Hands
Nngh...
Where am I?
I remember meeting up with my classmates yesterday and going shopping. Running into some seniors by chance and drinking with them... that much I can recall.
I wriggled my fingers and clutched at what I thought was the floor, and felt the familiar plush of my bedsheets. The usual warmth covering my body. Even the pillow I always curl around when I sleep. However I'd gotten here, it looked like I'd made it home in one piece.
Nngh~ maybe I'll sleep a little longer.
Wedged between the blankets like a patty in a hamburger, soaking in that cozy warmth, I really had no desire to get up just yet. But I had no choice but to sit bolt upright.
Ah. I have to pee.
This damn bladder of mine always waits until times like this. From the moment I'd come to, the pressure had been tightening by degrees, and now it was prodding at me like it was about to burst. If I held out any longer I'd wet myself right here, so I got out of bed.
But something felt off.
Ah... I'm still wearing what I went out in yesterday.
They even smell. I should go to the bathroom and then shower right after.
I shuffled toward the door, swaying on my feet — and then I stopped. I hadn't noticed when I first sat up, but there was a chair sitting beside the bed.
Don't tell me... did Mister stay up all night looking after me?
A strange, swelling warmth rose in my chest. It was something I had never even received from my own family.
Well. Getting so drunk you need someone to nurse you is a problem in itself.
Anyway, I shuffled over and eased the door open, just in case it was still the crack of dawn and the sound might wake him. But the bright light striking my eyes told me I'd worried for nothing. I'd slept in.
"Min-ah, are you up?"
"Ah — did you sleep well?"
I answered quickly at the voice coming from the kitchen. And in that instant, an incredible smell hit my nose. I shot out like a sprinter and planted myself in front of the table.
"Wooow... what's all this?"
"What do you think."
He scooped up a ladleful, tasting it as he answered. A crisp white dress shirt with an apron tied over it. That fair skin, and the smiling eyes turned toward me — he was so attractive.
"I showed off a little so you could recover from your hangover. Want to taste this for me?"
I hurried over and took a tiny taste, and — oh my god. He can cook, too? Unbelievable. The combination of that skill and the simple fact that this handsome man had made it just for me sent flowers blooming through my chest, as if a late-spring breeze had swept through. My heart was pounding.
"Go wash your hands, then. Let's eat."
"Okay!!!"
"Mister, Mister!"
"Mm. Go ahead."
Why is she so worked up? Anyway, looking at that smile, I could feel her fondness for me had climbed even higher than yesterday.
"Did you stay up all night looking after me?"
Just as I thought. The groundwork I'd laid is paying off. Leaving that chair by her bed last night — that had been a device I'd put in place specifically for this. Min-ah had been completely wasted, so there was no chance she'd wake up in the middle of the night. I'd just set the chair there and gone back to my room to sleep comfortably. She might have caught on, but judging by her reaction, she hasn't.
"Yeah. You'd had so much to drink, you didn't even stir when I carried you in. I was worried, so I stayed by your side."
A look of pure emotion flew at me and lodged itself right in my face. Ah, that's intense. I've never had a gaze this piercing before.
"How did you know to come get me?"
"I called, and your friend picked up and told me where you were."
"Ahh."
She said it like that made sense and went back to eating. The food seemed to be hitting the spot. Preparing a hangover meal — that was the second device I'd set up to raise Min-ah's affection. People are deeply moved when they receive help at their most vulnerable. A small kindness like this, offered when she's suffering through a hangover, scores surprisingly high points.
"But Mister, you look... different today, somehow."
"Do I?"
And lastly, this. I'd put on a light touch of makeup for the first time in a while, and dressed to look my best. As subtly as possible, but still enough to make me stand out. If I did it this way...
Done. Direct hit.
Min-ah kept her head down, picking at her food, sneaking glances at me. Her cheeks were pretty red.
Heh. Cute.
I'm already looking forward to having sex with her. Today makes three days. I've managed to spark a flame in Min-ah's chest, but getting her into bed from here is what really matters.
"Do you have anything planned today?"
"Nope! I'm totally free!"
"Then your head's probably still foggy. Want to take a nap and then go to the supermarket with me?"
Of all the places I could have chosen, the supermarket. You might think that to make progress, a café or an amusement park — or even the ocean, somewhere far away — would be better. That's knowing one thing and not knowing two.
Of course, when a woman's heart fills up with satisfaction, she becomes generous in every other way and gives her love freely. But at a time like this, when Min-ah's affection for me is climbing fast, a different strategy is needed. A grand natural vista that captures the heart? No. An amusement park or a movie that dazzles the eyes? Those won't work either. The more her attention is stolen away, the less efficient this becomes. I need to highlight this newly appeared existence of mine in a space that's already familiar to her. Walking the same streets she always walks, talking, laughing, letting her feelings for me grow. That's my goal for today.
"Thank you for the meal!!"
The kid offering her thanks after finishing. I smiled and said the customary thing.
"Then go on back to your room. I'll clean up."
"No! I'll help too!"
And so we cleared the dishes together. I had a feeling Min-ah would be like this.
"All ready?"
"Yes! Let's go!"
Women are creatures who get dressed up even just to go to the supermarket, if someone is going with them. I'd anticipated that and deliberately took my time getting ready, but I still ended up waiting a full thirty minutes. I've still got a long way to go.
The sound of her door opening. Looks like she's finally done. She came rushing out, then spotted me sitting on the sofa and started walking with dainty little steps. The way she's being so careful with how she carries herself confirms it again — I'm already inside her heart.
"Shall we?"
"Yes!!"
When we stepped out of the apartment, the warm spring sunlight wrapped around us. It was spring, yes, but the reason it felt especially warm today was surely the girl walking beside me. A yellow dress brightly embroidered with flowers. Those colors called to mind a butterfly, and suddenly I thought of the yellow forsythia that used to bloom along the garden wall of my childhood home.
Spring really is spring, I guess.
Just look at how sentimental I'm getting.
"Where are we going?"
"Let's go somewhere you go often."
"Okay!"
The supermarket Min-ah frequented wasn't far from the apartment — about a ten-minute walk. She walked the route she'd traveled dozens, hundreds of times as naturally as breathing, chatting about this and that. Her face looked a little excited. Her body bounced with the energy of youth. She was definitely young. If she were a season, she'd be late spring, just like now. If she were a living thing, she'd be a flower that had only just unfurled from its bud.
"You really will, right? You just said you'd teach me how to cook! Hmm... then what should I learn. Pasta?"
After seeing my cooking this morning, she'd suddenly decided she wanted to learn. But looking at her eyes, I could tell it was just an excuse to spend time with me. In that case, something simple with a high success rate would be best.
"That's a great idea. Since it's your first try, something familiar would be better."
"Okay! Then dinner tonight is pasta! Mm... cream pasta!"
"Alright. Let's do that."
Min-ah clenched both fists, pulled them to her chest, and cheered. Haha. That energy is really nice.
We talked as we walked at a leisurely pace, and soon we arrived at the supermarket. Slightly cool, slightly humid air greeted us. Min-ah grabbed a cart with practiced ease and took the lead. I placed my hand over hers on the handle.
"I'll push. You lead the way."
I could feel her dainty little hand beneath my palm. If I'd tried this when we first met, she probably would have pulled away immediately... but now she just stays still. When I looked at her face, her cheeks were slightly flushed, but there wasn't a hint of rejection. No — if anything, I could see fondness there.
"Ah, but the person teaching me should be the one picking things out!"
"Haha. This is my first time here, so I don't know where anything is. You lead the way!"
"Hmm! Now that you mention it, that makes sense! Okay!"
But she left her hand right where it was, walking beside the cart. Every so often, so slightly it was barely noticeable, she glanced my way. Mm. This makes me want to tease her.
Pretending not to notice, I moved my hand and rubbed my palm over the back of hers. A flinch. Her shoulder trembled, just a little.
This is fun.
Even so, she kept walking, eyes straight ahead. So this time I was a bit bolder, sliding my hand down and lacing my fingers through hers. I could feel the soft flesh nestled between her fingers. Flinch, flinch. Maybe that one was a bit much. Like a thermometer climbing, she flushed red from below her neck all the way to her ears.
Any more than this and it might be dangerous.
Not because of Min-ah — I just didn't want to invite misunderstandings from people around us. When I let go, she slowly drew her arm in and hugged it tightly to her chest.
I'm looking forward to tonight.
If I play this right, I might get a taste.