Growing Seeds of Doubt #2
Lying on the bed in the recovery room, I gazed down at Adele, who had her face buried against my chest. She had sobbed uncontrollably from the moment she saw the state Silvia and I were in at the Grand Canyon all the way until we reached the lab. Now, exhausted from crying, she slept soundly with her eyes completely swollen shut.
“Whenever Adele cries, it always makes me feel solemn. I’ve seen it so many times... and every single time, I felt sorry. Even when I hadn’t done anything wrong.”
Those were Silvia’s words as she lay on the adjacent bed after finishing her treatment.
I quietly nodded in agreement. “You’re right. She cries so heartbreakingly.”
“Doesn’t she? By the way, why isn’t anyone else in the lab?”
“The Doctor said he went to France... Sehwa and Yuria are probably back home resting. How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine. The wounds don’t hurt anymore... To be honest, I was skeptical about how effective the medical equipment could be, but it far exceeded my expectations. What about you?”
“Same as you, Silvia. All my wounds have healed without a single scar...”
As we chatted quietly, Adele stirred, kicking at the blanket and draping one leg over my stomach. It was such an adorable movement that a smile slipped out before I could stop it. I caught the blanket before it could fall off and tucked it back around her, then looked over at Silvia.
“Aren’t you upset?”
“About what?”
“That Adele came to me instead of you.”
“What are you talking about... She was trying to come to me, but you forcibly moved her over here.”
“What kind of conspiracy theory is that? Adele clearly came to me of her own free will. There wasn’t even a moment of hesitation.”
“No, she didn’t.”
“Yes, she did.”
We kept up our childish bickering, each insisting we were right, until we both burst into soft laughter and fell silent.
Silvia, who had been wearing a pleasant smile, unconsciously touched the back of her neck. The kiss mark I had left there must have been bothering her... The mark remained because I hadn’t treated that spot. So make sure you act carefully so it doesn’t get discovered. Cover it with your long hair until it fades. A woman’s intuition about these things is terrifying, so you’ll have to work hard for the next few days to hide it.
“Jihyeok.”
Silvia called my name in an embarrassed tone. I was stroking Adele’s plump cheek and answered.
“Yes?”
“You... um... are you going to charge it?”
“Charge what? Adele’s Device?”
“Yeah...”
“Of course I have to. She must have used up a tremendous amount of energy wiping out all the magi and monsters in the Grand Canyon. But don’t tell me you’re going to interfere again...”
“I have no intention of doing that... Just tell me how you plan to charge it.”
Silvia had experienced something close to an orgasm for the first time. It made sense that she would be curious—how far the skinship with Adele went, and what it felt like. But no matter how comfortable she had become with me, openly asking about something so intimate between a man and a woman was still rude, wasn’t it?
With a dumbfounded look, I shot back at her. “Do you really think I’m going to tell you? Why are you asking such a sensitive question anyway?”
“I-I was just curious... If you don’t want to say, forget it. Let’s just be quiet and rest. We might wake Adele.”
“Alright.”
I carefully smoothed out Adele’s disheveled golden hair. At that moment, she curled up into a tight ball, mumbled sleepily, and pressed herself even closer to me.
Looking at us with an odd expression, Silvia muttered.
“...It’s an eyesore.”
Her way of expressing emotions is so clumsy. If you’re jealous, just say you’re jealous.
After returning to Uijeongbu, Adele refused to leave Silvia’s side for even a moment. Whatever Silvia did, Adele wanted to be with her, and it was the same now. She lay with her head on Silvia’s lap, watching TV while fiddling with her phone.
Silvia knew Adele was texting Jihyeok. It left her with a strange feeling. Jihyeok weighed on her mind. The hardships they had endured together in the Grand Canyon, the way Adele had burst into tears after driving away the monsters and seeing their conditions, the lovey-dovey scene the two of them had shown in the recovery room... All of it kept replaying in her head.
And... the memory of the pleasure she had felt came back so vividly that her face flushed on its own.
Pretending to watch TV, Silvia glanced at Adele and called out to her, hoping to shake off the restless emotions.
“Adele.”
“Yes?”
The sight of Adele quickly lowering her phone and smiling brightly filled Silvia with guilt. Why did I ask for that kind of experiment? For what purpose? If nothing had happened between her and Jihyeok, this moment wouldn’t feel so uncomfortable... She really felt like a fool.
Hiding her awkward smile, Silvia said, “You mentioned it on the way back. That you met Sehwa and Yuria for a quick beer.”
“That’s right.”
“How was Yuria? She’s a good friend, right?”
“Her personality is similar to yours, so I really liked her. Sehwa was still the best, too. I bet the remaining hero has a good personality as well, right?”
The remaining one... That Beast Slayer who used a whip. Silvia had no idea where she was or what she was doing.
“Probably.”
“The Doctor, Sehwa, Yuria, and you, Silvia... I’m so lucky to have such wonderful colleagues beside me. And...”
Adele trailed off. Silvia could easily guess whose name would come next.
“Jihyeok?”
“Yes! Before I met Jihyeok, I didn’t really understand the feeling called love. But now I know it clearly.”
“I see...”
“I hope you get to experience this feeling soon too, sis. I want to talk about it with you.”
“I... well... my Device hasn’t even been made yet, so I’ll think about it slowly...”
After speaking, Silvia unconsciously reached for the back of her neck again. Seeing this, Adele tilted her head.
“Sis, why do you keep touching the back of your neck?”
“Huh? Was I doing that?”
“Yes. Even when Jihyeok was driving us back, you were touching your neck from the back seat... Is the wound not fully healed yet?”
Now that she thought about it, Jihyeok hadn’t treated the back of her neck... Was he trying to mess with her? No, although Jihyeok was mischievous, he wasn’t the type to play such pranks. He must have made a mistake because he was exhausted. She would ask him about the medical equipment tomorrow and remove it herself.
Having finished her thoughts, Silvia smiled gently. “The wound is healed. I’m just tired...”
“Ah...”
“Can I go in and sleep? I’m sleepy.”
Silvia stretched her whole body, trying to act casual. Adele lifted her head from her lap and slowly sat up.
“Should we sleep together for the first time in a while?”
“No. You’re going to text with Jihyeok, aren’t you? The light might keep me awake.”
“Is that so...? Okay. Aren’t you going to eat?”
“No. I’ll fix something when I wake up. I’m going in now?”
Getting up, Silvia ruffled Adele’s hair and quickly retreated to her room.
Adele was very worried about Silvia. The way she subtly avoided eye contact was one thing, but she always kept her hair tied up at home and now it was down... She had looked it up online earlier, and it said that when someone’s eyes keep moving, it means they’re uncomfortable or anxious. The events at the Grand Canyon must have been far more grueling than she imagined.
Touching the fox necklace around her neck while texting Jihyeok, Adele waited until she thought Silvia was asleep, then picked up a citrus-scented candle. She wanted to place it in her room.
Lighting the candle, Adele moved silently on tiptoe and very carefully opened the door to Silvia’s room. Not even a creak. It seemed like she could pull off a perfect infiltration.
Silvia was lying on her side, sleeping as quietly as a mouse. I should buy a chocolate mousse cake for her to eat when she wakes up. Adele stepped inside and set the candle on the nightstand. As she turned to leave, her eyes fell on the area around the back of Silvia’s neck. The light red hair that reached down her back, covering her neck. She was curious why Silvia kept touching it. It was an area she usually never touched, yet today Adele had seen her do it more than ten times.
After deep internal debate, Adele rose onto her tiptoes and slowly approached. Silvia’s hair was pinned under her waist—if she tossed and turned, it would pull and hurt. Adele should pull it free. Having made up an excuse, she reached out. The moment her hand slipped between Silvia’s silky locks—
“Adele.”
Silvia, who Adele thought was asleep, called her name in a low, sunken voice.
“Eek!”
Startled out of her wits, Adele fell backward and landed hard on her bottom. Despite the stinging pain, she scrambled up and asked, “You... you weren’t sleeping yet...?”
“No.”
“Why...?”
“I was trying to sleep. What are you doing right now?”
Silvia asked without even turning over. The atmosphere felt somehow intimidating.
“I... I brought a citrus candle. I thought it would help you feel refreshed when you woke up...”
“Really? Thanks. Now that you mention it, there is a nice subtle scent... Is it grapefruit?”
“Yes...”
“Why did you touch my hair?”
It felt like an interrogation. Tense, Adele offered the excuse she had prepared.
“It’s just... your hair looked uncomfortable... so I was trying to arrange it...”
At those words, Silvia turned to face Adele directly.
“Is that all?”
“Actually... you kept touching the back of your neck, so I got curious... and wanted to check...”
“The back of my neck... There’s really nothing there... If you want to see, you can look. Or should I show you myself?”
Silvia’s bold gamble worked perfectly.
“Ah, no... It’s okay. My curiosity has completely disappeared...”
“By the way, I was just about to fall asleep and you woke me up?”
“I’m sorry...”
Silvia seemed especially strange today. Touching each other’s hair was something they did often. But look at Silvia’s eyes right now. They were sharp like the villain in a horror movie. It definitely wasn’t because her drowsiness had vanished and she was angry... Overwhelmed by the pressure, Adele unconsciously backed away.
“I’ll be going now...”
“Lie down next to me.”
“Huh...? No... I have things to do...”
“You said let’s sleep together? Hurry up and lie down.”
“I-I’m going to turn the brightness and volume all the way up and watch a three-hour video... You said you might not be able to sleep because of the phone light, but if there’s noise too, do you think you’ll sleep properly? I don’t think so...”
At Adele’s innocent attempt to dodge, the corners of Silvia’s mouth lifted.
“Aren’t you overdoing it a bit?”
Her atmosphere had softened considerably. Relieved, Adele let out a deep internal sigh. Then she continued.
“Can... can I go back now...?”
“No.”
“...Then, should I stay here...? Just for about three minutes... No more than that...”
“I’m joking. You can go.”
“Okay...”
Adele hurriedly tried to leave Silvia’s room. But—
“Adele.”
When Silvia called her in that same voice again, she froze.
“Did you call me...?”
“You’re like a little sister to me. You know that, right?”
“I do...”
“I could give my life for you.”
Why this sudden confession? The timing was too suspicious. Still, it made her happy that Silvia would say such a thing. With much of her fear gone, Adele replied.
“Me too. But please don’t say such scary things.”
“The part about being able to give my life?”
“Yes...”
“Got it. I’ll refrain from now on. I’m really going to sleep now, okay?”
“Sleep well...”
Adele bowed her head and returned to her room, flopping down onto the bed. It felt like all the strength had drained from her legs and her entire body. Why had Silvia’s mood changed so much? Maybe she was still sensitive from the tremendous ordeal? Or perhaps it was because she had used up almost all her Aether energy and felt troubled. She hoped this state was temporary... Since she was worried, she would have to ask Jihyeok tomorrow what had caused Silvia to become like this.