Chapter 355: Late-night snack
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 355: Late-night snack
The company rooftop.
The wind blowing in the already chilly weather was somewhat cold, but the hot coffee I brought along managed to warm my body.
The dial tone rang from the phone held to my ear.
Soon after.
— Go ahead, speak.
A smirk escaped me at the sound of Big Hyung’s characteristically calm voice.
“Hyung, what are you doing?”
— Don’t ask when you aren’t even that curious about what I’m doing.
“I was just being polite.”
To be honest, I wasn't curious at all. I just felt like I had to break the ice like this to get the words out.
— I’m busy. Get straight to the point.
“Hmph, as if I didn't know.”
I said that, but I hesitated for a moment. I never thought the day would come when I’d say something like this.
“I’m planning to try my best in my own way.”
— …….
“Well, I wonder how much a college student like me can actually achieve, but still. I’m going to do everything I can.”
— Have you grown attached to the team?
“No, it’s not that. It just doesn't sit right with me that people are getting hurt just because I’m staying still.”
That was the weight of being part of the owner family. Your mere existence weighs down those around you.
— I see.
Hyung was stoic. He didn't bother asking what I meant by saying I’d work hard.
“But don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying I’ll keep working at the company in the future.”
— …….
“How is Father’s condition? You said you’d check on it back then.”
— It’s not good. I can’t explain the details, but there is a reason why Father is using you so urgently.
“Sigh.”
He was a father I hated so much. But he was family, nonetheless. I didn't want to hear news of him being ill. I considered making a courtesy call but decided against it. Father would probably hate that even more—the idea of me being troubled out of consideration or worry for him.
— By the way, Woo-jin, Father wanted to keep giving you opportunities.
“Yeah, I know.”
— That means, depending on your future actions, Father might be planning some rather drastic personnel restructuring.
“Yeah, I know that too.”
— He even warned me that if you do well, there will be no place for me in Uju Group.
“……”
I felt a sudden tightness in my chest. The actions I was taking because I didn't want the people around me to suffer... in the end, they could end up strangling Big Hyung.
But.
“Then that’s where it should end.”
I decided to be bold and shameless.
“If you lose just because the youngest moved around a bit, then it’s only right that you quit, Hyung.”
Because I believed in him. Hyung wasn't the type of person to be pushed aside by someone like me.
“Protect your own seat. I’m going to give it my all. You should show Father what you can do, too.”
— Heh.
It had been a long time since I heard Hyung laugh. Big Hyung couldn't suppress the chuckles leaking out and needed a moment to compose himself.
— Fine.
At the end, his voice was no different than usual.
— Work hard.
He ended the call with a word of encouragement.
Click.
“There.”
I stretched while taking in the view of the sunset. This was enough. Instead of staying still and walking on eggshells for no reason, I just had to do my best in my own way. Those at the top would handle the aftermath.
“It’s time to clock out.”
It was the most pleasant time of the day.
* * *
“……When are those people going to go home?”
The commute from the company to school didn't take very long. If I just made a call, the security team Big Hyung assigned would bring a car and give me a ride. It was convenient, but I wondered if it was okay to use them like this.
“Woo-jin?”
“Ah, Senior.”
As I arrived in front of the dormitory, I ran into Senior Ju-hee near the entrance. She had a towel around her neck and was drenched in sweat in her tracksuit, looking like she had just finished exercising.
“Don’t come close.”
I smiled and replied to the senior, who kept her distance because she smelled like sweat.
“Oh, come on. I’ve even licked sweat befo—”
“…….”
“…….”
I stopped mid-sentence. I instinctively realized I shouldn't say any more. Senior Ju-hee’s narrowed eyes seemed to be challenging me to keep blabbering.
“Ahem, Senior. The security team leader was asking how you were doing.”
“Really? Did the Team Leader come by?”
When I naturally changed the subject, Senior Ju-hee followed suit. Thank goodness. I almost got beaten into a coma right there. I just got off work; I should at least be able to wash up before bed.
“The Team Leader is doing well, right? I learned a lot thanks to him during the break.”
“He seems to be doing well. He was very curious if you’d join the security team after you graduate.”
“If they’ll have me, I’d probably go, wouldn't I?”
The senior said with a smile. If she wanted to, I was confident I could pull some strings to get her in, even by force. But since her image with the security team was already so good after last break, hiring her didn't seem like it would be difficult at all.
As we walked into the dormitory together, another thought occurred to me.
“Is Jin-ah-ssi still here?”
“……Didn't you say you’d eat late-night snacks with her?”
“Ahem.”
“I’ve been making her diet lately. She’s lacking exercise because she’s always cooped up in her room.”
Senior Ju-hee glanced at me.
“You should do some, too.”
“Did I gain that much weight? Yoo Ah-rin said the same thing.”
“Just enough to notice if you look closely? It’s not severe.”
Ah, I really need to restrain myself.
“But when on earth is Jin-ah-ssi going back?”
“I don’t know either. She looked a bit lonely, so I talked to her and ate with her, and she seems to have taken quite a liking to this place.”
Senior Ju-hee must have been too kind to her. Then again, the senior tended to be generous to her own people.
“I don’t want to kick her out by force. I feel like I want to let her leave when she’s ready to leave on her own?”
“……But this is a dormitory?”
“Right, that’s the problem. This kind of living arrangement can’t last forever.”
They had managed to stay undetected so far with some cleverness, but eventually, it would become difficult. She’d have to overcome it on her own.
After finishing the conversation, I headed to my room. Come to think of it, I hadn't eaten dinner yet. As I opened the door, wondering if there were any leftovers in the fridge...
“Zzzzz.”
“What the...?”
Seo Ye-rin was sleeping on my bed. When I left, Yoo Ah-rin had seen me off, but when I returned, Seo Ye-rin was here. It felt like I was watching a magic trick.
Seo Ye-rin was sleeping with soft, rhythmic breathing. Did she come straight here after finishing her work? Or maybe she just flopped down and fell asleep after her lectures today.
Being careful not to wake her, I grabbed a change of clothes and underwear and went into the bathroom.
“Ah, I’m tired.”
I hadn't done anything particularly exhausting, but just moving around was tiring. I also did too much thinking today. As I was letting the shower water hit my head like I was meditating, I heard a click from outside.
“Woo-jin-ah.”
“Oh, shit?!”
Seo Ye-rin opened the locked bathroom door and walked right in. I wondered how on earth she opened it, and then I saw a single chopstick in her hand.
“Did you just pick the lock with that?”
“I saw it on Neutube, and it actually works.”
How could the lock be this flimsy? As I let out an exasperated sigh, Seo Ye-rin quickly began to strip off her clothes.
“Let’s wash together!”
“……I don’t think we’ll be able to wash if you come in.”
“Hehehe.”
Giggling, Seo Ye-rin took off even her underwear and approached me.
“Even better.”
* * *
Back in the room after the shower(?).
As I was drying Seo Ye-rin’s wet hair with a hairdryer, she, who had been staring intently at her phone, asked.
“The delivery fee is cheap at this place. But this other place has a review event. Where should I order from?”
“Order whatever you want to eat.”
She definitely used the same shampoo as me, so why does the scent seem better on her? Is it Seo Ye-rin’s own scent?
“Order complete! I ordered chicken!”
“Okay.”
Her hair was mostly dry. When I turned off the hairdryer, Seo Ye-rin turned around with a smile.
“The chicken will take about an hour. What should we do until then?”
“……Games?”
“Wrong.”
Look at her hand subtly moving toward my lower body. I feigned ignorance and looked away.
“Was there a right answer?”
“There is, isn't there?”
“I really have no idea.”
I knew. I knew that if we started this now, it would never end before the chicken arrived. She was different from Choi I-seo or Yoo Ah-rin. Once we started, we went until the very end.
Perhaps my reaction wasn't very satisfying. Seo Ye-rin puffed out her cheeks and turned her body to face me.
“Want a hint?”
“A hint?”
A verbal answer wasn't necessary. Before I could even hear it, Seo Ye-rin’s lips were already against mine.
Our tongues intertwined. The wet sounds of the kiss echoed, and I became so focused that I didn't know how long we had been at it.
“Phew. Do you get it now?”
Seo Ye-rin asked with a flushed face. It wasn't a look of embarrassment, but a face that clearly showed she was already completely in heat.
“I still don’t know.”
When I acted a bit coy, unlike my usual self, Seo Ye-rin pushed my chest.
Thud!
My back hit the bed. Seo Ye-rin, who climbed on top of my fallen body, smirked and shook her hips as if rubbing them against me.
“Woo-jin-i needs to be punished today.”
* * *
“Ugh, the chicken is all cold.”
I brought the chicken in, dripping with sweat. Since contactless delivery was the trend lately, the chicken had been sitting alone outside the dormitory and had gone cold.
When I said I was going to get the chicken, Seo Ye-rin wouldn't let go until the very end, so I had been a bit rough. I wondered if she was okay.
It was already 11 PM. Seo Ye-rin didn't say anything about having to go home, as if she didn't have to return today.
‘I should probably heat it up in the microwave, right?’
After heating it up for a bit in the microwave in the first-floor lounge, I carefully entered the room again.
“Haa, ahhh.”
On the bed, a naked Seo Ye-rin, with her backside toward me, urged me as if she were angry.
“Hu-hurry up—!”
“I brought the chicken.”
“Forget that, hurry…….”
Seo Ye-rin shook her hips slightly as if coaxing me. The sight of her, with the traces of our tryst dripping from her, was more than just alluring—it was enough to make a man act on impulse.
“Whew.”
I set the chicken down on the floor and took off the clothes I had loosely thrown on. As I stood towering in front of her, Seo Ye-rin lifted her heels slightly to adjust her position and pleaded.
“Give it to meee.”
* * *
Knock, knock.
“Woo-jin-ssiiii.”
Knock, knock, knock.
“Woo-jin-ssiiiiii.”
In the dead of night.
Choi Jin-ah, who still hadn't gone home, came looking for her late-night snack mate. She called out for Kim Woo-jin through the crack in the door.
“You said we’d eat takoyaki this time. I even brought Buldak.”
In her hands, she held two large cups of Buldak spicy noodles.
“Woo-jin—”
Click.
The door opened. Choi Jin-ah, who was happy that the late-night snacks continued even after the exam period, tried to greet him with a smile.
“Y-you’re here?”
Kim Woo-jin stood there, dripping with sweat and barely wearing any underwear. And beyond him...
She could see the figure of Seo Ye-rin, sprawled out naked and exhausted on the bed.
Choi Jin-ah blinked a couple of times with a blank expression and then muttered.
“……You were already having a late-night snack.”