Ch.219219. I Thought It Was a Misunderstanding

“……Um, well.”

The moment my eyes met Hwa Nabi, who had come out pulling her travel bag, I felt I needed to make some kind of excuse first.

So I urgently opened my mouth to explain the situation, when she suddenly smiled at me.

“Perdón, pero él es mío?”

(Sorry, but this man is mine?)

No, more precisely, she smiled at the two women in front of me, not at me. And on top of that, she added a phrase I couldn’t understand, though the pronunciation sounded somewhat strange. My instinct tells me it’s not English, but it feels similar to the language those two women were speaking to me.

“What’s this, you had company?”

“Yeah, he looks sexy, so of course he’d have a woman. Is she your girlfriend? Or lover?”

“She’s neither my girlfriend nor lover. He’s my husband, and I’m his wife. We’re on our honeymoon.”

Right after Hwa Nabi finished speaking, the two women were greatly surprised and looked back and forth between us. Then, with disbelieving faces, they looked at me and said:

“Really? You two are married?”

“He looks too sexy, I couldn’t imagine he’d be married. Sorry, but I’m really envious. When did you get married?”

“We dated for about three years since we were students, and got married yesterday.”

“You got married just yesterday? Must be passionate. Who proposed first?”

“My husband did. He said he didn’t want to lose me to someone else and asked me to stay by his side forever while giving me a ring. I felt the same way, so I said yes.”

“Wow, how romantic. Are all Asian men that romantic?”

Listening to the three women’s conversation, I suddenly realized something. They weren’t speaking English. The phonetic system is similar, but something about the nuance or essence is different.

Where had I heard this before? After thinking briefly, I remembered immediately. This isn’t English, it’s Spanish.

“My husband is particularly romantic. And sexy too. Oh, and a bit cute as a bonus.”

At that moment, Hwa Nabi approached me from behind while I was off guard and hugged my head. Thanks to that, something soft and squishy pressed against the back of my head.

This unfamiliar yet familiar sensation… could it be her chest? Being suddenly embraced, I unconsciously straightened my back.

The foreign women seemed to find me interesting, as they approached with smiles.

“Are you flustered just because her chest touched you? You’re really cute. Do you use Instagram?”

“My husband and I have couple Instagram accounts. But he’s the one who replies, not me, since I don’t know much about social media.”

“Really? What’s your ID? Oh, is it okay if I follow you?”

“Yes, that’s fine. Here’s my ID.”

Hwa Nabi and the woman showed each other their phone screens and smiled at each other. On the surface, it was an incredibly friendly atmosphere.

-Squeeze.

I don’t understand why Hwa Nabi’s arms around me are suddenly applying so much pressure. As a result, her chest area is pressed firmly against the back of my head, changing shape as it moves around.

She must know she’s pressing down with force, could she be doing this on purpose…?

I stayed quiet since it felt awkward to point it out, and the foreign woman who finished operating her phone nodded. Then, with a very regretful face, she stepped back and left me with one last comment.

“I’ll DM you later. See you, cutie!”

Mwah, the two women blew me a kiss and walked away. Hwa Nabi and I watched their backs until they disappeared from sight, and then I cautiously checked her expression.

“Um, Nabi.”

“Ah, just a moment. Can we talk in thirty seconds? I have something urgent to take care of.”

For someone claiming to have urgent business, her hand movements are quite leisurely. Still pressing her chest against the back of my head, Hwa Nabi deliberately operated her phone right in front of my eyes.

What I could see reflected on the screen was Instagram’s account management menu, specifically the tab for checking the list of “blocked” accounts…

“Isn’t that the woman from just now?”

I asked when I saw a familiar face, and Hwa Nabi rested her head on top of my crown.

“Yes. That’s right. Why?”

“I thought you just followed her, so I was wondering if it’s okay to block her.”

“Are you disappointed that I blocked her?”

“……”

I knew that answering incorrectly would lead to something unpleasant. Gulping, I spoke as if asking such an obvious question was strange.

“No, of course not. I just meant, if you were going to block her anyway, was there any need to follow her in the first place? Isn’t it troublesome?”

“…Hmph, I couldn’t block her right in front of her face, could I? I had to accept the follow request first.”

Fortunately, my answer seemed correct, as Hwa Nabi softened the pressure on my head. Relieved, I tried to stand up but couldn’t. Hwa Nabi suddenly applied force, hugging the back of my head to prevent me from moving.

“Hey, Nabi?”

“Siwoo, I’m just asking to be sure. You’re not secretly using Instagram or anything like that, are you?”

“…Ferguson said social media is a waste of time.”

I wondered if it was okay to say this in front of someone who uses Instagram, but I thought it would be most definitive to state it this way.

My guess was correct, as Hwa Nabi let out a sigh of relief.

“That’s right. Spending time on Instagram is just a waste of time. All you get are weird DMs every day.”

“Hmm, really? That must be quite stressful.”

But if she continues despite the external stress, isn’t it because there’s some element of fun? Before I could add that, Hwa Nabi spoke first.

“Yes. It’s quite stressful, but I keep using it just to see how my friends are doing. And sometimes I post photos when good advertising opportunities come in.”

“You can make money from that?”

“Not a lot, but enough for pocket money. I earned quite a bit when I was living alone.”

“Ah, I see.”

Since I know nothing about this field, I just nodded along in agreement.

Hwa Nabi squeezed the back of my head, wrapped her arms around my neck, and whispered:

“Still, don’t use Instagram or anything like that. If you really want to, I can’t stop you, but if you do, follow me first.”

“I’m not interested in that stuff, so don’t worry. But Nabi, can I ask you one thing?”

“Yes. What is it?”

“About that person earlier. Why did you block her? It’s not like she has any way to contact me anyway.”

This was my genuine curiosity. Since I don’t use social media, what difference does it make if they follow each other or not?

However, Hwa Nabi didn’t seem to take it that way, as her voice dropped about an octave.

“…Listen, dear husband.”

“Um… yes.”

“I trust our dear husband. But.”

Squeeze. Hwa Nabi’s arms around my neck tightened. Almost choking me, she added one more thing in my ear.

“I don’t trust any other women.”

As if not accepting any objections, Hwa Nabi spoke firmly and gently rubbed her cheek against mine.

…This scene seems familiar. You know, those documentaries featuring humans who are close with predators. They sometimes show people having physical contact with lions or tigers. That’s exactly how I feel right now. I’m the human, and Hwa Nabi is the predator making physical contact.

“If someone wants to contact you, they can find ways through various connections. Korea is such a small place—anyone determined enough can find anyone. Plus, Siwoo is handsome, so he’s even easier to find.”

“Nabi. It’s nice that you’re talking, but could you let go of my neck…?”

When I tapped the back of her hand, she loosened her grip on my neck. She didn’t completely let go, though.

“And since we’re on the topic, remember what I’m about to say.”

“Mmm, what is it?”

“Don’t trust any woman who approaches you first. They all have ulterior motives, understand?”

“……”

Somehow this sounds like a gender-reversed statement. And no matter what, isn’t that going a bit too far? I was trying to think about how to respond, but she tightened her arm around my neck as if demanding an answer.

Feeling the pressure on my carotid artery, I quickly said:

“Ah, I got it. I won’t trust anyone. Happy now?”

“Hmph, that’s right. Good answer.”

Finally satisfied, Hwa Nabi slowly released her arms. Now free, I rubbed my neck where her arms had been, and then asked out of curiosity:

“But then, shouldn’t I not trust you either? You approached me first too.”

“…Me? I don’t remember that.”

“No, you definitely spoke to me first. I’m sure of it.”

It happened over three years ago so my memory is vague, but regardless of the truth, I was just saying it to see her reaction. I was curious how she would respond if I told her that she, who said not to trust any woman who approaches first, had actually approached me first.

Waiting with anticipation, I saw Hwa Nabi stand still and think for a moment. She seemed to be trying to recall, but it was such an old memory that it wouldn’t easily come back.

“I don’t think so… but if you say so, I guess that’s how it was.”

“Oh, so you admit it?”

“Yes. I’ll admit it. Since I approached you first, you shouldn’t have trusted me either.”

Hwa Nabi surprisingly agreed readily, then stuck close to me and grabbed my arm.

“You said I shouldn’t be trusted, but is it okay to link arms?”

“Yes. You shouldn’t have trusted me, but you did, and now we’re in this relationship. It’s too late now, so it doesn’t matter.”

So since I’ve already been deceived, it doesn’t matter if I’m deceived more? It was contradictory, but not unconvincing. Thinking about it made me chuckle.

“Oh, our innocent husband. Do you know Spanish by any chance?”

“I know a little, but not well. I couldn’t really understand what you and those people were talking about just now.”

If I had understood, I would have responded. Seeing the logic in this, she nodded.

“Then you don’t know what those people said about you either?”

“No, I don’t. Why, did they say something strange?”

“No, nothing strange. They just said you look sexy and like you’d be good in bed. They said they envied me.”

“……”

I froze at this unexpected comment. Hwa Nabi looked at me quietly with a smile, then whispered slowly in my ear:

“…How did they know?”