Ajeong Goes Dutch Even for This
Lately, Monday had become the day of the week Ajeong looked forward to most.
And the walk to the gym was no longer a commute — it was a trip she made gladly, just to work out.
All of it had started after she became gym mates with Woohyun.
These days they were only pretending, but within the gym's walls they were a couple. After that little incident of groping each other's butts, things had gotten a touch awkward, but it was fine. If anything, they had simply moved too fast. She told herself this was one step back for two steps forward.
Besides, they weren't actually dating, so it wasn't as if she was particularly hoping for those two steps forward either.
We're only acting because we have to…
He was handsome, he had a great body, and unlike other guys he never got pushy or clingy — but she absolutely could not let herself catch feelings. Woohyun was helping her out of pure goodwill with this awkward favor of hers. Developing ulterior motives would be underhanded.
More than anything else—
I'd be no different from the people who made my life miserable…
The senior who insisted on walking her home because the streets were dangerous at night. The classmate who casually tried to stroke her hair, claiming there was dust in it. Even little things like that were hard enough to deal with. How much worse would it be if she asked someone to pretend to date her and then started acting with real feelings mixed in?
That was what her head told her. And yet there were moments when she wondered if, under the pretext of having to act, she had gone a little overboard with the skinship. But Woohyun hadn't seemed to mind.
Right…?
He never pulled away, and he played along so willingly. At the very least, holding hands and linking arms the way they already did was okay. That much would fulfill the purpose of the couple act, and she could be satisfied with it too.
They hadn't seen each other over the weekend, so she would start fresh today — a clean slate.
Woohyun usually arrived at the gym around 11:05. She got there twenty minutes earlier, stowed her things, and changed.
Today she arrived early as usual, left her bag in the staff break room, and was just about to step out when—
Creeeak—
The trainer from the previous shift walked in.
He wasn't entering somewhere he wasn't allowed, but she tensed up for no good reason all the same. The male staff member came straight toward her.
"Ajeong, you're not actually dating that guy, right?"
"Excuse me?"
"Or did you, uh, break up? You've seemed kind of awkward lately…"
"…It's nothing like that."
True, and also not true. Things had gotten briefly awkward, but they would be back to normal soon enough.
We're not dating either, but someday…
"H-his usual time changed too, didn't it? He's already here working out. D-did you know?"
"…What?"
"See? You didn't know~"
It wasn't as if he had switched to a completely different time slot. He had just come early to work out — what did that matter? Maybe he figured there was no need to text ahead since they would run into each other anyway. Or maybe he had simply wanted to exercise so badly he couldn't wait for her.
"…"
"Don't trust a face like that, you… idiot. I-I bet he's got plenty of other girls."
Woohyun with other girls…
"There's no way!!!"
She had shouted without meaning to. It didn't even seem like a situation that called for anger. Whatever Woohyun did with anyone else, she was in no position to interfere.
"…Sorry for yelling. But please don't talk about other people like that."
She twisted past the frozen male staffer and walked out. Fortunately, he didn't seem inclined to grab her and keep talking.
Woohyun is already here…?
Even if they weren't a real couple, as gym mates, couldn't he at least tell her when he was coming? She had wanted to work out together, and she was worried he would tire himself out alone first. That was all. She was absolutely not hurt.
Bang—
"…Woohyun?"
Someone was standing right outside the door. Tears blurred her vision, but there was no mistaking who it was. Those broad shoulders, that wide, solid chest, and above them a face with a perfect silhouette. It was unmistakably Woohyun.
"I…"
She was still trying to figure out how to explain the tears after storming out shouting when, before she knew it, she was in his arms.
"Something going on today?"
"Like what?"
Woohyun asked back with an easy expression. There was no trace of last week's awkwardness.
"No, it's just… you're different from usual…"
Had last week been on his mind too? Had he been thinking the same thing she was?
"We're dating, after all."
He answered her while glancing somewhere. He had been checking the same spot off and on for a while now — probably the front desk. More precisely, the male staffer at the front desk.
Ahh…♥
"Hehe… so it's just me, right?"
"Obviously."
"Huh?!"
She had been trying to tease him, knowing exactly what he was up to — and he had given her an answer she hadn't expected at all.
"Th-that's… I…"
"You're my precious plate-loading shuttle. I'm not giving you to anyone."
His playful reply left her a little disappointed for a second — but if he still needed her, that meant she still had a chance, didn't it?
It had started as a way to help Ajeong, but these days we had ended up much closer than before.
Surprisingly, the male staffer turned out to be a man who at least understood basic common sense. Starting the very next day he stopped acknowledging us entirely, and apparently he was quitting at the end of this week. Even that, Ajeong said, she had heard from the owner. The owner had known Ajeong was struggling because of the guy, and had asked her to keep working since he would be gone soon.
A better outcome than I had hoped for. I would have been grateful just for drawing his attention away from her — and instead he was quitting and vanishing completely. Thanks to that, Ajeong had been brighter this week than I had ever seen her.
"Heheh…"
Maybe because the staffer was still around, she stuck to my side the whole time. The thought that this happy arrangement would end once he quit left me a little wistful.
My natural steroid…
Men are creatures who will lift weights they never could before just because a woman is watching. And I wasn't just being watched — I had a full-on girlfriend act going. And not just anyone. Kang Ajeong.
Honestly, the fact that my one-rep maxes had skyrocketed was probably all thanks to her. My current big three total was a solid 440. Just this week alone I had hit 110 on bench, 170 on deadlift, and 160 on squat.
Today, the day I put up 160 kg on squat, was a Saturday. Ajeong wasn't working, so she walked out of the gym with me. Tomorrow was a rest day, so this was really the last of it. I could keep the plate-loading shuttle arrangement, sure — but the natural-method steroid was over.
Shame.
"Aren't you disappointed?"
"Huh?"
Had she read my mind? I startled and asked back, but thankfully that didn't seem to be it.
"I mean~ I'm not working today, so… want to go hang out? My treat!"
From her perspective, not being able to leave together after weekday workouts must have been a real letdown.
"I've got a part-time shift later, though. Is that okay?"
"Ah. Right… you said you go at six."
"Yeah, but if we're just grabbing food, we should have enough time."
About four and a half hours until six. Even giving myself a generous thirty minutes to go home, get ready, and head out, that still left four full hours.
"Hmm… then what about tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow?"
Tomorrow was the day the Balance Game updated. Being home felt a lot safer.
"Do you have plans?"
"Not really."
"Great! I'm just so grateful, you know… Let's eat something good and have fun! Okay?!"
Ajeong hit me with a look I simply could not refuse. Even so, a man needed to know how to say no firmly. And this was for her sake, too. Last time I had played the Balance Game while with Ajeong, I had nearly made her eat shit-flavored curry. Giving up a full-course date with her hurt like hell, but I would have to settle for four hours.
"Wai—"
Squeeze—
"Hmm? You can't? You're my boyfriend, aren't you~ You're supposed to take me on a proper date at least once a week."
The moment I tried to refuse, she clamped down hard on my butt and started persuading me with my own words.
"Th…"
"Hmm? You said you don't have anything to do~ Come hang out with your girlfriend!"
When I fumbled for words in my fluster, she pressed even harder. Now she was just groping my butt with abandon.
"Fine, just let go."
Ajeong obediently released me — then slightly lifted her own hips.
"Hehe… want to go Dutch?"
"Go Dutch?"
"Heheh… ding! Time's up. I'll text you!!"
Without even giving me a proper chance to answer, she took off like she was fleeing the scene.
Go Dutch…
What on earth had she meant by that all of a sudden? Was she talking about hanging out on Sunday? She said she would text, so I headed home for now.
With every step, the earlier incident kept replaying in my head. Mostly the part where she had been kneading my butt. At this point, it had gone well past the range of something you could write off as a misunderstanding. She probably — at the very least — had a thing for me.
Not acting… ah.
Turning the whole thing over and over, I finally figured out what "go Dutch" meant. Ajeong had asked if we should go Dutch while lifting her own hips toward me.
I hurriedly pulled out my phone and called her.
Rrring—
"Hello?"
"Would it be okay if I paid you later? Like a deposit?"
"Huh?… Ahahahaha!"
"…You're such a pervert, Woohyun."
Click—
"Hello?"
Ajeong had hung up on me.
Was that not what she meant? But she seemed to get what I was saying…
KokoaTalk!
A KokoaTalk message arrived before I even had time to feel disappointed.
"Haha…"
I had still been agonizing over it a second ago. At this rate, I was definitely going to have to meet her on Sunday.
I was in a good mood on the way home. In the alley in front of the apartment building, I spotted Jin Hayun puffing on a Vita-stick. We were past the point of pretending not to know each other, so I walked over.
"Why are you smoking it out in the open today?"
Lately she had been changing her Vita-stick times to avoid me, but for some reason she was out at this hour.
"You've already caught me…"
Caught her using a Vita-stick, she meant? If that was the case, she could have just told me it was a Vita-stick from the start. I still didn't understand why she had pretended it was a cigarette and gone out of her way to avoid me.
"Wh-what. Do you want another hit or something??"
I stood there looking at her, thinking it over, and she seemed to take that as me wanting another drag. Despite the wary words, though, she held the Vita-stick out to me without resistance.
"Want to trade?"
"Huh?"
"You give me the Vita-stick, and I'll give you something similar."
"S-something similar…!"
I had no idea what she had imagined to make her react like that, but at least she seemed to understand the offer.
"R-right here?"
"It'll only take a second."
"It comes out that fast…?"
"What are you even talking about? Here."
I held out a finger to Hayun, who kept asking incomprehensible questions.
"Ah."
Apparently that wasn't what she had been thinking — but she took it into her mouth right away.
"Slooorp… eh?"
"Want more?"
"…Yes."
"Say 'please.'"
"…Please."
I was absolutely not taking out on Hayun the fact that Ajeong had pushed me around.
"On your knees, too."
"On the ground…?"
Kneeling itself didn't seem to be a problem. I slipped off my bag and laid it down in front of her.
"What next?"
"Good girl."
I let her suck on my finger again. Watching sharp-looking Hayun lick away in a frenzy, she looked exactly like a cat devouring a Churu treat.