#13 Scenario: A Pubescent Boy's Confusion
Woo Da-hee.
My husband has one little brother.
When we were dating, he was still in elementary school, and by the time we got married, he was just about to start middle school.
Maybe because of that, to me, he's always felt like this cute little baby.
I often imagine that if I had a son, he might grow up just like him.
I remember taking good care of him whenever we'd meet.
He used to act all cute and spoiled back in elementary school, but now that he's hit puberty, he seems to avoid me a bit.
Even though I'm his sister-in-law, I'm still the only woman in a house full of men—aside from my mother-in-law, that is.
Before he starts high school, there's paperwork to do, and he's going to stay with us for a bit before heading to the dorms.
It's a co-ed school, so I'm a little worried he might be scared of girls for no reason.
I'm planning to use this chance to get close to him again, like we were a few years back.
"When's he coming?"
I got word that he's on his way, but I still asked my husband out of curiosity.
"Should be here any minute."
He's got this super nonchalant vibe with his little brother—probably because they're family.
"Hng~, I hope he gets here soon~. He's been avoiding me ever since he hit puberty."
"He's just shy."
"You think~?"
Before his brother arrives, I've got some studying to do first.
This book I got in the mail the other day.
Puberty Boy Is Confused
It's a thin little book. I bought it to help me bond with my brother-in-law, but I can't quite remember where I got it from.
"When did I even buy this?"
A flicker of dissonance popped into my head and vanished. For some reason, it felt like I shouldn't read it.
But no, I can't do that. I bought it for my brother-in-law.
I steeled myself and decided to memorize the whole thin book before he got here.
§
I lit up a thick cigarette in the apartment complex and stretched my body out.
"Whew, I'm in puberty, I'm in puberty."
Since I had to act like a different persona, I needed some self-hypnosis.
Playing the test-tube kid had been pretty easy, but this time it was a puberty-stricken teen.
Slap.
I smacked both cheeks with my hands and snapped my eyes wide open.
My heavy bag was packed with clothes for a few days and some skin lotion.
I'd deliberately skipped the love gel and other adult toys.
I had to get fully immersed in the concept, so I'd only packed clothes on purpose.
"Alright, let's go."
The cigarette smell clinging to my body wasn't going anywhere, but I exaggeratedly shook myself off before calling up from the first-floor entrance.
"I'm here."
Whirr.
The intercom confirmed it was me, and the door swung open right away.
I hopped on the elevator and ran through my setup one more time.
I'm my husband's little brother, smack in the middle of puberty, and super shy.
On top of that, Woo Da-hee sees me as her ridiculously cute and lovable little brother-in-law.
I'd slyly woven it all together so she'd end up doting on me like crazy.
For Choi Hyeok, I tweaked him into a gruff but materially generous big brother.
Naturally, I'm the super good kid who's not used to that stuff and thanks him profusely for every bit.
Ding-dong~.
I stood at the door and rang the bell.
Click.
The door lock popped open, and out came Choi Hyeok in a tank top and shorts.
Whether it was from daily workouts or just his build, his muscles were no joke.
With all that skin showing, his thick forearms hit me first.
If the scenario got busted, I'd be a dead man under those callus-covered hammer arms.
"Hyung, I'm here."
"Yeah, good work."
He froze for a split second when he saw me, but only for a moment before letting me in.
If I hadn't spent points, the dissonance would've spelled disaster.
Anyway, I kicked off my shoes and stepped inside, where Woo Da-hee was sitting on the living room sofa.
"Hello, sister-in-law."
I bowed politely, and she sat there demurely, giving me an awkward smile and a little wave.
She wanted to get close, but with the setup where I was avoiding her due to puberty, she was being careful—I could tell.
"Young master, you're here~?"
Woo Da-hee stood from the sofa and headed to the kitchen as she asked.
"Want some tea?"
"No, I'm good."
"Oh, r-really?"
"I had coffee earlier. Sorry."
She looked a bit down at my refusal. I was drawing lines to stick to the concept as hard as I could, but my instincts were chasing after her.
Her long hair, falling to her waist with perfect waves, swayed with a glossy shine from expert care.
I wasn't sure if it was light makeup, but her skin glowed dewy like glass.
A few strands of hair and fine hairs fluttering at her nape stole my gaze.
Her chiffon dress, swaying like her hair, faintly revealed what was underneath.
"I wanna unpack first. Hyung, where do I sleep?"
"Empty room over there."
"Oh, and..."
I pulled out a drink gift set I'd grabbed from the mart right out front—calling it an initial investment.
"Felt weird showing up empty-handed."
"Why bother buying this stuff? Where's a middle schooler getting money?"
"Empty hands feel more embarrassing."
I handed over the drinks and headed to my room at the end of the hall.
Behind me, Woo Da-hee's faint voice called me cute.
"Ahem."
I closed the door and looked around.
As expected for a guest room, there was a vacuum-sealed bedding set ready.
I opened it, laid it on the floor, and started unpacking bit by bit.
"First off..."
With the scenario book left behind, I had to keep things going from memory.
"Come on out. Let's go eat."
"Yeah."
The three of us grabbed a light meal at a restaurant near the complex.
I could tell how much Woo Da-hee was looking out for me from the way she kept picking food onto my plate.
Responding like a baby, I'd seen her with baby Siu once, but this felt different.
It was a different vibe from doting on a known little brother versus her husband's.
The gap between a sexy noona and a pure one.
"Did you eat a lot?"
On the way home, Woo Da-hee sidled up and asked softly.
"Yeah, I ate plenty."
"Hng~."
She looked at me proudly and brought up old stories.
"You were only this big in elementary school, and now you're taller than noona."
"..."
She pointed to her waist, then raised her hand above her head.
"I'm seventeen now too."
I hadn't expected "seventeen" to slip out of my mouth.
"Huhuhu~. Yeah, yeah. Eek~, our baby boy's all grown up~."
"I'm not a baby."
"You used to come running and cling to noona."
"S-Sister-in-law... I'm seventeen now."
At "sister-in-law," Woo Da-hee pouted her lips and said,
"Don't call me sister-in-law~. Call me noona. It feels like you're drawing a line~."
"Yeah, I used to, but now it's kinda..."
"Whyy~. Is it 'cause noona's getting old?"
Now thirty, Woo Da-hee was at an age where kids might see her as an auntie.
To me, she was a smooth-skinned married woman just a few years older—that was the key.
"N-No, not that. You're still plenty pretty."
"Omo! Really? Honey, you hear that?"
Choi Hyeok, walking ahead, turned with a pleased smile.
To these two right now, I was just a cute high schooler.
Back home for a quick rest, Choi Hyeok said,
"No funny business while you're staying here. Call Mom every day."
"Got it."
"And listen to your sister-in-law."
After the nagging, he checked his watch and started getting ready to head out.
"Gotta go for night work. Be back later."
This wasn't the scenario—it was a real work outing.
I sat on the sofa watching the couple.
Wondering how a real married pair got along.
"Honey, take this."
Woo Da-hee pulled a jacket from the styler and handed it over. He changed naturally, and before heading out, tousled my hair.
"Listen to your sister-in-law."
"Don't worry."
"Yeah."
His gruffness seemed like his real personality.
He looked pretty intimidating too—if I met him on the street as a stranger, I'd probably get a bit intimidated for real.
§
Woo Da-hee.
An awkward situation now that my husband had left for work, leaving just the two of us.
There was never this vibe when he was little, but puberty made it even more awkward.
"Sister-in-law, I'm heading to my room first."
"Huh? You can watch more TV if you want."
"Nah, I'm good. Just tired."
Woo Da-hee let out a soft sigh as she watched her brother-in-law slip into his room.
"Hoo~. This is awkward as hell."
She pulled out [Puberty Boy Is Confused] from under the table.
Puberty Boy Is Confused
She sat cross-legged, flipped it open, and read it again.
"Chapter 1: Puberty is sexually confusing~."
Chapter 1: Puberty is sexually confusing~.
I knew it intellectually, but bringing up sex with a boy was tough.
"Sex ed is something adults are supposed to give, but..."
It was only natural for the adult woman in the house to handle sex ed.
A pubescent boy overflows with sexual desire, so he needed daily relief.
"But... he won't even talk about it, so what am I supposed to do~?"
Given the young master's personality, he'd obviously try to handle it alone.
"Seriously... doing it alone is bad for the body. Semen quality drops too..."
As a last resort, men do it solo, but the older you get, the worse the quality gets—that much I knew.
That's why it was natural for the woman of the house to help out, but first, he had to talk about it for anything to happen.
"If I catch him doing it alone, I'll get an earful from the in-laws..."
Pubescent boys were such a handful.
Pop!
To get close, I needed to break the ice properly first.
"In that case..."
She headed to the kitchen, peeled an apple, plated it neatly, and stuck in a toothpick.
Knock knock.
She knocked, then slowly opened the door.
As the door swung open, there was the young master with earphones in, staring at a dirty video on his phone.
"Uh..., ah..."
He turned at the sound, eyes going wide as he froze solid.
"I-It’s okay. Everyone does that in puberty~. Jerking off alone is bad for your body, you know~. You should've told noona~."
She put on the most casual act possible to keep the flustered kid from panicking and approached.