Ch.5555. Telepathy – side. Hwanabi

I held him in my arms for what felt like an eternity.

After some time had passed, when my chest had been sufficiently warmed by his heat.

He looked down at me with gentle eyes and asked with a smile.

“Are you feeling better now?”

His lips moved in sync with his pleasant baritone voice.

The same lips that had been passionately demanding me just moments ago.

“…”

…How can someone’s lips taste sweet? Is kissing supposed to taste sweet like that? Having no experience, such questions suddenly popped into my mind.

Perhaps due to this somewhat dangerous curiosity, my gaze naturally drifted to his lips.

If our lips were to meet again, would I find out?

I caught myself imagining such things… and quickly snapped back to reality. What kind of strange fantasies am I having? His gaze took on a peculiar gleam as he observed me losing my sense of judgment.

Eyes that suggested he knew I was having some mischievous thoughts.

“What, want to do it again?”

My heart fluttered at his teasing question. This man, really… is he doing this on purpose? Usually he pretends not to know even when he does, but at times like this, he sees right through me.

But simply admitting it would somehow hurt my pride. So I maintained a facade of composure and responded coolly.

“…What are you talking about? It’s not like that.”

“Really? If not, that’s fine. Shall we head back then?”

His knowing smile is somewhat annoying. I stayed silent, afraid I might say something strange if I opened my mouth. Instead, I nodded in agreement with his suggestion.

“Let’s go.”

He carefully unwrapped his arm from my waist and extended his hand toward me. I understood the meaning behind the gesture without him saying anything. He wanted to hold my hand and escort me.

“…Hmph.”

Since it would be awkward to refuse him to his face, I took his hand obediently. He immediately intertwined his fingers with mine, as if he had been waiting for this.

Just from this series of actions, thoughts like ‘Haven’t I played hard to get enough?’ began to bloom in my heart…

Before I could fully organize my thoughts, he started walking. My body naturally followed behind him.

But… am I really walking right now? It feels like I’m floating on soft clouds. Walking in this half-dazed state, I suddenly found myself in the parking lot.

“…”

It happened in the blink of an eye. I was inwardly surprised and looked around, but he had already let go of my hand and started the engine with practiced movements before smoothly mounting his motorcycle.

…Was it just my mood, or did he look quite stylish doing that?

I really have it bad.

“What’s wrong?”

He asked, looking at me as I stared blankly.

Um… how should I answer? I couldn’t possibly be honest about this, so I was momentarily speechless. Seeing me unable to respond, his expression suddenly changed to one of concern as he approached me.

“What is it? Are you feeling sick? Should we go to the hospital?”

“Ah, no. It’s nothing like that. I just had something on my mind.”

“What were you thinking about that made your face so serious?”

Is my face really that serious? I touched my cheeks to check, and found they were hot without me realizing it.

It seems my cheeks were flushed from embarrassment… and his face grew serious along with mine.

Thinking he might misunderstand if I left it at that, I hurriedly blurted out whatever came to mind.

“Um… thoughts about Siwoo?”

I was surprised by my own words, but he looked even more surprised. He probably didn’t expect me to say something like that. Honestly, neither did I.

But… it’s not entirely untrue, is it? My mind was actually completely filled with thoughts of ‘him.’

So I met his gaze with a deliberately nonchalant attitude. In response, he began to avoid my eyes.

“Siwoo, why can’t you answer?”

“…It’s getting late, let’s just go.”

His intention to change the subject was obvious. But I let it slide because it was cute.

Pretending not to notice his slightly reddened earlobes, I quickly approached him.

“I should sit in the back, right?”

He didn’t answer when I asked unnecessarily. Is he really this shy? He was so bold earlier, but now he shows this innocent side.

He silently mounted the motorcycle. I followed and sat behind him.

“…Put on the helmet.”

“Yeeees.”

I deliberately dragged out my response. He was looking straight ahead, but turned his head slightly to glance behind him, then patted his waist and said:

“I’m about to start moving, so hold on tight. Don’t fall off.”

“Yes, yes. I understand.”

As instructed, I reached out and grabbed his waist firmly.

But at that moment, perhaps because I was a bit nervous, my hands were sweaty and I slipped forward slightly.

Thump,

I ended up hugging his back from behind.

“…”

Though he said nothing, I could feel his surprise from his twitching shoulders. I was also startled, as I hadn’t intended to go this far.

Isn’t this the kind of position that only real couples would take? Once I realized this, my face suddenly burned hot. Embarrassed, I was about to pull away when—

“Well then, let’s go.”

With those words, he started the engine and gripped the handles.

Vroom, the engine roared to life and the motorcycle moved forward smoothly. I was about to say something, but—

“…”

I just… just…

Decided to hold onto his waist tightly.

“We’ll go fast at first, but it will still take a while since we came quite far.”

“H-how long will it take?”

I stammered momentarily, caught off guard by his sudden comment. But he didn’t seem to mind.

“Well, I think it’ll take at least twenty minutes, even if we’re fast.”

Which means I’ll have to stay in this position for at least twenty minutes. The speed of his motorcycle gradually increased, and I decided to stay quiet, thinking that talking more might distract his driving.

Bump, the motorcycle entered the road. But not just any road—it was one with a view of the sunset over the sea.

It was such a beautiful sight that I wondered if I’d ever seen such a pretty ocean in my life. Normally, my gaze would have been naturally drawn to it. I should have been exclaiming in admiration.

But my eyes were fixed on someone more important to me than any ocean.

-Thump thump.

Is this fierce pounding that I feel where our bodies touch entirely my own?

Or perhaps…

“…Siwoo.”

I murmured without realizing.

“Huh? What did you say?”

But we were both wearing helmets, and the speed was quite fast, so it seems my words didn’t reach him properly. In fact, I couldn’t hear clearly what he said in response either.

But it didn’t matter. I knew what I wanted to say.

“Siwoo, I’m only going to say this once, so listen carefully!”

“What? I can’t hear you well. Speak louder!”

“…you.”

“What are you saying? What?”

“…I like you!”

“What?!”

“…I said I like you!”

—Honk!

At that moment, a truck coming from behind passed us with a loud horn blast. Because of that, my heartfelt confession, which I had mustered the courage to shout, didn’t reach him.

It would be a lie to say I wasn’t disappointed… but I hadn’t really expected it to reach him anyway. This was just an action I took because I wanted to express my true feelings.

No, thinking about it again, it’s actually fortunate that it didn’t reach him… What did I just do? My face flushed hot as I reconsidered. I must have temporarily lost my mind.

Even though the cool breeze was hitting my entire body as we rode along the beach, my cheeks were burning. Suddenly feeling extremely embarrassed, I shouted for no reason:

“Ah, the weather is nice!”

“What? What about the weather?”

“…It’s nothing! Just focus on driving!”

Feeling awkward, I scolded him and tightened my grip around his waist. He shouted, “Don’t hold on too tight!” but I didn’t have the presence of mind to pay attention to that.

Why? Obviously because I was embarrassed…

“Siwoo!”

“Yeah, what?”

“…I just felt like calling your name!”

“What’s wrong with you today? Did you eat something weird?!”

“…”

This guy really doesn’t know what not to say to a woman. I thought about punishing him for his insensitive remark, but decided against it. It would be too distracting while he’s driving.

So instead, I pressed my body even closer to his.

“Hwa Nabi, don’t get too close!”

“Ah, why not?!”

“It’s distracting while I’m driving!”

Shouldn’t it be more comfortable for him if I’m holding on tightly? But he genuinely seemed troubled. Why is he acting like this… I don’t understand the reason, but since he said it was uncomfortable, I relaxed my body.

“Stay like that, we’ll arrive soon!”

“Okay!”

—Vrooom!

It wasn’t just empty words—he flashed a fierce smile and gripped the motorcycle handles roughly. The motorcycle accelerated even more intensely.

As I admired his eyes, cheeks, and lips visible through the helmet gap, I thought to myself:

Yes… let’s not rush. It’s not like this is the only opportunity…

I’ve already achieved my goal for this trip. Instead of being reckless and making mistakes, let’s take it step by step.

That way, one step at a time, slowly moving forward, someday…

My feelings will reach him.

“By the way, Siwoo!”

“Yeah, what?”

“You didn’t answer my question from earlier! You said you’ve never had a girlfriend, so how are you such a good kisser?”

Wait.

“…I don’t know! Just hold on tight!”

“But you just told me not to hold on too tight!”

Maybe…

“If you’re going to say weird things, just lean on me and be quiet!”

“…Fine!”

…my feelings have already reached him?