#16 Dizzy Cohabitation Life (3)
Nayae spent her days from morning till night at the cram school. Seohyun hadn't realized it before because they'd spent the previous evening sorting luggage and chatting away the hours. But now, with nothing to do from the moment she woke up until bedtime, Seohyun was already bored after just one day. She'd tried to do some cleaning, but the place was already spotless, with not a corner out of order. The bookshelf held nothing but workbooks, reference books, and English vocabulary lists.
Seohyun, who stuck to showering once in the morning and once before bed, had just finished her evening rinse and was rummaging on the shelf for a towel. Steam billowed thickly through the bathroom, a pleasant haze. "Huh?" She'd assumed there'd be one on the towel rack, but no luck. Living without a second thought was exhausting. There were towels on the outdoor drying rack, but she wasn't sure if they'd dried fully, and dragging a wet one inside meant wiping up footprints—too much hassle. Wanting to dry off before her body cooled, she opened the mirror-fronted bathroom storage cabinet. Thankfully, it was stacked with neatly folded towels.
That's when something caught Seohyun's eye in the corner of the shelf. She pulled out the hidden object. She knew she shouldn't snoop through someone else's things, but the silhouette peeking out had piqued her curiosity. A purple silicone dildo. It had a suction cup at the base for sticking to walls or floors. Seohyun's mouth fell open. For the innocent Nayae to secretly own a toy like this—it was huge. Almost as thick as a baby's arm. She stared at it with troubled eyes, the oversized thing wobbling pendulously instead of standing firm.
She held it up against her own taut, eleven-pack abs. This whole thing fits inside her? Maybe Nayae looked cute but was the type with raging libido. No matter how she looked at it, this wasn't beginner size.
-Slosh, slosh. She gave it a playful shake, and it writhed back with frightening, elastic vigor. Strange thoughts bubbled up unbidden. She pictured Nayae sticking it to the bathroom wall, shaking her hips against it.
"Hah... what am I even thinking."
She shook her head to dispel the notions, but they clung like the first time she'd stumbled into a porn site and watched the adult videos— that bizarre throbbing wouldn't quit. A lewd mood lingered. What face did Nayae make when she used it? What sounds did she make as she felt good?
"Maybe I should try it once..."
Using it would mean something that had touched Nayae's precious place would enter her own. Seohyun realized for the first time how perverted she could be. Maybe it had just been dormant without the right trigger. After agonizing for a while, she returned the dildo to its spot. No matter how she spun it, using someone else's thing without permission was wrong. And Nayae was her benefactor, offering her home after hearing about her predicament.
She roughly patted herself dry with a towel and flopped onto the sofa, hiding her unsettled feelings.
-Beep beep beep beep beep.
The password chime at the front door rang out as if on cue. It had only been a day since she'd arrived at Nayae's place, but what if the stalker had already tracked her down? If the person opening that door was him, not just her but Nayae would be in danger too. She fiddled with the stun gun on the table as the door slid open and Nayae walked in. Seohyun let out a discreet sigh of relief and greeted her warmly. A relief in more ways than one.
"Welcome back?"
"Yeah. Must've been boring alone at home. Sorry, I crash here too, so there's really nothing to do."
"No, it's nice to relax without worries for once."
Nayae kicked off her shoes at the entryway, set down her heavy backpack, and placed a paper bag on the small table in front of the sofa.
"What's that?"
"There's this amazing cake shop right by the academy. Picked one up. It's so good."
Cake at 10:30 p.m.? Seohyun flinched inwardly. She wasn't exercising much as it was—if she ate late-night snacks, she'd balloon up.
Nayae shrugged off her outer clothes, got comfy, and plopped down beside Seohyun. The scent of outside air and the chill of cooled evening clung to her. She pulled out two individually wrapped cake slices and forks from the bag, offering one.
"Let's eat together. You're not on a diet or anything, right?"
Seohyun prepared a polite refusal to avoid hurting Nayae's feelings after she'd gone out of her way. But the moment Nayae opened the box, conflict hit hard. Cinnamon-dusted apple cream cake and layers of crepe cake. The sweet, fresh whipped cream aroma wafted up without even needing to lean in.
"I am dieting, but..."
"Huh? You're already so skinny, Seohyun. Any more and you'd look malnourished."
Nayae's cold hand wrapped around Seohyun's wrist. Maybe cooped up at home had made her appreciate it, but the chill felt refreshing and nice. Nayae was always so casual with skinship, which made it awkward for Seohyun—especially since Nayae seemed oblivious.
"Sorry. Didn't mean to make you worry. Should I toss it?"
"No, just one slice should be fine."
As Nayae started repacking, Seohyun hurriedly stopped her and grabbed a fork. Ignoring cake right in front of her was rude. Nayae beamed happily at the sight and used the side of her fork to cut a small piece.
"Good call."
Seohyun found herself staring blankly at Nayae as she brought the tiny portion to her mouth. The bathroom discovery made her hyper-aware. She wished she hadn't seen it.
"What?"
"N-nothing."
Nayae noticed the lingering gaze and giggled as if tickled. Her pale neckline and soft-looking chest. Seohyun quickly looked away, stabbing her fork into her own cake.
2.
"Where is this place?"
To avoid provoking him, Yuchan chose polite formal speech. There were ways to slip handcuffs, but doing it without the other noticing was tricky. Yuchan subtly worked his wrists, listening for any chain rattle, biding his time.
"A pl-place only I kn-know about."
The stalker had a knack for grating on nerves with that unpleasant laugh. He dragged a chair forward and sat facing Yuchan. Aside from a portable lantern at his feet, it was pitch black—not your standard parking lot. There was still room for talk. Yuchan calmly checked his Black Box.
But he couldn't read it.
There were only two cases where Yuchan couldn't read a Black Box: someone completely unconscious, or someone who'd killed before. This guy was clearly aware, so it had to be the latter. How had the cops let a dimwit like this roam free killing people? Yuchan felt disdain for the police. Just like his father had said, killers' Black Boxes became turbulent swirls of muddy colors, unreadable. Yuchan's own was vaguely rendered as an inorganic white canvas, but even he couldn't read it properly. He'd never seen a non-living Black Box symbol in anyone else. No data, no analysis.
His biggest weapon was sealed.
The near-miraculous persuasiveness Yuchan wielded relied heavily on piercing human essence via the Black Box.
"Who told you that?"
"The guy wh-who told me a pest like y-you was sticking to my Seohyun."
Without warning, the stalker smashed a monkey wrench into Yuchan's forehead.
-Thwack!
"Guh!"
The heavy impact rattled his brain. Vision shook; he felt the flesh on his forehead tear. He'd seen the slow swing coming, but dodging from this position was impossible. Maybe his skull was cracked. Yuchan inwardly clicked his tongue and shook his head. Rookie hostage-handling. Better to instill fear slowly, corner the mind, than sudden violence. Crude intimidation lacked artistry—even a seven-year-old could do it.
Blood trickled down from his forehead, blurring his sight.
"D-does it hurt?"
"Yes, it does."
The stalker looked baffled at Yuchan's overly calm response. Forehead bashed with a wrench, blood flowing, yet no excitement in his voice. Like facing a patient with congenital analgesia.
"Usu-usually they beg for mercy. Y-you've got some guts."
"Doesn't seem like you'll let me go."
Pleased with the answer, the stalker cackled and sat back down.
"If y-you hadn't eyed Seohyun, we could've been g-good friends, y'know?"
"Mind if I ask why you've locked me here?"
"You're a huge trial to my-my love. Y-Yuchan told me. Said an obstacle would come to disrupt my noble, pure love."
"Seems like a misunderstanding. I don't even know who Seohyun is."
"Don't l-lie!"
This time, a full-force wrench flew past Yuchan's ear. Pain like his earlobe was ripped. A slight head tilt had saved half his face from being pulped. Throwing that at a person marked him non-normal already. The shrill clang of metal on cement echoed in the underground lot.
"Th-think I don't know you're after Seohyun? Sh-she's small and weak. I-I have to protect her! Y-you were lurking around her place!"
Foam flecked his lips as he ranted, twisting his already ugly face worse. Yuchan clamped his mouth shut. Fighting fire with fire against an agitated foe was foolish. As Yuchan stayed silent, the stalker shuffled over to retrieve the wrench.
"Who is this person telling you about me?"
"N-none of your business!"
"You're gonna kill an innocent citizen based on one guy's word?"
"H-he made worthless me feel special."
"Special?"
"Y-yeah. I realized too late I'm a psychopath. I'm chosen—able to kill without guilt."
The familiar phrasing made Yuchan struggle to hide a smirk. Had his dead father's ghost possessed the guy? Even Yuchan, who scoffed at the occult, half-seriously pondered it. The picture emerged: someone had pumped up this human trash, who'd lived as scum. Filling fragile self-esteem with murder and superiority.
"Psychopath, huh? Impressive. How many have you killed so far?"
"Heh heh! With you, th-three."
Boosted by the flattery, he started bragging. Thirsty for recognition. Yuchan decided to dig there.
"Three? Won't the cops catch you?"
"F-follow his advice, and n-no way. Dumb cops can't catch a genius serial killer like me."
"Killing three makes you an unprecedented monster."
"Th-that van too—he set it up. I'm chosen."
Even blatant sarcasm sailed over his head. Crime consulting now? With all the consultants out there these days.
"Got me curious. How'd you handle the first two victims?"
Yuchan's eager curiosity scratched the stalker's ego just right. He coughed laughter like an asthmatic, then sobered.
"Pretty sisters. R-raped 'em and killed 'em."
"Oh..."
"Killed the older first, pulled out her uterus, fed it to the little sis. Her contemptuous eyes went empty, broken—pure ecstasy!"
Quite the sadist. Recalling the thrill had him tenting his pants. Poor sisters tormented by this creep... Yuchan silently mourned the faceless pair. Not gonna rape me too, is he? Sudden unease hit. His chafed wrists stung from the futile wriggling. No give. Yuchan sighed.