So This Is a Date
For some reason, birds were chirping this morning.
The summer sun had already risen at dawn, flooding my room with light through the window. I must have left the blinds down, but the fierce sunlight still stabbed at my eyes until I had no choice but to scrunch up my face and get up.
Ugh. I’d passed out the night before without a second thought. After dinner with Mom—who couldn’t stop smiling—and Hee-kyung, who quietly stuck to my side the whole time, I’d washed up and collapsed straight into sleep. Hee-kyung had burrowed into my arms and slept with me. For reasons I couldn’t name, she’d held me tighter than usual.
But when I stretched and looked around, she was nowhere to be found.
“Oppa, you up?”
So much for sleeping in. The door opened and Hee-kyung walked in wearing a hairband. Fresh from a wash, her bare face was soft and luminous. She was my little sister, yet even without a scrap of makeup the flush of color on her lips and cheeks made it clear—a beauty was a beauty.
“Oppa, what should I wear today?”
She held up the clothes she’d brought, and my eyes nearly popped out of my head. An absurdly short skirt, and hot pants cut so high the pocket linings stuck out. She was seriously planning to parade around outside in that?
Sorry to say it, but for a second I’d forgotten Hee-kyung’s true nature. For a girl who’d once strutted around in shameless, slutty outfits just to reel men in, this was probably basic.
I didn’t like it.
“Why the face?”
“Umm… no. Both of those suck.”
“What? Why?!”
The outfits she’d carefully picked out had been rejected on the spot, and Hee-kyung bristled.
“They’re too sexy.”
“Ha! Since when do you not like sexy?”
I had a record, so I couldn’t really argue—but I decided to be honest anyway.
“I only want to see the sexy side of you myself.”
Hee-kyung looked away and bit down hard on her lower lip. She was clamping it for dear life, yet she still couldn’t stop the corners of her eyes and mouth from pulling sideways. The sight was so cute I ended up smiling too.
“If Oppa says so… but then what am I actually supposed to wear?”
“We’ll be walking a lot, so jeans and a white tee?”
“What is that? We’re going to an amusement park for once.”
“Call it effortless chic?”
“I want to get all dressed up on purpose.”
This was not going to be easy. Not even first thing in the morning.
Dating books always talked about how to compliment the outfit your date had prepared once you met at the destination. They never covered the actual stage of choosing the clothes.
“You’re just not thinking at all, are you?”
Irritation was starting to seep into Hee-kyung’s voice. Panicking, I decided to lean on honesty one more time.
“Absolutely not!”
“Then what?”
“…It’s my fantasy.”
“Huh?!”
“Dating a beauty who looks perfect in jeans and a white tee, then casually crushing all the couples who tried too hard with their outfits… that’s my fantasy…”
Wow. That was so childish my face burned. Heat climbed my whole upper body like I’d just confessed for the first time. Less a fantasy and more pure desire itself.
And when Hee-kyung heard it—
“Hmm~.”
—she flushed pink all over again and bit her lower lip once more.
“So if I wear jeans and a white tee, I’ll crush most of the other girls?”
“That’s just a fact.”
“Am I really that pretty?”
Nice one, Gyeong-hun! We’ve read this scene in the books! I definitely read this part!
“What made me fall for you is ninety percent looks and ninety percent personality.”
Hee-kyung’s gaze turned ice-cold.
“That’s fifty-fifty, you idiot!”
She sat there fuming by herself. When I just stared blankly, she barked at me again.
“What’s the remaining ten percent, then?!”
That temper of yours. Weirdly addictive.
We left on time and arrived on time.
Being a weekday, the amusement park wasn’t as packed as it could have been, but there were still plenty of couples and families with kids.
“Hmm-hmm~.”
Hee-kyung was in high spirits, humming as she walked. Outfit exactly as I’d said: jeans, white tee, plus white sneakers. And yet I wasn’t completely satisfied. Mostly yes—but one flaw had my nerves stretched tight.
That flaw was the black bra Hee-kyung had put on under the white tee. And the fact that the tee was thin enough to show everything underneath. Which meant the wide cups covering her big chest were far too visible. And to top it off, the crossbody strap of her handbag ran right between them, pushing each heavy breast into even sharper relief. Even Mom, who’d come out to see us off, had been left speechless—so you can imagine how I felt.
Squeeze.
“Oppa, what should we ride first?”
But those thoughts vanished the moment Hee-kyung linked her arm through mine and pressed the soft weight of her chest against me. Forget the see-through fabric. Right here, right now, I hereby dedicate every last nerve ending to the joy of the C-cup hanging off my left arm.
“You ever been to an amusement park?”
“On a date? No, first time!”
The bright, cheerful answer was pure early-twenties energy. After all the daily chaos at home, seeing this side of her outside made me ridiculously happy.
“Whoa…”
“…Where are you looking?”
The stares that glazed over Hee-kyung like that annoyed me—but watching her boyfriend get punished right beside her was also ridiculously good.
“The Gyro Drop! Oppa, let’s ride that one!”
“You good with roller coasters?”
“I’ve only ever seen them on TV. I’ve always wanted to try!”
For the record, I am not good with roller coasters. I never understood the appeal of that weightless, spinning nausea—but it was our first date and Hee-kyung wanted to ride, so what could I do? We forced smiles and headed for the line.
“Kyaaaaaaaah—!”
“……!”
On the way up I tensed at the scenery shrinking to dots below; on the way down I couldn’t even breathe properly, teeth clenched and eyes shut, just waiting to hit solid ground again.
“The swing ride! Let’s do that!”
“Eck?!”
We flew through the air tilted at a diagonal. Whoever invented centrifugal force, come out. No—whoever invented the swing ride, come out.
“Carousel!”
“Deal!”
Plenty of empty horses, but Hee-kyung insisted on riding the same one as me. The warmth of her arms locked tight around me from behind felt good. Thanks to that I ended up sitting more on the mane than the horse’s back, but I managed somehow.
“Oppa, hurry hurry!”
Next was the sticker photo booth. We put on mascot character headbands and masks and struck every pose imaginable—mostly ones Hee-kyung ordered—but the sight of my little sister’s wide, radiant smile through the lens made my heart pound.
Right as we were about to take the last shot—
“Oppa, Oppa.”
“Yeah?”
She tapped me while I was facing forward. When I turned, she kissed me out of nowhere. It started as a light peck, but before I knew it our tongues were tangled.
“Churp, mmph~ haah…”
We were grabbing each other’s shoulders and cheeks, about to deepen the kiss even further, when a cough sounded from outside the booth.
“Ahem.”
“Ah…! Sorry!”
We snatched the hastily printed sticker photos and bolted out, then stood there awkwardly staring at each other before bursting into laughter at the same time.
“Ahahaha! That was pretty embarrassing just now, right?”
“Super awkward.”
“But still.”
She squeezed my hand tight and leaned her head on my shoulder.
“But still, it was so good.”
“Same.”
Then Hee-kyung stopped dead. I waited a moment, but when she showed no sign of moving I looked down at her shoulder.
“Hee-kyung?”
“Oppa…”
“What’s wrong?”
“I just realized something…”
“Does something hurt?”
Hee-kyung gagged.
“I think I can’t handle roller coasters after all… I wanna lie down… ugh!”
“Aaaagh!”
The bathroom was way too far, so I scooped her up in a princess carry and sprinted to the nearest bench, then laid her across my lap. When I stroked her forehead she gave a faint smile.
“Oppa’s hands are cool. Feels nice.”
“You seemed fine while we were riding.”
“It got dizzier and dizzier the more we went.”
“Want something to drink?”
“No. This is good.”
With her eyes closed, Hee-kyung’s chest rose and fell. Worry came first, so no dirty thoughts even crossed my mind.
“So this is what a date is.”
To my surprise, those words came from Hee-kyung, not me.
“Dressing up pretty, coming outside, riding attractions, walking arm in arm, taking photos, kissing right in the middle of people… so this is a date. Hahat…”
“What? You’ve dated way more than me.”
“True, but I was always stuck inside. Just stepping out to eat nearby was the most I ever did.”
“…….”
“You’re the first person who ever asked me on a date and actually took me on one.”
Stuck inside, huh. Yeah. Given what she’d been doing.
She must have felt my hand stop, because Hee-kyung opened her eyes.
“You hate it when I bring up the past?”
“No.”
“Sorry for being this kind of girl.”
“Don’t say that.”
“If I’d known it’d be like this, I never would’ve chased after those stupid ‘strong men’ or whatever. I should’ve just dated Oppa from the start.”
“…….”
“You’re a good man even if you’re not strong.”
“I am strong.”
The reflexive answer made Hee-kyung giggle. It wasn’t a lie—physically and socially I was pretty strong.
“Just because I said that doesn’t mean we’re dating yet, okay?”
“I know, I know.”
“Oppa.”
“Yeah.”
“Up till now I’ve only been giving you penalties.”
“You have.”
“You put up with so much for my sake, so I want to do something for you too.”
“Do what?”
Hee-kyung took my hand from her forehead and rubbed her cheek against it.
“It’s a little early, but will you buy me a phone? I’ll only save Oppa’s number, only text Oppa, only call Oppa.”
“All of a sudden?”
“When you didn’t come home yesterday, I didn’t have a phone so I couldn’t contact you and I felt so lonely.”
She stroked my hand and looked up at me like a cat in heat.
“And I realized something. I think I’d be satisfied as long as I can contact Oppa. I don’t need any other guys.”
I hesitated for a second. Originally I’d planned to lock her in her room and refuse to buy her a phone until she fully accepted me—because I was scared that the moment I got her a phone and let her out she’d slip right out of my hands. Looking back, that selfish behavior was pretty shameful. And yet her words still filled me with deep satisfaction.
The thing I’d feared most: the anxiety that giving her a phone meant she could leave me. Hee-kyung was volunteering not to do that.
“Should we?”
“Yeah!”
“But save Mom’s number too.”
“Right—just Mom’s number as well.”
She asked permission. I gave it. A satisfying deal where we both got what we wanted. To seal it, we pressed our lips together again. Paying no attention to the people walking past, we stayed like that a long time before Hee-kyung finally pulled away and whispered against my mouth.
“Let’s go home now.”