[Episode 1 - My Younger Sister Who Only Wears My Clothes]
[Episode 1 - My Younger Sister Who Only Wears My Clothes]
Swaaa.
I woke to the sound of rain drumming against the window.
I immediately felt around beside my pillow and picked up my phone.
5:25 a.m.
Five minutes until my alarm went off.
'Could go either way.'
It was too short to fall back asleep, but too early to get up.
I tried to endure it with my eyes closed, but then I heard a Dalgeurak sound from beyond my bedroom door.
Noah must already be awake.
Once I heard that, there was no chance of falling back asleep.
In the end, I sat up, and the fan I had left running all night pushed out lukewarm air.
A semi-basement apartment in summer got especially damp when it rained.
When I opened the door, a savory smell brushed against the tip of my nose.
Noah was standing in front of the sink.
She was wearing my black T-shirt.
A quick glance downward revealed that the hem had ridden up, exposing half of her panties.
I couldn't understand why a grown woman was walking around like that.
'Couldn't she at least put on some pants?'
I didn't know where to look.
Pretending not to notice, I spoke first.
"Noah. Isn't that shirt mine?"
"Yeah. It's yours, oppa."
Noah answered without even turning around.
'Why does she always wear my clothes?'
She had plenty of clothes of her own, yet she always specifically chose mine.
"Where are your clothes?"
"In the laundry basket."
'That can't be right.'
Noah was making a strange excuse.
"You did laundry yesterday."
When I approached and spoke to her, Noah answered with a pouty expression.
"This is more comfortable."
"If you wear that, I won't have anything to wear."
"You can wear something else."
"You're saying that while wearing my clothes?"
Noah gave me a shameless grin.
In the end, I sighed, opened the refrigerator, and took out a bottle of water.
There's nothing to eat.
I should pick up some groceries on my way home from work today.
Come to think of it, we were running low on toilet paper too.
As I sat at the table and waited, Noah asked me,
"It's raining so hard. Are you still going out today?"
"They haven't contacted me to cancel."
"What if they cancel after you make it all the way to the worksite?"
"Then I'll come back."
I drank some water and looked toward the small window.
Seeing the rainwater streaming Juljul down the glass, I wondered if the roads would be flooded before long.
Still, if they hadn't contacted me, I had to go.
If I stayed home for no reason and the work went ahead, I'd lose an entire day's wages.
While I was staring blankly into my thoughts, Noah said,
"It's two hours round trip."
"The daily wage is 170,000 won."
Noah's brows drew together.
That expression again.
She made that face every time I brought up money.
She didn't even seem interested in hiding how much she disliked it.
"Money again."
"I'm going out to earn money, so of course I have to talk about money."
"Think about your body too."
"I'm fine. I'm perfectly healthy."
At my words, Noah turned off the stove and transferred the eggs onto a plate.
Then she approached the table and set the plate down.
As she came closer, I caught the faint scent of shampoo from her hair.
Did she wash her hair this early in the morning?
She was certainly diligent.
"You said your back hurt last time."
"It got better after I took a day off."
Noah lowered her gaze to me.
Her eyes were thoroughly displeased.
I knew very well that nothing I said would do any good at times like this.
"That's impossible. It upsets me every time I see you abusing your body, oppa."
"I'm really fine, so don't worry."
At my words, Noah stuck out her lower lip.
That expression hadn't changed at all since she was little.
Whenever she couldn't win an argument with words, her lips always came out first.
'She's twenty years old, but she still acts like a kid.'
When I stared at Noah, she met my gaze and spoke.
"Oppa. Everything's ready, so let's eat now."
"Okay, thanks."
I helped move the rice and side dishes to the table.
The food on the table consisted of simple dishes.
It wasn't a lavish spread, but it was more than enough for breakfast.
"Oppa, eat this."
Noah quietly picked up an egg and placed it on top of my rice.
It was the larger of the two.
She was doing it again.
She always ate the smaller one herself and gave me the larger one.
"I'm fine, so you eat it."
"One is enough for me."
"One is enough for me too."
"You have to work hard today, oppa."
I was grateful that she cared about me, but I wished my younger sister would take better care of herself too.
However, knowing Noah wouldn't give up, I eventually peeled the egg and put it in my mouth.
Only then did the corners of Noah's lips rise slightly.
Was eating one measly piece of egg really enough to make her that happy?
I lowered my gaze and continued eating, but when I absentmindedly looked up, I saw a grain of rice stuck to the corner of Noah's mouth.
"Noah. You have rice stuck to your mouth."
"Huh? Where?"
Noah ran her tongue around her lips.
She didn't even come close to the grain of rice.
"The other side."
"Here?"
"Lower."
Noah rubbed her chin with the back of her hand.
That was the wrong spot too.
Watching her was getting frustrating.
In the end, I leaned forward and reached out.
Then I gently rubbed below Noah's lips with my thumb.
"Here."
"......."
Noah suddenly went quiet.
What was wrong with her?
When I withdrew my hand, Noah lowered her head.
Her face was red.
"What's wrong?"
"It's nothing."
Wondering if she was hot, I stood up and turned on the fan against the wall.
Only then did the heat gathered in Noah's face seem to subside a little.
But why wouldn't she meet my eyes?
Her hair looked uncomfortable too.
"Noah. Isn't it uncomfortable when your side hair falls down while you're eating? Just tie all of it up neatly."
"I'm used to it, so it's fine."
Even as she said that, she brushed the fallen strands behind her ear.
Then she glanced at me.
"What's wrong?"
"Oppa, I don't have any spare hair ties. Could you buy me one?"
"I'll get one on my way home from work."
"I want to go with you."
The hand holding my chopsticks paused at Noah's words.
"It's raining. It's hot and humid, so why would you deliberately come along?"
"We can take an umbrella. I'll come meet you when you get off work."
Noah said it calmly as she spooned up some stew broth.
She tossed out her words casually, but her eyes, fixed straight on me, were filled with stubborn determination.
It was the exact same look she'd had since childhood whenever there was a toy she wanted or she wanted to go somewhere with me.
"What do you mean, come meet me? Just rest comfortably at home."
"I just want to get some fresh air."
"If you go outside to get some air in this weather, you'll catch a cold."
"We can go grocery shopping together, oppa."
Noah promptly fired back at everything I said before swallowing a large mouthful of rice.
Judging by her expression, she had no intention of backing down even an inch.
In the end, I sighed and answered,
"Fine, fine. But if the rain gets too heavy, don't come meet me. Wait at home."
"Okay, I understand."
Only then did a faint smile appear on Noah's face.
When I finished eating and stood up, Noah cleared away the leftovers first and carried the dishes to the sink.
Meanwhile, I went into my room and changed into the clothes I would wear at the worksite.
When I came back out to the living room wearing work pants and a shabby short-sleeved T-shirt, Noah was waiting by the entrance with an umbrella and our shoes prepared.
"Oppa, did you bring your phone?"
"Yeah, it's in my pocket."
"Make sure you wear gloves while working at the site. Don't hurt your hands."
Noah came right up to me as I grasped the front-door handle.
Then she reached out and straightened my clothes.
"Take care."
"Don't be late for your part-time job either. Take care."
"Okay."
Noah gave a small wave through the gap in the door.
With a Kung, the digital lock engaged, and I stepped outside.
The moment I opened my umbrella and stepped out, damp rainwater seeped into my shoes.
Feeling my pant cuffs cling unpleasantly to my legs, I headed toward the subway station.
'Today's worksite is going to be covered in mud.'
As I pushed through the rain, I recited the things I had to do today one by one in my head.
On the way home, I needed to stop by the market for toilet paper and bottled water, and pick up a few of the hair ties Noah had asked me to buy earlier.
Of course, if Noah insisted on coming with me, that was what we would do.
Seeing her stubbornly insist on earning her own spending money made me proud of her, but at the same time, she still seemed like a kid I needed to take care of even more.
Ever since our parents died when we were young and the two of us were left alone, I had only had one goal.
To make sure Noah never had to suffer and could live at least as well as everyone else.
That feeling hadn't changed even now.
As I descended the subway station stairs, I shook the rain off my wet umbrella and folded it.
Then I checked the time on my phone and walked toward the platform.
To work safely today, collect my daily wage, and make it home without incident.
That was enough.
"Hoo, today had better be an indoor worksite."
Not hearing anything was making me a little uneasy.
I'd go and check first, and if there was no work, I'd take better care of Noah instead.
As soon as I boarded the subway, the oppressive dampness and the heat of the other passengers clung to my skin.
While I gripped the handrail and stared blankly outside, my thoughts were filled entirely with household matters.
'We're almost out of rice, and I need to buy some side dishes too.'
Remembering Noah placing an egg on my rice because she wanted to take care of me, I let out a small Pishik laugh.
'No matter what else happens, I have to take responsibility for Noah until the very end.'
Some time later.
After riding for about an hour, I got off at the station near the worksite. Outside the subway entrance, torrential rain was pouring down.
I opened my umbrella and trudged Teodeol-teodeol toward the site office, where I saw the foreman-nim and several other people standing by the entrance.
"Hey, Siho! It's raining too hard, so we can't do the exterior work today! Everyone, pack it up!"
"Ah... Are we really losing the whole day?"
"Yeah, water's gotten into the framework, so it's dangerous. Sorry about this. Get home safely!"
If that was how it was going to be, they could've contacted me sooner.
I was already here.
A hollow laugh escaped me as the futility of it all sank in.
In the end, after traveling for over an hour through the rain, I had no choice but to turn around without having anything to show for it.
But at the same time, I immediately pictured Noah's face lighting up when she found out I'd gotten the day off and was coming home early.
I took out my phone and sent Noah a message right away.
[The worksite's canceled. I'm on my way home now. I'll pick up some hair ties, so wait at home.]
I pressed Send and adjusted my grip on the umbrella.
On this unexpected trip home after losing a day's work.
The rain was pouring, but for some reason, my steps felt strangely light.