Chapter 27 : …Not here

I asked a few more times but never got an answer.

“Anyway, you’re just doing whatever you want…”

“Tsk. Watch your language.”

“Enough, okay? It’s not like I— Ghk?! Ugh…!”

Yena corrected me by force.

She’d had her arm around my neck since earlier.

Even a little pressure from her made it hard to breathe.

“Be good now? Listen to me.”

“Cough, kh—! Y-Yeah, heh…”

I answered without even understanding what she was saying.

Being choked by someone else was… extremely unpleasant.

I gasped for air and tried to collect myself.

“Let’s go like this.”

“…”

Silence meant consent.

In the end, I was the one who gave up.

As I slowly moved my legs, I cursed her in my mind.

‘Why does it always have to be like this?’

Yena was strong.

Impossibly stronger than me.

So whenever I resisted even a little, she’d just overpower me.

“Yul, what’re you thinking?”

Her arms were as slender as mine.

How the hell did she have so much strength?

As I stared blankly while walking, her hand gradually slid downward.

“…Not letting go?”

“Nope, not letting go.”

“…”

‘Again…’

Yena pressed harder.

I stayed silent as a form of permission.

I didn’t have the strength to push her away anyway.

Helplessly, I watched her hand drift lower toward my chest.

“Hayul, is something wrong?”

“…No.”

“…”

Yena seemed to notice something was off.

‘Just act like usual.’

Her intuition was annoyingly sharp.

She lifted her fingers back up and rested them on my shoulder.

“Why?”

“Um… Just because?”

“…You can touch me.”

“Ugh… It’s fine. Let’s just go.”

When I begged her to stop, she ignored me and pressured me more.

But the moment I gave permission, she withdrew.

Her contradictory actions pissed me off.

I grabbed Yena’s hand.

Pulled it down and shoved it inside my shirt.

“Eek—”

“…Hayul?”

A cold sensation spread across my chest,

while goosebumps rose near my shoulders.

Even in this situation, my body was honest.

My breath quickened, my vision blurred slightly.

‘…What?’

But Yena’s reaction wasn’t what I expected.

Her hand trembled as if startled, then she pulled it away.

I hated her carefulness, as if afraid of hurting me.

“Why? You like this stuff, don’t you?”

“…No, I don’t.”

“Put it back. What’s wrong?”

“Hayul. Let’s talk tomorrow.”

Panicked, she tried to free her hand from my shoulder, but I gripped it tightly.

“If you pull away, I’ll do it myself.”

“…”

Her expression was one I’d never seen before.

Not the usual playful glint in her eyes.

Complicated.

Half guilt, half satisfaction.

I exhaled sharply and started walking again.

Swoooosh—

In front of the main gate, heavy rain poured down.

Yena immediately let go of my neck as we arrived.

We stood silently beside each other, saying nothing.

‘…What do I do?’

Walking had cooled my anger.

Every time I paused and saw Yena’s uneasy expression, my heart ached.

I’d acted impulsively, but…

I didn’t know how to fix this.

I sighed deeply and stared ahead.

The asphalt was getting drenched by the downpour.

Puddles formed as raindrops splattered.

Watching the ripples, my thoughts grew lighter.

“…”

Honestly… I didn’t even know what I was thinking.

I just said whatever came to mind, and now we were here.

When I glanced back, Yena was staring at the ground, her eyes downcast.

Her worried eyes reflected the raindrops.

Her tightly pressed lips quivered slightly.

She looked pretty like this too, but Yena suited a smile best.

‘Why so sad? What am I supposed to do?’

I missed her usual playful self.

Clearing my throat, I called out to her.

“Ahem, hm.”

“…”

She peeked at me briefly.

If she had animal ears…

They’d probably perk up right now.

The thought was kinda cute.

I quickly wiped away the small smile forming, afraid she’d see.

“Ahem, hmm. Ah, I feel so empty…”

“…?”

‘I know, it’s weird.’

Yena stared at me like she’d seen something she shouldn’t have, then turned away.

‘…Should I try again?’

Let me rephrase.

She’s terrible at taking hints.

What an idiot.

Watching Yena, I spoke again.

“My side feels kinda… cold. Hmm, I wish someone would hug me…”

“…Pfft.”

Yena stifled a laugh.

Success, maybe.

She turned back to face me, her expression now a little relieved.

Meeting her eyes, embarrassment finally hit me.

My fingers curled, the back of my neck tingled.

I stretched my arms out in front of me, posing awkwardly.

My face burned unbearably.

I turned my head away to hide the heat.

Yena just stood there, staring blankly.

“…Hurry up.”

“Ugh… Seriously.”

Tap— A sound like an umbrella hitting the ground.

At the same time, a strong impact hit my front.

“Eek?!”

“…You asked for it.”

“Hehe… I’m not scared at all.”

I didn’t know what I was supposed to brace myself for, but I had already figured out how to control her.

‘Cute…’

This is bad.

They say there’s no hope once you start finding a person cute.

Even though she hugged me so tightly that I worried it might leave marks on my skin, she didn’t seem threatening at all.

Right in front of my eyes, I could see Yena’s collarbone.

I buried my nose into its straight, pretty shape.

Along with the pleasant feeling, the upper part of my chest was pressed against hers.

I pulled back my arms, which had been stretched forward, and wrapped them around her waist.

Swoosh— Swoosh—

Through the fabric, I could feel the firm, straight-outlined erector spinae muscles.

As I let my fingers memorize the texture, she, too, was fiddling near my waist.

Yena slowly moved downward.

She lifted the waistband of my school skirt with her fingertips, then went even lower…

“…Are you kidding me?”

“Sorry.”

“Take your hand out, now.”

“…Just a little longer.”

“…Not here.”

“Then… somewhere else?”

“…I don’t know.”

As soon as she said that, the pressure on my body intensified.

Her fingers, which had been lingering regretfully near my skirt, now moved upward again.

Now, they gently rubbed near my waist.

‘What is this… it’s not like I’m going through puberty.’

This much… I decided to let it slide.

…It’s not like it’ll wear out.

I wonder how much time has passed.

Thinking it was getting a bit dangerous, I whispered softly.

“Let’s stop now and get going.”

“…No.”

She’s not a child. Just throwing a fit won’t make things go her way.

I lightly tapped her waist to urge her.

“Hurry up.”

“…”

“Sigh… It’ll be a problem if the door locks.”

This isn’t like you at all.

No matter how I spoke, Yena didn’t budge an inch.

Of course, I also felt a little reluctant to stop, but her unreasonable stubbornness caught me off guard.

Having no other choice, I used the words I’d been holding back as bait.

“…Let’s finish this at home.”

“Home?”

“My place is a bit small, so… if you really insist— kyaaa?!”

Before I could even finish my sentence, an arm wrapped around under my hips, and my vision lifted upward.

She held me in her arms and started walking just like that.

Thankfully, she didn’t run into the rain, but…

The sudden height change made me uneasy.

“What the—! Put me down! What are you doing all of a sudden?!”

“Hmm… Maybe I should just lock you up and raise you?”

“Put me—huh?”

As I flailed, hitting her shoulders and yelling, my feet soon touched the ground.

‘Huh? She put me down quicker than I expected?’

A moment later, I understood why.

Yena was picking up the umbrella that was right next to us.

“…You carried me just to come here?”

“Your reaction was worth it.”

“…Hmph.”

I couldn’t argue with that.

Thinking back, my reaction was pretty textbook.

Not that I needed to vividly recall this.

I shook my head to clear the embarrassment.

Click—

With the sound of a button pressing, the umbrella opened.

Holding the handle up, Yena looked at me.

“Hand.”

Reflexively, my hand shot out.

Looking at our interlocked hands, I felt complicated emotions.

This isn’t like I’m some kind of pet…

“…Am I a dog or something?”

“You were going to take it anyway. Stop acting coy.”

“…Tch.”

“Whoever raised you trained you well.”

I must be crazy.

In this situation, I should be pushing back strongly.

But somehow, it made sense, so I just nodded.

Plop, plop. Drip, drip.

Listening to the raindrops fiercely hitting the umbrella, we started walking.

This was going more smoothly than expected.

Normally, Yena would have made some sort of demand by now.

“How come you’re not doing that thing?”

“What thing?”

“Like making me say ‘thank you~’ or something.”

“Hmm… I can do that in the main event anyway.”

“The main event?”

“…?”

Yena suddenly widened her eyes at me like I was some kind of strange person.

What the hell. So unsettling.

“Hey. Fix your eyes.”

“You seriously don’t get it?”

“Whatever. I don’t care.”

“…I can’t hold back anymore.”

What does she mean she can’t hold back?

She looked at me with suspicious eyes.

Of course, my response was always the same.

“Whatever, hold it in.”

“I want to touch your chest.”

“No.”

Has she completely lost her mind?

Not even in the classroom, but right out in the open street?

I rejected her immediately and kept walking.

Of course, since Yena was holding the umbrella, I had to stop when she did.

“Just once.”

“Will you shut up?”

“Just once, and I won’t ask for more.”

“Stop talking nonsense… Like I don’t know you? You say ‘just once,’ but you’d keep going until we get home, right? Am I wrong?”

“I never thought that? The real pervert here is—mmpf.”

I didn’t need to hear the rest, so I raised my hand and covered her mouth.

Finally, Yena went quiet.

‘This crazy pervert.’

For some reason, she suddenly closed her eyes and smiled.

“Just walk properly—hiii?! You psycho, hey!”

At the same time, a sticky, warm sensation spread across my palm, making me jerk my hand away in shock.

“You licked me?!”

“Shh, people are staring.”

“W-where… What? No one’s even—ah!”

Startled, I looked around frantically, only for raindrops to hit my eyes.

The moment I realized the umbrella was gone, I ran toward her.

“You…! Hey, wait up!”

“Pfft.”

“…You’re the worst.”

The lingering feeling of saliva on my palm bothered me.

…The fact that I didn’t immediately wipe it off would remain a secret forever.