Chapter 41
Sigh... Work was pretty tough today... They said someone with a certain level of authority had to take responsibility for the job, so I ended up taking it... Even after my subordinates had gone home, I still had to work two more hours.
'If you have time, how about a drink?'
I texted Jiyeon, and a little while later, she replied that she was willing. 'Sure, but I have to look after Jia, so it might get a little later.' That was her response. I didn't mind; Jiyeon was the only person who could take care of Jia. I could look after her too, but since we were now different genders, there were more delicate matters I would have trouble handling.
"It's been a long time since I've worked this hard..."
I had a hell of a time chasing down a wanted criminal with the police. He was a serial killer who had kept running away without getting caught, so it was fortunate that we managed to arrest him... In any case, the organization that had threatened Jia had been wiped out, and Gangho had been wiped from existence, so things had worked out well in several ways.
'I never expected her father to get involved personally...'
Even so, I never expected him to make his own son disappear. Whether that meant calling him decisive or completely cold-blooded... In any case, after receiving Jiyeon's message, I headed to the pocha. It was a shame, but since I heard Jia had already eaten dinner with her, all I had to do was fill my own stomach. Besides, people came to drinking places to drink.
"But is it really all right for me to know Jia's secret?"
"You have a certain level of authority, and you're one of the people Jia trusts most."
"And you know about Jia's past. She must feel that she needs a dependable man."
That was true. If I hadn't been there, there would have been more than one moment when Jia would have been in real danger. The victim had to stay alive for revenge to mean anything, though revenge itself wasn't a good thing. Still, when someone precious suffered something serious, anyone could lose their head. I had done the same...
"Sigh... Maybe because work was so hard, the alcohol is going down easily."
"You must really have had a hard time. Of all the times I've seen you drink, you're drinking the most enthusiastically."
"That's right. My subordinates went home, so I had to work even harder..."
Jiyeon, who was a nurse, seemed to sympathize to some extent too. She said that when only nurses with less experience or skill were available, she was called in for emergency patients because she had more skill and experience.
"Jia must be having a hard time at school. Is she doing all right?"
"She was having a really hard time until yesterday, but it seems she decided to try relieving herself today."
"I see."
"Would you like me to tell you in a little more detail~?"
"No, that's enough. I don't have a hobby of prying into other people's private lives."
Even if they were of the same sex, their personal sex lives were an extremely important part of their privacy. Would anyone want someone who wasn't even family to discover such a thing? Besides, we weren't even the same sex anymore...
"Aren't you getting full?"
"I'm fine. It would look strange for you to be the only one eating, too."
"Thank you, hahaha."
Sigh, whether it was because work had been hard or because I'd learned Jia was suffering, the alcohol was going down like crazy. I normally held my liquor well and had never gotten drunk at a gathering, but I'd drunk so much that I kept running back and forth to the bathroom, and the intoxication was really catching up with me.
"Minsu, would you like to sleep at our place? You mustn't drive."
"I suppose so. What was I thinking, drinking this much...? Hahaha..."
"Jia will welcome you, Minsu."
"There may be something private going on that's different from usual, so is it really all right if I stay over?"
Jiyeon said it was fine. The house was probably under Park Jiyeon's name anyway, so Jia would say she didn't mind too. Still, wouldn't Jia feel uncomfortable if the dependable man she'd thought of as someone to lean on stayed overnight in the same house, even in a different room?
"I'll call Jia. We need to give her time to clean up."
"Yes, take your time."
Jiyeon called Jia, and although the call volume was too low for me to hear Jia's voice, Jia must have been startled after enjoying her freedom alone at home. One day wouldn't be enough to release a desire she'd held back for several months. Could I really impose on her?
"Jia is pretty startled, but it should be fine if we go in slowly."
"I'll drink slowly."
After spending some time slowly finishing the remaining alcohol and food, I headed home with Jiyeon and was startled. What was that smell...? Why was it so sweet? There hadn't been a smell like this before, and there hadn't even been a sweet diffuser...
'Ah, it's Jia... I shouldn't have come.'
Jia had an unusual illness, so it wasn't strange for her body scent to be this strong. In the first place, doing that indoors would naturally leave some smell behind, even if it wasn't particularly strong. Jiyeon tried to change the subject by saying she had changed the diffuser, but it didn't seem to help much. If anything, it only made things more embarrassing...
"Ugh, I don't know!"
Jia was incredibly embarrassed and ran into her room.
"Hahaha... Jia really is shy. Would you like to wash up first, Minsu?"
"Would that be all right? Then I'll gladly..."
I didn't have any spare clothes, but I could ask a friend to bring me something to change into. He grumbled that it was a bother, but when I said I would buy him drinks next time, he readily agreed.
[You really are buying me drinks, right? I'm coming over right now, so tell the homeowner in advance that a deliveryman is coming.]
"Sure."
Thankfully, Jiyeon even let my friend come in. 'It's fine as long as he's only bringing clothes and leaving again, right~' She really was a kind person.
*
Ugh... I'm so embarrassed... I probably passed out at the exact moment I climaxed, with my eyes rolled back... and Minsu happened to come too. Since he was someone who had taken such good care of and protected me, it felt wrong to refuse him outright. If I did, I would literally become a terrible woman who repaid kindness with enmity.
"Unnie..."
"Hmm?"
"I'm sorry... The house smells because of me..."
"No, it's not a bad smell. It's our sweet Jia's scent, isn't it?"
It was true that it smelled sweet, but who would like living in a house filled with the smell of a woman who had pleasured herself alone? That was only pleasant in a video or manga, where you couldn't smell it. If it happened in the house I lived in, I thought it would feel unpleasant...
"You did the right thing, Jia. You managed to deal with something that could have made you ill if you'd kept holding it in, didn't you?"
"Th-that..."
Jiyeon unnie spoke with such sincerity that I couldn't really deny it.
"And since it smells sweet, it doesn't bother me. Once Minsu comes out, let's watch TV and chat together."
"Yes, I'd like that."
After taking a quick shower and changing into the clothes his friend had brought, Minsu looked somewhat attractive.
'Maybe because he had just been comforting me...?'
Perhaps it was because my body and mind were still aroused, but the firm, broad-shouldered, muscular body of a man looked incredibly cool to me. It was the kind of body I would have thought was impressive even when I was a man...
"Are you all right, Ms. Jia?"
"Ah, yes... I'm fine..."
"Jia, pull yourself together."
Had I been staring too intently? I had spaced out so completely that Unnie had to tap me on the shoulder from beside me.
"Aha-ha, I bought some drinks too. Shall we watch a movie on TV, maybe?"
"What kind of movie would you like to watch, Minsu?"
When I awkwardly changed the subject, Unnie chose the movie genre for us. Thank you, Unnie. If you hadn't been here, I would have been even more embarrassed...
"How about a simple classic?"
"I like classic movies."
The movie we put on wasn't that old, but it was an animated film famous as a masterpiece. It was so famous that even parents who didn't particularly like anime acknowledged it, and schools often showed it too.
"Shall we pause for a moment and take a break?"
"Yes, I was just starting to feel like I needed the bathroom."
The movie was paused, and after we each took care of our business and brought over more snacks, we started it again. However, perhaps because I had used up so much energy, I could no longer concentrate on the movie, and my eyes gradually began to close.
"Oh my, Jia, are you sleepy?"
"Yeees... sle...epy..."
Unable to endure my incredibly heavy eyelids, I collapsed onto the lap of Minsu, who was sitting to my right. I thought I heard Jiyeon unnie cry out in surprise, but I was completely out of strength and couldn't react at all.
*
"Oh my, Jia too. She must have been really tired."
"I know. Normally, she would have walked as far as the bed..."
Jia had fallen completely asleep, breathing softly.
"I'm sorry, but could you carry her to bed?"
"I'll tuck her in and come back out."
Minsu lifted Jia in his arms as though she weighed no more than a feather, carried her to the bedroom, tucked her in, and returned to the living room.
"Now that I look at it, the movie is a little creepy too."
"I know. That ghost is incredibly greedy..."
Since Japan seemed to be a country with an enormous number of gods, that was reflected in the movie too. Still, it was a masterpiece for a reason, and it was fun even after watching it again.
"I should get to bed soon."
Covering his mouth as he yawned, Minsu looked incredibly tired. His work had been demanding, and he had also drunk a great deal, so it would have been difficult for him to remain clear-headed.
"Yes, you can sleep in that room over there; I've prepared everything. If you need anything while you're sleeping, feel free to use it."
"Thank you, Jiyeon."
"Hahaha, you're Jia's lifesaver; this is nothing... Tomorrow's the weekend. Are you taking the day off?"
"Yes, I plan to rest well over the weekend."
"Then don't worry about the time and sleep well. I'll be sleeping soundly too."
After exchanging goodnights, we went to bed and fell asleep immediately. Perhaps because we'd brushed our teeth thoroughly before lying down so we wouldn't smell of alcohol, my mouth felt fresh and pleasant.
"Jiyeon unnie... Minsu..."
"Oh? Ah, she's talking in her sleep... She must be exhausted, hehe..."
I held Jia's hand tightly and stroked her hair as she called for us in her sleep, then I too quickly drifted off.
*
Huh? Jia isn't answering her phone... Did something happen? Well, it's Friday night, so maybe she's out with other friends... She said she hadn't been able to attend school for a long time, but she must have gone to elementary school. Maybe she was meeting an old friend and having fun?
'Jia, are you free this weekend? Do you want to hang out? I'm going to watch a movie with the kids from our class.'
After sending the message, what should I do now...? Since I was bored, I called Jinwoo. I asked for Jinwoo's number in the class group chat, where the teacher was also present, and the boys gave it to me. I didn't know how they knew it, though...
[Hello? What's up?]
"What do you mean, what's up? Do you need a reason to call a friend?"
[Oh, no, that's not what I meant.]
"Do you want to go see a movie this weekend? I'm going with some classmates."
[With the girls?]
"Yeah, we didn't invite the boys in the first place."
[But I'm a boy too...]
"You're Jia's friend, so you don't count as just some boy."
[Is that so? If Jia's okay with it, I'll go too.]
"Ah, about that. Jia isn't answering."
[What?]
"Well, it's Friday night, so maybe she's busy or sick and asleep. Text Jia too."
[I don't have her number.]
"Then I'll tell Jia about it."
[Okay, thanks.]
Jinwoo thanked me and ended the call, and I put my phone on the bed and lay down. I miss Jia... That cute, pretty figure of hers... Can cuteness and prettiness really coexist so intensely...?
"Yuna."
"Y-Yes?!"
My father suddenly entered my room. Normally, I would have made my displeasure obvious, but my father's expression was strange somehow.
"Are you going out with friends this weekend?"
"Yes."
"Dad probably won't be home until Sunday morning. If you get a chance to sleep over at a friend's house, you can stay out and have fun as much as you want."
"Oh, okay..."
My father placed some money on the desk in my room and left. Was it fortunate that Father at least made a lot of money...? If he hadn't made any money, even Minho oppa might have collapsed from overwork. At least, the money Father earned late in life after abandoning Mom allowed Oppa to finish his studies without worrying about money.
'Ha... Am I supposed to consider that fortunate?'
Ah, whatever. My head feels like it's going to split... Since Mom never blamed Father to the very end, it wouldn't sit well with her in heaven if the family left behind blamed and cursed him... Let me ease my feelings, at least a little.
"Huh? A call from Oppa...?"
[Yuna, it's me.]
"O-Oppa? Did something happen?"
[Nothing happened. How's school these days?]
"It's fine, I guess."
[Nothing unusual?]
"Actually, there is. I told you a cute girl named Jia transferred here, remember?"
[Yeah, you did.]
"I wanted to go out with my classmates, but she isn't answering."
[She's frail and often sick, right? You don't need to invite someone who's sick.]
"...But she keeps making me think of Mom..."
[...All right. Do as you please. Just avoid doing anything too bothersome.]
"Yeah, I understand. But are you doing all right, Oppa?"
[Dad seems to have money to burn. He gave me a house.]
"W-What?! A house?!"
[Don't be too surprised. When you become an adult, come over here and live with me too.]
Dad is often away from home, and the people who come to clean just work efficiently without really talking to me, so I was bored.
[Or come visit sometimes. Your big brother will buy you dinner.]
"Thanks."
After ending my long call with Oppa, I went to sleep while happily imagining Jia calling me tomorrow~.