Chapter 4 : When we became Childhood friends at the Age of 6 (4)

“Aki, what should we play? Jungle gym, zipline? Or tumbling?”

“Ah, I want to play house. I want to play house with Woo-ju-sang!”

“House? We did that last time at the playground. You want to do it again?”

“Yeah, yeah, Aki likes playing house.”

“Really? I wanted to do something else this time.”

“Woo-ju-sang, you don’t want to play house with me……………?”

“……Okay. Let’s play house together. Where should we do it?”

“Yeah! Over there, over there! Let’s go there!”

As I followed Aki, who loved playing house, to the corner of the kids’ cafe, another meeting was taking place in the drink bar area, a space for adults.

That meeting was between our parents and Aki’s father.

“Hello, I’m Fujiwara Sumimoto.”

“Ah, hello. I’m Woo-ju’s mother. This is Woo-ju’s father.”

“Hello….”

The Korean couple, my mom and dad, who gave an obviously awkward greeting, glanced at the middle-aged Japanese man in front of them and leaned slightly closer to each other.

“Eunhye, is the surname Fujiwara common in Japan?”

Fujiwara Aki, the only son’s foreign friend. And Fujiwara Sumimoto, her father.

It’s natural for a daughter and father to have the same surname, but more importantly, it’s the surname ‘Fujiwara’.

As a matter of fact, the current Japanese ambassador to Korea is named ‘Fujiwara Genichiro’. However, the man sitting in front of them is named ‘Fujiwara Sumimoto.’

“It’s common, but there aren’t many people with Fujiwara as their original surname.”

“Original surname? What’s that?”

“It’s something that’s almost nonexistent now… Simply put, it’s a surname that the Japanese emperor directly bestows. People with original surnames are a type of nobility. There are probably less than 5% of the entire Japanese population.”

If this Fujiwara Sumimoto was a relative of the current Japanese ambassador to Korea or had a similar relationship, the two diplomats had to be careful with every action they took from now on. If they made a mistake, it could lead to a diplomatic discourtesy.

“So, is he a noble?”

“I don’t know. Should we ask him? But what should we ask?”

“…Excuse me, but during your conversation, our Fujiwara family has been using the original surname Fujiwara for generations.”

Coincidentally, Fujiwara Sumimoto, that is, Aki’s father, could speak Korean quite fluently.

The reason was because of Fujiwara Genichiro, the Japanese ambassador to Korea, who strongly urged it, just like Aki…

“Oh my, you knew how to speak Korean. ……………Um, but by any chance. If it’s not rude, what is your relationship with Mr. Fujiwara Genichiro?”

“Can we ask?”

“He is Aki’s grandfather and my father.”

“……I’m sorry, we were being rude.”

Anyway, my mom was so surprised that she quickly bowed her head.

“Rude? Not at all. I’d rather like to thank the parents of Woo-ju.”

However, as my mom bowed her head, Aki’s father also bowed.

“Huh? Thank you?”

At the unexpected words, mom and dad stared blankly at each other.

Dad asked with his eyes, ‘Eun-hye, did you do something for him?’, and mom shook her head and asked back with her eyes, ‘No, I’m meeting him for the first time today? What about you?’.

Of course, dad also shook his head, and they both wondered, ‘Then why is he thankful..?’

“Aki used to be a child with a lot of smiles. But since she came to Korea because of my father’s coercion, she hasn’t been smiling much. Maybe it’s because of the sudden change in environment, and also because she didn’t make any friends her age. The language barrier is bigger than I thought.”

“Ah, yes. That’s probably true. Kids usually need time to adjust when their environment changes.”

“Yes, that’s right. So, I waited. Aki is a bright child, so I thought she would be fine if I gave her some time. But that wasn’t the case. Aki, who was always smiling, only became darker as the days went by. That lasted for a month and then two months. And after three months, I realized that I couldn’t leave Aki like this.”

“Ah…”

“But there was nothing I could do. I’m ashamed to say that I’ve only worked my whole life. I’ve never had a proper conversation with Aki, nor have I ever done anything like a father. I wanted to make Aki smile, but I didn’t know how, and I was so anxious. I even had the extreme thought that what if Aki wouldn’t smile for the rest of her life… … … But.”

Aki’s father raised his head.

The languid gaze typical of a middle-aged man was directed toward a corner of the kids’ cafe where Aki and I were sitting.

“One day, after finishing work and returning home, Aki smiled brightly and spoke to me first. She said, ‘Dad, something really fun happened outside today!’. Although I didn’t show it, I was so surprised that I quickly asked her what had happened. Do you know what Aki said?”

“What, what did she say?”

“She said she met a Korean boy named ‘Woo-ju’ outside, and it was so much fun playing with him. She even explained everything that happened in detail.”

What did you tell me to do first when I get home?

Hmm, let me see? Was it a greeting?

No, the answer is I’m back. It’s a kiss!

Oh, a kiss?

That’s right, a kiss! Now, hurry up and come here and kiss me!

“…Anyway. So, I really wanted to meet and greet Woo-ju’s parents.”

Aki’s father bowed deeply.

“Thank you for finding our child’s smile in place of her incompetent parents. I will never forget this favor.”

As his bowed head almost touched the table, mom and dad were startled and hesitated.

Then, they stared at each other blankly.

It was their first time receiving such a respectful thank-you from someone else, and it was also awkward to be thanked for something their child, not they, had done.

So, the two of them looked at each other, wondering what to do.

“……Ah, well.”

They gave a slightly awkward but genuine smile.

“We are grateful for Aki’s father’s kind words. But you don’t have to bow. It was our son who played with Aki, not us. Actually, we didn’t do anything.”

“No, it’s thanks to Woo-ju, who you raised so well, that our Aki is bright again. I can’t thank you enough times for this.”

“Oh, it’s okay. Woo-ju is such a playful kid, so I’m worried that he might have been rude to Aki. Well…”

Even as she said that, mom had a smile on her face. There’s no parent in the world who doesn’t like hearing compliments about their child from someone else.

So, perhaps because she was in a good mood, Mom, with a little bit of meddling, brought up a topic.

“Um, this might sound a little out of the blue, but is Aki attending daycare or kindergarten?”

“Kindergarten? No. She’s not currently attending. She attended Gakushuin Kindergarten in Japan, so I thought it would be okay to do the same in Korea, but when I tried sending her, the language barrier was surprisingly significant.”

“Then, how are you educating her?”

“I just tutor her from time to time when I have the time, or I call some female private tutors for simple homeschooling…”

“Oh my, oh my! You can’t do that.”

“……Yes?”

“They’re at an age where they should be running around and playing, but homeschooling? Mr. Fujiwara, when kids are young, you absolutely have to let them meet people and play around. That’s good for their emotional development.”

“Is that so? I didn’t know. But even if I want to send her to kindergarten, the language problem I mentioned earlier hasn’t been resolved. Aki can speak a little Korean, but that’s all, so she can’t have detailed communication, and it seems she’s having a hard time adjusting to the different culture.”

“In that case, how about sending her to the same kindergarten as our child?”

Dad, who had been quietly listening, chimed in.

“Huh? Woo-ju and Aki go to the same kindergarten?”

“Yes, if they go to the same kindergarten as Woo-ju, it will be easier for her to adapt, and they can communicate to some extent as they do now. Now she’s relying on a translator, but kids are good learners, right? If they’re together, it will stimulate each other, so Aki can learn Korean faster, and our Woo-ju can learn Japanese easier. It’s a win-win for both of them.”

“Oh, if you would do that for me, I would be more than happy, but… Wouldn’t it be too much of a burden on Woo-ju?”

“Oh, no, it’s not a burden at all. Our Woo-ju would be happy too. Shall we ask him directly? Hey, Woo-ju…”

“Eun-hye, look over there.”

“Huh? Where?”

“Over there, where Woo-ju and Aki are. They’re about to kiss?”

“Oh, they’re probably just pretending as a joke. How would they kiss in front of others…….”

It is done?

-Yes, I’m back. Honey.

…….Huh? Why is Aki kissing me?

-I’m back~ Kisses are what we do to each other. Did you not know that, you?

“What, they really did it?”

“……Oh my.”

Those little ones are already kissing in front of others.

……With that kind of expression, Mom, who looked at me, cleared her throat.

“Um, sorry. It seems like our Woo-ju likes Aki a lot.”

“It’s okay. When kids are young, isn’t it normal for them to play like that? They seem to be getting along well, so it’s nice to see.”

“…………How many times is he going to kiss her? Woo-ju, come here for a second~?”

Okay!

I walked toward mom, who was waving at me. And naturally, Aki followed close behind me, and we stood in front of both parents while holding hands.

“Woo-ju, you know, if Aki starts going to the same kindergarten as you, can you help her out by her side?”

“Huh? Aki and I are going to the same kindergarten?”

“Yeah, how is it? Can you do that?”

“Yes! I can do that. I’ll play with Aki a lot, and I’ll introduce her to many friends!”

“……Did you see?”

Mom glanced at Aki’s father with a somewhat proud expression.

Aki’s father looked down at us, more precisely, at the hands Aki and I were holding.

“……Okay. Then, although I know it’s rude, I’ll humbly ask for your favor.”

With a face of great gratitude, he respectfully bowed his head to my mom and dad.

“Woo-ju, please be good friends with our Aki.”

“Don’t worry. Our Woo-ju is smart, so he will do well. Right, Woo-ju?”

“Yes. But mom, from now on, will Aki and I go to the same kindergarten?”

“Yes, it will be like that soon. How is it, do you like it?”

“Huh, really? Really, Aki and I are going to the same kindergarten?”

“Dad is going to find out right away, but there is a procedure, so it won’t be right away, maybe at least a week. So, until then, Woo-ju, you…”

“Aki! You and I are going to the same kindergarten!”

“Kin, der, garten…?”

“We can play together every day from now on, every single day!”

“Ah, ah….”

Aki couldn’t understand Korean properly because she didn’t have a translator, but she seemed happy holding my hand as I was excited, and her face slightly blushed.

“Our Woo-ju seems to be very active, just like me, right?”

“That’s right, the tomboyishness is very much like our Eun-hye. Just like her….”

“……What? A tomboy? The reason Woo-ju sometimes says strange things is just like his dad, don’t you know that? Huh? Huh?”

“Look at that, when I say something slightly bad, she’s glaring at me…. Ah, wait a minute, don’t grab the wrong places…!”

Mom and Dad talked about how we were like them, leaving me alone.

And, from that day on, we.

“Ah, right, the translator… … … Aki, please take care of me from now on!”

“Yeah, Woo-ju-sang~! I, too, please take care of me…”

Became very close friends.