Chapter 6
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Crammed Bed and Lotte World Date
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In the end, two grown adults ended up crammed onto a single bed.
We lay there back-to-back, but the space was hopelessly inadequate.
Every time one of us shifted, his hip or back would brush against my waist, then pull away.
Through the thin fabric of my T-shirt, his warm body heat seeped over.
The fine hairs all over my body stood on end.
Even breathing felt risky.
The cramped space was thick with the scent of him fresh out of the shower.
"Still, you can't do that?"
A low voice came from behind me.
"Do what."
"That. Night exercise."
"......"
Crazy bitch.
I yanked the blanket up over my head.
"Ah, fuck. Worrywart much? I'm tired, so I'm sleeping."
After a day packed with tension, exhaustion hit me hard.
The moment I closed my eyes, unconsciousness crashed in.
Snore.
It wasn't on purpose.
I passed out the second my head hit the pillow.
"......"
Sea blinked in surprise.
His steady breathing tickled her ear.
"Wow, he really just conked out. What am I gonna do with Yoon Dojin...?"
Sea bit her lip in frustration.
Her heart was pounding so hard she was scared the vibrations might reach him through their backs, leaving her barely able to breathe.
But the guy in question was already off in dreamland, oblivious to the world.
Still, Sea was tired too, and her eyes started to droop.
As the early morning air grew chilly and her mind began to blur...
A draft snuck through the thin blanket from the rundown apartment's outer walls.
Dojin unconsciously shifted, seeking warmth.
His heavy limbs wrapped tightly around Sea's body.
"......W-what?"
Sea's eyes flew open.
A firm chest pressed right against her back.
Hot breath grazed her nape.
Her heart thrashed like it would shatter her ribs and burst out.
His breathing was way too close.
This is dangerous.
"Dojin. Not right now..."
But that was it.
No more movement.
Sea cautiously turned her head to check behind her.
"......"
Mouth hanging wide open, dead to the world.
It was just sleep-talking.
"Fucking idiot..."
Sea let out a defeated curse under her breath.
She stared in disbelief for a while before trying to wriggle free out of stuffiness.
But prying at his arm did nothing—it was like trying to move a boulder.
Her legs were locked straight between his thighs.
She was completely pinned.
And to make matters worse, things got even more embarrassing.
The more she squirmed to escape, the more his baggy T-shirt—the one she'd borrowed—rode up spitefully.
The hem bunched all the way up past her hips, leaving her underwear fully exposed.
"Hey, let go a bit... Ugh!"
Sea summoned every ounce of strength to shove at his forearm.
But it didn't budge.
If anything, when she resisted, Dojin let out a low groan and squeezed her even tighter.
She finally gave up.
The more she struggled, the deeper she sank into the quagmire.
Screw it, Sea thought, relaxing her tensed-up body.
Funny enough, Dojin loosened up too.
The hot body heat enveloping her, the steady heartbeat against her back...
"......"
A deep sense of reassurance bloomed somewhere in her heart—not so bad, this feeling.
Sea buried her flushed face in the pillow and drifted off to sleep in his arms.
Bzzz, bzzz.
My phone vibrated by my head.
"Ugh..."
I groggily rolled over and cracked my eyes open.
8 a.m.
The first thing that swam into my bleary vision was the pale nape filling my view.
So close it nearly brushed my nose.
A familiar shampoo scent.
Han Sea.
My arm was locked tight around her waist, my leg tangled with hers.
We were intertwined like one body in the most explicit position.
A glance down revealed her T-shirt hiked up to her stomach,
her lower half completely bare.
Adrenaline hit me like a truck.
"Sh-shit! What the hell!"
I recoiled in panic.
Thud.
I tumbled off the bed with a crash.
My ass throbbed, but I barely registered the pain.
"Ah, shut up. Why're you freaking out first thing in the morning?"
Sea sat up, hair a tousled mess.
"Y-you, why're we... like this..."
She smirked at my stammering.
"Don't remember?"
"......Huh?"
Sea straightened her disheveled clothes, rubbing her collarbone.
"You tormented me all night."
"What're you talking about?"
The mattress dipped.
Sea crawled toward me on her knees.
Her narrow eyes curved slyly through her messy hair.
"You're stronger than you look?"
"......Strong?"
What did I do in my sleep? Sleepwalking or something?
I tried to rewind my memory, but my head was blank.
I scowled at her half-naked state.
"Forget strength or whatever. Why'd you sleep with all your clothes off?"
"You took them off."
"......What?"
"You bunched up all my clothes and hugged me like a body pillow. I could barely breathe."
"......"
Her face loomed inches from mine.
Her pale shoulder and collarbone filled my vision.
Her faint skin scent made my head spin.
I stammered, backing away in a fluster.
"R-really? S-sorry. Bad sleeping habits. That's why I said we should sleep separately!"
"Take responsibility."
"Huh?"
"You saw everything down to my underwear. I'm ruined for marriage now. What're you gonna do?"
"No, that's, I mean..."
Cold sweat poured down.
I stared at the ceiling, unsure where to look.
Snap!
A sharp flick stung my forehead.
"Ow!"
I clutched it and glared at her.
Sea flopped back onto the bed with a cool-as-ice expression, like nothing happened.
"There. Now go to school."
"......"
This situation was impossible to get used to.
I rubbed my stinging forehead and asked,
"......You not going?"
Sea pulled the blanket over her head and mumbled,
"I have a free period."
"Ha, fuck."
I got totally played.
Friday night.
This week felt like it shredded my soul.
Already off-kilter from Sea messing with my condition,
assignments and group projects sucked every last bit out of me.
Tomorrow's the weekend.
Gonna do nothing but sleep.
Bzzz.
A message popped up on my phone.
[Han Sea]
Ominous.
[Sea] [Hey]
[Sea] [Weekend plans?]
Ah, screwed.
[Dojin] [Gonna sleep. This week kicked my ass.]
[Sea] [Date go]
Too tired for this.
[Dojin] [Do we have to? We'll just get watched outside anyway.]
[Sea] [Staying home all weekend like hermits? That's not couple behavior. Gotta date on weekends to avoid suspicion.]
[Sea] [Lotte World tomorrow by 10.]
[Dojin] [Hey. Why decide on your own?]
[Dojin] [Hey!]
[Dojin] [Hey!]
The "1" next to my messages never vanished.
It was just a heads-up.
No room for argument—she read and ignored.
And so Saturday morning began.
I couldn't help but chuckle at her getup.
Gone was her usual monochrome luxury wear.
A cream beret perched on her head.
Top was a tight white knit straining at the buttons.
Bottom: a sky-blue tennis skirt barely covering an inch.
Full-on theme park outfit, no doubt.
Style that shouldn't suit her.
But damn, fashion completes the face.
"Hey. That skirt's too short, no?"
"Hey. You compliment first when you see it, don't dodge.
And this length? Everyone wears this to amusement parks."
"Still, going up stairs or whatever... it's distracting."
I turned away, pretending to gaze at distant hills.
But in my peripheral, those pale thighs kept flashing.
Sea caught my glance and shoved her face in mine.
"Oh? Distracting where? Here?"
"Back off."
"Be honest. You keep staring, right? My legs are pretty hot, huh?"
"......I wasn't looking."
"Liar. Your eyes have been wandering lost since earlier."
Sea hooked her arm tight through mine and whispered in my ear.
"Fine. Stick close and cover for me then. Tight mark. Got it?"
"Y-yeah."
Felt like I got roped in somehow.
We headed to the neighborhood parking lot.
There was Sea's Porsche.
Scratches everywhere—looked like a pattern now.
I slid into the passenger seat.
The engine roared to life, and we hit the road.
Sea glanced at me while gripping the wheel.
"Dude, you're living the dream. Such a pretty girl picks you up at home and drives you to the date spot."
"Not your boyfriend."
"You little shit, killing the vibe."
Screech.
The sudden brake flung me forward.
"And no life insurance in the contract, y'know? Drive straight."
Just now, over the speed bump, my butt bounced hard.
This wasn't a date.
It was an experiment to test my spine's limits.
Sea hummed a tune as she turned the wheel.
"Thrilling romances last longest. You know the suspension bridge effect?"
"Hey. Ours is just till semester's end."
Sea's face soured instantly.
"Shut up and let's go."
Lotte World main entrance in Jamsil.
Swarming crowds.
Sea threaded her fingers through mine.
"Don't get separated. The watcher might be hiding in this mob."
"Uh......"
Her hand was impossibly soft.
Mine? A sweaty mess from nerves.
Sticky enough to let go.
But Sea kept our fingers laced tight.
Like glue.
Feeling weird, I snuck a peek—her face was blank, staring straight ahead.
Passing the souvenir shop, Sea stopped.
"Hey, that."
"What."
"Essential item. Gotta wear those to look like a couple."
"No way I wear that. Embarrassing. You wear it."
"Tch. Everyone does it—if we don't, we'll stand out more. Watcher'll suspect."
"That logic makes no sense......"
My opinion didn't matter.
She forced a cat-ear headband onto my head.
Wore white bunny ears herself.
"Pfft... You actually look cute in it?"
Sea giggled, raising her phone.
I whipped my head away on reflex.
"Don't take pics. Invasion of privacy."
"Gonna set it as my wallpaper and look at it every day."
"Ugh. Why my pic as wallpaper? Creepy."
"Oh? Yeah?"
We headed straight for Atlantica.
Popular ride—line stretched forever.
100-minute wait.
All around us: couple hell.
Everyone glued together.
Some even making out shamelessly, ignoring stares.