Peace
After finishing her request, my sister slowly lowered herself onto the wooden floor.
I watched her movements quietly, and then a sudden doubt flickered through my mind.
…Isn't she at the point where she can manage her lower body on her own now?
Her back was understandable — it was hard to reach with her arms behind her, and large movements put strain on her body. But still…
…No.
I was probably overthinking it.
I hadn't been taking care of her for just a day or two, so what was I doubting now?
And besides, she wasn't just anyone — she was my sister.
I gently raised my hand above her hips as she lay fully prone on the floor and asked.
"…I'm going to pull your pants down a bit, okay?"
"U-uh… y-yeah…"
I slowly lowered the pants hanging at her waist, and she lifted her hips slightly to help.
Since we'd repeated this so many times, I thought the initial discomfort I'd felt had faded considerably.
Still, with her bare skin laid out so plainly before me, it was hard to brush it off completely.
…Should I have asked her to wear underwear, at least?
Not that I was being lustful toward my sister or anything like that.
…
…Had I ever been the type to worry about things like this before?
Why were useless thoughts keep crowding in since earlier?
"…H-haa…"
I took the water-dampened towel and slowly swept it down from her waist along her hips.
With her head turned to the side, she occasionally let out faint, soft breaths.
Perhaps it was because she'd regained a fair amount of flesh compared to before.
The sensation transmitted through the towel kept catching my attention, so I forced myself to think of something else as I moved my hand.
"Noona, how far down do you need me to go?"
"…A-ah, yeah… just to the back of my thighs, please…"
I pulled her pants back up and, following her instructions, carefully wiped the back of her thighs with the towel.
…Of course, with her lower body's sensation not yet fully restored, it would be difficult for her to lift her legs and clean them herself.
It seemed my doubts had been unfounded after all.
As I moved the towel, my gaze suddenly drifted to her upper body.
I was certain I'd wiped everything clean earlier.
Yet beads of sweat had already formed on her skin once more.
It was true the weather was hot, but the occasional breeze made it fairly cool.
…Or maybe the bathroom had been quite warm.
Perhaps the lingering heat was still affecting her.
"Huuu… hah…"
By the time I'd finished from her thighs down to her calves, I finally set the towel aside.
"I'll be in the kitchen. Call me if you need anything."
"A-ah, it's done…? Uh-huh…"
My sister exhaled deeply, a long sigh escaping her lips.
I braced her back to help her sit up, confirmed she was adjusting her disheveled collar, and then turned away.
…Anyway, so far I'd been letting her rest as much as possible while waiting for her body to recover.
Maybe it was time to start having her do some simple exercises.
After a fairly early dinner, we sat by the window as we always did, quietly gazing out at the sky beyond the glass.
The countryside sky, dyed crimson as the sun bid farewell, was quite beautiful.
Simply watching the clouds drift by in silence was enough to settle the mind.
…Speaking of exercise.
It had been a little while since dinner, so maybe I should ask.
"Noona, want to try some simple exercises?"
"…U-uh? Exercise…?"
"Yeah. Even if your legs are still difficult, your arms should work fine, and it'll feel good to move them properly."
"……Was it really that hard for you?"
"…It's not about that. Right now it's hard for you to do things on your own, so I was worried it might be inconvenient."
"Hmm… maybe so, then?"
Even though I'd brought it up, we didn't have any exercise equipment at home.
The doctor had said the countryside was certainly nice, but rehabilitation needed to be consistent.
…For now, filling a water bottle with water to use as a dumbbell should work just fine.
It was adjustable, too.
I picked up a 500ml water bottle that still had traces of her having just drunk from it.
With about half left, this much should still be light enough.
I subtly handed the bottle to my sister, and she reached out her pale white arm to take it.
She wasn't in such a frail state anymore, so starting at this level for now should be fine.
"Ugh, so how do I…?"
"Just try lifting and lowering it slowly. How's the weight?"
"This much… is fine."
As if gauging the weight, she repeated lifting and lowering the bottle in her hand.
…Since it was rehabilitation, I'd have her gradually get used to it, and increase the intensity when her body adapted.
For now, it was enough that she simply got accustomed to exerting effort.
I quietly took in the sight of her arms moving for a long while.
…About a minute had probably passed.
Perhaps her strength was starting to fade — she set the bottle down and said.
"…It's still a little tiring."
"That's fine. I'll handle the heavy lifting anyway."
"……Uh-huh."
Compared to the days when I had to feed her every meal and every sip of water by hand, this was a huge improvement.
Most of all, it was a relief that her health was returning.
"What should we do tonight? Is there anything you want to do?"
I tossed out the words while watching the thin white smoke curling from the mosquito coil burning in the corner.
After a brief silence, her voice came.
"Nothing in particular… what about Sehyun?"
"Hmm… maybe I could give you a massage?"
"U-uh…? Like that thing from before…?"
"You didn't move much today, either."
She really should be moving her legs a little, even if just a bit.
If I kept leaving them like this, wouldn't they stiffen up even more?
But I couldn't push too hard.
I believed that someday she'd move them on her own.
Rehabilitation ultimately depended on her own will.
"Y-yeah… should I lie down…?"
"Do whatever's comfortable. I'm only doing your legs today."
"……Yeah."
She leaned back slightly against the wall, and subtly avoided my gaze.
It seemed like she might be feeling embarrassed about something, but I didn't dwell on it.
I moved to her side and gently pressed my thumb into her thigh.
She immediately flinched, her lips trembling.
"U-gh, huu…"
"Tell me right away if it hurts."
"Uh-huh…"
Even though I was pressing as lightly as possible, her thighs — far thinner than before — filled me with a deep sense of sorrow.
Her upper body seemed to have recovered fairly early, but her lower body was taking much longer.
I probably needed to visit the hospital soon, too…
"I'm sorry. If I'd known it would be like this, I should've rented a place near the hospital."
"U-gh, wh-what? No, I like it here…"
"…Well, that's a relief, at least."
I resumed moving my hand after the brief pause.
Pressing slowly into her skin with my thumb, I followed the knots and shifted my hand along them.
Press.
"Hik, haa…"
Now that I thought about it, how long did she need to keep taking her medication?
Even though she'd improved a lot lately, it didn't seem like something I could decide on my own.
…Maybe it really was a good idea to visit the hospital soon.
Press.
"Hup, hah— ugh, a little gentler…"
"A-ah… sorry."
As I eased the pressure from my hand, her tightly tensed body gradually loosened.
Only after confirming this did I carefully resume moving my hand.
…So the issue was probably physical, then.
She was eating consistently, and I kept the seasoning mild, so that should be fine.
I was looking up information whenever I had a moment, but honestly, I wasn't sure if I was doing it right.
Press, press.
"Hah, hah, huuu… ugh, a little further inside…"
I stopped my hand at the sudden words.
I'd grown accustomed to her breathing enough to tune it out with one ear.
But a single sentence mixed in there finally snapped me back to attention.
I looked up at her — she was exhaling deeply, a long breath escaping her.
When our eyes met, she didn't know what to do and quickly looked away.
"W-what… u-uh, no, nothing…"
"…Further inside here?"
I repeated her words back to her, and she finally hesitated before nodding.
"……A-ah, u-uh, yeah… a little, over there…"
Her body flinched repeatedly, as if on edge.
It seemed that area was particularly uncomfortable for her.
I shifted my hand, which had been moving gradually upward along the outside of her thigh, a little further inward.
I gently pressed into her soft skin with my fingers, checking her reactions as I slowly adjusted my position.
"Hah, haa… u-uh, yeah…"
Because her skin was pressed against the floor, it was a bit awkward to move my fingers.
To create space for my hand, I slid it under her calf and gently lifted her leg.
Then, pressing along the inside of her thigh as if stroking upward with my thumb, her upper body suddenly flinched sharply.
"Hik— hah, st-stay…"
"…A-ah, sorry. Did it hurt?"
"U-gh, no… it's not that…"
I looked up to check on her, and she was gasping repeatedly, as if her breathing had broken down.
…I guess there were limits to what I could do on my own, fumbling through it.
I should look up more information online, and when I visit the hospital, I should ask properly.
"…Should we stop here for today?"
"……A-ah, uh-huh. Huuu…"
I handed her the water bottle with the cap turned open.
Her slightly trembling hand took the bottle, and she glanced at the mosquito coil that had burned down completely.
Then, struck by a sudden thought, I turned my head slightly and spoke.
"Noona, should I buy a physical therapy device?"
"U-uh? Out of nowhere?"
"No matter what, that would be more effective than massage."
"I-I… I like it like this now…"
After hesitating for a moment, she turned her gaze toward the darkening grass, as if avoiding my eyes.
"Don't worry about the money."
"…Or, maybe… was it bothering you…?"
"……Noona, if you keep saying things like that, I'm really going to get mad."
"……A-ah, yeah… sorry."
She lowered her head slightly, checking my reaction, but kept her eyes lifted to look at me.
…What was there to be sorry about?
Compared to everything she'd endured to survive this long, it was nothing.
"Don't even say you're sorry."
"Uh-huh…"
…Still, I suppose it was better than before.
At least we could have a normal conversation, and that was something.
So I'd put my worries aside for now.
There was no point in stirring them up in my head for no reason.
I replaced the burned-out mosquito coil and sat back down beside her, staring blankly up at the sky.
Would you call it one of the countryside's advantages?
Just looking at the stars scattered across the sky gave me a strange sense of liberation.
I didn't know the constellations, and I wasn't searching for shooting stars.
But I could clearly feel the sensation of enjoying freedom.
"…Sehyun, you quit smoking, right?"
"I quit a long time ago. Did I smell like cigarettes back then?"
"U-uh? No… I just thought… you must've gone through a lot…"
"……I'm fine now."
There were times when I still thought about smoking, but I knew secondhand smoke was bad for health.
As long as my sister was by my side, I wouldn't put a cigarette in my mouth.
But once she recovered and left to find someone to marry, who knew what would happen then.
"…I hope it won't be hard anymore."
The sound of insects in the grass. The rustling of leaves in the wind.
Amid all that, her voice came through clearly.
I considered one of the answers that briefly surfaced in my mind, then let it go.
Instead, I tossed out just a short word.
"Noona."
"…Yeah?"
Whoosh—
The wind grazed my skin once, and on the edge of my vision, her hair fluttered.
Gazing quietly at the tall tree standing in the distance, I added the rest softly.
"Let's forget everything and be happy now."
I wanted her to stop saying it was hard.
I wanted to stop hearing it, too.
There was no need to be bound by the past.
Now I just needed to let the wounds still lingering in her heart heal slowly.
"……Yeah."
Her answer was just as brief.
I didn't try to read deeper meaning into it.
Her expression alone told me everything I needed to know.
