I Want to Be Together Forever
When I was young, I once learned kendo with someone's help. Instead of swinging a wooden sword, though, I preferred sitting quietly in meditation, emptying my mind. Whenever something difficult happens, I meditate just like this.
Everything she said sounded absurd and made no sense to me. But since escaping right now was impossible, I decided to focus on what I could do first.
"Then... would you grant me just one request?"
The moment I spoke to break the silence, she nodded frantically, her face lighting up with joy. It was a little irritating, yet somehow that expression of hers felt oddly cute.
"Say anything! If it's something I can do, I'll do it all!!"
Smiling at the silver-haired woman who nodded eagerly, I asked if she could let me make just one phone call. Her expression darkened slightly, and her eyebrows twitched. She seemed to have misunderstood something about the call. But the gloomy look gradually softened and relaxed.
"A phone call... why? C-can I ask?"
"Haah, don't misunderstand... I just can't go back to Korea, so I need to call the airline to cancel my reservation and also contact the university. Plus, I have to leave tomorrow, so I need to apply for a visa extension too..."
I vaguely remembered hearing that you could call the immigration office or the embassy. More importantly, I had to apply for a leave of absence before the entrance ceremony in a few days.
Even after I explained everything, she still looked uneasy and asked if I really had to make the call.
"Nuna... if I don't call tomorrow, it'll only cause more trouble for you."
"I-I see... Umm... There's nowhere else, right?"
"No..."
Even if I tried calling somewhere else, she would stop me anyway. The moment I heard about threatening the prime minister, I realized contacting anyone else would be pointless.
After thinking for a moment, she finally nodded and gave permission.
"Here. Use this."
She handed me her phone. The design didn't suit a syndicate boss at all. Even the case was silver like her hair, decorated with cat paw prints, and there was a little cat face charm under the camera. I couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.
"W-why?"
"It's nothing. I just thought you really shouldn't judge people by appearances."
"Huh?"
As she tilted her head in confusion, I held back my laughter and took the phone. I immediately called the airline and the university. When I contacted the immigration office, she watched me with an extremely tense expression.
Obviously, if I reported this, the police would come. No matter how powerful the organization was, an investigation would change everything. I hesitated, looked at her again, and gave up, only saying what needed to be said.
"Um... are you done with the calls?"
"Yes, yes. Thank you, Nuna."
I handed the phone back right away. She hesitated for a bit before carefully asking,
"D-don't misunderstand... I'm just curious... You could've asked them to report it earlier, right? So why didn't you?"
"Huh? Ah... that's..."
The reason I gave up was simple—even if I asked for help, nothing would change. I'm an orphan. Until recently, I lived in an orphanage and only just managed to rent a small studio apartment with government support funds after leaving. The director gave me some pocket money as a coming-of-age gift, and I used it to buy a Japan travel package.
Even if I got rescued by reporting this, I'd still have to take a leave of absence because of the investigation, and then I'd be alone again. I entered university because I wanted to make friends. My timid personality had gotten me bullied all through high school.
"Sorry... for asking something unnecessary..."
"Huh? Ah, no! It's just... some people are born into this kind of fate, right? I'm just one of them."
Her apology wasn't really about asking the question—it was guilt over kidnapping an orphan. She kept looking so sad that I ended up comforting her instead. But was this right? I was the one who needed comforting. Well, since things had come to this, I decided to just accept the situation and changed the subject.
"Is there anything else you're curious about?"
"Huh? Yeah, yeah! Th-that! You'll be living here with me from now on, right? I-is there anything you need!?"
She asked with a flustered expression, awkwardly trying to hide her sadness.
First, I needed to get my studio deposit back, but since some time had passed, it might count as breaking the contract. That deposit was basically my entire fortune—barely scraped together with government support after leaving the orphanage.
"Don't worry. I'll make sure you get that money back, no matter what!"
"Huh?"
Her silver hair swayed as she clenched her fist like she was making a vow. Suddenly her gaze turned cold, and she gestured for her subordinates to come over. One of them hurried out and returned moments later.
"Here it is, Boss."
He brought a thick bundle of 50,000-won bills. The subordinate quietly muttered that he'd threatened them "as legally as possible." Hearing that made me nervous. What kind of threat could possibly be legal?
In just a few minutes, my entire fortune was sitting in front of me. Without hesitation, I handed the bundle to her.
"You should take this money, Nuna."
"What!? N-no! Why would I take it!?"
She raised her voice and shook her head frantically, clearly flustered. Thinking she might have misunderstood again, I sighed and explained.
"I have to live here now, right? Honestly, staying here for free would be shameless. I can't allow that... So I want to pay rent."
"R-rent? It's fine! If that's all—"
"This is one thing I want to be stubborn about. Otherwise, I'll make a fuss about leaving again. Is that okay?"
"Tch..."
Since it made sense, she didn't argue anymore. She looked sulky, puffing her cheeks like a silver-haired vampire. I stared at her blankly for a moment, then shook my head and lightly slapped my cheeks to snap out of it.
"W-why? Did I say something wrong?"
"No. It's just... since we'll be living together from now on, I thought we should at least know each other's names..."
"!?"
Her sulky expression brightened instantly. Her eyes sparkled as she nodded with a bright smile.
"As I mentioned earlier, I'm Seo Yujin. I'm twenty years old. My hobby is reading."
At the same time, I bowed and said, "Please take care of me." Seeing that, she bowed as well and introduced herself.
"I-I'm Reina! The boss and head of the Kurotsuki Syndicate! Kujo Reina!"
She was so nervous that her expression and tone didn't match. She seemed unsure whether to shake hands or wave, extending her hand halfway before lowering it uncertainly. Watching her, I sighed, already worried about what lay ahead.
Is this really okay...? Besides, this person... she's nothing like I imagined. Not scary at all—just cute, clumsy, and kind of a scatterbrain...
I shouldn't think this on a first meeting, but honestly, that was how she'd been so far. And not even a few seconds after that thought, she blurted out something completely unexpected.
"Y-Yujin... um, you know..."
"Yes?"
"We're... married for now, so... um... umm..."
Her face flushed red as she spoke in an extremely serious tone. Naturally, I was startled.
"Hik! Not that again! We haven't even filed the marriage registration yet! And Nuna and I aren't even officially dating!"
She looked disappointed, her face falling into a sulky pout.
"Sorry... B-but! We could become that someday, right? Can't we just meet and think about it slowly?"
What was she even saying? Usually dating meant thinking things through while gradually getting closer, not jumping straight to marriage. Anyway, her bringing up marriage again was unexpected. She'd asked the same thing when we first met after the kidnapping, but the situation was completely different now.
"It's absolutely not forcing you!"
"That is forcing!"
"Tch... S-so! If you're okay with it! I want to be together for life!"
"How is that any different from marriage!?"
As I kept refuting her, she grew dejected. Seeing her sad face made my heart waver too. I considered meditating again, but decided speaking honestly would be better.
"Th-then! Let's just stay as acquaintances! L-like Nuna and dongsaeng!"
With her silver hair cascading over her shoulders, she pouted slightly. Like a scolded child, she avoided my gaze before slowly nodding in surrender.
"Okay. I'll try my best to act like that. I won't rush! Slowly... I'll try. But still, I want to be more than that... A-anyway! Please take care of me, Yujin!"
This time she properly offered a handshake, and I accepted it. I smiled and said I'd take care of her too, then belatedly added that her name was pretty. Her face brightened even more than before.
The only problem was that at some point she'd moved closer to the sofa and sat right beside me.
Why did she suddenly... sit next to me?