Chapter 22
Chapter 22
“Haah, ugh!”
Yellowish bits of ginger and tea were stuck to Jae-gyu’s most sensitive area.
“Uuugh.”
Groans poured out of him. This was definitely no joke or act. Jae-gyu was in a truly dire situation.
“A-Are you okay?”
“Hngh.”
His face contorted in pain, Jae-gyu scrambled into the bathroom.
What should she do? The floor, drenched in ginger tea, was dangerous and slippery. She had to deal with the steaming floor first.
“Ow, hot!”
Bom quickly tried to wipe the floor, only to be startled by how incredibly hot the tea actually was.
It’s this hot?
Her face turned pale. The temperature was much higher than she’d thought. If it was this hot, Jae-gyu—who had taken a direct hit to his vital parts—must be in a serious emergency.
It’s my fault. What do I do!
Feeling the blood drain from her body, she ran toward the bathroom. Her mind was filled with only one thought: she had to help him.
“Jae-gyu!”
With a face clouded by worry, she flung the bathroom door open.
“Are you alright?”
She should not have opened that door. The moment it swung wide, Bom froze right where she stood.
“…….”
“Wha—what are you doing…?”
A flustered Jae-gyu stood there, completely naked. He was standing in the middle of the bathroom, clutching the showerhead. Bom’s eyes slowly took in the unbelievable sight.
“…….”
His sun-kissed body looked like something out of a photoshoot. Beneath his broad shoulders, firm muscles were packed tightly together.
Since he was so tall, the scale of his muscles was on another level. It wasn't just his upper body, either. His lower body was equally massive. And…
Between his thick thighs, nestled within a thicket of pubic hair, she saw a heavy mass of flesh hanging long and thick against his leg. It was impossible.
“Ah…?”
Her large eyes grew even wider as she slowly backed away.
Is it… is it supposed to look like that?
Even while her parents urged her to go on blind dates and get married quickly, they had never allowed her to actually date.
She had gone through the "all-girls" course—middle school, high school, and university—but there had certainly been boys who approached her. Yet, for some reason, none of those connections ever lasted.
It was only later that Bom realized her mother had been cutting those ties behind her back. Her plan was likely this: to put Bom on the marriage market as a "flawless" woman who had never been in a relationship.
Because of that constant surveillance, Bom had never actually been with a man.
She could only guess based on romance movies, dramas, or novels. She had learned about male anatomy through more explicit media, but she had never imagined it would be such a hopeless size and shape.
Dazed by the sight of the intimidating thing she was seeing for the first time, Bom just stood there, staring at it.
“U-Um, Bom…”
Jae-gyu was the one who became flustered by her piercing gaze. After freezing up, not knowing what to do, he started walking toward her, his member dangling with every step. That finally snapped Bom back to her senses.
“Aaack! Where are you going?! Don’t come over here!”
“Bom!”
Bom bolted out of the bathroom, slammed the door shut, and gripped the handle tight.
Thump, thump, thump, thump. Her heart began to race like crazy.
It was beating harder than when she’d almost been hit by a motorcycle. Am I going to have a heart attack? She was genuinely worried about such a ridiculous thing.
My eyes! My eyes!
Even though she had closed the door, her brain hit the rewind button of its own accord. The scene she had just witnessed replayed vividly.
Everything about the bathroom scene had been chaotic.
Jae-gyu’s discarded clothes were strewn messily over the sink. Seeing them all turned inside out, she could tell how desperately fast he had stripped.
The image of Jae-gyu’s body as he performed first aid with cold water from the showerhead kept flashing in her mind.
Why do I keep thinking about it?
She had guessed based on his silhouette, but it was just… brutally large. Was that size even possible?
“Bo-om…”
Jae-gyu’s pitiful voice drifted from behind the bathroom door. Bom, who had been about to run away, hesitated.
Jae-gyu is the victim here.
She had run away because she was shocked, but technically, this was entirely her fault. Besides, tonight was supposed to be about expressing her gratitude to him.
Instead, she had not only poured ginger tea on his vitals but had also become someone who peeped at him naked. The atmosphere had been so good while they were eating shabu-shabu, but now everything was ruined. She wouldn't be able to complain even if Jae-gyu labeled her his sworn enemy.
“Bo-om…”
At the sound of her name again, Bom answered as calmly as she could.
“Yes, Jae-gyu. I-I’m listening. Please, go ahead.”
She wanted to sound nonchalant, but the end of her voice wavered like a bleating goat.
“Do you happen to have any clothes I can change into?”
Jae-gyu asked desperately. Bom slowly let go of the doorknob and swallowed hard. Right, he couldn't stay in the bathroom forever.
“I-I’ll look for some. Could you open the door just a crack and give me your clothes? I’ll dry them.”
“Okay. I rinsed them with water and wrung them out.”
“Good job.”
Creeeak.
The bathroom door opened less than a hand’s span. Bom squeezed her eyes shut and reached out her hand.
A pile of cold laundry was plopped into her palm.
“Is this everything?”
“…….”
After handing over the clothes, Jae-gyu shut the door firmly again. He seemed to have gone quiet, perhaps out of shock.
Bom briefly inspected the laundry. The black training pants were huge and long. It hit her once again just how long his legs were. Then, his drawers—which she hadn't noticed because they were the same color—fell to the floor with a soft thud.
“…….”
She never thought she’d live to see a man’s used underwear. Bom hurriedly gathered the laundry and whispered toward the bathroom door.
“Jae-gyu…? Just wait a little bit.”
Bom threw the training pants and drawers he’d given her into the dryer and set it to the express cycle.
The estimated time was 46 minutes. That was enough. He’d be able to catch the bus once they were dry. The last bus wasn't for another thirty minutes after that.
Keeping the time in mind, Bom hurriedly searched her closet. But no matter how hard she looked, it was a lost cause. Naturally, she couldn't find a single piece of clothing that would fit Jae-gyu’s frame.
In that case…!
Bom rushed over to the house next door. She returned after getting something suitable from Grandma Sun-i. It wasn't the kind of clothing she had expected, but she had no choice right now.
It’ll be fine, right? She immediately handed them to Jae-gyu.
“……Are these yours, Bom?”
From behind the bathroom door, she heard the rustle of him changing. The design of the pants was a bit… well. Bom felt incredibly sorry.
“I borrowed them from next door. They said those were the biggest ones they had. Do they fit?”
“They’re a bit tight, but I can get into them.”
“Come out when you’re finished.”
After saying that, Bom prepared herself mentally and sat huddled on the living room sofa, waiting anxiously for Jae-gyu. A moment later, the door swung open.
“Ack!”
Bom let out a short scream and quickly clamped her hand over her mouth.
Was it a blessing or a curse that she was the only one seeing this? When she’d looked at the clothes folded up, they had seemed fine. But seeing Jae-gyu wearing them now made her head spin.
The navy-blue grandma pants were covered in a pattern of light pink hearts. He said they were a bit tight, but they were actually skin-tight, revealing every single contour.
“Is this okay?”
“……I suppose.”
It was so embarrassing that she couldn't bring herself to look with both eyes open. Bom suddenly craved a beer.
“…….”
“The fabric is really soft. It sits right against the skin.”
Against which skin? Jae-gyu was oversharing useless information. He marveled at how they were stretchier and more comfortable than he’d thought because of the elastic waistband, and how they seemed to have a cooling effect.
“Bom, look at this. The pants.”
“I’m good.”
“I’m telling you, read this.”
Bom tried her best to look elsewhere. But Jae-gyu kept grabbing the fabric of the pants and stretching it out to show her. Not knowing what he wanted her to see, a frustrated Bom finally turned her head toward him.
“What is it?”
What Jae-gyu was stretching out to show her was the text printed on the pants. Bom unconsciously read the word.
“Spring?”
Beneath the light pink heart pattern, the word ‘spring’ was printed in white letters. Jae-gyu seemed to like that.
She knew he was teasing her because of her name, but she felt strange every time he did. Her earlobes grew hot.
“I’d appreciate it if you could find out where she bought these.”
Bom, who had already been planning to ask Grandma Sun-i where she got them, nodded.
“……I will.”
“I should buy a pair for myself.”
Jae-gyu muttered as he plopped down next to Bom. The leather sofa dipped deeply, half-collapsing under his weight.
“Am I sleeping over?”
“What?”
A shocking statement suddenly flew out. Bom’s jaw dropped. Jae-gyu said it as if it were nothing.
“It’ll take at least six hours for my clothes to dry.”
Oh, that’s what he meant? Bom breathed a sigh of relief. Jae-gyu sleeping over at her house was out of the question. How could a man and a woman in one room…
“Oh, don’t worry about that. I put them in the dryer. It said 46 minutes earlier, so you only have to wait about thirty minutes.”
So there’s no reason for you to sleep over, okay? Jae-gyu was likely able to infer the unspoken words.
“……Ha, is that so.”
Fortunately, Jae-gyu understood the situation immediately.
In the awkward atmosphere, Bom reached out and fumbled for the remote. It would be better to watch TV.
Why did this have to be the first thing that popped up?
A dating show for singles was in full swing on a cable channel. The program was called Transferring from Solo to Couple. Or Soljjak for short.
Actually, Bom hated these kinds of programs. She was already sick of blind dates; she didn't want to know about other people’s love lives on TV. It wasn't even a natural meeting.
She disliked it for many reasons and was about to change the channel when Jae-gyu muttered.
“Finally, they’re revealing their jobs today.”
“……?”