Don't Tell Me She Likes Girls?
Han Saebyeok's mouth opened and closed in flustered surprise before she finally bowed her head slightly.
"Sorry for saying it in a mean way......."
"I know you said it out of concern."
If not for that, she might have cursed instead of using polite speech. She was surprised at how upset she got when someone bad-mouthed Kang Cheol-jin.
But Pi Ah-reum smiled brightly. She knew Han Saebyeok held no malice.
"I'm grateful. For worrying about me, and for protecting me back then when you didn't even know me. I like you, Saebyeok unni."
"Oh, uh. Thanks."
Han Saebyeok's face flushed slightly as she answered awkwardly. Fortunately, it didn't seem like Ah-reum disliked her. She didn't want to be on bad terms with Pi Ah-reum, who was warm and friendly with everyone.
"Hehe. Let's go back inside. It's chilly at dawn!"
Pi Ah-reum linked arms with Han Saebyeok in her usual way. Han Saebyeok let herself be pulled along, practically dragged by Pi Ah-reum, who was much smaller than her.
*
I blinked when I saw the two of them return to the laundromat. Something about the atmosphere between them had shifted. Whatever they talked about, Han Saebyeok seemed to be watching Ah-reum's reactions.
But Pi Ah-reum was exactly the same as always. She chattered away at Han Saebyeok with a bright face that looked incapable of harboring a single worry.
"Unni, the cosplay we're doing in July at SeoCo. Can I really not cosplay Nami? Huh?"
"That's a bit... I think something else would suit you better."
"Ah, whyyy! My waist is slim and my chest is big enough! I think Nami cosplay would suit me really well!"
Nami was a female character from One Piece, one of the protagonist's core crewmates. And as Ah-reum said, she was a character with a slim waist and large chest.
However, there was a decisive reason Ah-reum couldn't cosplay her.
"You're short."
"Ughhh......."
Ah-reum let out a sound of suppressed frustration through her teeth. Her cheeks puffed up indignantly on her scowling face.
Han Saebyeok smiled awkwardly and soothed Ah-reum.
"I think Ah-reum would be good doing Chopper cosplay......."
"That one's not sexy!"
I had to struggle not to laugh.
Ah-reum tended to fixate on being sexy, maybe because she was self-conscious about her short height. But to anyone's eyes, cute suited her better than sexy. Of course, things changed a bit once the clothes came off, but you can't exactly cosplay naked just because you want to look sexy.
Soon Han Saebyeok spoke with a serious expression.
"Do you really want to do Nami cosplay? Then I won't stop you. What's most important is doing what you want to do."
"Oh, well, now that you ask so seriously, I'm having second thoughts......."
"There's still time, so think it over slowly. I can start making the other kids' outfits first."
"Okaaay......."
Ah-reum nodded meekly. She shrank back in the face of Han Saebyeok's serious demeanor. When the person making the costume got that earnest, you'd start wondering if you'd been taking things too lightly.
Before long.
Ttiriring~.
The sound of the dryer stopping rang out. My duvet cover was still in the wash. The laundry in the dryer was Han Saebyeok's.
Han Saebyeok gathered her laundry and said goodbye to Ah-reum.
"I'll be going now."
"Get home safe!"
Ah-reum waved both hands.
At that, Han Saebyeok, who had been turning her body toward the door, suddenly glanced at me and paused. I blinked at her, wondering why, as her mouth opened and closed before she spoke.
"I'll be going."
"Huh? Ah, yes. Get home safe."
"...Yeah. See you at school."
With that, Han Saebyeok left the laundromat.
I stared at the gently swinging door with a bewildered feeling. She'd been treating me like I didn't exist, and now suddenly she says goodbye? What the hell?
Just then, Ah-reum burst into laughter.
"Pffahaha! Saebyeok unni is so cute!"
"...What? What did you two talk about?"
If there was a reason for Han Saebyeok's sudden change in attitude, it had to be in the conversation the two of them had when they stepped outside the laundromat.
But my curiosity didn't get an answer. Because Ah-reum just kept grinning, with no apparent intention of telling me.
"Oh, come on. What is it?"
"Oh, nothing much. I just told unni that you're a decent guy."
"...That's it?"
"Yep."
It felt a little off, but I decided to let it go. Even if I pressed further, she probably wouldn't tell me anyway.
"Well, as long as she doesn't hate me, that's fine."
"It's not that, so don't worry. If I had to put my finger on it, it felt less like she dislikes you and more like she dislikes men?"
"Huh? Men?"
"Mm. I don't know exactly either, to be honest. Less dislike and more aversion? Distrust? Could be something like that. Anyway, that was the vibe."
Ah-reum said, tilting her head. Then suddenly, as if something had occurred to her, her head shot up.
"Gasp. Saebyeok unni, could she be into women, then?"
"...What on earth did you two talk about for your mind to jump there?"
"No, it's not just because of our conversation just now."
Saying that, Ah-reum smoothly pushed up nonexistent glasses and held out one finger. She had the look of someone possessed by a detective persona, laying out her deductions.
"Think about it. Saebyeok unni, isn't she unusually physically close with women? Whenever we're in the club room, she's always hugging me."
Ah-reum had a pretty serious expression, but.
I just let out a sigh of disbelief.
"That's because you go over and cling to her."
"...No, with Hana too, not just me, it's a similar vibe. They're always stuck together."
"That's probably because they've known each other a year longer than us. They're department senior and junior too, and Hana's so shy, so isn't she just looking after her?"
"...You think?"
Ah-reum's head tilted to the side.
I clicked my tongue reproachfully and said,
"In the first place, saying stuff like that, your credibility is zero. If anything, you're the one with no sense of personal space. You're always going up to anyone and clinging to them."
"Ugh. It's not anyone, you know? I only cling to people I like."
"...Really?"
"Really! And even I don't do that to guys. Have you ever seen me do that with anyone other than you?"
"Well, no, I haven't......."
I felt oddly embarrassed and averted my gaze. To avoid revealing how flustered I was, I cleared my throat unnecessarily and said,
"Ahem. Anyway, by your logic, you're the one who should be suspected of being into women. You're even closer with women than Saebyeok sunbae is."
"That's true, but I like cock better than pussy."
"...Crazy bitch."
This was classic Ah-reum, ultimately making curse words come out of my mouth. I should be thankful that at least she wasn't like this in front of other people.
Even at my swearing, Ah-reum chattered on unbothered.
"Hmm. Of course, scissoring seems like it'd be novel in its own way, but still, without penetration it'd feel lacking, if you know what I mean. Well, I've heard hardcore lesbians play with strapon panties and stuff......."
"......."
"But still, I think I like cock better than dildos? Most of all, dildos can't ejaculate."
"...My head hurts, for real."
I clutched my forehead and shook my head to signal her to stop, but Ah-reum launched a counterattack instead.
"What. Why. Don't play innocent."
"You should play innocent a little!"
"Hmph. I saw your Trickster account, you drew lesbian play too, so why's your head hurting now?"
"I-I drew that because I got commissioned for it and had no choice?!"
I freaked out and shot back a rebuttal. Did I not take that down? Shit, she saw it uploaded in my commission portfolio!
Ah-reum snickered at my flustered reaction. The sight of her pointing at me with both index fingers raised was supremely aggravating.
"Anyway, you drew it, right? Kkangcheol's an irredeemable pervert too, right? A match made in heaven between perverts, right?"
"Argh, I can't even hit this tiny little thing......."
"A sadist pervert who likes hitting, right? Kkangcheol's perfect as my living dildo, right? Destined to live as my dildo for the rest of your life... Keuk?!"
Ah-reum clutched her head and ducked down. It must have hurt quite a bit, because she looked up at me with tears welling in her eyes.
"You said you wouldn't hit me......!"
Then you should've held back on the clowning a little.
*
I was dealing with two difficulties these days.
The first was the department blind date creeping closer and closer. There were only three days left until the blind date I'd drunkenly agreed to because of that bastard Seong-hyeon.
'Seong-hyeon hyung told me to just think of it as a casual hangout, but... hanging out with people I'm meeting for the first time is nerve-wracking in itself.'
But I couldn't back out now. We'd already exchanged photos with each other and even settled on a meeting place and approximate time.
Actually, the urgent problem right now was the second worry, not the first. My second worry lay in the club room I was heading to at this moment.
'Bam nuna... she's gonna ask me again today, isn't she?'
Bam nuna, who'd asked me to take on the illustration role.
I'd already turned her down once, but she hadn't given up and kept asking. I hadn't pegged her as the type, but she was unbelievably persistent and stubborn.
I'm the type who can't really turn down requests. Or more precisely, the act of 'refusing' itself is difficult. Because conversely, I'm afraid of being refused when I ask someone for something.
For someone like me, refusing multiple times was quite an ordeal. At this point, I was leaning toward the thought of just squeezing in some more time and drawing the manhwa.
'No, I can't. I'm so busy I could die since I restarted commission work too, what am I thinking. And the deadline for drawing a manhwa would be tight too.'
It was the last week of May now, and SeoCo was at the end of July. That meant the manhwa had to be completed in barely two months. Considering the final exams in June, juggling manhwa drawing alongside commission work was a pipe dream.
But at the same time, I had this thought.
'If I'm not going to refuse anyway by the end, wouldn't it be better to just accept now? We'd need to start quickly to make it within the deadline. Honestly, looking at the storyboard, it seemed like it'd be pretty fun too... No, what the hell am I even thinking about accepting.'
A sigh escaped me at my wavering heart.
I trudged toward the club room with heavy, sluggish steps. Honestly, I wanted to just run away to my studio apartment because I had no confidence I could refuse to the end, but I couldn't do that because I needed to collaborate with Bam nuna to draft the animation storyboard. I didn't want to irresponsibly avoid the work I'd taken on, at least.
Anyway, I arrived at the club room like that and opened the door.
"Saebyeok, it's about time to wake up."
"Mm......."
I saw Bam nuna sitting on the sofa, and Han Saebyeok lying with her head resting on nuna's lap. It was a tender pose, like lovers.
In that instant, the conversation I'd had with Ah-reum the other day flashed through my mind.
- Saebyeok unni, could she be into women, then?
Why did those words I'd dismissed as nonsense come to mind now? Because something else surfaced in connection with it at that moment.
'Could that kiss mark on Bam nuna's neck possibly be...?'
Bam nuna, who'd proudly said she was a virgin. The kiss mark below her neck that had seemed all the more puzzling because of that.
My eyes went wide, as if a realization had dawned on me.