Chapter 37: A Gentle Escape: Moments of Comfort and Courage

While Song Chae-hyun stepped out for a moment, Song Chae-rin and I chatted about various things. At some point, it felt natural for us to drop the formal speech.

Even though she was much bigger than me, there was still an unmistakable sense of her being younger.

“But… then that means you watched yesterday’s stream too…?”

Please, just say you didn’t watch it.

“Yes!”

But Song Chae-rin responded proudly.

“Sigh…”

I let out a small, regretful sigh before looking at her again.

Honestly, I was surprised. I had assumed for sure she’d be a younger brother.

Why would a girl even like my streams?

“Um, so… what’s fun about my streams?”

“Well…”

Song Chae-rin hesitated a bit before speaking.

“First of all, you’re really small, cute, and pretty…”

“… Hehe…”

No matter how many times I hear it, it feels nice.

“Your streams are also really entertaining…”

“Mhm, mhm. What else?”

Excited, I urged her to continue.

Meeting a fan who genuinely liked me in real life had me feeling a bit over the moon.

Song Chae-rin continued, “Um… I kind of want to teach you a lesson… and, I’d like to make you cry too…”

“Uh… huh?”

“N-no, never mind!”

…

Did I mishear that?

“You’re also really good at games, so I like that.”

“Oh, I see~ Hehe…”

It was hard to contain my smile. Why do I become so silly whenever I hear compliments?

Alright, since she’s a fan who likes me this much, maybe I should give her a bit of fan service.

“Chae-rin, is there anything you’d like to see?”

“Huh? Oh, yes!”

Song Chae-rin nodded her head eagerly.

“Uh, um… could you do that one thing?”

“Hmm, which one?”

“The cute bunny girl, please!”

“Ah…”

That one is so embarrassingly cringe…

“Um… can’t I do something else?”

“Oh… really?”

She looked so disappointed.

Now I just felt guilty.

Fine. I’ll do it.

But there’s no way I’d back down once I’d already agreed.

Swallowing my pride, I steeled myself and said,

“Look, look at me.”

I put my hands up behind my head, making a “V” shape.

Then, looking up at her, I said,

“Behold… the cute bunny girl…”

“Eek…!”

She let out a little squeal, bouncing on her feet.

Was it really that cute…?

Despite my embarrassment, seeing her so happy lifted my spirits as well.

“Oh!”

At that moment, I heard Song Chae-hyun’s voice from behind.

She walked over with big strides and looked at me with a face full of indignation.

“I-hyun! You said you’d only do that for me…”

She sounded genuinely hurt.

Wait, was that… not a joke?

We headed to a western restaurant that specialized in pizza and spaghetti.

“So, what do you want to eat, I-hyun?”

“Hmm… I’ll have the cream spaghetti.”

“You’re sure that’ll be enough?”

“It’s fine. You know I don’t eat a lot.”

“True…”

Song Chae-hyun muttered briefly before calling over the waiter.

“One cream spaghetti, please.”

Then, she added, “And also, one tomato spaghetti, carbonara spaghetti, aglio e olio, and vongole spaghetti.”

“Plus, a pepperoni pizza and a gorgonzola pizza.”

What?

Song Chae-rin and Song Chae-hyun ended up ordering a total of four plates of pasta, and the two of them ate them all, along with the two pizzas, leaving only my share of the pizza.

Meanwhile, I was still working on finishing half of my plate.

As I pondered this, I suddenly noticed that Song Chae-rin was staring at me intently.

When our eyes met, she hesitated a moment before asking, “Did… did you finish?”

“Huh? Yeah. I’m kind of full…”

“I see…”

She continued to gaze longingly at my spaghetti.

What’s going on?

Is she still hungry…?

Even after eating two pizzas and two plates of pasta?

Seeing the high school girl’s expectant look, I couldn’t just ignore her. Plus, I really was full.

“W-want some?”

“Yes? Yes…!”

She responded as if she’d been waiting for those words.

The next moment, what seemed like a large portion of my spaghetti disappeared in mere seconds.

High school girls… amazing.

“What? You’re already done?”

Song Chae-hyun returned after stepping out to take a call and looked at my empty plate, surprised.

“Y-yeah… hehe…”

I figured I’d get in trouble if I said it wasn’t me who ate it, so I just gave her a sheepish smile.

Afterward, we went to a café.

In the past, I used to think going to a café was a waste of money, but lately, I found the chatter at a café to be enjoyable.

Is this also part of becoming more like a girl…?

There, I sipped on my lemonade while chatting with the two sisters.

“You two are really tall…”

I looked them over as I spoke.

They weren’t just tall; their frames were broader and their builds more solid than mine.

It wasn’t only a height difference, but a big difference in build as well.

Maybe it was a lingering effect from my days as a guy, but I often wondered, “Could I beat them in a fight?”

…

With these two, no ideas came to mind.

…

If I ever ended up pinned beneath them, could I even escape?

I doubted it.

It wasn’t that they looked like guys; they just had, as one might say, a strong, healthy build.

Especially Song Chae-rin, who seemed even more so, perhaps because she didn’t look like she exercised.

To be honest, as we walked, I could tell that guys around us were looking quite openly at me and them.

…

Involuntarily, my gaze shifted downward to Song Chae-rin.

“Right? Haha… it’s genetics. Not a good look?”

Then, looking a bit downcast, Song Chae-rin lowered her head slightly.

“Oh, no? You actually look really cool.”

Hearing that, she smiled brightly and lifted her head again.

…

She’s cute.

But I meant it.

There’s something appealing about someone who looks strong.

“Really? That makes me happy to hear.”

With that, Song Chae-hyun gently patted my head.

“Hehe…”

A wave of contentment washed over me, and I relaxed into her hand, enjoying the gentle pats.

…

I noticed Song Chae-rin watching me intently as I was being petted.

Then, swallowing nervously, she asked,

“U-um…!”

“Hm?”

“C-can I… pat you too?”

“Huh?”

Song Chae-hyun seemed momentarily taken aback.

“Oh? Sure, you can.”

I nodded.

Song Chae-rin was big but cute, so I didn’t feel any discomfort. Plus, she was the little sister of someone I was close to.

…And somehow, I thought it might feel nice to be petted by those big hands of hers.

“Hmm…”

After a brief moment of thought, Song Chae-hyun nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, it’s fine if it’s Chae-rin…”

“T-then…”

Song Chae-rin, who had been sitting across from me, got up from her chair and scooted over to sit right next to me on the couch, where I was seated (because Song Chae-hyun insisted on sitting beside me).

How seriously is she planning on patting me?

That’s how I ended up squished between the two of them.

…It felt kind of cramped.

We weren’t pressed up tightly against each other, but it felt like my seat was too narrow.

…

Why is that?

“Th-then…”

With a deep breath, Song Chae-rin moved her hand toward the top of my head, her hand visibly trembling. The sight was so endearing that I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Pfft, why are you so nervous, Chae-rin? It’s cute.”

Her eyes seemed to spin slightly as she mumbled softly, “Tr… training… tr…”

Then, her hand finally came to rest on my head.

Song Chae-rin flinched momentarily, swallowing before she began to pat me gently.

“Mmm…”

Her hand was large and warm, and it felt really nice.

As I was enjoying this unfamiliar but pleasant feeling—

A voice interrupted from beside me. It was Chae-hyun.

“M-me too…”

“Huh?”

“I want to pat you too…!”

With that, Song Chae-hyun joined in, patting my head along with Song Chae-rin.

…Having two big hands patting me from both sides felt incredibly soothing.

Is this what paradise feels like?

But they didn’t stop there.

Song Chae-hyun’s hand traveled from my head to my chin, then to the side of my face, gently patting my cheeks.

“W-wait… that tickles… hehe…”

It tickled but felt good. I was getting this strange, tingling warmth.

It felt… good.

It felt… really good…

Oh?

“W-wait a second…!”

I quickly pulled myself away from their hands and stood up.

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

I saw the two sisters looking at me, both with confused expressions.

How do I explain this…?

Cold sweat trickled down my back.

“N-no… I’ll just stand for a moment…”

I mumbled, trying to calm my slightly heated body. Down below, somewhere I couldn’t even talk about, a strange sensation was buzzing.

Down there, I felt something damp… which was incredibly embarrassing.

How… could it be this easy…?

No, I mean, sometimes these kinds of thoughts did lead to this, but…

Still, wasn’t it a bit improper to react this way when a friend and her sister were simply patting my head?

Lost in thought, I lowered my head in embarrassment.

Thank goodness I was wearing a pad.

“Are you leaving first?”

I looked over as Song Chae-rin picked up her bag, preparing to leave.

“Ah, yes… I have to go to my academy.”

“Really? That’s too bad… Oh, could you tell me your username? I’d like to make you a moderator.”

“Huh? Oh…”

Song Chae-rin seemed a little flustered before responding.

“I-it’s a secret…”

Blushing, she hurried off as if escaping.

What’s that about?

“She’s just a bit shy.”

With that, Song Chae-hyun ruffled my hair again.

As I quietly enjoyed the feeling of her hand on my head, I felt a renewed wave of embarrassment thinking about what had happened earlier.

I was standing with Song Chae-hyun next to her motorcycle.

“Are you really sure about this?”

“Y-yes, I’m fine. I was the one who suggested it… and it’s just to try sitting on it…”

But the mere thought of getting on the bike made my vision blur slightly, and my breathing grew heavy.

The memories… those memories…

“If it’s too hard, you don’t have to push yourself.”

I shook my head, trying to steady my drifting thoughts.

“N-no, I’m okay. I can do this.”

“Alright.”

Song Chae-hyun nodded and climbed onto the motorcycle first.

After a brief moment, I gripped her jacket tightly and climbed on behind her.

“Hngh…”

As soon as I did, phantom sounds of brakes and honking flooded my ears.

The sounds around me grew louder.

My hands, gripping her jacket, began to tremble.

My breathing grew shallow.

No… not again…

Then, I looked up to see that at some point, Song Chae-hyun had turned to face me entirely.

Taking my two trembling hands in hers, she softly murmured,

“It’s okay.”

“It’s okay, I-hyun. I’m here with you.”

I let out a shaky breath.

I focused only on her eyes, blocking out everything else around me.

Gradually, my breathing steadied, and my heartbeat and vision began to calm down.

After a few minutes, I got off the motorcycle.

My legs were so weak I nearly fell, but Song Chae-hyun caught me.

Looking up at her, I gave her a gentle smile.

“Let’s… definitely go to the beach together…”

Hearing that, Song Chae-hyun’s lips trembled a bit before she nodded.

“Yes, let’s go together.”