Cheat day

Celebrity (1)

“I’m back!”

As I opened the door, I could smell something delicious.

It was the warm, tender scent of boiled pork.

“Did you make dinner?”

I had never seen Muk-ji cooking, so I was curious and walked into the kitchen.

“…Mother?”

I was so surprised that I couldn’t say anything else.

My mother, who should have been in Donghae, was cutting vegetables, and Muk-ji was setting the table with food.

“Sit down.”

My mother’s voice was somewhat subdued. She seemed to be in a bad mood.

“How did you come here without saying anything?”

There was no answer, so I looked at Muk-ji, who shook her head. She seemed to be flustered as well.

The table was being filled with dishes, and Muk-ji and I sat side by side while my mother sat across from us.

Even though I had given her my address, it must have been difficult for her to find her way here since it was her first visit. It was too much for her to prepare all this food today.

I worried about her health, especially since her joints weren’t good.

Muk-ji must have been quite surprised to meet her future mother-in-law suddenly as well, so I felt concerned for her too.

“I heard you two are living together?”

“Yes.”

It seemed like the two of them had talked about various things.

If that was the case, it meant they had been together for quite a while, but since Muk-ji hadn’t contacted me, it seemed like she had truly been overwhelmed.

“You still haven’t introduced yourselves. Is that okay?”

“I was going to tell you soon.”

“You should have introduced yourself properly to your parents, especially to Eun-ji’s parents. She’s a precious daughter. Did you learn that from your mother?”

I thought my mother was feeling hurt because I hadn’t told her, so I was about to explain the situation, but I was glad that she was thinking of Muk-ji first, so I waited for a moment.

“Yeah, both of you are adults, and nowadays people live together before marriage, but you should at least talk about it.”

“That’s true.”

I smiled in response, but my mother became irritated again.

“Why are you smiling?”

“I was surprised. What if you came to my son’s new house without saying anything? Right?”

I looked at Muk-ji for agreement, and her eyes widened in surprise.

Her usual composed demeanor was nowhere to be found as she alternated between looking at me and my mother before finally speaking up.

“What do you mean? No, it’s fine for you to come comfortably.”

“No, you need to let me know. I just came back from filming in Gangneung today. What would I have done if Eun-ji wasn’t here? You must have waited outside for me, despite having bad legs.”

“What’s the use of leaving your phone on?”

“I might not have been able to answer it during filming. Next time, please contact me. I’ll come to pick you up.”

My mother exhaled deeply and nodded.

“And this isn’t just a casual relationship.”

She placed her left hand on the table.

Turning my head, I saw that Muk-ji was also showing her ring, and my mother gazed at our hands for a while.

“I’ve been with this person during my hardest times and my happiest moments. Although it hasn’t been long since we started dating, I plan to live with him.”

As I held Muk-ji’s hand and spoke, my mother suddenly started crying.

“Why? Why are you crying?”

I hurriedly handed her a tissue, flustered.

My mother wiped her tears and shook her head.

“I’m just happy.”

“Mother…”

“The bright child you were has been staying home in Seoul. I was hesitant to ask if something was wrong. You’ve been hurt a lot. What can I do to help? I even wished I could take the pain for you, but now you’re doing well, losing weight, and finding a partner. I’m just happy for you.”

“…”

Though she didn’t show it, I could tell that she hadn’t felt at ease seeing me gain weight and become more sensitive.

“Let’s eat. Come on in.”

My mother picked up her spoon.

Muk-ji and I exchanged glances, and I picked up my chopsticks too.

“Wow, but what is all this?”

It was an extravagant spread.

The boiled pork was cooked just how I liked it, and the other dishes were ones I had never seen or heard of before.

I picked up a wrapped side dish and took a bite. There was tofu inside the mushroom, making it convenient to eat.

“It’s tofu wrapped with various things.”

“Mmm, it’s delicious. Just eating this one is filling!”

This time, I tried the dish that was wrapped in cabbage. Instead of rice, it was filled with meat and vegetables, and it tasted fresh.

My mother seemed very concerned about my blood sugar levels.

“Eun-ji also did the grocery shopping.”

“Really?”

I was surprised and turned my head to see Muk-ji bowing her head.

“…I didn’t know it was wrong to buy this much.”

Following Muk-ji’s gaze, I turned my head to see a half container of garlic. I wondered how she managed to carry so much and how hard it must have been for her.

“You can use it up if you cook diligently. The boiled pork is delicious.”

“Eat a lot.”

My mother served Muk-ji some food in front of her.

Muk-ji smiled as she put the cabbage wrap in her mouth.

“It’s delicious.”

“Really? I’m glad you’re enjoying it.”

It seemed my mother liked her future daughter-in-law. She was making sure to take care of her.

Muk-ji was eating diligently, but I worried it might be a burden for her since she usually ate less.

“Mother, Eun-ji.”

Just as my mother was about to serve more food to Muk-ji, I was about to stop her when Muk-ji shook her head at me.

She probably wanted to impress my mother, but I hoped she wouldn’t overdo it.

“Why?”

My mother asked back when I hesitated to speak.

“She’s so pretty.”

Muk-ji turned her head abruptly. I found her surprised expression endearing; I was seeing it often today.

“She is pretty.”

My mother smiled and served more food to Muk-ji.

I started to get worried, but seeing her eat so well also made me happy.

This was the first time I’d seen her eat so heartily since getting to know her.

“Mother, Eun-ji was my first viewer.”

“How so?”

“Exactly! You don’t know how much it means to have even one person watching your show.”

My mother looked at Muk-ji and smiled gently. I could feel her affection just from her gaze.

“And when we worked together, how amazing was that? I mentioned last time that Eun-ji increased the deposit for the rice cooker contract, right?”

“Yeah. You said WH took care of everything.”

“No, it wouldn’t have happened without Chan-yong. I just helped a little.”

“You do great work and are so humble.”

“Stop it.”

Muk-ji seemed a bit shy.

Seeing her face asking me to stop, I couldn’t help but laugh.

She had so much to brag about, but I decided to take it slow.

“But how’s your leg?”

I asked my mother.

I was worried if she had any discomfort coming all the way here from Donghae.

“It’s fine. I’m going to the hospital. I have an appointment tomorrow.”

“So you came up to see your son’s place while getting a check-up tomorrow?”

“Yeah.”

“How do you like it?”

“It’s nice. The new building is pretty.”

“Right? There’s a park nearby, it’s quiet, and the transportation is good.”

“It does look good. But when are you planning to get married?”

“It’s hard for now because I have filming, but I’m thinking about next year.”

When I turned my head, Muk-ji nodded.

“Well, hurry up and introduce yourself. Since Mom is okay with it, we can set a date for the meeting.”

“It seems like you really want your son to get married. You said I didn’t have to, though.”

“Back then, you were just being miserly. With both of you doing so well and looking good, why hesitate?”

“We’ll figure it out.”

We should pay attention to our parents’ situations, but we want to proceed in our own way at our best time.

“Right.”

My mother served Muk-ji more food again.

“Oh, Mom. Please stop serving so much. Eun-ji will burst.”

“I’m just doing this because she’s pretty. Does it suit your taste?”

“Yes, it’s really delicious.”

“But you seem too thin. These days, young people are all crazy about losing weight, but you’re already beautiful. Don’t go on a diet or anything.”

“Yes, okay.”

Muk-ji smiled as she replied but suddenly made a gagging sound. It felt concerning, and it turned out she had overdone it.

Though she had started eating normal meals for quite some time, she had been eating less due to her previous habits, so suddenly eating a lot must have overwhelmed her.

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry? It happens. It’s not because it doesn’t suit your taste, is it?”

“No, it’s really delicious. The things I usually eat are too much for me, but your cooking is healthy and well-seasoned, so I can eat a lot of it.”

My mother smiled brightly.

She looked delighted.

This was her son’s first serious girlfriend, who was polite, competent, and spoke clearly, so it’s no wonder she was thrilled.

Moreover, although she usually seemed indifferent, the way her expression changed when she was surprised or happy was endearing.

“Good. Eat as much as you want.”

My mother served more meat again.

Muk-ji took a moment to take a deep breath before putting the boiled pork in her mouth. I wondered if she really was okay with meat since she usually didn’t prefer it.

“Ugh.”

Just as I feared, Muk-ji gagged again.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m sorry. Your food is just too delicious.”

Even in this situation, I felt grateful yet sorry that she was thinking of my mother.

“Mom, Eun-ji is…”

“Ugh.”

Muk-ji suddenly got up and headed for the bathroom. She was definitely overdoing it.

“Mom, I was going to explain later, but Eun-ji actually—”

When I turned to explain the situation, I noticed my mother’s eyes widening in shock.

It seemed she was taken aback after seeing her prospective daughter-in-law eat the food she had prepared and then gag.

“Mom, it’s not what you think.”

“What do you mean it’s not? Baby. Baby?”

My mother hurriedly got up and headed for the bathroom.

“…Baby?”

The sudden change in how she addressed me was puzzling, but it seemed my mother was oblivious. Who would want to throw up in front of their future mother-in-law?

I grabbed my mother’s arm.

“Mom, please sit down. I’ll go.”

My mother looked back and forth between me and the bathroom before suddenly hitting me.

“What kind of child makes someone like that?”

“W-what do you mean?”

“How could you make her carry something so heavy when she needs to be careful? I can’t handle this, really!”

“Wha—?”