Chapter 21
When our allotted time was up, we paid the bill and left the comic-book café. It was evening already, so we called Minsu to check whether the move was all finished.
"Hello~"
[Oh, it was Ms. Jia. The move is almost finished. I'll send you the address, so take your time coming over.]
"Got it. We need to organize our things too, so we'll head over without being too late."
[Then I'll see you later.]
"Yes~"
After my call with Minsu ended, unnie and I took a bus home. The new place was only about 500 meters from the one we'd lived in before, so it wasn't far. Unnie had moved with me because our household had grown from one person to two and we no longer had enough space.
"Unnie, thank you."
"Hmm? For what?"
"You moved so you could stay with me, even though you had no reason to move."
"No, it's fine. I'd originally moved into that place only intending to stay for a little while anyway. Though I got a job nearby and ended up settling in this neighborhood."
Ah, so that's why! It was the first I'd heard of it, but if that was true, it was a relief that she wasn't moving because of me, but because her lease was ending anyway. Still, since the move had happened so suddenly, I couldn't help wondering whether she'd only said that to spare my feelings.
'Still, if we delayed the move and I ended up being subjected to something like that again, unnie's guilt would only grow...'
In any case, I was always being treated with such consideration that I ought to live with gratitude.
"There's not much food at home for dinner tonight. What do you want to eat?"
"Hmm, let's see... Jokbal?"
"Jokbal with makguksu?"
"Yes, exactly!"
My mouth was already watering. The portions were a little skimpy for the price, so I didn't order it often, but jokbal with makguksu... Mmm~ I could practically taste it already.
"Shall we text Minsu?"
"Yes, we'll be home soon, so we'd better let him know."
I took out my phone and texted, 'How about the three of us having jokbal and makguksu for dinner with you today?' His reply came instantly: 'Jokbal and makguksu? Ms. Jia, you really know good food.' I wouldn't go so far as to say that, hehe...
We arrived at the new house soon afterward and were surprised to find that the furniture from the old place had been moved over almost exactly as it was.
"Wow... The layout is a little different from the old place, but the furniture is all here!"
"I know. The photos Jia took must have helped a lot."
"I'm happy I was able to contribute somehow."
"Indeed. That's a relief, Ms. Jia."
Minsu immediately ordered jokbal and makguksu for delivery, while I examined the wardrobe unnie had bought in advance for the dressing room and decided to organize the clothes. It was my first time having a dressing room, so it was fascinating. A whole room filled with nothing but clothes...! Women's clothes came in an incredible variety, with different lengths too, so I understood why a dressing room was necessary.
"There are more clothes than you expected, right?"
"Yes, there are. There are so many kinds, and so many of each kind..."
Stockings were especially like that. We decided to store them separately by length: stockings that came only to just below the buttocks, and pantyhose. Unnie said she hadn't bought any shorter stockings because they were uncomfortable. Plenty of clothes looked pretty but were uncomfortable to wear in person.
Just as unnie and I were diligently organizing the clothes together, the doorbell rang with a 'Ding-dong~.' Since we'd eaten breakfast a little late and I hadn't had much lunch, I thought I could eat a lot at dinner because I was hungry. Jokbal portions were small, so Minsu had said he'd ordered the extra-large...
"Wow, this is my first time seeing the extra-large size."
"I know. I lived alone too, so I never had a reason to order jokbal. It's my first time seeing it."
The three of us sat around the table and enjoyed a pleasant dinner of jokbal and makguksu. Come to think of it, we had a housewarming party tomorrow too. We should buy the ingredients in advance, right? Now that I was living in this house too, it would be nice to help unnie cook, but I hadn't heard what she planned to do for the party.
"I had a pretty enjoyable day, Ms. Jia. I compared the photos you took with this house and arranged the furniture to make it look as similar as possible."
"I'm glad you enjoyed it. I wanted the house to feel familiar to unnie."
Unnie smiled brightly at that and fed me a lettuce wrap. 'I'm glad unnie looks happy too. I was worried she might be planning a completely new arrangement.' Now that I had the chance to spend more time with unnie and learn her tastes, wouldn't it be nice to cook for her when she came home from work?
"I've eaten my fill, so I'll be going. What should I bring to the housewarming party tomorrow?"
Minsu asked after finishing all the jokbal that unnie and I couldn't eat.
"Hmm... Since you're not an ordinary guest, you can just come as you are."
"Even so, it's a housewarming party..."
"You bought the jokbal today and called in people who were good at their jobs, so the furniture arrived in perfect condition. Even little things like the electric kettle have been taken care of."
"I'm glad you think so. Then tomorrow, at least, I'll buy the coffee after the meal."
Minsu seemed to be growing more comfortable with unnie too, as a slight smile appeared on his face. With unnie smiling brightly as well, they looked like newlyweds, and it made me happy too. Of course, thinking that about two unmarried people might be presumptuous.
"Minsu, are you busy tomorrow?"
"Yes. Unfortunately, because of what happened today, I'm only available in the evening tomorrow, and I won't be available at all on Wednesday."
"Oh, that's too bad... I was hoping you'd get a good night's sleep here before you left..."
"It's all right. I don't sleep well unless I'm in my usual bed."
"Ah... Then I suppose it can't be helped."
Aside from the living room, there were three rooms: one bedroom, one dressing room, and one for miscellaneous uses, so we could each have a room if we wanted... It was a shame he was busy. Since Minsu lived alone too, maybe he got a little lonely.
"Jia, why don't you wash up first? Unnie has something to discuss with Minsu."
"Okay, I will."
They must have had something to discuss privately, since I shouldn't hear it, right? Thinking that, I went to take a shower, but then realized I hadn't brought any clothes to change into... 'I guess I'll have to ask unnie...'
*
After Jia went to wash up, Minsu and I went over everything that had happened today in detail.
"Is that really true, Minsu?"
"Yes. It wasn't just those two; there was a fairly large organization behind them."
"Sigh... They're hopeless."
"I know. Those bastards who see people as money..."
Minsu told me that he had originally intended to go to their main base, but the criminal organization had sent some of its people after Jia.
"So that's why you sought the department store's cooperation and had the police waiting."
"We can arrest them, but taking them into custody is the police's job."
"Still, it's a relief that Jia doesn't seem to have noticed."
Minsu told me roughly about the operation that had taken place today. At one point I asked, 'Isn't that confidential?' because I wasn't sure I should be hearing it, but he replied that, as Jia's guardian, I needed to know.
"Jiyeon, do you think Jia will be all right?"
......
I couldn't answer Minsu's question. Given my line of work, there might be days when work kept me from coming home, and it probably wouldn't be possible to assign a security detail just for Jia. But I couldn't lock that child inside the house either, could I? Around the middle of March, once she received her new identity, she'd be going to school too...
"Minsu, I... What should I do? To protect Jia..."
"I don't know... But there aren't only bad people in the world, right? This organization won't get off with something like a prison sentence."
"What does that mean...?"
"They probably won't all make it out alive."
"If dealing with the villains means Jia will be safe..."
After that, we talked about so many things that I didn't even hear Jia calling me.
"...Unnie! Unnie Jiyeon!"
"Huh, huh? What's wrong, Jia?"
"I... I didn't bring any clothes to change into..."
"Right, I'll bring some over."
I stood up to get Jia something to wear.
"Before that, may I go home?"
"Ah, right. Of course. It's late, after all."
Minsu said goodbye to me and went home.
*
Hmm... I thought the conversation would take a while, so I even dried my hair completely inside the shower room, but they still didn't seem to be finished... What could they be talking about so seriously...?
"Unnie!"
Could she not hear me? It must have been a really serious conversation. I called unnie four more times before she finally heard me.
"Minsu was embarrassed, so I sent him home first. Here, your clothes."
"Thank you."
As I accepted the clothes from unnie and put on my underwear, I was asked something I could explain.
"Minsu seemed terribly embarrassed, don't you think so too, Jia?"
"...As a former man, I know Minsu must be exercising an incredible amount of restraint."
"What do you mean?"
Had Jiyeon unnie never had a boyfriend? She genuinely seemed not to know. With looks like hers, you'd think she'd dated at least once...?
"If I say it myself, you'll think I'm a pervert... I can't say it. Ugh..."
"It's okay. Jia is just telling unnie something unnie doesn't know."
"Really? You won't think I'm a weirdo?"
I was so anxious that I made unnie promise several times before finally opening my mouth.
"Ahem, unlike women, men can become aroused from visual stimulation alone. Women need gradual stimulation, but for men, even a single photograph can be enough to get them ready."
"What exactly do you mean by 'get them ready'?"
"Ugh... I said it's embarrassing..."
I really had to explain it in more detail? The more I said, the more I felt like a strange person... It was like splashing ink over a clean picture...
"I'm asking because I'm genuinely curious, Jia. Unnie doesn't know much about men."
"Men get erections, right?"
"They do, right?"
"We can't control the fluid that comes out, can we?"
"Yes, that's right. That's why it can be inconvenient."
"It's the same for men. It's something they can't control themselves. The comparison may be strange, but it's natural, like saliva coming from your salivary glands or your fingernails growing—you can't stop those either."
"I see..."
"I've heard it can happen when they urgently need to use the bathroom or when they wake up after sleeping, and they often get erections even when they don't want one."
Unnie tilted her head after hearing that much.
"So Minsu isn't unusually embarrassed?"
"That could be the case, but when he looks at unnie and me... Our figures aren't exactly ordinary, are they?"
"Not by average standards, no...?"
"When ordinary people see us, it can happen automatically... like that. And since ours are so large, he'd have to be especially careful where he looks..."
"Ah... So that's why he was struggling so much... I just thought he reacted well to teasing..."
Jiyeon unnie genuinely looked shocked.
"Minsu is doing something incredible. I only realized this after becoming a woman myself, but men are much more sensitive to other people's gazes than I expected, you know?"
"Yes, unnie is sensitive to people's gazes too."
"But what if Minsu slips up while managing where he looks and we notice it?"
"Ah... That would be awkward. He'd think he'd made us uncomfortable."
"Exactly... A little teasing is good for keeping the mood in check, but if it goes too far, Minsu will have a hard time."
"Right. I really didn't know... I should apologize to Minsu and tell him I didn't mean to do that deliberately."
After explaining what little I knew about men in a fairly in-depth conversation with unnie, I ended up falling asleep.
*
"Hwaaam~"
"Are you awake?"
"Hmm, how far had I gotten before I fell asleep? I don't remember..."
"If you remember, you'll probably kick the blankets a time or two."
"...I'll just forget it."
After eating the simple breakfast unnie had made, we decided to go out together to buy ingredients for lunch and dinner.
"Oh? Minsu? You were here?"
"Yes. I said I'd help Jiyeon with the grocery shopping."
"Ah~ Then let's go together!"
I guess she'd apologized by text. Minsu's face looked a little brighter than yesterday. We filled our cart with all kinds of ingredients for the housewarming party that evening.
"What are you going to cook, unnie?"
"Curious? You'll see when I cook later."
"You're saving it for the fun of it, right?"
"That's right. You catch on quickly."
Seeing Minsu talk more brightly with unnie, I was relieved that the misunderstanding had apparently been cleared up. From Minsu's perspective, he must have felt like he was going crazy.
"Oh? Come to think of it, didn't you say you were busy today, Minsu?"
"I was, but they asked me to make time for about three hours in the afternoon. I can have lunch with you."
"Really? I'll treat you to lunch as an apology."
After shopping for an hour, we returned home, where I got to witness unnie's amazing cooking skills again. It was the day I learned that she was good not only at Korean food but Western food too. At that level, she could probably master Japanese or Chinese cuisine in no time.
"Um... Is there anything I can help with?"
"Please prepare some of the ingredients that go into the pasta."
"My skills are lacking, but I'll do my best."
Afterward, unnie cooked not only pasta but steak as well. I didn't know enough about levels of doneness to know how much difference it made, but her medium steak was truly delicious, and the pasta tasted great too.
"Thank you for the delicious lunch. I'll be back shortly."
"Around what time will you be back?"
Unnie asked.
"I can't say for certain, but I'll make sure to be back before five."
"Okay, understood."
After lunch, we decided to turn on the computer set up in the room. It wasn't the one I'd used... Unnie's house had only had a laptop before...?
"Unnie, the computer in that room...?"
"Oh, that isn't the computer from Jia's old home—we disposed of that one, remember? I heard they'd prepared a new one."
"Ah... Can I try it?"
"Of course. It's ours now."
When I turned it on, I found that it had pretty good specs. At this level, it could probably run demanding games at max settings in QHD at 120 FPS or higher... I wasn't sure how much I'd actually play, though...
This computer must have cost quite a bit...
Gulp. It should run even adult games at max settings without a problem, right...? I should try one while unnie was at work, so maybe I ought to check in advance...!
"Jia, what are you doing?"
"Eek! It's, it's just... I wasn't doing anything, anything at all. Hehe..."
Gasp... She didn't notice what I'd been about to do, did she? I was an adult, so it should be fine, but for some reason I felt like I'd been caught doing something bad...
"So you were doing something? Sorry for interrupting, unnie. Will you tell me when you're done?"
"Y-Yes..."
...Did she catch me? How embarrassing... All right, let's not. Unlike men, I wouldn't develop health problems just from never doing it at all... I wouldn't lose to the temptation of physical desire.
"Unnie? I'm done. I was just curious about the computer's specs."
"Really? Then shall we go to a nearby supermarket?"
"Hmm... Okay, I'll go. But haven't we already finished grocery shopping?"
"We did, but I wanted to shop just with Jia."
After that, unnie and I looked around the market and bought some simple bread. Then we came home and agonized over what to wear to the housewarming party...
"Already four-thirty...? I don't think I've tried on that many outfits."
"I know. Time really flies."
After choosing what we would wear, we decided to wait for Minsu.
"I'm home."
"Welcome~"
Thirty minutes after Minsu arrived, Jiyeon's friend who had visited before came in.
"Jiyeon~ I'm here~"
"Oh my, long time no see~"
"Right, right? But who's this pretty girl?"
Jiyeon's friend said this while looking back and forth between my face and my chest.
"She's really pretty, right? She's my daughter."
"She is, but your daughter?"
"I didn't give birth to her, but I'm her guardian."
Jiyeon's friend, who introduced herself as Song Hyeona, continued taking an interest in me.
"Wow... Sorry to say this, but you're seriously fucking stacked... I'm jealous, girl..."
"Um... I'm embarrassed..."
"You're so cute when you're embarrassed! Ahahaha!"
"I'm sorry to say this when we've only just met, but Ms. Jia looks uncomfortable."
Minsu appeared like a savior and rescued me.
"Ah, I got too excited. Sorry, Jia."
"Y-Yes..."
"Just wait a little. It'll be over soon."
Some time passed, and unnie brought out steak and pasta, risotto, and even bulgogi with kimchi stew.
"Wow...! When did you prepare all this? All of it...!"
"Not exactly. Jia helped prepare the ingredients earlier, which made it easier."
Unnie said she'd prepared all the food while I was changing clothes. All five dishes... She was incredible.
"Jiyeon, how do you get prettier every time I see you?"
"Come on, you're teasing me again."
"I'm serious. You and Jia look so good together. You look like an angel beside another angel. Pfft."
"Ahaha..."
I didn't know how to answer, so I gave an awkward laugh. Minsu thanked unnie and quietly ate. Once the meal was over, I did the dishes and saw them both off.
"Goodbye~!"
Minsu said, 'Take care of yourself,' and left by car. As for Hyeona... even on the way home, she acted like a drunk, saying, 'I'm so jealous... Give me just a little of your boobs...' until Jiyeon scolded her, after which she went home.
*
After everyone had left and I'd washed up, I was exhausted because of Hyeona. Unnie went in to wash after me, but perhaps because it was late, my body began heating up again.
"Whew... It's starting... again... Hngh... Unnie will be out soon..."
Hngh... What if I can't sleep like this...? How long must I have spent twitching and shivering on the bed? Unnie came out after washing and was drying her hair, while I changed my panties and lay back down.
"Jia... Are you all right? It doesn't hurt, does it...?"
"Yes... It doesn't hurt, but I'm so... hot..."
Thinking I wouldn't be able to sleep like this, I silently embraced unnie, and she silently patted my back as we tried to fall asleep together. Anyone watching might have found it heartwarming, but to me it was nothing but suffering. They said this might continue in the future too, which meant that unlike an ordinary person, I'd have another week of suffering each month in addition to my period.
"When Jia is having a hard time, I'll always try to stay by your side, so... you'll be able to sleep well tonight."
"Thank you, unnie..."
Listening to the lullaby unnie sang for me, I was able to sleep despite the heat.