Accidentally become a father-Chapter 30: The Choice

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"What do you want to watch?" I asked.

"Up to you, Papa."

"That’s a lazy answer."

"I’m not picking."

"Why?"

She stared at the screen.

"If I pick, Papa will get bored."

"I never said that."

"Not yet."

The exact same answer as this morning.

I picked up the remote.

Then stopped.

"If I pick, you’ll get bored."

"I won’t say it."

"That doesn’t mean you aren’t."

A brief silence.

The detergent commercial ended.

A comedy show started.

The laugh track was entirely too loud again.

We watched for about ten seconds.

Neither of us laughed.

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I pressed the channel button.

The channel flipped.

An evening drama. Too serious.

Changed it again.

A documentary about deep-sea fish.

Yuna leaned in a little.

"Are those real?" she asked.

"Yes."

"That fish looks like an alien."

"They probably think we’re weird too."

She stared at the screen intently.

"What do you usually watch, Papa?"

"Anything."

"That doesn’t help."

"I don’t have strong preferences."

"Nothing you really like?"

I thought about it.

"No."

She fell silent for a few seconds.

Then said quietly,

"Then, can we pick what I like?"

"What do you like?"

She hesitated.

Then pointed at the remote.

"Game shows."

"Game shows?"

"Yes. They answer questions. If they’re wrong, they fall."

"That’s a rather specific type of entertainment."

She lowered her head a little.

"Sorry."

"I didn’t say no."

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I changed the channel again.

Found it.

A game show with a colorful stage and an overly energetic host.

A contestant answered incorrectly.

The floor opened up.

They fell into a foam pit.

The audience laughed.

Yuna held her breath for a fraction of a second.

Then let out a small laugh.

Not loud.

But genuine.

I glanced at her.

She quickly returned to neutral.

"Funny?" I asked.

"Kind of."

I leaned back slightly.

The remote was still in my hand.

Then, without a word, I placed it back in the middle of the table.

No closer to me. No closer to her.

Neutral.

---

The next contestant started answering.

Yuna unconsciously leaned in a little closer again.

Her shoulder almost touched my arm.

She didn’t pull away.

Neither did I.

And for the first time that day,

no one tried to be too neat. No one tried to be too practical.

The remote stayed in the middle.

But the choice was already clear.

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