Chapter 42: A Day of Warmth and Mischief

I dressed up and waited quietly.

Afraid that my clothes might wrinkle, I stood still and killed time by playing with my phone.

While doing so, I touched my hair, looked in the mirror, and browsed online communities.

There, debates about my height were ongoing.

Whether I was 150 cm, 155 cm, or above 160 cm.

Some were using the length of a pen beside me and applying perspective calculations, engaging in mathematical reasoning.

Do they have nothing better to do?

As I killed time like that, over ten minutes passed.

• Knock, knock.

At that sound, I brightened up and quickly ran to open the door.

“Unni!”

There stood Song Chae-hyun. Since it was a short distance, she was dressed casually in leggings and a sweatshirt.

Her figure was so good that even casual attire looked like a picture.

“Yes, I’m here. You’ve already changed clothes?”

“Yes. Hehe…”

I had changed into the outfit that Song Chae-hyun bought for me, entirely white from top to bottom.

First impressions always start with white. And the new, pristine white sneakers were incredibly cute.

Though it was an unexpected expense… I couldn’t keep wearing slippers or ill-fitting sneakers.

Even if the shoes were stretchy, they were still uncomfortable…

A little indulgence like this should be fine, right?

I suddenly pursed my lips and carefully looked at Song Chae-hyun.

Noticing my gaze, she paused for a moment, scanned me up and down, and then said,

“Oh! You bought new shoes?”

As expected!

“Hehe, yes… You noticed right away.”

Hearing that, Song Chae-hyun approached and patted my head.

Even with her higher line of sight, she noticed immediately.

If only the viewers could be even half as observant.

Song Chae-hyun mentioned she walked over without her scooter.

When I asked why,

“Because I wanted to walk with you, I-hyun. Haha…”

She smiled awkwardly as she answered.

At that moment, the telephone pole behind her seemed to glow like a halo.

She always says such cool things.

I looked up at her intently and suddenly burst out laughing before running forward.

Although I was quickly caught up to.

“Here we are.”

“Wow… You live in such a nice place.”

The entrance had a lobby, the hallways were made of marble, and the doors had a luxurious design.

“Right? My parents are a bit silly like that.”

“…Huh?”

Did I mishear her?

“Never mind. Shall we go in?”

As she said that, she opened the door, and suddenly, a little girl came running out.

“Hey! Wait!”

Ignoring the words of the woman behind her, the girl exclaimed,

“Oh, it’s a new unni!”

And then—

-Slap!

“Eek!?”

A strange sound escaped my mouth.

What she slapped just now was…

“My, my butt…!”

I looked at the child, startled, as she casually clenched and unclenched her fingers in the air before being dragged away by what seemed to be her mother.

“Goodness…! Hey! I’m sorry. She’s a bit mischievous… Hoho… Chae-hyun, we’ll be going”

“I-hyun!”

“Mom! That unni’s butt is so bouncy!”

“What, what…!”

I had just been sexually harassed and verbally assaulted by someone smaller than me…!

I wanted to complain, but the door had already closed.

Feeling dizzy, I turned to look at Song Chae-hyun.

“Who, who was that…?”

“A kindergarden friend of Min-jun and Min-seok. Are… are you okay?”

Song Chae-hyun bent down and looked at me with concern, knowing I wasn’t good with such situations.

“Uh-huh…”

At first, my heart had been racing a little, but seeing her panicking made me feel oddly at ease.

It’s fine, really.

After all, I’m not going to wear out because of this.

If it had been a man, I might have cried a little.

“Y-yes… I’m okay…”

“That’s a relief.”

She patted my head again, and magically, I felt better.

Watching me, she smiled and called out the names of the children loudly.

Chae-rin, Kang-hyun, Min-jun, Min-seok.

One by one, they opened their doors and came out.

As expected, Min-jun and Min-seok were young children and greeted me politely.

Chae-rin still seemed shy, blushing slightly as she bowed her head.

And Kang-hyun…

“Song Kang-hyun! You need to say hi!”

After hesitating, Kang-hyun walked over reluctantly under Song Chae-hyun’s scolding.

Kang-hyun, a second-year middle schooler, was noticeably shorter than Song Chae-rin.

Boys do grow slower, after all.

“Hello.”

“Yes, hi there, Kang-hyun.”

I smiled and waved.

…

Once again, I realized something.

Boys are terrible at hiding their true feelings.

Especially immature boys.

I became keenly aware of this after becoming a woman.

The way they handled eye contact and expressions gave it all away.

That they were conscious of me.

“Pfft.”

A small laugh escaped me.

That’s right; I’m an extraordinary person, aren’t I?

How is it? The prettiest girl you’ve seen since your unni?

I’m on a level that you’ll probably never get close to in your lifetime.

Kang-hyun still stood awkwardly in front of me, unsure of what to do.

… Should I give him a little service?

As I tucked my hair behind my ear and reached out for a handshake, I thought to myself,
“Yes, let’s do it. Let’s give him an unforgettable memory of his adolescence.”

“You must be Kang-hyun. I’m your noona—”

Just as I was about to tuck my hair behind my ear…

“Noona?”

“Huh?”

“You seem more like my age or younger…”

Service withdrawn.

“Wow…!”

***

As I sat quietly, the food was brought out—kimchi stew, rolled omelet, and various side dishes.

“Thank you for the meal!”

We all said in unison before picking up our utensils and starting to eat.

“How is it, I-hyun?”

Song Chae-hyun asked as she noticed me eating silently after a bite of kimchi stew.

“… It’s so delicious…”

Tears welled up in my eyes.

Why does delicious food make me cry?

“Oh, oh? Why are you crying!?”

Flustered, Song Chae-hyun handed me a tissue.

I want to live with Song Chae-hyun.

If I did, I’d get to eat this kind of food for the rest of my life.

After the meal, we were sitting on the sofa, watching TV together, just us girls.

I sat in the middle, flanked by the two tall women.

…

Aren’t they a bit too close?

Their elbows kept brushing against my arms.

And then, they started petting me.

“Ah… Wait a second…”

Since I wasn’t wearing a pad today, I allowed a little petting.

But Song Chae-hyun didn’t just stick to my head—she lightly stroked my shoulders and back as if with a feather.

It was genuinely dangerous.

It gave me chills and made my heart race faster…

Seeing me reject her a few times, she looked slightly disappointed but then suddenly brightened up.

“Oh! That’s right. We were going to measure our heights.”

“…Oh!”

I had completely forgotten.

Being in the cozy embrace of Song Chae-rin and Song Chae-hyun made me forget.

“Alright, everyone, gather around~”

Taking out a tape measure, Song Chae-hyun stood by the wall.

We measured our heights in reverse age order.

Min-seok and Min-jun were about as tall as expected for toddlers.

Song Kang-hyun measured in at 167 cm. After seeing the result, he blushed and retreated quickly to his room.

Song Chae-rin measured…

“178 cm.”

“Wow…”

I had guessed she was around that height, but seeing it in numbers made it feel much taller.

I was envious.

Though Song Chae-rin seemed embarrassed, hiding her face in her hands as she softly muttered,

“…I hope I don’t grow any taller.”

…

Honestly, I wanted to ask her to share just a bit of that height with me.

Then, Song Chae-hyun measured…

“176 cm.”

Exactly the height I had thought before.

I envied her as well.

“Alright, next is I-hyun.”

I swallowed nervously.

I should have gone after Kang-hyun earlier, but I kept delaying it until now.

…

I was scared.

I hoped it would be 163 cm, or at least 160 cm.

Anything below that… my male pride might shatter.

Swallowing again, I stood still and waited.

“153 cm.”

“…Huh?”

What?

“Maybe it was measured wrong. Try again. Take the tape out and measure me again.”

I said, stepping back against the wall.

“Uh, okay…”

Flustered, Song Chae-hyun complied.

The tape came back out and measured me again.

“152 cm…”

“What!?”

Why, why did it shrink!?

“It, it must be the tape measure’s fault. There’s no way I’m barely over 150 cm…!”

With my head bowed, I muttered,

“Now that I think about it, the moment I realized I was much shorter than Kang-hyun, who is 168 cm… my height was already decided.”

“…It’s okay, I-hyun! You’re so cute! And you’re young, so you might still grow! Right?”

Song Chae-hyun knelt down, meeting my gaze as if to comfort me.

Song Chae-rin followed suit, kneeling and gently brushing my hair out of my face.

Their kindness only made the blow feel worse…

After a few minutes of comforting me, I finally calmed down, and we sat back on the sofa, watching TV together again.

“Everyone, I’m going to step out for a moment,” Song Chae-hyun suddenly announced, standing up.

“Huh? Where are you going?”

“Just to clean my motorcycle. It’s been a while since I last cleaned it.”

“Ah… Oh…”

It sounded kind of cool.

Maybe it was because I didn’t know anyone else who rode a motorcycle.

“Can I come down with you?”

“Hm? Sure. Though it might be boring, so only if you’re okay with that.”

Song Chae-hyun’s motorcycle was kept in a spacious garage.

Inside, there was the bike she usually rode, as well as…

A stunning, flashy motorcycle that immediately caught my attention.

“Whoa, what’s this? It’s so fancy. It looks amazing.”

“Really? Haha… thanks.”

It seemed like Song Chae-hyun was paying extra attention to cleaning that particular motorcycle.

“I’ve never seen you ride this one before…”

“Yeah… it was my prized ride back in the day. I don’t use it anymore.”

She trailed off and muttered quietly, almost to herself,

“It brings back old memories.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

Her tone seemed tinged with melancholy, which piqued my curiosity.

“Did you… bully anyone in the past?”

Judging by her current cool demeanor, it seemed like a plausible guess.

“Haha, no, nothing like that. It’s just…”

She left her sentence hanging, a wistful expression crossing her face.

Not wanting to pry further, I simply nodded.

Later that night, after dinner, she turned to me and asked,

“Want to sleep together?”

“Uh…”

“Not what you think! The sofa’s too uncomfortable.”

“I thought the sofa was fine…”

In fact, it felt ridiculously comfortable when I’d sat on it earlier.

But before I could object further, she gently but firmly ushered me into her room, saying,

“Alright, decision made. Let’s go. Oh, and you can wear the pajamas Chae-rin used to wear in elementary school!”

“E-elementary school?! They probably won’t fit—”

But they did.

They didn’t just fit—they were baggy.

“Wow, they really suit you! So cute!”

She beamed as she looked me over.

Before long, we lay side by side in her bed. Perhaps noticing how drowsy I was, she turned off the light quickly and lay down next to me.

Her consideration made my heart flutter.

“Alright, let’s sleep.”

She adjusted her position, lying on her side to face me.

“…Okay…”

I whispered back, a faint smile on my face.

I couldn’t remember the last time I had received such warm hospitality.

“Unnie, thank you.”

“Hm? For what?”

“For the meals… letting me stay… all of this.”

It had been years since anyone had treated me this kindly. It felt like a miracle.

After a moment’s pause, I continued,

“Thank you for making me happy.”

She stared at me, looking slightly surprised, before reaching out to softly pat my head.

“Happiness is something you should always have. Being happy is… natural.”

Her voice trailed off.

I drifted off for a moment, but not for long.

Somehow, in her sleep, she managed to pull me into her arms.

“U-unnie…!”

“Mm…”

Her grip tightened slightly as she mumbled incoherently.

There was no escape.

Her warmth and proximity were overwhelming.

I turned away desperately, trying to avoid her intoxicating presence.

…But then—

“Ah!”

Her thigh draped over my hips.

“U-unnie?”

“Mm…”

Her soft breathing tickled my ear, sending shivers down my spine.

I clenched my fists tightly, trying to endure the unbearable intimacy.

Her unconscious hug felt vastly different from anything upright or casual. This was on a whole other level.

Her body heat seeped into mine, and I struggled to keep myself together.

As the night wore on, I realized… sleep was impossible.

Meanwhile, in another part of the house, Yoo Ji-eun sat on a chair, legs jittering anxiously.

This habit surfaced whenever she was nervous.

Her phone was open to a chat with Moon I-hyun.

It had been hours since the last message.

“…Why hasn’t she called?”

She had promised to call.