I Became an Artist in a Romantic Comedy Chapter 6

In the quiet house, the first to move was Mom.

Click.

From the drawer beside the bed, she pulled out scissors and started cutting out the self-portrait of she held in her hand. She carefully trimd around the image, cutting away the white background, almost as if extracting it like a nukki—an isolated subject.

"How does it look, Eun-ah? Did Mom do a good job?"

Her sudden question left speechless. Her voice trembled ever so slightly, though she tried her best to hide it.

When I didn’t answer, she opened the fra sitting on the bed and took out the family picture inside.

Then she placed my cut-out portrait next to the girl in the image.

With that, the four-person picture transford into one of five.

“Ta-da~.”

Mom held the fra up with a smile. Her lips curved upward, but her eyes drooped with sadness.

Dad, anwhile, was watching silently.

Mom set the fra down and hugged . Dad followed, wrapping his arms around both of us.

“You’re our child too, Eun-ah. We can’t leave you out.”

Her trembling voice, on the verge of tears, echoed in my ears. I had no words.

"Thank you, son. And… I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you felt that way."

They comforted for what felt like forever. It was likely my parents who wanted to cry the most, yet it was my eyes that welled up with tears.

At that mont, I finally felt as though I had let go of the family from my previous life.

From my parents’ perspective, though, it must’ve been odd. After all, I was just a four-year-old child…

Sigh. This is all just karma, isn’t it?

"Mom loves you more than anything in this world, Eun-ah. You coming into my life was a miracle, a precious gift. So please, stay by our side, stay with your family. Even if it’s just in a picture."

"Okay… I will. I’m sorry."

It felt undignified to speak while still hugged tightly, but hey, I’m four, right?

...What am I even doing in such a serious mont?

My heart tickled, pounding softly in my chest. It felt good.

When I glanced at Dad, who had yet to say anything, he sniffled.

“Sniff… Snort.”

Had he been crying all this ti?

"Hey, honey… Do you think we should take our son to a psychiatrist?"

Whack!

"Ow!"

Mom slapped Dad’s back with such force that her frustration was clear.

"Do you really think there’s sothing wrong with Eun-ah’s head? I an… maybe, but still."

Her gaze turned to , her sad smile cutting deep into my chest.

"It’s our family’s job to help Eun-ah, not a doctor’s. We’ll only consider a hospital if things get really bad."

"Yeah… You’re right."

With that, the two reached an agreent and began planning for the future, most of which revolved around spending more ti together as a family.

Though being hugged by Mom felt a bit embarrassing, I endured it.

Ugh, I feel like I’m acting like so edgy middle-school kid.

“I can’t be part of this family! My existence will only hurt them!”

...Thinking about my cringe-worthy past behavior made my head spin. It felt like a sudden identity crisis, the kind teenagers typically go through.

I’ll never act like that again.

I wasn’t a substitute for my older sister. I was a proper mber of this family.

From now on, I won’t give Mom and Dad any more reasons to worry.

As things settled down, Dad picked up the fra and hung it on the wall.

The picture, now adorning a corner of the wall, fit beautifully and felt complete.

“Ha-yeon is still with us. Look, she’s right here, smiling.”

Dad gently touched the image of my sister, who wore a bright smile in the picture.

“So, Eun-ah, I want you to smile like that too, just like your sister. Okay?”

"Okay. I will."

"Our son~. Thank you for drawing your sister. But it’s a sha that you left yourself out."

Dad lifted off Mom’s lap and held up as he sighed dramatically.

His words made hesitate.

“Um… Should I redraw it?”

“No, that would ruin the aning of our first family portrait. Besides, I like how you stand out more this way—it’s even better.”

He grinned.

"Really?"

"Of course! You’re the most handso and adorable part of it."

I tried to suppress the smile creeping onto my face.

"Next ti, I’ll draw an even bigger family portrait. And I’ll put myself right in the center."

“Haha, I’ll look forward to it!”

"We trust you, son."

Hearing their praise made my shoulders lift involuntarily. Complints really could make even , Lee Ha-Eun, dance with joy.

Just as I was basking in the warm atmosphere, Mom spoke.

“Oh, by the way, Eun-ah, it’s ti for you to start preschool.”

"Right, but I think kindergarten might be a better choice."

“Kindergarten starts at five. It’d be good for him to make friends sooner.”

Her bombshell left dazed.

Wait a second. Weren’t we just enjoying a heartfelt family mont?

What is this nonsense about preschool now?

“No way!”

“Sorry, but no can do. You need to experience a little piece of society, my dear son~.”

Is that really necessary, Mom?

“Rember the preschool that Soo-Yul’s mom recomnded? Apparently, Soo-Yul goes there too.”

Now they were just making decisions over my head. Did I not have a say in this?

We were having such a nice mont.

Why was my education suddenly such a serious matter?

"Alright, let’s check it out soti."

“Yeah, let’s do that. Maybe not this week, but we’ll book a consultation for next week.”

"Okay, sounds good."

Just like that, I was thrown into the prospect of mingling with a bunch of little kids.

Great. What was I supposed to do there?

Doodle in a sketchbook with crayons? It’s not like I could play with the kids.

Dealing with Ha-Soo-Yul was exhausting enough. Now I’d have to handle dozens of her kind.

Actually… Soo-Yul wasn’t so bad. She was quiet, at least.

Please, let there be no screaming kids.

If I was going to go, at least grant that one wish.

Thinking about it, Soo-Yul didn’t seem to have any friends at preschool.

Maybe if I sat next to her, things would naturally stay quiet?

Then again, she didn’t really seem like the type to make friends easily. She had this unapproachable air about her, sothing like a cool beauty.

Still, to adults, she was just an adorable little girl.

To kids her age, though, she might seem hard to approach. That’s probably why she only played with at the playground.

Poor girl. Like a proud, aloof cat.

Heh. Guess I’ll have to beco her first friend.

So far, we were just neighbors.

But from now on, we’re nakama.

That tumultuous day passed, and a week later…

"You said it was just a consultation…"

“See you later, son~! Be good without Mommy, okay?”

I had been deceived.

Wasn’t it supposed to just be a consultation? A trial run before they made a decision?

This is betrayal. We were supposed to be cool, Mom.

This is the worst. I wasn’t even ntally prepared for this.

And yet, there she was.

“Why are you acting like that? Are you sick? Do you want a hug?”

Ha-Soo-Yul interlocked her fingers and leaned her face close to mine as soon as I walked in.

A hug? Save that for your future husband, kid.

This is how I ended up in the Sunflower Class.

“Babababa!”

“Tatatata?”

“Teacheeeeer!”

Was this what a madhouse looked like? My head spun.

Sure, maybe my brain was exaggerating the chaos, but still, this was sothing.

"Ugh. I’d rather die."

…Isn’t that the saying for monts like this? Not that it changes how drained I feel.

"Eun-ah, Eun-ah."

Ha-Soo-Yul called out, shaking her clasped hands.

When I blinked at her, she pointed.

“Over there. Let’s do that.”

What is that? And could she not see all the stares we were getting?

The other kids’ eyes practically scread “alien species.”

Co on, kids, we’re full-blooded Koreans, I promise…

I sighed and followed Soo-Yul to a pile of puzzle pieces she’d apparently been working on before I arrived.

The sheer number of pieces was intimidating.

“Seven hundred pieces…?”

Half of it was already complete.

Holy crap. She’s not four. There’s no way.

For a second, I wondered if she was a reincarnator too.

"???"

Her confused, vacant expression made dismiss the thought imdiately.

“This part is yours.”

She even assigned a section, pointing it out with precision. My head throbbed.

Could we even finish this today? I’m terrible at puzzles.

Still, the colorist in figured it wouldn’t be too bad. I grouped similar colors and connected them one by one.

Fifty minutes later…

I finished my section and glanced at her side. She only had a few pieces left.

A mischievous idea struck .

I stood up and sat down beside her, unnoticed as she focused on the puzzle.

When only one piece remained, she smiled brightly and reached to place it.

But I pressed my hand over hers and stole the final move.

The room went silent for a mont.

Just like last ti.