Moon's Labyrinths

Chapter 92

Chapter 92

As god as his witness, Sungyoon could talk for a week if he was boasting about Shinhae . He wouldn’t even need a break . He wouldn’t get tired of talking, because he would be talking about his Shinhae .

He was a father overflowing with love for his daughter, and Chelsea had given up halfway as she listened to him . However, time was always an unavoidable obstacle for humans . In time, everything had to come to an end .

The announcement rang out . The spaceship bound for Korea was getting ready to lift off .

“It is time . ”

He acted as if he hadn’t been bragging about Shinhae all this time . He stopped abruptly . He had fun talking about his daughter, but it couldn’t hold a candle to actually meeting her . Sungyoon wanted to get on the Korea-bound spaceship as soon as possible .

“It is!”

Chelsea spoke those words as she got up . She grabbed her stuffed luggage as she got ready to move, but Sungyoon looked confused when he saw this .

“I thought the US-bound spaceship isn’t ready yet?”

He hadn’t heard any announcement indicating the US-bound spaceship was getting ready to leave . There was no reason why Chelsea should be getting up .

He wondered if she had come to see him off, but she was holding her luggage . She wasn’t here to simply see him off .

“Oh? Didn’t I tell you? I’m going to Korea . ”

As she spoke, a brilliant smile appeared on her lips .

“This is my first time going to Korea ever since I accompanied Jimin there one time . It has been a while since I’ve gone on an overseas trip . I’m feeling really good about it . ”

She wanted to unwind all the stress she had accumulated in Armstrong . She was eager to do so in Korea .

“Is that so?”

That was all Sungyoon said .

He could have asked why she was going to Korea instead of her home, but he didn’t . He wasn’t interested in the answer .

Sungyoon and Chelsea got on the spaceship, and they returned to Korea .

* * *

Jimin had once again brought Shinhae to the space center . The little girl was used to this now . She was happy and excited to meet her father soon, but as expected of someone her age, she was also full of curiosity . This was why she explored the space center .

Jimin slowly followed Shinhae around . She made sure the little girl didn’t do anything that would be considered a nuisance to other people, and she stopped her from going into off-limit areas . Aside from that, she didn’t stop the child from roaming around . A Connector had an unmoving heart, and they were provided stamina through magical energy, and Shinhae looked like a Connector receiving energy from an outside source . Her stamina was endless as she roamed around the space center . She was displaying the boundless energy of a child, and it was a mystery as to where all the energy came from . However, Jimin didn’t complain at all as she followed after Shinhae . To everyone that saw them, they were the ideal picture of a mother and daughter .

However, it only lasted until Sungyoon’s spaceship arrived .

Soon, the broadcast announced the spaceship would be landing soon . Before Jimin could call out to Shinhae, the little girl ran to her side .

“Unni! The spaceship is here!”

The space center stimulated her curiosity, but it was nothing compared to her meeting her dad . Shinhae almost dragged Jimin’s arm as they went to the spot where they always waited for Sungyoon .

The place was full of people like Shinhae . They were lining up to greet people coming back from the Moon . Of course, the volume of people couldn’t be compared to the crowds that could be found within normal airports .

It didn’t take too long . The people, who had returned from the Moon, came out in ones and twos . Shinhae didn’t want to miss her father coming out, so her eyes were wide-open in concentration . She looked over each person that came out .

“Dad!”

Shinhae yelled out loud . Her father, whom she wanted to see, had finally come out .

A bright smile appeared on Sungyoon’s lips when he heard his daughter’s voice . He opened both of his arms . Shinhae didn’t hesitate . She ran with all her might and jumped into his arms .

“How are you?”

“Good!”

It had been a while since he had felt the warmth of his daughter . She was still warm .

Jimin slowly followed behind Shinhae, who had disappeared from her side in a flash . She walked towards where the father and daughter were having a reunion . However, Jimin’s eyes weren’t on those two . She saw someone unexpected . A person was standing behind Sungyoon, and there was a playful expression on her face .

“Hello, Jimin!”

She spoke a bit haltingly when she spoke in Korean . Chelsea waved towards Jimin .

“Chelsea? What are you doing here?”

“This is my first break in a while, so I wanted to see you . ”

Shinhae, who had been in Sungyoon’s embrace, raised her head when she heard the conversation between the two unnis .

“Ah . It’s the pretty unni from Moon . ”

“Hello! You are Shinhae, right?”

“Yes!”

Shinhae had seen Chelsea before . Moreover, the two of them had enjoyed a very good time playing outside of Armstrong in a spacesuit . Sungyoon had driven everyone outside using the Lunar Surface Vehicle . This was why Shinhae wasn’t shy around Chelsea . Still, she didn’t show any signs of separating from her father . She just kept her gaze on Chelsea .

“Oof!”

Sungyoon let out a little grunt as he raised his daughter into his arms . Shinhae let out a little scream, and she burst into laughter . Chelsea watched the sight with shock in her eyes .

‘As expected, I can’t get used to this sight . ’

They had come here on the same spaceship, yet he hadn’t been friendly at all to Chelsea . Now he was pulling all the stops to act charming in front of his daughter . Normally, he had a poker face . Sometimes, she wondered if he was capable of moving his facial muscle . Yet, he was making all kinds of faces currently, and looked silly .

“You received your vacation pretty quickly . Weren’t you supposed to stay another month or two?”

“It got pulled up . I won’t look a gift horse in the mouth . ”

“You don’t have to go home?”

Jimin asked the question as she walked to Chelsea’s side . She was Chelsea’s friend, so she had dutifully asked the question . It was a topic that Sungyoon had blatantly ignored .

“You know what’ll happen if I go home . They’ll ask if I have a boyfriend, and then, they’ll ask when I’m getting married . They’ll ask me to go out on dates . That’s all they’ll ask . ”

She scratched her head as she grumbled .

The United States was the land of the free . From the outside, people thought Americans were very contemporary and progressive in nature . However, the US was a melting pot of races, cultures, and customs from all over the world . There were a lot of progressives and liberals in the US . However, there were a surprising number of conservatives living in the US too . Koreans had a conservative culture, yet they would be surprised how conservative some of the people in the United States could be .

Chelsea’s parents didn’t hold any extreme views, but they held conservative values .

However, Jimin knew conservative values weren’t the only reason why Chelsea’s parents spoke about marriage .

“I can understand why they are worried . Age is age . Aren’t you turning 30 this year?”

They had greeted the new year not too long ago . Chelsea had barely been on that line where she could still call herself to be in her 20s . Jimin knew Chelsea could no longer do that . However, Chelsea grabbed Jimin’s shoulder in anger, and she shook her .

“I’m 28 years old! I haven’t celebrated my birthday yet! You are adding one year to my birth age, and you are automatically adding a year as soon as January 1st arrives! Korean age system is the one that is weird! I’m American!”

It was taboo to talk about a woman’s age . It was a bigger taboo when the front number was about to change .

“Hmm! You are 28 years old in American age . I’m 28 years old in Korean age . ”

“I haven’t seen you in a while, but do you want to throw down right now? I’ll fight you, friend . ”

“Isn’t your birthday in April? It won’t be long before you will be 29 years old in American age . ”

Chelsea charged towards her friend and put her in a playful headlock . The two of them let out squeals of joy . Two beautiful women were laughing, and they were being playful with each other . Their antics drew the eyes of everyone in the surrounding .

“Dad, the unnis are weird . ”

Shinhae’s eyes had become round as she pointed her finger towards the two women .

It seemed Chelsea’s indignation had gone away a bit, so she moved away from Jimin .

Jimin tidied up her slightly messed up hair .

“Still, you should go and have a talk with your parents . You know it is hard for you to meet a man in your working environment . ”

She was on Moon where she couldn’t have some fairytale-like encounter with a guy . In fact, she was holed on in her lab, so she barely met any new acquaintances . It was understandable as to why her parents were worried . She had studied ever since she was young, and she only focused on her research when she grew up . She didn’t have any dating experience . She didn’t have much societal experience either .

“In terms of dating, you are in the same boat as me . ”

Chelsea had been too busy with her studies and research to date . Jimin also didn’t have the time to date as she had to run her company . However, Jimin just shrugged her shoulders .

“I’m still 28 in Korean age . Moreover, my birthday is in August . I have time . ”

“Koooooooohk!”

If they were talking about age, Chelsea was two years older . There was no way she could win against Jimin . In the end, Chelsea let out a big sigh .

“You’ve changed . ”

Until a moment ago, Chelsea looked like she would shed bitter tears as she bit her handkerchief . However, she changed her expression as she spoke . She now had a kind expression on her face . She looked like an older sister looking at a younger sister, who was high maintenance .

“I changed?”

“Yes . In the past, you wouldn’t have been playful like this . You always looked like someone that was standing at the edge of a cliff . ”

In the past, her playfulness merely consisted of her threatening Chelsea about not buying her food . However, the current Jimin was much brighter and cheerful when being playful with Chelsea . Of course, she maintained the expression of an ice queen . However, the ice in her face had melted a little bit, and as her old friend, Chelsea could see it .

Jimin placed her hand on her cheek . She found her gaze abruptly turned towards Shinhae, who was still in the arms of her father . Her already large eyes were opened wider as she looked at Chelsea and Jimin . Shinhae’s blinking eyes were too cute .

Jimin once again moved her gaze . She looked at Sungyoon, who was holding his daughter .

Chelsea and Jimin had caused a big ruckus, and everyone nearby was staring at them . But Sungyoon was the only one, who wasn’t looking at them . His gaze remained on his daughter .

What if Chelsea was right? If she had changed, she could think of only one reason that would have brought on this change .

“In the beginning, I was suspicious . I thought he would stab you in the back . However, I’m relieved he is the Connector contracted to your company . ”

She remembered the instance where Sungyoon had protected her from the trash named Nicholas . His life was put in danger thanks to that incident, yet he didn’t blame her . After that incident, Chelsea completely trusted his character .

Before she knew it, this man and his daughter had started melting the ice within her best friend .

She didn’t know the exact details . She didn’t know to what extent Jimin’s heart had changed . However, Jimin looked a bit shocked as she looked at Sungyoon and Shinhae . Chelsea could guess what Jimin’s stance was towards the two of them .

“Shall we go?”

Chelsea spoke in an energetic manner . She pushed Jimin by the back, and called out to the father and daughter . They started to go through the process of exiting the space center .

Soon, they arrived at the booth where Sungyoon would have to hand over his Devices and Gems for storage . Sungyoon handed over the Devices and Gems one by one . Jimin’s face turned sharp when she witnessed it .

“...the number increased again . ”

How come this guy brought more Gems and Devices each time he came back from the Moon? It was very difficult to find Devices and Gems . Each time he destroyed what she considered to be common sense .

Of course, the increase in the quantity of Devices and Gems was a good thing for a Connector . Even if a Connector couldn’t use them, they were worth a lot . The problem was the fact that Sungyoon seemed to gain Devices and Gems when his life was in mortal danger .

She wanted to ask, ‘Did you almost die again?’ However, she was barely able to stop herself . If Sungyoon and Chelsea were the only people here, she might have asked it . However, Shinhae was here . She had just turned 6 years old . There was no way Jimin would let the little girl hear that her father might have died .

“Hmm? Isn’t it good that he has more Devices and Gems?”

Chelsea didn’t know the exact situation, so she spoke those words . Jimin quietly explained the problem to Chelsea, so Shinhae couldn’t hear her . When Chelsea was brought up to speed, her expression didn’t look good either .

“I’ll hear your story at a later time . ”

Jimin spoke in a cold manner . Sungyoon had no choice, and he silently nodded .