I hadn't been asleep long when the commotion outside woke me again. What is it?
I threw off the blanket, which was still covering my head, and poked my head out. The door, visible diagonally from the bed, wasn't half-closed but wide open. Sigh... these crazy bastards...
Lying in bed, I listened carefully, and it sounded like they were debating whether to wake me up and feed me. I'm not even hungry; they should just eat themselves.
I couldn't hide my annoyance and fidgeted. Was Park Min-ah gone?
I tried to calm myself, thinking I could turn this crisis into an opportunity, and got out of bed. My head felt heavy. My breath felt a little hot, too.
When I got up from the bed, my head even spun. But this was so routine that I couldn't even tell if I was sick.
As my spinning vision began to settle, I took a step. I was walking slowly towards the bathroom when I suddenly changed direction and went into the dressing room. I wanted to dress nicely to impress Park Min-ah. But it was too much.
"Ah... dizzy."
The words slipped out before I knew it.
Someone grabbed my staggering body with rough hands. I swayed and fell right into the arms of the guy who caught me. I'm tired of even saying it, but I felt as light as a feather.
"Ah..."
A groan escaped my lips. I couldn't even lift my dizzy head and mumbled, clutching the front of the guy's shirt in front of me.
"Dizzy."
I leaned my forehead against his solid chest, panting. It was too painful to be just a hangover... It was a pain I'd never experienced before. Could this really be a hangover?
"Yeoul-ah. Where does it hurt?"
It seemed like Mo Taehee was the one who had come in and snatched me up. His gentle voice was full of worry. Instead of lifting my head, I lowered it further.
"I don't know... just dizzy."
My vision was spinning. My stomach was churning. Would I feel better if I threw up? I trembled, covering my mouth as sour saliva filled it. I had the chills.
"I... I... I think I'm going to throw up..."
I barely managed to lift my head and meet Mo Taehee's eyes. I mumbled in a voice that sounded like I was about to die and with a face that must have been pale. Help me, help me.
A curse word that Mo Taehee would rarely say slipped out of his mouth. I trembled, clutching his clothes, and tried to take a step back. I wondered if I was being too clingy, enough to make him curse.
But the moment I tried to pull away, Mo Taehee pulled me even closer. He buried his nose in my exposed neck and took a deep breath.
I feel like I'm going to throw up, and this bastard is being so clueless. I squirmed and gasped for breath.
"I, I—"
"Just a little bit."
Mo Taehee's arms wrapped around me like a vise. My stomach was so twisted that I counted backwards to calm down. I don't know how many times I went from 10 to 1 until the moment my hand was released.
Unable to bear it any longer, I finally pushed Mo Taehee's shoulder away, and his huge body slowly moved back. What is it... I wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand and covered my mouth, and Mo Taehee immediately put his arm around my shoulder.
"Let's go."
I left the dressing room, almost leaning on Mo Taehee.
I was taken to the bathroom, where I grabbed the toilet and threw up again, emptying my stomach of nothing. A little honey water was followed by yellow stomach acid pouring out.
The sour taste filled my mouth and made me gag again. As I retched and trembled, holding onto the toilet, Mo Taehee bent down and slowly patted my back.
"How can you drink every day when you suffer like this, Yeoul?"
"...Haa... Huh...?"
"Yesterday, you said it was so delicious that you wanted to eat it every day. How could you drink so much when you're so weak?"
I tried to recall the drinking session I couldn't remember. I felt like all the energy had been drained from my body, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't remember. Seo Jaehoon said that if I wanted to remember, I'd have to repeat the same actions, but I didn't have the courage to do that.
My squeezed stomach was so sore and bitter. I wanted to pull my stomach out of my mouth, wash it clean with water, and put it back in.
"I, I... it hurts so much."
The words "it hurts" were sincere. My eyes felt hot for no reason. Was I feeling sorry for myself? I don't know why, but I think I was. Why didn't anyone stop me from drinking like water? Shit...
I sniffled and wiped the tears from my eyes with the back of my hand, then grabbed the toilet with trembling hands. Mo Taehee, who had been sitting behind me, quickly noticed my movements and lifted me up, hugging me around the waist. In a suggestive pose.
Is this what they call a back hug...? Haa... I felt like cursing, but I was too exhausted, so the curse seemed to be stuck in my throat.
I stood up, leaning on the sink, and checked in the mirror to see what we looked like. Ah... really.
I moved my hand from the sink and grabbed Mo Taehee's arm, which was wrapped around my waist.
"Taehee..."
"Yeah, Yeoul."
"Let go of this... let go..."
"I think you'll fall if I let go."
Even if I fall, I'll fall on my own, so let go. The pose was so suggestive that my neck turned red. The me in the mirror looked like he was embarrassed. But that wasn't it.
"Tae, Taehee."
"Yeoul-ah."
"Uh-huh...?"
"I bought something to cure your hangover."
Mo Taehee said these ridiculous things in such a suggestive pose. I get it, so let go... please. My body flinched at the lips touching my ear. My stomach was still churning, and Mo Taehee was making it churn even more.
My face was flushed. The lips that intentionally touched and fell away from my ear were clearly visible in the mirror.
"Hngh..."
A suggestive sound escaped my throat as well.
Mo Taehee kept calling my name. Yeoul, Yeoul. Goosebumps rose all over my body. My body trembled spasmodically at the low voice echoing in the bathroom. And there was something else that added to my trembling, which was Mo Taehee's hard center touching my waist.
"Let go... please let go... Why are you doing this, really?"
I think I was sniffling. These bastards were all crazy. My body trembled aimlessly.
Mo Taehee's body, which had been hugging me, slowly fell away thanks to Park Min-ah, who burst into the bathroom. My life... shit... timing is the most important thing...
"Yeoul! Food... food... What are you guys... doing?"
Park Min-ah, who had opened the bathroom door with a friendly face, quickly hardened her expression at the suggestive pose of me and Mo Taehee in front of her. Yeah, she must be embarrassed.
Her dark eyes, looking back and forth between me and Mo Taehee, were shaking. I'd misunderstand too. This was definitely a pose that would lead to misunderstandings.
"Haa... No."
I stopped trying to explain. I didn't have the strength.
"Yeoul was about to fall."
"...What?"
"He's so weak. He couldn't come to his senses because of the hangover, and he just threw up."
"Ah—Ah, is that so? Oh dear, what should I do? Yeoul-ah, are you okay?"
Worry filled her big eyes. Park Min-ah quickly accepted Mo Taehee's words. Perhaps her flushed but pale face gave strength to Mo Taehee's excuse.
I closed my parted lips and bit them. Instead of answering, I nodded. The hand holding the sink was still trembling.
"I... I'm going to wash up."
"I'll help you."
"I'll do it myself, Taehee. Go eat with Min-ah first."
Then I mumbled, "Thank you," softly.
I realized for the first time here how much those meaningless thank yous and apologies make a person miserable.
I smiled faintly and met Mo Taehee's eyes in the mirror. Just go, really. I said that with my eyes. Hoping he would understand.
Mo Taehee also smiled faintly. Only his lips were curved. His cold eyes still looked at me like he was going to devour me.
"Min-ah is waiting. Go eat. I'll be there soon... I'll be there soon."
I mumbled in a voice that didn't have a single ounce of strength.
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