My Unrequited Love Is an Absolute Secret - Chapter 91

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 91

Unaware of what the future held, I spent a quiet afternoon with relatives before leaving the cafe.
Upon arriving at Maternal Grandmother’s House in Yangpyeong, Harry drew in a deep breath.
Though it wasn’t terribly far from Seoul, the air itself felt distinctly different.
[Your mother certainly lives in a nice place.]
Harry’s Mother stepped out of the car and surveyed the surroundings thoughtfully.
With mountains rising behind the house and neighbors at a comfortable distance, it seemed perfectly suited for a leisurely retirement.
[Mom! We’re here!]
[You made it? Was the drive alright?]
Maternal Grandmother greeted them warmly.
It was clear she had been waiting eagerly for their arrival.
[Where’s Harry?]
[I’m here. How have you been?]
At the sound of Maternal Grandmother’s voice calling for her, Harry hurried forward.
When Harry was just a tiny baby, it was Maternal Grandmother who cared for her while her busy parents worked.
Perhaps because of that, unlike the other relatives who felt awkward, there was a deep affection between her and Maternal Grandmother.
[Oh my darling! When did you grow up so much? Hmm?]
[You haven’t changed at all, Grandmother.]
[Not changed at all, my foot.]
Maternal Grandmother playfully pinched Harry’s cheek, telling her to lick her lips before telling such lies.
[Come inside quickly. It’s cold—you’ll catch a chill.]
Hand in hand with Maternal Grandmother, I entered the house.
The newly built house where Maternal Grandmother had moved after retirement seemed more than spacious enough for her to live alone.
[Oh? Grandmother, do you raise a Jindo dog?]
As people crowded inside, the Jindo dog in the house barked warily.
[There was a terrible typhoon last summer. I kept hearing whimpering, so I went to check and found the mother was gone—only this one was crying. What else could I do? I had to raise it.]
The white Jindo dog barked loudly for a moment, then quieted at Maternal Grandmother’s command.
[How cute!]
[Can we pet it?]
The younger cousins looked up at Maternal Grandmother with sparkling eyes.
[Of course. Samsik, don’t bite the guests. Be good.]
The dog called Samsik stood still as if understanding human speech, allowing himself to be petted gently.
[Why is his name Samsik?]
[Because I have to feed him three meals a day, so Samsik it is.]
At Maternal Grandmother’s words, the adults burst into laughter.
[Everyone should eat lunch now. Grandmother has prepared a meal.]
[Mother-in-law, we’re not Samsik too, are we?]
At her father’s joke, Harry burst out laughing this time as well.
Her father said he could never be Samsik and went to the Kitchen to prepare the meal.
[Is there anything I can help with?]
Harry lingered near the Kitchen entrance.
It was fine if her younger siblings played around, but as the eldest daughter, Harry felt she needed to do something to put her mind at ease.
[Go play with Samsik instead.]
[I want to stay with Grandmother.]
At Harry’s affectionate plea, Aemerus’s Grandmother laughed brightly before pushing her away, saying she was in the way.
[If you’re bored, go out to the Yard. There should be cats there.]
[Grandmother, do you keep cats?]
[I don’t keep them. They just come and go as they please.]
[But there’s cat food here, ma’am.]
[Oh, then am I starving them?]
Harry, giggling, grabbed the cat food.
[I’ll go feed the cats and come back.]
[It’s cold, so don’t stay outside too long.]
[Okay.]
As Harry went outside, Robin scurried after her.
[Why are you following your sister? Go play with Samsik.]
[I want to be with my sister.]
Robin’s shyness made no exceptions, even for relatives.
Harry silently patted Robin’s head and came out to the Yard together.
A cat crept cautiously into the Yard, apparently sensing it was feeding time.
[Hello. Come eat.]
Harry moved slowly so as not to startle the wary cat.
Upon spotting the food bowl Aemerus’s Grandmother had left out, I poured the cat food, and the cat approached leisurely.
Robin, crouching beside Harry, tugged at her sleeve with an excited face.
[Sister, a cat!]
[Yeah. A black cat.]
Looking at the entirely black cat, I remembered the doll Aemerus had given me long ago.
‘The only difference is its eyes are yellow.’
Coming to my senses, I realized I was thinking of Aemerus rather than the doll.
‘This is serious.’
It had been the same when I saw the hat.
Now whenever I saw anything black, I felt compelled to connect it to Aemerus, no matter what it was.
I was clicking my tongue inwardly, thinking this was obsession at its worst.
The cat, sniffing the food’s aroma, began to show interest in Harry as well.
[I don’t have any treats.]
As I carefully extended my hand so the cat could smell more easily, it began rubbing its head against me.
[Sister, me too! Me too!]
Robin couldn’t bring himself to voice his complaint aloud, just whimpering softly instead.
Harry stifled her laughter as she spoke.
[Try holding out your hand like I did.]
[Here.]
The cat graciously rubbed its nose against Robin’s hand with a sniff, then turned its attention back to Harry.
Its fluffy, adorable paw gently tapped against Harry’s hoodie.
[Huh? Oh, so that’s what it was.]
The hoodie had long drawstrings attached, and apparently the cat saw them as toys.
When I swayed the strings back and forth, the cat bounced excitedly, pouncing at them.
[Wow, I got it!]
The cat, triumphant from its successful hunt, wore an expression of pure pride before leaping onto my lap.
[Oh! Robin, a photo! Take a picture of me with the cat, quick, before it jumps down!]
At my urgent plea, Robin quickly grabbed his phone.
[Are you recording?]
[Yeah, yeah. Video.]
[Good job.]
But the fickle cat had apparently changed its mind and hopped down from my lap.
[No, don’t go….]
Despite my pitiful calls, the cat coldly abandoned me.
‘Its personality is different from Aemerus’s, not just its eye color.’
Aemerus had a temperament far removed from fickleness.
‘Ugh, I’m thinking about Aemerus again.’
I couldn’t even go a moment without my thoughts drifting back to him.
I shook my head at myself.
After watching the cat eat its food with cool indifference, as if it had exhausted all forms of play, I checked the video Robin had recorded.
My desperate calls to the cat made me laugh.
[I should post this on social media.]
Aemerus had asked me to send him photos, and I was genuinely curious about his reaction.
‘What time is it in New York right now?’
Just as I was about to check the time, the adults called for us.
[Lunch is ready. Come wash your hands and come eat.]
[Okay!]
I scratched my head and stood up.
After washing my hands with Robin in the bathroom, I returned to find lunch laid out generously.
[Thank you for the meal!]
[Yes, eat plenty.]
Despite having eaten the 5-Star Hotel breakfast and pastries from a cafe we’d stopped by, Aemerus’s Grandmother’s cooking was so delicious that the rice went down effortlessly.
[We’re going to turn into pigs at this rate.]
When my younger cousins finished eating and giggled, my aunt chimed in.
[Oh, gaining a little weight won’t hurt. It’s not like you’re eating this way every day.]
[Why don’t we take a walk around the village with Dad? The back mountain looked nice for hiking.]
[That sounds like a hassle….]
[Don’t be like that. Go with Samsik and come back.]
[Which Samsik?]
I burst into laughter at my cousin’s mischievous prank of alternately pointing at the Jindo dog and my uncle with her finger.
My mother’s playful nature was definitely a trait inherited from the maternal side of the family.
I was giggling along when Aemerus’s Grandmother quietly called me aside.
[What’s this about?]
Puzzled, I followed Aemerus’s Grandmother into the master bedroom anyway.
[Come here and sit down.]
[What is it?]
[You’re going to be an adult soon, you know.]
Aemerus’s Grandmother retrieved a box from deep within the wardrobe and opened it.
Inside lay a pristine pearl necklace.
[Grandmother, this is….]
[I wore this when I got married. It’s beautiful, isn’t it?]
[Yes. It’s truly beautiful.]
[I’m giving it to you. Take it with you when you go to the United States.]
My eyes widened in surprise.
[But Grandmother, this is far too much for me.]
[Too much? Why? Don’t you like it? Is it too old-fashioned for a young lady?]
[No, that’s absolutely not it.]
Aemerus’s Grandmother smiled softly, watching my flustered state.
[How many more times do you think I’ll see you in the years ahead?]
That’s true.
How many more times would I see Aemerus’s Grandmother in the years to come?
It was a thought I had never truly considered before.
I was young, and the time stretching before me seemed infinite.
But reality was different.
If I lived in Korea, I’d see her at least once or twice a year, but as long as I lived in the United States, that was impossible.
Flying back and forth wasn’t as easy as it seemed.
[Please don’t say such things. You’ll be healthy and live a long life, Grandmother.]
Holding Aemerus’s Grandmother’s hand as I spoke, my eyes glistened as if tears might spill at any moment.
Why had I forgotten?
Why had I been so carefree, as if I’d live forever?
The time I’d carelessly squandered felt terribly precious now.
And the same was true of my relationship with Aemerus.
I like him, and he likes me.
Yet I hesitated and wavered.
What was I so afraid of?
“Once I become a university student, I’ll have plenty of time, so let’s travel together. I went to Canada not too long ago, and the hot springs there are wonderful.”
“Oh, really?”
“And, and… you have to come to my wedding too.”
I pouted with eyes already swollen and red from crying.
“Well then. Do you have a man to marry?”
I wiped away the tears streaming down my face with the back of my hand and laughed.
“I do. He’s incredibly handsome.”

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