A Little Talk
Whiiiiirrrr~~
In the middle of a comfortable sleep, the sound of someone running a vacuum cleaner around the house made me turn my head slightly and crack my eyes open to check.
"Oppa, did you sleep well?"
"Ugh..."
The source of the vacuum noise was Minhi, my little sister who had raped me yesterday.
I had no idea how early she had gotten up to start cleaning, but the studio apartment I lived in was already neat and tidy.
Whiiiiirrrr........
"Sorry, Oppa. It was noisy running the vacuum while you were sleeping, right? I'm all done now, so go back to sleep and rest some more."
"Mm..."
Really....
The fact that I had been raped by my own sister yesterday drained every last bit of willpower from me. I pulled the blanket all the way up to my neck and lay back down on the bed.
When I wake up, it'll all just be a dream....
I kept telling myself this whole situation was nothing more than a dream as I closed my eyes again on the mattress.
"Hmm hmm hmm~"
Minhi's humming drifted over from behind me.
Shhhhhhh~
Clatter clatter
She must have been using the kitchen; the sound of running water mixed with the clink of dishes being washed.
"I don't know who gave you these, but I'm throwing this out and that out. What if you eat something weird and get a stomachache, Oppa~"
What was she so cheerfully throwing away....
Little by little, the smell of food drifted from the kitchen all the way to the bed.
This... this is the soy-braised beef the landlady upstairs gave me to eat, isn't it....
Normally I would have jumped up right then and demanded to know why she was throwing it out, but I couldn't do that now.
Minhi already had me by the throat. What kind of resistance could I possibly put up? Even when my junior Eunseo had kidnapped me, Minhi somehow found out and waited on the villa stairs until I came out, refusing to let me go no matter what. Her obsession ran that deep.
The only thing left for me to do was simply....
Quietly obey whatever Minhi said. That was the only path I could see.
"You live alone, so why do you have so many side dishes? And the portions are huge."
Minhi was using two whole food-waste bags, clearly planning to dump every last side dish the landlady had ever given me.
She slipped on a pair of plastic gloves and walked over toward the bed where I lay.
"Oppa, I'm just going to take out the trash real quick. Want me to buy you anything while I'm out?"
"No... I don't have an appetite...."
"Really? Okay, got it. Then I'll just dump the trash and come right back, so don't go anywhere...... No. I can't. I'm too uneasy."
Whatever crossed her mind, the look in her eyes as she stared at me suddenly turned ice-cold. She pulled an ankle shackle and a long chain out of her suitcase.
"It's not that I don't trust you, Oppa, but just in case. I'll put this on you before I leave, okay? You understand, right? I made the chain long enough so you can still walk around the house. You know how I feel, don't you?"
"......Do whatever you want...."
"Heheheh~ That's my good Oppa~ Why do you listen to me so well? I guess early education really is important after all?"
Spouting nonsense that barely counted as words, Minhi lightly lifted the blanket covering me, locked the shackle around my ankle, and tied the chain to the bedpost.
"I'll be back soon. And even though you said you're not hungry, if I see anything tasty while I'm out I'll bring it for you. Love you, Oppa~"
Minhi gave my cheek a light peck, threw on just the padded jacket I usually wore, and walked straight out the door.
"He should be home by now, right?"
I had made side dishes again, partly to give some to the slightly cute Junhi who lived downstairs and partly because I wanted us to grow a little closer.
Until now I had only brought easy things like soy-braised beef or soy-braised quail eggs, but today I put in some real effort!
Braised Baby Potatoes
He'll like this, right?
Just imagining his face as he ate the food I made every day and told me it was delicious....
"Hoo... hooheheheh"
Ah, I almost drooled on the side dishes.
I hurriedly wiped the spit that nearly fell onto the food with the back of my hand and closed the lid.
"I guess... I really am more into cute guys than handsome ones...."
No matter how I thought about it, that felt right.
Every time those aggressive types came charging in saying they would take care of everything first, all I could do was sigh. But when I looked at Junhi downstairs... I just wanted to cradle him.
"Is this... a mama's heart?"
Was this the feeling I always saw people talking about on internet communities?
Thinking of Junhi eating the side dishes I made, turning them into blood and flesh, smiling as he enjoyed every bite—my pupils practically lit up on their own inside my head.
"Get a grip, Hong Hayun. If you show a face like that he'll freak out and run away."
I slapped both my cheeks hard to snap myself out of it, then roughly picked up the clothes scattered on the floor.
"Sniff sniff... Should be fine?"
I smelled the black tracksuit I hadn't worn except when going out.
No particular odor. I figured I could just throw it on and toss it in the wash later, so I changed.
"Hmm hmm hmm~~"
I hope I can talk with him a little more today~
After putting on a matching black tracksuit set, I stepped out the door carrying the braised baby potatoes I had made for Junhi.
Thud!!
The sound of a door closing came from downstairs, so I hurriedly dashed down the stairs.
"J-Junhi, wait a second!"
I needed to get the words out faster, but every time it was the same—Junhi-ssi this, Junhi-ssi that.
At home I could call him by name just fine, but the moment I stepped outside the front door, saying his name directly felt a little embarrassing.
"......What the hell are you...."
"Huh......?"
I had rushed down the stairs expecting to see Junhi's face, but it wasn't him.
A woman taller than me stopped on the stairs and stared at me with ice-cold eyes, radiating murderous intent like she would kill me on the spot.
"Ah... n-no, that is... I mistook you for someone. I'm sorry."
"......Hey."
"Yes?"
"Whose name did you just call?"
With her black hair and a solid, athletic build, she slowly climbed the stairs toward me, starting to intimidate me.
"Ah... th-that is... I must have mistaken the person...."
"Not that. Who did you call just now?"
"Th-that... why do you ask...."
She clearly looked younger than me, yet the sheer pressure she gave off made polite speech come out of my mouth on its own.
Then she looked me up and down once, raised her hand, and I reflexively threw my own hands up and squeezed my eyes shut.
"......You fucking bitch. Call that name carelessly one more time. I really won't let it slide next time."
The woman who had been about to hit me right in front of my face cursed me out and started back down the stairs.
And......
In both hands she was carrying food-waste bags that looked like they held the food I had made....
It was just a coincidence. It had to be.
"Haaaaah... My heart almost stopped... I've never had a tenant like that before...."
Why the hell was a crazy bitch like that even in our studio building? So annoying.
"Next time she shows up I'm reporting her straight to the police!"
I watched the short black-haired woman leave through the window while listening to her heavy footsteps going down the stairs.
I pounded my chest a few times to calm the heart that had been racing, then checked the side-dish container.
"Ha, I flipped it once, but it should be fine, right??"
When I thought she was about to hit me and threw my arms up, I had lifted the container too, so I checked the contents.
"Whew... Thank goodness."
Luckily nothing had leaked or gotten crushed.
I pushed the terrifying experience behind me. Just thinking about seeing that cute face soon made a smile bloom on my lips.
"Calm down, Hong Hayun. Calm down and keep a poker face."
After reining in the corners of my mouth that kept trying to rise, I pressed the doorbell of the studio apartment where Junhi lived.
Ding~dong~
Ding~dong~
I rang the bell and waited quietly for Junhi to come out.
W-Who is it....
Huh?
Normally Junhi would have thrown the door wide open to face me, but now he was asking who it was in a slightly trembling voice.
"Junhi, it's me. The landlady from upstairs, Hong Hayun. I made way too many side dishes this time, so I brought some over for you."
Ah...... J-Just wait a second....
"Okay, I understand."
What on earth could have happened in the meantime for him to answer in a voice that sounded so terrified? My head spun with tens of thousands of wild imaginations.
Could that woman earlier...... have been bullying Junhi?
Nah, no way. I've just watched too many movies and I'm overthinking it alone.
Beep-beep-beep~
Creeeak~
The door lock clicked open and Junhi finally showed his face.
"Ah... Hello......"
"Uh, uh......?"
It had only been a little while since I last saw him, but I could tell at a glance.
Whether someone had hurt him or something sad had happened, it was obvious enough that anyone could see it. Junhi couldn't meet my eyes at all. He was trembling, clutching his own wrist, shaking with anxiety.
"Um... Junhi? Are you okay?"
"Ah... Y-Yes... I-I'm fine...."
"You look a little unsettled. Did something happen?"
"......N-No, nothing... Really... Nothing happened at all...."
He was shaking with fear.
Anyone could see he was trembling with anxiety.
"If it's all right with you, could I come in for a moment so we can talk?"
Something was clearly wrong, so I reached out to open the door further, but....
"......N-No!! I'm fine... I'm fine... R-Really, I'm completely... fine. I mean it...."
Junhi blocked me from opening the door, repeating that he was okay in a shaking voice.
"No, Junhi—"
"I... really... I-I'm okay, so... p-please just... leave me alone...."
Junhi yanked the front door shut. In that brief moment before it closed, I saw something.
He made a gesture as if trying to hide his left ankle, and for a second I caught a glimpse of something fastened around it.
"Junhi? Junhi?"
I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I-I'm really sorry....
I just stood there in a daze, staring at the firmly closed front door.
"Um... Junhi, I don't know what's going on, but no matter what happens, I'm on your side. If you ever need help, come find me anytime...."
Junhi showed no sign of listening. He felt like a terrified child trembling behind the door, and there was nothing I could do for him.