I Became an Artist in a Romantic Comedy

Chapter 4

Blinking repeatedly, I forced my heavy eyes open and lifted my head.

When did I fall asleep? I looked at the wall clock, and it was already 1 PM.

It seemed I had fallen asleep after getting exhausted from drawing all night.

Fortunately, I had completed the drawing, so I could feel some relief.

Since I had fallen asleep on the desk, my whole body seemed to be crying out in protest.

"Ugh..."

I grimaced and stretched, making a sound that didn’t quite match the body of a four-year-old.

Crack.

After a simple stretch, I stood up and gathered the drawing.

I thought there might be a frame in the storage room. If I put it in there and hung it in the bedroom, it would look nice.

The room used as a storage was near the balcony. Dad always cleaned and took care of it, so it wasn’t very dusty.

"Let’s see."

The frames were in a spot that was easy to spot.

There were various types of frames, likely ones Mom had bought for the firstborn’s photos.@@@@

I couldn’t help but feel a bit bitter inside. How happy must Mom have been when she had her first child?

I swallowed a sigh that tried to escape and picked an appropriately sized frame.

It was a frame that was a little longer horizontally, and when I placed the paper in it, it fit perfectly.

Had she just bought this recently? Mom must have gotten it, considering it was the perfect size for the paper.

I opened the back of the frame and placed the drawing inside. Luckily, it had a mechanism that was easy for a child to open.

I took the framed drawing and carried it to the bedroom.

"I hope it cheers her up."

The sense of unease that had been there earlier was gone, and now, all I wished for was the happiness of our family.

I stared blankly at the drawing that was now placed on the bed.

It was a family portrait—four people.

A young couple, a little girl who looked about five or six, and a newly born baby.

"......"

Normally, I would have drawn myself and Ha-eun, but I decided against it.

Wasn’t my place supposed to be where my sister’s should have been?

Maybe I had taken her spot.

It was because of these thoughts that I didn’t draw myself.

Suddenly, I noticed a water stain in the right corner of the frame. It was probably the tear stain from last night.

"It doesn’t matter. It’s not very visible."

Thanks to the frame’s corners, the tear stain wasn’t very noticeable unless you looked closely.

But it still felt kind of dull. Maybe I should add a little surprise to it?

I carefully covered it with a blanket and stepped out of the room.

Grrrrr.

"Ah."

As soon as I stepped out, my stomach growled loudly.

Thinking about it, I had skipped breakfast because I was busy drawing last night, and I hadn’t eaten in the morning either.

Lunch time had long passed.

I headed to the kitchen and opened the fridge, but there wasn’t anything appetizing to eat.

Everything was either a meal kit or something that could only be heated up in the microwave.

Before Dad came back, I’d be stuck starving.

Still, I figured I could manage for one day.

And I had to look after Mom too. It seemed like it would be hard for Dad to come home anytime soon.

But just as I thought about this...

Beep beep beep.

The sound of the front door lock opening.

"Ha-eun!"

Dad rushed in, calling my name.

"...Huh?"

Startled, I headed to the living room, and as soon as Dad saw me, he sighed in relief.

"Haah. Sorry, son. I was so distracted I forgot to check on you."

"It’s... okay. But what about Mom?"

"Mom? Oh, she’s fine. The baby was born without any problems."

Thank goodness. Really.

Dad smiled and gave me a light pat on the shoulder.

"Eun-ah. How do you feel now that you’re a big brother?"

"Big brother? Is it a girl?"

"Yep. A beautiful little girl, just like our son."

Dad’s question made me shrug my shoulders.

"I guess I look just like her. But I don’t feel anything special about being a big brother."

"Really?"

Dad gave me a mysterious smile and headed to the kitchen.

"Our son must be hungry. I’ll make some food for you."

At our house, Mom and Dad take turns cooking. Both of them are pretty good at it.

"Are you going to make food and then go back to Mom?"

"...Yeah."

Her expression seemed a little serious, so it must have been an important call.

Leaving us two kids behind.

"Hey, Ha-eun."

...Is she always this friendly?

I thought she was usually a quiet, reserved kid.

"Can you show me around the house?"

?? Well, sure.

Even if it was the same apartment complex, the layout might be different.

I motioned for her to follow, and So-yul grabbed my hand tightly.

"Huh? Wasn’t I supposed to grab it?"

She looked at me with a slightly dazed expression as she tilted her head and asked.

"No, that’s not it. Um, it’s fine. Let’s just go."

This was the first time in my life I had held a girl’s hand, other than Mom’s.

Of course, I could get in trouble for saying that since I’m only four, but...

Who cares? I’m four too.

Later, I’ll probably look back and think, "What was I thinking? How could I hold her hand?"

Laughing at the funny thought, I showed her around the house.

However, I didn’t take her to the master bedroom because there was a drawing I had made, and it felt a little awkward.

Instead, So-yul narrowed her eyes and looked at the door to the bedroom.

"Why aren’t we going in there?"

"It’s Mom and Dad’s room. I’m not allowed to go in there either."

I avoided the question by lying halfway.

I could go in there anytime, but there was a drawing in there, damn it.

"Huh? Auntie said it was okay to go anywhere, though?"

Auntie must’ve finished her call by then, and she came back, laughing and pointing her finger.

"Heh. I’m sure I said it as a way of being considerate, but this auntie already asked for permission."

Sometimes, I wonder what’s going on in that woman's head. Where does she even get that way of speaking?

Reluctantly, I led both of them into the bedroom.

Oh right. Just a minute ago, Auntie cheered when she saw So-yul and me holding hands.

Once we entered the bedroom, the normal furniture and the bed with a mix of white and navy colors caught their eyes.

The shape of the bed stood out, clearly suggesting that there was something important there.

Auntie didn’t seem interested in lifting the bedding, so she left that alone. So-yul, however, was on the verge of exploding with curiosity.

"Is it a treasure?"

"Daughter, other people’s things aren’t treasures."

Auntie patted So-yul’s head before turning to ask me.

"But I’m curious too. What’s that?"

"...It’s a drawing."

"A drawing?"

"Yeah, well..."

I ended up answering because I had no choice. Well, it didn’t matter. There was no reason to hide it from them.

"Want to see it?"

"Oh? Is that okay?"

"I want to see it too!"

At their request, I pulled out the framed picture from under the blanket.

"Wow, wow, wow, wow. This? You drew this with just colored pencils?"

"Wow..."

Auntie was full of admiration, and So-yul looked like she was lost in space again, staring blankly.

I felt a bit embarrassed and cleared my throat. Auntie snapped back to reality and handed the frame back.

"Wow. Ha-eun, you’re going to be an amazing artist when you grow up."

"Heh. I’ll think about it."

I didn’t say I’d do it, just that I’d think about it.

Just then, Auntie suddenly asked.

"By the way, I’m curious. The adults here, are they your mom and dad?"

Yeah. I drew my mom and dad, and under them...

"Who’s the little girl between them? She doesn’t look like Ha-eun at all."

Auntie’s question was a bit intrusive. But she didn’t know our family’s situation.

However, I couldn’t give her an answer.

"It’s a mistake. But I didn’t want to just throw it away."

"...I see?"

Auntie accepted my explanation and nodded, and we left the bedroom and went back to the living room.

There wasn’t much to do. What should we do?

"Auntie brought a board game. Want to play?"

Auntie had brought a board game called Burmabu.

We nodded and sat down around it.

The game board quickly turned into something that resembled a gambling house.

And the loser was...

"No way. I lost to these little kids?"

Auntie was relentless.