Thirteen
Thirteen
It was truly the biggest dilemma of my life.
Two women wanting to spend time with me this weekend......
Until recently, I never thought something like this would happen to me, but after meeting Seo Se-na, many things in my life were changing.
"What, did they tell you to come down quickly?"
Did my expression suddenly look serious?
I snap out of my thoughts at Jeong Hae-in's voice.
I was in the middle of talking about when to eat dinner.
"That's not it, anyway, this Saturday?"
"Yeah."
I weigh my options internally.
A long-time colleague vs. a blind date partner who I haven't known long but is close with that colleague.
Meet Ye-seo noona during the day and spend time, then meet Jeong Hae-in for dinner in the evening?
Scheduling that in terms of time is impossible, obviously.
"Why, do you have something on that day?"
Seeing my unusual reaction, Hae-in asks cautiously.
She hasn't seen the message that just came from Ye-seo noona.
I have to choose......
I can't bring myself to speak, having to choose between a woman who genuinely likes me and a colleague who wants to repay a favor.
"I don't have plans yet, but they might come up."
"What is that. Just say you're annoyed if you're annoyed."
Hae-in pouts her lips.
"Ye-seo eon... noona wants to meet this weekend."
"Eonni?"
Because of this human sitting in front of me, the word 'eonni' almost slipped out of my mouth naturally.
"Yeah."
"Wow, that unni must be really into you? If that's the case, just say so. I almost got sulky thinking you were just being lazy."
Colleague, you know as well as I do that as an office worker, it's not great to have to spare precious weekend evening time for a company colleague.
Even if it's a private meeting, it gives me this shitty feeling like I have to do work.
"This hyung-nim can't get in the way of our colleague's youth project. Go have fun."
"We're the same age, you know? And you're not a man, either?"
"Tsk. Someone who knows how to give up themselves for others deserves to be called hyung-nim anytime."
Seeing Jeong Hae-in smiling and confidently spouting bullshit, I finally feel relieved and laugh along with her bullshit.
"Instead, make sure to clear your schedule next week. Got it?"
"Hey, can't we just eat lunch together or something?"
"I told you back then. We have weird rumors about us. If we eat lunch alone together, it'll definitely develop into an office romance."
No, even so, it's a bit much to clear time on the weekend.
While I agree with Jeong Hae-in's words, my theory that I must rest properly at home on the weekend clashes.
But for one day, I guess.
"Sure, let's do that."
"Nice! Let's go down now."
I stand up with Hae-in at her words.
She skillfully brought up the topic of a new drama on OTT this week, and when I said I hadn't seen it, she nagged me to engage in some cultural life, which I cleanly ignored by drinking coffee.
Her voice, speaking happily as we went down, seemed to have lost a bit of its energy, but I didn't point it out and headed to the office while chatting.
*
"Oppa, are you going to keep lying down like this?"
"Yeah."
"Uing. Such a pretty, cute, and lovely younger sister is heading to her part-time job, and you're not going to see her off?"
"It's a 15-minute walk anyway."
Even though I say that, I get up at Se-na's whining as she now naturally enters my room.
Since she's going to work, she didn't put as much effort in as when we went out to buy my clothes, but I nod as I look at Se-na's face, which shines with beauty even with light basic makeup.
I feel like I know why the boss hired her.
"Se-na."
"Yes, oppa."
"I won't be here when you get off work this afternoon, so eat lunch on your own."
"Where are you going?"
"To meet Ye-seo noona."
I walk out to the living room and toward the entrance, telling Se-na as if notifying her.
Was she thinking of doing this and that with me after work?
Se-na's appearance, as if a visual effect of her face cracking into stone was overlaid on it at my words, is quite funny.
"I wanted to go shopping with oppa after work!"
"Sorry, it's a prior engagement. But I don't have an obligation to report to you, do I? We're not dating."
"If I were oppa's girlfriend, it would be innocent even if I kicked your balls the moment you notified me you were meeting another woman."
Fuck.
I think I heard a story a while ago about someone actually doing that.
My thigh muscles seem to contract on their own without me knowing.
"I'm joking. There's no way I'd kick our partner's precious dick."
At Se-na's touch stroking my pants, I think about pushing her forehead away with my finger, but I stop, remembering she has makeup on.
She might have at least put cream on her forehead.
"Anyway, go safely."
"Yes, oppa! Have a good date with unni!"
As Se-na leaves the house like that, the house, which was always noisy while I was there, is very quiet.
Did I ruminate on loneliness alone in this quiet house before Se-na came in?
I originally liked the quiet atmosphere without much thought, but it's a silence that makes me suddenly wonder how the past me endured this quietness.
Ugh-!
Still some time left before meeting Ye-seo noona.
I stretch my body, and since Se-na has started work, I start quickly finishing the piled-up housework.
Fortunately, it's thanks to her suggesting we meet comfortably today without trying too hard like last time.
It's because Ye-seo noona said first that she wanted to just play comfortably without worrying about whether it's a man or a woman or whatever.
Thanks to that, I don't worry about prep time, finish the housework to some extent, wash up lightly, and dress comfortably in a sweatshirt and jeans.
Coming outside, the midday warmth wraps around my body, making me think the time to take out short sleeves will come soon.
Arriving at the meeting place, a busy downtown area where many crowds pass by welcomes me.
Unlike the quiet and atmospheric cafe from before, the place Ye-seo noona called me to today is the center of this downtown area.
"Ah, you're here!"
"Hello, noona. Long time no see."
Ye-seo noona also seemed to have dressed really comfortably, wearing jeans and a peach-colored blouse instead of the suit attire from back then.
"Have you been well?"
"Yes. I've been well. Have you been well, noona?"
"I don't think I've been well because someone was with another woman."
There's a thorn in her words.
I wonder if jealousy is a default option for all women.
Ah, then would Jeong Hae-in also get jealous?
"Where are you planning to go today?"
"There's a place I want to go."
Ye-seo noona holds my hand as if it's nothing.
We held hands and walked around back then too, pretending it was a blind date, but holding hands like this again makes it feel like we've become lovers.
"It's a comic cafe?"
"I like books, so I've been everywhere, but I've never been to a comic cafe."
I've never been to a comic cafe either, so I'm a little excited.
I know she likes books that much since she's a university professor, but it's fresh to hear she hasn't been to a comic cafe.
Since comic books are a type of book, I thought she would have been here at least once.
'Ah.'
As soon as I entered the comic cafe, I felt like I knew why she hadn't been able to come.
There were quite a lot of couples, more than I thought.
Plus, there were private spaces.
Her high self-esteem must have made her not want to come here alone.
"Have a good time~"
We order drinks, pay, and get assigned a room.
We decide to pick our own comic books to read, and I pick a few books to read and head to the room.
Entering through the curtain, Ye-seo noona, who had entered first, was reading a book.
'Romance comics......'
People's tastes are indeed diverse.
I also responded to Ye-seo noona's call today to really have fun.
For some reason, my gaze went to Ye-seo noona's blouse.
"Jin-man, you're here?"
No, it would be fine if it was just my gaze.
Why is the lingerie Seo Se-na wore back then visible through that blouse now?
"Ji, Jin-man, why are you like that?"
Ye-seo noona was flustered when I slapped my own cheek.
"It's nothing."
Because the sex I had with Seo Se-na a while ago overlaps with Ye-seo noona.
Fuck, that bitch Se-na.
If I tell that noona the truth about the imagination I just had, I'd definitely be treated like a pervert, right?
"Oh, you're reading that. I also enjoyed it as a webtoon."
When I came in holding the volume of a webtoon that was running at #1 on the weekly webtoons, Ye-seo noona recognized it and looked happy.
Is she someone who knows how to invest part of her life in leisure?
To hold a title like university professor at that age, she must have been running non-stop.
"Noona, you're reading romance comics."
"Just, I read it when I was young, and it suddenly came to mind."
The clerk brings the drinks and hands them to us.
There was some conversation outside, but in the room we were assigned, only the rustling sound of reading comics quietly could be heard.
Ye-seo noona's appearance, concentrating on the book, looked like seeing a quiet honor student female character concentrating on a book alone, high and aloof.
"Hm? Jin-man, why?"
"Noona, you're going to read more, right?"
"Hmm, what if you say you'll read more?"
The choice returns to me.
Actually, I didn't come out today to read something like comic books.
If this was what Ye-seo noona genuinely wanted to enjoy, I was going to endure it, but it felt a bit wasteful to just sit quietly and spend time like this.
"Let's read just this and go out."
Books are good, but wouldn't it be possible to play a bit more actively rather than something so static?
And I feel a bit restless trying to read books I don't usually read.
"Shall we go somewhere else?"
"Noona, have you been to a game room?"
"Game room? Do you mean a PC bang?"
"Hmm, you haven't been. Let's go together. You can think of it as the arcade where we used to play Tekken, but evolved. It won't be bad."
"Since you say so, Jin-man, shall we go?"
I clear my throat and quickly finish the remaining drink.
And I put on my shoes first, stand up, go out, and wait for Ye-seo noona.
The soft sensation felt in my hand.
I didn't reject that sensation, and noona and I left the comic cafe together.
Like lovers.