An Unexpected Encounter
The sound of laptop keys clacked in a steady, rhythmic pattern. Tap. Tap-tap. Tap. Tap-tap.
"So, how are things going with that girl?"
"Mmm... it's been a little tough."
My sister took a sip of her coffee.
"She's a high school senior, so that makes sense. What's the part that's not working out?"
"I don't really know either."
I took a sip of my warm peppermint tea.
"You know exactly what it is."
"I really don't."
She closed her laptop partway and looked at me.
"Stop playing word games and just tell me."
"This time I genuinely don't know."
I squeezed my eyes shut, then took off my glasses and wiped them clean. Even as I breathed on the lenses and polished them, she kept watching me.
"Fine, I'll believe you."
"Finally."
My vision grew sharp again. Maybe I wore glasses just for these fleeting moments of clarity?
"How about you? Things going well?"
"Yeah, just as I planned."
"That's good."
I took another sip.
"Are the marks still there?"
"Because of them, I can't even shower properly at home."
"Mom would probably be proud."
"She'd think I'm dating a pervert."
"I should meet her and clear up the misunderstanding."
"It's not a misunderstanding."
"Hmm?"
She glanced at me sideways.
"I should set aside a whole day to show her exactly what a pervert is."
"I've been pretty busy lately, you know?"
"Well, time is something you make."
She started typing on her keyboard again. During the brief lull in conversation, I looked around the cafe. For some reason, there were more outsiders than students from our university today. Was today some kind of special event?
"Is today like a school uniform day or something?"
"Why, you want me to wear one for you?"
"No... It's not even exam season, but there are so many people. They all look like actual high schoolers."
She glanced around briefly as well.
"It's probably a school tour day. They do that in high school, right?"
"How refreshing."
I couldn't exactly call myself old, but seeing those high school kids made me feel a sense of youthful innocence. Bright, pretty, adorable children.
Wait... Jimin.
Among the group of kids, I spotted Kim Jimin. Her expression didn't look great. It was better than the face she'd made when she'd stormed out after our last counseling session, but still.
"...What are you doing?"
"Huh? Oh, nothing. I was just watching the kids."
"Feeling nostalgic seeing high schoolers?"
The tension started in my hands. A numb, tingling sensation spread from my fingertips as if blood had stopped flowing.
"What was our baby like back in high school?"
She took my hand. I tried to act as natural as possible. Right now, I needed to focus only on her. Jimin would probably walk right past without noticing me. If she saw us together, something bad would definitely happen. My sister had a strong possessive streak, and Jimin was already incredibly disappointed about me having a girlfriend.
"High school was happy."
The kids around Jimin were talking to her.
It seemed her friendships really were fine. Still, even in that playful voice of hers, Jimin sounded drained. That's how it felt to me.
"I wonder if my friends are doing okay."
Jimin and the girls moved to a table a little farther away. It would be best if we left quickly, but my sister would definitely get suspicious. From that position, she could see me clearly. I turned my head, praying she wouldn't notice me. From now on, I wouldn't look over there at all.
"Is something wrong?"
"No, I just thought I'd do some studying too."
I hadn't actually planned to study, but I opened my lecture materials to focus on the monitor.
"I haven't been managing my grades well, so I really need to do better this time."
She let out a small snort of laughter.
——
Quite a long time passed as the two of us studied. If the high schoolers had only come for a short break, they should have been getting up to leave by now. I glanced briefly at Jimin's table.
She was looking at me.
Our eyes met. I quickly looked away.
This was really bad.
I checked on my sister sitting across from me. She was absorbed in her assignment. I looked back at Jimin. She was still staring at me. How long had she been watching?
During conversations, she would look away from me for a moment, but whenever she had a spare second, our eyes would meet again. When she wasn't looking at me, she was looking at my sister.
Let's think. If I were Jimin, how would I act? Would I ignore me out of disappointment? Or would I express my anger by lashing out at my sister?
How would my sister react? If Jimin suddenly approached and acted like she knew me, she definitely wouldn't stay quiet. Was I the only one who knew about the situation between the two of them? Was this something I could mediate?
No. Every time I'd tried to handle things alone so far, it had only made everything more tangled. Besides, if my sister suddenly got caught up in this without knowing anything, she'd definitely feel betrayed by me.
Okay. Let's try a different approach from before.
"Sis."
"Yeah?"
"There's a student I counsel sitting a bit behind you to the right. Don't turn around."
"..."
"The problem is, it seems like she has romantic feelings for me. Last time, she found out I was dating because of the hickey you left on my neck. She must have been really disappointed because she immediately got up and left. Her parents said she's been shut up in her room without saying a word."
"And?"
"And we've made eye contact several times just now. I think there's a chance she'll either completely ignore me out of disappointment and leave, or do something unexpected to you, or both of us."
"Because if you didn't have a girlfriend, she could've gone after you herself. That makes sense."
"Exactly. So, keeping the latter possibility in mind, how about we move somewhere else quickly?"
"No."
"No?"
"I don't want to fight with one of your clients, but are we really supposed to run away just because some girl who doesn't know her place is acting out?"
"Sis, this kid shows quite a few neurotic symptoms. Plus, like you said, she's my client. I don't want to make the situation worse. Can't you just listen to me this once?"
"Hmm..."
She closed her laptop.
"Instead, since you've been lying to me all this time, you're going to get punished today."
"O-okay, so let's just get out of here first."
The kids at the other table stood up. They picked up the drink tray they'd used and took it to the return bin near the counter. Both my sister and I watched the situation quietly.
The kids went outside and said their goodbyes.
"Looks like she's decided to ignore you?"
She opened her laptop again.
"Y-yeah... That's a relief."
A genuine sigh of relief escaped me.
"Then we should stay seated a little longer before leaving. It would be even more awkward if we ran into her."
"Yeah, good idea. Thanks."
"You don't need to thank me. We'll talk about it later."
"No... Still, you listened to me properly this time."
"But before that, you kept it all hidden even while getting caught in lies. It means you were lacking, doesn't it?"
"I wasn't sure back then."
"So you kept it tightly hidden and only told me now, right?"
"I was afraid you'd worry unnecessarily."
"Oh, how sweet. Thanks for worrying about me?"
"Ha... Forget it. Even when I do talk, you don't listen properly anyway. That's why I don't say anything."
She glared at me. Little by little, emotions began to flare between us.
"This is my first time seeing a couple's lovers' quarrel up close! I'm both jealous and entertained."
The moment that voice rang out right beside us and the sound of a chair being pulled out next to me reached my ears, goosebumps erupted across my body. The unexpected extreme stress and bewilderment left both my mouth and body completely frozen.
"Nice to meet you, sis! I'm Kim Jimin. Can I call you sis? Oppa, I'll sit next to you!"
"It's one drink per person, so I don't think you can sit here."
"Ah, should I buy another one? I just had one, but... this time I'll get something sweet!"
I could feel a dizzying tension swirling between the two women.
"J-Jimin, nice to see you. But today is our date day, so joining us might be a bit difficult."
"Oh, really? Ah~ That's right! It's Friday night, so you two must be planning to get it on! You worked hard drawing all over my oppa's body, didn't you?"
"This kid is so kind and accepts everything, so some trash think he's an easy target and keep coming at him. I had to mark my territory a bit."
"That's too much~ Talking about oppa's body like it's your pet hamster! Poor oppa."
Jimin wrapped her arms around my shoulders. My sister downed the rest of her coffee in one go.
"That's my boyfriend's body, yet you're putting your hands on him like he's yours?"
Jimin released her arms but left her hand resting on my shoulder.
"Ah, sorry. I like skinship, so I got carried away... I should fix that before I go to college~"
I brushed the hand off my shoulder and forced the words out.
"Jimin, this isn't polite... Let's talk at our counseling session next week. I'm glad you look brighter, though."
"Eh... Can't I hang out with you too? The kids all went home, and Dad said he's meeting with the other professors."
"So your father is a professor?"
My sister continued while placing her empty cup on the tray.
"Yes! Sis, aren't you in psychology? He's pretty famous. Professor Kim Juyoung!"
My sister glared at me.
"Really? That's unexpected. You're completely different from your father."
I felt like I was caught in a whirlpool. The dizzying situation that I couldn't control made my head spin.
My sister began gathering her things.
"You're leaving already? I'm bored..."
The girl sat back down in the seat beside us, puffing her cheeks in a sulky expression. I had no idea what was going through her mind.
"Should the three of us move somewhere? You can't drink alcohol since you're still young, so how about another cafe?"
"Are you embarrassed because we're inside the school? Well, it is embarrassing when a horny old lady keeps sucking on oppa like that."
The crude remark froze the entire atmosphere instantly.
"If we weren't in school, I'd beat the shit out of you."
My sister leaned toward Jimin and whispered.
"S-Sis!"
This was really going to turn into a fight. I stood up and moved to my sister's side.
"Sis, calm down first. Let's just go."
I pulled on her arm, urging her, but it had no effect.
"Oppa must have it hard too. Where would you even dare to kiss her? She probably snarls like an angry bitch every day."
My sister's body trembled. It shook with sudden, repeated contractions and relaxations filled with rage.
"Sis, Sis!! Let's go for now, okay? Let's go, quickly."
I pulled with all my strength and finally managed to get her to stand. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and escaped the place as fast as I could.
"Oppa~!! See you again next Monday!! I'm feeling much better now!"
I consciously suppressed the voice lingering in my ears and hurried to another location.