Chapter 37: Duality (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 37: Duality (5)
“...Ugh, hmmm...”
Ji Nuri let out a series of low groans, her eyes fixed intensely on the chessboard.
“...”
Shin A-young looked down at her with a slightly pouting expression. The momentum of the game had already shifted entirely in her favor.
Clack—
After an agonizingly long wait, Ji Nuri finally made her next move with extreme caution.
That was the end of it.
“Checkmate.”
Shin A-young placed her piece down firmly, bringing the game to a decisive close. In truth, the match had been over for a long time.
“Ah.”
A groan of defeat escaped Nuri’s lips.
Refusing to believe it, Ji Nuri jumped up and scanned the board from every possible angle. She agonized over whether there was any path for her King to escape, but after confirming it was completely trapped, she slumped back into her seat.
“...What’s the score now?”
“5 to 0.”
“Wow, you didn’t go easy on me even once...”
The Vice Club President and the Club President, who had been watching from the sidelines, whispered quietly to each other. They seemed at a loss for words after witnessing such a one-sided slaughter.
“...Let’s play one more round of something else.”
Ji Nuri stood up, her eyes narrowing into half-moons. Her crimson lips were pressed together in a slight pout. Her brow was furrowed, and her eyes were trembling.
Was she really that upset about losing? Ji Nuri had a much stronger competitive streak than her appearance suggested.
“Sure. Bring whatever you want.”
Shin A-young waved her hand dismissively. She didn't feel like she could lose regardless of the game. After all, Ji Nuri was surprisingly bad at this.
Or perhaps Shin A-young was just that good.
To be honest, it wasn't very fun. It ended too easily. Playing against Lee Seung-ho actually felt like a challenge.
“...”
...There she went, thinking about him again.
“Sigh.”
Shin A-young relaxed her upper body and leaned back deeply into her chair. There was a reason she was playing board games in the Counseling Office instead of being at a PC Café. Ever since she’d discovered the joy of playing as a duo, gaming alone had become boring. It was better to be with everyone like this.
‘...It doesn’t have to be a PC Café.’
Board games were fine, too. However, Lee Seung-ho wasn't here. He had gone to study alone with Lee Sol.
‘...Hmph.’
Shin A-young snorted inwardly. Would it have killed him to hang out for just one day? Even if she had a crush on him, Lee Sol was being a bit much.
Today had been truly exhausting. Was it really too much to ask him to play a game together to help her blow off some stress?
“What do you want to play? Pick one.”
Ji Nuri asked, her arms full of board games. Her eyebrows twitched as if she were determined to win this time.
“There’s Blue Marble, the Fruit Game, or maybe One Card?”
“...Uh...”
Shin A-young narrowed her eyes as she looked at the pile. There was too much variety.
“...Why does the Counseling Club have so many board games?”
It wasn't just one or two; there were enough to open a board game cafe.
At that question, Park Min-ji cleared her throat.
“They might look like toys, but they’re all necessary for counseling.”
All those boxes? What did board games have to do with counseling?
“...Counseling. Board games...?”
Counseling. And board games.
“...”
Shin A-young’s gaze drifted toward the rack where the ‘Counseling Request Forms’ were kept.
“...”
Hmm.
She pressed her lips together. A brilliant idea flashed through her mind.
‘Should I?’
Shin A-young tilted her head back and forth. She was a bit conflicted. She wondered if this was okay. No matter how she looked at it, dragging someone away when they were busy during the exam period was...
“...”
But there was still over a month and a half left. Surely one day wouldn't hurt.
“...Min-ji, how do I fill out a counseling request form?”
*
...A sudden situation.
I locked eyes with Lee Seung-ah, who had just entered the room. Seung-ah looked back and forth between Lee Sol and me. Lee Sol was staring up at the ceiling as if she knew nothing.
“...”
“...”
Silence followed.
Lee Sol blinked for a moment, then slunk off the bed. Her movements were as quiet and natural as possible.
“...”
“...”
The silence stretched on.
“...You said you brought snacks?”
I couldn't take it anymore and spoke first, trying to shift the topic.
“Yeah, here.”
Seung-ah played along, placing the tray on the table.
“...But.”
I narrowed my eyes at the plate Seung-ah had brought.
“Why is this all there is?”
The "snacks" consisted of a single cookie and two glasses of orange juice filled to an ambiguous level.
“We’re out of food at home.”
Seung-ah shrugged. Seeing how confident she was, I guessed there really weren't any snacks left.
— “Well, out of the two cookies left, I guess one is...”
Apparently, she had eaten one of them. Seung-ah’s Mini-Me licked its lips. There were even crumbs stuck to the corner of its mouth.
“If you want to eat that badly, go buy some yourself. The convenience store is right in front of the house.”
Seung-ah pointed toward the front door with her thumb. I rubbed my arm.
“...Can’t you go buy some for us?”
Honestly, I was too lazy to go out.
“I’ll give you money. Buy something for yourself while you’re at it.”
I tried to strike a deal.
“Hmm... I don’t mind, but...”
Seung-ah trotted over and leaned her head close to my ear.
“?”
I pulled back, getting goosebumps. Seung-ah furrowed her brow as if she found this unpleasant too, and gripped my shoulder with one hand. She whispered while covering her mouth with the back of her hand.
‘...Do you want to be left alone in the house together? Hmm?’
“Ah.”
That snapped me back to reality. I hadn't thought of that. Was I so flustered by Seung-ah’s sudden intrusion that I’d lost my edge?
“Give me the money.”
Seung-ah held out her hand.
— “I don’t really care either way... but should I stay out for a bit?”
Seung-ah’s Mini-Me covered its mouth with its hands. It looked like it was holding back a laugh.
“...I’ll go.”
I couldn't stand watching that anymore and stood up. I grabbed my wallet and prepared to head out, then turned back for a moment.
“What should I buy?”
“...I’m fine with just this.”
Lee Sol held up her glass of juice. Right. She said she was on a diet.
— “Besides, I’d feel bad making him go...”
Her Mini-Me was exercising great patience. It seemed she really didn't need anything.
“I want a bag of Spicy Potato Chips.”
Seung-ah sat down and stretched her legs out, making her demand boldly. “Actually, should I tell him to buy something more expensive?”
Her Mini-Me was worrying about something useless. I wasn't going to buy it anyway.
“...”
I stood there silently for a moment.
“...Behave yourselves.”
After leaving that warning for the seated Seung-ah, I headed out to the convenience store.
*
“...”
“...”
Inside the room Lee Seung-ho had just vacated.
Lee Sol and Lee Seung-ah.
Only the two of them remained, and a strange awkwardness hung in the air. Normally, Sol would have appreciated the silence, but the situation was different now. Lee Sol sat frozen on the floor. It felt suffocating.
“...”
Lee Sol glanced to her left.
“...”
Lee Seung-ah was sitting silently, inspecting her nails. Even from the side, she was undeniably pretty. She still had a youthful air, but it was a pure, age-appropriate beauty.
So this is Lee Seung-ho’s younger sister.
The thought made Sol's throat feel dry, and she swallowed hard. Her mind was racing, trying to come up with a topic. Was there anything? Something interesting to say...
“...We saw each other at the airport last time, right?”
Suddenly, Lee Seung-ah looked up and asked.
“Ah. Yes. Right.”
Lee Sol lunged for that conversational lifeline. She couldn't miss this chance.
“Um, your name was...”
“It’s Lee Sol. My surname is ‘Lee’ and my name is ‘Sol’.”
“Lee Sol... Sol-unnie... Your name is similar to mine. My name is—”
“Seung-ah. Lee Seung-ah, right?”
When Sol asked that...
“...You remembered?”
Seung-ah’s eyebrows shot up.
“Yeah, I heard it last time.”
“Aha.”
“...”
...Nice.
Lee Sol let out a quiet huff of triumph in her mind. She was glad she’d memorized it. When Seung-ho mentioned he had a sister, she had looked her up on Instagram beforehand, and the effort was paying off.
“But the other friends didn't come today?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
Lee Sol asked back with a puzzled expression.
“The other two I saw at the airport. Aren't they Oppa’s friends too? They seemed really close.”
“Ah...”
She must be talking about Shin A-young and Ji Nuri.
“Ummm.”
Lee Sol bit her lip. How should she explain this? The reason why she was studying alone with Lee Seung-ho, leaving the other two out. It was a bit embarrassing to admit she was curious about what it would feel like to study with just the two of them. But she couldn't lie, either.
“I’m not exactly the best at studying... so we decided to do it just the two of us today. Seung-ho is a good teacher.”
Lee Sol felt a slight heat rising to the tips of her ears as she offered her excuse.
“Pardon?”
At that, Seung-ah tilted her head. She gave Sol a skeptical look.
“Oppa is a good teacher?”
“...Huh? Has he never taught you, Seung-ah?”
“No.”
Seung-ah didn't seem hurt by it; her expression was indifferent. She looked like she just accepted it as a fact of life.
“That’s how siblings usually are. Besides, I wouldn't want to learn from him anyway.”
“I see.”
So that was normal for siblings. Being an only child, Sol didn't know much about that dynamic.
“...”
Lee Sol took a long sip of the orange juice on the desk through the straw.
‘It’s good.’
Her shoulders relaxed. As the sweetness hit her tongue, her tension gradually began to fade. Lee Seung-ah didn't seem like a bad person, so she felt somewhat at ease being alone with her...
“Unnie.”
“Yeah?”
“Do you have feelings for my brother?”
Cough...!
At that blunt question, Lee Sol’s mouth fell open. She almost sprayed her juice everywhere. Her mind went blank for a moment. Her head creaked as she turned to look at Seung-ah.
“...”
Seung-ah still had that indifferent expression. It was a serious question. If so, how should she answer? Should she deny it? Or should she try to dodge the question?
Among the several alternatives that came to mind... Lee Sol forced her eyes wide open. Her eyelashes trembled.
“...”
Lee Sol bit her lip and stared straight at Lee Seung-ah. She didn't give a verbal answer. Her two reddened cheeks were already speaking for her.
“...”
Seung-ah seemed to realize it too, as her eyes widened slightly.
“...Are you planning on confessing?”
Seung-ah asked softly.
“Huh? Uh... I don’t... know about that yet...”
Lee Sol’s voice trailed off. She hadn't thought that far ahead.
“Hmm. Well, then right now is the perfect time to tell you.”
Seung-ah nodded slightly.
“...?”
A question mark appeared over Lee Sol’s face. She had no idea what the girl was thinking.
“I’ll be honest with you.”
Seung-ah turned her body toward Lee Sol. Their gazes met head-on. With a distinctly serious expression, she spoke.
“Don’t confess to my brother.”