Chapter 153: Kkotbi's Confession
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 153: Kkotbi's Confession
5
I slipped away from the others and went out onto the terrace.
Was it because the heating was so good?
Thankfully, the glass-enclosed terrace was warm as well.
I can see the whole street from here.
Looking at the scenery outside, my head cooled a little.
Everyone is so over the top.
They weren't usually this intense, but maybe it was because there were so many people.
I let out a faint sigh, thinking of the three who had become more aggressive than before.
In the end, this was all something we had agreed to, but it seemed I would still need more time to get used to it.
“Ha-chan-oppa?”
Just then, I heard a pleasant voice.
When I turned my head, Kkotbi was standing there.
She was wearing a pink bikini, her snow-white skin on full display.
For a moment, I wondered if I should even be looking.
“Kkotbi, I was wondering where you went. You were here?”
“Ah, I had to take a call for a moment.”
She smiled at my question, glanced around briefly, and then took a small step closer.
“Did you come out to rest too, oppa?”
“Yeah, playing is fun and all, but the others are getting a little too intense.”
“…Ah, well, all three of them like you a lot, oppa.”
Kkotbi said, smiling weakly.
For some reason, her words reminded me of what Ahyu had said earlier.
“Um, Kkotbi.”
When I called her name, Kkotbi looked back at me.
I hesitated for a moment before carefully speaking.
“How have you been with the self-hypnosis lately? Are you doing a bit better?”
“I’m doing much better. I’m perfectly fine right now, see?”
It seemed today’s Kkotbi hadn’t used her self-hypnosis.
“It’s all thanks to you, oppa.”
“What did I even do?”
All I’d really done was talk to her on the phone a few times.
I wasn't a professional counselor; I had only talked about daily life and listened to her.
“Oppa, you shouldn’t say that.”
In that moment, under the starlight of the night sky, Kkotbi looked at me with clear eyes.
“What you did for me isn’t something just anyone can do.”
Her eyes were filled with sincerity.
“Even my fellow Blackstar members can’t listen to my stories like that every day. It’s fine once or twice, but if it keeps repeating, they’ll eventually show they’re tired of it.”
“That’s…”
“There aren’t many people in the world who would willingly use their own time to help someone else, oppa. And even fewer who are truly sincere about it.”
By the time she finished speaking, Kkotbi was standing right in front of me.
Perhaps because of the bikini, I could see at a glance that her fair skin was flushed red.
When I quickly raised my eyes, my gaze met Kkotbi’s pink ones.
“I’m truly grateful to you, Ha-chan-oppa. So please, don’t say things like that.”
“Sorry, I misspoke.”
Kkotbi smiled faintly when I admitted my mistake.
Then, as if realizing she had gotten too close, her face turned beet red and she took a flustered step back.
“Ah!”
In that instant, Kkotbi’s foot slipped and she staggered.
Startled, I quickly wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her in, thankfully keeping her from falling.
I let out a sigh of relief that she hadn't fallen.
Come to think of it, something like this had happened before.
As I looked down at Kkotbi, I could feel the texture of her slim, soft, bare waist and her higher-than-average body temperature.
I flinched and tried to pull away, but my eyes met Kkotbi’s, which were hazy and unfocused.
A quiet silence passed between us.
Her peach-colored hair, glowing faintly in the moonlight, and her eyes filled my vision.
I was someone who had been on the receiving end of a lot of affection recently.
Even I couldn't fail to notice what this meant.
“…Ha-chan-oppa, I… I’ve been doing something I feel really sorry to Ahyu about.”
As if she couldn't hold it in any longer, tears welled up in Kkotbi’s eyes.
“Ahyu helped me along with you, oppa, and she’s a precious friend, so I know I shouldn’t be like this. But my heart just won’t listen to me.”
A tear streamed down her cheek.
“I think I like you, oppa. I know about you and Ahyu, but I still like you, Ha-chan-oppa.”
As if she had finally gotten it off her chest, Kkotbi spoke through her tears.
“All I could think about during my performances was you, oppa. No matter how much I work, I just find myself waiting for your calls.”
“…Kkotbi.”
“I’m a terrible woman, aren’t I? Falling for my friend’s boyfriend.”
Kkotbi berated herself, consumed by guilt.
“And on top of that, I couldn’t hold it in and ended up confessing. Really, I’m just a pathetic person.”
“Kkotbi. You’re not pathetic. Don’t say that.”
I couldn't find the right words to say to the pitifully trembling Kkotbi.
“No, it’s true. Even now, as I’m doing this, my heart is beating wildly. I’m scared and terrified that you might push me away because of this.”
“Why would I push you away? That will never happen.”
Kkotbi closed her tear-soaked eyes, her eyelids fluttering.
“…Because even now, hearing you say that makes me happy. I don’t even know myself anymore.”
Kkotbi’s confusion seemed even worse than when her self-hypnosis had first broken.
Kkotbi had returned from the world she was swept into by a dimensional shift having lost everything.
Even after that, she used self-hypnosis to escape into her work, repeating the cycle until she pushed herself to her absolute limit.
Ahyu and I had met her just in time to help, but the scars inside her had likely never fully healed.
And in the midst of that, our conversations, where I knew everything about her situation, had slowly brought her solace.
That solace had developed into affection.
What would happen if I rejected Kkotbi’s feelings and pushed her away now?
I didn't need to think about it for long.
Kkotbi would break.
“I know that Ahyu, the Chairwoman, and that younger girl, Si-ho, all have deep relationships with you, oppa.”
She said, then let out a long breath.
“Even if it’s not as much as those three, can’t I have a chance, too?”
The moment Kkotbi asked me with those pleading eyes, I was at a loss for words.
Kkotbi’s wet eyes and mine met for a long moment.
In that instant, I understood why Baeksan had told me to just date them all if they wanted to.
It was because I could see what Kkotbi’s end would be if I refused.
Returnees are strong, yet fragile.
They are so worn down mentally that the moment they find a sanctuary, they cling to it.
For Kkotbi, I had become that person.
“Can you give me just a little… a little more time to think?”
When I asked, she slowly pulled away from me.
“…I’m sorry. For being so greedy.”
Hearing her words, I raised my hand and stroked Kkotbi’s hair.
“I’m the one who’s sorry. For not realizing sooner.”
Kkotbi had tried her best to hide it, but there had been several times I could have noticed.
When I said that, Kkotbi shook her head.
“It’s okay. I was the one being selfish.”
With those words, Kkotbi took a step back and turned around.
“Please just forget about what happened today.”
And just like that, Kkotbi fled as if running away.
Unable to bring myself to stop her, I clenched my fist, and then I sensed a presence behind me.
“So, it finally happened.”
Ahyu was there.
She walked over, looked in the direction Kkotbi had disappeared, and then turned to me.
“Domi-oppa.”
“Yeah.”
When I answered hesitantly, Ahyu looked at me and let out a small sigh.
“Haa, right, yeah. What fault is it of my Domi-oppa?”
Then, Ahyu came closer and wrapped her arms around mine.
“You’re stupidly kind. You do everything with such sincerity. That’s why all these returnees, who are weak to sincerity, get drawn to you.”
“I keep telling you, I’m not that kind.”
“Truly kind people never know they’re kind.”
Ahyu said, resting her head on my arm.
“I guess it’s my fault for falling for you first. Whatever. I approve. I don’t want to see our Yua in so much pain anymore.”
Then, Ahyu looked up at me.
“But even so, what’s most important is your heart, oppa.”
Ahyu placed a hand on my chest and smiled.
Seeing Ahyu prioritize my feelings above all else, all I could do was stroke her hair.
“And I want to have a talk with Yua, too.”
That wasn't something I could interfere in, so I could only nod silently.
6
After the fun in the pool had ended, in the women’s bath.
As befitting a luxury hotel, the women were sitting in an incredibly lavish and well-appointed bath.
Their skin was slightly flushed from the water, which was warmer than their body temperature, and they let out pleasant sighs as they felt the droplets of water trickle down their necks.
“This is nice.”
As Eva, her golden hair trailing in the water, said this, everyone nodded in agreement.
“The water must be good. I feel like my shoulders are loosening up.”
[ I agree, ] Juksim, holding her phone in a waterproof pouch, said at the same time as Seol-hyang.
Hearing that, Naek glanced at them with a slightly dumbfounded look.
Of course their shoulders don’t hurt when those giant lumps of flesh are floating in the water.
But saying anything to the two of them would only make her own chest hurt, so Naek kept quiet.
“Haaaah, I feel like my skin is getting better.”
Meanwhile, Yu U-jeong, like the whale beastkin she was, was even splashing around and swimming through the water.
Si-ho, who had been watching her blankly as if observing a fish in an aquarium, soon turned her head.
Her gaze landed on none other than Ahyu and Kkotbi.
Ahyu, who had been overjoyed just looking at Kkotbi until a little while ago, was now silent for some reason.
And Kkotbi, in front of her, was also silent.
This doesn’t feel right.
Si-ho placed a hand on her chin and thought for a moment.
She knew from the moment she first saw Kkotbi that she had feelings for Ha-chan.
And it was clear that something had happened between her and Ha-chan at the pool.
As Si-ho continued to watch the two of them, Ahyu finally spoke.
“Yua.”
“…Yeah.”
At Ahyu’s call, Kkotbi answered without lifting her head.
She was feeling guilty toward Ahyu for losing control and confessing to Ha-chan.
“I heard a little of what you said to Ha-chan-oppa.”
The moment she heard those words, Kkotbi’s head snapped up.
Her eyes trembled violently.
“…You like Domi-oppa, don’t you?”
When Ahyu asked in a quiet whisper, Kkotbi’s body shuddered.
Then, as if she couldn't bear to look at Ahyu’s face, she lowered her head once more.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”
“Why are you apologizing?”
“I know perfectly well that you like Ha-chan-oppa, Ahyu. How could I…”
“So why are you apologizing for that?”
Kkotbi flinched.
Looking at her, Ahyu let out a long sigh.
“In the first place, look how many people here like Ha-chan-oppa. Look at them.”
Ahyu raised a finger and pointed to the other side of the bath.
Sure enough, they had at some point started to blossom with conversation, all centered around Ha-chan.