Huh... Bear Doll
Yeonhui University humanities building, front bench.
The campus basked in the warm spring sunlight, brimming with romance.
But the air around me felt a little different.
"Eun-seong oppa! Can you open this canned coffee for me?"
"Hyung! Gotta move stuff to the club room—mind helping out?"
"Hey! Polar Bear! No class today, right? PC bang with me."
Voices calling my name from all directions.
I sat on the bench, letting out a hearty, good-natured laugh and nodding along.
"Sure, I can pop a canned coffee."
"As you can see, class just ended~"
"PC bang? Sorry. Gotta head home early today."
Even when I turned them down, no one got upset. Some girls even giggled at my massive frame, poked my belly, and scampered off.
Seo Eun-seong. 22 years old. Third-year Korean Literature major at Yeonhui University, department representative. 188cm tall with white skin. Owner of a belly so plump it bordered on generous.
People called me the "Polar Bear."
Not the king of beasts, but the cute character chugging cola.
'Sigh...' I swallowed a sigh inside.
To my female classmates, I was the "easygoing oppa." At least with the guys, I was the "fun and reliable friend" who had some popularity.
But what good was that? Dating? Flirting? Those words didn't exist in my life. At least not inside this school.
"Eun-seong oppa. You really heading out early today? They need a sub for the meeting."
"Sorry. Gotta make dinner for my little sis."
"Ah~ That little sister? The one you live with?"
My classmates knew I had a sister, but they had no clue who she really was. They just figured she was some big, innocent girl like me.
'Yeah, right. Who'd even imagine?'
That the center of Korea's top girl group, shaking the nation, was this polar bear of a guy's blood sister.
"Catch you later~"
I grabbed my bag and stood up. The bench creaked in protest under my heavy frame.
"See you tomorrow~"
Waddling along, I made my way out of campus, my steps deliberately clumsy.
But the moment I passed the school gates and slipped into a quiet alley...
Click.
My eyes sharpened. My sluggish pace quickened. My glances around grew keen.
A habit—checking for any sasaeng fans or paparazzi tailing me.
This was the survival instinct of a butler serving his little sister. No, Her Ladyship and her crew.
Twenty minutes by taxi brought me to a luxury apartment overlooking the Han River.
"Hello. Good work today."
I gave a light nod to the security guard and stepped into the private elevator.
Ding.
25th floor.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
I punched in the door lock code.
'Please, let the place be empty today.'
The front door swung open, and I cautiously stepped inside.
Silence.
Just my shoes and my sister's in the entryway.
"Phew. Nobody home?"
I let out a relieved sigh and started slipping off my shoes—
'Hm?'
In the corner of the entryway sat two pairs of very familiar shoes.
One: sky-high black heels. The other: neat loafers.
'We're screwed.'
My peaceful evening was toast.
'Haa.'
Resigned, I trudged into the living room.
And the sight before me had me rubbing my face dry.
"Mmm... Nyaaam..."
Smack in the middle of the living room, sprawled across a sofa that cost millions, lay what looked like a corpse.
No, a person.
Choi Eun-jin (23), leader of Korea's top girl group Siren and big sis of the bunch, dead to the world.
The problem? Her outfit. Straight from schedule, she was in tiny hot pants. Very tiny ones.
'Haa... Noona. Please, at home at least...'
158cm petite, but with proportions and curves so killer they called her beyond-Asian level.
Her white legs spilling off the sofa, her chest rising and falling precariously with each breath. Any other guy would've nosebled and yelled "Jackpot!"
To me? Just visual terrorism.
I strode to the living room cabinet, grabbed a blanket.
"Cover up when you sleep, for crying out loud."
Flutter.
I draped it over Eun-jin noona.
"Huh... Bear Doll..."
She mumbled in her sleep, hugging the blanket tight.
"Bear Doll?"
Me?
"Sheesh. School or home, same old."
I shook my head and glanced toward the kitchen.
Another uninvited guest.
"Ugh... Why won't this work..."
A girl face-planted on the dining table, groaning.
Lee Ah-hyun (17), Siren's maknae, the Ice Princess.
On stage, she tamed fans with her icy glare. Right now? Just a high schooler battling math.
"Ah-hyun-ah."
"Eek!"
She jolted up, eyes wide. Messy hair. Crumbs on her lips.
Ah... Cute.
"O... oppa? When did you get here?"
She wiped her mouth in a panic, cheeks flushing.
"Just now. Where's Ha-rin?"
"Unnie's still at schedule. Manager oppa dropped us off first."
"Got it. Then why aren't you resting? Why grind here?"
I set my bag down and approached the table.
Math Bible open in front of her. Doodles everywhere—page stuck since at least 30 minutes ago.
"Well... Performance assessment tomorrow. But I just don't get it."
She pouted, tossing her pencil down.
Korea's male fantasy, whining in front of me. Her dual sides cracked me up.
"Lemme see."
I pulled up a chair beside her.
Whoosh.
Sweet shampoo scent wafted by. But I didn't flinch. To me, these girls weren't women—just needy friends of my sister.
"This? Derivative coefficient problem."
"Yeah... But I can't remember the formula."
"Watch close. Limit of delta y over delta x as delta x approaches zero."
I grabbed the pencil, scribbled the solution on scratch paper.
Yeonhui dept rep and scholarship kid—high school math was child's play.
Scratch scratch.
Only pencil on paper in the quiet.
I worked steadily.
Then—
'Hm?'
A gaze prickled. Ah-hyun should've been watching the workbook, but her eyes drifted elsewhere.
My hand? My face?
I turned. Eye contact.
"What? Don't get it, Ah-hyun-ah?"
"N-no!"
She flinched, eyes dropping to the book. Ears bright red.
"Anyway... Get it now?"
"Huh? Oh! Yeah! Totally! Oppa really is a genius."
She nodded exaggeratedly.
Genius my foot. You just don't study.
"Oppa."
"Yeah?"
"Oppa... You're popular at school, right?"
Out of left field. I chuckled, patting my gut.
"Popular? With this bod? Lucky not to get teased as Polar Bear."
"No... If you lost weight, you'd be super handsome..."
She muttered under her breath.
"What?"
"Nothing! Just... You're kind. Good cook. Smart. Girls must like that. Oppa, never lose weight. Stay all cuddly forever."
She fiddled with her pencil, mumbling.
I ruffled her hair.
"Enough nonsense. Solve problems. I'll make snacks."
"For real? What?"
"Mala tteokbokki. Sound good?"
"Whoa! Awesome! Oppa best!"
Her face lit up instantly.
Ice Princess? Please. Just bribe with food, and she's your typical fangirl high schooler.
"Hang tight."
I stood, heading to the fridge.
That's when—
"Mmm... Me too..."
A sleepy mumble from the sofa.
Eun-jin noona sat up, hair a mess. Blanket slipped, revealing peachy shoulders.
"Me too... tteokbokki..."
"Awake, noona?"
"Yeah... Smelled it... Eun-seong's here?"
She peered at me sleepily, grinning wide.
Where was the charismatic stage leader? Just neighborhood noona, defenseless.
"Put on real clothes when you sleep. You'll catch a cold."
"Hehe. Our Eun-seong nags so much. Just like Mom."
She wobbled up, approached—and draped herself on my back.
Squish.
Soft warmth against my back. I froze.
"Noona, seriously? You think I'm a real teddy bear or what?"
"Yeah. Hungry. Feed me, Bear Doll."
She whispered in my ear. Warm breath tickled my neck.
"Haa... Should've kept my mouth shut."
This was the reality of Korea's top idols. Goddesses worshipped by the masses.
To me? Just hungry pests whining for food.