My Japanese Childhood Friend Is Too Flirty - Chapter 45



44. We spent the night, but we’re still the same.

Morning.

My eyelids reflexively peeled open.

Just woken up, my head’s still in a fog…

“……Ah.”

I want to sleep more.

That urge hit me hard, and I vaguely felt something strangely soft and fluffy pressed against my body.

What could this squishy, smooth thing be?

Still half-asleep, I blinked slowly, eyelids heavy, and started to piece together what was going on.

I’m lying on my side in my room, on my bed.

And there’s something in front of me, something that’s giving off this oddly fragrant, nice smell.

How do I put it? It feels strangely sweet, like a smell that makes you feel good just by inhaling it…

Without thinking, I sniffled.

“……Mmm.”

And then it hit me.

What I was smelling was my childhood friend’s scent.

I was asleep, holding my childhood friend in my arms.

‘Why is she in my room…’

The question barely even formed.

The events of yesterday flooded back into my head, piece by piece.

Aki, coming to our house to cook dinner, the condoms in the plastic bag, the beer I mistook for a soft drink, Aki’s drunken ramblings, the promise of cosplay, the fee I paid for it…

If you measured it in time, it couldn’t have been even 12 hours, but so many things had really happened in that short span.

Muttering to myself, I carefully examined Aki’s face nestled in my arms.

“Uh, uh…”

“……”

Aki was breathing softly in her sleep, sound asleep.

We fell asleep mid-kiss, so she must have dozed off around the same time as me, but the fact that she’s still asleep tells me she must have been unbelievably tired.

‘Well, her tolerance is half a can of beer, and she drank almost one and a half cans…’

It’s probably only natural that she’s exhausted.

I carefully reached out and checked the time on my phone.

[AM 6 : 15]

Much earlier than my 7 AM alarm.

I could definitely sleep longer, and in fact, I could close my eyes and drift off immediately, but…

Falling asleep right now felt like such a waste of the sight before me.

It’s not often I get to see Aki completely out of it, asleep.

‘The last time I saw this was almost a year ago, maybe…’

Aki and I are close, but we’re still a guy and a girl, so our parents don’t easily let us sleep in the same bed when they’re around, you know?

So, we only ever sleep together, sneaking around, when they’re out of the house, but since they came back from Jeju Island last year, they haven’t been gone for more than a day, so we haven’t been able to.

“……”

It sounds weird to say I slept avoiding her gaze.

But it absolutely wasn’t like that. I literally just slept. Just sleep, for real.

…Anyway.

“Mm…”

She’s so sound asleep, like she wouldn’t even know if someone carried her away.

‘She really sleeps hard…’

She’s so sharp when it comes to housework, but then she gets so defenseless like this when she sleeps, it kinda makes her look cute.

Thinking about how I wouldn’t see this if her parents were home, it feels kinda welcome, and also strange…

While having these useless thoughts, I suddenly looked down at Aki’s cheek.

Her right cheek, puffed up to a cute little size.

It looked so soft and squishy, like it would pop if I poked it.

‘Should I poke it…?’

I want to poke it, just once.

But, what if I disturb her sleep?

‘Poke it, or not…’

I agonized all alone.

Unable to resist my curiosity, I *tap* poked it.

“……Uuung!”

Then, the corner of Aki’s mouth twitched, and a weird sound escaped.

Startled by that, I quickly pulled my finger back, but *flash*.

Aki’s eyes flickered open.

“…Ujoo~chan?”

“……”

Thump-thump.

My heart started to beat fast.

Seeing Aki’s face this close was unfamiliar, and I was also uneasy wondering if she’d caught me poking her cheek.

“What time is it…?”

“It’s 6:15, but….”

“Uh-huh, I see…. *haaahm*.”

Aki yawned cutely, her mouth opening just a little.

Judging by her reaction, she didn’t seem to realize I’d woken her by poking her cheek.

‘Phew, that’s a relief…’

Aki’s sleep is surprisingly sensitive. I shouldn’t touch her while she’s sleeping from now on.

“Are you tired? Do you want to sleep more?”

“No, I’ll get up. Once I wake up, I can’t fall back asleep….”

I knew Aki’s lifestyle habits well enough, but I asked just in case, and as expected, the answer I’d anticipated came back.

I suppressed my desire to sleep more and sat up, following Aki.

“Haaahm….”

As if just having woken up, she yawned again, her eyes still full of sleepiness.

“Aki, did you sleep well?”

“Mmm… Did you sleep well, Uju~chan?”

“I slept well too.”

“Heh, really? That’s a relief.”

“……”

Watching Aki, who had just woken up, I had this thought inside me.

If.

If, really if.

If Aki and I ended up living together, and our daily routine became waking up and sleeping together in the same bed, wouldn’t the morning scene then feel exactly like this morning?

Holding each other close, sleeping soundly, then waking up at some point, meeting eyes, exchanging a good morning, and then smiling lightly. Something like that.

‘…I think I’m getting ahead of myself.’

On the other hand, it also felt like a not-so-distant future, maybe something that would happen soon.

And it’s not like Aki and I haven’t been childhood friends for 11 years already.

Always sticking together like this, now we’ve become so empty when we’re not around each other.

If we get a little older like this. Hmm. Then living together might really not be a dream.

Of course, living together with the same relationship as childhood friends now wouldn’t make sense.

In some form or another, the relationship would have to progress…

“Ugh, I’m tired… I need to wake up. Uju~chan, do you want breakfast? Should I make it for you?”

“Ah, yeah. I’d appreciate that.”

“Okay. I’ll make breakfast, so Uju~chan, go wash up.”

“Okay, then I’ll go first…”

“Ah, wait a sec!”

“Huh? Why?”

“Before you go, you gotta pay for the morning’s cooking, right?”

“Morning… cooking fee?”

“The cooking fee is… a good morning kiss from you to me, Universe~chan!”

“……”

If we really do start living together.

I wish every day could be just like today.

“……Okay?”

“……Heheh.”

I wished it with all my heart.

* * *

On the bus to school.

Maybe because we woke up way earlier than usual, even after we showered, ate, and chatted about all sorts of stuff, we still had some time to spare before school started.

But, like buses during the commute rush hour always are, it was packed with office workers and students, and there were no empty seats to be found.

“Hey? There’s a seat over there.”

…Or so I thought, there was actually one empty seat near the middle of the bus.

Since the two of us were the only ones standing, I thought we were lucky and, without thinking twice, I took Aki with me and headed over.

“Sit here, Aki.”

“Huh? Aren’t you gonna sit down, Universe~chan?”

Get fed till morning and then not offer up a bus seat? That ain’t human. That’s something wearing a human’s skin.

Aki seemed to refuse a couple times, but when I said, “You worked hard cooking, so you sit,” and offered again, she gave in, looking like she couldn’t help it, “Okay, then, *atashi* will sit…?” and awkwardly sat down.

Usually, we’d settle it with rock-paper-scissors, but she just tried to sit down without that, like she felt bad about it towards me. No need for that though.

“Should I carry your bag, Woo-joo-chan?”

“It’s okay. You relax. We’re getting off soon anyway, right?”

“Five stops isn’t ‘soon’, is it…?”

“Ten minutes? That’s basically soon. Blink and we’ll be there.”

We were having this kind of trivial conversation when, *thump*, the bus pulled to a stop at a station.

Right after, with its signature mechanical sound, the front door opened, and a woman, looking rather worn, boarded the bus.

Her age, give or take, looked to be in her 40s or 50s, but at first glance, you could tell she had difficulty with her legs. Not just moving around, but even walking looked like it was hard. If I had been sitting, I would have gotten up and offered my seat without hesitation, that’s how pitiful she looked.

“Aki, we should…”

About to say, *Let’s give her our seat*, when—

*Thump.*

Aki, not even listening to what I was saying, stood up from her seat.

Aki stood up from her seat, just like that.

“……Ah, ma’am!”

Then, her school uniform skirt flaring, she rushed to the woman, took her hand gently, and glanced over to me.

“There’s a seat here, you see? I’ll help you, so let’s go and sit. …Woo-joo-chan!”

Aki’s mouth was moving, trying to say something.

*Let’s get her seated before the bus moves!* is what she was saying with just her lips.

“Ah, yeah.”

Seriously, I really lucked out having her as my childhood friend.

A subtle wave of pride washed over me, and I quickly helped Aki guide the older woman to a seat.

Then, working in sync with Aki, we helped her into our spot and stood side-by-side a little ways away.

“Young ladies, thank you. I wish I had something more to give you, but right now, all I have is this….”

The older woman held something out.

Two of those famous green grape candies.

“No, it’s fine. Thank you! I’ll enjoy it.”

Aki even bowed her head slightly as she took the candy.

That seemed to please the older woman, who smiled warmly and nodded slowly.

“You’re a foreign young lady, aren’t you? You have such good manners, did you become a citizen? Or are you of mixed Korean heritage?”

“Um, no. I’m not a citizen, and I’m not of mixed Korean heritage. I just go to school here in Korea.”

“Ah, you go to school…. So you’re a college student?”

“I’m not a college student, I’m a high school student. This is my uniform.”

“Oh my, is that right. You’re so pretty, I just assumed you were a college student…!”

“Heh, it’s okay! I get that misunderstanding a lot.”

To the outside eye, she’s a clear foreigner, but she was the first to jump up and offer her seat, and she’s speaking fluent Korean to the older woman. Everyone nearby is glancing at Aki, curious.

I’m used to it, since I see it all the time, but I guess it’s pretty amazing to other people?

Suddenly curious about other people’s reactions, I leaned my ear toward a group of students whispering amongst themselves.

-Hey, is that the person from that, you know, YouTube Shorts?

– Uh, yeah, I think that’s her? The, like, Jamsil Stadium Kiss Cam girl!

– I thought she was a foreigner, but her Korean’s really good. Is she mixed?

– Wow, she’s even prettier in person… And the guy’s handsome too.

But, wouldn’t you know it.

The conversations I overheard weren’t the reactions I’d expected.

Forget polite or kind, or anything like that… It was all about that Jamsil Stadium kiss story from YouTube Shorts.

‘……Well, yeah.’

It hit a million views in less than two days, so everyone who was gonna see it probably already had.

And Aki’s looks are so striking that once you’ve seen her, it’s hard to forget, so recalling the memory wouldn’t be difficult either.

“Woo-joo~chan.”

“……Oh, what?”

“Want a candy?”

Aki, smiling sweetly, held out a green grape candy to me.

She’d already unwrapped one of the two she got and popped it in her mouth, and it seemed like she was about to give me the other one.

“They gave it to you, is it okay if I take it and eat it?”

“Woo-joo~chan also helped, so you have enough right to eat one, don’t you?”

“Ah, I guess…?”

“Yup, yup, say ‘ah’. I’ll feed it to you.”

“Just give it to me, I’ll eat it myself….”

“Uh-uh, say ‘ah’! This kind of thing is way more fun when you get fed~!”

“……”

Feeding me a candy in front of everyone. What kind of humiliation play is this…?

I mumbled inwardly, complaining, but obediently opened my mouth.

Aki unwrapped the candy, took out one piece, and, holding it between his thumb and forefinger, popped it right into my mouth.

“How is it? Delicious, right?”

“It is… tasty.”

Thanks to that, the students who were talking about the Jamsil Baseball Stadium started whispering even louder as they watched us.

“Is he your boyfriend, miss?”

“Uh, yes?”

“Ah, I’m sorry. You just looked so good together…. He is your boyfriend, right?”

“A-ah, um, uh…”

Aki didn’t answer right away, just glancing at me.

He didn’t say anything, but it seemed like he was subtly waiting for me to answer.

From noble mtl dot com

“……”

In front of me, an older woman, beside me, Aki. Behind me, students who recognized us whispering amongst themselves.

A situation remarkably similar to what happened a few weeks ago, yet slightly different.

Back then, there weren’t many onlookers, but now there are quite a few people with their ears perked, waiting for my answer.

So, it was a bit difficult to answer.

Honestly, nothing’s different from then till now.

Aki isn’t my girlfriend.

I’m not Aki’s boyfriend, though.

Right now, we’re just childhood friends, I guess…

We’re getting married anyway, and who knows what’ll happen later.

I scratched my cheek and answered.

“……Not yet.”