The Childhood Friend Steals Her Ex-Boyfriend's Lips
"Han Yerin, for God's sake, snap out of it!"
CPR demanded a staggering amount of stamina. Chest compressions at a rate of two per second, thirty at a stretch—and Sihyun had already pushed through four full sets before wringing out the last of his strength to deliver the rescue breaths.
And then—
"Ugh…! Hhuk…!"
Yerin coughed up the water trapped in her lungs and cracked her eyes open in a dazed squint. The moment he saw it, Sihyun seized her by both shoulders.
"Yerin—are you with me!?"
"Sihyun… I…"
Her consciousness was coming back. Overwhelmed, Sihyun pulled her straight into his arms. She flailed in startled confusion, but as he gently stroked her hair, the thrashing gradually stilled.
"You don't have to say anything… I'm just so glad you're okay…"
Yerin nodded and wrapped her arms around him in return. Their classmates erupted in cheers, and before long the rescue team arrived.
They loaded her exhausted body into the ambulance. Settling into the guardian's seat beside her, Sihyun gripped her hand tight—she must have been terrified.
"Sihyun…"
His hand was still trembling, the fear refusing to let go. Yerin gave a faint smile and gently ruffled his hair, as if to tell him everything was all right.
"I'm so glad you're safe…"
Warmth radiated from her touch—living, undeniable proof that she was still here. Relief crashed over him all at once, and he started bawling like an idiot.
"Why are you crying…? Were you that worried?"
"Of course I was! I thought you were never going to wake up—do you have any idea how much I…"
His throat closed up. The words wouldn't come. But somehow she seemed to know exactly what he was trying to say. Yerin cradled his head against her and rubbed slow circles down his back, soothing the panic still rattling through him.
"I'm not going anywhere. You're right here—where else would I go…?"
Her comfort washed over him, and little by little the trembling eased. Around then, a paramedic who had been speaking with their classmates approached from behind.
"We'll be heading out now."
"Okay."
The solidly built man took hold of the handle and started to shut the rear doors—
"…hyun! …Sihyun!!"
Sihyun spotted Chaeyeon sprinting toward them barefoot.
What on earth had her running so desperately?
The distance was still too great; he couldn't make out what she was shouting.
"…on't! …ith me!"
The gap closed. He was just starting to catch fragments of her words when—
Thud.
Oblivious to everything, the paramedic shut the doors without a second thought.
According to the doctor, the swift CPR had left her body without any lasting damage. The jellyfish, too, had only been a species that caused temporary muscle paralysis. Yerin just laughed weakly and said her limbs still wouldn't quite listen to her.
In the end, all we bought was some ointment for the scars before heading back.
We were in a taxi bound for the lodging when—
"Driver, could you let us off here?"
Even though we still had a ways to go, Yerin asked to be dropped at a nearby beach. Before I could stop her, she'd already paid the fare and was climbing out on her crutches.
"What was that for? Your leg's still messed up and you want to walk?"
"Yeah. I wanted to see the ocean up close."
"You nearly drowned and you still like the sea…?"
"I do. Thanks to it, I got a good memory out of all this."
Maybe it was the sunset, but her face looked flushed.
She stepped onto the sand and started forward, eyes fixed on the water. Worried she might take a spill, I trailed close behind her.
Crunch. Crunch.
The sound of sand underfoot. The soft hush of the waves brushing against my ears. Even Yerin, who would normally be chattering away, had gone quiet—lost in the beauty of the view.
We walked like that for a while, and eventually arrived at the spot where we'd been hanging out with our classmates.
Only then did she stop and ask, quietly,
"Sihyun… where was I when I went under?"
"Around there, I think."
She looked where I pointed and her lips parted slightly.
"That's pretty far out… Dragging me back must've been exhausting."
"I'm not going to deny it. I almost drowned right along with you."
"Pfft… So we'd both become water ghosts and haunt the place together?"
When she said that didn't sound half bad, I flicked her on the forehead and told her to cut the nonsense.
"We got lucky this time. From now on, be careful. Why are you always so reckless?"
"Sorry. I'll be more careful."
Looking thoroughly dejected, Yerin sank down onto the sand with her arms around her knees. It was so unlike her usual self that the silence turned awkward. I scratched the back of my head and sat down beside her. Another stretch of quiet settled in.
I was just about to break it when—
"Sihyun."
She spoke first.
"Yeah?"
"The doctor said it earlier, right? That I only made it because you gave me CPR."
"He did. Why?"
She'd been staring straight ahead, but now she turned toward me, cheeks shyly pink.
"Th-then… that means you did mouth-to-mouth on me too… right?"
"Ah."
There it was.
I hadn't thought a thing of it in the moment, but the aftermath hit hard—mortifyingly hard.
"Just so we're clear, that was a force majeure situation. I kept second-guessing myself even while I was doing it, okay? But what choice did I have? If I didn't act right away—"
My mind went blank and I started babbling excuses—until something pressed against my lips.
I looked straight ahead and found Yerin's index finger resting on my mouth. Smiling with her eyes, she shook her head.
"I'm not blaming you. If it weren't for you, I would've died without ever even dating anyone. What's a first kiss compared to that…?"
First kiss. The thought that I'd taken something so precious from her sent my heart racing and flooded me with guilt all at once.
I jerked back in a hurry and said, as firmly as I could manage for a girl who might have been hurt by it,
"Listen carefully. Nothing happened between us today. A kiss from CPR doesn't count. Got it?"
Maybe my clumsy attempt at comfort actually landed. Yerin giggled and nodded.
Suddenly embarrassed, I scrambled to my feet and started walking, leaving her behind.
"Wait up."
Her voice was laced with laughter. Crutches in hand, she set off after me.
But—
"Ow!"
Her leg still wasn't right. She hadn't gone far before she went down in the sand.
"You okay?"
"Ugh… I said wait for me…"
Tears welled in her eyes as she stared at the scar on her leg. Still sniffling complaints, she hooked a crutch over her right arm and—
"I can't walk. Carry me."
—demanded a piggyback ride.
"What about just leaning on me?"
"No. Carry. Me."
She put extra weight on the last word and held both arms out toward me.
She said she couldn't walk. What was I supposed to do?
I resigned myself and turned my back. She climbed on without a second's hesitation.
"Driver Kim, move out."
"Yes, ma'am, yes, ma'am."
Yerin had been perched a little loosely, but she tightened her hold around Sihyun and settled in properly. Both their hearts kicked into a faster rhythm at once. Her quickened breath brushed warm against the nape of his neck.
They walked on like that for a while before she asked, voice shy,
"Sihyun. When you did mouth-to-mouth on me… it didn't feel gross, did it?"
That damn mouth-to-mouth again.
Sihyun silently cursed his past self for slamming their lips together without a single thought. But what was done was done. Figuring this was just his karma coming due, he gave her an honest answer.
"Honestly, I don't know. Good or bad didn't even enter into it. All I could think about was that I had to save you."
An answer that was somehow both pleasing and disappointing. Yerin's expression tightened; she mustered her courage and asked again.
"What if it hadn't been an emergency? How do you think you would've felt then?"
"Why do you keep asking stuff like—"
"Just answer me."
There was something serious in her voice. Hearing it, Sihyun realized this wasn't a question he could brush aside.
Don't tell me she…
By this point, there was no missing it. What his classmates had said—that Yerin might have feelings for him—had been a hunch. Now it was hardening into certainty. Face burning, Sihyun forced the words out.
"If we're talking like or dislike, of course I'd like it. I'm a guy, and with a girl as pretty as you… ah."
Speaking without a filter had dumped him straight into prime teasing material.
"Pfft…!"
Sure enough, laughter bubbled up from behind him. Mortified, Sihyun snapped at her through a wave of self-loathing.
"Dammit… you're getting heavy. Get down already."
"Rude! Getting to carry a pretty girl like me is a rare opportunity, you know?"
"You little—!"
His shame hit the breaking point. Deciding he couldn't drag this out any longer, he broke into a run toward the lodging.
"Eek…!"
Yerin locked her arms around his neck and let out a shriek of pure delight.
At the top of the long stone staircase stood the pension. Both their hearts were hammering so hard it felt like someone had bolted motors into their chests.
"We're here. Off."
"What? I wanted to ride a little longer…"
Grumbling, Yerin planted her crutches and carefully slid down. Sihyun set her on the ground and was wiping the sweat from his brow, catching his breath, when—
"W-wait…?"
Her startled voice hit his ears. He spun around—her body was already tipping backward.
"Yerin!"
Panicked, he shot out a hand and caught her by the wrist. She jerked to a stop halfway through the fall, and for a split second he felt nothing but relief—
Then she used the momentum, flung her arms around his neck, and lunged.
And then she—
Chuu ♡
—pressed her lips over his with a soft, unmistakable smack.
His mouth was claimed in one clean, audible kiss. Startled by the soft, yielding warmth of it, Sihyun toppled straight onto his back.
"H-Han Yerin, you…"
Perched on top of him like a wicked little brown cat, Han Yerin ran her tongue slowly across her pink lips. Wearing a smile more alluring than anything he'd ever seen from her, she traced a fingertip over his mouth and said,
"This kiss… you can't call it a no-count, can you?"