Her First Kiss
Yoo Soyeon began changing her clothes with an icy expression. She switched into comfortable activewear, slowly opened the front door, and pushed through the bushes. Once outside, she began walking toward the basement entrance with deliberate steps. A heavy click—the key sliding into the lock—revealed a bunker-like underground room. She descended the stairs with purpose, retrieving her glasses from their case and checking the time on her watch.
8:00 PM
“...The mixture ratio is five to one, so… in about four hours… she should wake up?”
She had to hurry. If she returned too late, she wouldn’t be able to savor her sleeping senior to her heart’s content. For the sake of their sweet time together, she needed to finish her tasks quickly.
“Hehe… I made sure he ate every delicious bite… I even told him I loved him….”
He looked at me. He said he liked me. He thanked me.
“….Hehe….”
Still wearing that bright, cheerful smile, she unlocked the inner door of the basement. The interior was simple. It had originally been designed as a freezer, so it was stocked with canned goods and ingredients. The air was so cold it might as well have been a giant refrigerator. In the deepest corner of that frozen space, Lee Jia sat bound hand and foot, shivering violently.
“…..Hmm? Would you mind waking up for me?”
“….U-uh, uwaaa…!! Uwaaaaaagh…!!!!!”
“…It’s noisy, so be quiet. If Senior wakes up because of you, I’ll cut off one of your legs right now…”
“Hic, h-hiccup…!!”
Lee Jia nodded her head in frantic, spasmodic jerks. It was strange. Soyeon had only performed some minor torture as payback… She hadn’t tormented her enough to threaten her life. She had even reattached every broken finger… The girl must have been mentally fragile by nature.
“…S-save me, please save me…. Hic… I was wrong…!!!”
Lee Jia thrashed her whole body wildly, convulsing. Yoo Soyeon looked down at her with an expression of mild disgust and slowly approached.
“I was planning to release you anyway. Filth like you has no right to intrude on the space between me and Senior, does it?”
“….Y-yes…!! R-right…!!! Hic, I-I didn’t do anything… I’ll just leave…!!!”
“Leave? Where exactly do you think you’re going…?”
“….Ah, aah…?!”
Squelch—
“I have to erase all your memories, of course. …If I followed my heart, I’d gouge out those two eyes that dared look at Senior…”
Yeah, let’s not. I promised myself I wouldn’t commit murder anymore.
Thump—
Lee Jia slumped onto the chair like a corpse, as if she had died on the spot. Returning her without leaving any trace on the CCTV had been incredibly difficult, but she had managed to move her during the power outage and place her back in her own home.
“….Hehe….”
She discarded the black mask and quietly walked the night streets. With every step, thoughts of Senior Jinwoo filled her mind. What sort of expression was he making in his sleep right now?
She needed nothing else. Only that Senior would look solely at her, love only her. Only let her breathe in his scent, only let her hold him. Only show her that face, that expression. Eat the meals she prepared, wear the clothes she washed, and always smile for her.
Shiver— Shiver—
“…E-etchoo—”
Yoo Soyeon gave a small cough as she slowly unlocked the front door. She slipped off her shoes, gently opened the bedroom door, and there he was—Senior Jinwoo, asleep and bathed in moonlight.
Mine. The one who belonged only to her, who looked only at her. The one she had longed for across thousands of empty years, her lost treasure.
“….Ha, uu…”
She briefly considered taking a shower and changing clothes, but the urge to hold him even one second sooner won out. She stealthily climbed onto the bed.
“Hold me, Senior….”
Like a tamed pet burrowing into its owner’s embrace, she gently lifted the blanket and slowly wrapped her arms around Senior Jinwoo’s waist. The warm heat beneath the covers. The sound of his breathing. They made her own heart beat slowly, gently.
“….Ah—”
It’s warm. I like it. I like it so much, Senior….
When she held him, every distracting thought vanished from her mind, leaving only Senior. The screaming voices buzzing in her head disappeared, replaced by nothing but the sound of his breath. To her, it was an addiction she could never quit.
She lost track of how long she savored that sweet time.
….U-uh…?
Yoo Soyeon suddenly noticed his breathing and heartbeat growing rough. Was he in pain…? Had the food she made upset his stomach? Wait—Senior’s eyes were open. Their gazes met.
….This, I can’t endure this. I c-can’t.
Thump— Thump— Thump—
She had thirsted for love across eternity; even the smallest gesture from him struck her as fatally sweet. She burrowed deeper into his arms. She feared he might hear her wildly pounding heart. She was ashamed to let him see a face she could no longer control…
Wait, huh…? H-his hand. His hand gripped my shoulder. His breath—his breath is getting closer—
Chu—
…. ….
“Sleep well.”
My whole body felt stiff. I had gone to bed unusually early, woken once in the middle of the night, then fallen asleep again. This was the deepest sleep I’d had since middle school.
“Ugh…”
I rubbed my eyes and stared at the ceiling. An unfamiliar ceiling. An unfamiliar blanket with a crisp, rustling texture. Unlike my own fluffy one, this hotel-style bedding made every movement audible.
And…
“…Are you awake now?”
“…..”
At this point I no longer startled quite so badly. It still gave me goosebumps, but I suppose humans really are creatures of adaptation. It wasn’t that strange for her to watch me intently until I woke up… right…?
“After doing something so shameless, you certainly slept soundly, Senior.”
Yoo Soyeon kept her head lowered in apparent embarrassment, poking at my arm with her fingertips.
….Wait. Shameless?
A chill ran down my spine. Don’t tell me I lost control during the night and—
I answered in a hoarse voice.
“What… are you talking about?”
“….Hmm. You kissed me, Senior. On my forehead.”
Ah. …Well, I suppose I had. It had been impulsive, but it seemed the gesture had worked better on her than I expected.
“I was so surprised… To be honest, until now I kept regretting it deeply, wondering what if Senior hated me— It was something I did out of desperation…?”
“I don’t hate you. Even now, if we could just go back to how things—”
“But Senior said you liked me too….”
“….”
Did my words come with built-in noise cancellation? For now, I decided to stay quiet and listen.
Prod—
“Ugh?!”
Her fingers slipped beneath the blanket. Slowly, she began stroking my arm, undoing the restraints.
“You promised… to give me an answer, didn’t you?”
“….W-what— Ah—?!”
“You promised to answer my confession… after the exam….”
“….Ah.”
“D-do you… like me too, Senior…?”
“…..”
What would happen if I said no here? …I really didn’t want another injection.
“….Well… yeah, I do…”
“…..!!”
Yoo Soyeon’s eyes sparkled. A growing sense of unease told me I had pulled some dangerous trigger.
“Ah… finally…”
Grab—
She traced circles across my palm with a seductive gaze and climbed onto the bed. Leaning against my right shoulder, she whispered softly into my ear.
“Say it again… please, Senior….♡”
“….U-ugh…. I like you…”
“Do you love me….? You truly like me…?”
“I like you…!!”
Having someone whisper directly into my ear felt strangely sensual. I shook my head, trying to shake off the dizzying sensation, and struggled to put some distance between us.
“Then… we’re dating now, right…?”
“…..”
“From now on, Senior must look only at me for the rest of your life…”
Her fingers gently traced over my body. Slowly, our fingers intertwined.
“You must speak only with me, eat only with me… smile only while looking at me… You must always stay by my side….”
Squeeze—
Having both hands interlocked with hers felt oddly embarrassing. She lightly bit my right ear, then grinned with a mad smile full of obsession.
“I won’t forgive you if you look at anyone else…. Do you understand…?”
“…..”
Damn it. Even a slave contract wouldn’t be this thorough. The terms seemed to strip away every basic human right I had… but what choice did I have? I no longer possessed the right to refuse.
“…Answer me.”
“….O-okay…”
“….Hmm….♡”
“….”
“Then, starting today…. Day One…”
“Y-yeah.”
“We’ll go on dates…. talk together, whisper our love to each other… things like that.”
“…..”
“….Senior. You’re not thinking about something else, are you?”
“Huh?”
“No, it’s strange, isn’t it…? In the end I kidnapped you by force… I confined you so I could make you mine alone… yet you’re saying it’ll be fine…?”
She was too sharp. But there was nowhere left to retreat. I had to keep lying, repeating that it wasn’t like that.
“I-it’s true. I liked you too—”
“….Ah, this should work…”
“…U-uh?”
Squeeze….
What was this? It felt familiar… My arms wouldn’t move. Yoo Soyeon wore a smile heavy with dark emotion as she slowly leaned toward my lips.
Chuu—
Fuck… my first kiss…
Since I had already half-accepted my fate, I squeezed my eyes shut and accepted her lips. I had never done it before, but as a guy I had finished my pre-study through videos, so I thought I’d be fine.
Tremble tremble….
…..Huh?
The hands interlocked with mine began to shake violently. Our lips had simply met; Yoo Soyeon couldn’t manage any further gesture. She quickly pulled away, separating from me.
“….Pu, ha….”
She hurriedly brushed the strands of hair that had entered her mouth, then slowly lowered her head, unable to meet my eyes.
“Because it’s my… m-marking….”
“…..”
I wasn’t exactly in a position to comment, but… this girl. It really seemed like her first kiss.