Daily Life 12 - In the Car
"Yu-jin, did I mention this earlier? When I was waiting for the elevator, I came down with Ji-hyuk."
"Ji-hyuk? How’s he doing these days?"
"He said he’s getting by, just okay. Now that he’s a college student, he’s probably bouncing between drinking parties all over town."
I let out a small sigh. "Even from the first time I saw him, I felt concerned. Still, I’m glad it looks like he grew up without losing his way…"
When we first moved into the apartment complex, my wife had asked whether we should at least hand out rice cakes to the neighbors. I told her we weren’t that old-fashioned and there was no need for such things. But she insisted that since we would be living together, it was only proper to greet them, and she went alone to introduce herself. That was the first time she met Ji-hyuk.
Back then, his father was always home late because of work, and Ji-hyuk himself—being a senior in high school buried in studies—rarely came home early either. Seeing him alone in the house every day must have tugged at her heart, because from that moment on she began looking after him in all sorts of little ways.
"Now that I think about it, you took care of him a lot last year, Yu-jin—food and everything."
"Well… I just bought a little extra for him whenever I shopped for us. You know how he is, oppa. He never cooks, so he eats out every single meal. Sometimes it’s really pitiful. He lost his mother early and has basically lived alone ever since…"
"That’s true."
Yu-jin has always had a genuinely beautiful heart. According to what my mother-in-law once told me, she’s been the type to roll up her sleeves and help anyone in trouble since she was a child. I suspect both her parents being teachers only strengthened that gentle nature.
"Still… as her husband, it’s not exactly pleasant watching my wife pay so much attention to a boy instead of a girl, but…"
While we chatted like this, the car carried us into the city center. Because it was the weekend, the streets were packed with families, young college students, and people of every age.
"Wow… oppa, there are so many people today~~"
"Yeah. It’s the weekend and the weather’s perfect, so it makes sense."
"We really did well coming out today, didn’t we?"
Yu-jin seemed thrilled to be outside after so long. She hummed cheerfully, savoring the warm summer air. The timing was perfect—early evening, neither too hot nor too cold.
"Yu-jin, is there anywhere you want to go? Or should we hit the meat restaurant first and eat?"
"Hmm… let’s eat first, oppa. The place we picked has crazy long waits. We can decide what to do after dinner."
"Sounds good."
We headed straight for the restaurant. At that moment Yu-jin slipped her arm through mine.
"It’s been forever since we had a proper date, oppa. Let’s walk slowly and look around. I want to walk with you."
"You’re right. It really has been a long time."
"Let’s make more time for this from now on. Your company work has kept us from going out much lately…"
The moment she linked arms, I felt the soft, full weight of her breasts press against me. My hand almost moved on its own. At the same time my cock began to stiffen, so I reminded myself we were in public and barely managed to calm down.
"It feels cooler now that midsummer has passed. Walking in weather like this is really nice, don’t you think, oppa?"
"Definitely. Last week it was brutally hot."
"Right? Now that it’s cooler I actually feel like going out and doing things. Haha."
"Should we go somewhere again next week?"
"Of course! A friend actually recommended a few places. If you have time, oppa…"
Her face lit up with excitement. Seeing her smile made me smile too. I squeezed her hand tighter and we walked side by side.
That was when I suddenly felt strange eyes on us. I quickly scanned the area. Once I focused, the source became obvious. Several men nearby were staring in our direction—some openly, others stealing furtive glances. And I immediately understood why.
They weren’t looking at us. They were looking only at my wife.
Some gazes held simple curiosity at seeing a beautiful woman. But most were sticky, male stares filled with open desire.
Come on… her boyfriend—or maybe husband—is standing right here. Aren’t they being a little too blatant?
For a second I felt irritation rise, but then I reconsidered. The fact that a woman this attractive was my wife filled me with a strange sense of superiority instead. My mood actually improved.
Yeah. Look all you want. No matter how much you stare, this woman is still my wife. Lol.
As we walked under their gazes, I realized I was growing more and more conscious of them. The scenery around us no longer mattered. I was busy studying the men—how they looked, what age they were, how they watched her.
Sigh… why am I acting like this lately?
It had to be because of last night. Ever since I caught that young man secretly watching my wife while she did the recycling completely unaware, I had unconsciously begun noticing every gaze directed at her.
While I was busy tracking every pair of eyes, Yu-jin remained oblivious. She was too busy admiring the city sights and letting out little gasps of delight. Perhaps because she seemed so carefree, the men grew bolder. Their stares crawled openly over her face, her chest, and especially her lower body.
I knew exactly why.
She was wearing tight white skinny jeans—the so-called Back Pants. On a man they would have looked ridiculous, but on a woman with wide hips and a firm, lifted ass like Yu-jin’s, they were unbearably erotic.
Sure enough, every time a man passed us and fell behind, I would casually turn my head and catch his eyes devouring her ass with zero shame.
Ha…
If this had been me from just a few days ago, those stares would have filled me with disgust. I would have glared daggers and stormed over to confront them. But today, strangely, I felt no displeasure. Instead, I almost wished they would stare harder.
Every time their eyes brushed across her body, a peculiar thrill ran through me.
Am I… actually enjoying this?
It felt as if I weren’t her husband at all, but some third-party observer watching other males hungrily devour my wife’s body. A strange excitement even stirred inside me—the desire to encourage more eyes, to fan the flames of their attention.
"Oppa, you see that meat restaurant? That’s the one. Pretty big, right?"
"Huh?… Yeah, it’s huge."
Completely unaware of the thoughts swirling in my head, Yu-jin was still bubbling with excitement. As we drew closer to the restaurant, my mind kept spinning wild fantasies.
The missy look outfit she had worn at the recycling station… the sexy underwear she showed me yesterday… Those sights were supposed to belong only to me, her husband. If the men secretly watching her right now ever saw her like that, how would they react? They’d probably rush at her like dogs in heat.
……
I felt my thoughts sinking deeper into darkness.
Ha… no matter what, how can I even think something like this? This isn’t right, Gyu-min.
I scolded myself for having thoughts a husband should never have and tried to push them away. But they refused to leave.
Ever since last night, it seemed I had begun to enjoy the eyes watching my wife. In the past those stares would have been nothing but unpleasant. Now they brought a strange thrill instead—like variables I could no longer control.
That thought reminded me of something Senior Cheol-min once said.
"Life is short, Gyu-min. Enjoy it while you can."
Back then I dismissed it as immature nonsense. Now the words felt heavy with meaning.
……
I had no choice but to admit that something inside me was changing in real time. I still didn’t know exactly what it was, but I was certain of one thing: the moment I accepted this change, there would be no going back to the man I used to be.
I shook my head, trying to clear the distracting thoughts, and followed my wife into the restaurant.