Chapter 135: A Story from the Past
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 135: A Story from the Past
I cleaned the coconut crab we'd lucked into and put it in a large pot to boil.
Its claws were so massive that it wouldn't have fit in the pot unless I separated them from the body.
There was one more, which I figured I could save for the Vice President and Minami.
Since it was a type of crab, I didn't think it would need any special seasoning, but I sprinkled some salt on it just in case.
Only after placing the pot on the fire could I finally relax a little.
While I was focused on cooking, the President, who was sitting inside the hut and watching the sunset over the horizon, murmured.
"…I wonder when Shinji and Minami will be back."
"I know. They're both late."
I said, sitting down next to her.
"It'll take a while for it to cook, so please, keep me company."
"Alright."
Perhaps pleased by my suggestion, the President smiled faintly and looked at me.
Her smiling face, backlit by the setting sun, was beautiful.
So beautiful that I momentarily forgot what I was going to say.
To hide the fact that I'd been momentarily captivated, I turned my head and asked.
"This must be your first time experiencing something like this, President. Are you uncomfortable?"
At that, the President slowly shook her head.
"Not particularly. In fact, I'm rather enjoying it. Just as you said, Yoo-Sung, this is a first for me. When else would I ever get to visit a deserted island?"
I was a little worried, but thankfully, she didn't seem to mind.
In a situation like this, maybe being positive was for the best.
After all, for being stranded on a deserted island, we had a surprising abundance of supplies.
"That's a relief, then. I was worried you might find it uncomfortable."
"I wasn't just raised like some sheltered young lady, you know?!"
After her outburst, the President seemed to sense the awkwardness in the air and fell silent.
With things like that, there wasn't much else to talk about.
So we just stared blankly at the flames of the campfire, passing the time.
There wasn't much to do anyway, and time passed surprisingly quickly just doing this.
I guess this is why people enjoy fire gazing.
After staring at the fire for a long while, the President suddenly spoke up.
"Come to think of it, Yoo-Sung, do you remember the day we first met?"
"The day we first met?"
I searched through my old memories.
The first time I met the President was during the second semester of my first year.
She'd suddenly shown up in my classroom while I was in the middle of reading Jump and told me to become the secretary, so it had left a strong impression on me.
When I mentioned that, the President gave a wry smile and said.
"Would you believe me if I told you that wasn't actually the first time we met?"
"Huh? We met before that?"
"Yes. To be precise, it was during the first semester of my second year, before I became the student council president."
With that, she began to reminisce about the day she first met me.
*
That day, I had snuck out of my mansion on the pretext of wanting to have a 'commoner experience.'
Unlike now, I was plain and ordinary back then, and I held a strange curiosity about the lives of common people.
I was wandering around Shibuya by myself when some unsavory-looking men started hitting on me.
That's when you passed by and saved me.
'Hey, you guys. I don't know what's going on, but the lady clearly isn't interested.'
Then and now, you were always a meddler, sticking your nose where it didn't belong.
You beat down the delinquents who tried to pick a fight with you in an instant and saved me.
Afterward, even though you seemed annoyed by my desire for a 'commoner experience,' you still kindly helped me.
That was when I first started to take an interest in you.
"So that's what happened."
I answered, feigning composure, but inwardly I was flustered.
'I met the President during the first semester of my first year?'
Honestly, I couldn't recall it at all.
Because if I had met a beauty like the President, it definitely would have stuck in my memory somehow.
In any case, I couldn't interrupt the President while she seemed lost in her memories, so I just listened quietly beside her.
Bubble! Bubble!
"Ah, it's boiling over."
I quickly got up and lifted the lid off the pot on the fire.
The bright red shell of the cooked coconut crab greeted me.
I turned back and said.
"President, I think it's about time to eat."
At that, the President, who had been rattling off her old story, pushed herself up from her knees.
"Has it been that long already?"
"Well, you were talking for quite a while."
I used tongs to lift the coconut crab out and onto a tray.
Even just the body was almost the size of my forearm.
When I cracked open the red shell, the first thing I saw was the green tomalley.
The tomalley of crustaceans is savory and delicious, so none of it should go to waste.
I made a long cut in the shell, running from the body to the tail.
Then, I scooped out just the meat and placed it on a plate, making it easy to eat.
The President, who had been lost in her story just a moment ago, gulped as the crab meat was placed before her, as if suddenly realizing how hungry she was.
"C-Can I eat it?"
"Be my guest."
I replied, handing her a fork.
After spearing a piece of the white and red crab meat and putting it in her mouth, the President's eyes widened, and a shiver ran through her body.
"…It's delicious."
"Is it different from regular crab meat?"
"At first, I thought it would taste like lobster, but it's actually closer to snow crab. The more you chew, the sweeter it gets. You could eat this without any sauce."
Hearing her review, I also speared a conveniently-sized piece of crab meat with my fork and put it in my mouth.
"…"
It literally melted in my mouth.
I felt like I could eat this forever.
As if we were thinking the same thing, the President met my eyes and said with a bashful expression.
"I can have more, right?"
I pushed the entire tray of coconut crab toward her.
*
By the time we finished the coconut crab, the sun had completely set.
I wanted to use the leftover claws to make ramen, but this wasn't Korea, and there was no way we'd have any on the yacht. So instead, we fried some rice with the tomalley.
After meticulously finishing off the one crab, I put the other one I'd boiled for the two who hadn't returned into the yacht's refrigerator.
Afterward, I returned to the beach, checked the time on my watch, and asked.
"President, it's almost nine o'clock. Why don't you get some sleep?"
"What? Already? I don't think it's that late yet."
"Unlike when you're at your mansion, there's not much to do even if you stay awake."
In times like these, it's better to sleep early and wake up late.
Besides, I'd lit some insect-repelling incense, so the inside of the tent was relatively comfortable.
The sleeping arrangements might be uncomfortable, but it was an environment you could definitely sleep in.
"Even if I sleep inside, what about you, Yoo-Sung?"
"I can go a day without sleep. Besides, we need someone to stand watch, just in case."
"Don't say that. You must be tired, so get at least a little sleep. We can share the blanket."
As she said this, she lifted the blanket that was draped over her shoulders.
She probably did it without thinking, but honestly, I was a little taken aback.
Because I'm a man, too.
After a brief silence, I asked.
"President, do you not see me as a man?"
She tilted her head and replied.
"I do see you as a man."
"No, that's not what I meant..."
As I tried to refute her words, I realized the conversation was heading in a strange direction and shut my mouth.
And as if sensing the strange atmosphere, the President started to ask, "What's wrong?" but then, belatedly realizing her mistake, she hurriedly tried to explain.
"Yoo-Sung, what I just said, I didn't mean it like that..."
Then she suddenly stopped.
"No, that's not it. I'll stop lying to myself now."
The President straightened her back and looked at me with a serious expression.
"Yoo-Sung, I do see you as a man."
"...What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what I said. When I first met you, it started as just a small bit of interest. But as we spent time together in the student council, watching you from the side, I came to see many of your good qualities that others don't know about."
Sitting across from me, her eyes reflected my image like clear glass beads.
"At first, I considered giving up on these feelings. As you know, I am the daughter of a prestigious noble family. You, on the other hand, are not an ordinary Japanese person, but a Zainichi Korean with a Korean father and mother. The elders of my family would surely be furious and oppose it if they found out. But—I don't want to lie anymore. Not about the feelings I have, and not about my heart that yearns for you."
The President lifted her right arm from under the blanket, caressed my face, and asked.
"Yoo-Sung, I will ask you this for the first and last time. Please answer me seriously."
"...Yes."
Finally, the President looked me straight in the eye and said clearly.
"May I love you?"