Chapter 20
Was it telling me to eat dinner, or to eat her? I just kept sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at Chae-ah.
It was to wait for her to wake up.
That said—
"The smell is intense."
How much masturbation had she done, exactly?
The scent of her arousal was so thick that even a light breath made me grimace.
This couldn't be explained by two or three sessions.
Which meant more than that.
Considering how she'd once drunkenly confessed to masturbating up to six times a day when she was really in the mood...
"No way she did it six times in a row? The girl who was half-dead yesterday...?"
The Chae-ah I'd seen that morning was a little better than yesterday, but nowhere near normal enough to move around properly.
"What if she makes herself even sicker?"
It was truly bizarre.
Just moments ago, I'd been seething with anger at her, and now here I was worrying again.
"I said I wouldn't care, but look at me pouring it all out anyway."
Who would believe this was the behavior of someone pushing another away?
I knew all too well that this ambiguous back-and-forth only tortured Chae-ah more.
I was crystal clear on the fact that my feelings for her hadn't changed—from the motel to right now.
But my actions had shifted dramatically in comparison.
"No wonder I feel like the villain here."
Well, if I wasn't a villain, maybe I'd get struck by lightning.
"Ugh..."
As I muttered to myself in this tangled mess of a situation, Chae-ah started stirring.
"Ugh... my back hurts..."
Feeling discomfort from lying on the hard floor for so long, she slowly propped herself up.
"You're awake?"
"Huh...? Unni...?"
The moment her sleepy eyes fixed on me, her eyelids started fluttering rapidly.
She seemed to have trouble accepting that I was really here.
"Huh...? W-wait, why is Unni here...? And why are your pants off...?"
"Oh, this is..."
"Don't tell me... you couldn't hold back and wanted to have sex with me...?"
Was this what they called dream interpretation?
"You think I'd do that?"
"No...?"
Realizing it was another needless worry, I started to get up—only for sharp pain to shoot through my knee.
"Ugh..."
"Unni, you're bleeding!"
"I'm fine. Rest more. I'll head out again."
As I limped toward my pants, Chae-ah grabbed my hand.
"Unni, wait a sec."
"I said I'm fine."
"I'm not fine."
She pushed me back onto the bed's edge, then hurried off somewhere.
Even staggering as she stood showed just how rough her condition was.
Can't even control her own body properly—what's she planning to do?
"It might sting."
"Ow...!"
What she'd fetched was a first-aid kit.
Just some red antiseptic and a few bandages, nothing fancy.
"Hoo... hoo... there, all done."
"Chae-ah."
"Yeah?"
"How about putting some clothes on first?"
Chae-ah, staring blankly up at me, finally realized she was stark naked.
"Kyaaah!"
I should've been the one screaming.
"R-right... I..."
"I thought you'd collapsed in pain and rushed over like you were dying. Turns out you passed out from masturbating?"
"W-well... it's like this..."
"What am I supposed to do with you?"
"A-anything but leave me, please!"
She crawled over on all fours like some desperate animal and clung to my leg.
I gently cupped her chin and tilted her face up.
"Why would I leave? And abandon a sick patient like this?"
"Y-you're not going?"
"Nope. Staying feels like the best thing for both of us."
"Huh...?"
I flashed a grin at her puzzled expression.
She even tilted her head.
"Thanks for the treatment. See you later."
"Unni, you're leaving?"
"Yeah, I bolted without even locking up the store."
And with that, I left Chae-ah behind and headed back to the shop.
*
"Chae-ah, you eat dinner yet?"
Back at her place that evening, I checked right away.
"Unni, you're here!"
"Yeah, any pain anywhere...?"
As I slid open the inner door and saw her greeting me, my handbag slipped from my shoulder and dropped.
"What the hell is this situation?"
"Huh? What's up?"
Chae-ah was wearing nothing but an apron, spatula in hand.
"Want dinner?"
"What exactly are you telling me to eat?"
"Huh?"
"Nothing... forget it."
My inner voice had slipped out for a moment.
"Mind explaining?"
"Oh, you went through so much because of me, so I made dinner tonight."
"You made dinner? When you're not even recovered?"
"I can move around for this much. Come on in."
She turned with light steps and walked ahead.
I'd been taking off my shoes meanwhile, and when I looked up after finishing, I was speechless.
"Not even wearing panties?"
I'd hoped for panties at least, but no—it was a true naked apron look.
There was no way she'd dressed like this just to make me dinner.
So then...
"Chae-ah, did you prepare this because you're scared I'll scold you?"
"Huh...? N-no way. I just thought greeting you like this would ease your fatigue... hehe..."
Looked like my guess was spot on.
I hadn't expected her to strike first like this.
"So, what'd you make?"
"Check this out, Unni!"
She proudly showed off the dinner spread.
I froze, unsure how to react.
Frozen chicken, frozen dumplings, chicken nuggets.
Soon, three fried eggs joined the plate.
"..."
"What do you think? Looks tasty, right?"
"You... don't tell me you usually eat stuff like this?"
"Yeah, I can't cook. Fried eggs are about my limit."
Blissfully unaware why I was reacting this way, she beamed with pride over her dinner.
Which made it even harder to respond.
This spread she'd made for me was all stuff I hadn't touched since my early twenties.
"Doesn't this upset your stomach?"
"Nah, it's fine."
"She's young..."
Eating this would have me on intermittent fasting starting tomorrow.
"Sit down already, Unni."
"O-okay..."
She dragged me to a chair.
My throat suddenly felt parched, so I reached for the glass of water nearby.
-Ting! Tiriiing!
"Oops, dropped my chopsticks."
She bent down to pick them up, and her bare ass filled my entire view.
"Pfft! Cough... cough cough!"
"Unni, you okay?"
If she'd done this to preempt my anger, it was a brilliant move.
Brilliant in every sense.
"Chae-ah, about that outfit."
"Yeah? Don't like it?"
"No, it's not that I don't like it..."
"If you want... naked dining..."
-Swoosh!
Before I could finish, she untied the apron and slid the straps off her shoulders.
"Listen when someone's talking!"
"Got it."
"Sigh... put on proper clothes first. Nowhere to look without... y'know."
"Hing, it was an event I prepared for my hardworking Unni."
"One more event like that and I'll faint from shock."
"Don't worry, Unni. No braising."
As she headed off giggling to change, one word I couldn't ignore lodged in my ear.
"Chae-ah."
"Yes, Unni?"
"You wanna survive this?"
"Huh? What?"
I stood from the chair and stomped toward her, grabbing her arm.
"Unni?"
I hooked her leg, slung her arm over my shoulder, and bent at the waist.
"Eeeek!"
-Smack!
She got fireman's-carried right onto the bed.
"Ow ow... Unni...?"
"Guess you've gotten way too comfy with me, huh?"
I grabbed her head with one hand and slowly tightened around her temples.
-Crunch!
"Aaaah...! U-Unni...? Feels like you're crushing my head with one hand...?"
"Wanna say that again? What was that? Braiiising?"
"Unni, hear me out first..."
"Sure, dying at the hands of someone you like—perfect way to go. That's why you said it, right?"
I could tolerate a lot, but not hearing about braising from a kid just seven years younger.
"Just die by my hands today."
"Unni, wait... give me a chance to explain..."
"Explain what!"
"Kyaaaaah!"
I made her pay dearly for her loose lips, educating her thoroughly so she'd never utter that word again.
If she did it after this, she wasn't human—she was a beast.
"Uwaaah... thought my arm was gonna rip off..."
"Whew, feels refreshing."
I settled the score for that word and everything from this morning.
I hadn't planned such a rough payback, but it wasn't half bad.
"Unni, you used to do sports...?"
"Yeah, till 23."
"What kind?"
"Judo, wrestling, jiu-jitsu."
"Whaaat?! All that...?"
"Muscles are all gone now. Just muscle memory."
Even as an only daughter, growing up under a dad who insisted on toughness meant I'd dabbled in every sport going.
Thought adulthood would free me, but no—Dad forced me back in for "corporate stamina."
"Ugh... never messing with Unni again."
"Do it once more, and I'll make sure everyone calls it a perfect death."
"Never ever! Promise!"
"Moving around made me hungry. Let's eat."
I patted her head and sat back down, eyeing the dinner spread.
Eating all this instant food felt daunting, but I couldn't ignore her effort and sincerity.
"What're you waiting for? Come on."
"Yes, Unni!"
Well, this kind of meal once in a while wasn't so bad.