Chapter 234

Spring break is short.

But it’s sweeter than summer or winter break.

“Why do you like spring break, oppa?”

“Whew, no makeup classes.”

Having an indoor gym available anytime is such a blessing.

A gift from Yoo Myung-sun that made track athlete Son Jin-hyeok who he is today.

Jin-hyeok decided to use that gift to create a masterpiece, diving into rigorous training.

Whew. The training was so tough that he felt like he was going to throw up, sweat dripping down his arms.

“Oppa, you don’t have to do makeup classes, right? Dad said so.”

“Mom said I have to.”

Yoo-jin, with her eyes closed, nodded with a proud expression.

At Son Yoo-jin’s house, if mom says something, dad has to do it too.

‘One, two, three, four… one hundred ten, one hundred ten-one…’

Huff, huff.

Yoo-jin squatted next to Jin-hyeok, who was working out, in a poop-sitting position, resting her chin on her hands. Her face looked like an apple.

Next to her, Jeong-won copied his sister’s pose.

“Oppa, what exercise is that?”

“Uh, what’s that? Is your dad silly?”

Jeong-won’s speech had improved rapidly, surpassing the average for his age, even though he had been slow to develop language skills.

The little ones cling to him like magnets whenever he’s home, but Jin-hyeok patiently answered every question his siblings asked.

“Maybe a hiking pose?”

His junior track teammates called this pose the ‘prone leg lift.’

It’s an exercise where you lie face down, palms on the floor, and alternately pull your legs toward your chest.

“I should try it too.”

“Yoo-jin, you’re silly—ahhh!”

Yoo-jin started mimicking her brother’s workout, and Jeong-won, trying to follow his sister, ended up flopping on the floor like a frog.

“Hahaha!”

Even that seemed fun for the baby, as he giggled and flailed his limbs like he was skydiving. But his head was heavy, so his face soon hit the floor.

“Whew, this hurts my shoulders and arms.”

“Huff, huff. You need to distribute your weight to your feet too.”

“Whew, what does this help with?”

“Your legs get smoother, your whole body feels lighter, your butt gets more volume, and—”

After barely completing 200 reps, he sat down to let the blood rush from his face. Not just sitting, but in a butterfly stretch position, lowering his knees to stretch his inner thighs and improve hip flexibility.

As Jin-hyeok took the position, Yoo-jin and Jeong-won clumsily followed.

“Yoo-jin, you’re doing great.”

“Hehe, right?”

“Uh-huh.”

Kids are flexible, so they can easily mimic the pose.

Climbing Gobongsan Mountain would contribute more to physical improvement, but during spring break, he chose to spend time with his siblings.

‘Jang Gun-i has lots of friends, so he’ll understand if I’m gone for a few days.’

On weekends, he should try training by climbing the mountain on all fours.

***

After just a week of training, Jin-hyeok could already see the results.

It was only possible because of his young body.

‘Wow.’

His calves had slimmed down, boasting a smooth line, making his legs look longer.

His deltoids, biceps, and triceps looked like they were about to burst, yet smooth like porcelain.

His once bulky physique had transformed beyond recognition.

Kim Sang-ho, entering the shower room, widened his eyes like a rabbit.

“Wow, Jin-hyeok, you look like a track athlete now? Or maybe a basketball player…”

“How did I look before?”

“Before, well…”

Kim Sang-ho stroked his chin, pondering.

No suitable expression came to mind.

“You looked like you weren’t from this world.”

Yeah, that’s what everyone thought.

Even Jang Jin-nam, known for his muscular build, looked shocked when he saw Jin-hyeok’s body.

Jin-hyeok nodded and smiled awkwardly.

He had already experienced the change in power while running.

The power that went into his feet and pushed off the ground didn’t scatter but instead rose vertically, pushing him forward. It was a thrill only those who’ve sprinted with a light body could understand.

Though he couldn’t measure it precisely without Min Yong-rak, Jin-hyeok felt he had leveled up.

‘If I run now, I could probably hit a 10-second flat, right?’

It seemed like he could get close to the Asian U-20 record.

His confidence told him so.

Pulling his feet out of the muddy tidal flat also had unexpected training benefits.

Lifting his legs vertically from knee to foot while tightening his abs taught him how to relax his calves and sculpt his body.

After every weekend of mountain climbing on all fours, he planned to visit the beach and do thigh lifts in the tidal flat.

Training in the mud would be much more intense than just lifting weights.

‘The problem is the thighs.’

Using weights for squats made him greedy, gradually increasing the load, which became a stumbling block. While heavier weights built muscle, they had the opposite effect on the running style Jin-hyeok aimed for. Pushing off with the entire foot caused his quadriceps to drop and his calves to thicken. Plus, since he was naturally strong, increasing the weight had minimal training effects.

So, he concluded that it was better to focus on bodyweight exercises to improve cardiovascular endurance and keep his body sleek.

‘What’s good for thigh transformation?’

After a quick shower, he kept pondering as he headed to the pool.

Swimming was the perfect way to end his workout.

Spending time with his siblings, who only had eyes for him, was also important.

As for his parents, they were doing just fine on their own.

“Alright, Jeong-won, let’s start with a water massage.”

“Ahhh, water massage, ahhh!”

Sitting on the edge of the pool, he dipped his legs in and slowly poured water over his sibling’s body. Jeong-won had already warmed up from running around, but the water was still cold.

“Ahhh!”

“Hahaha, hold still.”

As the cold water touched his body, the baby kicked his legs but couldn’t escape, held by his brother.

He poured water over his sibling’s body, starting from areas farthest from the heart.

“Nyanyanya~”

Then he noticed Yoo-jin sitting like him, splashing water.

Thanks to Kim Sang-ho, a former swimming instructor, Yoo-jin’s kicks were smooth and rhythmic. She used only her thighs, kicking up and down, her ankles fluttering as they pushed the water.

‘My swimming is all brute force.’

Yoo-jin, who had early training, used her muscles and joints appropriately.

‘Is that kick only using the thighs?’

The flutter kick in freestyle.

While Jin-hyeok used his ankles to lift his legs out of the water, Yoo-jin whipped her legs like a whip, pushing the water with the top of her feet, using no force below the knees. She managed to lift her body and move forward simultaneously.

“Yoo-jin, can you do a lap of freestyle?”

“Yep! I can do two laps. Kim Ho-jin and Lee Dong-ho float in the middle, but I don’t stop and do two laps~”

Yoo-jin pointed to the pool lane buoy, bragging.

“Can you show me once?”

“Of course~”

Splash.

With her goggles on, Yoo-jin smoothly entered the pool from her seated position.

Bubbles~.

She submerged and took a starting position.

Her arms were straight, hands clasped, with her upper arms resting behind her ears—a decent pose. At the same time, she bent her knees and placed her feet against the pool wall.

And she was off.

Whoosh~.

‘Wow, her dolphin kick is amazing.’

Maintaining her starting position, she used her waist and joints for a wave-like underwater glide, flexible yet powerful like a dolphin.

Splash!

Finally, the baby dolphin surfaced and started swimming.

‘Beautiful.’

“Ahhh! Yoo-jin, you’re amazing~!”

Jeong-won clapped, seemingly thinking the same.

‘Right, if I don’t use the muscles below my knees, I can sculpt my thighs as I want.’

Maybe the secret to thigh transformation lies in an unexpected place.

***

On the first day of his second year, Jin-hyeok sat at the table with his dad.

Mom always ate with Yoo-jin and Jeong-won, so it had been over two years since he and his dad had breakfast alone.

Though he acted childish at times, Jin-hyeok’s dad was a diligent man.

“Yawn~”

Even while yawning, Son Kwang-yeon, who had already showered and prepared for work, waited for his son to finish getting ready for school. He couldn’t bear to see his eldest son eating alone.

Thanks to Jin-hyeok, Son Kwang-yeon’s day had also gotten longer.

“Do you want to eat bracken and bean sprouts, right?”

“Uh-huh, yeah~”

The father and son, who seemed to be having a conversation for no one in particular, started their meal, and Han Yu-young also sat next to her son with a warm cup of tea.

“Mom, thank you for the meal.”

Under the light shining on the table, the sight of tofu, eggs, bean sprouts, and green onions in a steaming bowl of North Korean-style soup always warmed the heart.

The table was filled with homemade kimchi made from cabbage grown in their garden, bean sprout salad from their own sprout cultivator, duck egg fry from their ducks, mushroom stir-fry and vegetable salad made from produce gifted by neighbors, and braised cod sent by Kim Eung-nyeo.

There were only a few side dishes.

But to Jin-hyeok, no table could be more abundant.

“Didn’t Ho-jin’s family give us some dried seaweed last time?”

“Ah, my mind’s slipping.”

Son Kwang-yeon, who had a sharp eye for local ingredients, noticed the side dish Han Yu-young had forgotten.

Han Yu-young quickly ran over, stood on her tiptoes, and took the seaweed from the top of the fridge. She cut it with scissors and placed it on the table with soy sauce.

“Seaweed prices are good these days. Should we go harvest some?”

Pfft!

Han Yu-young, who was sipping warm cassia seed tea, let out a powerful whale spout.

What’s the point of going through all that trouble to earn a few bucks? Especially when running a business leaves you with no time.

Jin-hyeok patted his chest in relief.

‘Thank goodness.’

Since mom was sitting next to him, the splash was directed at dad.

“Oh my, what should we do?”

“Hahaha, I shouldn’t have said that.”

Luckily, there were no solid bits. Son Kwang-yeon wiped his face with a towel.

“Seeing seaweed reminds me of when we first settled in this neighborhood.”

Back in the day, Son Kwang-yeon and Choi Jang-hwan would go out in a crude tin boat to harvest seaweed. It was a way to earn some income during the idle winter months.

“You went through a lot back then.”

“Oh, it wasn’t that bad.”

They didn’t even have proper winter clothes or gloves for the work.

It might sound like a trivial story to those who’ve never experienced it, but to Son Kwang-yeon, it was a precious memory.

Thanks to that hardship, he was able to feed and clothe Han Yu-young and their baby during the harsh winters.

That baby is now a high school sophomore.

He had already surpassed his dad in height during middle school and now stood as tall as Choi Tae-yang.

Not just that. He excelled in both academics and sports, holding Korean records in the 100m and 200m. He even donated all his prize money from sponsors and associations. It was a family decision, but still, giving away such a large sum—oh, never mind.

“Our son gave us the courage to start a business.”

“Really?”

Jin-hyeok, munching on bean sprout salad, asked.

“Actually, I had thought about making more money before. But I realized I shouldn’t sell the land.”

Jin-hyeok nodded.

He knew his dad’s fear that once the land was sold, it could end up in someone else’s hands and be exploited.

“You made money farming without selling the land.”

“Yeah, but that wasn’t enough.”

As if to say it was nonsense, Son Kwang-yeon waved his arms.

Then, with his signature charm, he launched into a comedic monologue.

“Watching you and Yoo-jin eat, I thought, if you grow any bigger, farming won’t be enough to feed you. Oh my, my kids eat so much, it’s like we’ll have to take out loans to feed you if you keep growing like this.”

Whoosh! Pfft!

Han Yu-young’s second whale spout was even more powerful.

Jin-hyeok’s bean sprout head also joined in.

*

“Are you going to be class president again this year?”

Son Kwang-yeon, now changed into fresh clothes, smiled at his son.

“If I don’t, it’d be weird.”

“Well, if Son Jin-hyeok wants to be class president, who’d oppose? Unless Jang Gun-i objects—oh! Don’t spray me!”

Every morning started with jokes from his dad.

He didn’t flip through the newspaper to show off his knowledge or talk about the state of the nation or the world. He believed serious expressions were for those with ulterior motives, so he deliberately acted like a mischievous kid.

– “How long do we live? If you don’t like someone, just don’t see them. For those we see every day, isn’t it best to live with laughter? Laughter makes people happy and brings them closer.”

That’s why he played the fool.

He wanted his family to laugh more and cherish each other.

That’s why he was even more admirable.

Despite the weight of being the head of the household and the responsibility of running a business, he acted like a transcendent being.

“I’m off to school!”

In the dim light of early March, he stepped out into the winter-like air.