Chapter 59
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 59
I lowered my gaze to the top of Eun-ah’s head, nestled in my arms.
She had her head bowed low, thumping her fists lightly against her own thighs.
She was all but wearing a sign that said, ‘I’m sulking.’
Ugh…
I felt a little troubled.
Had a week been longer than I thought? I’d completely forgotten about her gloomy side.
The whole thing had started a little while ago. I had carried her into the shower room, and as I was undressing and washing, I noticed her trying to slip past the curtain. I’d stopped her, and that was the cause of all this.
It was obvious she was after my body with that sly look of hers, and for a moment, my heart had wavered. But then, Eun-seol’s words flashed through my mind, and I suppressed the urge.
—Pace yourself. You’ll wear your bones out.
She seemed to have a rough idea of what had happened between Eun-ah and me.
After hearing that, I’d thought it was a bit much to go at it again first thing in the morning, so I’d managed to peel her off me and finish my shower.
And she’d been like this ever since.
Feeling another wave of exasperation at her continuous pouting, I spoke in a gentle tone.
“Eun-ah. Are you angry?”
I’d carefully chosen my words, thinking that asking if she was sulking would only make things worse.
At my question, her body flinched, and a small complaint slipped out.
“A-a piece of gum isn’t supposed to come off…!”
Her tone was thick with resentment.
“I-it’s waterproof, so it doesn’t c-come off in water…!”
It seemed she was still committed to her chewing gum concept. Her complaints were exasperating, yet the way she refused to leave my arms was so cute that I couldn’t help but let out a laugh.
I felt the corners of my mouth twitch into a smile before I could stop them.
I kept wondering how I could cheer her up.
“I’m sorry. But you’re a good girl, so you can be a little patient, right?”
A flinch.
I felt her body tremble.
A moment later, she slowly lifted her head, revealing the face that had been hidden behind her hair.
Her eyes were narrowed into a sullen glare. Her lower lip was stuck out, making its own defiant statement.
After glaring at me for a moment, she opened her mouth to voice another complaint.
“Th-that’s cheating…!”
With that, she buried her head again.
I knew I shouldn’t feel this way, but the sight of it sent a tickle through my chest, and I tightened my arms around her.
“Later. Let’s do it a little later.”
As I said that and hugged her tightly, she shot me a sidelong glance and muttered.
“Wh-when…?”
She was demanding a precise schedule.
I fought back another laugh and opened my mouth.
“In a little while, um…”
I tried to think of what to say. The words, ‘If you do a lot of good deeds,’ almost came out, but they caught in my throat.
I couldn’t say it. It felt like I was exploiting her obsession, making her cling even more desperately to the idea of being a ‘good girl.’
The words I had just said—‘But you’re a good girl’—came back to me.
A wave of self-loathing washed over me for so naturally trying to use her complex against her.
Only now did I begin to regret all the times I had said it so thoughtlessly.
Perhaps the rising emotion had clouded my expression, because a look of concern appeared on her face. She stroked my cheek and asked.
“H-Honeybee, are you hurt…?”
She could seem dazed, but she was so perceptive, noticing even the slightest change in my expression.
A pang of guilt hit me. I forced a smile back onto my face and spoke.
“No. I was just thinking about something.”
“Ooh…”
She nodded slightly, but the worry didn’t leave her face.
Watching her, I leaned my head forward.
Peck.
I gave her a short kiss on the forehead.
Her eyes went wide, and her mouth fell slightly open, her face a picture of stunned surprise. Seeing this, I let a smile curve my lips and continued.
“Let’s do it a little later. Today isn’t the only day we have. We’ll always be together. Right?”
I don’t want you to be anxious. I just want you to be happy. That was the sentiment I poured into my words.
I pushed aside the worry of whether I could keep that promise, for now. I just wanted the face before me to be filled with smiles. As I spoke, her cheeks flushed red, and she nodded.
“Y-yes…! We’ll always be together…!”
A bashful smile bloomed on her face.
That look of pure satisfaction wreaked havoc on my insides.
Then, she turned her body, which had been facing away, to hug me back and murmured again.
“F-from now on, I’ll always be with Honeybee…!”
“Yes. Always together.”
I echoed her vow-like words and hugged the small, warm body that pressed against me.
She felt so small, so fragile, as if she could disappear at any moment. I just held her tight.
*
We stayed like that for a long time, hugging and sharing our warmth. Suddenly, she, who had been resting in my arms with her eyes closed, lifted her head and spoke.
“Ah…!”
“Hm?”
She made a sound as if she’d just remembered something.
When I looked at her questioningly, she stared at me for a moment before speaking.
“H-Honeybee…”
“Yes?”
She hesitated, and when I prompted her again, she let out a small grunt before finally asking her question.
“Wh-what did you do with my sister…?”
It was a random question.
I tilted my head for a second, then remembered what Eun-seol had told me the day before.
—Her mind will filter it somehow. Like we just went out for a bit while she was asleep.
Just as she’d said, Eun-ah’s mind was filtering her own blank period.
I looked at her again. She was swallowing hard, her face tense.
But her expression only showed nervousness.
I couldn’t read any other negative emotions, so it seemed that, just as Eun-seol had predicted, she wasn’t too concerned about the fact that we had gone out.
It was best not to create any unnecessary anxiety.
Having made my decision, I put on a smile and spoke to her.
“We went to buy a present for you.”
“A present…?”
Her head tilted slightly to the side.
It was a plausible excuse.
Suddenly, I remembered that Eun-seol had made me pick out a gift for her, too. Had she anticipated a question like this?
I mulled it over for a moment, then gently stroked her hair as I continued.
“Yes, a present for you. It should be in the dressing room. Want to go get it?”
I had placed the clothes we bought that day in a visible spot in the dressing room.
After I spoke, she gave a small nod, got up, and headed toward the back of the living room. A short while later, she returned with a large shopping bag in her arms.
She trotted back into my embrace, craning her neck to peer inside the bag, and muttered.
“Clothes…?”
“Yes, they’re for you.”
I replied to her soft murmur, watching her.
Her eyes sparkled as she pulled out the dress, and the sight was so lovely it made me smile.
In her hands was a pure white dress with a sky-blue ribbon for an accent.
She held it up, looking it over for a long time, her gaze shifting from the dress to me and back again.
Watching her, I spoke.
“Want to try it on?”
“Yes…!”
Her tone was brimming with joy. Eun-ah’s face lit up with happiness as she nodded.
And then.
“Nngh…!”
Whoa.
My head snapped to the side as she started stripping right then and there.
We’d already seen everything there was to see of each other, but it was still a bit disconcerting whenever she so defenselessly tossed her clothes off like this.
I heard the rustle of fabric and felt her fumbling movements.
For a moment, even with my eyes closed, the sensations sent a rush of blood to my lower body. Then, having finished changing, she stepped out of my arms and called to me.
“H-how do I look…?”
At her words, I slowly opened my eyes and looked at her.
Her head was bowed, her face completely flushed. Her hands were clenched tightly around the hem of the dress.
Her posture was steeped in shyness.
A laugh escaped me. I looked over the dress and let out a breath of admiration.
“It looks amazing on you. It’s a perfect fit.”
It wasn’t an exaggeration or flattery. The dress fit her so perfectly it was as if it had been made for her from the start.
Maybe it was because she had the perfect figure for it, but the flowing white dress suited her so well that I couldn’t help but let out a small “wow.”
As I stared at her with an admiring expression, she blushed even deeper and threw herself into my arms.
“Hehe…”
A happy energy radiated from her soft giggle.
Feeling a warmth spread through my chest at her emotion, I reached out and patted her back. As she giggled in my arms, she spoke again.
“Th-this is my Treasure No. 1 now…!”
Treasure No. 1.
Her words were so childlike and cute, but they also filled me with a sense of pride, and my smile widened.
Her reaction was worth all the agonizing I’d done over it.
As I chuckled, a playful urge rose within me, and I asked a question.
“Then what about me?”
A flinch.
Her head lifted slightly at my words. She stared at me, her eyes darting back and forth as she thought, before her whole body jolted as she gave her answer.
“Y-you’re Treasure No. 0, Honeybee…!”
With that, she snuggled back into my arms.
I felt a deep satisfaction welling up from inside and hugged her tight once more.
“Hehe…”
Her laughter echoed by my ear, and the crisp scent of the new dress mingled with her own, seeping into my senses.
Thump. Thump.
I could feel her faint heartbeat and the small movements that tickled my chest.
All these separate sensations, each one asserting her existence, crashed deep inside me, turning the ripples in my heart into a tidal wave.
It was a pleasant tightness.
The feeling of my chest constricting wasn’t unpleasant at all.
The rising pressure only fueled a thirst, making me feel restless and eager for something more.
I savored the feeling for a moment. Then, her head lifted, and our eyes met for a long time.
Peck.
Suddenly, her lips were on mine.
The soft, moist sensation brushed across my lips once, and then her eyes curved into crescents.
Peck. Peck. Peck.
A few more kisses followed.
Peck.
After one last kiss, she pulled back and opened her mouth.
“Th-thank you…!”
As her thanks reached me, I, who had been dazedly savoring the emotions welling up inside, smiled and replied.
“Thank you, too. For liking it.”
“Heehee…”
Another giggle escaped her.
When I raised my hand to her head, I saw her narrow her eyes and rub her head against my palm.
“You like it that much?”
“Yes…!”
Her answer came without a hint of hesitation.
What was so great about it? What was so great about me that she liked me this much?
The question surfaced for a moment, but I pushed it back down.
Right now, this moment felt so sweet it made my tongue tingle, and I was filled with the desire to savor it a little longer.
I stroked her hair for a while. She, who had been rubbing her head against my hand, buried herself in my arms again and spoke.
“H-Honeybee, I, I like you…!”
Her confession, as always, burrowed deep inside me and turned my world upside down.
Feeling my smile widen at the pleasant chaos she was causing within me, I gave her my answer.
“I like you, too.”
I had said something like this once before.
Weeks ago now, in the past, there was a moment when I had blurted out those words and been horrified with myself.
She had shown me the same affection then as she did now, but I could say with certainty that my own feelings were different.
At some point, I don’t know when, this small warmth had become something so precious to me that I never wanted to let it go.
I found myself hoping that the expression on her face would always be a smile, that she would be happy forever.
I felt like it would be okay to hurt myself a little for her sake.
Again, the confession came out.
“I like you, Eun-ah.”
I said it, with all my heart.