Chapter 4: Study Session
After Choi Yunjin left the meeting room, Baek Donghyuk stood there blankly for a long time. The subtle trembling and the faint, broken breathing from her fingertips were still vivid in his mind. It was similar to what he had felt from Im Jihyun yesterday, but there were differences. And he had witnessed the 'red spot' once more. It was clearly a phenomenon beyond the realm of ordinary physical therapy.
'What is this ability...? What is its true nature?'
He was confused, but at the same time, it felt like glimpsing into an unknown world. He slowly removed the disposable gloves. His palms felt strangely warmer than usual.
The next day, after lunch break, the physical therapy room was lively and lazy as usual. Colleagues who had finished eating gathered in small groups to chat or spent personal time at their desks.
Some were massaging each other's shoulders to loosen stiff bodies or doing simple stretches. Baek Donghyuk, perhaps because of the intense experience yesterday, sat down with his unusually heavy shoulders shrugged.
"Excuse me, Mr. Baek Donghyuk."
The familiar voice from right beside him. Choi Yunjin had approached and was standing there. Unlike her usual calm and neat appearance, her expression was slightly uplifted. It was clear that yesterday's events had affected her a lot.
"Your shoulders... look a bit uncomfortable... Is it because of the practice yesterday?"
She approached naturally behind his shoulders and placed her soft hand on his trapezius muscle without hesitation. The professional pressure was accurate, but there was a subtle tremor.
"Ah, yes. A little... Are you okay, Yunjin-ssi?"
When Baek Donghyuk asked awkwardly, Choi Yunjin added a bit more strength to the hand massaging his shoulder and laughed softly.
"I'm fine. Rather... the hand touch from Donghyuk-ssi yesterday was really amazing. It was... on a completely different level from any treatment I've ever received."
Her voice was filled with an unhidden sincere admiration. Baek Donghyuk scratched the back of his head awkwardly at the praise he hadn't heard before. He didn't dislike her praise, but he was awkward at how to respond. Because this ability wasn't his real skill.
"By the way... Donghyuk-ssi."
Choi Yunjin lowered her voice and glanced around.
"The team leader sometimes says bad things about Mr. Baek Donghyuk's patient satisfaction evaluations... No matter how I think about it, it's strange. After experiencing Mr. Baek Donghyuk's hand touch yesterday, there's no way such evaluations would come out. Maybe... is there some misunderstanding in communicating with the patients or something? No matter how good the skill is, the evaluation is ultimately important based on patient feedback, right?"
Baek Donghyuk felt a chill for a moment. Normally, his poor treatment skills would be the main cause of low evaluations, but what she experienced was purely the power of the 'Lust Demon's Martial Arts Manual'. Choi Yunjin didn't know the gap between Baek Donghyuk's real skill and this sudden ability. Her advice was half right, half wrong. But the lack of communication with patients was an undeniable fact.
"So, how about we fill each other's weaknesses with a study session? Ah, and... it would be better if we get along more comfortably... I'm one year younger than Donghyuk-ssi. If it's okay, can I call you 'oppa' and make it more casual? Oppa can just call me Yunjin!"
"St, study session...? And... oppa?"
"Yes! Oppa, you have that... what do you call it, the special manual therapy technique you showed me yesterday. Teach me some of that, and I'll share with Oppa how to make patients and guardians more comfortable and increase satisfaction with communication! It's a win-win for both sides, right?"
It was a sudden proposal, so he was taken aback, but there was no reason to refuse. By strengthening his weak communication skills, he could also obtain information about the 'Lust Demon's Martial Arts Manual'. Moreover, getting close to Choi Yunjin privately. This was an opportunity.
"...Alright. Then, let's do it casually, Yunjin. And let's do the study session too."
"Really? Wow, great! Thank you, oppa! Then... when should we start? Ah, since we're on the topic, can I try something simple right now? I can give you some tips on communication related to oppa first!"
She grabbed Baek Donghyuk's wrist as if she had been waiting for it for a long time and stood up. Baek Donghyuk was led by her small hand and moved his feet.
Choi Yunjin entered the empty VIP room and sat facing Baek Donghyuk. Then, she gave advice by giving examples of various situations when dealing with patients. Her explanation pinpointed the core, and Baek Donghyuk realized anew how much he had been indifferent and unskilled in communicating with patients until now. Every word from her felt like a tailored tutoring prepared for him.
"Alright, now it's oppa's turn!"
How much time had passed? Choi Yunjin, who had gotten up from the chair, looked at the clock, and with an expectant expression, she stood from the chair she was sitting on and pointed to the bed prepared behind Baek Donghyuk.
"I'll lie down first. Ah, I hope I can learn something more."
Without any hesitation, Choi Yunjin climbed onto the bed and lay face down. Through the thin uniform, her soft back line was revealed. Baek Donghyuk took a deep breath and carefully placed his hand on her back. The familiar sensation. The red spot at the lower part of the scapula that had elicited the intense reaction yesterday. He applied light pressure.
"Hueut..."
A low moan escaped from Choi Yunjin's mouth. Her body reacted more sensitively than yesterday, and Baek Donghyuk tensed up tightly. He slowly moved his hand to the upper back, stimulating other red spots. Then, a new spot caught his eye. It was at the inner end of her right scapula in the upper back. However, the color of that red spot was unusually faint compared to the others.
'This is... a spot I've never seen before. Why is it so faint?'
Curious, he pressed the faint red spot gently. But unlike his expectation, there was no significant reaction from Choi Yunjin. She only twitched slightly, and there was no intense pleasure like when he stimulated the other spots.
'Huh? This isn't it...'
Baek Donghyuk tilted his head. It had the form of a red spot, but why no reaction? He pondered for a moment and turned his gaze towards Choi Yunjin's arm. On the back side of her right upper arm near the triceps, a similar faint red spot was faintly visible.
'Huh? There's a faint spot here too.'
He pressed that spot lightly. Again, no significant reaction. Then, a thought suddenly crossed Baek Donghyuk's mind.
'Could it be... that the spot being faint means it's signaling that the stimulation point is on the opposite side of the body?'
He gently grabbed Choi Yunjin's arm and turned it slightly. Then, he pressed the bare skin near the inner biceps of the opposite side of the arm where the faint red spot was pressed earlier, exactly opposite.
"Hueut!"
With a short but clear moan, strength entered Choi Yunjin's arm instantly. It wasn't intense, but it was a clear reaction of feeling pleasure. Then...? Baek Donghyuk's gaze returned to the red spot where there was no reaction earlier. His heart began to beat uncontrollably. The faint red spot he saw on her back was pointing to her 'chest area' position.
"Yunjin-ah, wait a moment. This muscle seems a bit... strangely stiff... I'll look at it more closely from the side."
Speaking with the most casual voice possible to Choi Yunjin, Baek Donghyuk moved to the right side of the prone Choi Yunjin, knelt on one knee, and after taking a deep breath carefully, slowly pushed his right hand into the narrow gap between her side and the treatment bed. The fingertips touched the lower part of her chest through the thin uniform, at the position opposite to the faint red spot seen on her back earlier. In a tense state, he pressed that point lightly.
"Huuaaah..."
An explosive and sharp moan erupted from her that couldn't be compared to what he felt on her back or shoulders. Her whole body trembled violently as if electrocuted, and her hands gripping the bed sheet were filled with strength. Overwhelmed by the sudden and unfamiliar enormous pleasure from the new area, Choi Yunjin couldn't regain her senses. The tingling sensation pierced her whole body, shaking every cell.
Baek Donghyuk was also startled by Choi Yunjin's explosive reaction, but at the same time, he felt an enormous excitement that made his heart about to burst. The hypothesis was exactly correct.
"Oppa... hueuk... there... it's too weird... first... first time... ahk!"
Choi Yunjin said with a labored breath, almost teary voice. Her body arched greatly again. Baek Donghyuk unconsciously swallowed his dry saliva. Her uniform was slightly fluttering, and the voluptuous flesh inside was felt. He had to control his reason. But Baek Donghyuk's hand didn't stop moving.