The Sunny Teahouse showed me the scene exactly as I imagined it every time I opened the door.
When I wanted a bookshelf, it made me a bookshelf, and when I wanted an oven, it made me an oven. Until now, I had only used this special power to maintain cleanliness. I didn’t have any grand intentions to radically change the interior of the First House, as I already had most of the things I needed.
I had just left it as it was, but today was different.
‘It was worth the effort of agonizing over it since last night.’
Before going to sleep, I had looked through various interior designs for different shops. I considered which designs would be best to incorporate into our teahouse, and this was the result.
“What… on earth is this?”
In the space where the bookshelves usually stood, a slight elevation had been created, decorated like a stage. To top it off, there were several instruments like a guitar and a bass.
“What else would it be? It’s a stage.”
“No, I know that, but…”
Tae-seong looked as if he found it absurd to see a stage appear in the teahouse overnight. Of course, what kind of shop in the world would carry out interior construction like this in a single day? Even if they did, there would usually be a lack of time.
However, the Sunny Teahouse was capable of achieving such difficult things.
“…How on earth did you do it?”
Still, Tae-seong’s question was reasonable. Regardless of the method, this was a result that broke the laws of physics. I worried about how to explain this, but the answer came quickly.
“A friend helped me.”
“A friend?”
“Yeah. His name is Seo Hyun-woong, and he’s a farmer, but he’s quite handy. If he hadn’t gone into farming, he probably would have made a name for himself as an interior contractor or an executive at a large corporation.”
As I’ve said repeatedly, I was serious about the latter. Considering the planning and driving force of Hyun-woong and Hyeonseo, they were indeed talents that large corporations would covet.
Just as I was saying this…
*Ting.*
“Speak of the tiger, and he shall appear.”
“Huh? What?”
“Nothing, Tiger.”
“What are you talking about? Did you take some medicine this morning?”
Hyun-woong gave me an incredulous look as he entered the teahouse. Then, he flinched in surprise when he saw the stage that had appeared. As soon as I saw his pupils shaking wildly, I quickly patted him on the shoulder.
“Hey, good work.”
“…Huh?”
“You didn’t even get any proper sleep because you were building that all night. I told you to take it easy and not do it all in one day.”
At my words, Hyun-woong’s eyes darted around. He looked at the transformed teahouse stage and then at Tae-seong standing in front of it. As soon as he processed the clues, he spoke.
“What, man. You were the one pestering me to finish it quickly. You said we couldn’t do business if dust was flying everywhere.”
He immediately read the context and played along. Very smoothly.
“We could afford to miss one day of business.”
“Don’t give me that. You’re always saying how hard it is to make a living in this small village.”
“Well, that’s true.”
“You’re a guy with plenty of money. This is why people who have things are a problem.”
Hyun-woong said that as he approached Tae-seong.
“Isn’t that right?”
“Yes, ah, well, yes.”
Tae-seong flinched and shrank back at the sudden closeness of Hyun-woong, whom he was meeting for the first time. Looking at them like this, there was a bit of a difference in their builds. Perhaps it was because Hyun-woong was sturdy from farm work, but his shoulders looked about half as wide again as Tae-seong’s.
“This guy, he threw the House Key at me and told me to build this, you know. And in just one night, too.”
“…So, you actually built it?”
“Yeah. Of course. He threatened to stop giving me tea if I didn’t build it, so what choice did I have? He’s the epitome of a villainous owner.”
Look at him adding an extra comment because he saw an opening. Hyun-woong chuckled and patted Tae-seong’s shoulder.
“He’s a good guy, though. The tea he brews is delicious.”
“I… I think so, too.”
“Right? You know how to read people.”
Hyun-woong, having played both the villain and the hero, patted Tae-seong’s back once more and came over to me. I had just finished brewing some tea and handed it to him in a thermos.
“Today’s is the same as usual.”
“Okay. Oh, by the way, remember that thing I asked you for last time? Come over here for a second so I can check it.”
There was no such thing. That was merely an excuse to call me out. Honestly, I didn’t want to go out right now. Looking at the glint in Hyun-woong’s eyes, I felt like I’d be harassed for a long time if I went out now. But his gaze was too fierce to refuse.
“All right. Tae-seong, if it’s okay with you, could you wipe down the tables?”
“Oh… Oh! Sure.”
“Thanks. I’ll be back after we talk.”
I gave Tae-seong a small task and left the teahouse. I closed the door tightly to completely block the inside from the outside. Not satisfied with that, I walked until we were at a distance where our voices wouldn’t carry. Only after we got behind the Porter did Hyun-woong grab me by the collar and shake me.
“Hey, hey. What is that? How the hell does something like that get built overnight?”
“Ugh, ugh. Let go before you talk. I’m dizzy.”
“Dizzy, my foot. Just tell me already. How did you do it?”
“Ah, there’s something like that. Something like magic.”
“Magic…”
Perhaps because Hyun-woong knew some of my secrets, he muttered the word as if possessed and then nodded.
“…Right, so it’s something like that.”
“Yeah. It’s like that.”
“Sheesh, you should have told me sooner. I thought my heart was going to drop.”
“For someone who felt that way, you played along pretty well.”
“Do you think I’ve only done this once or twice? When you live with Hyeonseo, you end up doing this kind of thing often.”
“Mainly against your parents?”
“Of course.”
We shared a small laugh for a moment. The change in the teahouse’s structure was somewhat surprising, but that was all. Compared to the various things I had shown him so far, it was quite minor. Hyun-woong didn’t talk about that point any further. Instead…
“You built that stage because of that guest earlier, didn’t you? Who is he? He’s not from our neighborhood.”
He asked about Tae-seong.
“A traveler.”
“A traveler?”
“Yeah. He says he’s on a journey to find himself.”
“…That person certainly chose a surprising journey.”
Hyun-woong said, glancing through the large window. Following his gaze, I saw Tae-seong meticulously wiping the tables with a dry cloth. Not stopping there, he was even trying to find every speck of dust on the windowsill. Even though no one would complain if he worked half-heartedly, he was being that diligent.
But it was impossible for there to be any dust in our shop.
Anyway, his passion passed the test.
“He doesn’t seem like a bad person.”
“You think so, too?”
“Anyway, are you trying to help everyone you meet? You should be more selective.”
“What did I do—”
“I’m saying this because I’m worried strange people might flock to you. Man, society is a wilderness, a wilderness.”
There was a bit of weight to Hyun-woong’s words. Glancing at his eyes, I saw he wasn’t looking at me but at Tae-seong. He spoke while meticulously observing every one of Tae-seong’s actions.
“You know as well as I do that there aren’t only good people in the world.”
“I know.”
“That’s why I’m saying this. I’m afraid you’ll get hurt by getting tangled with some weirdo. There are plenty of bad people out there who want to latch onto a kind person’s back and suck their blood.”
“Are you worrying about me?”
“Of course.”
Hyun-woong thumped my chest with his fist.
“If I don’t worry about you, who will?”
“Ugh… so cheesy. It’s so cheesy I think I might die. My hands and feet are curling up.”
It wasn’t me who replied to Hyun-woong’s words. The Porter’s window slid down, and Hyeonseo, who couldn’t even open her eyes properly, showed her face. She looked at Hyun-woong with an expression of pure disgust.
“Are you filming a romance drama? ‘If I don’t worry about you, who will?’ Blegh.”
“Do you want to get an apple shoved in your ear today?”
“Lerk et thers ger err lerk thers.”
“Seo Hyeonseo, you’d better start praying.”
“In your dreams.”
Hyun-woong tried to climb through the Porter’s window immediately, and Hyeonseo smacked him on the head with her palm. Her hand seemed quite stinging. Regardless, Hyun-woong lunged at Hyeonseo, and they started filming a war movie. The two siblings were exactly the same. If their daily lives were broadcast as a drama, the ratings would be great.
After they had a bit of a scuffle and entered a ceasefire, I pulled the two apart.
“Hey, that’s enough. Hyeonseo, come here for a second.”
“Why? I’m sleepy.”
“Come out and show your face. I have some good news.”
“Good news?”
“Yeah.”
Her ears must have perked up because Hyeonseo slunk over. Then, she cast her gaze in the direction I pointed. Seeing Tae-seong there, Hyeonseo’s eyes widened.
‘What a person who falls in love so easily.’
Honestly, the siblings were exactly the same.
“Ahem, ahem. Chansung?”
“Yes?”
“That good news you mentioned… are you by any chance referring to that handsome man over there?”
“Yeah. His name is Tae-seong, and he’ll be working at our shop for a while.”
“Oh my. Really?”
The voice, heavily mixed with a nasal tone, was followed by the sound of someone gagging next to her. Seeing as Hyeonseo shot a glare at the source, Hyun-woong, they would probably have another big fight later. Not that I cared.
“And Tae-seong is a great singer.”
“Oh my, he even has talent like that?”
“I can guarantee his skill. So, here’s the thing.”
I now made a proposal to the two of them that they couldn’t refuse.
“The main dish—I mean, the main event for this Harvest Festival—you haven’t prepared it yet, right?”
“Not yet.”
“How about putting Tae-seong on that stage?”
“Him?”
Hyun-woong, who had been pretending to gag, approached. Then, the Hyeon siblings quietly stared at Tae-seong. Having finished his work diligently, Tae-seong was now looking at the stage after wiping all the tables. He was then seen grasping the microphone placed in the center of the stage.
An intense longing could be felt in his gaze. Even from this distance, it was palpable enough to tell how much he loved singing. I hoped he would overcome his slump as soon as possible.
“What do you think?”
“His visuals are a bit lacking, though.”
“He’ll be fine once he gets a haircut and some styling.”
“Hmm, maybe.”
“What about the song? If he sings, what will it be? Pop?”
“The elders will stop listening to stuff like that. It has to be Trot. Something catchy.”
“That’s right.”
The Hyeon siblings looked at Tae-seong with serious eyes, mentally drawing up a scenario. These two might not look it, but once they got started, they were more hardworking than anyone else. It was just that no one had lit the fuse until now.
For a long while, the two muttered something to each other and then slowly turned back to me.
“Chansung, it seems okay, but…”
“We can trust him, right? If he can’t sing well, it’s just going to be a total disaster.”
“Unless you leave this village, you’ll be nagged for the rest of your life. You know Uncle Dusik, right? He’s still teased for wetting his pants when he was a kid.”
“I know.”
Indeed, knowing all of someone’s past embarrassments wasn’t necessarily a good thing. Still, I was certain about one thing.
“You guys trust me, right?”
“…We do.”
“Don’t play that card. Of course we trust you.”
“Then trust me and use him. He’ll pull off an amazing stage with Trot.”
“Is that so?”
Hyun-woong rubbed his chin, and Hyeonseo crossed her arms, lost in thought. After a few minutes…
“It should be fine. I can see the picture.”
“Chansung, is it okay if we take him with us later? Oh, can I call him ‘him’?”
“He’s the same age as us.”
“Okay. We can just be friends then. We’ll take him with us later.”
“Sure, do that.”
The two of them, seemingly fired up, immediately climbed back into the Porter and started talking. That scene was similar to what I had seen when Norani was doing her fashion show. In some ways, they seemed even more passionate than back then. It was good to see.
***
“Take care!”
“Yeah. See you later.”
The Hyeon siblings drove off in the Porter. Seeing that there was a mountain of work to do even after the Watermelon season ended, it made me think that being a farmer was quite tough.
After seeing them off, I went back into the First House. Then, Tae-seong, who was fiddling with the microphone on stage, jumped in surprise and raised his hands.
“Oh, Chansung. This is, well.”
“Why are you so surprised? It’s not like you committed a crime.”
“Well, that’s true.”
“Don’t be like that; sing a song for me. There’s still some time before customers arrive.”
Noran and Naru were sleeping soundly on a long chair. I patted the children’s heads and made the request to Tae-seong.
“Something calm. How about it?”
At my suggestion, Tae-seong hesitated. After standing still for a long time while only holding the microphone, he finally opened his mouth as if he had made up his mind.
And…
‘This Harvest Festival is going to be a huge success.’
I had a feeling it was going to be a big hit.