The Alkkagi Showdown
I punched in the familiar password and stepped into Noona’s apartment.
For the record, we both knew each other’s door codes. We went in and out of one another’s places so often that we had simply traded passwords for convenience. Without them, whoever was inside would have to get up and open the door every single time, and that quickly became a pain.
So to anyone who didn’t know better, it probably looked like I maintained two separate studio apartments.
“Heey~ Namhyukkie, you’re here? What took you so long?”
Jiyoung noona was sitting on the bed, watching YouTube on her tablet. She waved at me with a bright, welcoming smile.
Of course she was once again completely bottomless. In other words, cool and breezy from the navel down.
Haa… If I absolutely had to pick one to take off, the top would be so much better. Why does she always go for the bottom… seriously…
The moment I walked through the door I let out a heavy sigh and shook my head.
“Noona, you still haven’t washed your panties?”
“Huh? No, I think I probably washed them…?”
If you washed them, then you washed them. What the hell was “I think I probably washed them” supposed to mean? She couldn’t even remember whether she’d run the machine?
“…Noona, are you actually getting alcohol-induced dementia? I keep telling you to cut back on the beer…”
“No, no! I remember now—I did wash them! Hehe…”
Noona tossed the tablet aside, sprang to her feet, and dashed to the washing machine. She opened the door, then squatted down—bare butt fully on display—and rummaged inside before pulling out a single worn, frayed pair of gray panties.
“Ta-da! Look, Namhyukkie, it’s the panties you were so desperately searching for.”
“Goddamn it, the way you say that makes me sound like a pervert… Just put them on already.”
“Ugh… I don’t wanna…”
Noona pouted and grumbled as she started sliding the panties up her legs. Then, with them only pulled as far as her knees, she suddenly jumped up as if a brilliant idea had struck her.
“Wait, Namhyukkie. This is the real showdown! If I win, I’m not wearing them.”
“…What kind of nonsense is that—”
She ignored my dumbfounded protest, ran to the shoe cabinet, and pulled out a thick wooden Go board with a small drawer for the stones.
“Here! Let’s settle it with this.”
“What… are we playing Go?”
“No, obviously the game is Alkkagi.”
Of course, neither of us actually knew how to play proper Go, so the only things we ever used the board for were five-in-a-row and Alkkagi. The only woman on the planet who would bet wearing panties on a game of Alkkagi was probably just Jiyoung noona… I was honestly at a loss for words.
She set the heavy board down in front of me with a bright smile, then pulled out three white stones and three black ones with a solemn expression, lining them up along the edges.
“I’ll take white, so I go first.”
“Hey, wait a second…”
Noona paid no attention. She licked her lips, focused hard, and gave the stone a sharp flick. It flew in a perfect arc, knocking my stone clean off the board while staying on the edge herself.
“Heey~~ Jackpot! Am I an Alkkagi master or what?”
“The first player has an obvious advantage, you know…”
I grumbled and tilted my head, then tensed up and lightly flicked one of my two remaining stones, sending the one that had taken mine flying off the board.
“Ooh~~ Not bad at all? Hehe. Still, I’m the first player, right? If I knock one out here, you can’t possibly win, can you?”
“Tch, just try it…”
She licked her lips again, concentrated with frightening intensity, and flicked. Once more the stone shot out in a perfect straight line and sent mine flying. Unfortunately her power control was a little off; her own stone followed it right off the board.
“Ugh…! So close…”
“Heh, that’s what you get for getting cocky… My turn.”
Now we each had one stone left, and it was my turn. If I could knock hers off in a single shot, I won. Even if mine went flying at the same time, I was the second player, so it would still be my victory. I didn’t need to worry too much about power—just the angle.
I lowered my eye level to the board, carefully adjusting the direction from every possible angle.
Right then, Noona—still seated—casually lifted one knee.
From across the board, the entire inside of her thighs was now completely exposed. The lower I bent to line up my shot, the clearer the view became. I bit my lip, sweat beading on my forehead.
Watching me, she tapped her lips with a finger and gave me a silent, mischievous smile.
Despite the visual sabotage, I lined up the angle perfectly and flicked the stone as hard as I could. It flew like a bullet and struck hers dead-on, knocking it off the board. Mine bounced off right after it, but the win was mine.
“Nice! My victory…!”
At that exact moment, the stone that had been sent flying slipped perfectly between Noona’s legs and smacked her right in the middle.
“Ah…!”
She reflexively clamped her thighs shut and let out a sensual little cry. Both hands flew to the spot, and her eyes widened in shock.
“........”
“...........”
Noona lowered her head, hiding her flushed red face behind her hair. I turned my own head slightly, trying to conceal my own burning cheeks.
After a long, awkward silence, she quietly stood up.
“…W-well, I’ll put the panties on.”
“......”
She gloomily pushed her feet through the leg holes of the gray panties one at a time.
Right then I reached out and called to her.
“…Wait, Noona.”
“….Hm?”
When she looked at me in confusion, I stared straight at her with my face still burning red.
“….Instead of the panties, I have a different wish.”
“Oh, really? Heey~~ What is it, what is it?”
Her face brightened with excitement as she pressed me. I bit my lip hard, hesitating for a long time.
…This was the exact moment to carry out the plan Hyejung had told me about.
But the words wouldn’t come easily.
No matter that it was a lie, suddenly telling Noona I had someone I liked was not something I could do lightly. I had suppressed my feelings for her for so long. Even if it was fake, cleanly giving up on those feelings required tremendous courage.
And if she really did turn cold the way Hyejung predicted… I couldn’t even imagine how that would feel.
But… I had to do it.
Even before hearing Hyejung’s suggestion, I had wondered for a long time. What exactly was I to Noona? And how should I treat her in return?
When I stayed silent after calling her name, she gave me a puzzled look and waved a hand in front of my face.
“Namhyukkie… did you get stunned or something? You okay?”
“…Noona.”
“Yeah?”
“….Um… you see….”
“Mhm?”
Seeing how embarrassed I was, she leaned in closer with an even more mischievous expression.
“Why? What is it, Namhyukkie?”
“…..I have someone I like now.”
I said it. The moment those words left my mouth, there was no turning back. I had no choice but to see this through to the end.
Noona froze, clearly caught completely off guard.
“…So… I wanted some advice or… well, I wanted to talk about it…”
This is so fucking embarrassing, damn it…!
No—focus. Focus…!
In this very moment, Noona’s reaction could shatter our five-year relationship beyond repair.
I had to watch carefully. I had to see exactly how she thought of me…
“….Really?”
“Yeah.”
“…..”
For a long time she stared at me with an unreadable expression.
Was she about to turn cold, just like Hyejung said…?
I swallowed dryly, nerves stretched tight, when suddenly Noona slowly turned away. She walked to the bed and flopped face-down onto it. Her fully exposed backside jiggled and trembled with the impact.
With her face buried in the pillow, she mumbled.
“…Is she pretty?”
“Uh…? Uh-huh… Well, yeah, I guess…”
“…Do you like her a lot…?”
“Uh…. Y-yeah…”
A brief silence fell.
…What was this reaction?
How was I supposed to interpret it…?
Still face-down in the pillow, Noona muttered in a voice so soft I could barely hear her.
“…I already knew… Namhyuk, unlike me… you have lots of friends… you’re an insider… so I figured something like this could happen…”
“…Huh? No, I’m not really that much of an insider…”
The next moment I was so flustered I couldn’t speak properly.
Tears were slowly filling the eyes of the woman looking at me.
“…N-Noona? Why are you crying?”
“……Namhyuk.”
“Yeah…?”
“…Wanna have a showdown with me?”
“A showdown…? What are you talking about?”
Her reaction was so far from anything I had expected that my head was spinning. She wasn’t turning cold like Hyejung predicted, nor was she grinning and teasing me like usual. I had never imagined she would speak in such a serious, grave tone.
“…Yeah, a showdown. Like the ones we always do. But this time, we’re betting your heart.”
“My heart…?”
“…If I win a hundred times first, you have to give up your feelings for that girl.”
Sunlight poured through the window, wrapping her body in pure white, as if illuminating a beautiful, weeping angel.
My mind went completely blank. I couldn’t form a single coherent thought.
“…And like me instead.”
Noona added the last part in a tiny whisper.
