“Well done.”
“Right, right! I nailed it, right!”
Kaeul jumped up and down with the baby chicken in her arms.
Right.
He gave her a compliment, but was that it? For some reason, it felt like it was too short. Yu Jitae tried to think of the following compliments, but now that he was actually trying to give compliments, he realised that this wasn’t an easy task either.
“Well done my ass. You just got lucky there.”
“So what! I got lucky, which means I did well!”
“What did you even do?”
“More than you at least! Luck is also a part of skills, you know? Who told you to buy Seoul?! If you bought Tokyo, maybe I would have lost!”
“Hoh? Yo guys, you hear what this Japanophile is saying?”
“Huheh… heheh! Unni, you bought China so that means you must be a spy from Erfan! Aht…!”
In the end, Yeorum trampled on Kaeul and folded her legs in fury. In order to protect its owner who cried out, “Uanng!”, the baby chicken ferociously attacked Yeorum, while shouting “Chirp!”.
However, after Kaeul it was the baby chicken’s turn. “Chirrppp…!” screamed the baby chicken as its small legs were folded a little.
“Huuh… Are you alright…?”
“Chi…”
The yellow victims consoled each other in tatters.
“Try acting up again.”
Meanwhile, Yu Jitae was still deep in thought. She had bought a good building. Was that something worth a compliment?
“Kaeul.” He opened his mouth.
“Yes?”
“You’re very talented at buying lands.”
“What? Uhihi, what’s that haha!”
“…Why?”
“It’s super weird…! Then, should I start a real estate or something?”
Yeorum interjected into Yu Jitae and Kaeul’s conversation.
“Yeah. Hope you get a dungeon in your property~”
“Wahh, that would be epic right?!”
“…”
“Un? Why? That means there will be a basement under the house so that’s double the space…”
In any case, Kaeul appeared to be enjoying the compliment. After sneaking his way back to the study, Yu Jitae wrote down the compliment he gave for Kaeul as well as the result on the provided document.
Even after that, the board game continued. They soon decided to go full on, so Bom walked outside with Gyeoul to buy snacks and drinks. They spent the whole day playing and instead of playing with the kids, Yu Jitae observed them looking for the right opportunity to compliment them.
The strangest game in his opinion was jenga. Since the kids were all dragons, their delicate controls were leagues above normal humans when focusing on the game.
After the 30th turn, the wooden pillar began looking more like a bizarre stunt.
Next up was Bom’s turn.
The strange-looking wooden pillar was in a critical state where one mistouch could make it crumble.
When Bom tried to pull a piece out, Yeorum sneaked her way next to her. Yu Jitae was sitting behind Yeorum so he couldn’t see her face but Kaeul and Gyeoul immediately bursted out into laughter.
“Uhihihi!”
“…Hihi.”
It seemed that Yeorum was making a funny expression or something. Bom stole a glance towards her, before turning back to the front.
What face was she making? Soon, even Bom seemed to be finding it funny and her breathing turned irregular. People tended to breathe like her when trying to hold back their laughter.
Her hands trembled.
Right before grabbing a piece of wood, she hesitated and suddenly she turned towards Yeorum with a flick.
“Yeorum.”
“C’mon, hurry up.”
“You. That’s cheating.”
“What did I do. Ah, just hurry up you broccoli! We don’t have all day!”
“You. You…”
When Bom reached for the wooden piece again, Yeorum once again pushed her face forward. Bom’s indifferent pout soon cracked with a snort and the jenga thus fell after shaking a little.
He wondered what face Yeorum was making.
After losing the game, Bom was in for the punishment. While she bent down, the kids drummed on her back*. There were two pairs of hands gently tapping her back but one of the kids used their elbow. Along with a loud thud, Bom raised her head in surprise and found Kaeul, Gyeoul and the baby chicken throwing meaningful glances at Yeorum.
“…”
In any case, the loser had to prepare for the next game. Bom gathered the blocks together indifferently and built a tower with them while Yeorum giggled and chortled from the side.
Only then did Yu Jitae realise why the kids were all so focused in the game. It seemed that Yeorum was making everyone else serious.
“Yeorum.”
“Hung?”
“You’re very good at playing.”
“Dafuq…”
She ignored him with little regard and asked a different question.
“By the way, why are you just there doing nothing?”
“What do you mean.”
“Go there and join.”
While saying that, Yeorum pointed at the space next to Bom, but he didn’t go there.
“You’re unexpectedly very kind. That’s great,” he added.
“Ah, what the heck are you saying. You crazy or what.”
“What?”
“What are you even doing right now? You sound like an old man.”
“…”
While the kids were playing another round, Yu Jitae wrote down the review of Yeorum’s compliment on the paper…
After the game, it was time to clean up. Bom and Gyeoul, who lost the most, were assigned to clean the empty packets, cans and bottles. Although they could simply make the protector do it, it seemed that cleaning up was what they had on the line for their games. Yu Jitae quietly watched them for a bit, before speaking to Gyeoul, who was diligently gathering the rubbish.
“You’re good at cleaning rubbish.”
“…?”
Gyeoul gazed up at Yu Jitae and tilted her head.
“Even though you can make others do it, you’re doing it yourself.”
“…Yes.”
“Good girl.”
She smiled and nodded. After that, she was more enthusiastic at cleaning the rubbish. It seemed that she was content with the compliment.
He wrote down the review of Gyeoul’s compliment on the provided document.
Finally, it was Bom’s turn.
However, he couldn’t see anything to really compliment her for. She was normal throughout the games; she wasn’t overly enthusiastic nor did she do anything eye-catching.
Yu Jitae contemplated endlessly about what he had to compliment her for, and in the end, he couldn’t give her any compliments until the end of the gaming session.
***
At night, Yu Jitae decided to cook for the first time in a very long time.
He bought four handfuls of medium-sized mackerels from a nearby supermarket for some fried fish.
The only meals he could make were coarse and simple ones that he was forced to make during the long field operations he had. Due to that, he always preferred buying meals but for some reason, he felt like cooking today.
After removing the head, he removed the guts and the gills, as well as the scales. After wiping the moisture off of the fish, he removed the long spine and cut off the rib cages that protected the guts. He went through the same process eight times.
Then, he simply dipped them inside soju. This should erase most of the fish smell, or so he heard. Reflecting on the meals made by his past comrades, he could remember that they fermented the fish, but he didn’t know how to do that.
He tried to look for flour but could only find pancake powder, which was most likely bought by Bom. Cursorily he threw the fish over the powder and cursorily seasoned it with salt and pepper. Then, he fried crushed garlic with spring onions to add flavour to the oil.
Chii…
The mackerels went on top of the frying pan, absorbing the fragrant oil. Vacantly frying the fish, doubts popped up in his tranquil mind.
Why wasn’t he able to compliment Bom? Of course, his so-called compliments might have been inefficient and awkward, but that was beside the point.
When and how should compliments be given.
Was it correct to only praise them for doing something well?
Chiiik… It was when he was staring at the mackerels, with an unfamiliar trail of thought going through his brain.
“…Oh.”
Gyeoul came next to him and glanced at what he was doing. Since she had trouble seeing what was inside the frying pan, she had to stand on her toes.
“…What is it?”
“Fried mackerels.”
“…Smells, good.”
“Really? That’s good.”
He casually flipped the mackerels. The pancake powder had been fried and had turned darker. Although he had to rely on distant and hazy memories, it appeared similar to the one in his memories.
Looking from the side, she gave a remark, ‘Wow’. Judging from her reaction, it seemed that the fish looked nice.
While he was continuing to cook the fish, a nonchalant comment from Gyeoul struck his ears.
“…You look cool.”
In the midst of flipping the mackerels, he turned to the child.
“What?”
“…Nn?”
“Can you say that again?’
“…Ahjussi cooking.”
“Yeah.”
“…Looks cool.”
After saying that, she went to the living room and called the other kids for dinner.
Left alone, he thought to himself.
‘You look cool’.
Was that a compliment? It seemed like it, since the adjective ‘cool’ was something that brightened up others’ mood.
However, he didn’t do anything well there. He didn’t make the best fried mackerels nor did he give it a lot of effort.
Just like how Bom simply played games.
Yu Jitae likewise simply cooked.
And yet was the child complimenting him for that?
“Wow. Looks nice. Did you make them yourself?”
“Wahh. Thanks for the food!”
Even when the kids were eating the fried mackerels with some side dish, soup and rice, Yu Jitae contemplated the meaning behind Gyeoul’s compliment. He had dwelled on this topic before but wasn’t able to come up with the answer.
If he had a child.
Did he have to compliment them for doing something well,
Or should he compliment them for the action itself.
Compliment them for diligently cleaning up the rubbish,
Or complement them for simply enjoying a fun game?
The former option was a reward for an achievement, while the latter sounded like an encouragement for the person itself.
At the time, he was okay with not finding the answer but now he had to, and usually, it was Bom who knew these things the best.
“Nn? Compliments?”
After having dinner, Yu Jitae called Bom over to the terrace. Darkness already covered the night sky, and with only the light bulb of the terrace lighting up the area, Bom asked back.
“What about compliments?”
“When’s the right time for compliments.”
“’When’?”
Yu Jitae explained the gist about complimenting the achievement and the process. Bom vacantly looked into his eyes before giving a nod.
“What do you think.”
She touched her lower lips and contemplated after listening to his story.
“That’s hard… if you just compliment them for doing well, it could come across as a controlled reward of some sort.”
“Gyeoul became more enthusiastic with cleaning as well.”
“That’s good, but that’s too outcome-focused. If she didn’t clean diligently, she wouldn’t have gotten a compliment, right? In that case, instead of being a compliment for Gyeoul, it’s more like a compliment for cleaning up something dirty…”
“Yeah.”
“But it feels like complimenting them for simply cleaning, even when they’re not doing it properly, isn’t that good either.”
“Why.”
“If you give compliments for everything, what meaning would it have?”
“Would it be meaningless?”
“The common ones become less expensive right? No-one wants things that anyone else could have.”
It sometimes struck him, but it felt like her mind was like a desert even though she liked taking care of flowers.
In any case, it ultimately meant that both types of compliments were bad because they were too heavily slanted to one side.
“Hmm…”
Her eyes staring off into the distance turned vacant. The green indifferent pair of eyes appeared as if they were staring through a mountain. After blankly staying like that for a while, she turned towards him with a brighter look on her face.
“Ah. What about this then?”
“What is it.”
“Firstly, you praise them for their achievements. That will increase the value of the compliment. And…”
“And?”
“You lower the standards significantly.”
“For example?”
“Just then, Gyeoul and I cleaned our room but that was something we decided to do.”
“Okay.”
“Since that was something we did voluntarily, it’s something worth receiving a compliment.”
“Hmm…”
“Do you understand?”
“Tell me more.”
“If Gyeoul draws something, for example, and you were only giving compliments for great achievements, then she can only be praised for drawing something very nice right?”
“Yeah.”
“But, let’s say she was simply trying to draw a pretty circle. At the start, it won’t be pretty but after working on it, it will be more round in the end. If she creates a nice, round circle… although that’s great and all, it’s nothing amazing right?”
After imagining Gyeoul drawing a circle in his head, he gave a nod.
“But Gyeoul did what she wished to do and achieved it. So, can’t you give her compliments for things like that even if they’re not amazing?”
“I see.”
He nodded once again. In other words, he could compliment them for an ‘outcome’ no matter how small it may be. Instead of looking down on a circle for being a small achievement, he could praise her for it since it was what the child had wished to do.
In that case, it won’t be simply outcome-focused and would contain care and feelings for that person. At the same time, it’s still a compliment for achievement so there was no need to worry about the worth of compliments going down.
It sounded pretty good to Yu Jitae.
“Thanks. I learned something.”
“It’s fine.”
“You’re teaching me something new every time.”
The Regressor realised that this was an opportunity for a compliment.
“You’re very smart.”
After saying that, he turned towards the darkened sky. Thus, he couldn’t spot her expression turning brighter in real time. Widening her eyes into circles, Bom pondered before opening her mouth with a whisper.
“Ah…”
“What’s wrong.”
“I, think I said something wrong.”
“What?”
“Maybe there’s actually a good compliment that can be given, even if they don’t do anything.”
“What is it.”
Still in her pyjamas, Bom sneaked her way towards him. The Regressor slightly pulled his body back, but she now gave little regard to that and approached him again. When he took another step back, she walked even closer with a pout.
“What are you trying to do.”
The terrace wasn’t that spacious and Yu Jitae soon realised that there was no point in repeating the process.
“Compliment. Come on. Compliment.”
After stopping right in front of him, Bom tucked her green hair behind her ear.
“You still don’t know what it is?”
“…”
Gazing up at his face from under his chin, she muttered. When she pushed her face towards him, the green pair of eyes appeared even bigger. Although they weren’t touching each other, looking into her eyes made perplexity bloom in full.
“How do I look?”
What do you mean, how. He had to look for the right answer.
As expected, she was simply being mischievous again. Despite knowing that he wasn’t aware of what he had to say, she was approaching him like this and if he mumbled for words here, he would definitely become a laughing stock.
His brain started to think rapidly in the moment of perplexity.
What suddenly popped up in his head, was a memory of what happened previously at the same spot.
The distance between them,
This place where they were at,
The dark sky in the background,
All these elements were the same as before. While being so perplexed that he had to look away, he put to words what he couldn’t say before, as if running away.
“Pretty, of course.”
That was when Bom stopped her march. The pressure she was giving off likewise disappeared so he turned around and said, “I’m going back in.” This time, he managed to not become a laughing stock of the child.
Bom spent a lot of time outside on the terrace before finally opening the door and coming back into the house.
*
“Unni.”
Yeorum knocked on Bom’s door. She didn’t get a response but Bom was definitely inside her room.
“Hello? Oi. Yu Bom.”
Since she still didn’t get any reply back, Yeorum pushed the door wide open and stepped inside, and found Bom lying down on the bed with her face buried into the pillow.
“What are ya doing? Staying like that and not saying anything?”
“……What.”
“You know, like, let me borrow that book you bought last time.”
“……Nn.”
She was giving it away rather easily. While thinking that, Yeorum nervously took the paranormal romance book into her hands. However, Bom stayed lying down without moving an inch until she left the room.
What was she doing?
Upon closer inspection, Yeorum realised that her white toes were twitching up and down.
“What’s wrong with her…?”