Premature Prediction

Jeonghun tossed out the remark lightly and claimed a seat first.

Taeseok followed without a word and sat down. Mijin settled in naturally beside Jeonghun.

They set the drinks and snacks they had brought onto the wooden platform.

Jeonghun cracked open a can of beer as if it were nothing and held it out to Mijin.

"Here. Drink."

"Mm."

Mijin took the can with practiced ease.

A glance, a smile—the whole exchange flowed without effort. Anyone watching would have known they were ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a couple from the close, familiar air between them.

Taeseok watched the scene in silence.

After that came the awkward conversation with a junior he had not seen in a long time. It was neither fun nor pleasant. He simply found himself wishing the time would pass more quickly.

When Mijin got up to use the restroom for a moment, Jeonghun stuck a cigarette between his lips and came over to Taeseok. His voice was low and blunt.

"Hey. So... can you really sleep with Auntie Eunjeong tonight?"

"You crazy bastard. You that into her?"

"Do I have to explain it again? I brought Mijin. That wasn't exactly easy either."

An unreasonable request from the start—then Taeseok's even more unreasonable condition piled on top of it. Jeonghun could have laughed it off as a joke and moved on. But the stakes had already grown too large. Seeing Jeonghun somehow meet the terms he had set, Taeseok could no longer ignore the request either.

"Ha... wait a second."

Taeseok stepped a few paces aside, deliberately putting distance between himself and Jeonghun. He pulled his phone from his pocket.

How the hell am I supposed to say this again.

His fingertips hesitated for a beat.

She's a tool, not a person. This isn't reality—it's a game. Think of it that way. And... she won't refuse my request. No. My order.

In the end he hit the call button.

A few rings later, Eunjeong answered cheerfully.

"Hello? Taeseok?"

"Yeah... Eunjeong."

"Mm. What's up? Why the call? Just come down..."

Even the sound of her voice made it clear how much she had been waiting for him.

"That friend from last time is here again..."

"Huh? Who? Ah— that guy from before..."

"Yeah... he says he wants to sleep with you."

A brief silence.

Then Eunjeong's answer came back far too lightly.

"So?"

Her reply was almost weightless.

"I'm sending him to your place now..."

"Now? You want me to sleep with him again today?"

Taeseok was momentarily at a loss for words.

"Yeah. That's how it turned out. Sorry."

The apology slipped out from habit. But the words that came back from Eunjeong right after made the man who had struggled to bring it up feel suddenly foolish.

"Got it. Send him. You must have your reasons."

"……"

Taeseok stood holding the phone, unable to say anything for a moment.

It was not entirely unexpected. It had been like this before... and her Dominance was even higher now than it had been then. The reaction was natural. Expected. And that was exactly what made it more startling.

"Yeah. I'll send him down in a bit."

The moment the call ended, Taeseok felt something different from before. Too dull to call guilt, too uneasy to call pleasure.

He slowly lifted his head and looked up at the darkening sky. He took a cigarette from his pocket, put it between his lips, and lit it. The smoke he drew deep into his lungs drifted out again in a slow exhale.

Beside him, Jeonghun watched Taeseok with a tense expression.

"Well? What'd she say? What happened?"

Taeseok crushed the half-smoked cigarette under his heel without finishing it.

"Dunno, you bastard."

Then he went back to his seat.

Just then Mijin returned from the restroom. Jeonghun still wore an awkward look, sneaking glances at Taeseok while fiddling with his glass. The moment Taeseok noticed, he spoke.

"Looks like we're running a little low on drinks."

Mijin set her glass down and shook her head.

"Mm... we should stop now. I'm getting a bit tipsy too."

"I want one more. What about you, Jeonghun?"

"Yeah... it's been a while since we met... let's have a little more. Mijin, if you're tired you can stop."

Jeonghun instinctively backed Taeseok up.

"Jeonghun."

"Yeah?"

The moment his name was called, Jeonghun's head snapped up.

"If you ask the landlady downstairs, she'll give you more booze. She said she'd set aside a bottle of tequila."

"Oh, for real?"

"Yeah. She said she'd put out some snacks too."

The words flowed so naturally there was no room to question whether they were true or false.

"Mind going?"

When Taeseok said it as if it were nothing, Jeonghun met his eyes for a brief second. In that tiny instant was an understanding that needed no words.

"Huh? Ah— yeah! Of course."

Jeonghun shot to his feet, his face brightening.

As he started down the stairs he called back,

"I just need to go down, right?"

"Yeah."

Taeseok answered shortly, then added a beat later,

"The snacks might not be ready yet, so wait a little before you grab them."

"Ah, okay okay."

Jeonghun waved without looking back and disappeared down the stairs. His footsteps faded, then vanished completely.

Now only Taeseok and Mijin remained on the rooftop.

In the quiet, Mijin's breathing came just a little rough. She was still looking toward the stairs when she let out a small, incredulous laugh.

"Seriously... is going to get more drinks something to get that excited about?"

"You know how much Jeonghun likes to drink... maybe he hasn't been drinking much since he met you."

"Tch... no way. You know how much he drinks whether I'm there or not. You know him—he never reads the room with me..."

She shook her head and turned to look at Taeseok. He was staring right back at her.

So I can do whatever I want with Mijin?

Mijin noticed the shift in Taeseok's eyes in that instant and drew her shoulders in slightly.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"No reason... just..."

He took her in slowly. Starting from her face, his gaze traveled down the long, slender line of her neck, over the soft curve of her chest, the narrow waist, and the firm line of her thighs showing beneath her skirt—lingering as if savoring a delicious meal with his eyes first.

Mijin had no idea. She did not know that her boyfriend had "offered" her to this man. But the situation itself was absurd. Even if Jeonghun had that kind of intention, he could not simply force himself on her against her will. Jeonghun had gone down smiling precisely because he was certain nothing would happen.

That, however, was a prediction for ordinary circumstances. Taeseok was no longer an ordinary person. And Jeonghun's careless offer of his own girlfriend had stirred a competitive edge in him as well.

Taeseok settled into a more comfortable posture and kept looking at her. A woman he once would never have dared to even reach for.

"Why are you staring so hard? It's embarrassing..."

This sunbae... what's with his eyes today... and why is Oppa Jeonghun taking so long?

Taeseok's gaze had already drifted down to Mijin's hands. Small, pale backs of hands, slender fingers, even her nails.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Your hands... they're really pretty."

The sudden compliment made Mijin flinch and draw her hands in a little, though her expression was not displeased.

"Really...? Honestly... I do hear that my hands are pretty pretty often."

She curled her fingers shyly and smiled. Taeseok smiled too as he continued to study her hands.

"Yeah. Really pretty hands. Long fingers, so white... even from a distance I used to think they were beautiful, but up close they're even prettier."

The tips of Mijin's ears warmed at the praise. Taeseok continued as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Could I... hold them once?"

"My hands...?"

"Yeah. I've never had the chance to hold hands this pretty. Because I was too scared to go outside..."

Words that called up his past. A subtle tug at her sympathy. Her heart wavered.

Yeah... holding a sunbae's hand once when he's been through so much isn't that hard...

Thinking of it so lightly, she slowly extended her right hand.

"Alright. Here. If this is enough to comfort you..."

Taeseok carefully took the hand she offered. At first he only brushed the back of it lightly, then slowly turned his palm against hers and enclosed her hand completely.

In that moment, an unfamiliar pleasure raced through Mijin's hand and made her body tremble. It was a sensation she had never felt before—and that very strangeness only pulled her in more. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠The warm, intense energy flowing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from Taeseok's hand climbed her arm, spread through her chest and lower abdomen, and a dizzying wave of pleasure shot through her entire body in a single pulse.

"……!"

Mijin swallowed a breath, eyes flying wide open.

Her face flushed crimson in an instant; heat climbed all the way to her ears. They had only held hands, yet she could feel a strange wave spreading from deep inside her body. The insides of her thighs—and something even deeper—tingled and grew wet, while the tips of her breasts stiffened, hypersensitive, with a force that was almost overwhelming.

…What is this. We only held hands… am I… getting turned on right now?

She tried to pull her hand free, but Taeseok's grip already held hers firmly and would not let go. Mijin lowered her head slightly and managed to murmur in a trembling voice,

"…Sunbae… please… let go of my hand."

"Should I?"

Taeseok answered, then squeezed her hand once as if to mark it as the last time. He met her eyes and slowly opened his fingers.

His eyes told her she could take her hand back now. Mijin's hand simply rested on top of his; all she had to do was pull it away. But she could not. There was nothing between their palms, yet it felt as if they were stuck together—she could not move.

"Haa… Sunbae..."

"What's wrong? Not taking your hand away?"

"It's not that..."

This time when Taeseok made as if to withdraw first, Mijin caught his hand and held on.

"What? Didn't you ask me to let go?"

"Just… let me hold it a little longer. You said it comforts you if I hold your hand. It's not like it'll wear out… just a moment..."

Her behavior drew a dry laugh from him. Even sitting still he could feel Mijin's body growing hotter and hotter.

"Sunbae… please… let go now… I… really feel… weird..."

"What are you talking about, Mijin? You're the one holding my hand."

"I don't know. Sunbae… why am I like this?"

Her body leaned more and more into his hand. Her breathing quickened; she crossed her legs and squeezed her thighs tightly together. Taeseok watched her at his leisure. Mijin looked ready to throw herself into his arms at any second—panting hard, twisting her flushed body.

Should I take this a little further?

Taeseok gave her hand a gentle tug toward himself. As if she had been waiting for exactly that, Mijin rose from her seat and carefully settled her hips across his thigh, melting into his arms.

The moment she did, her body burned even hotter. The pleasure that had been confined to their hands now poured in from every point of contact.

"Haa… Sunbae… why are you doing this?"

She trembled faintly. Her breath brushed unsteadily against the side of his neck. Taeseok gently stroked her hair and smiled quietly. The soft strands under his fingertips and her light shivering sank deep into his chest. The sweet pleasure of knowing that the man who once could not even speak properly in front of this woman was now holding her in his arms.