âi told you it wasnât me.â
âis that so?â
my brotherâs eyes shook wildly, as if he had been caught.
âbut i said i wasnât sticking my head out.â
âoh? you did?â
âhow do you know that someone did that when it wasnât me?â
my brotherâs lips curled up and opened repeatedly, as if he had a lot to say.
i stretched out my pointer finger towards him as if i had caught the killer.
âwhat do you think? my reasoning is perfect! my brother stuck his head out and is now lying to me! youâre lying!â
my brotherâs face, which was already pale, became paler. just like bread that was freshly baked in the morning, his cheeks gradually swelled.
then, my brother jumped up from his seat to make his own protest.
âwell, iâm not lying⦠i mean⦠i meanâ¦â
âyou lied!â
âi was sitting here because i want to look reliable but⦠i was curious! when is bebe coming? i didnât know if you were coming. i was wondering if somethingâs wrong. i thought about whether i should go and protect you.â
âwhat?â
i blinked when i tried teasing my brother for being a liar.
âah, thatâs not itâ¦â
rather, my brother pouted his lips as if he were falsely accused.
âbut i know youâll be disappointed if i get out here. i have to protect this place⦠but iâm worried about you.â
âis that so?â
âiâm⦠iâm not a liar. itâs just⦠itâs justâ¦â
maybe it was because i just found out why my brother did it, but his lips were pursed together like a fish, which looked cute. as my father said, i think my brother looked like a fool.
my fool, to be exact.
before i contradicted my brother, my mom smiled and patted my brotherâs head.
âbebe, donât be too harsh on your brother. but he did continue to be here and protect your mom.â
âwell, iâm not saying anything. itâs just⦠i thought it was a lie⦠no! i knew it too! i knew it.â
âreally?â
âoh, i was just trying to tell you that you did a good job.â
not wanting to lose for some reason, i rolled my eyes. then, while chewing on the cookies on the table, i hugged sylvie.
âah, iâll go for a walk.â
âcan i come with you this time?â
the day i was about to go out in shame because i didnât know my brotherâs feelings, my brother caught me.â
âhuh?â
âor do i have to stay here?â
âuh⦠i meanâ¦â
meanwhile, my mother slowly got up from her seat. she walked a little slower because she had been lying down for so long, but that didnât mean she couldnât walk.
suddenly, my mother came over to me and stroked my hair.
âitâs not like that. letâs all go out together.â
âhuh?â
âi want to take a walk too. can i join you? mom wants to go out with bebe and allen.â
when i saw my mother talking with a big smile, somewhere in my heart trembled.
after losing her memory, she didnât use the word âmomâ when referring to herself, whether it was conscious or not. there have been times when she looked into my eyes and said so consciously, but it was the first time she had said it as naturally as before.
âhuh? can i?â
meanwhile, my mother leaned over and gently stroked my cheek. i donât know if itâs because i want to feel that way, butâ¦
âsheâs like how mom used to be.â
the mom i remembered was the mom who lived with me in that hellish place and did everything for me. she was that kind of mother.
i didnât think about it all the time, but today, i suddenly thought of it.
my motherâs memories may have returned, and in the meantime, my colt-like brother held my motherâs hand.
âif bebe says no, we can go together.â
then, i came to my senses and intervened between the two of them.
âno! letâs go together. i want to go with my mom and brother.â
âi will stand in the middle. iâll take bebeâs hand and motherâs hand.â
then he hurriedly approached and grabbed my motherâs hand and mine at the same time.
âtch⦠iâm standing in the middle.â
âbebe, you have to stand like this so i can protect you two.â
âis that so?â
âsure, so letâs go now.â
my brother led the two of us like that, as if he were in a pretty good mood. in the meantime, maybe he was worried about my motherâs walking pace, but my brother deliberately slowed down by saying this and that alone.
thanks to that, it took quite a long time to get to the garden.
Comments(0)
Join the discussion — sign in to leave a comment
Sign In to CommentNo comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!