Summer Getaway (3)
"Aaaah~ I'm sooorry..."
With Jia clinging to his arm and draping herself all over him, Hanbyul was already exhausted before the trip had even begun.
He had only managed to pull himself together after getting home, rushing through a shower and scrambling out the door. Thank goodness he had packed ahead of time — he had nearly been late.
"It's fine."
"Aaaah~ What do you mean it's fine... It's not fine at all..."
Jia pressed herself against his arm with a pouty little look. When she acted cute and whined like this, she really was the kind of daughter you could put in your eye and it wouldn't hurt...
So why, the moment her lust exploded, did she turn into a carbon copy of Jiwoo?
Do they secretly share the same tastes or something...?
"I mean it — never do that again...!"
The second he tried to scold her, she started kneading his butt.
"Nngh! Yang Jia, you little—!!!"
She bolted, abandoning even her blue suitcase where it lay.
"Good grief, that girl..."
As Hanbyul watched Jia shrink into a distant speck, a ringtone chimed from the waistband of his pants.
Incoming call...
"Huh? Jiwoo~"
A call from the wife he had been missing.
"You're heading out now?"
"Yeah! We're leaving right now, baby~♡"
"Ahem... H-have a good trip..."
Whether it was because of everything that had happened since that day, or because her overseas work had started going a little more smoothly, the cold edge was gone. She was back to being his beautiful, lovely wife.
Her voice was trembling more than usual today, and it only made her sound unbearably cute. That proud face of hers, flustered and not knowing what to do with herself — not being able to see it was the most regrettable part of all.
"Thank you, honey... You'll be here soon, right?"
"Mm... The evening your trip ends, I'll hop on a plane and come straight over."
"I'm sorry. You're working so hard, and here I am just going off to play."
"No...! It's fine..."
"It is not fine..."
"Th-then... could you do me one favor?"
His wife was asking him for something. And if it was Jiwoo asking, he would do anything.
"Of course! What is it?"
"Don't wear a swimsuit."
"Ah..."
How she had known he packed one was beyond him — she had zeroed in on it like a ghost.
"Jeon Hanbyul. You packed a swimsuit, didn't you?"
Her tone shifted in an instant.
"N-no...! I didn't pack a swimsuit. I packed Hawaiian shorts."
"Hmm... Is that so?"
"Yeah... I'll take a picture the second I get there and send it to you."
"Alright, then. But... isn't there something you're forgetting...?"
"Huh? What?"
"..."
The conversation, which had been going so well, cut off cold.
"Uh... um..."
What did I miss? Is it Jiwoo's birthday? Our wedding anniversary?
"Never mind... It's fine. We'll talk about it later..."
"Mm... Sorry, Jiwoo."
"It's okay. Just don't forget what I told you."
"Okay...!"
Click—.
It had started out warm and sweet enough, but somehow the ending left a bad taste.
What did I do wrong to Jiwoo...?
Did I forget to send her something?
Did I not do something she asked...?
He turned over everything that had happened lately, but nothing particular came to mind.
"She said we'd talk about it later, so I'll think about it then."
Jia, who had run off earlier, came back, and father and daughter chatted away as they headed for the meeting spot.
Mo-nyeo Deopbap
"They should be here any minute... Hup!"
Jia plopped herself right down on the threshold in front of the shop. After everything that had already happened that morning, she looked a little worn out.
"Wow. So you don't even ask your dad to sit with you anymore..."
He put on a playfully dejected act, and Jia immediately started whining again.
"N-no...! Whoa whoa whoaaa... What's wrong, Daaad..."
That adorable side of his daughter was exactly why he kept turning into such a hopeless girl-dad.
"Wow... But seriously..."
Jia stared up at the signboard, a note of wonder in her voice.
"Hm? What is it?"
"I don't know. It just made me think about how hard we've been working."
Their reflections in the window glass, and beyond it the empty restaurant inside. Looking at the cold, quiet shop, the bustling days layered over it in his mind.
Walking in with Jia and meeting the mother and daughter for the first time. The relentless rush of busy shifts. The mountain-club women who had come in and harassed him. The time he had provoked Jia's jealousy and made her cry. Every one of those moments came flooding back, as if all the bone-grinding work they had poured in was sealed right there in that signboard.
"Dad, are you going to keep working here after the trip...?"
"Hmm... Probably not. Your mom told me not to."
"Ah... That's too bad. I wanted to keep working with you."
Something about the way she said it made him ask without thinking.
"Huh? What do you mean by that?"
"Nothing. I just want to keep the part-time job here. I've got a friend, and there's an unnie I've gotten close with now, so..."
"Do whatever makes you happy, Jia~!"
Leaving that unexpectedly mature side of his daughter behind him, he spotted the mother and daughter walking toward them from a distance. He would say it again — they looked like the queen and princess of a frozen kingdom.
Pure white hair, model-level height and proportions, and beautiful figures to match. Whether they realized it or not, every person they passed on the street was turning to look.
"Yo~!"
"Long time no see!!!"
Iseul greeted them with sunglasses on, chewing gum, putting on a faintly hip air. Her true nature was so pure and cute that the whole act just made her look like a silly kid.
"Dad~!"
And then Iseul came running straight at him. She threw herself into his arms so suddenly he had no time to react, their bodies pressed flush together.
Squish.
Soft, full mounds — no bra, apparently — brushed against his face.
"You crazy bitch! Get off!!!"
Jia's belated intervention tore them apart in an instant, but...
"Hoo... Dad's body is so soft~"
Iseul already looked thoroughly satisfied.
"Crazy bitch, good thing I ran into you today. Perfect weather to die in, huh?"
"What are you even talking about? I've got hunting to do today!!!"
They had reunited like something out of a drama, and within seconds they were at each other's throats. Leaving their construction-site-level bickering behind him—
"N-Noona... should we head out right away?"
"Yeah, shall we...?"
Baek Jiwoo. It was hard to believe she was a married woman who had given birth — her body was that firm and springy. She had on a loose white tee and short hot pants, the so-called missing-bottoms look. The fabric wasn't particularly thick either, so under the full summer sun it had gone practically sheer. Those heavy, sensual milk-jugs hanging full and soft were doing dangerous things to Hanbyul's less-than-pure thoughts.
"Th-then... shall we get going...?"
"Let's!"
They headed for the parking lot trailing a faintly awkward air, like people meeting for the first time on a blind date. Only after the two of them had gone in did the daughters finally stop their scuffle and scramble after them.
"Dad!!!"
"Dad~ Don't leave meee..."
"Hey! Who's your dad!!!"
"Alright then — off we gooo~!"
Baek Jiwoo behind the wheel, Hanbyul in the passenger seat, Iseul and Jia in the back. Both girls had taken their driving tests the moment they turned twenty, which meant the only person in the car without a license was Hanbyul himself.
"Mom, Mom! How long is it gonna take?"
Iseul looked up from her phone to ask Jiwoo.
"Hmm... Estimated arrival is 12:40?"
About a three-hour drive. They had decided to go straight through without stopping at any rest areas, so the daughters conked out the second they left. Jia and Iseul had been up on the phone until dawn the night before, and on top of that Jia had put herself through quite the ordeal that morning, so she was sleeping like the dead.
If the conversation had already been flowing, three hours might have been fine. But sitting through three hours with the talk completely locked up was pure agony for the two left awake.
Not a word passed between them until they cleared Seoul. It might have looked like indifference, but Jiwoo and Hanbyul were both keenly aware of each other as she drove, both of them watching the scenery outside the window.
As if she had been waiting for the tollgate announcement about the fare to finish—
Jiwoo spoke first.
"Thank you."
"Pardon?"
"For so readily agreeing to come on this trip with us."
"Ah... No, I should be the one thanking you..."
"And for driving, too... Driving is really hard work."
For two people who had agreed to just be a friendly noona and dongsaeng, they were laying on far too much formality, as if an invisible wall stood between them.
The one suffering most — and feeling the most stifled — by this situation was none other than Jiwoo. After all, she had been holding her desire in check for so long, and after watching Hanbyul's video she had a gut feeling that if she kept bottling it up any longer, she was going to snap.
Did Jia's father send him because he likes me? Or did he just send him to test the waters...? He has such a beautiful wife — why would he send him to me...?
And so...
Wanting to be sure of Hanbyul's feelings, she was the one who opened her mouth first.
Whether he sensed any of that or not, Hanbyul—
"N-Noona, why are you being like this... Talk comfortably, comfortably!"
"Ah... Comfortably?"
"Yes... We weren't like this before!"
Right... You weren't like that before either...
She had thought he was nothing but pure and kind and wonderful. She had never imagined he was the kind of filthy man who could drown so helplessly in pleasure...
Baek Jiwoo decided to throw herself at the situation and let the chips fall where they may.
"Hanbyul-ah, I've got something on my mind."
"Huh? What is it?"
"There's someone I see really often, you know?"
"Yes..."
"But I don't know how I'm supposed to treat him."
"Why? Does he put up walls or something?"
"No, it's not that. It's like he has feelings for me, and also like he doesn't... And the most important thing is, he has a wife."
"Whaaat?! Umm... Then have you talked to him about it?"
"Talked about what?"
"About that problem. If he likes you, he should settle things on his end first, right...? Ah... or maybe not...?"
He didn't know who she was talking about, but it sounded enough like she was pushing for a divorce that Hanbyul paused for a moment to think.
"You think so? But wouldn't that make him uncomfortable?"
"Hmm... It might be an uncomfortable topic, but isn't it better to have a clear conversation at least once? If you're honest with him, he'll be honest with you too, right?"
Hanbyul, completely unaware she was talking about him, was diligently digging his own grave.
Not about to let the chance slip, Jiwoo waited until they hit a red light and the car came to a full stop.
"Hanbyul-ah."
"Yes? Jiwoo Noona...?"
"Hanbyul-ah. How do you feel about me?"