A Bottle of Dassai
The woman behind the counter bowed as soon as Choi Gyeong-rok and I stepped inside.
“Welcome. Do you have a reservation?”
“No. Do you have a private room for two?”
“Yes, we do. Right this way, please.”
The place didn’t exactly look like somewhere you could show up in tracksuits.
Choi Gyeong-rok was dressed just as casually as I was, yet he strode forward without the slightest hint of hesitation.
I should have at least brought my wallet.
A neatly dressed young woman with a youthful face opened the door for us with a gentle smile.
Choi Gyeong-rok entered naturally and took a seat. I lowered myself awkwardly across from him.
“The A set is excellent here, Min-woo.”
“Ah… then I’ll have that.”
“Two A sets and one bottle of Dassai, please.”
The waitress bowed deeply and left the room.
What exactly is Dassai? Some kind of sake? I thought we were just grabbing a casual drink…
The seat felt unbearably uncomfortable. If I’d known it would be like this, I would have turned down the meal.
“Relax. I’m paying, so don’t worry about it.”
“It’s just… I wasn’t sure if it was okay to accept something this expensive.”
He smiled brightly at my hesitation.
“It’s fine. I’ve been wanting a drink anyway, and it’s not easy to come to a place like this alone, is it?”
A short while later the door opened again. Sushi plates arrived alongside a single bottle of liquor.
The sake inside the clear bottle was far longer and more elegant than a standard soju bottle.
Japanese characters were printed on the neck, but I couldn’t read them.
With practiced movements the waitress set down two small cups and poured the sake.
The clear liquid filled them, releasing a delicate, fragrant aroma.
“…So this is Dassai?”
The question slipped out before I could stop it. Choi Gyeong-rok chuckled.
“Yes. Give it a try. The flavor is quite nice.”
I lifted the cup and tilted it toward the light for no particular reason, then clinked it awkwardly against his.
Honestly, I couldn’t tell much difference in taste. It did seem smoother going down, at least.
“Does it suit your palate?”
“Yes… it’s good.”
I was already starting to feel the alcohol. I forced an awkward smile so he wouldn’t notice, and he refilled my cup.
“Drink comfortably. I don’t hold back when I want to get close to someone.”
“Ahaha… I see.”
Both the sushi and the sake were genuinely delicious. Only then did my thoughts drift to Min-ah, who had probably eaten something quick at home before falling asleep.
“Team Leader…”
“Our titles feel too stiff, don’t they?”
The quiet room made eating in silence feel strange, so I tried to start some small talk. Choi Gyeong-rok smiled softly in response.
“Technically I’m Min-ah’s team leader, not yours. There’s no need to be so formal with me.”
“That’s true, but still…”
He picked up the bottle and poured lightly into my cup. The clear liquor glimmered as it filled the small vessel.
“Call me hyung. I want to be comfortable with you, Min-woo.”
“Hyung…?”
Was that really all right? A hyung who buys expensive sake and dinner… it felt good, but also a little dangerous.
The alcohol was already clouding my judgment. Usually when something feels like it might be crossing a line, it probably is.
“Then… Gyeong-rok hyung.”
“That sounds much better.”
He told me to call him hyung but kept using polite speech himself. Well, it was a drinking setting after all.
“How is Min-ah at the office?”
“She’s an outstanding team member.”
Outstanding? The Min-ah I knew at home… I wasn’t so sure.
“At my age, you learn to read your subordinates more carefully than your superiors.”
He refilled both our cups from the sake bottle and called for another round of the same.
Reading the curiosity on my face, he continued with a calm smile.
“The people who will determine my future aren’t the ones above me. They’re the ones below.”
After emptying his cup, he studied my face for a moment before speaking again.
“I rate Min-ah the highest among the team. That’s also why I scold her more than the others.”
“I see… Pour me another one, hyung.”
The mention of him scolding her made my expression darken without meaning to.
Everyone gets scolded at work. Knowing that intellectually and hearing it from the person doing the scolding are two different things.
“Don’t misunderstand. I don’t scold her because she’s incompetent or because I dislike her. It’s because my expectations for her are so high.”
I poured him a cup in return and received one myself.
Before long we were lightly toasting each time we emptied our glasses.
“It’s surprising. At home she’s completely like a little kid.”
“Women do show that side from time to time.”
Choi Gyeong-rok nodded in agreement and went on.
“Doesn’t that mean you treat her very well? That’s probably why she feels so comfortable with you.”
“Hmm.”
Maybe it was the expensive food and drink filling my stomach after so long. My mood wasn’t bad at all.
“Actually I had to scold her again today. She couldn’t focus during the meeting.”
“Scold her plenty, hyung. Our Min-ah needs to snap out of it.”
He gave a small laugh at my joke.
“She really hasn’t been herself lately. She’s never been the type to lose concentration in meetings before.”
This guy… he was drinking the sake like water. Was he not getting drunk at all?
“Did something happen at home?”
“Ah… not exactly something…”
My head drooped. Was it the alcohol? I barely knew what I was saying anymore.
“We just had a small argument.”
“Couples fight sometimes. Think you can handle another cup?”
I accepted it and drank it down in one go. A burning heat rose from deep inside my chest.
“I was just… a little sensitive. I got ugly and jealous over nothing at all.”
“That’s because you love her. I fought over the same kinds of things when I was younger.”
Just that one sentence from him lifted some of the weight from my heart.
He was someone I’d only met today.
Yet Gyeong-rok hyung seemed to understand every thought running through my mind.
“Min-ah. Min-ah, Seo Min-ah!”
“Ugh… you reek of alcohol! You went out to exercise and came back this drunk?”
When I got home, Min-ah was lying in the exact same position she’d been in when she first crawled into bed.
I set the sushi Gyeong-rok had packed for me on the table and collapsed onto the mattress.
“After exercising I ran into Gyeong-rok hyung. He bought me dinner, so I had an expensive meal.”
“…Who?”
Min-ah frowned, clearly doubting what she’d heard.
“Gyeong-rok hyung. We met at the gym. He offered to buy me food, so I let him treat me somewhere fancy.”
“…Our team leader? You ate with him? And you drank a ton on top of it!”
She pinched her nose at the smell of liquor on my breath and raised her voice.
“I only had a little!”
“That wasn’t a little! I told you not to drink too much when I’m not around, didn’t I?”
Even as she lightly smacked my back in worry, her eyes stayed fixed on my face.
“Sorry, sorry. But I really didn’t drink that much. If you haven’t eaten, have some sushi, Min-ah.”
“…I already ate. I’ll have it for breakfast tomorrow.”
I wrapped my arms around her shoulders and nuzzled my face into her neck.
Her voice had softened, as if her anger had eased. For a moment I thought maybe tonight would be different.
“Min-ah.”
“Mm…?”
The sweet, warm scent of her body wash rose from her skin like soft clouds.
My breath tickling her nape made her twist slightly, a quiet moan slipping from her lips.
Without hesitation I laid her down on the bed.
Through the thin fabric of her pajamas, the weight of her breasts and the soft curve of her hips filled my hands.
Min-ah blinked in surprise at the sudden shift in mood, but soon she slid her arms gently around my neck and parted her lips.
“Huu… huu… haa…”
The wet, heated sounds of our kissing filled the quiet bedroom.
Her breathing gradually grew heavier. Her pale thighs wrapped naturally around my waist.
The timing was perfect in every way.
Normally I would have already been rock-hard, aching to the point of bursting.
But my cock showed no reaction at all. The silence was terrifying.
“Haa… haa… Oppa…”
Min-ah opened her eyes slightly and pressed closer to my shoulder, yet the thing inside my pants remained completely limp, lifeless.
Cold sweat trickled down my forehead.
My mind screamed with desire for her beautiful body, but my flesh refused to respond.
In panic I gripped her breasts more forcefully and sucked hard at her neck, desperately trying to force some reaction.
It made no difference.
Min-ah must have sensed something was wrong. She slowly unwrapped her legs from my waist.
Then she reached down carefully and felt over my pants. The moment her fingers met the powerless shape, her hand froze.
“Oppa… are you tired?”
There was no blame in her voice.
It was pure, gentle concern, yet that single careful question drove the cruelest blade straight into my heart.
“No. It’s just… I think the alcohol is hitting me.”
“Yeah. You drank quite a bit today. Let’s just sleep. Go wash up, Oppa.”
She patted my shoulder softly and turned away.
Her back was breathtakingly beautiful.
But my body remained stubbornly silent.