Spring Rain Fell
After Yeo-eun went upstairs to the second floor, I took out my phone.
Before washing the dishes, I looked up information about dishwashing customs in this world.
Doesn't seem any different.
Here, too, washing dishes right after a meal was standard practice. She had probably just said that because she wanted to linger and sit with me a little longer—she couldn't have genuinely meant that the dishes could sit around until before our next meal.
I freaked out by myself for nothing.
Deciding there was no need to dwell on it, I quickly finished washing up. Immediately afterward, I headed up to the second floor to begin cleaning.
"Huh? What are you doing?"
"You're already done?"
Yeo-eun's bedroom door stood open. She was standing there clutching her trash can against her chest.
"I told you I'd take care of it. Go do whatever you need to do."
"Let's do it together. It'll be over faster that way."
"Ah, seriously... Fine, suit yourself."
I had no idea why she was hugging the trash can so defensively, but I didn't press the issue. She looked genuinely flustered for some reason.
Once I switched on the vacuum, she glanced at me nervously before slipping out of the room carrying the bin.
Still, she opened all the windows... She really did intend to clean.
It was my first time seeing the heavy blackout curtains drawn back in this room. Sunlight streamed through the windows, illuminating motes of dust dancing gently in the air.
A moment later, she returned after emptying the trash. Despite all her grumbling earlier, she threw herself into cleaning once we got started—shaking out the duvet and pitching in to wipe down surfaces. Thanks to her help, all I had to do after vacuuming was dust the tops of the furniture.
"Noona, could you pass me that chair for a second?"
"Why?"
"Up there."
"Ugh, why bother going all the way up there? Just leave it."
"Might as well do it while we're at it. Looks like there's a lot of dust on top."
I couldn't reach the top of the wardrobe. I was about to drag her computer chair over to stand on it when she called out.
"Ah, hey, wait a second."
"Hmm?"
"That thing has caster wheels—it's dangerous. Here, I'll just lift you."
Yeo-eun stepped up behind me. Before I could object, she slipped her hands under my armpits and hoisted me effortlessly. My field of vision shot upward in an instant.
"Hurry up and wipe it."
"Got it."
Women in this world were far stronger than those in my previous life. Their average height was notably greater as well. Of course, individual differences existed, but Yeo-eun was well above average even by local standards. Perhaps that was why lifting me didn't seem to wind her in the slightest.
"Noona, all done."
"Gotcha."
After swiftly wiping down the surface of the wardrobe, I asked her to set me back down.
"By the way, is it really okay to just put your hands on a man's body like that?"
"What?"
Back on the floor, I turned around and looked at her. From what I had read online, women in this society were supposed to be exceedingly cautious about touching a man's body without express consent.
"Wh-what... What kind of man are you supposed to be?!"
"Huh? Then what am I?"
"I mean... you know. You're just a kid, so it's fine. Yeah, totally fine."
She seemed utterly flustered, stuttering over her excuses.
"I'm not a kid, though. I'm an adult. A full-grown adult."
Her eyes drifted downward, sweeping over my lower body. My thin summer pajamas couldn't entirely conceal the prominent, heavy silhouette resting beneath.
Gulp... "A-anyway, it's fine! I mean, I'm your older sister, aren't I?"
"Is that so? All right, let's go with that."
She let out a visibly relieved breath at my answer. Her reaction was far bigger than I had anticipated, which made it quite amusing.
Amusing?
It felt strikingly similar to the sensation I had experienced when teasing Jo Ihyeon with my bare toes.
"Noona."
"What now?"
"So you're saying I'm not even a man to you, right?"
"Huh? O-of course! In my eyes, you're just a little squirt."
A blatant lie. Since we had started living together, she had stolen glances at my body countless times. When we moved furniture, her gaze drifted to my chest; while I washed dishes or swept the floor, it lingered on my backside. There was no way she would sneak peeks like that if she weren't interested in the slightest.
"All right. Then I guess I can just do whatever I want, too."
"What? What do you mean, do whatever you want?"
"Nothing much."
Anxiety was written plain across her face.
"Hey, why! What is it?!"
"I told you, it's nothing."
"Come on, tell me! What's with that look on your face?"
Her panicky reaction was so entertaining that I unconsciously narrowed my eyes at her, mimicking a mischievous, suggestive expression I remembered seeing online. Now I knew for sure: I was fully capable of finding genuine enjoyment in teasing people. And Yeo-eun, in particular, was delightfully easy to rattle.
After finishing the cleaning, I sat down to study the internet once again.
I steadily absorbed the unfiltered thoughts and colloquialisms pouring from countless people online. It was still difficult to distinguish valuable insights from mindless chatter, but as my baseline of data accumulated, I would eventually be able to filter out the noise.
A driver's license? Getting a license would be good.
After wrapping up my study session, I looked through part-time job postings and submitted resumes to a few places near the house. With virtually nothing to fill out my work history, I didn't expect stellar results.
Several business owners explicitly noted that they preferred women who had completed military service. Others listed a driver's license as an essential prerequisite. Even without a car, getting a license seemed like a sensible first milestone.
How much does it cost to get a driver's license here?
To make money, one needed money. My past-life experience had taught me that accumulating an initial lump sum was crucial. Only once seed money was secured could one attempt anything substantial.
Musing over how to build up funds, I headed down to the kitchen. Even as I began preparing dinner, the thoughts continued without pause.
I can't do what I used to do, either.
Becoming a mercenary in this body was out of the question—nor did I have any desire to revisit that line of work. There were also job listings that gave off a distinctly sleazy undertone, lacking detailed descriptions and exclusively seeking men in their twenties. I didn't even consider them. If I ended up selling physical intimacy or using my body as a male, my obsessive neuroses would drag me straight to ruin.
I need to prepare for college entrance exams, too.
Worries about money led to thoughts of careers, which naturally transitioned toward university and prospective majors. I needed to start a part-time job right away, so when would I find the time to study for entrance exams? Living an autonomous, self-sufficient life was truly no easy task.
Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump.
"Hey! What's for dinner?"
Even while lost in contemplation, my hands had moved steadily. Right on cue, Yeo-eun came bounding down the stairs with her usual heavy strides.
"Dumplings."
"Ooh~ Dumplings sound great! How long until they're ready?"
Strange. Up until yesterday, I had always brought dinner straight to her room on a tray.
"Almost done. Aren't you working today?"
"Ah~ Today's a day o— a day off. Thought I'd eat down here."
She usually worked from late afternoon until deep into the night, sometimes stretching into the early morning hours. Her dinner—or lunch, from her nocturnal perspective—was typically eaten haphazardly at her desk. Pitying that lifestyle, I made an effort to prepare meals that were convenient to eat while distracted. Since I couldn't enter her room while she was streaming, I would leave a tray outside her door and send her a message. That was why I had made dumplings tonight: they were bite-sized and easy to pick up one by one.
"Noona, it's ready."
"Yaaay~"
She sprang up from the living room sofa and trotted over. Yeo-eun loved lounging around, yet indoors she was always practically galloping everywhere. Living with her felt like caring for an enormous golden retriever—except that instead of golden fur, an overwhelming pair of breasts bounced heavily with every step.
Doesn't it hurt when they swing around like that?
I neatly aligned the freshly steamed dumplings in clean rows on the platter.
"If I'd known you were off today, I would've cooked a proper spread."
"Holy crap, dumplings! Huh? What did you say?"
"Nothing. Enjoy."
She clearly loved dumplings. Then again, looking back, there wasn't a single dish I had put on the table that she hadn't devoured with gusto.
"Eat slowly. They're still piping hot."
"Ow, hot-hot-hot-hot!"
I poured a glass of water and set it in front of her. She gulped it down eagerly.
"Phew! Where's the Cola? No Cola?"
"There isn't any."
"Aw, man. What about beer?"
"No beer either."
Yeo-eun gave me an incredulous stare.
"What were you even doing when you went grocery shopping?"
"Huh?"
"You didn't buy any drinks at all?"
"Well... I bought milk and drinking yogurt."
"What kind of... Are you a toddler? Ah, wait, you *are* a baby! That makes sense... Hehehe. Gotta drink your milk so you grow taller, right?"
Conversations with her naturally provoked my temper. In the beginning, feeling annoyance had been a welcome sign of life, but not anymore. I wasn't going to just take it sitting down.
Clack.
"Don't eat them, then."
"Aw, come on. You mad? Still, messing with someone's food is petty, don't you think?"
She beamed cheekily right to the end. Was there a better way to get back at her? Deciding that holding food hostage was indeed a bit petty, I slid the plate back toward her.
"By the way, is it too thin?"
"Huh? What is?"
"I feel like the inside is showing through."
The dumplings we were eating were commercial store-bought ones. The skins were remarkably thin, practically translucent enough to reveal the seasoned filling packed inside. The ones I used to hand-fold back at the temple had never been this sheer.
"It is a little lewd, yeah... But it looks good to eat."
"Hmm? Looks good?"
"I mean... Ah, phrased that wrong. I'm just saying I like it."
She spoke while staring intently at my chest. What was she looking at?
"Ah. 'A feast for the eyes is a feast for the belly'... something like that?"
"Wh-what? Crazy! I wasn't thinking that at all!"
"Huh? When something looks good, wouldn't you naturally want to eat it?"
Did this proverb not exist in this world? Still, the meaning seemed intuitive enough.
"Hey! How can you say something like that?! No matter how much of a woman I am, toward my younger brother..."
"You were just wolfing it down a second ago, Noona... Wait, what?"
Both of us spoke at the exact same moment, then clamped our mouths shut simultaneously. It appeared we had been discussing entirely different subjects.
"I was... wolfing you down?"
"Yeah. The dumplings. You were enjoying them just a moment ago."
"Ah. Ah... Ah. Holy shit."
Yeo-eun's face flushed crimson in an instant, and she began frantically thumping her own head with both fists. By that point, I finally realized what she had actually thought I meant.
"Noona."
"What."
"What about being a woman? What does being a woman have to do with anything?"
Feigning complete innocence, I pressed on, speaking down to her lowered head.
"Nothing. Just a slip of the tongue."
"I'm just asking out of genuine curiosity."
"I said it's nothing! Stop asking and just eat your food."
Watching her squirm was thoroughly entertaining. My earlier irritation melted away into pure satisfaction. Sweet payback for teasing me about being short.
"*Hrk. Cough!*"
Ignoring my continuous badgering, she stuffed dumplings into her mouth until she suddenly choked, patting her chest frantically. Even with that simple motion, her massive breasts wobbled relentlessly.
"Drink some water, quickly."
Gulp. Gulp.
Water spilled down her chest, soaking into her thin white T-shirt. Through the damp fabric, faint pink protrusions became subtly visible. In her haste to wash down the food, water had sloshed out of the cup and run down her front.
"Are you okay? Hard to swallow? You should chew properly before swallowing."
"Mmh-mmh."
After all my genuine concern, she merely waved her hand dismissively. Her mouth was already packed full of freshly shoved dumplings once more. Finding her stubbornness delightfully irritating, I couldn't resist throwing in one more jab—noting absently just how large her mouth was.
"Were you that eager to eat them? Were the dumplings too lewd for you?"
"Mmph? Urk... PFFFT!"
Hearing that, Yeo-eun sprayed everything in her mouth straight forward.
And I happened to be sitting directly across from her.
"Uh... hey. Jeongseo? You okay?"
"Do I look okay?"
"L-let's put that down before we talk. You know you're holding your chopsticks backwards, right?"
Teasing her just now wasn't nearly enough anymore. Not after being showered in every stray solid and fluid that had burst from her mouth.
And that night...
An exquisite opportunity for revenge presented itself.