5. Thorny Lily (Final)
5. Thorny Lily (Final)
"Huh?"
Dozens of thoughts flashed through So-jeong's mind in an instant.
At first, she thought she had wet herself while sleeping.
But that wasn't it. It wasn't enough to soak her pants, and especially this sticky sensation she felt inside her underwear couldn't be urine.
"What? What......?"
Though sleep had long since fled, So-jeong, who still didn't understand what had happened to her, could only mutter with a confused expression.
"Mmm......"
Just then, as Baek-seol, who was sleeping beside her, tossed and turned, So-jeong's mind snapped to attention.
'Baek-seol must not find out.'
Getting out of bed carefully so as not to wake Baek-seol, So-jeong tiptoed on her heels toward the bathroom.
'Ugh, this feels weird......"
Bent over from the dampness clinging inside her underwear, So-jeong slightly opened the bathroom door and went inside.
"Whew......"
Only after entering the bathroom and locking the door did So-jeong let out a small sigh of relief.
"What on earth is this?"
To find the cause of this sudden mishap, So-jeong grabbed her pajamas and underwear and slid them down.
"Hk!"
So-jeong grimaced and swallowed a short scream.
The first thing she felt was the peculiar smell that wafted up sharply from between her lowered pants.
Was it sweet? Sour? It was a strange, indescribable smell.
Even more bizarre than the smell itself was the fact that this unknown scent evoked both an instinctive revulsion and an attraction simultaneously.
But So-jeong didn't have time to dwell on the smell.
"Ugh."
Because the men's underwear she had been wearing in anticipation of morning stiffness was smeared with a milky white liquid.
This white, viscous liquid, which hadn't just stained the underwear, was not only on So-jeong's male genitalia but had also dripped down, stretching stickily onto her female parts.
It was as if someone had poured a whole bunch of high-viscosity condensed milk into So-jeong's pants while she slept.
Before even thinking about the identity of the liquid, So-jeong first tore off some toilet paper and began wiping off the substance from her underwear and lower body.
"It's not coming off well......"
Even after wiping several times, a subtle slickness remained where the white liquid had been. It was worse on the men's underwear side, where it had already been absorbed into the fabric.
It would probably get cleaner if she washed it off with water, but if she turned on the shower in the middle of the night, Baek-seol would definitely find it strange.
Using toilet paper generously to wipe off as much of the liquid and slickness as possible, So-jeong flushed the toilet paper, which still emitted that peculiar yet addictive smell, down the toilet, pulled up her pajamas, and put them back on.
"It still feels icky though."
Finally sneaking out of the bathroom and confirming Baek-seol was still asleep, So-jeong rummaged through her bag, changed into the spare panties she had packed, stuffed the men's underwear deep into her bag, and only then could she go back to bed.
"Whew......"
Covering herself with the blanket, feeling much fresher, So-jeong let out a sigh of relief.
And now that the most urgent matter was resolved, other problems began to slither into So-jeong's mind.
So-jeong's dream.
She vividly remembered the content of the dream she was having just before waking up, right as something mixed with pleasure and tension burst forth.
In the dream, So-jeong and Baek-seol were embracing each other naked.
In the dream, So-jeong caressed Baek-seol's body, and Baek-seol caressed So-jeong's body with loving hands.
In the dream, So-jeong longed for Baek-seol to touch her 'it', and Baek-seol was willingly trying to fulfill her request.
Poof. So-jeong's face flushed hot as she recalled the scenes from the dream.
'What kind of weird dream was I having?!'
Yelling that internally and pulling the blanket over her head up to her forehead, So-jeong shook her head back and forth, trying to erase the dream's content from her mind.
But rather, the more she did that, the more vivid the feeling of Baek-seol's naked body, which she had seen, touched, and coveted in the dream, became.
The body Baek-seol had in the dream had a truly sculpted figure.
Skin as white and clear as marble. Though she had slender, long legs and arms, her breasts, ripened into a beautiful shape like ripe fruit, and her open pelvis created the soft curves of a woman.
The nipples at the tips of her breasts, asserting their presence with a blushing pink. The smooth neckline created by the indented collarbones. And Baek-seol's moist lips, which still felt like their touch remained.
"......"
So-jeong subtly, under the blanket, turned just her head slightly and looked at Baek-seol sleeping soundly beside her.
In the darkness, her chest rose and fell lightly with her breathing. Though she was in comfortable sleepwear, it somehow made her more conscious of Baek-seol's good figure, which was subtly revealed.
'......Right now.'
So-jeong unconsciously muttered to herself and stealthily reached out her hand.
Right now, she could touch her for real, not just in a dream.
Right now, Baek-seol wouldn't even notice.
"Hah!"
But So-jeong soon let out a short gasp and snatched her hand back.
'What was I just thinking?'
Thumpthumpthumpthump.
Her heart was pounding as if it hurt. Like someone who was about to do something terribly wrong.
Turning over to lie with her back to Baek-seol, So-jeong, afraid she might reach out to Baek-seol again, clutched both hands to her chest and curled up.
This is weird.
So-jeong said to her pounding heart.
This is strange.
This is all because of that 'it' that appeared a few days ago.
Repeating that over and over, So-jeong tossed and turned numerous times before finally falling back asleep, wandering through the night.
***
"Did you not sleep well yesterday?"
On the way to the train station to go home, Baek-seol said with a slight frown.
"Uh, mm-hmm."
So-jeong, with a haggard face, staggered as if half-asleep and answered weakly.
"You seemed to be sleeping well last night though."
"Yeah. I had a bit of a nightmare while sleeping......"
It certainly was a nightmare-like event. And one she still hadn't fully woken from.
Thinking that, So-jeong evaded, but Baek-seol was listening to her with an endlessly serious face.
"So-jeong-ah."
At the voice far more sincere than a moment ago, So-jeong turned her head and looked up at Baek-seol's face.
"Is something going on lately?"
Baek-seol asked in a low voice, gazing intently into So-jeong's eyes.
In her eyes, So-jeong finally realized why she had suddenly suggested this trip.
Come to think of it, there had been days like this before. And each time, Baek-seol had uncannily detected that So-jeong was harboring a problem she couldn't talk about.
"......No."
In response to that question from Baek-seol, So-jeong had always confided her problems, but this time it was impossible.
This was on a completely different level from previous problems, and she wanted Baek-seol not to notice this one, of all things.
Instead, So-jeong smiled brightly as if to reassure Baek-seol.
"Are you worried about me? It's okay. I haven't run into anyone from high school lately, and the nightmare was just a weird dream, different from the ones I used to have."
"Really?"
"Of course~ Hehe, I guess I was still too lazing around during break. I think I pushed myself too hard trying to adapt to school life."
"......Then that's a relief."
"Right? Don't worry too much."
So-jeong said, lightly holding Baek-seol's hand.
"Because I'm getting better."
Getting better.
Yes, that present progressive phrase was the most appropriate to describe So-jeong now.
Sometimes, living itself becomes a nightmare. So-jeong suddenly recalled those nightmare-like days from a few years ago.
It was Baek-seol who had saved So-jeong from that nightmare.
Though she still hadn't fully awakened from that nightmare, staggering with a haggard face, she would wake up completely someday.
That's why So-jeong was, in the present progressive, getting better.
And she didn't want to cause any more worry for Baek-seol, who had enabled her to rise from that nightmare.
Having sorted out her thoughts like that, So-jeong made a vow to herself once more.
Because she didn't want to cause worry, she would definitely solve this problem on her own.
***
"Thanks for walking me home."
So-jeong said goodbye, waving her hand slightly.
"You get home safe too, Baek-seol."
Baek-seol watched So-jeong's back until she turned around and disappeared from view.
When So-jeong was no longer visible, Baek-seol finally turned around and heavily began walking toward her own home.
The evening sun at her back, along with the dusk, stretched her shadow long and grotesque.
"......"
Sometimes, just loving someone is reason enough to live. Baek-seol suddenly recalled all those nightmare-like moments before she met So-jeong.
So-jeong always thanked and apologized to Baek-seol, saying she was the one who received help.
But in reality, it was the opposite. That was a fact only Baek-seol knew.
In truth, everything Baek-seol had done for So-jeong was merely repayment for So-jeong shattering her own nightmare and becoming her reason to live.
But paradoxically, that's precisely why Baek-seol couldn't show her true feelings to So-jeong.
Because the kind-hearted Han So-jeong would just accept Ryu Baek-seol's filthy desires as they are.
As repayment for saving her, without even considering her own feelings, she would just embrace Baek-seol.
If she demanded even that from So-jeong, Baek-seol felt she would become a monster, grotesque and clinging, just like that shadow.
I'm getting better. So-jeong had said that.
When the day comes that she is completely better, Baek-seol will let So-jeong go.
They say the more a lily flower is pricked by thorns, the more beautiful its scent becomes. So-jeong, who has already been sufficiently pricked and torn, now has the right to show off that beautiful scent to the world once her wounds heal.
When that time comes, So-jeong will leave Baek-seol and find her own life, her own connections. Baek-seol will make sure she can.
Because a beautiful, fragrant lily doesn't need to remember the existence of a thorny tree named Ryu Baek-seol.