Choi Seola (6)
"Phew..."
It had been a tempestuous night.
Seola, possessed by her obsession with "firsts," had burned with a fiery spirit of challenge, exploring all sorts of positions before finally collapsing in honorable defeat.
I gently pinched the bridge of her nose as she slept soundly, and she let out a soft whine, snuggling closer to me.
They say old habits die hard. I felt like I had only closed my eyes for a moment, yet I was already wide awake.
I could probably skip my morning jog today. If anything, I needed to chug some protein.
Gently stroking Seola's hair as she slept, I decided to savor the lingering warmth for a moment.
As I lay there in bed, listening to the soft rhythm of her breathing, a faint melody began to play in my head.
It certainly wasn't the style of song I usually sang.
What is this? Why is it so embarrassingly sweet?
Was it born from the relief of knowing I was no longer alone in this world?
It was hard to define it clearly right now.
I would only find the answer once I unraveled the melody.
After pressing a light kiss to Seola's forehead—she was still fast asleep—I slipped out of bed and quietly left the room.
As I stepped into the bathroom and got ready to shower, the face reflecting in the mirror felt strangely unfamiliar today.
Until now, I had always worn a mask of some sort.
Wasn't a mask natural for an artist?
Or was I desperately trying to hide a subtly fractured sense of self?
Perhaps those were just fancy words for self-rationalization.
Anyway.
My face looked livelier, and the expression wasn't bad.
I was growing more accustomed to this life. Literally everything about it.
"Cold water is the only way to go in summer!"
The cool water washed away my stray thoughts. As they cleared, the melody I had kept turned down in my mind began to swell in volume.
Recalling the tune from earlier, I began to hum.
~ Mmm, mmm-mmm ↗ ~
It seemed the next song to come out of me would be a sweet love song.
"Seola's going to love this."
"Mmm... Saebyeok?"
She fumbled around the bed sheets.
"Huh...?"
He was gone. Where did he go?
Why was it so hard to open her eyes? Forcing them open, she was greeted by the blinding sunlight filtering through the gap in the curtains.
As she tried to sit up, a sharp throb shot through her lower abdomen.
"Hehehe... I pushed myself too hard."
The weakness in her limbs and the lingering ache were, if anything, welcome sensations.
It still felt like a dream.
"Did he leave because I slept too long?"
She looked around, but there was nothing for her to wear. What should she do?
She decided to wrap herself in the duvet and head out.
"Saebyeok, where are you?"
She managed to hobble out to the living room, but Saebyeok was nowhere to be seen.
A sudden wave of anxiety washed over her.
Her vision blurred, and a lump formed in her throat.
"Uwaah... Where did you go..."
Then, the massive soundproof booth occupying most of the living room caught her eye.
Could he be in there?
She dragged her feet, limping forward.
The duvet dragged on the floor. It was heavy.
It was just a few steps away, but it felt so far. Every movement sent aches shooting through her entire body.
Fortunately, there was a small window on the door.
One step, two steps...
Peering through the small window she had struggled to reach, she saw Saebyeok inside!
Her anxiety vanished instantly, replaced by a rush of pure joy.
"Mean..."
Ah, she really felt like she couldn't survive a single day without him now.
Was this what love felt like?
Through the glass, he was singing with a blissful expression. She wanted to see and hear him up close, but was it okay to open the door right now?
What if she interrupted him?
She hesitated, hovering at the threshold.
Then, she remembered what he had told her.
"...Saebyeok told me to always be honest."
She gently opened the door to the soundproof booth. The moment his voice washed over her, happiness filled her heart.
"Oh? You're awake?"
"Mmh... Did I interrupt you?"
"Of course not!"
He leaped up and approached her, scanning her face. I must look so messy right after waking up! I should have at least washed my face before looking for him. Regret washed over her, and she quickly hung her head.
He suddenly ducked his head down to meet her downward gaze.
"Are you shy?"
Unable to speak, she just nodded. At that, his large hands cupped her face, applying a gentle pressure.
It was her own body and face, yet she found herself lifting her head, guided entirely by his touch.
His eyes were filled with worry. No, that's not it. I'm fine...
"Have you been crying?"
His advice echoed in her head once more.
She couldn't bring herself to lie.
"...I woke up and you weren't there, so I got scared."
"Oh dear... Is that what happened? My bad!"
"N-no, it's not that... Seeing you right in front of me made me so happy that the tears just came out again."
"Oh my... Are your tear ducts acting up?"
"I don't knooow..."
"Come here."
She tried to reach out, but wrapped tightly in the duvet, she could only wriggle. He chuckled and tried to unwrap the blanket, but she tensed up, resisting out of sheer embarrassment.
"Oh ho, resisting, are we?"
"I-I'll go put some clothes on."
"What's the point? I already remember every single inch of you."
"Kyaaaah!"
"You've got great lungs in the morning. Up we go!"
With a swift tug on one end of the duvet, her body spun like a top, leaving her completely naked in an instant.
How on earth?!
In that split second, she was swept up into the air, held firmly in his arms.
No! How did he do that so fast?!
She felt like she was going to die of embarrassment!
"S-S-Saebyeok! It's morning! Okay?"
"Yeah, it's morning. Is there a problem?"
She tried to cover herself with her arms and squeeze her legs together, twisting her body, but his solid arms wouldn't budge.
How was he so incredibly strong?!
The more she struggled, the deeper she sank into his embrace.
"How about now? Feeling a bit better?"
"Yeah..."
"Your body feels weak, and your legs ache, right?"
"Yeah..."
"You probably can't even wash yourself, can you?"
"Yeah... Wait, what?"
"Guess I'll have to wash you."
"N-No! No way!"
"Shall we go, then?"
"P-Put me down! Saebyeok! I mean, honey! I can wash myself!"
"Sorry, can't hear you."
"Liar!"
Washing her naked body required an immense amount of self-control.
If it weren't for the marks left all over her body, I wouldn't have been able to hold back.
Only a beast would torment a girl who could barely walk!
I tried my best to act nonchalant and wash her, but my lower half refused to cooperate.
Seeing this, Seola stared at me blankly. It was humiliating.
She looked apologetic and told me it was okay to do it, but I held back.
If only she hadn't kept glancing down and eventually wrapped her hand around my member!
I could make the cowardly excuse that I would have endured otherwise.
In the end, she took care of it with her mouth.
But seriously... why was she so good at it?!
Oh my God!
Was my willpower really this pathetic?!
Next time, I will definitely...
"Hehehe... That felt good."
Right now, I was blow-drying her hair.
She was kicking her feet and humming, looking so adorable I could die.
I was completely whipped.
"Are you happy?"
"Yes! Saebyeok, is there anything you can't do?"
"I wonder."
"...By the way, am I the first girl whose hair you've dried?"
There it was again. Her obsession with "firsts"!
Just how many firsts did she want to claim?
"Yeah, you're the first."
"Really? But why are you so good at it? Drying long hair isn't easy."
Is she a question assassin now?
This was driving me crazy!
But seriously, it really was my first time, so I felt a bit vindicated.
"It's not much different from drying a Golden Retriever's fur."
"Hmm... Is that so?"
"Just believe me!"
"Ehehehe... I love it!"
"Honestly, you're like a child."
"It's fine since it's you! I'm a woman with absolutely nothing left to hide from you anyway."
"Does... does it really work that way?"
"Yep!"
"Alright, all done."
"Thank you for your hard work~"
She hopped up excitedly, only to wince immediately.
"See? You need to rest today."
"Hehehe... Then can I stay with you today too?"
"What, did you plan on leaving in that condition?"
She twiddled her fingers and gave an awkward smile.
Sigh. I had told her to stop walking on eggshells around me, but I guess old habits die hard.
"Now that I think about it, Seola, we do need to talk."
"W-We do?"
I scooped her up in my arms again. Since I had put an oversized T-shirt on her, she didn't seem as embarrassed as before.
"I can walk, though..."
"Just wait at the dining table. I'll make us some brunch. You're hungry, right?"
"Heavens! You know how to cook too?"
"...Do you think someone living alone wouldn't even know how to make simple meals?"
"Saebyeok, you really are amazing..."
"Just bear with it even if it doesn't taste great."
"Hehehe... I'll love anything you make! I'm so happy! I want to brag to everyone!"
"Sure, go ahead... You're proud of the strangest things."
"No, it's not! It really is amazing!"
"Yes, yes. Please take a seat here."
I lightly toasted some bread in a pan and made scrambled eggs. I decided to throw in some bacon too.
Glancing back, I saw Seola watching me with wide, sparkling eyes.
She looked genuinely ecstatic over a simple brunch whipped up in minutes.
Was I blessed to have met a woman like her?
"Thank you for the food!"
"Sure, eat slowly."
After we finished eating, I brewed some coffee and served it to her.
As we enjoyed our post-meal drinks, we began to learn more about each other.
"Seola, I'm going to ask you a few things, but you don't have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable. Okay?"
"Okay! I won't hide anything from you, Saebyeok!"
"First of all, you don't have to go home today, right?"
"Huh? I live alone."
"Really? Since you just got back from studying abroad, I thought you'd be living with your family. That's unexpected."
"...My older sisters are way too overbearing, so I ran away. For the record, I'm a newbie who's only been living independently for four months."
"You said you have four older sisters... so five sisters in total? What about your parents?"
"Yeah. I have four older sisters... My mother runs a company, and my father is in the US, technically."
Are they separated?
The way she said "technically" caught my attention, so I asked carefully.
"Is only your father in the US?"
"Mmh... My oldest sister is in the US too. But that's just for work, and she doesn't live with him. My father has other families, you see..."
Other families? What does that mean?
"Let's see, how many other wives and children does my father have? If I remember correctly, he has four other wives and seven children..."
I nearly choked on my coffee.
Then, I recalled an article I had read recently about Philip from Airbeer.
Did it say he had eleven wives?
Looking at her expression, she didn't seem to have any resentment about growing up in a single-mother household.
I suppose that was just the way of this world.
"So my oldest sister, my second sister, and I... Oh, our father is Korean-American, so I'm not mixed race."
"I see..."
"My third sister's father is French, and my fourth sister's father is Italian, though I've never actually met them."
The scale of this family was mind-boggling...
So two full sisters and two half-sisters, making five sisters in total.
As she explained her family tree, she continued in a slightly downcast voice.
"But all five of us sisters get along really well... Hehehe."
"Well, that's what matters. Our parents have their own lives, and we have ours. We just have to understand them."
"That's why, you know? I'm going to try my best not to be a burden to you, Saebyeok. And also, I found something I want to do!"
"A burden? Don't say that. Just let go of those thoughts. Anyway, what is it you want to do?"
"Be your manager!"
"...Aren't you already my manager?"
She vigorously shook her head.
"Nooo! A manager with full authority over everything!"
"You mean a chief manager... It's not like I need a whole team of managers right now, though?"
"Because you're going to become someone much greater in the future!"
"I-I see..."
"Hehehe... I'll have to study hard. I should start a company."
Isn't she moving a bit too fast?
This felt exactly like what someone else had done before. Deja vu?
"You want to start an agency? That's no easy task. It takes a lot of money to scale up."
"I have lots of money!"
"...It probably takes way more than you think."
Suddenly, she reached for the seasoning rack on the corner of the table and pulled out the sugar jar, placing it down with a thud.
"The company that makes this sugar belongs to my family. I'm the youngest daughter! I'm also a major shareholder in several of our affiliates!"
Even I knew the brand of this sugar.
AQ Group.
What! She was a diamond spoon?