The Semester Begins
"You said you'd take responsibility…"
"……."
By the time the chocolate came back to me, it had melted so small that pressing it to the roof of my mouth with my tongue barely registered it at all.
"Mm…."
Even after Ye-rim returned the chocolate from her mouth to mine, her tongue kept exploring my lips. She refused to break the sticky kiss until it had completely dissolved on our tongues. A sweet, subtle fragrance bloomed through the kiss. My brain fought desperately against it, but my body was already yielding, matching her rhythm.
"Haa…."
Amylase and chocolate mixed into an incredibly thick saliva that clung to the corner of Ye-rim's mouth. She noticed it herself and scooped it up with my finger, then licked it clean.
"Well? Aren't I better at this than last time?"
"……."
There was no alcohol tonight. My mind was completely clear. The chocolate was ordinary chocolate, and Ye-rim didn't smell of liquor either. Yet my head spun worse than it had that first time we kissed—worse than any of those earlier nights.
"Tell me. How is it?"
"It's…."
"If you don't know, we'll just do it again."
She wrapped her arms tightly around me once more and pulled me into another deep kiss. I hadn't turned on the heater, yet sweat beaded on my skin from the heat. That mix of sweat and her feminine scent tickled my nose.
"Mmh…."
In the cramped space she strained with everything she had to climb over to my side. Whether luck or misfortune, the car's natural limits kept her from succeeding. Instead she poured her feelings into me through one intense kiss after another.
"Haa… How is it?"
"……."
"…I'll keep going until you say something."
Once Ye-rim went wild, she had no brakes. The lips that had been devouring mine drifted to my ear. With those delicate, ticklish breaths she sucked and explored the shell of it. Did she even realize her body was pressed right against my face?
"How is it?"
"You… seem good at it…."
"Right…?"
Only then did she look satisfied and settle back into her own seat. We had come dangerously close to something irreversible. Not my niece—my daughter… I no longer knew what was what. My mind felt like it was floating away.
"……."
"……."
Once the soft smacking of lips faded, silence filled the car. The air that had grown so hot cooled again; a chill breeze slipped through the slightly open window and quickly cleared the heat.
"It's… midnight already. We should head inside soon, right?"
"Yes… I guess so."
We hadn't even done that much, yet a whole hour had slipped by. No… we had done something, but I never imagined it would eat up this much time.
"Uncle. What did you do last Thursday?"
"Hm? Uh… worked like usual. Why?"
"That was my graduation ceremony."
"Ah… really? Sorry…."
"It's fine. I never even told you… wait, no!"
"Hm?"
"It was the last time I'd ever wear my school uniform, so I just felt a little sad about it."
"Ah… yeah. Once you graduate you can't wear it even if you want to."
Uniforms were strictly for students. Outside of cosplay or theme-park discounts, no grown adult wore one. That was what made them so meaningful—and why, after graduation, you could never put one on again no matter how much you wanted to. Ye-rim must have felt that quiet regret too.
"No… I meant you, Uncle."
"Me?"
"Haa… Forget it if you don't get it. I'm going."
"Yeah…."
Ye-rim flung the car door open and cool night air rushed in. Whether out of consideration or habit, she shut it again right away.
"Uncle."
"Yeah?"
"Um… maybe…."
"Go ahead."
"Your company… it's close to my school…."
"Ah… you're right. Want me to drop you off?"
"If you would… that would be nice."
"Okay. Got it. Did you finish course registration?"
"It starts tomorrow."
"Then once you're done, tell me which days you have morning classes."
"You're really going to drive me?"
"Of course. I promised, didn't I?"
"……Thank you."
"Yeah. Get home safe."
"…Open the window."
"Hm? Did you leave something—"
Her soft, full lips brushed my cheek for a split second and were gone. Ye-rim herself looked embarrassed; she averted her eyes and glanced down at me.
"Ah, goodbye."
"……Yeah."
The warmth left on the passenger seat where Ye-rim had sat stayed with me all the way home.
"So you've started driving Ye-rim again lately."
"Yeah."
The order had flipped. Before, I used to drop Ye-rim at school first and then pick up Ye-na. Now I dropped Ye-na off and then took Ye-rim all the way to campus. In the end I spent even more time alone in the car with Ye-rim than before.
"But doesn't Ye-rim really have talent? She got into a school like that on the first try. All my music-major friends had to retake the exams."
"True. Luck, skill… and she worked harder than anyone, so she got the reward she deserved."
"How many times did you take the entrance exam, Oppa?"
"Me? I got in on the first try."
It wasn't even an arts major—just the field I liked—and I got accepted. Not that I bragged about it, but I was an In-Seoul graduate myself.
"What about you, Ye-na? Did you retake?"
"Yeah. Senior year I just played around nonstop and never planned on college."
"Right. So your childhood friend chewed you out and you decided to go?"
"Exactly."
We didn't keep in touch anymore, but back when she was drifting, the older boy she'd known since childhood gave her a hard talking-to and she finally decided to apply. Without that childhood-friend oppa, Ye-na and I probably never would have met.
"Have a good day~"
"You too."
"Kiss."
"……Done?"
"Yeah."
After sending Ye-na off with that slightly awkward kiss, I went to pick up Ye-rim.
"Hello…."
"Tired?"
"Yeah… exhausted."
Fresh green April. One month into the new semester and she already looked like a textbook college student.
"How's campus life treating you?"
"I don't know. Busy and not busy at the same time… assignments are just needlessly annoying…."
"Same as always…."
"Oh, because of you, Uncle, people think I have a car."
"Just in case, make it clear you don't. You're the one who'll end up in trouble."
"Okay."
Whether it was Ye-na's time or now, assignments always had a way of tripping people up. Professors couldn't stop assigning them, but I still wished they'd stop acting like every student only took their class.
"Ah. I'm going on an MT this Saturday."
"Oh, really? Where to?"
"Gapyeong."
"Sounds fun."
"……."
When was the last time I'd gone on a group trip? Probably my own college MT. And all we really did once we got there was drink.
"What do you think about me going?"
"Hm? About what?"
"The MT. I heard most people try to stop you."
"Umm…."
Had they? My family never paid enough attention for me to notice; I just went. Ah—my older sister said OT was scary enough and skipped the MT entirely.
"…Do you want me to go?"
"If Ye-rim wants to go…?"
"You don't think something weird might happen to me?"
"Umm…… yeah."
"……You're really honest."
Honestly, with Ye-rim's personality, I doubted anyone would dare mess with her. And these days, unless it was a physical-education department, the old senior-junior hierarchy had mostly faded. It wasn't something to lose sleep over. Still, the slim chance of something happening nagged at me.
"Come on. People don't do that kind of stuff anymore, right? Even back in my day it was rare."
"Forget it. I'll just go and get completely wasted."
"That you can't do."
"Why? You said you weren't worried."
"I never said I wasn't worried. The worry is about the drinking."
"……."
When Ye-rim drank she went completely off the rails. I was afraid she'd cause a scene somewhere she shouldn't.
"Drinking in moderation is fine. Just don't try to show off."
"I'll handle it myself…."
She brushed her hair back with a little huff and snapped at me.
Still stuck in traffic….
The route to school that had once confused me was familiar now. Because it was rush hour it felt especially clogged.
"Haaahm…."
"If you're sleepy you can nap."
"I can't… Mom taught me that the person in the passenger seat isn't supposed to sleep."
"…She taught you well."
The passenger should stay awake whenever possible. If the two of you were alone and that person dozed off, the already sparse conversation would vanish completely and you risked falling asleep at the wheel yourself.
"So… if I sleep… it's okay…."
"Yeah. Got it."
Now she was even talking nonsense. How sleepy must she be? It was oddly cute. Since I'd already woken up on the drive with Ye-na, I deliberately stayed quiet so Ye-rim could drift off. Soft breathing reached my ears; when I glanced over she already had her mouth open, deep in dreamland, and a dad smile rose on my face all by itself. Well—I was her dad, so of course.
She's an adult now….
She called herself a grown-up and even wore a blue skirt with her department jacket. The first time she showed off that jacket her nose had been so high in the air she talked about nothing else for days.
"Ye-rim. We're here."
"Yeees…?"
I tapped her shoulder and she stretched big as she sat up.
"Ow."
Still half-asleep, she bonked her head against the window with a solid thunk.
"Have a good day."
"Yes… you too…."
"Ye-rim."
"Yes?"
"Here."
"What's this?"
"A watch strap. Happy birthday."
"……You should've said something earlier."
"I heard it's more surprising if you just spring it on someone."
"What is this… seriously…."
Her grumbling tone was completely at odds with the way the corners of her mouth kept lifting. Giving Ye-rim presents really was its own special pleasure.
"Uncle."
"Yeah?"
Ye-rim, already swapping in the new strap, spoke again.
"Should I go on the MT or not?"
"……When is it?"
"This Saturday."
"Hmm……."
I didn't really think Ye-rim would get pushed around or anything, but worry was still worry. It wasn't mandatory either; these days people were more individualistic and plenty simply skipped. She didn't have to go.
"If you don't want to go, you don't have to. Only go if it's the kind of place that's only fun as a group."
"……Then I won't go."
"Okay. Do that."
"Instead, I want to go somewhere with you, Uncle."
"With me…?"
"You don't have any plans, right?"
"This weekend… I don't, actually."
Next weekend Ye-na and I already had a trip planned. I intended to propose on that trip. The project was finished and I finally had real free time—this was the chance. If I didn't do it now, I felt like the chance would never come again. And having Ye-na propose first just wouldn't look right.
"Th-then… let's go on a trip together."
"Together…?"
"It'll be way more fun than an MT… i-if you don't want to, never mind."
"……No, let's go together."
Looking at Ye-rim's behavior made me a little uneasy inside, but I still made the promise. I was the adult here, and at the very least I could say it would be safer than an MT. Probably.
"Have a good day."
"Yeah. See you."
Through the window I watched Ye-rim walk off, proudly showing off the birthday strap to everyone she passed.