Chapter 52
Chapter 52
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 52
Chapter Title: Killing Time at the Cafe, the Outsider
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*** - Han Si-a's Perspective ***
The notion of 'best friends' that I heard about from So-mi felt a bit off.
She went on about intimacy this and binding each other that—stuff I couldn't really relate to.
Boiling down what So-mi said in simple terms...
...
Isn't it basically just a lovers' relationship without the kissing and sex?
"No way! It's just the right amount of skinship to confirm our friendship!"
"I've never heard that skinship is needed to confirm friendship before..."
I looked at So-mi with a cold expression.
Up until now, I'd been absolutely convinced that out of the three of us, So-mi was the most conservative when it came to sex.
But to think she was doing these sneaky things behind my back— it left me feeling a little betrayed.
So-mi is honestly pretty enough to be called the most beautiful girl in school, and her figure is incredible too.
No matter how much Jeong Yi-an acts like a monk with zero interest in women, he's still got basic male urges.
If she really set her mind to seducing him, Yi-an would fall in a single day, no doubt.
For some reason, my mood soured, and before I knew it, I was staring at her with an increasingly icy gaze.
"Si-a... your eyes feel a bit scary for some reason..."
"Oh, really? Sorry. I'm just in a bit of a bad mood right now."
"..."
So-mi looked a little deflated.
Her expression was pitiful, like an abandoned puppy.
To be honest, I don't think what So-mi does with Yi-an is any of my business.
But isn't seducing a guy with those huge breasts kind of cheating?
I steeled myself with the thought that she might have been doing who-knows-what with Yi-an behind my back and deliberately ignored her dejected look.
But then, as if struck by a sudden idea, she flashed a bright smile and spoke up.
"Ah!"
"...?"
"Then you can just do skinship with me too, Si-a!"
"...?"
"Si-a, I think the reason friendships cool off is basically a lack of skinship. Think about it—we've known each other for over three months and haven't done much of it, right?"
"What are you talking about? Why would friends need skinship...!"
I tried to voice my refusal to her bizarre claim, but So-mi's actions were faster.
She stood up right away, came over to the seat next to me, and pushed my body down onto the sofa.
"Eek... Kyaa!!"
I tried to resist, but So-mi was bigger than me to begin with, so I was easily pinned down.
After laying me on the sofa, So-mi lay down beside me, facing me, and hugged me tightly.
"Si-a, holding hands or hugging between friends is just casual skinship that anyone does. It's not lewd or embarrassing at all..."
A soft yet firm pressure transmitted through my arms, shoulders, back, and entire upper body.
With me cradled in her arms, using her arm as a pillow, she gently stroked my hair.
Hugging and lying down entwined with a friend in a cafe like this—if this weren't a room cafe, it would be something I'd never do.
...
I was startled by this completely new experience at first, but soon I relaxed and let my body melt into her touch.
Because the warmth of her body heat directly against mine and the gentle embrace felt so incredibly comfortable.
Feeling someone's body heat this close was far too long overdue.
Hugging someone hadn't happened since elementary school.
Even after Mom passed away, Dad used to hug me sometimes, but once I hit puberty, that stopped completely.
I started feeling a bit awkward about physical contact with Dad and kept my distance too.
After that, I hadn't been held by anyone.
Not my stepmom, not friends, not even teachers—there was never an occasion for hugs.
So I'd apparently forgotten for years how warm human affection could be.
Humans are creatures that can feel at ease just from being held in another person's arms.
At first, when So-mi pushed me onto the sofa, I wanted to escape quickly, but now I actually wanted to stay like this a little longer.
It felt like I'd become a chick nestled under a mother hen.
If I didn't force my eyes open, I might just fall asleep right here.
"Si-a, see? Isn't skinship really nice?"
"...It's too nice."
All the bad feelings I had toward So-mi had already vanished from my heart.
Being held in her arms was so comfortable that my mouth unwittingly relaxed into a smile.
"Then... friends should do skinship often, right?"
"Yeah, you're right... I always thought skinship was something sleazy, but my thinking was narrow-minded."
"Then, it's okay to do skinship with Yi-an too?"
"..."
Still, hugging a guy felt like it belonged to a different category.
Even if So-mi meant it innocently, Yi-an would definitely have lewd thoughts.
But I couldn't help but waver a bit at So-mi's follow-up words.
"But Yi-an keeps trying to distance himself from us if we leave him alone, so we actually need to do this much to keep the relationship going... Or do you hate Yi-an, by any chance?"
...
So-mi's words surprisingly made sense.
Thinking about it, Yi-an had never contacted me first or come up to talk to me first.
On top of that, even when I mustered the courage to ask him to a movie, he turned me down. And at Daegwallyeong, alcohol aside, I went into his room and showed him my disheveled state, but he didn't change his expression at all and tossed me out into the hallway!
No matter that I could tie him down until the next midterm with my authority, what then...?
If things continued like this, we might end up awkward strangers before graduation, not even exchanging greetings, let alone working together in the future.
"...By any chance, does that 'best friends' thing have some kind of membership condition?"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ I headed straight to the cafe after my shift at the sandwich shop ended.
No particular reason.
The weather was brutally hot, and our house doesn't run the AC.
We have an air conditioner at home, but they won't turn it on because of electricity bills—what's that if not the idiom 'a pie in the sky'?
Feeling a bit dizzy from the sweltering heat, I stuck to tree shade and building shadows as much as possible and finally made it to the cafe.
"Whoa... so cool... Yi-an, what do you want? I'll order, so can you go up first and grab us a spot?"
"Uh... sure? I'll have a large iced Americano, please."
For some reason, Yoo So-mi naturally followed me.
The situation was so seamless that I almost let it slide, but we hadn't agreed to come to the cafe together after work, right?
I came alone, and she just tagged along without a word.
...
But calling her out on it now would be weird, so I decided to just roll with it naturally.
I didn't have anything else to do anyway.
.
.
.
For killing time at the cafe, I chose a nostalgic mobile game.
I never had much time for mobile games as a kid, so I remember sneaking peeks during class breaks when the teacher wasn't looking.
I'd always wanted to carve out a day and binge it properly sometime.
I just never imagined it'd be after dying and regressing.
With a slight thrill, I started downloading the mobile game Hero Chronicle-5 on my smartphone.
Oh... looking it up now, this game came out in February 2011.
The Hero Chronicle series had been hailed as a masterpiece since the feature phone days, and even before my regression, I'd eagerly awaited new entries in the series.
I heard it got mixed reactions due to the somewhat out-of-left-field galge-like elements, but personally, I liked it.
Yeah. If you're gonna draw such pretty characters, you might as well design the game around them.
I'm sure Yoo So-mi, sitting across from me, would agree with my take.
...
But am I seriously planning to play phone games here all day? Is she okay with that?
Feeling a bit guilty, I asked her, but she confidently smiled and replied.
"I've already decided what I'll do here too. Check this out? New gear I bought with my part-time pay and prize money!"
She pulled out a laptop and tablet from her bag and set them up.
Yoo So-mi had apparently prepared to draw at the cafe before leaving home.
"Digital work is still tough, but if I keep using it like this, my skills should improve, right?"
Even on break, she's practicing drawing instead of just playing around.
Made me feel a little bad for just gaming beside her.
As I checked the download progress on my phone screen, feeling that twinge of guilt, she seemed interested and peered at it.
"Oh, a mobile game? Hero Chronicle... Is it fun?"
Eh! She doesn't know Hero Chronicle? For your information, this game is. Su. Per. Fun.
I explained the series to Yoo So-mi.
I even mentally prepared recommendations on which entry to start with if she got interested, but disappointingly, she wasn't into mobile games.
She did seem intrigued by the characters in the game, though.
"But the characters in this game are super pretty? Wow... look at those wide hips... and big boobs! Is this your type?"
...Before answering, I glanced around, mindful of the people nearby.
This wasn't a room cafe, just a regular one, so openly talking about that would be kinda embarrassing.
Should've gone to a room cafe if I knew it'd be like this.
Still, I had to respond, so I put on my calmest face, a benevolent smile, and spoke.
"Hmm... I think as long as a character is pretty, regardless of specific features, what matters more is their personality and actions in the story."
...That's what I said, but it was a lie.
But I couldn't exactly tell a girl from the same school, 'I like female characters with innocent faces and stacked bodies.'
Yet Yoo So-mi gazed at me steadily and murmured softly.
"Hmmm... that's your lying face."
"..."