she was Saeyeon’s mom, because she was a person who cared about Saeyeon .

This was why I was so envious .

“That’s why I’m very worried right now . ”

Saeyeon’s mom put her cigarette out by stepping on it and continued .

“Saeyeon is talking about Jihye becoming a second mother, and this is definitely an incredibly painful topic for her . ”

“······Probably . ”

I barely managed to nod my head .

Saeyeon cherishes her family . Her mother is a part of her family, her mom is a part of her family, and I’m also a part of her family . She was somehow able to maintain herself like that . However, that wouldn’t solve everything .

Even if she acts as if everything’s all right, I know that she’s lonely underneath that smile of hers . If she knew that we were going to break up in the future, if she knew that Jihye was the one who took her spot afterward, if she knew that she would be forgotten like her mother was, what would she think?

Furthermore, if she knew that she was replaced by a robot who was made to resemble her?

“······She probably wouldn’t like it . ”

Once I muttered those words along with a sigh, Saeyeon’s mom nodded . She nodded her head weakly .

“Yeah . She probably wouldn’t . ”

“That’s why······!”

My mouth closed in the middle of my sentence . I lowered my head .

That’s why, what? What am I going to say?

What could I possibly say to Saeyeon’s new mom?

Pat, Saeyeon’s mom rested her hand on top of my head .

“Right now, Saeyeon’s family is you, Jaro . And also Jaim . ”

Saeyeon’s mom smiled gently while patting my head .

“That’s······ . ”

“I’m saying that rather than this old lady saying something, you’re more capable of supporting Saeyeon . ”

Her hand stroked my head smoothly and warmly .

“Wasn’t it you who made her think of this old lady as her mom and listen to me even though I’m her second mom? You were also the one who cherished and loved Saeyeon until now . ”

“······I didn’t . ”

There were a lot of things I wanted to say . Rather, there was a lot I had to apologize for .

However, if I say something, then I would definitely be wronging this person even more .

“I······ . ”

“You’ll continue to cherish Saeyeon from now on, right?”

Saeyeon’s mom simply continued to speak with a smile on her face as if to stop me from speaking .

There was a lot of stuff I wanted to say, but I decided to just receive her warm hand in silence and agree .

“Do your best . Even if you’re a family, there will be times where you argue . But since you’re a family, it’s best not to let too much time pass by and simply forget about it . Your relationship will become strained if you do that . You’re a family, so the best thing you can do is to put that much more effort into reconciling and working things out properly . ”

“Okay······ . ”

“Then head on home first . This old lady is going to have to wait for the smell to fade a bit before heading back inside . ”

I could no longer say anything to Saeyeon’s mom as she looked out the window in the hallway, so I simply lowered my head slightly .

As a means to both show my gratitude and also to apologize .

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Once I went inside, I discovered that Multi was gone .

For a moment, an image appeared in my head, to be exact, it was the image of a heavy metal singer smashing a guitar live on stage, but it seems Jaim wasn’t the one who did it . Multi was the only thing that had disappeared . Everything else was left alone . As if someone had picked it up and left .

“······ . ”

It wasn’t Saeyeon . If it were, then her mom wouldn’t have blocked my line of sight earlier, but more importantly, Saeyeon wouldn’t do something like this .

If that’s the case, then it was definitely······ .

I let out a small sigh and started to make my way towards a certain place .

And should I say that it was as I expected? I expected this, but a rather surreal sight was spread out before me .

“······ . ”

I arrived at a neighborhood park which I’ve recently been visiting as often as I used to when I was little . In this park, with its elephant-shaped slide as its main feature, Jihye was riding on the swing by herself . It was currently the time of day where the park was normally quiet .

She was holding Multi in her arms .

With the setting sun in the background, an orthodox maid was in a playground and sitting on a swing while holding onto a robot vacuum cleaner which had a mannequin head and legs awkwardly attached to it . No matter how I looked at this, this scene was surreal .

Creak, creak, an annoying sound resonated from the swing which obviously hadn’t been oiled in a very long time . Each time the sound echoed, her black hair and skirt shook in the wind . Every time the tip of her shoes moved forward and back, they drew a line in the sand .

Truly, even that expression was like Saeyeon’s .

I could hear some muttering in the distance .

A couple of old ladies who lived in the neighborhood were spectating the bizarre sight before them . If you consider Jihye’s personality, then anyone could come and talk to her, but it seems the surreal sight before them and Jihye’s obviously crestfallen state prevented them from doing so .

I let out a sigh and resolved myself to approach her .

“Why are you acting so miserable in a place like this?”

“Ah, Master . ”

Jihye turned her head furtively in response to my voice . However, both her expression and her continued swinging didn’t stop . I turned around and looked at the old ladies and, thankfully, they seemed to understand my gaze as they left . I let out a small sigh and sat on the swing next to her .

Jihye spoke while turning her feet .

“If I throw Miss Multi and break her right now, would I disappear as well?”

“That’s······ . ”

“I know . Nothing will probably happen . ”

A difficult to read smile appeared on Jihye’s face as she continued .

“I’m sorry . I just suddenly had the urge to do that . ”

“······ . ”

I didn’t say anything . For a brief moment, only the sound of creaking could be heard .

“Master . ”

I turned to look at Jihye .

“Why did Master create robot maids?”

A forlorn expression . It contained a desperation that sincerely felt as if she wanted to know my answer .

“Please answer me as the creator . Why was I made?”

That’s why I decided to throw away my hesitation and answer her .

“······Because I needed a family . A substitute family . ”

“A substitute······?”

“I hated having a family, but I wanted one that much as well . ”

I decided to confess about the immature fantasy I dreamt of when I was a child but had never told anyone . I never told Jaim either .

I hated having a family . I believed they were a needless existence that could be thrown away .

However, my loneliness was unavoidable . But I didn’t want to tell anyone this .

So it was simple . I just had to make one . A perfect family .

A family that wouldn’t throw me away no matter what happens .

A family that would be on my side no matter what happens .

I don’t need a family . A substitute made by myself was enough .

Robots that looked human and thought like them as well, but also never changed and promised both love and loyalty . They would be more than enough .

“In the end, I can only think like that because I’m a twisted human being . ”

Because I’m perfect . Because I’m a genius . Because I can accomplish everything by myself . That’s why I can overcome loneliness by myself as well . I can create a family . That’s what I thought .

I smiled bitterly and spoke .

“You probably think of yourself as a part of Jaim’s family because I made you like that . No, that’s what I probably intended when I left Jaim in your care . ”

Furthermore, that’s probably why Jaim didn’t like her .

Because Jaim didn’t want a substitute .

And also, that’s probably why I made her resemble Saeyeon .

Because, ironically, Saeyeon was the only family that I could think of even though I had envied and hated her so much .

And if I made her resemble Saeyeon······ .

“Then, if the reason for my birth is to be a replacement for a family······ . ”

Jihye, who had been listening to me, then asked .

“Since she now has a family, am I no longer needed?”

“······ . ”

I didn’t answer .

“I······ . I may have been like that because Master had made me like that, but . ”

Jihye opened her mouth carefully . I decided to listen to her in silence .

“I wanted to be Master and the Miss’ family . ”

With a disappointed look, but with a slightly hopeful voice .

“I might be a defective product and it’s weird for a robot to act like this, but . ”

Even though she was embarrassed, she spoke with certainty .

Jihye spoke with a faint smile on her face as if she were dreaming .

“I wanted the three of us, to be smiling, happily . ”

······She probably did .

If I made her resemble Saeyeon, then I wouldn’t forget about this part .

And if I wanted to create a perfect family, then I would have even considered this part . How ruthless is my future self?

Jihye continued even though I was smiling bitterly .

“So when I heard that the Miss had gone to the past, I may have been slightly hopeful . Master in the future only saw me as a simple invention, after all . ”

“······Probably . ”

“But what can’t be done can’t be done, can it?”

Jihye scratched her cheek and chuckled . She turned her head to face me .

“No matter what I do, will I always be lacking?”

Hesitantly, with a gaze that looked as if she were betting her final hope .

“If Master wants, then I’ll work hard to become more perfect . ”

Earnestly, with a gaze that looked as if she were pleading to me to not throw her away .

“I’ll do my best so that the Miss likes me as well . ”

Jihye spoke while gazing at me .

“So······ . ”

“If it were a few months ago, then you may have been able to accomplish that . ”

Jihye’s mouth stopped once I spoke .

Perhaps, if it were still the time when I didn’t have a family, then I would have liked this idea .

If the invention that I’ve constantly been dreaming to create appeared before me in its perfect state, then I would have chosen that path without any second thought .

An ideal person who I wouldn’t have to feel inferior to, be concerned about, fight with, take care of, change when necessary, and would always think about and worship me .

I pictured it for a moment .

If it were my past self, then what sort of response would I have shown? How would I have turned out?

“But, not now . Not anymore . ”

Even if it wasn’t perfect, I was already able to obtain the thing that I wanted .

“While spending time with Saeyeon and Jaim, I realized how sweet and empowering having a family is . ”

The part that I couldn’t fill on my own .

The part that wouldn’t be filled no matter how hard I worked or created things .

“How it feels to have people who need me . ”

Despite being the worst person in the world, the very fact that someone appreciated me was so incredible that I wanted to do something for them however I could, regardless of whether we get into a fight or they choose to ignore me .

Even if there’s a chance I may one day be hurt like I was before .

Still .

“Sorry, but it’s a bit too late . ”

Therefore, this was all I could tell her .

Though I may hurt her feelings, this was a part that I couldn’t do anything about .

“······I knew you would say that . ”

Jihye simply laughed .

“Then, as I thought, I’m really unnecessary, aren’t I?”

“No, you’re wrong . ”

Jihye blinked .

“······How, should I say it?”

I spoke as I swung my legs and moved the swing .

“You’re definitely what I thought the perfect Saeyeon would be . ”

There’s a chance that I was trying to atone . Albeit, this was closer to being self-contentment .

It was undoubtedly my fault that Saeyeon left .

“But, that’s actually impossible . You’re not Saeyeon, after all . ”

If anything, Jihye was closer to being······ .

“You’re, more like my mirror . ”

“Master’s mirror?”

“······You’re the ‘Saeyeon that I imagined’ . ”

In the end, it meant that she was my greed .

My idea of Saeyeon . My idea of a substitute family .

Either way, it clearly shows how immature I was since I could clearly see her in front of me right now .

Even though Saeyeon is just Saeyeon .

No matter what I try to add or remove from her, in the end, only my greed and desires would be added .

A Saeyeon who would accept me no matter what I say .

A Saeyeon who’s good at housework .

A Saeyeon who gets embarrassed if you tell her to strip .

I simply created a doll that resembled my ideal Saeyeon . Rather, it resembled my twisted self more .

“That’s probably why my future self only saw you as an invention . ”

Even if I’m a terrible person in the future, there’s no way that I wouldn’t notice .

As she began to resemble Saeyeon more and more, their differences would also become more and more apparent as I continued to work on her . The fact that she wasn’t Saeyeon . What I had done would become crystal clear .

“So, on the contrary, I need you . ”

In order to prevent that from happening . In order to not make that mistake .

In order to prevent order to prevent myself from believing that I can do everything by myself .

In order to prevent myself from creating a perfect Saeyeon, a perfect family, and then realizing that that was a mistake and I was simply being greedy, which then results in me throwing everything I have away and distancing myself from them .

This is a cruel thing to say to Jihye .

You’re a flawed creation . A mistake I had made with my greed .

That’s why, on the contrary, I need you so that I can reflect on my actions .

This clearly isn’t something that Jihye wants .

If anything, it might have hurt her less if I simply told her that I didn’t need her .

However, even so .

Although I can’t do a lot for her, since I’m the one who caused her problem, at the very least, I don’t want her to think that she’s unnecessary .

I don’t want to say something similar to when I hurt Jaim .

If possible, I don’t ever want to tell anyone that they aren’t needed again .

“······Also, wouldn’t at least one employee be necessary for the home of such a well-off person like myself?”

So, in response to the joke I barely managed to say, Jihye giggled weakly .

“You’re both kind and cruel, Master . ”

“······I was born like this . ”

I could only avert my gaze and say that .

“It’s just like the Missus said . ”

Jihye stood up from the swing and stuck her arm out with Multi held in her other arm .

“Now then, Master, let us return home . ”

In response to her sad smile that was both similar and different from Saeyeon’s,

I reached my hand out and grabbed hers .

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“Jaim . ”

I carefully knocked on her door . Of course, there was no response . I let out a small sigh and called out once more .

“You’re inside, aren’t you?”

There was the option of using the spare key to enter the room, but I didn’t want to . I heard the sound of footsteps and the door opened .

“Wait a second, Jjaro . I’m having a talk with Jaim right now . ”

It was Saeyeon .

“You······?”

“Give us a moment . ”

Before I could even say something, the door shut with a bang in front of me . Click, the door was locked again .

Why was Saeyeon here? When did she get here?

However, before quibbling about this, I decided to place my ear against the door . I could faintly hear their voices inside .

“······Honestly, I don’t know why you’re upset, Jaim . Jjaro won’t tell me and you won’t tell me either . ”

“······Because it doesn’t involve you, Mom . ”

“That makes me a bit sad if you say that as well . ”

I couldn’t see her, but Saeyeon was probably smiling bitterly right now .

“You also don’t want something like me anyway, Mom . ”

And, a sad look must have appeared on her face because of that comment .

“Why do you think that, Jaim?”

“Because you don’t!”

Jaim let out a loud voice . I could hear sobbing .

“You left the house without saying even a single word to me······! That means you have nothing to say to me, doesn’t it? You think I’m troublesome, don’t you? You weren’t the one who gave birth to me, after all! I’m just an annoying daughter who appeared all of a sudden!”

“······ . ”

“On that day as well, when you found out that I came from the future, you were more happy by the fact that you married Dad . Dad’s more important to you than something like me, isn’t he?! You don’t care about what happens to me!”

······Is that what she thinks?

“You and Dad don’t care about me . That’s probably why you left as well! Since you don’t need something like me! Dad’s like that as well, so that’s why he took in that piece of scrap metal! Since he doesn’t care about me at all!”

You’re wrong, I wanted to open the door and yell that, but I couldn’t say anything . My hands simply hurt as my nails dug into my palms because my fists were clenched tightly .

“······I didn’t know you felt that way, Jaim . ”

Saeyeon spoke with a sad voice .

“But······ . You’re wrong . ”

“What do you mean I’m wrong? In the end, you chose to take that piece of scrap metal and left home as well! You didn’t choose me! You threw me away to Dad······!”

I held my breath due to those words . She was most likely not only referring to what happened yesterday, but what happened in the future as well .

Saeyeon who left after leaving her with me, the person who didn’t love her .

Why didn’t Saeyeon take her with her? That was most likely a question Jaim had been thinking about .

She probably understands why Saeyeon got sick of me . She heard me tell Saeyeon that I never saw her as a girl, after all . Even though I’m the one who made Saeyeon like that .

However, if that’s the case, then why?

Why did Saeyeon throw her away when Saeyeon ran away from me?

I could only hear Jaim’s sobbing voice .

“I didn’t throw you away, Jaim . ”

I heard Saeyeon’s voice .

“······It’s just, there was something I wanted to talk about with Miss Jihye and I thought that there was something you and Jjaro had to talk about as well . ”

“I have, sniff, nothing to talk about, with Dad . ”

“There’s the thing you’re hiding from me, isn’t there?”

“······ . ”

Jaim’s sniffing stopped in response to those words . My breathing as well .

“I don’t know what you and Jjaro are hiding from me . ”

“We’re not, hiding······ anything . ”

“I won’t pry if you’re going to be like that because I believe you two are keeping it a secret since it’s something you don’t want me to know, but still, that makes me a bit sad . ”

Saeyeon spoke as if it were regrettable, but she then did her best to continue in a bright tone .

“It’s a family matter, so I want all of us to work together . If we do, then I feel like I could understand and also accept it as well, but······ . It’s a bit regrettable . However, I think a bit differently now . ”

“······How’s that?”

“Just because your family is hiding something from you and think a bit differently than you, that doesn’t mean they’re doing so because they don’t like you or want to bully you . ”

Saeyeon spoke warmly as if she were embracing Jaim with her voice .

“A long time ago, I thought that Jjaro loved me unconditionally . So when Jjaro said that he hated me, I was really sad . Despite that, if I think about it, even if Jjaro said that he hated me, he stayed with me since we were young, right?”

“······ . ”

“Also, I didn’t know that Jjaro was harboring these feelings . Because that made me sad, I got sort of mad yesterday . I thought he was trying to hide everything from me again like before . ”

‘But, Jaim . ’ Saeyeon continued .

“When my mom first came, I was really sad . Even though I only have one mom, how could I have a new one? That’s why, at first, I decided that even if my new mom came, I’d never call her mom . ”

“······ . ”

Jaim was confused by the sudden change of topic, but Saeyeon continued to speak .

“At that time, Jjaro told me this . Jjaro told me that my mom was going to change, but the fact that Mom loved me wasn’t ever going to change . If I hate my new mom, then Mom would be sad . Mom wants me to be happy, after all . ”

That’s why she sort of understands .

“I believe that the reason you dislike Miss Jihye is for a similar reason . I’m not certain, but despite Miss Jihye’s efforts to take care of you like a mom would, you hated that, didn’t you?”

“······ . ”

“If you did, then that’d make me sad . ”

“······ . ”

“I’d like it if you thought of Miss Jihye as your family as well . I’d like it even more if you thought of her as your second mom who’ll love you when I’m not around . I don’t want our family to fight amongst one another, after all . ”

Ehehe, I heard laughter and then the sound of Jaim being pulled into a hug .

“I’ll be your family no matter what happens and how much times passes, Jaim . Even if I disappear, this won’t change . ”

“······Mom······ . ”

“Now then, since it seems like Jjaro has something he wants to talk to you about after this, I’ll leave you two to talk . ”

I was able to back away from the door before it opened . Saeyeon pouted as she looked at me .

“I didn’t intend to help you at first . I wanted to leave you alone to do what you want, but how long are you going to keep me waiting?”

“You······ how far do you······?”

“All the way to the fact that Miss Jihye likes you?”

I’m not sure how she interpreted my question, but Saeyeon answered teasingly .

“But······ . You probably heard me as well, but I’m not going to think about things like that . Of course, I might get a bit jealous⎯⎯⎯ but since I believe that I’m the one you like the most . ”

Saeyeon smiled slightly .

“Hurry up and bring me back, okay?”

“······You . ”

Without turning around, Saeyeon opened the front door and left . Another silence fell upon the house . Jaim’s door was closed once more .

Seriously, this girl······ . I simply shook my head .

I really can’t win against Saeyeon .

I knocked on the door .

“Jin Jaim . ”

“······ . ”

“Are you going to keep staying quiet like that? Did you come all the way here in order to live here and never talk to me? That’s not it, right?”

“······I didn’t expect you to say something like that, Dad . ”

The voice I barely managed to hear was cold .

“You’re the one who said that there was no reason for me to come, didn’t you?”

“That’s not what I meant . ”

“I’m not curious as to what you meant, what’s important is the fact that you said it . ”

“······You’re probably right about that . ”

I could only hear Jaim’s cold refusal beyond the door .

“In the end, I’m saying that you’re the same person now and then as well . You only care about yourself . You don’t care about what happens to others . ”

“······You may also be right about that as well . ”

“See?”

“But······ I want to change a little . ”

There’s nothing that doesn’t change . That’s fine . That’s an obvious fact .

The issue is how you feel about that change .

“In truth, I hesitated because of that . ”

Since it was the way I lived until now .

“······At first, I definitely thought you were troublesome . ”

I hated the idea of having a family, I thought I could do everything by myself and I lived like that until now . However, on that day Saeyeon and I slept together while holding hands, that triggered a change .

A family was forced upon me even though I didn’t want one .

Something I had to take responsibility for and protect appeared .

What I wanted was the strength to go towards my dream by myself and solve everything by myself . The only thing I had to protect was my own ego .

The fact that the dark part within me, which I had made for that purpose, was gradually opening and releasing that darkness made me somewhat anxious .

It felt like the thing that had been protecting me was leaving me, after all .

“I don’t know what I should do as your dad, no, as a family . I’ve never experienced having one . ”

Regardless, something I had to protect appeared instead .

“I wanted to do this family experiment in order to figure out what a family is, just as we both wanted . ”

To know what’s better . How to take in the change .

“So, I wanted to also pay Saeyeon back for how much I hurt her, although that’s probably impossible . ”

And then, it appeared before me . Along with it came the clear evidence of what would happen if I continued on my path without changing at all .

“I could only laugh at myself . I realized how terrible of a life I was going to live . ”

I realized that, even though we broke up, I created a robot that resembled Saeyeon and continued to regret that moment . Despite this, I didn’t give up .

“I also realized what I had done to Saeyeon until now . ”

I found out that even though I had twisted and broken Saeyeon as I pleased, I was also regretting that .

“That’s why I want to change from now on . ”

I probably can’t change completely but at the very least,

“I want to become a person who doesn’t hurt the people precious to him . ”

I want to protect everything essential to me .

“That’s not what I meant by what I said yesterday . It’s just······ . I thought that if I were a bit more of a proper person, then I feel like we could have become a good family which didn’t require you to have something like a ‘Happy Family Planning’ . ”

It was already too late, and although I couldn’t revert something that had already happened,

“That’s why I need you, Jaim, in order to change even a little bit from now on . Since you’re my daughter . Since you’re the person who made me change . Since you’re my family . ”

I couldn’t hear anything behind the door .

“Also, if you don’t come out, then Saeyeon and I will keep fighting like this . ”

While managing to laugh, I ended up saying that .

Since, in the end, I’m a twisted person, even if I have to resort to this,

“I want to hurry up and bring Saeyeon back . ”

“······Saying something like that now doesn’t make me happy, you know?”

I heard grumbling beyond the door .

“Of course not, but······ . Can you somehow forgive me?”

Jaim opened the door and looked at me with a sour expression on her face .

“Then go ask Mom on a date right now . ”

 

TL note: Thanks for reading the chapter . This is basically the big moment of the volume, but it obviously wasn’t as serious as volume 1 . The last volume covered Jaro’s issues and this volume covered Jaim’s . There was a lot more character development in this volume since the previous volume mostly focused on only Jaro, but this branched out to Saeyeon, Jaim, and the new character, Jihye . I mentioned it before, but volume 3 personally felt really intense for me, so I’m looking forward to translating it .

The remaining chapters are a lot shorter, however, I’m starting university again next week, so I’m uncertain as to how my translating speed will change . I have plenty of empty periods between classes, so I will definitely utilize those, but I don’t have a laptop yet, so we’ll have to see how it goes .

7 . Quarrel Uhm, Miss Jihye Jaim probably didn t mean it that way . No . That was most likely the Miss true feelings . Despite Saeyeon s consoling words, Jihye simply answered in a low voice as she sniveled while fully inside of the cardboard box which she usually went into to recharge . It would be better, if something like me, were thrown into a scrap metal dump and turned into a frying pan or a pot . Due to the hurtful words which, different to all of the previous malicious words until now, sounded as if Jaim truly wished for Jihye to go die somewhere, Jihye had become completely crestfallen . And I was . Jaim, I told you it s not like that Shut up I don t even want to look at you, Dad I was undergoing a similar situation as I pounded on the door of Jaim s room . Once I got home after following after Jaim, she had already locked her door and was staging a sit in in her room . I asked Saeyeon, who was worried because she had just witnessed Jaim abruptly come home while crying and Jihye and I come home in a hurry, to watch Jihye s condition as she was so crestfallen that the mere fact she was able to follow me home was praiseworthy . I intended to pacify Jaim while Saeyeon was doing that, but . It was my mistake, so come out and have a talk with your dad, okay Although I knocked on the door as gently as possible so it wouldn t seem like I was yelling at her, there was no response . Instead, the door opened . For a moment, I thought that she finally wanted to talk . W Wait a second, calm down What do you plan on doing with that However, I could only let out a startled cry due to the object that was being held in Jaim s hand . I put my hands underneath Jaim s arms as she was about to go to my room with a hammer in her hand, and pulled her back into her room before Saeyeon could see . Jaim struggled and shouted . Let go I ll break her apart Who cares about Multi I told you to calm down You don t have to go that far, do you I don t have to go that far Jaim stopped struggling and turned around to face me in reaction to my words which I had said in order to calm her down . Of course not . That thing is probably more important to you than me or mom . Cold eyes . The tone of her voice was lathered with sarcasm . It s a family experiment anyway, and since that piece of scrap metal is the robot maid that you wanted so much and had also created, it s quite your ideal, isn t it I told you it s not like that . What do you mean it s not Jaim shouted as loud as she could while glaring at me who was being silent . Then what What did you mean earlier, Dad I m sorry about what I said, but that s not . You re not sorry . In the end, you re admitting to being that sort of person . Jaim retorted coldly with the same spiteful gaze which she had once shown before when she talked about my future self . In the end, mom and I aren t important to you, Dad . Your work and job are important . The only reason you helped me last time, fought for my sake, was because you purely wanted to pretend to be a family and you only acted as if you got along with mom because you wanted me to quickly leave, right I told you that s wrong I know that I m in the wrong, but I got annoyed by her attitude of not even wanting to listen to me, so I wound up raising my voice . Jaim narrowed her eyes further . I brought my voice back down so I could continue trying to soothe her and spoke . Did you, also know that Jihye resembles Saeyeon I don t know something like that . I don t want to know either . Jaim retorted coldly to my words . I m not even curious as to what you had in mind when you made that thing . Regardless, despite that After wiping the corner of her eyes once, Jaim opened her red eyes . How, how could you say something like that How could you compare that sort of scrap metal with mom Like I said, can you stop acting like this Listen to me for a second . Jaim shook her head . There s nothing to listen to . It d just be an excuse anyway . Certainly, it may be an excuse . But . Regardless, listen when someone speaks You can get mad or whatever after you ve heard me out . Jaim s mouth fell open slightly in reaction to my voice which I had raised inadvertently . I didn t want to raise my voice like this . Why are you only looking at things with a slanted view I told you that you re mistaken Even though it was both the current me and the future me who had a slip of the tongue and was in the wrong . I tried to restrain myself, but an incomprehensible irritation made me raise my voice . No, this wasn t what I wanted to talk about . The frustration of being unable to properly voice my thoughts made me scratch the back of my head roughly . I just thought that, if Saeyeon was good at housework like Jihye, and more mature than now, then we probably wouldn t have broken up and you wouldn t have had to go out of your way to come here . I realized something in the middle of my spiel . What I was saying right now, was exactly what Jaim had been worried about . However, words which had already been spoken couldn t be taken back . More importantly, I couldn t organize the words that I wanted to say . I was definitely the person who had made Jihye like this . Me . To resemble Saeyeon, but be more ideal as well . However, I didn t want to unload these sort of thoughts onto Jaim . So you re just saying you like that thing more than mom . And, in response to my words, Jaim spoke in a tone even colder than before . In the end, you re saying that piece of scrap metal would be better for your family experiment than mom . I told you that s not what I meant This is frustrating . I know I m only fanning the misunderstanding . However, I can t just say everything that s on my mind . Additionally, I don t have the eloquence to make her not misunderstand . I didn t want to argue . Like a dad, I wanted to skillfully resolve the misunderstanding and reconcile, but . What I mean is, if Saeyeon becomes like Jihye, then we might become the family that you . Ack That isn t, the sort of family that I want In response to my words, Jaim threw her game console at me and shouted at the top of her lungs . The portable game console that I had once fixed . The portable game console that I had bought for Jaim . It flew through the air and collided against my head before rolling on the ground . My head throbbed . I felt a dull pain . Why are you concerned about that thing when mom and I are here Jaim must have been unable to quell her frustration as she slammed her fist against her bed repeatedly as she spoke . You and mom reconciled after that fight, grandma and grandpa welcomed me, you started to worry about me more than before, and your relationship with mom gradually got better , so I thought everything would be fine Jaim wrapped her arms around her knees and lowered her head . But ever since that piece of scrap metal showed up, you started caring about that piece of scrap metal Her body trembled, her voice was soaked, and she was most likely burying her face in her knees because she didn t want to show me her face . Jaim yelled at me who couldn t muster to say anything . Why are you thinking about mom while looking at that piece of scrap metal when mom is here How can you think of her as mom s replacement Even though you don t know what I went through in the future and with what intention I came here for, how could you say that I probably wouldn t have come here if mom was like that sort of scrap metal After coming here, I, I It seems she finally couldn t endure it any longer as Jaim went silent for a moment while only her shoulders trembled . I simply averted my gaze because I could hear silent weeping . I wanted to at least embrace Jaim s shaking shoulders, but . I m, not going back . Before I could even reach my hand out, Jaim spoke quietly . Everything would be the same even if I go back . Nothing would have changed . I held my breath because of those words . A question wound up slipping through my lips . You knew Jaim raised her face and answered . It obviously doesn t make sense if you think about it a little . If you and mom don t break up because I came to the past, then I wouldn t have had a reason to come here . Jaim rubbed her reddened eyes and glared daggers at me . So I m not going back to that house . As if she were telling that to herself . As if she were declaring that to me . Jaim stood up and spoke while clenching her fists . Mom is here, you don t worry about only your work, and you don t condescendingly attach that thing to me here . I like it here . But, your school and your life there . I don t care about those things Jaim shook her head and shouted . If I go back, then I d be back at square one You won t care about anything that happens to me, mom will be gone, and that piece of scrap metal which you had snobbily stuck to me will get friendly with me thinking she s a part of my family Going around acting like it would be fine if she replaced mom I couldn t say anything in response as she continued . The only thought that went through my mind was I knew it . I hate the very fact that, that thing pretends to be my mom and acts like she s a part of my family As I thought, this kid, her thought process is as twisted as mine . Since her reason was similar to why I had once hated Saeyeon . Saeyeon, who went around acting as if she were a part of my family . Jihye, who acted as if she were a part of her family . It didn t matter what reason they had for acting like they were our family . We hated it for that very reason . An existence that wasn t even a part of our family, but acted as if they were our family simply because we didn t have one . We hate sympathy . We hate the very act of being pitied . I couldn t say even a single thing about the way Jaim treated Jihye . Jihye truly wasn t someone I had left Jaim in the care of because I was worried about Jaim . She was someone I had stuck her to in order to act like I was worried . I could tell just by looking at them . I considered that much to be fine . I regarded this as being enough . Because someone is with her, taking care of her, she feels even more alone . There was no way she would like her . I know . It was probably because of this sort of reason . Since she s like me . Of course, at first, since you were the one who told me, I thought that you brought a robot to look after me because you cared about me . Jaim bit her lips and spoke . She s not my mom, but since she s looking after me like a mom, I tried to get along with her, or at the very least, obey her as much as she worried about me . Because, you were worried about me, so in order to not make you worry . But, Jaim s lips trembled as she mumbled . But, that s not my mom She s not Jaim yelled as she shook her head . How could you tell me to think of a robot, which you made to resemble mom, as my mom after you had broken up with her How could you pretend to care about me by doing that Dad, how could you These words weren t being directed towards my current self . She was saying it to my future self . She was talking as if I was the one who had said those words . Did my current self appear like that to Jaim But, because of this . . I couldn t say anything . Explaining to Jaim what I felt and realized when I looked at Saeyeon was impossible . Persuading Jaim to stop hating Jihye was impossible . Because I had already said those words . And, since I m the parent who had made and assigned the very robot she hated so much to her . The robot who acted like it was a part of her family and as if it were her mother . Furthermore, Jaim now also knew that, of all things, I had made the robot resemble her mom who had left . If you don t have anything more to say, then get out of my room . Jaim looked at me for a moment before turning away as she said that to me who was being silent . She pulled her blanket over her head as if she didn t have anything more to say and laid down on her bed . I left the room and closed the door behind me . Jjaro . Once I exited the room, Saeyeon called out to me hesitantly . Uhm, you might not want to talk about it, but . Why did you fight with Jaim Why is Miss Jihye so depressed Saeyeon asked while worryingly as the ends of her gathered fingers fidgeted . It s nothing . It isn t a big issue . So I couldn t say anything . Saeyeon looked troubled because of my answer and spoke . But . I said it s okay . You don t have to worry . If I want to explain to Saeyeon the reason why I had an argument with Jaim, then I would have to tell her about what happens in the future . If that happens, then I would have to tell her about how we break up . About Jihye as well . I couldn t do that . I patted Saeyeon s head and asked . More importantly, what about Jihye Is she a bit better now Hm Ah, yeah . I comforted her as best as I could and she fell asleep . Saeyeon seemed to have noticed my obvious attempt to change the topic as she appeared disappointed for a moment, but she still nodded her head and answered . I turned my head and noticed that Jihye had certainly gone into charging mode inside of the cardboard box . It seems Saeyeon interpreted this as falling asleep . How about Jaim Did you calm her down well No, I m going to need a little more time . I don t know if this is an issue that ll be resolved through time, but similar to myself, I want to believe that Jaim will get better once her head cools down . Saeyeon nodded in response to my answer and spoke . Then Jjaro, what if I have a talk with Jaim You will, Saeyeon Yeah . You asked me yourself, Jjaro . You asked me to help you make Jaim and Miss Jihye reconcile . I m the mom, after all . If I have a talk with her, then she might stop being mad . Saeyeon clenched her fist and smiled as if she were brimming with confidence . If I have a talk with her, then I might be able to convince Jaim that Miss Jihye is her second mom . Saeyeon, are you fine with that Huh Saeyeon tilted her head at my words which I had accidentally blurted out . As if she didn t understand what I meant . Obviously . I shook my head and spoke . No, I ll have a proper talk with her and calm her down myself . You don t have to worry about it, Saeyeon . But . It s fine . I said you don t have to worry . If possible, I don t want to involve Saeyeon in this . Whether Saeyeon finds out about the truth or what I end up saying in the future, both options are bad . Even more so if there s the danger that Saeyeon might use her sharp senses which she occasionally utilizes whenever I m involved . Stupid Jjaro . However, in response to my answer, Saeyeon pouted and raised the corner of her eyes . Huh She looked as if she were sulking, no, if anything, she looked like she was blatantly advertising the fact that she was upset . Even though she was being cautious up until now, what s up with her all of a sudden You clearly said so before, didn t you, Jjaro You said that you need me . But why are you talking as if you don t need me all of a sudden No, it s not like . If we re a family, then we should work together as a family in order to solve our issues, shouldn t we Furthermore, it s an issue that involves our daughter, so no matter how you look at it, it s bad that you re trying to take care of everything all by yourself, Jjaro Bad Saeyeon s strong voice, which was different from her usual tone, startled me and made me take a step back . Saeyeon let out a hmph after seeing my blank gaze and went over to where Jihye was before removing the cardboard box . Ja Saeyeon Mm . Huh, Madam Jihye must have sensed that something was happening in her surroundings as she looked up at Saeyeon and muttered in a drowsy voice as she hadn t recharged completely yet . Saeyeon spoke while pulling on Jihye s arm . Miss Jihye, get up . We re going out for a bit . Pardon But it s still night time Despite having been crestfallen a little earlier, Jihye tilted her head in confusion . Saeyeon forcefully pulled Jihye up and continued . Follow me anyways . Bring the bare minimum of your stuff . Huh Ah, don t tell me, Madam, do you really intend to throw me out Jihye became bewildered . She opened her eyes wide and clung onto Saeyeon s leg . M Madam Please don t throw me out I was joking about becoming a frying pan or a pot You won t get a lot even if you sell me I m not throwing you out . We re going back to my parents place for a while . What I was simply watching them up until this moment, but those words woke me up from my stupor . Her parents place Go back Saeyeon turned back towards me and stuck her lips out . If you re going to do whatever you want, Jjaro, then I m going to do whatever I want as well Wait, why are things turning out like this While ignoring Jihye who was still utterly confused, Saeyeon went to her room and answered my question once she finished packing some of her clothes . You don t try to work together even though we re a family I m disappointed Jaim probably doesn t want to be with Miss Jihye, so we re going to go back to my parents place together . You can come and find me once you ve made up with Jaim, Jjaro . Hmph No, wait, you haven t answered my question . Now then, let s go, Miss Jihye Madam Wait a moment, I m Master s . Saeyeon dragged Jihye out the front door and closed it behind her before I could do anything to stop her . I could hear footsteps and the two of them speaking in the hallway for a moment before I heard the neighbors door open, in other words, Saeyeon s place . What s up with her all of a sudden Normally, no matter how upset she was, Saeyeon wouldn t behave like this . Was she that upset What does she intend to do What s with all the noise While I was idiotically sitting by the front door, I heard Jaim s voice from behind . The tone of her voice still clearly sounded mad . Saeyeon and Jihye left . Jaim laughed weakly in response to my answer . In the end mom left again . In the end , again , I didn t understand the situation yet, but at the very least, those words were enough to send a stabbing pain through my chest . The scale of the fight wasn t as big as last time . However, once more, Saeyeon got upset at me and went back to her home . Even though I wanted to prevent this from happening again . Even though I didn t want this to happen twice . I was abandoned once more . This was only a family experiment, but I was abandoned by my family . However, instead of shock, my body felt as if it were being held down by helplessness this time . Because it was my fault . Because it was my fault this time as well . Nevertheless, I couldn t tell Saeyeon . I couldn t tell her that we broke up, that I had a fight with Jaim because I made Jihye, a robot maid that resembled Saeyeon, after Saeyeon had left . I turned towards Jaim and spoke in order to cool down my own annoyance towards myself . It seems she left so that we could talk . Since things have turned out like this, we have no other choice but to properly . Bang, the door to Jaim s room shut closed . This probably meant that she had nothing to say . That fact made my chest throb once more . . . The morning breakfast table was filled with only silence . If you think about it, this is the first time Jaim and I had a meal with just the two of us . However, this fact felt much too heavy . In the end, Saeyeon really didn t come back . Of course, Jihye as well . It was almost like the time I told her that I hated her . The grains of rice felt like grains of sand in my mouth, so it was even a struggle to chew . I wasn t able to get a wink of sleep last night so the fatigue made my appetite disappear as well . Are you going to come to school I was barely able to utter that question . Jaim glared at me . Why So you can tell everyone that you don t need something like me like last time Ice cold words . Words meant to hurt me . You know that s not what I meant . Nope . I don t know . Wasn t I a bothersome existence to you, Dad You ve been trying to chase me out since day one . Her sarcastic tone . It hurt more because those words weren t particularly untrue . That was a long time ago, it s not like that now . What do you mean it s not like that Clang, Jaim dropped her spoon so that it would make an audible sound before shouting . I m just a burden to you anyways, right You re saying that it would be great if I disappeared Both you and mom I was surprised by her tone that didn t even try to hide her annoyance . No, Saeyeon didn t . She left without saying anything to me, didn t she I was about to say that that was because of me to Jaim, who was on the brink of tears, but Jaim shot up from her chair and went to her room . No matter what you and mom are planning, I m not leaving I couldn t say anything in response to Jaim s actions as she slammed the door shut with a booming bang . This can be interpreted like this, huh My mouth was dry, so I drank some water . It s not like I don t understand Jaim s feelings . The fact that I said she wouldn t have had to come here and the fact that Saeyeon left without saying anything to her, both of these things must have upset her . I let out a deep sigh due to my frustration . If I think about it, she went silent like this when Jihye first arrived as well . Albeit only for a few days . At that time, it was at the point of only being troubling, but now it made my chest ache . I didn t want for things to turn out like this . I wanted to at least solve the issue a bit better like a dad should . Then, I ll be heading to school . . As I expected, no response came when I said that after carefully knocking on Jaim s door . I let out another sigh and opened the front door . I went over to Saeyeon s place and knocked on the door . With a vague hope . Ja Saeyeon, let s go to school . Ah, Master . And the person to open the door and respond wasn t Saeyeon or her parents, but Jihye . With a crestfallen face, Jihye spoke cautiously . Uhm, the Missus went to school saying that she ll be going first . Already This was 30 minutes earlier than usual . Normally, she would still be asleep around this time . Does she not even want to see me I could only smile bitterly . I could feel that she didn t particularly want to run into me . I let out a small sigh . Uhm, Master Jihye carefully called out to me as she was watching me, so I raised my head . Jihye continued hesitantly . As I thought, is the Miss really upset Well, it seems so . She was probably as upset at Jihye as she was with me . She did say that she was going to destroy Multi . Now that I think about it, Multi might be destroyed by the time I get home . I can only hope that that doesn t happen . For me to worry about Multi in this situation . Seriously, people like me are . So she really is . Jihye became even more crestfallen due to my answer, but I couldn t think of anything to say that could comfort her, so I didn t say anything at all . Am I a needless existence to the Miss That s . I don t think so . My answer became slightly hesitant . Jihye muttered weakly . A home appliance becoming a substitute family member is impossible, isn t it . I couldn t find an answer to that question . Pardon me . You should be on your way to school now . Jihye bowed courteously . This was probably her way of ending the conversation politely . I gave her a nod . Haa . On my way to school by myself . I don t even know how many times I ve sighed now . Our family had collapsed in a slightly different way than before . Despite this definitely not being a collapse as inevitable as last time, it didn t make me feel any more relieved . Obviously, this is my fault, but . I know that, similar to last time, this all happened because of my slip of the tongue, but . At the very least, that isn t what I meant this time . Though, I m not confident that I could properly explain myself to someone . A lot of thoughts were going through my head, but this didn t mean I had a good idea on how to handle this . I didn t know what I could do in order to resolve this matter as the head of the household, as a dad . I have no experience, after all . In other words, I lack data . I eventually arrived at the classroom while I was thinking to myself like that . Hey, Jjaro . Let s talk for a bit . And sure enough, Nanda had been waiting for me . Saeyeon must have gone somewhere because I couldn t see her in the classroom . Unusually, none of my classmates were particularly paying attention to me . Normally, the fact that Saeyeon and I had come to school separately would have been enough to make them start teasing me and ask if we got into another fight . I felt strangely anxious because the atmosphere felt similar to last time . Stop looking around like that . There s something I want to talk about with you, so can we go to the clubroom for a bit Huh Okay . I was led towards the clubroom as Nanda wrapped his arm around my shoulder and started to drag me along . As I expected, Nanda locked the clubroom door behind him . I took my glasses off . Huh Why are you taking your glasses off I just thought, like last time . Nanda chuckled at my response . If someone else heard you say that, then they d probably think that all I do is hit you . Put your glasses back on . It seems he really was only planning talk to me . I sat down at the table . So, what did you mean by what you said last weekend From what I saw, the little lady got seriously pissed because of what you said . Saeyeon seemed upset as well . Comfortably, he was speaking in a relaxed tone, but the glint in his eyes was serious, so I smacked my lips and contemplated about how I should answer him . For starters, it s not what you think . And, after a lot of thought, I thought that it would be all right to get some advice from this guy . Except, how should I say it, it s just . You weren t trying to say that Jihye and Saeyeon are alike Was it that obvious I felt my energy being sapped away due to the fact that Nanda had said that as if it were obvious . I wasn t the only one who thought that Upperclassman Nabom and Jaim seemed to realize it as well, but now Nanda knows as well Nanda chuckled . Well, if it s about Saeyeon, then I have a rough grasp of things . Though I think this is about Jihye and not Saeyeon . Nanda let out a small sigh and spoke . In any case, your future self isn t normal either . Creating a robot that s completely based on his wife . Should I say that he loves her that much, or should I call him a pervert T That s not it Both of those are wrong Probably . Nanda must not have noticed that my voice started to go down during the last part of my sentence as he continued . Still, you re in a bad situation . Jaim most likely misunderstood . I understand your intent, Jjaro, but the way you phrased it was bad . What you said makes it sound like you re completely ignoring everything Jaim had done until now . I know . But it was just a jest . Fights normally start because of things that are said thoughtlessly . His argument was so sound that I couldn t say anything back . Did you try to explain yourself to Jaim It didn t work out well . Jaim didn t even listen to what I had to say because she was so upset . Of course not . She came here because you and Saeyeon fought in the future, so hearing something like that would definitely anger her . Probably . I let out a deep sigh . I know what the problem is, but I don t know how to solve it . At the very least, this may not be something that I can solve . If that s the case, if this is an issue that I can t solve, then . Hey, Shin Nanda . No . I didn t even finish my sentence, you know Nanda responded to me while smiling brightly . You were about to ask me to explain things to her for you, weren t you No . You know that I normally don t ask others for help . I m asking you as a friend . Talk with Jaim for me . Nanda shook his head with a smile still on his face . Being friends doesn t mean that I always have to help you, right This guy, who knew he could say something so cruel with a smile on his face . This was a bit shocking . Don t tell me, is he plotting something like I am Because I m your friend, I can t help you if you ask as a friend . Nanda said that towards my doubtful gaze . If you were an acquaintance, Jjaro, then I would help you, but that s because it wouldn t matter to me what happens to you . However, since you re my friend, what happens to you matters to me a lot . What is that supposed to mean Literally just that . It means that family issues aren t within my range of things I can help you with . Nanda sat down on a chair and leaned back comfortably before continuing . I like the little lady, I like Upperclassman Nabom, I like you, Jjaro, and I love Saeyeon . That s why you have to solve this with your own strength, Jjaro . Because I believe that would be best for both you and everyone else . . I didn t say anything about the incredibly concerning line he had just said since this was something which we mutually understood . Nanda grinned and stood up . In any case, since you re the dad, the head of the household, do your best . Saeyeon probably didn t go back to her parents place because she dislikes you . Wait, how do you know about that Saeyeon explained everything in the classroom earlier . She even asked the other kids to not get involved so that you can handle this yourself . . That girl . Nanda must have read my expression as he then added, Saeyeon is most likely trying to help you since she has hope in you as well . You wouldn t like it if the other kids tried to meddle in your family matters at a time like this, would you Since she believes in you, she s probably waiting for you to take care of this with your own strength . You re the one who said that you would, after all . Well, she probably is mad at you, though . , Nanda said that with a laugh . A bit mischievously . Above all else, Jjaro is a prince on a white horse to Saeyeon, after all . I said it s not like that . I turned away slightly and muttered . Don t make her wait for too long . Although there are a lot of people who like Saeyeon, the only person Saeyeon likes is you alone, Jjaro . Nanda opened the door to the clubroom and left with a grin . Good luck, friend . So that s why you came to me After school . Upperclassman Nabom let out a sigh and shook her head . You really don t listen to others, Underclassman Jin Jaro . If you consider the past, then asking for help from those around you when you re in trouble is a good development, however, do I look like a pushover who would help you every time you ask for help No, that s not the case, but . More importantly, why did you come to me for help Do you think I m some sort of family counselor Answer me this . It s . Uhm . If it s Upperclassman Nabom, then I thought, that you might know an answer . My kneeling legs were starting to go numb . The feeling at the end of my toes was gradually disappearing, so I wiggled them . Upperclassman Nabom then glared at me, so I stopped . Haa, Upperclassman Nabom let out another deep sigh and spoke . In this situation, the only thing I can do is send a report that there s a problem and take both Miss Jaim and Miss Jihye back to the future . If that s what you want, then I could, but . I d prefer another option if possible . Then there s none . Upperclassman Nabom declared firmly . I consider the sole fact that I m turning a blind eye towards Miss Jaim s information contamination as the largest assistance that I could possibly give . Information contamination I didn t know what she meant, so I asked back . It didn t seem like she was referring to the previous incident either . Upperclassman Nabom knit her brows and spoke . Have you not realized I m certain that I told you to be a bit more concerned about Miss Jaim . No, this is different from being a bit concerned . I wasn t able to finish my sentence . Upperclassman Nabom had narrowed her eyes at me . She s experienced her mother leaving and a robot that resembled her mother being brought to her as her mother s replacement, but when she came to the past to find her father who had said I ve never seen your mother as a woman . , he said something along the lines of If she were like that robot, then we wouldn t have broken up . . . If you have a brain, then try thinking for yourself, Underclassman Jin Jaro . Is that, how it turns out Did I replace her mother, who I couldn t see as a woman, with a better robot I smacked my lips and Upperclassman Nabom spoke as if she were fed up with me . You may be undeserving of this, but, Underclassman Jin Jaro, the good news is, this situation isn t as severe as last time . At most, this is at the level of a kid being rebellious after hitting puberty, so there s no need for me to step forward immediately . I m not sure if this would be good news to you, though . That s more than enough . If you truly think that way, then I sincerely have nothing more to say . Upperclassman Nabom shook her head as if she found me to be pitiable before speaking . On a side note, it must be quite troubling for Miss Jihye as well . She ended up hearing something like that despite having attentively taken care of Miss Jaim . Even though she probably didn t want this either . How much does this person know, exactly While I listened to her talk to herself in a tone obviously meant for me to hear, that thought went through my head . Upperclassman Nabom turned back towards me and spoke . But are you not going to go home I don t think this is the time for you to be here like this . I don t want to go home . Words from the head of a household who had been shunned by his family . Please don t say that while laughing . You ll hurt my feelings . Still, isn t the very fact that you have a family to go back to much better than before . Seriously, how much does this person know I let out a sigh and opened my mouth hesitantly . Honestly, if someone were to run away from home, I thought that it would be Jaim . She did run away from home in the future as well . I never thought that Saeyeon would get that upset at that moment and declare that she s going home . You re the one who refused her offer to help, after all, Underclassman Jin Jaro . If you were in Underclassman Ja Saeyeon s position, wouldn t her anger be natural But I don t want to tell Saeyeon . Even though you told her that you hated her and all sorts of other hurtful things last time . Why is this person only stabbing at the painful parts today I sighed and stood up . Underclassman Jin Jaro What I grumbled in response once Upperclassman Nabom called out to me . She smiled gently and spoke . It s unlikely that Miss Jin Jaim doesn t actually want to talk you . She even came here earlier . Regardless of whether Underclassman Jin Jaro becomes that sort of person in the future, whether Miss Jaim hates you or not, she most likely came here in order to at least reconcile with that father of hers . Upperclassman Nabom chuckled and then added, Let s consider this piece of advice as a special service . Thank you very much . I could only answer like that . After Upperclassman Nabom saw me off, I went home . I let out a sigh as I rode on the elevator by myself . I could only smile bitterly due to the expression I saw on my face in the mirror . What a pathetic sight . Saeyeon was probably home already . If I knocked on her door right now, then I might be able to talk to her . I stopped in front of Saeyeon s place . I thought for a moment . She did tell me to find her after I ve resolved this issue, but, as I thought, would telling Saeyeon the truth and asking for her help be the actual right answer But, how will Saeyeon react when she finds out that we break up in the future This worried me . I was simply frozen in place with my arm extended and my knuckles hovering next to the door . In that instant, the door opened . Saeyeon s mom smiled . You re here, Jaro Yeah . I m here . I peered over her shoulder and into the house . I thought that I might be able to see Saeyeon . However, Saeyeon s mom blocked my line of sight with her body . Not now . Saeyeon s mom shook her head and pushed me back slightly . She came out to the hallway with me and spoke after closing the door behind her . Saeyeon said that she didn t want to talk to you right now, so she asked this old lady to talk to you instead . Also, Saeyeon s mom added and smiled brightly . There s something I want to talk to you about which I don t want Saeyeon to hear . That smile was seriously scary . For starters, Jaro, I heard that you told Saeyeon you didn t need her help even though you told her before that you needed her . What happened That s because . I heard laughter the instant I lowered my head in order to carefully select my words, so I looked back up . Sorry about that . I couldn t calm down if I didn t tease you a little . A sad smile appeared on Saeyeon s mom s face as she shook her head . For now, this may be sudden, but excuse me . Saeyeon s mom let out a small sigh and took out a cigarette packet from one of her inside pockets . She then put a cigarette in her mouth and lit it . It seems she really intended to have a more serious talk than usual . You should quit that . The faint scent of tobacco which Saeyeon s mom only smoked at her workplace or occasionally in front of me when she had something important to discuss tickled my nose . She d only do this in times like this in order to not get caught by Saeyeon . I heard about everything from Jihye without Saeyeon knowing . Hoo, Saeyeon s mom blew out some smoke and spoke . I was curious as to what Jaim s identity was, but I never expected for it to be something like this, you know Honestly, it s still hard to believe . My granddaughter and a robot from the future . This is way different from what I originally thought . What did you think they were Who knows A homeless child you were looking after or a child who had run away from home Something like that . Saeyeon s mom took a drag and then exhaled the smoke . That s because the story you guys made up didn t make sense . Be it the excuse that she was your and Saeyeon s daughter, or that one of those people had that child after two timing . Those people aren t the type of people to do something like that . That s right . They re people who live for the sake of their work, after all . If they had the leisure to cheat or commit adultery, then they would use that time to focus on their work more . Saeyeon s mom chuckled lightly at my response . Don t scold Jihye too much . I found out after persistently coaxing her despite her refusal to speak until the very end . She was even going to go as far as to stop recharging so that she wouldn t say anything . She was really worried that you might scold her a lot, Jaro . So you heard, about the future . When she said she might be scolded by me, she was probably referring to that side . Saeyeon s mom nodded her head . Yup . I even heard about how you and Saeyeon break up . Saeyeon doesn t know, does she Yeah . I don t really want her to know . You did well . Who knows how Saeyeon would react . Smoke spread throughout the air . I ve said this several times already, but I really am grateful to you, Jaro . Saeyeon s mom spoke while tapping the ash from her cigarette . It s thanks to you that Saeyeon calls me mom . Saeyeon s birth mother was Saeyeon s mother . Saeyeon s new mother was Saeyeon s mom . If anything, the names Saeyeon addressed them by should have been reversed, but they were names that I had instructed her to refer to them by in order to comfort Saeyeon and make her understand . Names which meant that she should cherish her current family more than a family that was gone . I was surprised when she called me mom the first time we met, but when I heard that you had purposely taught her to say that, it made me grateful . That s why I left Saeyeon in your care . Because it was difficult . Even though she doesn t know what that had caused . While letting out a sigh filled with smoke, Saeyeon s mom continued . No matter how hard I tried, I couldn t be Saeyeon s birth mother . I recall once hearing the reason why Saeyeon s mom didn t have a child of her own . She said that it was because she wasn t confident that she would be able to love them equally if Saeyeon were to have a little sibling . The daughter she came to have one day and the child who she had personally given birth to . Since it wouldn t be a simple sister and younger sibling relationship . Because I feel like I wouldn t be able to love Saeyeon properly if I had a child of my own . I m a bad person, aren t I I felt like her ability to say these words while smiling bitterly was the best representation of her personality . Because she was Saeyeon s mom, because she was a person who cared about Saeyeon . This was why I was so envious . That s why I m very worried right now . Saeyeon s mom put her cigarette out by stepping on it and continued . Saeyeon is talking about Jihye becoming a second mother, and this is definitely an incredibly painful topic for her . Probably . I barely managed to nod my head . Saeyeon cherishes her family . Her mother is a part of her family, her mom is a part of her family, and I m also a part of her family . She was somehow able to maintain herself like that . However, that wouldn t solve everything . Even if she acts as if everything s all right, I know that she s lonely underneath that smile of hers . If she knew that we were going to break up in the future, if she knew that Jihye was the one who took her spot afterward, if she knew that she would be forgotten like her mother was, what would she think Furthermore, if she knew that she was replaced by a robot who was made to resemble her She probably wouldn t like it . Once I muttered those words along with a sigh, Saeyeon s mom nodded . She nodded her head weakly . Yeah . She probably wouldn t . That s why My mouth closed in the middle of my sentence . I lowered my head . That s why, what What am I going to say What could I possibly say to Saeyeon s new mom Pat, Saeyeon s mom rested her hand on top of my head . Right now, Saeyeon s family is you, Jaro . And also Jaim . Saeyeon s mom smiled gently while patting my head . That s . I m saying that rather than this old lady saying something, you re more capable of supporting Saeyeon . Her hand stroked my head smoothly and warmly . Wasn t it you who made her think of this old lady as her mom and listen to me even though I m her second mom You were also the one who cherished and loved Saeyeon until now . I didn t . There were a lot of things I wanted to say . Rather, there was a lot I had to apologize for . However, if I say something, then I would definitely be wronging this person even more . I . You ll continue to cherish Saeyeon from now on, right Saeyeon s mom simply continued to speak with a smile on her face as if to stop me from speaking . There was a lot of stuff I wanted to say, but I decided to just receive her warm hand in silence and agree . Do your best . Even if you re a family, there will be times where you argue . But since you re a family, it s best not to let too much time pass by and simply forget about it . Your relationship will become strained if you do that . You re a family, so the best thing you can do is to put that much more effort into reconciling and working things out properly . Okay . Then head on home first . This old lady is going to have to wait for the smell to fade a bit before heading back inside . I could no longer say anything to Saeyeon s mom as she looked out the window in the hallway, so I simply lowered my head slightly . As a means to both show my gratitude and also to apologize . Once I went inside, I discovered that Multi was gone . For a moment, an image appeared in my head, to be exact, it was the image of a heavy metal singer smashing a guitar live on stage, but it seems Jaim wasn t the one who did it . Multi was the only thing that had disappeared . Everything else was left alone . As if someone had picked it up and left . . It wasn t Saeyeon . If it were, then her mom wouldn t have blocked my line of sight earlier, but more importantly, Saeyeon wouldn t do something like this . If that s the case, then it was definitely . I let out a small sigh and started to make my way towards a certain place . And should I say that it was as I expected I expected this, but a rather surreal sight was spread out before me . . I arrived at a neighborhood park which I ve recently been visiting as often as I used to when I was little . In this park, with its elephant shaped slide as its main feature, Jihye was riding on the swing by herself . It was currently the time of day where the park was normally quiet . She was holding Multi in her arms . With the setting sun in the background, an orthodox maid was in a playground and sitting on a swing while holding onto a robot vacuum cleaner which had a mannequin head and legs awkwardly attached to it . No matter how I looked at this, this scene was surreal . Creak, creak, an annoying sound resonated from the swing which obviously hadn t been oiled in a very long time . Each time the sound echoed, her black hair and skirt shook in the wind . Every time the tip of her shoes moved forward and back, they drew a line in the sand . Truly, even that expression was like Saeyeon s . I could hear some muttering in the distance . A couple of old ladies who lived in the neighborhood were spectating the bizarre sight before them . If you consider Jihye s personality, then anyone could come and talk to her, but it seems the surreal sight before them and Jihye s obviously crestfallen state prevented them from doing so . I let out a sigh and resolved myself to approach her . Why are you acting so miserable in a place like this Ah, Master . Jihye turned her head furtively in response to my voice . However, both her expression and her continued swinging didn t stop . I turned around and looked at the old ladies and, thankfully, they seemed to understand my gaze as they left . I let out a small sigh and sat on the swing next to her . Jihye spoke while turning her feet . If I throw Miss Multi and break her right now, would I disappear as well That s . I know . Nothing will probably happen . A difficult to read smile appeared on Jihye s face as she continued . I m sorry . I just suddenly had the urge to do that . . I didn t say anything . For a brief moment, only the sound of creaking could be heard . Master . I turned to look at Jihye . Why did Master create robot maids A forlorn expression . It contained a desperation that sincerely felt as if she wanted to know my answer . Please answer me as the creator . Why was I made That s why I decided to throw away my hesitation and answer her . Because I needed a family . A substitute family . A substitute I hated having a family, but I wanted one that much as well . I decided to confess about the immature fantasy I dreamt of when I was a child but had never told anyone . I never told Jaim either . I hated having a family . I believed they were a needless existence that could be thrown away . However, my loneliness was unavoidable . But I didn t want to tell anyone this . So it was simple . I just had to make one . A perfect family . A family that wouldn t throw me away no matter what happens . A family that would be on my side no matter what happens . I don t need a family . A substitute made by myself was enough . Robots that looked human and thought like them as well, but also never changed and promised both love and loyalty . They would be more than enough . In the end, I can only think like that because I m a twisted human being . Because I m perfect . Because I m a genius . Because I can accomplish everything by myself . That s why I can overcome loneliness by myself as well . I can create a family . That s what I thought . I smiled bitterly and spoke . You probably think of yourself as a part of Jaim s family because I made you like that . No, that s what I probably intended when I left Jaim in your care . Furthermore, that s probably why Jaim didn t like her . Because Jaim didn t want a substitute . And also, that s probably why I made her resemble Saeyeon . Because, ironically, Saeyeon was the only family that I could think of even though I had envied and hated her so much . And if I made her resemble Saeyeon . Then, if the reason for my birth is to be a replacement for a family . Jihye, who had been listening to me, then asked . Since she now has a family, am I no longer needed . I didn t answer . I . I may have been like that because Master had made me like that, but . Jihye opened her mouth carefully . I decided to listen to her in silence . I wanted to be Master and the Miss family . With a disappointed look, but with a slightly hopeful voice . I might be a defective product and it s weird for a robot to act like this, but . Even though she was embarrassed, she spoke with certainty . Jihye spoke with a faint smile on her face as if she were dreaming . I wanted the three of us, to be smiling, happily . She probably did . If I made her resemble Saeyeon, then I wouldn t forget about this part . And if I wanted to create a perfect family, then I would have even considered this part . How ruthless is my future self Jihye continued even though I was smiling bitterly . So when I heard that the Miss had gone to the past, I may have been slightly hopeful . Master in the future only saw me as a simple invention, after all . Probably . But what can t be done can t be done, can it Jihye scratched her cheek and chuckled . She turned her head to face me . No matter what I do, will I always be lacking Hesitantly, with a gaze that looked as if she were betting her final hope . If Master wants, then I ll work hard to become more perfect . Earnestly, with a gaze that looked as if she were pleading to me to not throw her away . I ll do my best so that the Miss likes me as well . Jihye spoke while gazing at me . So . If it were a few months ago, then you may have been able to accomplish that . Jihye s mouth stopped once I spoke . Perhaps, if it were still the time when I didn t have a family, then I would have liked this idea . If the invention that I ve constantly been dreaming to create appeared before me in its perfect state, then I would have chosen that path without any second thought . An ideal person who I wouldn t have to feel inferior to, be concerned about, fight with, take care of, change when necessary, and would always think about and worship me . I pictured it for a moment . If it were my past self, then what sort of response would I have shown How would I have turned out But, not now . Not anymore . Even if it wasn t perfect, I was already able to obtain the thing that I wanted . While spending time with Saeyeon and Jaim, I realized how sweet and empowering having a family is . The part that I couldn t fill on my own . The part that wouldn t be filled no matter how hard I worked or created things . How it feels to have people who need me . Despite being the worst person in the world, the very fact that someone appreciated me was so incredible that I wanted to do something for them however I could, regardless of whether we get into a fight or they choose to ignore me . Even if there s a chance I may one day be hurt like I was before . Still . Sorry, but it s a bit too late . Therefore, this was all I could tell her . Though I may hurt her feelings, this was a part that I couldn t do anything about . I knew you would say that . Jihye simply laughed . Then, as I thought, I m really unnecessary, aren t I No, you re wrong . Jihye blinked . How, should I say it I spoke as I swung my legs and moved the swing . You re definitely what I thought the perfect Saeyeon would be . There s a chance that I was trying to atone . Albeit, this was closer to being self contentment . It was undoubtedly my fault that Saeyeon left . But, that s actually impossible . You re not Saeyeon, after all . If anything, Jihye was closer to being . You re, more like my mirror . Master s mirror You re the Saeyeon that I imagined . In the end, it meant that she was my greed . My idea of Saeyeon . My idea of a substitute family . Either way, it clearly shows how immature I was since I could clearly see her in front of me right now . Even though Saeyeon is just Saeyeon . No matter what I try to add or remove from her, in the end, only my greed and desires would be added . A Saeyeon who would accept me no matter what I say . A Saeyeon who s good at housework . A Saeyeon who gets embarrassed if you tell her to strip . I simply created a doll that resembled my ideal Saeyeon . Rather, it resembled my twisted self more . That s probably why my future self only saw you as an invention . Even if I m a terrible person in the future, there s no way that I wouldn t notice . As she began to resemble Saeyeon more and more, their differences would also become more and more apparent as I continued to work on her . The fact that she wasn t Saeyeon . What I had done would become crystal clear . So, on the contrary, I need you . In order to prevent that from happening . In order to not make that mistake . In order to prevent myself from believing that I can do everything by myself . In order to prevent myself from creating a perfect Saeyeon, a perfect family, and then realizing that that was a mistake and I was simply being greedy, which then results in me throwing everything I have away and distancing myself from them . This is a cruel thing to say to Jihye . You re a flawed creation . A mistake I had made with my greed . That s why, on the contrary, I need you so that I can reflect on my actions . This clearly isn t something that Jihye wants . If anything, it might have hurt her less if I simply told her that I didn t need her . However, even so . Although I can t do a lot for her, since I m the one who caused her problem, at the very least, I don t want her to think that she s unnecessary . I don t want to say something similar to when I hurt Jaim . If possible, I don t ever want to tell anyone that they aren t needed again . Also, wouldn t at least one employee be necessary for the home of such a well off person like myself So, in response to the joke I barely managed to say, Jihye giggled weakly . You re both kind and cruel, Master . I was born like this . I could only avert my gaze and say that . It s just like the Missus said . Jihye stood up from the swing and stuck her arm out with Multi held in her other arm . Now then, Master, let us return home . In response to her sad smile that was both similar and different from Saeyeon s, I reached my hand out and grabbed hers . Jaim . I carefully knocked on her door . Of course, there was no response . I let out a small sigh and called out once more . You re inside, aren t you There was the option of using the spare key to enter the room, but I didn t want to . I heard the sound of footsteps and the door opened . Wait a second, Jjaro . I m having a talk with Jaim right now . It was Saeyeon . You Give us a moment . Before I could even say something, the door shut with a bang in front of me . Click, the door was locked again . Why was Saeyeon here When did she get here However, before quibbling about this, I decided to place my ear against the door . I could faintly hear their voices inside . Honestly, I don t know why you re upset, Jaim . Jjaro won t tell me and you won t tell me either . Because it doesn t involve you, Mom . That makes me a bit sad if you say that as well . I couldn t see her, but Saeyeon was probably smiling bitterly right now . You also don t want something like me anyway, Mom . And, a sad look must have appeared on her face because of that comment . Why do you think that, Jaim Because you don t Jaim let out a loud voice . I could hear sobbing . You left the house without saying even a single word to me That means you have nothing to say to me, doesn t it You think I m troublesome, don t you You weren t the one who gave birth to me, after all I m just an annoying daughter who appeared all of a sudden . On that day as well, when you found out that I came from the future, you were more happy by the fact that you married Dad . Dad s more important to you than something like me, isn t he You don t care about what happens to me Is that what she thinks You and Dad don t care about me . That s probably why you left as well Since you don t need something like me Dad s like that as well, so that s why he took in that piece of scrap metal Since he doesn t care about me at all You re wrong, I wanted to open the door and yell that, but I couldn t say anything . My hands simply hurt as my nails dug into my palms because my fists were clenched tightly . I didn t know you felt that way, Jaim . Saeyeon spoke with a sad voice . But . You re wrong . What do you mean I m wrong In the end, you chose to take that piece of scrap metal and left home as well You didn t choose me You threw me away to Dad I held my breath due to those words . She was most likely not only referring to what happened yesterday, but what happened in the future as well . Saeyeon who left after leaving her with me, the person who didn t love her . Why didn t Saeyeon take her with her That was most likely a question Jaim had been thinking about . She probably understands why Saeyeon got sick of me . She heard me tell Saeyeon that I never saw her as a girl, after all . Even though I m the one who made Saeyeon like that . However, if that s the case, then why Why did Saeyeon throw her away when Saeyeon ran away from me I could only hear Jaim s sobbing voice . I didn t throw you away, Jaim . I heard Saeyeon s voice . It s just, there was something I wanted to talk about with Miss Jihye and I thought that there was something you and Jjaro had to talk about as well . I have, sniff, nothing to talk about, with Dad . There s the thing you re hiding from me, isn t there . Jaim s sniffing stopped in response to those words . My breathing as well . I don t know what you and Jjaro are hiding from me . We re not, hiding anything . I won t pry if you re going to be like that because I believe you two are keeping it a secret since it s something you don t want me to know, but still, that makes me a bit sad . Saeyeon spoke as if it were regrettable, but she then did her best to continue in a bright tone . It s a family matter, so I want all of us to work together . If we do, then I feel like I could understand and also accept it as well, but . It s a bit regrettable . However, I think a bit differently now . How s that Just because your family is hiding something from you and think a bit differently than you, that doesn t mean they re doing so because they don t like you or want to bully you . Saeyeon spoke warmly as if she were embracing Jaim with her voice . A long time ago, I thought that Jjaro loved me unconditionally . So when Jjaro said that he hated me, I was really sad . Despite that, if I think about it, even if Jjaro said that he hated me, he stayed with me since we were young, right . Also, I didn t know that Jjaro was harboring these feelings . Because that made me sad, I got sort of mad yesterday . I thought he was trying to hide everything from me again like before . But, Jaim . Saeyeon continued . When my mom first came, I was really sad . Even though I only have one mom, how could I have a new one That s why, at first, I decided that even if my new mom came, I d never call her mom . . Jaim was confused by the sudden change of topic, but Saeyeon continued to speak . At that time, Jjaro told me this . Jjaro told me that my mom was going to change, but the fact that Mom loved me wasn t ever going to change . If I hate my new mom, then Mom would be sad . Mom wants me to be happy, after all . That s why she sort of understands . I believe that the reason you dislike Miss Jihye is for a similar reason . I m not certain, but despite Miss Jihye s efforts to take care of you like a mom would, you hated that, didn t you . If you did, then that d make me sad . . I d like it if you thought of Miss Jihye as your family as well . I d like it even more if you thought of her as your second mom who ll love you when I m not around . I don t want our family to fight amongst one another, after all . Ehehe, I heard laughter and then the sound of Jaim being pulled into a hug . I ll be your family no matter what happens and how much times passes, Jaim . Even if I disappear, this won t change . Mom . Now then, since it seems like Jjaro has something he wants to talk to you about after this, I ll leave you two to talk . I was able to back away from the door before it opened . Saeyeon pouted as she looked at me . I didn t intend to help you at first . I wanted to leave you alone to do what you want, but how long are you going to keep me waiting You how far do you All the way to the fact that Miss Jihye likes you I m not sure how she interpreted my question, but Saeyeon answered teasingly . But . You probably heard me as well, but I m not going to think about things like that . Of course, I might get a bit jealous but since I believe that I m the one you like the most . Saeyeon smiled slightly . Hurry up and bring me back, okay You . Without turning around, Saeyeon opened the front door and left . Another silence fell upon the house . Jaim s door was closed once more . Seriously, this girl . I simply shook my head . I really can t win against Saeyeon . I knocked on the door . Jin Jaim . . Are you going to keep staying quiet like that Did you come all the way here in order to live here and never talk to me That s not it, right I didn t expect you to say something like that, Dad . The voice I barely managed to hear was cold . You re the one who said that there was no reason for me to come, didn t you That s not what I meant . I m not curious as to what you meant, what s important is the fact that you said it . You re probably right about that . I could only hear Jaim s cold refusal beyond the door . In the end, I m saying that you re the same person now and then as well . You only care about yourself . You don t care about what happens to others . You may also be right about that as well . See But I want to change a little . There s nothing that doesn t change . That s fine . That s an obvious fact . The issue is how you feel about that change . In truth, I hesitated because of that . Since it was the way I lived until now . At first, I definitely thought you were troublesome . I hated the idea of having a family, I thought I could do everything by myself and I lived like that until now . However, on that day Saeyeon and I slept together while holding hands, that triggered a change . A family was forced upon me even though I didn t want one . Something I had to take responsibility for and protect appeared . What I wanted was the strength to go towards my dream by myself and solve everything by myself . The only thing I had to protect was my own ego . The fact that the dark part within me, which I had made for that purpose, was gradually opening and releasing that darkness made me somewhat anxious . It felt like the thing that had been protecting me was leaving me, after all . I don t know what I should do as your dad, no, as a family . I ve never experienced having one . Regardless, something I had to protect appeared instead . I wanted to do this family experiment in order to figure out what a family is, just as we both wanted . To know what s better . How to take in the change . So, I wanted to also pay Saeyeon back for how much I hurt her, although that s probably impossible . And then, it appeared before me . Along with it came the clear evidence of what would happen if I continued on my path without changing at all . I could only laugh at myself . I realized how terrible of a life I was going to live . I realized that, even though we broke up, I created a robot that resembled Saeyeon and continued to regret that moment . Despite this, I didn t give up . I also realized what I had done to Saeyeon until now . I found out that even though I had twisted and broken Saeyeon as I pleased, I was also regretting that . That s why I want to change from now on . I probably can t change completely but at the very least, I want to become a person who doesn t hurt the people precious to him . I want to protect everything essential to me . That s not what I meant by what I said yesterday . It s just . I thought that if I were a bit more of a proper person, then I feel like we could have become a good family which didn t require you to have something like a Happy Family Planning . It was already too late, and although I couldn t revert something that had already happened, That s why I need you, Jaim, in order to change even a little bit from now on . Since you re my daughter . Since you re the person who made me change . Since you re my family . I couldn t hear anything behind the door . Also, if you don t come out, then Saeyeon and I will keep fighting like this . While managing to laugh, I ended up saying that . Since, in the end, I m a twisted person, even if I have to resort to this, I want to hurry up and bring Saeyeon back . Saying something like that now doesn t make me happy, you know I heard grumbling beyond the door . Of course not, but . Can you somehow forgive me Jaim opened the door and looked at me with a sour expression on her face . Then go ask Mom on a date right now . TL note Thanks for reading the chapter . This is basically the big moment of the volume, but it obviously wasn t as serious as volume 1 . The last volume covered Jaro s issues and this volume covered Jaim s . There was a lot more character development in this volume since the previous volume mostly focused on only Jaro, but this branched out to Saeyeon, Jaim, and the new character, Jihye . I mentioned it before, but volume 3 personally felt really intense for me, so I m looking forward to translating it . The remaining chapters are a lot shorter, however, I m starting university again next week, so I m uncertain as to how my translating speed will change . I have plenty of empty periods between classes, so I will definitely utilize those, but I don t have a laptop yet, so we ll have to see how it goes .

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