The soft sensation on my lips felt unfamiliar. So did the sudden whiff of cosmetics. My body reacted instinctively, flinching and trembling in refusal.
It was the moment I managed to lift my heavy eyelids, glaring, and grabbed her slender shoulders to push her away. F*cking life… the timing was always shitty enough to make me curse.
Through my distorted vision, the three who came in clearly were looking at my pathetic state with dumbfounded expressions.
I finally managed to pull the lips off of mine. As I wiped my wet lips with the back of my hand, Han Seoyun, who had kissed me, met my eyes with a “what's wrong?” expression. What is this… right now. What is this situation.
The three who had opened the door stood side-by-side, and Han Seoyun grabbed my hand and started to speak.
“Oppa, what's wrong?”
“…Huh?”
“You asked me to kiss you.”
'I did? What is she talking about….' As drunk as I was, I tried to replay my actions in my spinning head. I was so drunk, my mind and vision were just a distorted mess… she says I asked for it?
“Ha Yeoul.”
My body flinched instinctively at the low voice coming from nearby. Still wiping my lips with the back of my hand, I lifted my head.
Ah…. I had a feeling I was f*cked, and my mind started to flicker to black. 'If I lose consciousness here, I'm really f*cked.'
I tried my best to snap my eyes open, but my damn body, as if to spite me, colored my vision black.
F*cking life. It was a blackout.
***
I was on someone's back. My body bobbed at a steady rhythm.
I considered opening my eyes, but I was still so dizzy that I just pretended to be asleep. From the side, I could occasionally hear faint sighs and curses being spat out.
Passing the main entrance, riding the elevator, and entering the apartment, the only sound was footsteps.
I wondered why they were all being like this, but the thought didn't last long. It seemed I wasn't fully conscious yet, as my mind kept flickering.
I heard the front door close, and one of my housemates carrying me seemed to be walking towards my room. Probably.
It was a familiar route… hmm…? This wasn't the way… shit.
I buried my head in the nape of the person carrying me and squinted my eyes open to see ahead. I thought it was a familiar direction, but it was the complete opposite. Against my will, I was taken into one of their rooms.
This bastard carrying me didn't put me in my room, but instead laid me down straight on his own bed. With the most careful touch in the world, he took off the shoes on my feet and covered me with a blanket.
Feeling the blanket up to my chest, I tried to hold onto my fading consciousness, but as always, my mind drifted away against my will, pulling me into a deep sleep.
And when I woke up again….
“Ah….”
The hangover… was intense. I was held tightly in someone's arms, unable to move, and just groaned. The smell of alcohol reeked from my breath. The stench of breath, as if I'd been pickled in alcohol, was so disgusting it made my stomach churn, but the arms holding me tight wouldn't let go.
“Ah… hey, I….”
I covered my mouth and my body heaved. I twisted in the embrace, glared at the chest where I could only see a white t-shirt, and finally removed my hand from my mouth to tap the other person's shoulder.
“Let me go… Ah, I'm gonna thr—”
The words wouldn't come out properly. Let me go…! I barely swallowed the sour saliva pooling in my mouth and just repeated, “Le—let go.”
At my urgent voice, the arms holding me finally loosened. I shot up, finally free, only to comically fall flat on my face again. Right, if I could get up properly in one go, it wouldn't be my body. I overestimated my body too much.
Lying face down on the bed, I blinked a few times as my vision flickered to black. Confirming that my vision had returned, albeit blurry, I moved my upper body. With trembling arms, I pushed against the sheets and strained to sit up. And then.
“Ha Yeoul.”
A low, sunken voice echoed from behind me. But I had no time to worry about that. I'd be lucky if I didn't throw up on the bed right now.
The guy lying next to me, had he not noticed my condition at all? This clueless…. I turned my head to identify the owner of the bed. Right, it's this bastard.
Nam Kangwoo, who had slightly propped himself up, had an incredibly menacing look on his face for some reason, and I didn't know why. 'Why is he staring at me like that, so scary.' His cold eyes scanned every part of my face. 'What is it, why is he acting like that… ah, but my stomach….'
“Ugh…!”
I instinctively covered my mouth as I dry-heaved. I could never do something like puking on the sensitive and cold Nam Kangwoo's bed. Nam Kangwoo, finally seeming to realize my urgent situation, moved faster than I'd ever seen him. He threw off the blanket and wrapped an arm around my shoulders.
'Right, get me, quickly, to the bathroom….'
I kept my mouth firmly covered and listed out words. Short words like “bathroom” or “puke.”
Nam Kangwoo somehow understood the muffled words coming from my covered mouth. He carefully helped me up and then exited the room with not-so-careful, quick steps.
My vision distorted and shook uncontrollably. Instead of walking on my own, my body moved as Nam Kangwoo held and guided it. On the way to the bathroom, I dry-heaved several times, my back convulsing.
I really didn't want to… but I think I dry-heaved onto Nam Kangwoo's neck. Every time my hot, humid breath spread across his neck, Nam Kangwoo flinched.
Yeah, if it were me… I'd do the same. It must be disgusting. Worried about what if I actually throw up.
“Haaah… huh—”
The smell of alcohol on my breath was nauseating. I thought I could handle my liquor pretty well, but it seemed I was always a mess the day after drinking. Goddammit.
A long, elegant hand opened the bathroom door wide and sat me down in front of the toilet. Instead of a thank you, I grabbed the toilet and emptied my stomach as if to pull out everything inside.
Clear liquid trickled out, followed by a gush of yellow stomach acid.
Nam Kangwoo sat down behind me, let out a long breath, and patted my back at a steady rhythm. My body trembled with each pat. I kept dry-heaving, but I must have thrown up everything because nothing more came out. Only thick saliva dribbled out in a long string.
“Haaah… ugh….”
A groaning sound escaped my lips, and at that, Nam Kangwoo let out deep sighs. Really… it was like sitting on pins and needles. I wished he would just leave.
A long string of saliva hung from between my lips. I barely lifted my strengthless hand and wiped my sticky, wet lips. A hand from behind me pressed the lever firmly, flushing away the mess in the toilet bowl.
“Ha Yeoul.”
“…Yeah….”
“Are you okay?”
'This bastard… does he think just raising the end of his sentence makes it a question….' My body shook at the low voice in the already echoing bathroom. I was really not okay at all, but I instinctively nodded as if I were.
Nam Kangwoo wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me back. Even with this small movement, my head throbbed. Damn it….
Nam Kangwoo helped me up, stood me in front of the sink, and helped me rinse my mouth several times.
“What do you remember?”
The low voice echoed. I wanted to retort, “What's there to remember?”, but as always, instead of a spirited reply, I just muttered a small “no” and shook my head.
As if bewildered by my answer and head shake, Nam Kangwoo let out a scoff, “Huh.” Yeah, it must be bewildering. But I really don't remember anything. I felt like I could understand his incredulous reaction a hundred times over, so I found myself muttering an apology.
“I'm… I'm sorry. Yesterday I….”
“I told you I'd come to pick you up.”
“…That's.”
“You said you'd wait.”
I lifted my tilted head and met Nam Kangwoo's eyes. His terrifyingly dark, sunken eyes were focused solely on me.
“That's… Kangwoo….”
I fumbled, moving my lips as if to make an excuse, but my head was a complete mess, so I just kept repeating a stupid “that's, that's.”
“Wash up and come out. You'd better have a proper explanation.”
Nam Kangwoo moved irritably, then looked over my state, still clinging to the sink, and reached out to turn my body around. It was a contradictory action. Just looking at him, his irritation was immense, but his touch on me was incredibly careful.
What Park Chanmin said flashed through my mind.
“Sometimes I think I understand why the sunbaes treat you like a glass bead in their hands.”
It was as if they had all made a promise. Whenever, at any moment they touched me, it was like this. As careful as if they were touching a glass bead in their hand.
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