Chapter 41
“Sihyeok, do you want to eat dinner at our place again today?”
Subin's voice held more courage than yesterday, along with undisguisable anticipation.
Though her confession had failed because of Chaerin's interference, she must have been very happy that I'd said something positive about HSDD.
I naturally nodded at Subin's invitation. Chaerin didn't refuse either.
When we both said we'd go, Subin happily slipped her arm through mine.
The sensation of her soft, voluptuous breasts pressed against my forearm made the corners of my mouth twitch.
Chaerin saw it and let out a short, incredulous snort.
Then, to make a point, she linked her arm through my other arm. The pressure was a little stronger than Subin's, with a possessive sense of claiming me as hers.
The other arm felt just as good pressed against her breast. I wanted to grab and knead both pairs of breasts right then and there.
‘I feel like a king.’
I walked along, satisfied, with the breasts of two beauties ranked among Korea's top one percent tucked against my arms.
I could feel other women passing by looking at us with gazes mixed with envy and jealousy.
It wasn't men who envied me, but women—and they weren't envying me, but Chaerin and Subin.
When we arrived at Subin's house, a cozy, warm atmosphere welcomed us.
We put down our things, gathered around the living-room table, and resumed the board game we'd played last time.
Buying land, selling it, getting stranded on a deserted island.
I pretended to focus on the game, but my gaze kept drifting toward Chaerin and Subin's bodies.
Whenever Chaerin leaned forward to inspect the dice, glimpses of white underwear and breasts appeared through the gap in her loose top.
And whenever Subin reached for a card, her slender wrist and pale nape were revealed.
Every tiny movement stirred the male inside me.
After experiencing fellatio from countless female university students, sex with the health teacher, and sex with Iseol noona, my body had become far more sensitive to women than before.
“You two are majoring in economics, right? How were your classes?”
I spoke first to lighten the mood.
“Boring. I thought we'd learn how to make money, but all we do is memorize words.”
Chaerin shook her head repeatedly as she answered. Subin gave a small nod, as if agreeing with her.
“I'll make lots of money someday and buy you lots of delicious food.”
Chaerin's words made Subin and me burst out laughing.
We played, laughed, and chatted for quite a while, and an hour passed in no time.
Just as we were starting to get bored with the game, Subin thought for a moment and cautiously made a suggestion.
“Do you want to look through some old photo albums together? It might help you recover your memories, Sihyeok.”
“An album?”
When I asked with interest, Subin ran to the study as if she'd been waiting for me to ask and brought back a thick album with a light layer of dust on it.
We naturally sat side by side on the sofa and opened the album.
When we turned the first page, the three of us, looking about middle-school age, stood side by side.
“Wow, do you remember this? You almost got kidnapped by a van that suddenly appeared, Sihyeok.”
“I did?”
“Yeah. Subin and I shouted and stood in its way, and Subin's aunt happened to be nearby and helped us.”
“Oh… Did that happen?”
I didn't remember it at all, but Chaerin's vivid explanation seemed to sketch the scene faintly in my mind. And I was hearing about Subin's aunt for the first time, too.
Apparently, my past self had lived a difficult life because of women.
We laughed and chatted over the album for a long while, and before I knew it, darkness was falling outside the window.
After Chaerin, who had drunk a ton of soda, went to the bathroom, Subin and I organized the albums we'd taken out.
While putting an album back on the shelf, I suddenly noticed something strange.
“But why aren't there any pictures from before middle school?”
We were childhood friends. According to the diary, we'd probably known each other since before kindergarten.
Then why were there only pictures of the three of us together from middle school onward?
At my question, Subin suddenly froze.
It was only for a moment, but I felt as though she was hesitating over something.
“…We lost the old photo albums when we moved. What a shame. If we hadn't lost them, I could've shown them to you today.”
Something about it struck me as odd, and I was about to ask more when I heard the front door open.
“I'm home, Subin.”
A languid yet elegant voice. When I turned, a woman came into view.
The woman who entered the living room looked a lot like Subin… Her older sister?
I wondered if she might be a model or an actress.
Her lush, glamorous blonde hair swayed over her shoulders, and her features were sharply defined like a sculpture.
Her skin-tight office outfit showed off her otherworldly figure in full.
Her blue eyes swept sharply across the living room. They lingered on me for a moment. She was beautiful, but her first impression was of someone strict and impossible to catch off guard.
“Oh my, you have a guest. You must be Sihyeok. Nice to meet you.”
Once she recognized me, her stern expression softened, and she gave me a gentle smile.
“Hello. Um, you’re Subin’s older sister…?”
“What?”
At my words, she covered her mouth and laughed as though pleased.
It was a refined laugh that was simply pleasant to hear, though I couldn't have said exactly why.
That single laugh melted the atmosphere in an instant.
Even her smile was that elegant. I admired her inwardly without realizing it.
“Older sister? I’m Subin’s mother.”
“Huh? Oh? Wow, you look incredibly young. I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you.”
She wasn't joking. Subin's mother looked, at most, to be in her early to mid-twenties.
Did women in this world age more slowly? Or was this woman simply exceptional? I was confused.
“No, I appreciate you thinking I’m young.”
Chaerin, who had washed her hands and come out of the bathroom, also spotted Subin's mother and greeted her.
“Auntie, you’re here?”
“Chaerin’s here too. It’s been a long time.”
Although I'd never met her before, she spoke as if she knew Chaerin and me very well.
I used my amnesia as a shield and smiled awkwardly.
“Oh, right. You said you had amnesia. I’m sorry.”
She approached me and held out her hand.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Subin’s mother, Han Dan-bi.”
I was once again stunned as I took her hand.
Up close, I could tell she really did look young; it wasn't just makeup making her look that way.
Her beautiful features were exactly like Subin's, but the mature air shaped by the years lent her an elegant aura.
Her figure was even more striking. Her breasts, larger than Subin's, narrow waist, and wide hips made her sex incarnate—the kind of body that could arouse any man.
When she gazed at me with pale blue eyes and smiled, it felt as though my heart dropped with a thud.
‘So this is a real MILF….’
“You two siblings used to play at our house often. We lived in the same neighborhood, then moved here together.”
After setting down her things, she sat on the sofa and naturally guided the conversation as she talked about memories from the past.
Chaerin seemed to know her well too, and chatted with her comfortably.
“It’s been a while since I’ve had guests, so Auntie will buy you something delicious. What do you want to eat?”
She asked as she took out her wallet. Chaerin and Subin excitedly called out for jokbal and sashimi, and she readily ordered delivery.
A little later, delicious jokbal, fresh sashimi, some whiskey, and two bottles of soju were laid out on the living-room table.
“Here, eat up.”
Ms. Dan-bi—or Dan-bi noona? Auntie Dan-bi? Every form of address felt awkward because she looked so young.
Anyway, Ms. Dan-bi personally placed a glistening piece of jokbal on my small plate.
Her kind gesture gradually eased my awkwardness.
The four of us sat around the table and enjoyed dinner in a warm, convivial atmosphere.
“Auntie’s treat is the best, as always!”
Chaerin said cheerfully after taking a shot of soju. Subin gave a small laugh beside her and nodded.
“Drink up. There’s more alcohol.”
Ms. Dan-bi filled our glasses as she watched us with a pleased smile.
Swept up in the family-like atmosphere I'd never experienced before, I found myself drinking several glasses in succession.
Once the alcohol took effect, my body relaxed and a pleasant warmth spread through me.
We drank for quite a while, and before I knew it, the soju bottles were empty.
“Oh, we’re out of soju. I’ll go buy some!”
Chaerin sprang to her feet. Subin stood up too, saying she'd go with her.
Chaerin and Subin headed for the entrance.
In an instant, only Ms. Dan-bi and I were left in the living room. An awkward silence settled over us.
She was the one who broke it.
“Sihyeok.”
Her voice, now touched by a little alcohol, was even softer and more languid than before.
“How is our Subin doing at the academy? I worry about her because she’s so introverted.”
“She’s doing well. Since she’s in the same class as Chaerin and me, she should be all right.”
“That’s a relief. It’s a real comfort knowing you’re by her side.”
She looked at me with eyes full of genuine gratitude.
Then she hesitated slightly before lowering her voice as though confiding a secret.
“You may have forgotten, but… I got sperm from a sperm bank, gave birth to Subin, and raised her on my own. Since I was busy with work, she was very lonely growing up.”
Her face looked so young that it was hard to connect it with what she was saying about her daughter, but I listened to her as quietly as I could.
“But then you and Chaerin came along and became Subin’s friends. It’s frightening even to imagine what might have happened to her if you hadn’t been there. I’m truly grateful.”
The corners of her eyes were moist.
“If you’re ever sick or going through something difficult, tell me anytime. I work at a hospital, so I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
At her heartfelt words, I nodded.
“Yes, I will. I’m happy that Subin and I have become close again too.”
A bright smile blossomed across her face at my answer.
“What a good boy. And thank you, too. Here, shall we have a toast, just you and Auntie?”