Upkeep
There was no point dragging it out, and now that I'd heard Lee Hyesun through, nothing left to hesitate over. I'd call Kim Do-hoon later, on the way to Hyunji's hospital.
"……Mm. But who came by?"
"A lawyer. Kim Do-hoon."
"Ah. That lawyer with the outrageous sex drive?"
"Mm. Aside from liking breasts a little too much, I didn't really get that from him. I like breasts too."
As I said it I idly worked my fingers over Lee Hyesun's breasts, and she let out a moan and burrowed deeper into my arms.
"Ahh…… Did you see the one beside him? Yeong— Yeong-hee, was it?"
"I did."
"……D-do you like that type, too……?"
"No. Not exactly. It's just—if someday we get older, and I change like that, or you do, I'll still hold you. Isn't it the same idea?"
"……Ah……."
"Why? If I get old and fall apart, are you going to go find yourself some younger man?"
At the tease, Lee Hyesun—already melting into a daze—swallowed hard, stroked my cheek, and whispered.
"……That'll never happen……. I understand that lawyer now. I can't leave you……."
"Of course, I'd still like it if you exercised. I'll be doing the same."
"……I will……. A-and…… I'm going to take even better care of myself from now on……."
"I know. You already take incredible care of yourself."
"……Ahhnn……."
"……This care you get. How hard do you have to work at it to actually stay like this?"
I meant it. There wasn't a single thing I could find fault with—no trace of anything a surgeon had overdone. Even the slight softness of her flesh only settled more warmly into my palms. Lee Hyesun's body ran in a different direction from Rahee's or Hyunji's, so they were hard to compare, but it was a truly beautiful body. Beautiful enough that I wanted to keep touching it.
"Th-thank you……. Sometimes I wondered if I was overdoing it……. It was worth going so diligently……."
I watched her smile softly under my hands, then murmured the question. If even Lee Hyesun thought it was excessive, it was no small thing.
"……Is it very expensive?"
"It does add up. A little under a hundred million won a year, I should think."
"……A hundred million?"
I'd heard of it before, in the celebrity pieces that surfaced now and then—the aesthetic bills the very top actresses paid, top-tier full-body care running into the thousands. And the result of that care was that a leading actress well into her early fifties could still land cosmetics commercials over younger actresses and idols. Lee Hyesun's body made it plain enough that she was receiving something in that league. I just hadn't expected the hundred-millions.
"You're cute when you're surprised. Why? Do you want it too?"
"No. Less for me. I'm thinking about the others."
"Ah. You want the other girls looked after as well? You're so sweet, the way you consider them. Thinking of them before yourself……. It's attractive."
"……Yeah. But a hundred million a year is a bit more than merely burdensome."
"They'd be beside themselves. Though Hyunji's probably already handling it, don't you think?"
"What?"
"Hyunji gets it too. And even though she's my daughter, she isn't the sort to keep every good thing for herself. She wants to, sometimes. Strange, isn't it?"
"I know. She has a possessive streak, but she doesn't really act on it. At first I thought there might be some jealousy or obsession in her. That possessiveness seems smaller than I expected."
"Unusual, right? That's because of me."
"Because of you?"
"Mm. We had plenty, so I gave her plenty—but I was afraid that raising her that way would turn her into someone with no restraint at all. I didn't want her spoiled like the other heirs of the great conglomerates. I wanted to teach her to endure a little, to hold back……."
"……And even when she held back, she still ended up with what she wanted?"
"That's right. So the wanting shows, but since it becomes hers eventually anyway, you could say the obsession never quite takes hold. I didn't think she'd be that way with you, too."
So that was it. Even so, a desire on Hyunji's scale was cute, if anything. But slipping so naturally into talk of Hyunji left me with that strange feeling again. It was exactly the sort of pillow talk a couple with a child might have.
"……This feels strange."
"……M-me too, a little……. Should we really stop talking about Hyunji……?"
"Still, Hyunji's the one who brought us together."
"Even so……. It's almost like you're Hyunji's father……."
"……That's a bit much."
Lee Hyesun's eyes met mine then, and she broke into a sheepish smile. I smiled back, awkward, until it occurred to me we really ought to be getting out of bed.
"Shall we wash up? What do you want to do about breakfast?"
"……A-actually, I'm running late……."
"When's the meeting?"
"……Nine……."
I snatched up my phone. Somehow it was already past eight-twenty. I shot upright in alarm, and Lee Hyesun, still curled in my arms, looked at me with open regret—but I hurried her up all the same.
"You should have said something sooner. We were taking it so easy I thought the meeting was this afternoon."
"……I wanted to stay like this a little longer……."
"Come on. I really hate being late like this. Pull yourself together. If you can't get up, I really will wash you myself."
"I-I can get up……. Kyaa!"
I moved in on her where she was still dawdling in the bed, slid both hands under her arms, and hauled her up. She came up limp, let out a cute little scream, and clung to me—but I wasn't fool enough to miss that this much was an act.
"Hurry. Quickly."
"……We could take our time……."
"Shower, makeup, and getting to the office, all inside forty minutes? How were you planning to manage that? You'll be late even if you rush."
"A-at my level, being on time is actually the rude thing……. And I have to stop by the house……."
"……I know that, which is exactly why you need to hurry even more. I'll stop by Hyunji's hospital. You go to the company."
"……Hmph. Fine……. What about your breakfast?"
Even now she was trying to feed me, every bit of it saying she wanted one more minute with me. In the morning she was somehow cuter than Hyunji. A laugh slipped out of me as I gathered the clothes scattered around and answered.
"I'll eat with Hyunji. Are you all right skipping breakfast, though?"
"Mm, for a day……. Are you really all right? Y-you used up so much energy……."
"I hardly eat, honestly. These days there are so many people looking after me that I do, but."
"……Just move in. I'll make sure you never have to worry about things like that."
"Isn't this the fun part?"
"……Then should I not……?"
I wasn't sure what she was offering not to do. I only smiled and gave her backside a light smack.
"Eek."
"Don't. I want to do it again."
"Ah, th-that—me too……."
"I know. I'll use the outer bathroom. A place this size has to have at least one more, right?"
"Ah, there should be one in the bedroom toward the entrance."
"Right. Hurry. Quickly."
"……I said I know……. To think I'd live to this age and get scolded by someone who isn't my mother……."
"Ah, Hyunji's grandmother. I met her once."
"An unusual woman, isn't she? She handed everything she'd built over to me and kept only that little theater troupe. She dotes on it terribly."
"It was nice to see, though."
"She and I never quite fit. The arts were something I just couldn't understand. Making money suited me better."
We chatted while I gathered the clothes and Lee Hyesun tied up her hair, then split off toward separate bathrooms. Showering together was something I was looking forward to myself, but I didn't think I could hold out. Tease her once more and she would truly be late for the meeting.
……Let's see what else it's done this time.
As I hurried toward the bathroom, a faint burning tightness crept up my throat. Lee Hyesun's eyes on me hadn't shown anything strange, so I couldn't be sure; she'd probably written it off as the difference between night and morning. But I could already feel a change in myself.
Height.
My line of sight sat a little higher. Walking, my foot met the floor about two centimeters sooner than I expected. Still, I'd been through this once before, and by the time I reached the bathroom I was growing used to it. The moment I stepped inside, I turned a quiet gaze on the me in the mirror.
……Hard to tell.
I couldn't really make out my face. Lately I'd been sleeping so well that the dark circles, the blemishes, my complexion—none of it had any room left to change. I turned the shower on in a hurry and twisted this way and that, looking myself over. Nothing major jumped out. My backside? It seemed to sit a little higher. Then, just as I stepped toward the shower, a strange scent caught at the tip of my nose—one that hadn't been coming from the bathroom, or from Lee Hyesun.
……A smell?
Come to think of it, everyone had been talking about smells lately. Without quite meaning to, I glanced around, set both hands on the crown of my head, drew them down toward my face to sniff, then checked under my arm.
"……."
The ugly little scene in the mirror made me flush with shame even though I was alone. It felt as if someone were watching. But a moment later the scent caught in my palm made my mouth fall open on its own.
……Fruit. No……. What kind of smell is this……?
Something sweet was coming off my body. Nothing sharp or foul about it at all. It was like some tropical fruit, and fresh on top of that. It didn't make any sense, but what was I supposed to do about it?
From what they've said, it's been like this for a while.
How many people actually knew the smell of their own body? Maybe I was only noticing it now because holding Lee Hyesun had made it stronger. That, at least, was a relief. I knew I'd have nothing to say if someone asked what cologne I wore and I didn't know—but if I simply told the truth, I had a feeling I could get away with it. I let out a sigh of relief and stepped slowly under the stream.
"Whew."
The hot shower seemed to clear my head a little. Only now did the hotel room really register. A living room and a reception parlor vast enough to belong in a drama, and an enormous square dining table besides. It was something, all right. So this was the kind of suite I'd only ever heard about.
One room to a whole floor of the hotel. Impressive, sure.
And that was as far as it went. It looked luxurious, and the spotless upkeep was pleasant enough, but the room felt like far too much for two people to tumble around in. A motel with nothing but a bed, or an ordinary hotel room, would probably set the mood better. Easier to focus on each other, too. It was so big it felt distracting.
"Oh, you're out?"
Lee Hyesun came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her wet hair, smiling shyly at me. Whether from embarrassment or the warmth of the shower, her bare face was flushed pink, and it was quite a sight.
"Yeah. You're going to do your makeup, right?"
"Mm. It won't take long. It's a shame. I wanted to stay longer."
"Me too. Next time we'll take it slow."
"……Next time, will you come to my house?"
"Mm, that would be nice. Or my place would be fine, too. It might be too small for you, though."
"……N-no. I'd love that……."
She started to say something else and closed her mouth again, and I let out a small laugh. I didn't need her to finish to know what it was.
"There's really nothing to it."
"……Even so. I'm curious how you live."
"Don't expect too much. The bathroom here might be prettier. And I know it's hard for you to make the time, so don't push yourself. I'm not going anywhere."
"……Mm……."
I gathered the clothes and sat on the bed to dress, and then something occurred to me.
"……I yanked your blouse yesterday. A button must have come off."
"It's fine. I'll throw a coat over it. I have clothes at the company."
"I'm sorry. I got too worked up yesterday, too."
"Don't apologize. I liked it—I was just as excited. You can tear them anytime. Understand?"
Somewhere along the way her voice had slipped back into the confident Lee Hyesun I knew. In daylight, the mood really did seem to tilt against me. Was it the Special Internal Energy itself? I wondered whether we were going to settle into that pattern for good—her the one who yielded by night and took the lead by day. I couldn't tell yet. It wasn't a bad thing, either.
"All right."
"……Mm. So what are you doing today?"
"I think it depends on how Hyunji's doing. Are you really all right not coming with me?"
"Mm, I want to go too……. But I think she'd rather it was you."
"Even so. She'll want to see her mom."
"……She'll probably want to see you more. After what she went through, you'll be a greater comfort than her mother."
"……I'll look her over carefully and call you. If she's having a hard time, I'll comfort her in my own way before I leave."
"I'm counting on you……. Thank you……."
"Don't mention it. Take your time and come out when you're ready."
"Can't you stay here?"
In the mirror, Lee Hyesun's eyes were fixed straight on me as she patted a puff against her face.