Accidentally become a father-Chapter 87: Bored

—

Midday.

I lay on the floor.

One hand behind my head.

The other holding a cigarette.

A thin trail of smoke rose.

Drifting and swirling.

Then vanishing.

__

On the low table—

a glass of coffee.

Half full.

Already cold.

Beside it—

Yuna’s notebook.

A pencil.

An eraser.

All neatly arranged.

__

Yuna sat at the table.

Her back hunched slightly.

Still writing.

One final stroke.

She stopped.

Her pencil hovered in the air for a moment.

As if making sure she hadn’t missed anything.

Then she set it down.

Slowly.

She closed the notebook.

Pushed it slightly forward.

Finished.

She didn’t move right away.

Just sat there.

Staring at the table.

__

"Papa..."

"Hm."

"...I’m bored."

I exhaled the smoke.

Slowly.

Formed a ring.

It floated for a long time.

The corner of my lips tugged upward.

Nice.

__

"Bored?"

"Yeah..."

"Why."

Yuna gave a slight shrug.

"...I don’t know..."

"...There’s nothing to do."

I looked up at the ceiling.

The smoke ring was still there.

It touched the plaster.

And dissipated.

__

"Same here, then."

Yuna turned her head slightly.

Looking at me.

"...You too, Papa?"

"Yeah."

She fell silent.

Then shifted her posture slightly.

Relaxing a bit more.

"Who says you’re bored? You’re busy playing with smoke by yourself."

"Haha, fair enough."

"Umm... Papa..."

"...Do you have any ideas?"

"Ideas?"

I turned my head.

"Yeah..."

I thought for a moment.

"How about a nap?"

Yuna immediately shook her head.

Quickly.

"No."

"...I’m not sleepy."

"Watch TV, then."

She glanced at the television.

Paused for a moment.

"...There’s nothing good on."

"Read a book."

"No."

A swift reply.

"Go play with your friends."

Yuna shook her head again.

"...I’d just be a bother..."

Silence.

__

I pushed myself up.

Sat.

Stared at Yuna.

She stared right back.

A deadpan expression.

But her eyes weren’t entirely empty.

I averted my gaze.

Looked around the room.

The low table.

The kotatsu.

The kitchenette.

The blank walls.

Nothing of interest.

__

"...Yeah..."

I muttered quietly.

"...How boring."

Yuna didn’t argue.

Just gave a slow nod.

I reached for the phone beside me.

Lit up the screen.

Checked the data plan.

Still active.

Plenty left.

I held it out toward Yuna.

"Here."

"...Watch some videos or play a game."

"...Whatever you want."

Yuna took it.

Carefully.

Like an object that didn’t belong to her.

Which it wasn’t.

__

She stared at the screen.

Then started swiping.

Slowly.

Up.

Down.

She didn’t open anything.

Just scrolled back and forth on the home screen.

Yuna’s eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"How do I use this."

I let out a short sigh.

Raised a hand.

Brushed my hair back.

Mildly exasperated.

What a pain—a kid from the modern era, yet somehow completely tech-illiterate.

"Figure it out yourself."

"You’ll get the hang of it eventually."

Yuna stared at the screen again.

Looking more serious now.

Her finger tapped an icon.

Nothing happened.

No internet connection.

Please turn on mobile data or connect to Wi-Fi.

__

She tried again.

Tapped another icon.

Compass. (Needs recalibration.)

Maps. (No internet.)

Gallery. (Empty.)

Settings. (Too much text—immediately returned to the home screen.)

She hesitated.

A few minutes later.

She finally set the phone back down on the table.

Gently.

She lowered her head.

Rested her cheek against the tabletop.

"I’m bored..."

__

Her voice was slightly muffled.

Her hair fell messily over her face.

She didn’t bother fixing it.

I let out a soft sigh.

Then picked up the phone again.

Sat back against the wall. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"Come here."

I tapped the floor next to me.

"...Watch with me."

Yuna lifted her head.

Slowly.

She stood up.

Walked over to me.

And sat down by my side.

—

I unlocked the phone.

Saw that the mobile data wasn’t on yet.

I toggled it on.

Tapped one of the icons.

YoTube.

The home screen loaded.

Random videos.

In no particular order.

I tapped one.

Wood being cut.

Sawdust falling.

I watched.

Yuna watched too.

Quiet.

A few seconds passed.

I swiped down.

Another video.

A machine.

Loud noises.

Swiped again.

A painting.

Colors bleeding into one another.

Yuna leaned forward slightly.

"...This one is pretty..."

I didn’t reply.

Just swiped again.

Music.

Someone singing.

__

Yuna glanced up at me.

"...Which one do you like, Papa?"

I paused for a second.

"...I don’t know."

Yuna didn’t reply.

But she didn’t complain about being bored anymore.

___