Bamboo Forest Manager - Chapter 338



Chewy

Whatever it was, Choi Jin-ah ended up staying in my room.

I wondered if she could just go to Yoo Ah-rin’s house, but thinking it through, that would mean stepping outside eventually.

In fact, when I looked outside, I saw people in black suits waiting.

For now, it seemed best that Choi Jin-ah didn’t go out.

“Mom, I think I’ll sleep at a friend’s house. Who? It’s Lee Seo, our class president.”

With that, it was only natural that Yoo Ah-rin had to join us.

I couldn’t just let another girl sleep in my boyfriend’s room, after all.

It was a dorm, but as long as we didn’t get caught, what did it matter?

There were actually quite a few guys who brought their girlfriends over to sleep.

“Okay, okay, got it. No, what are you talking about? Hang up.”

Yoo Ah-rin’s expression darkened immediately after she ended the call.

“Ugh, I feel like I’m going to throw up.”

It seemed a bit strange to react like that after talking to her parents.

But hearing the rest made it somewhat understandable.

“She said she’s so glad she can spend time with Dad since I’m not around.”

“……You have a good relationship with them, huh? They were traveling again last time.”

“She asked if I have any plans to move out. I’m really scared I might end up with a younger sibling who’s twenty years younger.”

That would indeed be a bit frightening.

I couldn’t imagine my mom and dad doing such things, and I didn’t want to imagine it either.

“You really get along well with your parents.”

Choi Jin-ah sat on the blanket spread on the floor, looking intrigued.

Thanks to the carrier, I was already changed into my pajamas.

From noble mtl dot com

“Well, it’s not bad.”

Yu Ah-rin replied awkwardly, having heard a bit about Choi Jin-ah’s family situation.

Though Yu Ah-rin’s parents were somewhat excessive, they still seemed like an ideal family in her eyes.

When I visited home last time, it felt just a bit better than the average in South Korea, perhaps?

Not abundant, but one could say there was no lack.

“Are you envious?”

As Yu Ah-rin glanced at Choi Jin-ah and asked, she scratched the floor of the blanket awkwardly in response.

“Um, honestly, I’m not sure. I can’t even imagine having conversations with my parents like that.”

The image of a harmonious family didn’t come to mind at all.

Isn’t that a rather sad thing to say in its own right?

“For now, I think I need to break free from this passive life. After that, something will change.”

Choi Jin-ah clenched her fist in determination. Suddenly, a question arose in my mind.

“What about your mother?”

I had met her father, but I had never heard anything about her mother.

“My mother is… well, she’s separated. It was an arranged marriage, and after I was born, they hardly saw each other.”

“…….”

Yu Ah-rin glared at me as if to ask why I had brought it up.

“Shall we order some chicken and beer? We can’t go out anyway.”

“Can we even order chicken at this hour?”

Being in a dorm, delivery options were somewhat limited.

“Or how about the person who loses the bet goes to get it?”

As I suggested this, both Yu Ah-rin and Choi Jin-ah stared at me intently.

“But Jin-ah can’t go out.”

Yu Ah-rin’s firm resolve not to leave me alone with Choi Jin-ah was clear.

Thinking about it, I realized I was the only one who could actually go…

“Let’s just not eat it.”

I tried to brush it off out of laziness, but perhaps because we had already mentioned chicken, the two of them looked disappointed.

In the end, I set out to buy chicken.

Once I stepped out of the university, there were plenty of chicken places nearby, so I planned to place a takeout order and sneak it back in my bag.

“Going to college is such a hassle.”

Living in the dorms, I really despise this kind of thing.

The campus is vast, and it feels like an eternity just to step out; the distance from the shoe rack to the front door stretches endlessly.

The men in black suits who were watching Jin-ah are now glaring at me as I step outside.

They must have already guessed that I’m with Choi Jin-ah.

“Oh dear, you all must be having a tough time.”

“…….”

“Shall I bring you some drinks on my way back? I’ll be staying in the dorm anyway, so you might as well give up.”

They can’t do anything to me anyway, so I mockingly tease them as I prepare to leave.

“Woo-jin-ah!”

The voice of Senior Joo-hee calls out from behind me.

She approaches, sweating in her workout clothes, as if she’s just finished exercising.

“Senior? Are you jogging at this hour?”

“Yeah, I find that if I run a bit and then study, I can concentrate better.”

“That’s impressive.”

“Where are you off to?”

“I’m going to get some chicken. Want to join?”

“…….”

I add a little nudge as she hesitates for a moment.

“Let’s have some beer too. With exams coming up, it’s a bit awkward to drink later, don’t you think?”

“Well, that’s true—”

She seems a bit regretful about her workout.

But honestly, I think someone like her could just indulge without a care.

“Senior, you’re in great shape anyway. I saw you had abs the last time.”

“Hmm, yeah. I don’t really follow a strict diet; I just don’t eat because I don’t want to waste money.”

As expected, she’s a penny-pincher.

Even though she must have made a decent amount working as a bodyguard over the break, she still saves diligently.

“Well then, you go ahead. I’ll get enough for both of us.”

“No, it’s fine. I’ll go with you.”

“……Is it because of those guys?”

Still, the black suits watch me.

Senior Juhui doesn’t answer, but her gaze sharpens, filled with questions.

“Those are Jinah’s bodyguards, right? I saw them when we fought last time.”

“Yes, that’s right. They’ve come to capture Jinah.”

“Ah, I see—”

Her words falter, a hesitant reply caught in her throat.

Then she grips my shoulder, her hold so tight it stings.

“Just to be sure, is Jinah in your room right now?”

“Yes, she can’t escape; she’s in my room.”

The moment those words leave my mouth, her expression darkens.

I force a smile, trying to ease her worry.

“Hey, don’t think anything strange. Yuarin is there too. You don’t need to worry.”

“Yuarin?”

Her face grows even more troubled.

I realize, as the words slip out, that my connection with Juhui began because of Yuarin.

“……”

“……”

A silence settles between us.

With a faint sigh, she warns me.

“You know you’re in a very dangerous combination right now, don’t you?”

“I really have no intention of that. Didn’t you feel it when we were together? I was holding back as much as I could.”

“……That was holding back?”

“Just a little, well… I did exert some strength because I wanted to see you lose—”

What kind of conversation is this?

“Senior, wait a moment. I think we should talk about something else.”

“I… I agree.”

Look at how red her face has turned.

Not Juhui the leader, but Juhui the flustered.

“Something else. What could there be…?”

As I start to ponder, all that comes to mind are the moments I shared with Juhui.

—

“Don’t think of the elephant,” they say, yet the elephant keeps surfacing, as if it were a curse.

I recall there was a term for this, something professional, but it slipped my mind.

“Ha, damn.”

I was about to apologize to my senior, my hands cradling my face.

But my senior, maintaining a composed expression, replied firmly.

“Woojina, I was working as a bodyguard back then.”

“…What?”

“In other words, to alleviate the client’s discomfort and to carry out the instructions I received from the vice president.”

I wanted to ask what kind of bodyguard would handle such matters, but—

It felt as if the wall of reasons my senior had built would crumble if I did.

Right now, my senior seemed almost obsessively hypnotizing themselves.

“What we did was not shameful in the slightest. It was not private; it was entirely public.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah, so don’t feel embarrassed. I’m fine with it.”

“…”

“Rather, the more you try to force it away, the more it comes back. Just think of it like basketball or soccer.”

Is that how it is?

Now, I strangely feel myself being drawn into my senior’s perspective.

“So there’s no need to feel awkward, nor to force yourself to speak.”

“I see.”

It felt as if I had crossed some invisible boundary.

The parts between my senior and me that should not be touched were crumbling, and I felt a newfound closeness.

Nodding, I gave my senior a thumbs-up.

“By the way, your butt looks really nice.”

“…”

My senior’s expression stiffened for a moment, but they laughed it off awkwardly.

“Woojina, you’ve been working out too, haven’t you?”

“Right? My body’s pretty solid, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, not bad at all.”

“But you, senior, you really have a great body too! You have muscles but still look feminine?”

—

“Is that… so?”

“Yes, back then, I thought your skin was just slightly tanned, like you had oiled up. I couldn’t help but lick my lips when I saw your abs.”

“…….”

“Oh, I remember how you reacted back then. You were like, ‘Why would you lick such a place?’”

“…….”

“Surprisingly, your stamina isn’t that great, huh? I could go a bit longer—”

“Enough already, you b*stard!”

The senior’s low kick landed squarely.

“Ow!?”

I can honestly say I’ve never felt a kick this painful in my life.

I dropped to my knees, hands bracing against the ground.

If I hadn’t, I would have toppled over completely.

“C-Come on, you need to hold back a bit!”

“You said to think of it like soccer or basketball, so I just—”

“Do you really think that’s possible?! I-I was just saying that to brush it off!”

“C-Could you at least help me up? I think my leg’s broken.”

“It’s not broken that badly.”

Even as he said that, my senior helped me up. After a moment, I felt a bit better.

“Ahem, I’ll just stop talking now.”

“……Right.”

Now that we were actually talking, it seemed like he was lost in thought again.

Anyway, we went to the store, picked up some chicken, and bought beer at the convenience store.

There was no conversation as we walked.

It felt like the awkwardness had multiplied because of what just happened.

Just as we crossed the university’s main gate, Senior Juhui finally spoke up, as if the topic had just come to him.

“Tell Arin and Jina to sleep in my room. It’ll be more comfortable for them.”

“…….”

“…….”

A brief silence hung in the air.

Choi Jin-ah didn’t mind being taken along, but did they really have to bring Yoo Ah-rin too?

The low kick from Senior Joo-hee still throbbed in my mind, so I simply nodded.

Silence fell again.

I pondered whether I should have tried to continue the conversation with that earlier topic.

“Phew, Woo-jin-ah.”

Suddenly, Senior Joo-hee stopped in her tracks.

I, having passed her, turned to look back.

“Yes?”

“Um, can I really… just ask you one thing?”

“Of course. Honestly, I felt so awkward I thought I might die.”

“Ha.”

The atmosphere lightened a bit.

If she was asking like that, it must be something serious, I thought.

Still, it didn’t seem right for us to just keep our mouths shut and go off to tear into some chicken.

“Remember that time we…?”

But what came from her lips was the same topic as before.

Was she feeling bold enough to strike while the iron was hot?

I expected her to clarify things, but instead, she covered her face with both hands and asked,

“Did you like it?”

“…What?”

Caught off guard by such a sudden question, I must have looked dazed, prompting her to turn away and add, almost as an excuse,

“Oh, no. It was just that it was my first time, you know… So I was a bit… um, worried, and I wondered if it was okay—”

Ah.

Suddenly, memories flooded back.

Spending the first night with Yoon-ji.

The day we became a man and a woman.

“Y-Yoon-ji, was it okay?”

Now, such a question seemed somewhat childish, even clueless.

But back then, I was restless, fearing I might have made some mistake.

—

You must feel the same way, senior.

It’s impressive that you’ve held back from asking until now.

Because I deeply empathized with your heart.

I smiled to reassure and answered honestly.

“It was damn thrilling.”

“…….”

“It was so delicious.”

“…….”