A Musical Genius Who Plays Memories - Chapter 15

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 15. Don’t know why (5)

Late evening.

Aeyeon and Lee Ye-eun, who had finished academy, were eating at a restaurant.

However, Aeyeon’s hands remained glued to the table, as if it was difficult for her to even lift a spoon.

Lee Ye-eun, who couldn’t bear to watch, spoke up.

“Aeyeon, what’s wrong? Is it because you couldn’t go to the park?”

“…No.”

But Lee Ye-eun seemed to know all too well the reason why the child had no energy.

***

It was when Hee-seong had just left the preschool.

Aeyeon, who was bored being in the Moran Class, immediately followed Hee-seong.

Seeing this, Hee-seong said.

“Why are you following me? Are you bored?”

“Yeah.”

The tired look from just moments ago was gone, and her eyes were sparkling brightly.

As the two approached the entrance, Shin Ji-eun was waiting.

She smiled brightly upon seeing Hee-seong, then was startled when she saw Aeyeon.

She seemed to have never expected to see her here.

“Oh my, hello Aeyeon!”

“Hello…”

“I’m sorry we couldn’t play properly last week. Would you like to play with Hee-seong today?”

“…What?”

“What?”

Both Hee-seong and Aeyeon were surprised by her suggestion.

Of course, whenever Shin Ji-eun came to pick up Hee-seong, they usually played outside before going home.

But it seemed even Hee-seong didn’t know she would suggest this to Aeyeon.

Meanwhile, Aeyeon, who heard Shin Ji-eun’s proposal, froze with her eyes wide open.

“Uh, can I play together too…?”

“Of course! You can play together as much as you want! Auntie will watch over you well.”

At her words, the child smiled brightly.

The fatigue seemed to disappear instantly.

However, dark clouds soon cast over the child’s face.

“I have to go to academy…”

Only Hee-seong heard the child’s whisper.

‘Academy?’

That word stuck deeply in Hee-seong’s mind.

Cha Yu-ra, who heard Shin Ji-eun’s words, said.

“Then, I’ll go ask Aeyeon’s mother! Please wait a moment.”

Cha Yu-ra left for a moment, and shortly after, returned with a troubled face.

“Aeyeon’s mother says she’s sorry, but Aeyeon has to go to academy, so it’s not possible…”

As soon as she finished speaking, Shin Ji-eun and Hee-seong simultaneously looked at Aeyeon.

Aeyeon, as if she had already expected this, hung her head low.

Though Aeyeon looked like she was about to cry, she let out a deep sigh as if accustomed to it.

“Goodbye…”

Aeyeon bowed deeply to Shin Ji-eun in greeting.

The sight of Aeyeon trudging back to the Moran Class was quite pitiful.

***

This continued to weigh on Lee Ye-eun’s mind.

So she had come to eat hamburger steak, the child’s favorite, but it didn’t help.

She still had no energy and was barely eating her food.

She wondered if it was because she didn’t let her play.

‘When was the last time Aeyeon properly played?’

In her memory, it was before her husband died.

When there were no worries, and she only imagined a happy future.

The only time Aeyeon smiled brightly was back then.

“Mom, do you know the song Dad played?”

“Song?”

“Yeah. I’m curious about the title.”

“The title…”

Lee Ye-eun couldn’t understand what the child was saying.

Because her husband hadn’t played just one or two pieces for Aeyeon.

A person who loved music.

Someone who relieved work stress through piano playing.

He had played piano as a hobby for 10 years.

So even Lee Ye-eun, who knew nothing about music, could tell her husband was skilled.

Even when she was pregnant with Aeyeon, he personally played pieces good for prenatal care.

Perhaps because of that.

Aeyeon had talent for piano.

Various experts said she was a genius who might appear once in a hundred years.

At those words, the couple felt like they were flying in the sky.

Just imagining their child performing made them feel full without eating.

‘Let’s definitely make Aeyeon known to the world!’

Lee Ye-eun made that promise with her husband.

To support her endlessly, as far as the child could go.

They carved deep in their hearts to let Aeyeon grow into a beautiful flower, even if their own bodies rotted.

However, that dream crumbled.

‘…What?’

It was an ordinary evening.

It was a day they had decided to eat out after a long time.

The call that came to Lee Ye-eun, who was pondering what to eat, completely tore apart her life.

In the future called happiness, there was no place for her husband to exist.

Her time passed far too quickly.

Whenever she briefly came to her senses, her in-laws would come to comfort her.

She felt sorry seeing them hold back tears while speaking, when they, as parents, must be sadder than herself as the wife.

Time passed again, and before she knew it, she was wearing black hanbok and greeting people.

She hoped this unbelievable reality would soon shatter.

She rather wished all of this was just a bad prophetic dream.

But that never happened.

Reality dug deep into her flesh like broken glass.

Though it hurt so much she wanted to cry, Lee Ye-eun tried hard to endure it.

‘Where Daddy?’

When her young daughter, who couldn’t even pronounce words properly yet, looked for daddy, there was nothing she could do.

So Lee Ye-eun hugged Aeyeon.

‘Daddy went on a long trip… So, Aeyeon. You can wait for daddy, right?’

As she said this, she made a resolution.

To keep the promise she made with her husband.

She vowed to give the child a good future.

For one year like that.

Lee Ye-eun was feeling that something seemed wrong.

The child who used to smile prettily rarely smiled anymore.

‘Was it for the child, but was I wrong?’

Aeyeon’s Mother loved Aeyeon.

She loved her more purely than anyone else.

This was sincere.

No matter how much she thought about it, she had always moved for Aeyeon’s sake.

She worked like crazy and built up achievements to obtain the position of department head at 38.

She also sent her to the academy that was said to teach best in the region.

She had her earnestly learn English, math, and piano from the basics to help her advance further.

As she came home late, ate late dinners, and time passed.

The fatigue on Aeyeon’s face became increasingly clear.

‘What should I do…’

Looking at the hamburger steak left on the plate, Aeyeon’s Mother fell into thought.

‘Am I… really doing well for Aeyeon?’

Aeyeon’s tired-looking face kept making her heart ache.

After her husband’s death, she had run without stopping even once, but seeing Aeyeon’s expression made her anxious for the first time.

‘Maybe I’m walking the wrong path…’

She fell into thought for a moment.

Because of this, Aeyeon’s Mother couldn’t meet Aeyeon’s gaze looking at her.

With too many worries, she forgot what Aeyeon had asked.

‘I’ll ask tomorrow.’

Aeyeon just stayed quiet for her struggling mother.

Outside, people were passing by with laughter.

***

“Hee-seong, sorry. I forgot to ask mom.”

“It’s okay. That can happen.”

The next day at preschool, Aeyeon offered me an apology.

I thought she could forget since she was a young child, so I didn’t mind much.

However, the word ‘academy’ that Aeyeon had quietly muttered yesterday wouldn’t leave my mind.

The word ‘academy’ was unfamiliar, so I asked Mother on the way home.

‘Academy? Well, Hee-seong studies at preschool, right? Think of it as a place where you learn that stuff a little earlier.’

I gradually understood only after hearing Mother’s explanation.

Mother said there were children who attended multiple academies.

Of course, most attended academies slowly after entering elementary school, but in Aeyeon’s case, it was way too early.

‘She’s so young, already going to academy?’

I didn’t understand, but I kept it deep in my heart and decided to ask Aeyeon.

“Aeyeon, when do you go to academy?”

“Academy? Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday! English and math and piano!”

“That many? Isn’t it hard?”

“Um…”

At my words, the child pondered.

There was a reason why Aeyeon had been tired all this time.

Four times on weekdays, and even on weekends when she should rest, she was attending academy.

Aeyeon shook her head with difficulty and said in a small voice.

“It’s hard, but mom must be hard too.”

“Mom is?”

“Yeah, our mom gets up re- really early, and co- comes home really late.”

I thought Aeyeon’s mother was someone who cared for her child.

She was a diligent person who got up early and worked until late at night.

And she was pouring everything she had into her child.

The academy would be the same.

Learning something meant spending money in the first place.

I was someone who knew that well.

‘But this isn’t right.’

Aeyeon was still 5 years old.

She would already be very tired from studying at preschool.

But going to academy until late evening.

There was a reason why Aeyeon always looked tired.

I had no right to say anything.

Going to academy might help Aeyeon.

Her skills might have improved because she went to piano academy.

But was a 5-year-old child really strong enough to live carrying her mother’s expectations?

Children were weak.

Adults were strong too, but likewise weak.

Education was absolutely necessary to live strongly in the world.

Well, could a child endure that?

Something that even adults find difficult?

I fell into thought for a moment.

Wanting Aeyeon to smile more brightly than now, I thought of a solution.

“Aeyeon, do you like piano?”

“Yeah. Piano isn’t hard at all.”

“Then, if you only went to piano academy, I think Aeyeon wouldn’t be tired.”

“…Huh?”

At my words, Aeyeon hesitated for a moment.

This was probably a method the child had never thought of.

The choice was entirely up to Aeyeon.

And if Aeyeon wanted it, I thought Aeyeon’s mother would make it happen.

However, this was only an outsider’s perspective.

Everything would be resolved between Aeyeon and her mother.

“Would mom… say it’s okay?”

Aeyeon said after much thought.

She was a smart child.

She understood my words and thought beyond them.

I looked at Aeyeon and said seriously.

“If Aeyeon wants it. Aeyeon’s mom will do that for you too.”

Aeyeon clenched her fists tightly.

Her expression was even determined as if she understood.

Tomorrow, the child would tell me the result.

I was just someone watching from afar.

I simply hoped Aeyeon could smile more often.

That was the most precious emotion music had given me.

***

That evening.

After math academy ended, Aeyeon and Aeyeon’s Mother were heading home holding hands.

Aeyeon’s Mother walking with big steps and Aeyeon stomping her feet to keep up.

There was still silence between the two.

It was so quiet that the people on the street and the noise of passing cars filled the space between them.

“Mom.”

Breaking that silence, Aeyeon called Aeyeon’s Mother.

At the sudden call, she was slightly startled and looked at the child.

Aeyeon stood still and looked up at Aeyeon’s Mother as she spoke.

“I practiced something with Heeseong today, can you listen to it?”

“…Alright. Mom will definitely listen.”

Aeyeon’s Mother answered a bit late, not knowing how to respond, saying she understood.

Aeyeon didn’t notice that her lips were trembling faintly.

She was just happy at the thought of playing piano for her mother.

Lost in many thoughts and staring straight ahead, Aeyeon’s Mother didn’t see Aeyeon’s bright smile.

The two began moving forward again, each at their own pace.

‘It’s been a while since I touched this keyboard.’

As soon as she returned home and stood in front of the electric piano, Aeyeon’s Mother thought.

It was a piano she had rarely touched since her husband died.

She thought tears wouldn’t stop if her fingertips touched the keys, but now that she looked, it wasn’t like that at all.

Rather, it felt like a nostalgic scent was brushing past her nose.

A gentle woody fragrance always lingered around her husband.

However, it was a scent she could no longer smell.

The perfume bottle her husband had almost finished using had completely evaporated, leaving nothing behind.

‘I want to smell it once more.’

Aeyeon’s Mother sat in front of the piano with such thoughts.

And Aeyeon sat on her lap.

During the year, Aeyeon had grown more than she had thought.

Her thighs felt tingly, but she gladly endured it.

“Aeyeon, mom will do it for you.”

“It’s okay. I can do it alone.”

Aeyeon skillfully operated the keyboard.

She turned on the power, fumbled around a few times, then even lowered the volume.

“I’ll try it now.”

Aeyeon said with a slight smile.

Her small fingers moved, and thin notes rang out.

As the performance began, somehow the scent of wood began to be felt.

Aeyeon’s Mother faced Aeyeon’s performance for the first time.

The child’s heartfelt melody slowly filled the living room like that.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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