Chapter 57: Timing
Chapter 57: Timing
Watching Han Ye-ji always brought to mind a puppy rubbing its whole body against your palm, begging for affection.
That thought surfaced as her chattering voice faded, replaced by the gradual press of her weight against me.
She was testing the waters, angling for a treat like a cautious dog—it was unbearably endearing.
Soft palms skimmed lightly over my sides and thighs.
Maybe it was thanks to the reversed gender roles putting me on the receiving end of the caresses, but her touch was reverent and exquisitely careful.
It felt like she was seeking permission—and maybe getting a thrill out of working me up, too.
"Haa, Constellation...?"
"What is it?"
The sight sparked a perverse urge to tease her, so I kept perfectly still.
Seated on the sofa, I turned myself into an immovable object—there wasn't much she could do about that.
Hell, even when a guy's taking a girl's pants off while she's lying down, she still has to lift her hips to make it easy,
so how was she supposed to budge a muscular 180-centimeter giant who'd planted himself on the couch?
Maybe she caught the hint of mischief on my face, because Han Ye-ji clung stubbornly to my motionless form and kept trailing her palms over my body, tickling lightly.
She drew her fingers down along my spine, slipped a hand around my side, and rubbed slow circles across my abs.
Before I knew it, the living room was filled with nothing but quiet breathing.
A snicker escaped me at the sight of Han Ye-ji, plainly scheming to drive me crazy.
Sure, I might be a Dream Demon who struggles to keep pace with Kim Ha-eun, but an inherent species gap exists between humans and Dream Demons.
She drew a deep, slow breath.
"There's a sort of... scent..."
Han Ye-ji, who'd been leaning into me and running her hands over my body like she was the one doing the toying, suddenly started twitching her nose, sniffing audibly.
The sight of her half-lidded eyes searching for the source of the smell, relying entirely on her nose,
was so ridiculously identical to the puppy image I'd been picturing that I nearly burst out laughing.
Still, I am a Dream Demon—shouldn't I have at least some charm?
A pleasant realization settled in: my magic power, once pathetically faint, had grown strong enough to affect someone this close to me.
"A really... nice... smell."
A word, one deep breath.
A word, two deep breaths.
As if she begrudged letting even a trace of the scent disperse, she inhaled so deeply that her speech slowed step by step.
The hands that had been teasing me slowed, then began rubbing one spot over and over, before finally going slack and still.
"Uh, um... Constellation?"
Even she seemed to find it odd. I gazed down at her face as she leaned against me and looked up.
Both cheeks flushed bright red, her small nose breathing in place of her mouth, her breath turning ragged even as she craved more of the scent,
and a faint sheen of sweat glistened on her skin though I hadn't laid a finger on her.
Her body was heating up when I'd done nothing at all—she had to have realized something was strange.
"What's the matter? Aren't you going to continue?"
I flashed a gentle smile, and her little tongue darted out to lick the back of my hand.
It wasn't the off-putting, slobbery kind of wetness.
She treated my hand like a plaything—a light lick, a feathery kiss, a nibble with her front teeth, all so cautiously.
Maybe, realizing her clumsy skills couldn't accomplish much, she'd decided to fall back on aegyo.
Or maybe she was just trying whatever she could with her limited knowledge.
After we formed our Incarnation contract, one very minor but monumental shift had occurred in Han Ye-ji's life.
Namely, the disappearance of her solo happy hours with adult videos.
I'd barge into her head to chat at all hours, summon her into dreams, or even descend into her room to borrow her computer.
After that, private happy time became a thing of the past.
No—to put it bluntly, she no longer needed it.
We were together at least two or three times a week, even at the slowest stretch,
so why would she drag her exhausted body home from work just to fumble through a session with her right hand in the real world?
Clock out and sneak in porn while hiding from her little brother, versus enjoying anything and everything she wanted with her ideal type inside a lucid dream—
wouldn't men and women alike—or rather, all four categories in this reversed world—pick the latter?
The sum total of her sexual knowledge was the garbage she'd absorbed from adult videos, and now she didn't even watch those. So what could she possibly know?
She'd picked up a decent amount from our times together, but there was no way she'd know how to handle a man who wasn't reacting and was just staying still.
I'd always responded, guided her, soothed her, and led the way before.
"Hyaam... why is... this happening..."
I'd meant to tease her so I could enjoy that adorable flustered squirming,
but instead I watched Han Ye-ji's eyes grow hazy and unfocused.
Was my control still so clumsy that my magic power was putting her to sleep instead of seducing her?
Her breathing, too, was growing noticeably steadier.
'Fuck, other people just look at someone and unlock an Authority...'
I had no interest in fooling around with a sleeping or intoxicated woman.
Men as a species get visually aroused by a woman's reactions and expressions.
I couldn't let my own inept magical control ruin the fun and send her off to dreamland.
※
Among the Eastern Continent's folk tales are stories passed down by Constellations.
The tale of the Jade Empress, seated high in the heavens and looking down upon the human world, and the celestial immortals who attend her.
That absurd thought drifted through my hazy, half-melted mind.
'Could this be what they call paradise?'
A beautiful man descended from heaven had welcomed me so warmly, and my body felt so drowsy and warm.
A lovely scent I had never smelled anywhere before filled my head to the brim, draining every ounce of strength from my limbs.
But having no strength wasn't the least bit uncomfortable.
If I just melted away like this, maybe that would be just fine—
"What's the matter? Aren't you going to continue?"
At the gentle voice that reached my ears, I barely managed to lift my heavy eyelids.
The beautiful man's face looked down at me, cradling me as I leaned into him, as if he were soothing a child.
That sight pulled my dazed mind back to something resembling awareness.
"Hyaam... why is... this happening..."
As I looked up at him and drew a breath, a yawn spilled out of me like someone had grabbed my jaw and wrenched it down.
Come to think of it, I was inside a lucid dream right now—so why was I this sleepy...?
I forced strength back into my arms and legs to shake off the cloying sleep demon.
The hot feel of a man's skin pressed against my palms.
The firm yet smooth texture must have made me a little mesmerized.
'Ah... can I take them off?'
If I had my way, I'd strip off those thin pants this very second,
pull down the underwear inside, and come face to face with that magnificent, beautiful thing... but
he was not a man I could handle however I pleased.
I'd heard plenty of stories even in normal relationships where a couple broke up because one person carelessly fiddled with the family jewels without consideration—
so how could I dare do such a thing to my Constellation?
I remembered something my seniors had been loudly discussing at a company dinner, back when the Constellation wasn't around.
'Men need the mood. Men need the mood... But is there a better mood than this?'
A cozy room, warm and sweet air, plenty of eye contact, both of us gently touching each other and smiling—
what more could there possibly be?
Was there some better mood I was supposed to set?
My sluggish brain flat-out refused to function, so I reached out, following pure desire.
'Is it okay? It's probably okay, right? The Constellation is so kind, this much should be fine...'
Suddenly, I recalled a piece of advice from a senior who'd become an Incarnation after her military discharge—if you're wondering whether it's okay, don't do it, and if you're wondering whether you have to, do it—but—
My hand, moving on pure instinct over any thought, had already snagged the waistband of his shorts and yanked them down roughly.
The situation was already past saving.
The waistband slid right down, and beyond the pants that dropped to the floor with a thump, that sweet scent wafted up sharply.
"Hmm, go on."
I found my confidence in the hand cupping my cheek, stroking it so tenderly.
The scent was far more intense than before.
I slid off the sofa and onto the floor, rested my chin on those solid thighs, and stealthily reached out a hand.
His eyes went round—I'd definitely startled him—but the hand stroking my hair said he wasn't upset.
Peck, peck, peck—
I kissed his knees and thighs, slowly working inward.
Tracking that scent as it grew ever sweeter, like a honeybee searching for nectar.
Knowing the pleasure that lump of flesh hidden inside that thin scrap of fabric would bring made my breath come faster.
Peck, peck—
And so, brimming with anticipation, I reached out my hand once more... reached...?
Bam-bam-ba-bam! Good! Mor! Ning!
Get up, sis! Hey!
A bizarre noise rang in my ears.
"Ah, an intruder has arrived."
A voice full of genuine regret, and the world swirled and changed.
The sweet scent vanished without a trace, replaced by the musty smell of a room that reeked of a lonely old bachelor mother boring into my nose. My face scrunched up automatically.
"Seriously, if the alarm's blaring like that, get up already!"
The beautiful, gentle voice was gone, my little brother's irritation-laced yell pounding my ears alongside the alarm.
I forced open eyelids heavier than gold and took stock of the situation.
An emergency alert from headquarters had synced to my smartphone alarm,
and since I wouldn't wake up from the lucid dream, my brother—jolted awake by the noise in the next room—had barged in and...
Why now, of all times?
"Yes, this is Han Ye-ji."
—Hey! Wash up quick and get ready to sortie. They're mobilizing the big guns!
"Senior Jeong Ah-rin...?"
—If you're still half-asleep, at least splash some cold water on your face first!
Beep. The call cut off without another word.
I could feel something starting to boil deep inside my chest.