12. My Junior's Squishy Belly
'What's gotten into her?'
She's always been so lively, and that's why she treats me without any reservations—crossing her arms is one thing, I could let that slide.
But a young woman getting this close to a guy in his thirties—what was I supposed to do?
I became hyper-aware of our surroundings and quickly pulled my wrist free.
"Y-Yoon Seoyeon! What the hell are you doing?!"
"Why? You said I gained weight! Go ahead and touch!"
I swatted away her small hand darting toward my wrist again and spoke urgently.
"No, you said you could grab some fat! That means you've gained weight!"
"I don't accept that! Touch me quick! Or you won't convince me!"
"H-Hey, cut it out, Seoyeon. I told you, you're not my type anyway."
She kept flailing her right hand to grab my wrist, but there was no way she could match my speed.
"Eeeeek...!"
After a few failed attempts, as I kept dodging and teasing her, she got competitive and came at me with both hands.
I stopped her by pressing down firmly on her forehead with my right hand.
Of course, my left hand gently deflected both of hers.
"See, Seoyeon? This is the difference in our eye levels. No matter what you do, you can't catch me."
Even as I kept provoking her, the height difference and my superior hand speed left her flailing helplessly.
"..."
Finally, she gave up and quietly lowered her hands.
My victory.
I'd won. I'd beaten Yoon Seoyeon in a battle of wills!
That was when I relaxed my grip and started to pull my hand back.
"Huh?"
Something felt off.
As I moved my hand away, her face slowly came into view—not the droopy eyes or defeated expression I'd expected, but sparkling eyes staring right at me.
And the final peak of weirdness: the corners of her mouth curving up in a sly grin.
The moment I noticed and tried to tense up, it was too late.
Chin.
"Gotcha."
Her voice brimmed with mischief, but to me, it sent a chill down my spine—was that just my imagination?
My forearm, awkwardly hovering near her chest, froze stiff.
Held in place by two small hands.
I tried to pull away with a bit of force, but it only budged slightly at first—then nothing.
A quick glance at her arms showed veins bulging from how tightly she gripped me.
Did I... provoke her too much?
"S-Seoyeon. I'm fine, really."
"No no no, Sunbae-nim..."
"Wh-What?"
"I touched your belly, so it's only fair if you touch mine..."
"No, that's not the same thing...!"
"It is!"
Until now, I'd been holding her off with one hand, but damn, for a girl, she was strong. Her trembling arms slowly dragged mine downward.
Even two arms against one—I'm losing?
"Wait! Seoyeon! Do we really have to go this far?"
"We do! If you don't touch me, you're the one missing out!"
"No, I'm fine—"
That was when it happened.
Suddenly, a soft, wool-like texture brushed my palm.
Then something squish pressed against it.
My fingers sank deeper, inching under her chest.
Seoyeon, putting all her strength into her arms, didn't even notice her own chest getting in the way.
If this keeps up... this is gonna look bad.
If I held on, it'd look like I was groping her chest. To escape the awkwardness, I deliberately eased the tension in my arm.
My palm, buried in her chest, slid smoothly downward.
And landed squarely on her belly.
"Phew! Go on, Sunbae-nim, touch away."
"Uh... uh..."
"Huh? Why's your face so red, Sunbae-nim? Don't tell me..."
"What? I'm just pissed that I lost to a junior who doesn't even work out."
"Huh? That's obvious—I used both arms!"
"Hey. Do you know how much I've worked out...?"
I tried to casually chat and pull my arm free, but she blocked me.
"Sunbae-nim."
"Sigh... Fine, got it. I said fine."
I carefully placed my palm on her belly.
The first sensation: fabric.
It's trembling...
The unique fuzzy warmth of her black wool knit enveloped my palm, holding her body heat inside.
As I mindlessly stroked it like I was entranced, a soft voice called out from in front of me.
"Sunbae-nim."
I looked up to see Seoyeon frowning, clearly displeased.
Whoops. Did I touch too long?
"Sorry... was that too much?"
"No, that's not it."
"Huh?"
"Why are you just fiddling with my clothes? You have to feel the belly fat to know."
"Oh."
Oh. Right.
I made an awkward face and tried to press harder.
But suddenly, she yanked my wrist and said—
"Sunbae-nim, my clothes are thick, so you might mistake them for belly fat. So..."
And then she shoved my hand right under her knit?
I froze in shock, mouth agape, but the squishy texture gripped in my hand was... addictively soft. I started kneading it.
I should pull away...
Squishy-soft.
It felt like my body before I lost the weight—chewy mochi, unlike the Breeding Uncle's dull, hard gut.
I pinched gently with thumb and index, stretched it out, stroked with my palm. Then my finger dipped into a soft hollow and I massaged it.
"Pfft-haha!"
Seoyeon's laughter burst out right in front of me.
And that laugh snapped my mochi-addled mind back to reality.
Wh-When did I start groping like this?
Women's belly fat was more addictive than I'd thought. A softness worlds apart from a man's. Realizing the danger, I yanked my hand out.
"Enough. That settles it, right?"
I declared it over, and she looked up at me with a playful grin.
"So, Sunbae-nim? What'd you think?"
"Huh?"
"No belly fat, right? Right?"
Belly fat, huh...
I recalled the chewy squish I'd just felt and compared it to my firm abs.
"Nah, it was definitely squishy belly fat."
"Wh-What?!"
I hit her with the brutal truth as she gaped at me in disbelief.
"Super jiggly. Pure fat blob. You need to work out."
She wobbled a bit at my honest review.
"N-No, it's not..."
"What do you mean? It filled my hand completely."
I caught her as she swayed and added—
"You're always sitting, scarfing the jellies I give you. Cut back."
"That's 'cause you keep giving them to me!"
"Who eats every single one? Save 'em for when you're low on sugar."
"Hng..."
In the end, it boiled down to "cut back on snacks," and soon after, we headed to the cafeteria.
"Hehe. Sunbae, what do you wanna eat?"
"Me? Hmm. What to get."
I don't usually eat out, so I had no clue.
Carbonara's the only thing I kinda know?
I glanced at Seoyeon, who was humming happily.
"Hum hum... What to eat... Pasta's good... Doria? Oh, sausage sounds tasty too..."
"Hey, Seoyeon. What's good here?"
"Huh? Oh, this?"
As I asked about the food, she dragged her chair closer to me.
But...
Squish.
Maybe she pulled too hard—her chest covered half the menu.
Oblivious, she just looked at me and explained.
"Pasta's good, paella's good... Ah! You like meat, Sunbae, so steak? How 'bout steak?"
She chattered on with a smile.
But the steak rice was hidden under her chest—I couldn't see it.
Can't exactly ask her to move her boobs...
Too embarrassed to look, I averted my eyes for a moment.
"It's on the menu too, so... Huh? Sunbae, there are pictures—pick while looking!"
"No... it's just... Seoyeon."
"Yes?"
"It's kinda... uh..."
As I mumbled, she finally looked down at the menu.
She yanked back in a panic.
"S-Sorry, Sunbae!"
"Nah... it's fine."
"Now you can see... Heh... heh..."
I checked the steak section and nearly passed out at the price.
What the—why's it so expensive?
Pork stir-fry's 12,000 won a plate, but one steak's 50,000?
"Hey... Seoyeon. You eat stuff this pricey?"
"Huh?"
"Look, the prices seem off."
She tilted her head.
"It's a date with just us, Sunbae—we can't eat cheap!"
"Hey! With our peanuts salary, how?!"
"But Sunbae, bonus is coming soon."
"Y-Yeah."
That bonus let me buy Ayoung clothes for school and a phone.
It was my lifeline with the stingy salary.
I couldn't blow it lightly.
But my single junior had no kids—she wouldn't get it.
She gazed at me innocently.
"We can splurge once in a while, right?"
"Still gotta save, kid! I've got daughter's tuition, stuff to do!"
"Oh, right."
"Yeah, Seoyeon. If you get it—"
Suddenly, she called the waiter.
"Here!"
"Yes? Ready to order?"
"Sirloin steak, bolognese pasta, paella, and twist sausage salad, please."
I froze at her boldness.
"Is that everything?"
"Yes."
"About 20 minutes."
I grabbed the waiter before they left.
"Wait! Hold on, please wait. Seoyeon, this okay?"
"Huh? Don't worry, Sunbae—I'll pay."
"Hey! This is over 100,000 won...!"
"It's fine! We'll order this!"
I watched the waiter go to the kitchen, then glared at Seoyeon.
She beamed back at me, grinning ear to ear.
"...Seoyeon..."
"Sunbae, with a daughter to raise, have you ever tried stuff like this?"
"Huh...?"
Company lunch stipend's 15,000 won. I saved it or picked cheap eats with colleagues to give Ayoung extra pocket money—never splurged.
"Nope, right? So just eat. You treat me so well—least I can do."
I couldn't respond properly, and she grinned brightly.
But I had a conscience.
"St-Still, this is too much."
"Nah, 120,000 for a meal? Not every day."
"Still..."
She shook her head firmly as I kept refusing.
"Aah! Stop! Keep it up, and I'll order more! Just accept it!"
"Fine... Thanks."
She plugged her ears with both hands and shook her head like she wouldn't hear more.
Man...
I couldn't help but laugh at the sight.
"Hehe. Excited?"
"Yeah. Pretty excited, Seoyeon."
"Hum hum. I picked the best—get ready."
"Oh? I'll review 'em properly then."
"Challenge accepted!"
We laughed over my reviews of each dish and finished eating.
Late night.
"Ha... overtime was brutal today."
Late night—just two extra hours. But clocking out on time vs. overtime makes a big difference.
Maybe my declaration shocked her, because as Seoyeon passed by, she stared and shrieked.
"Nooooooo!!!"
Ear-piercing volume.
I plugged my ears and said—
"What now."
She looked at me pitifully.
"Sunbae, listen. I think the universe hates me right now."
"What."
"This!"
She shoved an A4 paper in my face.
It boldly read "Duty Roster."
On Duty: Researcher Yoon Seoyeon
"Duty roster?"
"Yes!!"
I scanned down slowly.
And there it was for today.
My eyes locked on "Yoon Seoyeon," and she continued.
"Today!! The day we even went on a date!! And I'm on duty?!"
"Oh? Congrats on duty."
"Huh?!"
I trolled her, and she yelled at me.
I patted the shoulder of today's pitiful duty officer and stretched.
"Ah, I'm clocking out today. Tomorrow too. And the day after."
I grabbed my bag, humming.
Seeing that, Seoyeon flailed her arms.
"Sunbae! Don't leave me alone!"
"Nah. Don't wanna. I'm going."
"Nooooooo!!!"
She made a last desperate grab at my lab coat hem, but I slipped it off naturally—gotta change anyway.
"Oh, good call, Seoyeon. Hang it at my desk."
"Hwaaak! Don't abandon me!"
"I'm out. See ya."
I waved back at the pitiful duty girl gesturing behind me.
Then headed straight to the parking lot.
I started the car and got home...
"What. Where's my key?"
No matter how I searched, no key.
Retracing my steps slowly...
—I'm out. Good luck.
After that, I'd set the keys I'd been holding on the desk and grabbed my bag.
"Ha... gotta go back?"
I knocked, but no response—Ayoung must be asleep after her meds.
Didn't wanna wake her by calling, so I decided to head back.
"Maybe grab something for Seoyeon on the way."
I'd teased her about gaining weight, but it was just banter.
She wasn't that chubby.
"Hmm... she likes peach jellies."
Last time I brought peach ones, she hogged them all—no sharing.
She loves 'em that much.
"Grab coffee too, buy near the office on the way back."
'Huh?'
And now, I was in a very awkward spot.