Chapter 36
“Min-ah. Let’s eat dinner.”
“Mm.”
After Gyeong-rok-ii-hyeong and I had put our relationship back in order, everything between us went on as normal.
No—I wanted to believe it was still normal.
We ate, we talked, we passed the day in the ordinary rhythm of life, yet an awkward tension kept drifting between us.
That said, I couldn’t be the one to bring up Gyeong-rok-hyeong first.
Min-ah hadn’t, either.
“So today, the tea… ah… never mind…”
Even when she was chatting softly about work, the moment Gyeong-rok-hyeong’s name seemed about to slip into the conversation, she would shut her mouth again.
I didn’t ask, either.
What she thought of him… or what she wanted to do…
Or even what she thought about our wedding, which was only just around the corner.
I was afraid she might say something different from what I wanted to hear.
To be honest, I was afraid she’d choose him over me.
I’d said I’d erased it, that I couldn’t bear to look anymore, but I still couldn’t forget the sex scene between Gyeong-rok-hyeong and Min-ah.
...The coquettish expression I’d never once seen on her face, the sultry moans...
I had never imagined Min-ah could ever make that kind of face.
She hadn’t been a stone wall or anything, but she’d never really shown me a satisfied look, either.
“Huuuu...”
“What? You hate doing the dishes that much? Huh?”
When I saw Min-ah glare at me playfully, I lifted my fist.
“Rock!”
Min-ah quickly spread her hand flat, thrust it toward me, and then dashed off to the bed, laughing.
...If I’d only been a little less careless, maybe I would have comforted myself that Min-ah had gone back to being her usual self.
“Seo Min-ah, let’s do rock, paper, scissors ag—”
My feet stopped where they were, even though I’d been smiling as I walked toward her.
The Min-ah who had still been smiling when I entered the bedroom had gone quiet in an instant.
I shut my mouth too and quietly headed for the sink.
“Hooo...”
I let out a sigh so softly she wouldn’t hear it.
Should I just ask once? ...If she really likes him, if that’s why she’s disappointed now?
I shook my head at once.
There was no need to go out of my way to start another fight.
I wet the scrubber and squeezed dish soap onto it.
Even while I washed the plates, the image of his final expression kept rising in my mind.
It’s my fault, isn’t it.
I asked something I shouldn’t have... and Min-ah got angry, and things between her and Gyeong-rok-hyeong fell apart.
Should I apologize? ...What would I even say?
That I’d been too greedy? Or... that I wanted him to take Min-ah again?
I shook my head hard.
“I’m insane.”
My mouth said I was crazy, but my heart wouldn’t stop pounding.
If I apologized... maybe Gyeong-rok-hyeong would let it slide?
...Should I buy him a drink and go see him?
Ugh... It had only been a few days since I last saw him, and already I was hesitating at the thought of how awkward it would be.
When I finished the dishes and went into the bedroom, Min-ah was lying down and looking at her phone.
Who was she texting?
Her fingers kept moving without pause.
“Min-ah. Who are you texting so hard?”
“Hm? Ah... someone from work contacted me.”
As soon as she answered, she put the phone away and smiled at me.
Something stung in the corner of my chest.
Why did she cover her phone like that...?
And with that ache came a sudden surge of arousal, too. I moved closer to Min-ah and kissed her, sliding a hand around her waist.
“Mmm... mmm... chu… lick… smooch...”
It felt like the first kiss we’d shared in a long time.
The moment my tongue slipped in, Min-ah slowly closed her eyes. When I tugged up her T-shirt, a black bra came into view.
“Hng...”
Thump. Thump. Thump.
...I remembered the way he’d held Min-ah.
I think she wore this bra then, too.
Was it some kind of battle lingerie for her, in her own way?
“Oh? Oppa, are you really turned on?”
Seeing my cock jutting up as if it would tear through my underwear, Min-ah covered her mouth and let out a little laugh.
“Min-ah. Give me head.”
“Hehe. Ask nicely, and I’ll do it specially.”
With a teasing smile, she used one hand to stroke my cock.
“Please. ...Min-ah. Give me head.”
“Should I do it specially because I’m your oppa?”
When I pulled my underwear down, the suffocating tightness of my mood vanished all at once.
As my cock sprang free, Min-ah let out a small laugh.
Then she wrapped her hand around the base and began to move it slowly.
“Hee. Seeing how turned on you are makes me want to tease you.”
“Wh—what are you talking about?”
I was in no position to waste time, but Min-ah didn’t look nearly as desperate.
Still holding the base and stroking me leisurely, she opened her mouth and took me in.
“Mmm... uuh... mm... ”
As she worked her tongue inside her mouth and kept stimulating me, my sphincter clenched before I even realized it.
I was losing my mind. The sensation was definitely different from the first time.
“Mmm... mmm... uuh... mm...”
Min-ah went on giving me a relaxed blowjob.
I knew I shouldn’t, but watching her mouth move over me made me think of Gyeong-rok-hyeong again.
The image of Min-ah taking his huge cock with difficulty, making those strangled little sounds.
“Ah—! W-wait! You should tell me before you start... You did this before, too...”
“S-sorry, Min-ah.”
I wrapped my arms around Min-ah’s shoulders as she turned her face away, looking a little sulky.
Gently stroking her head as she drew in a soft breath, I said, “Min-ah.”
“Mm?”
Should I ask? I didn’t hesitate for long.
“Should I talk to Gyeong-rok-hyung again?”
“...Talk about what?”
Her voice had gone cold in an instant, and my heart dropped with it.
Had I brought up something I shouldn’t have?
To avoid upsetting her, I massaged her shoulders carefully as I spoke.
“...If it’s okay with you, I just don’t want it to end like this.”
“Huuuh.”
Her indifferent tone made my pulse race for no reason at all.
“...If you want to, then do whatever you want.”
“Huh?”
I was surprised by how calmly she’d given permission.
Min-ah lifted her head and looked into my eyes.
“If you want to... then you should.”
She turned her head away sharply, as if annoyed, and continued, “I like doing it. ...Doing whatever you want is... good, too...”
Her voice trembled little by little at the end of each sentence. I sucked in a deep breath.
“It’s... fine, but... don’t regret it, okay...? You know what I mean...”
If you asked whether I’d thought it through after hearing her words, honestly... not for very long.
Afraid she might change her mind, I hurriedly took her hand.
“I’ll never... regret it.”
“Hm... And if Gyeong-rok oppa... no, Team Leader... says you have to give me up?”
My heart thudded. Give Min-ah up...?
I didn’t have that option.
“Min-ah. I’ll never give you up.”
My answer seemed to please her, because Min-ah smiled faintly.
“Okay. You’re the one who has to contact him?”
I was uneasy. But at the same time, I felt strangely steadied.
Min-ah wouldn’t leave me. Never.
If you asked what I believed in, I wouldn’t have had a proper answer. I only believed in Min-ah.
***
“It’s been a while.”
Gyeong-rok-hyung looked as unhurried as ever, even after all this time.
He lifted his coffee cup and wet his throat, but there wasn’t a single thing about him that looked different from the man I’d seen a week ago.
“...We saw you yesterday, Team Leader.”
Min-ah, who had come to work as usual every day, asked innocently, as if she had no idea what he meant.
I couldn’t hold back a snort of laughter, and Gyeong-rok-hyung shed some of his usual gravity as he went on.
“Right. I meant it’s been a while since the three of us met together.”
The mood lightened. If it was now, maybe hyung would listen to my request?
“I thought the three of us wouldn’t have many chances to meet up together.”
The atmosphere froze in an instant.
...Does hyung not want to sleep with Min-ah anymore?
Why...? Min-ah is... the most beautiful woman in the world to me, and objectively, she wouldn’t lose to anyone either...
“If my guess is right, then I don’t have anything more to say.”
This time, he didn’t lift his coffee cup. Instead, he looked back and forth between Min-ah and me.
“If you came here to persuade me, then there’s no need.”
“Hyung... I... this...”
The sound of my own heartbeat rang in my ears.
How could I persuade him?
“I’m... rougher than you think. But when I hold Min-ah, I can’t completely work through my desire.”
Seeing the bitter smile on his face, I felt a little relieved.
At a time like this... wouldn’t hyung side with me?
I dropped to my knees at once.
Fortunately, there was no one else around, so the only people who saw my pathetic display were Min-ah and hyung.
“Hyung. ...Min-ah and I have already talked things through. If it’s what you say, I’ll... do anything.”
“Oppa...”
“No. You two can’t.”
Hyung’s answer was short.
I lost my words for a moment.
Min-ah had frozen too, unable even to lift her head.
Glancing back and forth between us, hyung slowly continued, “You two are being reckless. You won’t be able to endure it.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Min-ah bowed her head and sank to her knees.
Before I could stop her in shock, she went on.
“It’s not... that I don’t love oppa. But... if it’s for oppa...”
The fact that Min-ah had followed me and knelt down too was shocking. Did she want this just as badly as I did? Or... was it really for my sake?
Realizing it was my turn, I lowered my head and spoke.
“Please... no, please, hyung.”
“Do you really think this is something to beg for?”
Hyung’s question didn’t last long. My heart was hammering, because I felt like we were already halfway over the line.
“Please... Gyeong-rok-hyung...”
Gyeong-rok-hyung, who had held out against our persistence, gave a nod.
“Then promise me two things.”
He stopped there. Min-ah and I held our breath as we waited for him to continue.
“First, that I’ll have control over Min-ah.”
Min-ah and I both nodded at the same time.
“Second... that you’ll never regret it. ...I’m rougher than you think.”
Min-ah and I turned to look at each other.
And then, without either of us needing to speak first, we both nodded.
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