The Guy Next Door to the Heroine

9 – You’re Trying to Do Something Naughty, Right!

Cheongyi’s glaring eyes expressed her annoyance, but for a moment, I turned to look at Yuhwa standing next to her. Yuhwa, sharing an awkward smile, tried to pacify Cheongyi.

“We shouldn’t do that.”

“Mom is really weird. She’s also aged, um…!”

“Hey, what are you talking about?”

Cheongyi, about to say something, stopped as if struck by lightning. What just happened?

“I’ll keep an eye on you!”

“Uh… okay. Come in first.”

“Sorry. Well, she’s worried about Mom going into Mr.’s house.”

“It seems so. I’ve prepared peanuts and warmed-up squid. But do you like pasta with beer?”

“Pasta with beer…? I’m not sure, but I might like it?”

The combination is somewhat ambiguous. Fortunately, she doesn’t seem to dislike pasta.

“That’s a relief.”

Even if it’s prepared in advance, it’s food – it will be eaten somehow. But I prefer that someone enjoys it.

“I won’t open a restaurant though. Absolutely not.”

“You made this, Siwon?!”

“Cooking is a hobby, so I make it from time to time.”

Enjoying delicious food is one of the joys of life, I believe.

“You’re quite good!”

Kim Cheong, surprised by the neatly presented pasta, freezes and then makes a fuss, claiming it’s too fancy.

“You’ve changed your character.”

“Uh!”

Well, she came to watch over me, finding my home. She’s succumbing to the temptation of food, her eyes drooping with sleepiness.

“Did you work too hard? Worried about Mom.”

“You should also come and have a bowl.”

“Me…? But there are only two bowls…”

Cheongyi, swallow your saliva before you speak. Even while speaking, saliva is flowing.

“There are two? It clearly serves three.”

If I shake the plate out of Cheongyi’s sight, my omnipotent ability doubles it.

“…!”

Yuhwa, who witnessed it, widened her eyes, but she knows enough, right?

A wink from a man is useful, but now I am handsome enough to deserve it.

…That was a stretch.

Anyway, when I winked, Yuhwa, blushing, nodded.

“Uh… was there only two?”

Rubbing her eyes and repeatedly opening and closing them, Cheongyi gives up.

Even while rubbing her eyes, she was automatically walking toward me.

She’s so straightforward and cute.

“I don’t like seafood, so I only added bacon and Vienna sausages. If it’s uncomfortable, let me know. I’ll consider your preferences next time.”

“Next, next time again?”

Cheongyi, honestly, let’s wipe our mouths a bit.

“Ms. Yuhwa, how does it taste?”

“Ms. Yuhwa? Ms…?!”

Ignoring Cheongyi, who was struck by lightning again, let’s eat. She’ll recover while eating.

“It’s so delicious. Even Italian restaurants didn’t have this flavor… You’re really amazing.”

“Amazing?”

“Ah, I mean it’s delicious…”

Let’s drink beer. Opening the can, pouring it into a beer glass, a beer with adequate foam is prepared.

“Here, have some beer with it. I’m not confident it will pair well though.”

“Uh… It seems to pair better than I thought.”

Gulp, gulp. Watching Yuhwa sipping her beer, I was about to drink mine.

“Uh… me too, please!”

A wild Cheongyi appeared.

Fight, pet monster, Ms. Yuhwa, bag.

Somehow the choices became weird.

“You’re still in 11th grade. What’s an 11th grader doing drinking alcohol?”

“Kids these days drink alcohol too!”

“Um, what should we do?”

Considering today’s struggles, a drink might be okay, but ultimately, the choice was up to Cheong’s conscience.

Pray, little one! Glancing at Yuhwa with that feeling.

“Just one drink, only one, okay?”

“Yes!!”

She danced in joy. She’s happy.

“Do you usually ask for it too?”

“She often does… On a rainy day, after having a drink, she comes out and asks if she can drink too.”

“Well, when we’re young, we’re all like that, aren’t we?”

“You’re still young too! You’re young!”

“Me? Is 28 young? I’m practically a tray of eggs, how is that young?”

“Huh…? Why are you 28 with that face? Are you scamming us?!”

“You can’t drink. You’re already drunk, and you haven’t even had a sip.”

“I’m not drunk!”

But why are your eyes spinning.

Yuhwa quietly smiling, me looking dumbfounded, and Cheongyi, insistent on drinking.

“Alright, have a drink.”

Eventually, I poured her a drink. And she gulped it down eagerly.

“Puhah! Why do you drink this tasteless stuff?”

“Ms. Yuhwa, she’s drunk, isn’t she?”

“Our Cheongyi shouldn’t drink.”

“That’s right. But it’s good to know now.”

That’s why adults should teach about alcohol. If they drink among themselves and something happens, it can’t be managed.

“Hehic, the world is spinning!”

“Anyone would think you drank a whole can of beer.”

Yuhwa, covering her mouth, couldn’t stop laughing. And me, subtly smiling, watching the scene.

The drinking session seemed to end quite peacefully.

Until I saw Cheongyi, biting a squid leg, staggering towards me, chewing it.

“Mr. Siwon!”

“Huh? Cheongya, why?”

“Mr. Siwon, you’re trying to do something naughty, right!”

“Uh…?”

What on earth is she talking about?

I hurriedly gestured at Yuhwa, but she seemed on the verge of passing out, evidently not a lie that she hadn’t drunk in a long time.

No, she drank four cans of beer.

You said your limit was around three cans…! We’re not at that point in our relationship yet!

“M-mom! Even I can see it’s s*xy!”

“Pffft!”

Momentarily baffled, I burst out laughing so hard I spat out my drink. I need a camera! I need a camera!

Pausing momentarily, I grabbed my smartphone, started recording, and released the pause.

“Really, so pretty! And… pretty! And… s*xy!”

Does she know what she’s saying? I bet she doesn’t. Wow, this is a shot of a lifetime.

“You’re trying to do something naughty, aren’t you!!”

“Not really…”

“That, that, then! Surely not me?! I’m not bad, but…! It’s too soon to do, that, that kind of stuff!”

Plop, Cheong collapses, her head bowed. Then suddenly lifts her head.

“You’re trying to do a mother-daughter bowl, right?!”

Upon hearing this, I spat out my drink for the second time. For a moment, I thought I heard wrong and looked at Cheong, whose drunken, sleepy eyes stared back at me.

This must have been an unconscious utterance. Meaning, she usually watches

that sort of thing.

“Wow… impressive, Kim Cheong. So you watch that kind of stuff.”

Cheong’s preference was pupils. It’s been two months since I quit watching pupils.

I checked that the recording went well and tossed my smartphone. Her preference was surprisingly unexpected. Impressive, Kim Cheong! She’ll sob when she sees her smartphone tomorrow morning.

The impressive thing about Cheong is secondary, a little problem has arisen. Cheong, having said “mother-daughter bowl,” passed out, and Yuhwa also passed out, so I can’t take her home.

“Just lay them in the main room.”

I lifted Cheong and laid her on the bed. I also lifted Yuhwa and laid her on the bed. I covered them with a blanket up to their necks, turned on the boiler, turned off the lights, and closed the door.

There wasn’t much cleaning up to do.

Because they were all things I’d prepared in advance, I just shoved them into the food waste disposal and rinsed them with water to finish the dishes.

A miraculous ability where oil and things don’t even stick.

Anyway, it’s finished.

I lay sprawled on the comfy sofa and conditionally paused.

If there’s a shock or 4 hours pass, the pause will be released, and I paused my consciousness.

It’s as if I stopped a crash in space. Not that feeling, but it’s my own way of sleeping.

I don’t need rest, I don’t accumulate stress. So, I don’t need to sleep, but I sleep because I feel like I have too much time.

What about Eltube? When I finish watching videos, there’s nothing left to watch. I’ve searched for old ones too. Rather than waiting for irregular videos to upload, waking up and seeing a Christmas present like a little kid feels better.

So, for that reason, I paused my consciousness.

“…?”

I seemed to wake up earlier than I thought. I set an alarm for 7 o’clock and slept, but it felt like I woke up before the alarm rang. Moreover, the unexplained weight and softness on my body…

“Ms. Yuhwa.”

With certainty, I called Yuhwa’s name and opened my eyes.

Startled, Yuhwa, who was on top of me, flinched. What was she trying to do? No need to think. The answer is clear.

Uh… think pure thoughts, pure thoughts.

“I’m sorry, I woke you up.”

No, the problem isn’t waking me up, it’s that you’re on top of me?!

“Siwon.”

Yuhwa, with an unusually misty gaze, looked like she could cry at any moment.

“What’s wrong?”

“Just, I got a bit down…”

Why did she get down? As me, there’s some situation I don’t know. I’ve heard some of it, but there’s not much I can do for her. So what I can do is…

“If you don’t like it, say so.”

I hugged her trembling body and lay down on the sofa. The body that was sitting down also lay down, pressing on me. I could feel her body, seemingly slim yet softly plush. She didn’t particularly use perfume, but a strangely addictive scent, a sweet azalea fragrance, lingered.

“We won’t rush. We have lots of time. So Yuhwa, rest a bit.”

She ran too hard. A hero, a superhuman, but only a C-class. Her mentality isn’t significantly different from an ordinary person.

I haven’t heard all the circumstances… but she lost her family to villains and lost her husband.

And today, she said she almost died herself, speaking slowly, slowly, in a calm atmosphere. Her talking like that was…

If I hug her now, she’ll surely be sad.

I can’t help but hold back a little, I’m not so impatient as to hurt, and I’m not foolish.

If I wait, she’ll eventually come to me.

But why did things turn out like this…