Pure or Filthy?
I struggled to regain my composure after my sister's relentless, no-holds-barred attack.
What did she mean by filthy? Me?
In my entire life, I'd never once been called filthy.
...To begin with, I wasn't even that interested in that kind of thing.
Of course, it wasn't like I knew absolutely nothing about it.
My voice came out trembling from sheer embarrassment.
My sister's words struck a guilty chord deep in my heart.
Now that she mentioned it, maybe she was right.
Not many people called swimsuits provocative.
That's just how swimsuits were, after all.
...Those kinds of people really existed in real life?
People who checked compatibility in bed before even checking emotional compatibility? Were they insane?
My sister's words made me feel like the pure world I knew was crumbling around me.
I'd always thought those were just stories from dramas or things that floated around on the internet—things from a distant, unrelated world.
Listening to my sister, I started to feel like I really was making it too complicated.
Dating wasn't like there was some fixed answer you had to follow.
And straying from the path wasn't some unforgivable sin.
My sister spoke to me in a tone still laced with regret.
Then, with a mischievous giggle, she suddenly dropped her voice.
Something felt ominous.
From long experience, I knew it was never a good idea to take everything my sister said at face value.
...All sorts of things?
Things couples did at water parks.
Surely, no matter what, they wouldn't do anything weird in a public place.
What my sister told me next was so shocking I could barely process it. It couldn't possibly be true...
A string of words and situations that went far beyond my imagination.
My mind grew hazy from stories that completely defied common sense.
I swallowed hard at my sister's words and shook my head vigorously. It was a ritual to drive out the wicked demon in my heart.
I practically screamed at my sister.
It was quite late in the evening.
I was loitering in front of Yuna's house like some suspicious person.
Then the villa entrance opened, and Yuna walked out covering her mouth as she yawned.
She was wearing brand logo training pants that clung to her figure just enough.
And a white short-sleeved t-shirt that seemed like it might turn slightly see-through.
Even in such casual clothes, Yuna looked incredibly good.
"Don't stare. It's embarrassing."
Yuna turned her head sharply, tears still clinging to the corners of her eyes.
Why was she hiding it? Her yawning face was pretty cute too.
"Want to take a walk first?"
"Sure."
Yuna and I started walking down the night streets, holding hands a little more naturally now.
The neighborhood was so quiet that there were hardly any people passing by.
"Yuna. Are you sleepy?"
"Huh? No. I'm just a bit tired."
Seeing Yuna yawn made me wonder if I shouldn't have called her out.
Maybe I should have just let her rest.
But I wanted to help her feel better about what happened that morning.
And more than anything, I just wanted to see her.
"...Oppa. What's gotten into you, calling me first?"
Hearing Yuna's words, I realized I really hadn't called her out first very often.
From her expression and tone, it seemed like she was happy I'd reached out.
Since she liked it this much, maybe I should call her out more often from now on.
I started to think that maybe I hadn't been expressive enough all this time.
"Just... because I wanted to see you...?"
I put my reflection into action right away.
A little more proactively.
With complete honesty.
"Ah... I see..."
Yuna lowered her head, her ears turning red.
Apparently saying it so directly made her shy.
My face grew hot too.
Was this the sweetness of dating? It was so sweet I felt like my teeth might rot.
"That, and I was worried about what happened this morning."
"Ah... that. I'm fine now."
The way Yuna smiled as she said that eased my mind considerably.
To be honest, it would be a lie to say I hadn't been worried about it all day.
"More importantly, oppa. You know what?"
"Yeah."
"The tournament starts next week for me. What am I going to do?"
The tournament was finally beginning.
Over four days, they'd determine a winner among five teams.
It was time for Uni to show off all the preparation and teamwork she'd built up.
"What do you mean, what are you going to do? Just do what you've been doing and you'll be fine."
Honestly, with Uni's skill level, there was no need to worry.
Even if she played poorly, it wasn't at a level where she'd get flamed that badly.
"Still... it's my first time in such a big tournament... and from what I see, the viewership goes over tens of thousands... ugh."
Under the streetlamp light and the soft glow of the moon, Yuna's worried profile was illuminated.
"What if I play badly and get absolutely shredded? Not to mention everyone has high expectations since I'm Master rank."
When you thought about it that way, it did seem like it would feel like a heavy burden.
Like how people would be disappointed if someone who was always top of the class suddenly dropped in rank.
From the start, expectations for her tier were already high.
But honestly, my heart felt a little happy about it.
It felt like I was seeing a side of Uni that regular viewers never got to see—the vulnerable side.
Like, oh, so she's scared too.
"You'll do great. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."
"You think so...?"
At Yuna's uncertain tone, I delivered a famous line.
"What's important?"
"...Huh? Oh. An unyielding heart, right."
Yuna answered with a bright smile.
Her adorable reaction made me want to pull her into my arms.
But I held back, remembering VTube advice that boyfriends who tried skinship all the time could be annoying.
"Now that I think about it, aren't you doing any kind of promise or penalty?"
Usually in tournaments like this, people set some kind of winner's promise or penalty.
The other streamers had probably set plenty of them.
"A penalty...? I haven't thought about it. What do you think, oppa?"
What I thought.
I wasn't speaking for just myself, but for all the Uniz.
And I knew exactly what kind of penalty we all wanted.
No. You already know too, don't you, Yuna.
"I think you already know the answer even if I don't say it."
"What kind of cryptic monk talk is that?"
But the way her eyes wavered told me she really did know.
Of course Uni would know what the viewers wanted most in this situation.
"Sigh... You're not thinking of a horror game, are you, oppa?"
I nodded vigorously at her words.
You know me so well, Uni.
It's been a while since you last played a horror game. Isn't it about time for the cooldown to be over?
"It's been quite a while since the last horror game... and during summer, horror games are going to be everywhere..."
"And the viewer reaction is best for that, isn't it?"
I started persuading Yuna like a salesman trying to close a deal.
It really was the perfect timing, both seasonally and within the content cycle.
Of course, I was mostly just trying to satisfy my own desires.
Because Uni playing horror games was just too cute.
"You want me to play a horror game after your Uni_clip already blew up with a million views from one?"
The video that made Uni_clip take off.
It was the one where Uni cried while playing a horror game.
That showed just how weak her resistance to fear really was.
But that's exactly why.
No, that's precisely why it was so good.
"Horror games are boring if you play them like a grave."
You had to scream every time a ghost appeared and cry at least once for it to be fun. That's what made horror games entertaining.
That's why Uni's reactions were always so delicious.
Ah. I'm already drooling just thinking about it.
Full of anticipation, I asked Yuna.
"...So what do you think?"
I kept casting my fishing rod at Uni with the mindset of 'just try it once.'
Justifying it to myself that this was for everyone's benefit.
"Why does your voice sound so excited? It makes me so annoyed. Ah... I don't want to... I'm really scared, you know."
I couldn't force her if she really didn't want to.
I wanted a definite answer, but Yuna smoothly dodged the question.
"I'll talk with the viewers and decide."
As expected of a streamer, she was one step ahead of me, slithering away like a snake.
What a shame. I was so close to getting a promise out of her.
I'm sorry, Uniz.
I sent my apologies to all of Uni's believers across the country.
"Anyway... oppa. Do you want to go to a water park during summer break?"
"A water park? Where?"
"Blue Ocean Water Park. I got tickets from an older friend of mine. She said it was a gift to celebrate us dating."
Ah. Another incredibly famous place had come up.
That place would be packed with people. Could I really handle that?
"...Do you not want to?"
Yuna seemed to have been looking forward to it quite a bit.
She kept sneaking glances at me, trying to read my expression.
"No, let's go. I've never been to a water park before."
If we go, we'll be wearing swimsuits and everything, right?
And riding those massive attractions.
Yuna squeezed my hand tightly for a moment as we walked, then suddenly stopped in place and turned to look at me.
At those words, both Yuna and I couldn't help but blush at the same time.