I'll Be Rolling Around with Down at Home
By the time I came out to the living room, Areum and Sarang were already both in the kitchen making breakfast.
"...Did you both sleep well?"
"Oppa!"
Sarang greeted me with a bright face first thing in the morning.
Beside her, Areum simply offered me a small smile without a word.
But the moment Sarang spotted that, she narrowed her eyes into thin slits like a flatfish.
"Sh-should I help too?"
"No! We're almost done now. Come sit down quickly."
Sarang carried an atmosphere that was hard to put into words. At a glance she looked as lively as always, yet she was like a cat with its claws carefully hidden—the kind of feline predator that flattens itself low to the ground and stalks its prey.
"Here's your spoon and chopsticks."
"Ah, thanks."
Then, one by one, she transferred the side dishes and carried them over to the table. Rolled omelet, steamed eggs, even egg soup... At least there was one dish that wasn't eggs: braised tofu.
"Hehe... The fridge is empty right now... Want to go grocery shopping with me today?"
"Ah, yeah. Let's do that."
And Sarang promptly sat herself down across from me. That was clearly the seat Areum usually took.
"......Ha."
Sure enough, I heard Areum's hollow laugh from behind as she brought the rice. But then she came and sat right next to me instead.
"Y-you're not sitting next to me?"
"Why would I? Next to you? On purpose? I'll just sit here."
"Ah... okay."
Across the table their gazes clashed, sparks flying as if flames might catch at any second. I pretended not to notice their little war of nerves and quickly picked up my spoon.
"...It's good. Thanks for the meal."
"Yes, yes! Eat up."
Then I felt Areum, now settled beside me, slowly lean in toward my ear. In a sticky, understated voice she whispered,
"...You're gonna need the energy. Eat plenty of eggs."
"A-ah... yeah."
"I heard eggs are good for stamina."
"......"
"Wh-what are you two doing!"
Sarang's voice cut between us right then.
"Shin Sarang, who said you could yell at the table? Can't I even talk?"
"That's not it! Why are you sticking so close and talking like that!"
"That's my business, isn't it?"
Areum propped her elbow on the table and rested her chin in her palm, her face saying got something to say? Go on, try me. Sarang wasn't about to back down either and started snapping right back. My head throbbed on its own.
"How can you say that!"
"How? Like this."
"Stop twisting my words!"
"Heh. Hey, why do you keep acting cute, anyway? You drag out the ends of your sentences and talk with that baby lisp, then tell me not to twist words—it's hilarious."
"Wh-when did I ever!"
"See? You're doing it right now. Ask Shin Down if you don't believe me."
"O-Oppa... am I really acting cute on purpose?"
It was a childish squabble. More accurately, it wasn't even a real argument so much as a pure power struggle between two girls. I figured it would trade a few more jabs and then fizzle out on its own. But their voices kept climbing and the whole thing was tipping into an emotional fight, so I felt the need to step in.
"Uh, hey... sorry, but can we just eat first?"
"Oppa! You heard her too, right? Unnie keeps picking on me..."
"Y-yeah. I heard, but..."
Sarang's eyes were begging me to take her side right away. With yesterday still fresh and hoping Areum would knock it off around now, I looked over at her. Whether she'd actually listen was another question, but I planned to scold her lightly—just stop already.
"You quit it too. What are you doing to the kid?"
"Okay. I'll stop. Sarang, I'm sorry."
"...A-ah. Y-you heard that? You eat first now too."
"A-aah! Hnn... yes..."
Sarang still looked far from satisfied, but once Areum lowered her head first she had no choice; she nodded with a reluctant expression. Clink, clink—dishes shifted. Areum wasn't the type to fold like this, yet the situation seemed to settle easily enough. Only the strange atmosphere lingered.
Sarang, who had been so talkative, grew quiet, her face still full of resentment.
"Hey, eat this."
"Y-yeah."
On the flip side, Areum kept doing things she never did—picking up side dishes for me, or resting her hand on my thigh and kneading it. I flinched hard at the skinship, painfully aware of Sarang's eyes.
"Hey, cut it out."
"What?"
"That... move your hand."
"Oh, is that all."
Pat-pat—Areum deliberately raised her voice and slapped my thigh a couple times. Then she even glanced at Sarang and flashed a little smile.
"...Thank you for the meal. I'm going to wash up."
The chair scraped back with a loud drag. Sarang headed for the bathroom.
"Sarang~ If you're done eating you should clear your dishes."
"...Yes."
At Areum's words she hurried back, dumped her bowl in the sink, and left. The door shut with a sharp click, and I finally let out the sigh I'd been holding.
"Haa... Hey, you gonna keep doing this?"
"What."
"I'm gonna choke on my food. Why do you two keep doing this."
"So should she and I suddenly start laughing and chatting? You're the weird ones for getting all cozy after not seeing each other for years."
"Who said laugh and chat? Every time your eyes meet you look ready to fight—that's why I'm saying it."
"...Who's fighting."
Areum seemed to feel guilty at that; she avoided my gaze and poked at her rice.
"Haa... Honestly I don't get it. Why you two are like this."
I could understand the goodwill Sarang felt toward me, and even the jealousy that spilled over onto Areum because of it. But I couldn't read Areum's true feelings at all. Was she just having fun teasing Sarang, or did she genuinely want me to get fucked over? I had no idea.
"Anyway, don't do that when I'm around. I'm seriously... stuck in the middle, what am I supposed to do."
"...Did I start it? She keeps poking me first. Fuck... Yesterday I even apologized like you told me to, said the teasing went too far, did everything you said—why do you only keep bitching at me..."
"You apologized...?"
"You told me to! So I did!"
That was a little unexpected. I thought she'd just charge full speed into disaster mode, never imagined Areum would lower her head first. Come to think of it, earlier she'd also said sorry first and ended the situation. The nuance might not have been pure, but from her perspective she had apologized first.
"Ah, you should've said so. G-good job."
"Tsk... so annoying, seriously..."
Areum's shoulders seemed to lift a little as she shot me a sideways glare. Then she forced a smile again and asked,
"...Did I do good? I did good, right?"
"Y-yeah. You did good. Apologizing first and all..."
"Then if I did good, g-give me a reward."
"R-reward? What kind of reward?"
Gulp—
I thought this was the kind of scene you'd only see in some thick webtoon or dirty story. That wild thought didn't stay imagination for long.
"This... put it in here."
Areum stood up abruptly and stroked my cock over my pants. Then she flung her pajama dress wide open. Below, her bare pussy with no panties on greeted me.
"...I'm off."
"Yeah, have a good day."
Seeing Oppa off, Unnie and I left the house. It was a shame I had to spend this precious time I could have had alone with Oppa together with Unnie instead.
"You look really disappointed."
"...I do not."
"Heh, what do you mean you don't?"
"I-I never looked disappointed."
"Then should I walk you every day?"
"......"
It was an awkward spot to answer. Saying yes felt wrong because I didn't want that, but saying no felt rude in its own way.
"Ah, and the part about Auntie telling us to stop by the house for a bit was a lie."
"...What?"
"A lie. I just wanted to talk with you alone, so I came out."
Ding—
"What are you doing. Let's go."
Unnie took the lead and I followed behind her.
"Huu... cold. You okay without anything extra on top?"
"...Yes. School's warm so it's fine."
The atmosphere quieted again, and around the time the car started moving Unnie opened her mouth once more.
"You like Shin Down, right?"
"......Yes."
It was a sudden question, but I answered honestly. Oppa wasn't here, and Unnie already seemed to have figured it out anyway.
"Since when have you liked him?"
"Wh-what?"
"I'm asking since when you've liked Shin Down."
"...From the beginning."
"And when was that."
"Um... I don't know. Anyway, from the first time I saw him."
"Really? But too bad. I liked him first."
"...What?"
"You gonna keep pretending you didn't hear? You heard me. I liked him first."
"B-but Unnie and Oppa are siblings! Th-there's no way something like that!!"
Thinking it and hearing it straight from the person herself were completely different. At Unnie's words my breathing turned shallow and my heart swelled like it might burst.
"...Siblings? Us? Heh... Hey, you know we're not blood siblings."
"E-even so! Siblings are siblings! I can't accept that!"
"Who are you to decide what gets accepted or not? Are you my parents or something? You're seriously funny."
"Th-that's..."
"Hey... and whether you wag your tail at Shin Down or whatever, I don't care, but don't tell me what to do. Got it?"
I was so shocked my mouth wouldn't close.
"We're here. Get out."
"Ah..."
"Have a good day. I'll be rolling around with Down at home all I want."
Click—
"There's a car behind us. Hurry."
At the honking from behind I got out of the car. And I watched the car turn around and head back home.