In autumn, with her...
In autumn, with her...
Time flows mercilessly onward.
Before I knew it, the sweltering summer had passed, and now it was autumn, with its crisp, chilly breezes.
By this point, I was no longer a sniveling loser, but a respectable hunter making my mark.
From what I heard around the village, Noel had begun his literary studies, and Rina, along with the other girls, had started learning household duties—
gathering together to work on leathercrafting and such.
And then, the village's grandest festival drew near.
"Congratulations! You kids are now full-fledged adults!"
The Coming-of-Age Ceremony.
At last, the greatest celebration for becoming an official member of the village.
That night, after the ceremony ended,
the guys gathered with the guys, the girls with the girls, drinking till they were tipsy and feasting on delicious food.
Of course, I didn't get to see Noel.
Probably, they decided not to let him mix among boars like us.
"Raul! Here, take my cup too!"
"Thank you."
"Hey, hey, weren't you drinking on the sly without us? How are you such a good drinker? Ha ha ha ha ha!!!"
"Who knows."
That time was so peaceful and pleasant.
Elders, ahjussi, friends my age—everyone was arm-in-arm, eating and drinking.
It felt like the old days, a warm feeling as if we all just lived together without any distinctions no matter what circumstances we had.
"Hey... Raul..."
"Hm?"
"How did you get even bigger?... I mean, we all do the same physical work..."
"Maybe you've been holding out on some secret trick. Heh heh..."
"What the hell, man!"
As I peeled off my drunken friend who clung to me like he wanted a hug, I took a moment to move and take stock.
I really had gotten bigger.
When compared with the other guys my age, the difference was obvious... And more than anything...
"...Do gray hairs come in yellow too?"
Between my brown locks, yellow strands had started to show, giving my hair a faint golden tinge.
When I was starting to think it might actually be a hindrance to hunting, the ahjussis shoved more cups at me, so I buried the thought—
and just drank myself senseless.
★
It's a crisp autumn day.
Noel went off to study, and I, being a girl, began learning household skills like leather dressing alongside the adults.
It's a little sad I can't see Noel as often as before.
Still, it's nice that I don't have to watch other girls ogle him.
Once my training is done, I'll be able to monopolize him all to myself at his house!
"Hehe~"
And today, since Noel's birthday is coming up and the weather is getting colder, I'm heading to the storage shed to get some leather
and make him a pair of gloves.
Just imagining how happy he'll look when he receives them—my body may be cold, but my heart feels so warm it practically doesn't matter.
So I came to the storage shed... only to find an old friend whom I never expected standing guard in front of it.
"Raul...?"
★
"Raul...?"
"...Huh?"
The shed watchman usually sits alone in front of the door, passing the time.
And since I'd been drinking the night before, I was nodding off when I lifted my head at the sound of a voice...
"...Rina? What brings you to the shed?"
The girl I'd been missing a little was standing there.
"Ah... I wanted to make gloves for Noel..."
"Ah~ makes sense, it's about time it gets chilly... I'll open it. Come in."
"Okay...."
To my surprise, seeing her didn't affect me at all.
She'd shed her girlishness and become a beautiful young woman, unmistakably so—
but when I thought of her as my friend's girl, I don't know. I didn't feel the old flutter or heartbeat anymore.
"Let's see... that guy's body is weak, so..."
For some reason, she seemed awkward around me.
Since she said the gloves were for Noel, I was about to pull out some good leather...
"I-I'll get it out! Just tell me where it is..."
"Huh...? But it's up high, it could be dangerous...?"
"Never mind! Do you think I'm a little kid? Just hurry up and tell me where."
Watching her answer curtly like that, I couldn't help but keep chuckling.
Seeing that, her face flushed as if she were embarrassed and she puffed out her cheeks...
"Okay, it's up there on the top. I'll hold the ladder, so get it yourself."
"Don't look up... I'll kick you..."
"Shut up and get climbing."
I sent her up with that pointless comment, and stood holding the ladder,
looking at the ground and waiting for her to hurry and grab the leather...
"...Hey, Rina, it's taking a while. What's going on—"
"Kyaaaah!!"
"Damn it...!"
Kwang!
"Ugh... you idiot, I told you to be careful...!"
"Hngh... hng... ng... keuh-heung... eup..."
I caught Rina with my body when she missed her footing on the ladder and fell. I was about to scold her, asking where the hell her head was at for her to fall like that—
but her state was strangely off.
I'd ended up catching her from behind so she wouldn't get hurt... yet for some reason she stayed in my arms without pulling away.
Instead, she burrowed further into my embrace, almost like she was... smelling me?
"Hey!"
"Uh-heuk?!"
I grabbed her shoulders and roughly pushed her away, and only then could I see her face.
Her lips were slightly parted, almost slack. Despite being inside the shed, the cold weather had somehow left a light sheen of sweat on her forehead, and a few strands of hair stuck to her lips.
Aside from the stuck hair, her hair was completely disheveled. Maybe because I'd pushed her away so brusquely, her clothes were also a mess.
"Haah... Just sit there. I'll get the leather."
"Huh...? Oh... okay... yeah..."
Leaving her, who'd suddenly gone oddly meek, I set the ladder back up, took out the leather, and climbed down.
Rina couldn't even get up—maybe her legs had given out—and was just staring up at me.
When I reached out my hand, the dazed look in her eyes slowly returned to life, and she shyly took my hand and stood.
★
While I was fetching the leather, something kept nagging at me.
Because the Raul I saw after so long had become so incredibly dependable. And maybe it was because I had only ever had eyes for Noel when we were young...
For some reason, I felt like his face had changed so much, too...
And more than anything...
His forearm... it was so thick. And his body had become so big, too. I suppose that's only natural.
Just as Noel and I had grown, Raul must have grown too...
He'd changed so much.
Honestly, it wasn't like I knew nothing at all. After the coming-of-age ceremony ended, Raul was a hot topic among us girls.
Seeing how much he'd changed, everyone compared him to the other boys our age and talked about this and that.
So I did know, but...
"Hey... Rina..."
"Huh...? Ah...!"
Right when I was about to answer his sudden call, I missed a step on the ladder. My center of balance tilted backward, and in that moment—with the ladder—I fell.
That's it, I thought. Flashes of the wedding with Noel that hadn't happened yet, and the envious faces of my friends, passed before me like a panorama.
So I closed my eyes, ready for the coming death—but what I felt was...
A supremely sweet and luscious softness, carrying a gentle fragrance.
It was definitely a leather storage shed that normally smelled nothing but musty. Wondering where this scent could possibly come from, I opened my eyes—
and there was a soft yet firm body.
And then, I just couldn't control myself and... even though I had Noel, I hugged that unknown body tight.
Immediately after, a shove jolted me and I heard a voice. It was only then that I came to my senses and could see Raul.
☆
My life these days is happy.
You see, it's been a long time since I started dating my childhood friend.
She's a truly lovable girlfriend who always looks only at me and greets me with a pretty smile.
Of course, there is one slightly regrettable thing.
Raul.
My other childhood friend—of the same sex.
When we were little, the three of us always went everywhere together, causing mischief and playing joyfully, even falling asleep in some hideout deep in the woods.
Those memories are still so vivid and dear.
But something must have happened, because I can never seem to meet Raul properly.
Whenever I go to see him, he's out on a hunting trip or off to exercise with the boys from another village...
Sometimes I'd find myself resenting my own slender, weak body.
Still, today I heard good news.
After finishing my literary studies for the day, while looking for my lovely girlfriend, Rina,
I heard she'd gone to the storage shed to get some leather, and that today, Raul happened to be guarding the shed.
The thought that the three of us could gather and talk, after so very long, made my steps feel incredibly light.
Come to think of it again, my life truly does seem happy.
Kki-ik—
"For heaven's sake, so careless...."
"Haah... haah... you're so noisy..."
Huh?
Why were the two of them in the shed...?
The moment I caught a glimpse of them, I instinctively hid myself. Because somehow, I felt like I shouldn't face them just now...
When I peeked out a little at my friends,
Rina's clothes and hair were all disheveled, her face flushed.
And Raul seemed to be gently putting up with her complaining.
"...Ah."
Of course, I trust my friends.
Something must have happened.
I just hid myself and couldn't bring myself to step forward, and I hoped. Hoped that the sajeong (circumstances) I feared wasn't actually the wrong kind of sajeong (ejaculation)...
◆
"Now give me the leather. I'll take it..."
"Forget it. I'll carry it for you. Just don't fall again."
With her offering no further retort, I led her by the front and brought the leather all the way to her house.
Her house, which I hadn't visited in a long time, was still as cozy and quaint as it had been when we were kids. I drifted in nostalgia for a moment, and when I opened my eyes,
Rina stood right in front of me with a venomous look.
"The leather. Aren't you going to give it to me?"
"Keu-heup... Seeing that expression makes me not want to give it to you now."
"You son of a...! Hmph!"
As she was about to fly into a rage, I tossed the leather over her head to block her sight and made my escape on foot.
Behind me, I could hear her cursing me out.
Though my heart still feels no flutter...
"...This is driving me nuts. Why's the lower part acting like this, damn it."
Maybe it was when my body pressed close to Rina's.
My lower half was still riled up, showing no sign of subsiding. At least I'd managed to tuck it to the side of my pants to avoid any awkward situation, but...
"Guess the body still holds some lingering attachment."
Chalking it up to that, I simply head back to Hans-ssi's house.