Chapter 166
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 166
During class, Si-woo fidgeted with the key in his pocket.
It was a small, brass key that Se-hee Noona had handed him without much explanation.
It felt distinctly different from the handcuff key Cheol-jin had given him.
Did it hold some special meaning?
Was it perhaps meant to open an event prop for the group blind date?
Since it was a key, it was undoubtedly meant to open something.
However, nothing specific came to Si-woo’s mind at the moment.
[What’s this in my pocket?]
After some deliberation, Si-woo sent a text to Se-hee Noona during the break.
[I don't know! It’s yours now, so figure it out yourself~]
Se-hee Noona replied curtly, as if something had displeased her.
It seemed she had no intention of giving Si-woo an easy answer.
—Or perhaps she didn't know herself—
* * *
Occasionally, Cheol-jin turned back from his seat toward Si-woo and smiled.
—As expected, it was that inscrutable, sly smile—
After what happened with Aunt Gyu-ri yesterday, Si-woo found it awkward to even look at Cheol-jin’s face.
Even though he had received permission from the man himself, Si-woo still didn't know how to treat a classmate who was the son of the woman he had slept with.
How would it feel if your own mother had sex with your friend?
Could someone really face that friend with a smirk while knowing that?
No matter how much of a past she had or how much she enjoyed such acts, Si-woo felt he could never tolerate a relationship between his friend and his mother.
—Furthermore, Aunt Gyu-ri was a married woman with a husband—
Seul-gi’s name was on the Marriage Pledge.
And Cheol-jin shared the exact same birthday as Seul-gi.
Did Cheol-jin know about the Marriage Pledges their mothers had signed in the past?
With what kind of feelings was Cheol-jin facing Si-woo?
It was Cheol-jin who had first mentioned Seul-gi’s birthday to Si-woo.
'If that's the case, then at least...'
The more he thought about it, the more the sense of discomfort grew within him.
* * *
"Did you have a good talk with my mom yesterday?"
During the break, Cheol-jin approached Si-woo’s desk and struck up a conversation with his usual nonchalance.
"Huh? Oh... yeah... I guess..."
Si-woo avoided eye contact, feeling too embarrassed to look him in the face.
"The camera was off, wasn't it? I wonder if anything happened. Well, I'm sure it was fine~ Hehe."
Cheol-jin spoke with a tone that suggested he suspected something.
He was looking at Si-woo with an expression that seemed to say nothing mattered to him.
The conversation he had with Aunt Gyu-ri while the camera was off was something he could never reveal to Cheol-jin.
Talking about getting married...
Talking about having children...
Provocative and lewd lines that Si-woo himself couldn't distinguish as part of the play or reality...
Aunt Gyu-ri probably believed they were real.
"By... by the way, where did you go yesterday? Didn't you say you had something urgent?"
Si-woo asked, uncomfortably changing the subject.
Cheol-jin stared at Si-woo intently for a moment.
"Ah~ Thanks to your help, Si-woo, I was able to get around to a few places yesterday~"
Cheol-jin spoke with a boastful tone and an expression that suggested there was a story behind it.
"You seemed so busy chasing Seul-gi around. Did you find someone you like more than her? You should take it easy... though I don't know what's going on..."
Si-woo spoke to Cheol-jin while maintaining a slight distance.
"Oh, that? I think I can stop doing that now~ More importantly, did you know Seul-gi skips the magic academy every Wednesday?"
Cheol-jin asked Si-woo with a triumphant attitude, as if exposing a secret only he knew to the world.
"Really? I didn't know. But do I need to know that? Why does it matter if she skips on Wednesdays?"
Si-woo spoke as if he found Cheol-jin’s attitude unpleasant.
"Well... it doesn't really matter if you don't know~ But it’s better to know, isn't it? Between us~ Puhihit!"
Cheol-jin laughed unpleasantly as he spoke.
He always seemed to be enjoying the situation with an excess of composure.
Even while knowing his mother's past...
Even while knowing that past was continuing into the present...
And even while being certain of the influence their mothers' past would have on their respective futures...
Si-woo suppressed the urge to snap back with, "What exactly is 'between us'?" as he watched Cheol-jin return to his seat.
"Oh, right! Are our younger sisters doing well at the magic academy?"
Cheol-jin stopped in his tracks as he was about to return to his seat and asked Si-woo.
Was this a question meant to test him?
The phrase "our younger sisters" made Si-woo feel dizzy, and a cold sweat broke out.
"They're... they're doing fine... Why do you care?"
Si-woo answered, trying his best not to let his agitation show.
"Oh, nothing~ It’s fine if they’re doing well... I wonder if it'll be okay, though...?"
Cheol-jin trailed off, his words heavy with implication.
"Why? What is it? What are you trying to say?!"
Si-woo asked sharply, his eyes widening in sudden anxiety as if growling at Cheol-jin.
To Si-woo, Cheol-jin’s words felt like a threat or blackmail directed at Se-young and Su-a.
Having confirmed the name of the management organization written on the Marriage Pledge, Si-woo could no longer dismiss such words lightly.
The same surge of anger he felt when he discovered evidence of Cheol-jin stalking Se-hee Noona on his smartphone welled up in his chest.
But at the same time, a sense of guilt toward Cheol-jin and his father for violating, desecrating, and taking Aunt Gyu-ri for himself rose within him.
"You remember the day of the parent-teacher meeting at the magic academy on Monday? Remember the rumors I told you that morning before we went?"
Cheol-jin spoke while looking into the air over Si-woo’s shoulder, as if avoiding the glare in Si-woo’s eyes.
"What?!"
Si-woo asked back irritably, racking his brain because he couldn't remember exactly what Cheol-jin was referring to.
"Maybe one of those rumors was actually true... Yeah... It seems that way...!"
Cheol-jin muttered to himself as if savoring the thought, seemingly indifferent to whether Si-woo remembered or not.
With a serious expression, Si-woo struggled to recall the rumors Cheol-jin had mentioned that morning.
"But why are you getting so angry? We're close enough to go to parent-teacher meetings together. I can at least ask that much, can't I!? Who knows? Maybe I'll have business there later and we'll see each other often? Puhaha!"
Cheol-jin laughed, speaking nonchalantly as he hinted at something again.
Despite the ominous feeling, Si-woo couldn't find the words to counter him.
After that, Cheol-jin didn't mention the magic academy again.
"Didn't you tie her up today?"
While eating lunch at the student cafeteria, Si-woo casually asked Cheol-jin about Aunt Gyu-ri.
"Oh~ My mom? That only needs to happen once during the week."
Cheol-jin spoke as if there were some sort of agreement regarding the bondage play with Aunt Gyu-ri.
Though he was curious about the details, Si-woo was beginning to feel exhausted by these thoughts and decided to stop prying.
Whether it was a blessing or a curse, Seul-gi was nowhere to be seen until the academy day ended.
Si-woo felt a sense of aversion, fearing he would be swayed if he met her right now.
* * *
On the way home after the academy.
An inexplicable sense of defeat and gloom...
Added to that, a feeling of humiliation...
Si-woo walked toward home with heavy, trudging steps.
Suddenly, his smartphone chimed with a text notification.
Si-woo took out his phone to check the sender.
It was Se-hee Noona.
[I'm going straight to Shin-bi's house! Make sure you eat well~!]
A text from Se-hee Noona saying she was going straight to Shin-bi Noona’s house, just as she had mentioned in the morning.
[Are you going to sleep there?]
Si-woo asked, just in case.
[Yeah~ Unless something happens, I'm just going to sleep at Shin-bi's, so don't wait up!]
Se-hee Noona replied immediately.
It seemed there would be no change to her plan to stay over at Shin-bi Noona’s.
[Can't you just tell Shin-bi Noona to come over to our house and sleep here? Mom isn't home anyway.]
Si-woo spoke almost pleadingly, feeling somewhat pathetic.
[I told you I want to rest! I can't rest comfortably when I'm with you!]
Se-hee Noona firmly rejected Si-woo’s suggestion.
[Why can't you rest? We can just both relax at home!]
Si-woo made a final, desperate plea.
[What are you talking about? Like that would happen?! I have things to talk about with Shin-bi today, so sleep by yourself!]
Se-hee Noona ignored Si-woo’s desperate entreaty to the very end.
Feeling frustrated for no reason, Si-woo continued walking without replying.
A moment later, his phone chimed again.
Se-hee Noona had sent a photo.
It was a full-body shot of Shin-bi Noona in her academy uniform.
In the photo, Shin-bi Noona was posing cutely, making a V-sign with her fingers and wearing her characteristic warm, eye-smile.
[Shin-bi told me to tell you to have fun playing with her when you meet tomorrow.]
Another text from Se-hee Noona followed.
Si-woo stared blankly at the cute photo of Shin-bi Noona for a moment.
Shin-bi Noona, a beauty by any standard, was shown on the screen exuding the liveliness typical of an Advanced Academy student.
And then, another photo arrived.
It was a photo of Shin-bi Noona’s cleavage, with the buttons of her academy uniform undone.
A single red bruise was captured in the shot, emphasized right between her breasts.
Si-woo stared intensely at the photo, feeling momentarily dazed.
[She says this is a service! Don't be so gloomy!]
Se-hee Noona’s final text conveyed Shin-bi Noona’s message.
Si-woo realized that the deep hickey on Shin-bi Noona’s chest had been left by Se-hee Noona just moments before the photo was sent.
As if he had never been gloomy at all, Si-woo’s cock surged instantly, as if it were about to tear through his pants.