Harina's Night of Freedom and Flat Chest Blues
"Hey, U Jeong, let's coat our kidneys with booze tonight! No waking up tomorrow morning!"
Harina cackled wildly as she flopped 'thud' onto U Jeong's studio apartment sofa. She plunked the convenience store beer cans down on the table, her voice half-excited.
"Whoa. The thrill of turning twenty. Feels amazing!"
"What's gotten into you, Confucian girl Lina going out overnight? Is Lina's Confucian dragon finally ascending? Got all your dragon balls collected?"
"I'm telling you, Mom said it's okay to stay out tonight. Can't believe it."
"No way... for real?"
"She declared Fridays free from now on every week. Cheers!"
Harina raised her beer can high in the air.
"Kyah! Bottoms up! To Confucian girl Lina's virgin liberation!"
"What the hell?"
Harina clinked her can against U Jeong's with a satisfying clink, cool foam spraying lightly from the top.
"But seriously, why the sudden change?"
U Jeong took a refreshing swig of her cold beer and widened her eyes.
Harina shrugged.
"Dunno. She called earlier, sounded super cheerful... like she was overflowing with energy or something?"
"What, what, what~ Did your mom get a boyfriend?"
U Jeong waggled her eyebrows playfully.
"If she did, I'd welcome him with open arms! Hope it's a rich stepdad. Mom's standards are sky-high; she's been single for ten years straight... She's forty-four but her body's hotter than mine. F-cups too."
U Jeong sipped her beer and smacked her lips. She caressed her own chest with one hand. A-cups that barely hit B during her period.
"F-cups???"
"Yeah. The real deal. Nice and firm."
"Holy shit."
Harina glanced down at her own chest and let out a long sigh. The flat-chested girls stared blatantly at each other's boobs. Then they shook their heads in unison.
That's when U Jeong thrust her beer can into the air.
"Ah!! Dreamers chasing massive tits! But oh, so lonely, so lonely! You're one of those 'front-and-back-the-same' types. Some girls become legends just by taking off their tops, but you'd get released for lack of evidence the second you strip... Fading away nameless, traceless..."
"Shut up! You with your jelly beans rolling around loose in your bra cups!"
"Hey, yours fly up like a kite in the wind when it blows!"
"Yours just mosquito bites, right?"
"You little bitch!"
Harina and U Jeong burst into peals of laughter, tickling each other mercilessly for a good while.
"Just grow your ass bigger."
"Right? A cute butt makes up for it. Our secret weapon: apple hips!"
"Aren't we rushing through denial-anger-bargaining-depression-acceptance too fast?"
"Shut up. One more round."
The two girls smashed their cans together hard enough to dent them.
"Hey, Lina. Ever seen a cutie goblin?"
"U Jeong, enough about our chests."
"Fine..."
A brief silence. But the girls had endless topics to chat about.
"Your mom's seriously gorgeous. Wasn't she a model? Man, Fridays off every week? Jealous."
"Girl, you're independent. I'm the jealous one."
"Don't even. Rent's double now. Gotta pull two shifts at work."
U Jeong leaned forward suddenly, eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"But hey~ What's up with your egennam bro these days? The one with the eco-bag."
"Oh, Dojin?"
Harina smiled but looked a tad guilty.
"Hey, egennam is kinda harsh though."
"Why? You always called him that. 'Dojin's such a total egennam~'"
U Jeong mimicked Harina's tone teasingly.
Harina pouted.
"Yeah, but... he seems different lately."
"Different how? Got a boyfriend? Top or bottom?"
"Not gay, I said."
Harina fiddled with her beer can, lost in thought. Even she had to admit her bro had done a 180 recently. He used to refuse to go out without sunscreen; now he skipped lotion altogether.
"He's been working out every morning lately. About a month now? Up at dawn for runs, bodyweight stuff at home."
"Ooh, body improved?"
"Yeah... kinda."
"Gays work out to build muscle... Bet he got a boyfriend. Full-on gay now? Dojin Gay~ Name even sounds snappy."
Harina ruffled her hair at U Jeong's words. Her bro suddenly hitting the gym after years as an egennam felt off.
"No way... Did Dojin really turn gay? Now that you mention it, it's suspicious."
Harina hesitated a bit.
"Ran into him in the kitchen the other day. His t-shirt clung tight... shoulders looked broader."
U Jeong's eyes lit up.
"Pics? Show me. Show me."
"Girl! I don't snap pics of Dojin."
Harina yelled, flustered.
"Why not? I'm curious. Your bro was famous in high school for his face. Without that wimpy vibe, he'd be hot."
Harina stared at U Jeong.
"What? Dojin's a face genius?"
"Yeah, didn't you know? It was a thing. And I've always thought your bro was handsome."
U Jeong said it like it was obvious.
"Big eyes, high nose, pretty lips. Just his hair and fashion sucked. Sigh... If a stud like Dojin oppa's gay... it'd be such a tragedy."
Harina shook her head.
"Dojin's cool? Hmm... Never saw him that way."
"Duh, he's your bro. But really changed? What's the vibe?"
Harina sipped her beer slowly, organizing her thoughts.
"Well... posture's different. Used to slouch, now he stands tall. And..."
Harina paused, deep in thought.
"And?"
U Jeong prodded.
"His eyes... changed. More confident. Used to avoid eye contact; now he stares right back. Talks back to Mom bolder too, owns his opinions."
U Jeong smirked meaningfully.
"Ooh~ Late puberty hitting with testosterone? Or gay glow-up? Mystery."
"Yeah... Never cared much about Dojin."
Harina said, something clicking.
"Clothes changed too. Used to rock baggy hoodies and plaid shirts; now fitted stuff."
"For real? Fitted clothes? Hmm... Gay vibes. Pics? Dying to see."
U Jeong asked again.
Harina pulled out her phone, scrolling the gallery.
"Hold on... Ah, family gathering shot."
Harina handed her phone over. Dojin stood in a black knit, expression way more confident. The fabric hinted at broader shoulders and a toned build.
"Whoa..."
U Jeong's eyes widened.
"That's your bro? Totally transformed. Manly now."
"Right?"
Harina nodded, glancing back at the pic.
"Someone coaching him? Got a partner? Looks styled."
U Jeong wondered.
Harina shook her head.
"Nah, doesn't seem like it. Stays home mostly, rarely goes out. Gay would mean dates outside... He's glued to the house."
"Hmm..."
U Jeong pondered.
"Maybe because of you?"
"Me? What'd I do?"
"You always teased him as egennam, hurt his pride, so he decided to change?"
Harina's mouth dropped open in surprise. Memories of mocking her bro flashed by.
"No way... Couldn't be..."
"Why not? Guys flip hard when pride's wounded. Bottle it up till 'boom!'—unstoppable."
U Jeong spoke like a guy expert. She kinda was.
"Plus, you're not blood-related. Maybe he wanted your approval."
Harina looked confused.
"Like that...?"
"Pretty girl like you giving props. No blood tie, basically strangers... Wants to impress you? As a man?"
"Pfft, no way."
Harina sank into thought. How much she'd dissed him, calling him egennam—guilt crept in.
"...Sigh."
Especially today's "cute" comment toward her kept replaying. No way??
"What? Face turning red—what're you thinking? Forbidden love or some shit?"
"No!"
U Jeong peered at the pic again.
"But damn, he's handsome. Working out too—body's filling out. How far's the change? Abs?"
Harina blushed faintly.
"Girl! How would I know? Don't care if he has abs."
"Could peek. Living together, bathroom run-ins happen. That thing big too?"
U Jeong grinned mischievously.
Harina's mind flashed to Dojin shaking out a towel half-naked. Flustered.
"You perv."
Definitely abs. And the bulge over his boxers, soft... impressive.
Harina flushed for no reason.
"Bummer~"
U Jeong giggled.
"But your bro looks different. Face sharper, manlier. Hey, introduce me. If he's Dojin Gay, he'll say no."
"Yeah? I'll ask."
"For real? Promise?"
"Said I'd ask."
"Promise to ask."
U Jeong stuck out her pinky. Promise sealed with a press.
"Hope he's not gay, not gay please! My womb's already pounding. Fuck."
"Slut."
Harina eyed the pic again. Now she saw it—bro was hot. Why hadn't she noticed?
Friend's hype made Hadojin look new. Harina felt oddly off.