Chapter 81: Chapter 81

「Huh? Why all of a sudden..」

「Answer me first, quickly.」

Last night’s honey-dripping demeanor was the complete opposite.

It was the first time I saw Shin Ah-young making such a scary face.

I almost doubted it was the same person.

「178 cm.」

「And your weight?」

「Why do you want to know that? Wasn’t it supposed to be about the question?」

「Just because. And you can answer that much, can’t you?」

「…About 72 kg.」

She seemed ready to measure it forcibly if not answered.

Besides, these are the questions that were written in the notebook before.

It really seemed like she suspected me of being a ghost.

「Really? And you said you exercised, may I touch your arm?」

Shin Ah-young’s increasingly bold requests.

Should I refuse, or comply to avoid suspicion?

In endless deliberation, I decided to allow it.

I thought I wouldn’t be caught just by arm muscles.

「Okay. Feel here.」

I stretched out my arm forward.

Then Shin Ah-young immediately grabbed my wrist and started kneading it.

She pressed each part with both hands, slowly moving up to my forearm, and then slightly got up from the chair to touch my shoulder.

「Can you flex your muscles?」

「Ah, yes.」

There were many requests, but I had no choice.

Doing it improperly or strangely seemed like it would only increase her suspicions.

I just offered my arm, hoping it would end quickly.

Kneading…

The longer the touching went on, the more my anxiety grew.

I was looking out the window and intermittently checking her expressions when her hand finally dropped.

A meaningful face.

She seemed to still have lingering questions.

「Did you do something last night?」

「I was just studying and fell asleep, but kept waking up because of mosquitoes.」

「Really?」

「Really. You saw the mosquito bites on my neck earlier.」

I pointed to my neck confidently.

Then Shin Ah-young covered her mouth and chuckled slightly.

「Pfft…」

Such a reaction was unexpected.

Had I made a mistake, I absently touched my neck.

「Are mosquitoes wearing tint these days?」

「Excuse me..?」

Her unexpected remark made me retort involuntarily.

Tint…

Why did that come up suddenly?

Seeing my bewildered face, Shin Ah-young took out a pouch from her bag.

After rummaging for a while, she handed me a small hand mirror.

「Check it yourself. Seems like you haven’t looked in the mirror this morning?」

Feeling something was off, I reflected my neck in the mirror.

There, a slight kiss mark was imprinted along with some tooth marks.

The hand that just touched my neck had a trace of it too.

Suddenly, my head buzzed.

Jang Min-hyuk definitely said… it was a mosquito bite.

Unknowingly, I had proudly pointed it out.

「It was definitely a mosquito bite…」

「It didn’t look like one at all, but I just turned it around and said so. You’re the only one who didn’t notice.」

I remained silent.

Saying something wrong here could send me straight to ruin.

I needed to find a way out slowly.

I started by apologizing.

「I’m sorry for lying. But what about this mark?」

「Are you really asking that?」

「I was playing with my girlfriend last night, and it must have happened without me knowing.」

Shin Ah-young paused momentarily at my words.

But soon, she tried to hold back her laughter.

「You know what?」

「What?」

「That tint color… is the same one I use.」

「So what? My girlfriend uses the same one too. It can happen.」

「Hmm…」

This was a bit dangerous.

One by one, my escape routes were disappearing.

As I continued to make excuses and think, Shin Ah-young spoke up first.

「Can you at least show me a picture of your girlfriend?」

「We haven’t been dating long, so that would be difficult.」

「You’re just trying to escape, aren’t you?」

「I’m not sure exactly what you mean, but why are you probing so much?」

「Ha…!」

She sighed as if frustrated.

There was only circumstantial evidence between us. No solid proof.

We were enveloped in silence, and I was distracted by looking out the window.

Shin Ah-young began tapping the table with her index and middle fingers.

She seemed deeply in thought.

After maintaining that state for a while, she spoke again in a calm voice.

「Alright, then. This is about an acquaintance of mine, but you can hear this much, right?」

「Yes. Please go on.」

「My friend met someone online. Initially, she really disliked him, but gradually they talked more, and he helped with her studies, and she grew to like him?」

「That’s quite commendable.」

「They got along well and gradually grew closer. What do you think happened next?」

「Did they start dating?」

「No, not exactly. But eventually, they opened up about their sexual aspects. I mean, they started having sex.」

Shin Ah-young emphasized the word 「sex,」 and hearing it from her in reality felt quite surreal.

She continued to look at me while she spoke.

「They did all kinds of kinky plays, you know? Like outdoor exposure, anal, and stuff. Isn’t that strange?」

「Well, that can happen.」

「Really? Anyway, the man was quite vigorous, able to go up to 10 times a day, and he was quite mannered, she told me. So, I asked her if she was lying.」

「What did your friend say?」

「She said it was all true. But the funniest thing, do you know what it is?」

「What is it?」

Feeling thirsty, she took a few sips of her coffee.

She seemed to gather her thoughts, chewing the inside of her cheek before swallowing the coffee.

Then she looked back at me and continued.

「The man she was with, she didn’t even know what his face looked like, or even his voice. All she knew was his body type and size down there?」

「That is a bit weird.」

「I thought so too. But what can we do? She’s already fallen deep. There’s no turning back now.」

「That’s their freedom, I guess.」

「I think so too. That’s why I asked her how she could do those things with a man whose face and voice she didn’t even know.」

「And?」

「She said that it made it even more enjoyable. Not knowing anything, she could fully express her sexual fantasies, so she was very satisfied.」

「That makes some sense.」

「Doesn’t it? What do you think about my friend’s situation?」

Her face was filled with anticipation.

It felt like she had definitively labeled me a ghost.

Should I reveal my identity?

The seriousness of my thoughts grew deeper.

She didn’t seem to think too poorly of the real me.

It was the greatest dilemma of my life.

Revealing it might not suddenly change anything, and more than anything, I was afraid it might ruin our current relationship.

Like a gear enhancement with over a 70% chance but if it fails, it shatters mercilessly.

It felt like that kind of situation.

I didn’t know what to say and bowed my head.

My future could dramatically change depending on my response.

「I didn’t expect you to just come out with it right away.」

She leaned her hand on her chin as if she knew it would be the case.

Sipping her coffee, she spoke earnestly as if lecturing.

「Anyway, aren’t you curious about what happened next? How she acted?」

「I am curious. Is there more?」

「They became more than lovers and suddenly she felt something was off.」

「In what way?」

「She noticed similar traits in the people around her.」

「How did she notice that?」

「She’s not a fool. Naturally, she thought about what her loved one liked, his characteristics, and accidentally discovered it. Women’s intuition can be quite scary, you know.」

She took another sip of her coffee and continued.

「For example, he’s over a certain height, weighs around this much, repeats certain actions, maybe a third-year engineering student or something. These things.」

「Um…」

「Out of curiosity, she compared those traits one by one. And guess what she found?」

「I’m not sure.」

「It turned out that his behavior patterns were very similar. It’s a common thing, but it fit the saying ‘The darkest place is under the candlestick.’」

「It could just be a coincidence, right?」

「Could it? So she started checking little things one by one. Things like handwriting, or kiss marks.」

As she spoke the last word.

She smirked, speaking slowly in a sweet voice, making me fully understand.

I had completely fallen into the trap.

The mark on my neck had been deliberately left there yesterday.

All along, she had known and had played along.

At this point.

There was no point in making excuses.

It was time to just be honest and ask for forgiveness.

As I was about to speak.

She stood up from her seat.

「Ah, of course, there’s only circumstantial evidence and no solid proof yet that the kiss mark is truly from your girlfriend. We can’t leave even a tiny possibility untouched.」

With that, she pushed the chair back into the table.

「So I’m going to secure evidence so perfect, you won’t be able to make any excuses. I’ve already planned it all.」

「That’s a bit scary.」

I was serious.

Though she took it half in jest.

「You know they say, ‘If the tail is long, it will be caught’? That’s exactly it.」

「So should I cut off the tail and run?」

Then Shin Ah-young looked at me again with a scary expression.

「That can never happen. You’re smart, have a good body, have kiss marks, and are good at what you do, so you must have figured it all out by now?」

「…」

「Next week… if you run, it’ll be over. Don’t be late. Be there on time, okay? Oh, and I’m talking about our group meeting. Don’t misunderstand.」

「Of course.」

「I’m glad you understand. Then I’ll be going now. I overdid it yesterday and I’m tired. Aren’t you feeling the same?」

「I’m not sure. Take care on your way.」

「Yes, you too.」

She packed her things and turned her back on me.

I watched every movement she made.

As Shin Ah-young left the cafe and even her shadow disappeared,

I leaned over the table, staring blankly out the window.

I wondered what would happen next but couldn’t think of anything.

Maybe I should just go home and get some sleep.

Just then,

Shin Ah-young appeared outside the window.

She stood right in front of me, moving her lips widely.

Of course, I couldn’t hear anything.

But I could guess.

She then closed her mouth and swiftly moved her fingers.

And then she disappeared from my view.

I chuckled to myself and slowly mimicked the shape of her lips I remembered.

Afraid I might forget, I wrote it down in my notebook too.

After a while, I got goosebumps as I read what I had written.

「I’m looking forward to next week♡」