Ch.84Call Me Brother (1)

“Wow, I’ve never seen anyone sing the [Mari★juana] opening this well before… I think it’s the best after Clarice’s original… Much better than those cover singers on YouTube.”

“Huff, of course you haven’t seen it before! Who sings the [Mari★juana] opening at a karaoke place? I’m only singing it for you because it’s me.”

“Yeah… thanks. I never thought I’d see someone select this song at a karaoke place in my lifetime…”

“Now, since I sang alone earlier, it’s your turn for a solo, Do Hamin.”

“Umm…? Can’t we sing together instead of alone? You already heard how bad I am at singing.”

“Hey, I need to rest too, you know. Just hurry up and choose. If you don’t pick within 2 minutes, you’ll have to do that song from earlier again!”

“W-wait a minute…!”

Karaoke with Do Hamin was quite enjoyable.

Ever since I first entered a karaoke place in Ban Doyoung’s body and discovered this body’s talent for singing,

I’d been wanting to go to karaoke with that Hamin kid.

We started lightly with the [Mari★juana] opening medley to set the mood,

then sang one song after another that we both knew.

After finishing the medley,

we took turns singing solo songs that were in our subtle intersection of knowledge,

as I waited for Hamin to take the microphone alone.

“What’s that mosquito buzzing sound…! Did I teach you to make that sound from your stomach during kendo training? Sing louder!”

“い…今すぐ君に会いたい…!”

[i… imasugu kimi ni aitai…!]

[R-right now I want to see you…!]

“Ahaha… Look at this kid hitting all the wrong notes. So damn funny… heheh…”

“Tashikamete mitai… S-see, I told you I couldn’t do it!”

“Hey, don’t stop! Keep going, it’s fun, hurry up!”

It was also nice to discover that Hamin was exactly the tone-deaf person I thought he was,

or perhaps even worse than I had imagined.

I had a rough idea already.

Quiet personalities like Hamin, who rarely have reason to raise their voice, naturally forget how to project sound from their throat.

The loudest he’s probably ever spoken in his life

was after meeting me.

During puberty, when the vocal sac can’t function properly,

the vocal cords inevitably change to ones that can’t sing well even if you want to.

While Ban Doyoung’s singing talent might be due to her innate vocal sac,

I think it’s also thanks to her confidence in projecting her voice loudly and the face that created an environment where that was possible.

Well, in Hamin’s case, like his questionable growth spurt,

it could just be that his vocal cords themselves haven’t fully developed yet.

But what does that matter?

At this point, knowing one or two of Hamin’s flaws wouldn’t cause any problems going forward.

After all, our relationship started with him being full of flaws from the beginning.

“Phew, that was fun.”

“M-my throat feels like it’s going to give out… Trying to make sounds I can’t even produce.”

“Considering how you shout when you’re angry, I don’t think they’re sounds you can’t make. You make decent kiai shouts during kendo too. You might improve with practice.”

“I don’t have time to practice singing…”

“True, it’s not something you can solve immediately like with that study brain of yours. Heheh.”

“That’s why next time, go with someone else instead of me. It’s not fun going to karaoke with someone who can’t sing.”

“No, I don’t want to. If possible, I want to take you again next time.”

“W-why would you go that far?”

“Why, you ask? Because it’s fun hanging out with you, that’s why.”

“Lying again… You had your hands over your ears the whole time I was singing. That means it sounded bad.”

“Is there a law saying only good singers can sing at karaoke? Even if it sounds bad, it’s fine as long as it’s fun.”

“That was… fun for you?”

“Yeah, it was fun. I enjoy hanging out with you. No matter what we do.”

“…”

“…Besides, isn’t karaoke most fun when someone who’s a bit tone-deaf takes the mic?”

“Ugh… See! You are calling me tone-deaf!”

“Heheh…! If you’re upset about it, practice more before next time!”

Karaoke is always more fun and enjoyable when someone who’s somewhat tone-deaf takes the microphone.

Proving this point, today’s karaoke session with Hamin was even more enjoyable than when I went with Sahyang.

Plus, we were enjoying karaoke with money

that came from a blood relative who was essentially a stranger despite our biological connection,

money that was neither mine nor Hamin’s.

I was simultaneously playing with Hamin, my most entertaining toy in the world,

and practicing one of the most fun ways to play in the world—using someone else’s money.

So naturally, a smile never left my face throughout our 15-song challenge marathon.

“Ah, it feels a bit unsatisfying to just do 5,000 won worth and leave. It feels like we’re missing something.”

“You sang almost 13 out of 15 songs by yourself…”

“Alright, next time let’s invite Chicken Coop #1 and Chicken Coop #2 and try the 10,000 won challenge?”

“A-are you going to sing the [Mari★juana] opening in front of those two?”

“If you refuse to come, I might just do it…?”

“Urgh…”

Hamin silently lowered his head,

a wordless affirmation.

He must have realized by now that protesting would be futile.

“Sigh, how much time do we have until the train?”

“About 6 minutes… It’s fine, we have plenty of time. We can walk and talk.”

After finishing at the karaoke, Hamin and I headed toward the train station, looking at the evening sky.

It wasn’t yet time for night study to end, but Hamin, exhausted from various incidents, decided to take an earlier train home today.

“Let’s see, what excuse are you going to give your mom this time?”

“…No excuse. I’m just going to tell her I took a day off by my own choice.”

“Huh? You?”

It was a bit unexpected.

He was usually so meticulous about creating perfect alibis that even when skipping night study,

he would make sure to match his return time exactly with his usual schedule.

Considering there was still quite some time before students would be leaving after night study,

Hamin’s choice seemed strange.

“Aren’t you going to sell me out? I’m the one who persuaded you to hang out.”

“I won’t. It was my fault and my mistake for breaking down in front of you and causing you to persuade me… And also…”

“…And also?”

“…I don’t want my mom to think you’re a bad kid.”

“Hooh…”

This kid Hamin always becomes more eloquent when it’s time to part ways.

-Boom boom

[The train is now arriving. Passengers, please stand behind the yellow line…]

The sound of Hamin’s train could be heard.

He needed to tap his card at the gate and go down quickly. Hearing the announcement, he was about to head down the stairs, but then seemed to remember something and turned to face me.

“Thank you, Doyoung. For today and for using the wish you worked hard to earn… all for me.”

“Tsk. I told you it wasn’t for you, this guy keeps interpreting things his own way. That’s why you scored only 89 points on average and lost to that girl Ahn Sungkyung.”

“Yeah… I lost badly. But I’ll win next time.”

“Really…?”

I carefully extended my pinky finger toward Hamin standing in front of me.

“Then promise. Promise you’ll be first in our class next time.”

Though I could have just said it verbally without needing to do a pinky promise,

I thought this might suit the current Hamin better.

“No, being first in class isn’t enough. It’s better to aim high with your goals, right? Like how I aimed for an average of 69 points.”

-Thud

I folded my extended finger and made a fist.

Applying slight force, my right arm extended and my fist gently landed on Hamin’s chest.

“Next final exam, you become first in the entire school.”

“M-me…?”

Hamin silently focused on the fist I had extended toward him.

“What do you think, that’s not so difficult for you, is it?”

“…I don’t know. It’s not exactly easy.”

“But you’re not saying you can’t do it.”

Even though he always maintained a humble attitude,

Hamin knew well what he could and couldn’t do.

For things he couldn’t do, he would insist it was impossible or that he couldn’t do it.

Of course, his strength was that even while saying so, he never ran away until the very end.

For things he felt he could do, like now,

he didn’t show that naive face from earlier.

That expression of quietly trying to find an answer with a serious and calm face.

Yes, just a little. Just a tiny bit…

‘He might look a bit handsome…’

When looking at Hamin with such an expression,

a strange filter seemed to cover Ban Doyoung’s eyes.

It wasn’t my eye filter.

It was the heroine filter covering Ban Doyoung’s eyes.

“I’ll make a promise too, like I did before. If you succeed, I’ll grant one of your wishes just like you granted mine today. Whatever it may be.”

“…Are you serious?”

“Of course, that way you’ll be serious about it too, right? And if you become first in the school, I might have one more reason to like you, you know?”

“…Alright.”

-Clunk

Hamin quietly entered the train.

And just before the doors closed, he slightly turned his head toward me.

“…Don’t regret it later.”

-Click

With those final words, Hamin disappeared into the train.

“…Ah, I ended up not asking to see his penis.”

Only after he left did the unseen [下民高趨] flash before my eyes.

.

.

.

“I’m home.”

“Oh, Doyoung. Welcome back. You’re a bit late today. Who were you playing with?”

“Oh, I went to karaoke for a bit.”

“You should have come home earlier. Your brother is on leave today.”

“Yeah, I know. I saw him downtown earlier.”

“Huh? Then why didn’t that Solyoung say anything? Did you two fight on the street?”

“No, I called him ‘oppa’ and even gave him a hug.”

“…W-what happened to make you do that? Did you fight after all?”

“I said no. I’m going up to my room first.”

I went up the stairs to my room, leaving Dad in the living room.

Originally, the space above these stairs was exclusively for Ban Doyoung,

but the fact that someone other than the current me was staying up there felt quite strange.

“Phew… Judging by the combat boots at the shoe rack, it seems that Ban Solyoung has returned home too.”

I took off my bag from my shoulder, opened my room door, and went inside.

“Sigh, given our house’s terrible soundproofing, I won’t be able to masturbate for a while.”

“Do it under the blanket with a mask on. Then it won’t be heard.”

“Oh, that would work. Thanks for the tip… Huh?”

At that moment, in Ban Doyoung’s room, there was a buzz-cut guy in very light clothing who seemed to have just finished showering minutes ago,

sitting confidently on the bed as if it were a sofa.

“Holy shit, you scared me! Why are you here, and with wet hair while panting! Don’t try to taint the sacred <Ban-ui-Ban-do> with an incest tag…!”

“No, I just finished showering and all the locker t-shirts in my closet were taken by you.”

“…Did you also hear what I just said?”

“Ah… It’s okay, if you ever want to do it alone, just let me know in advance. I can go down to the dojo for a while-“

-Thud!

I slammed my bag into the face of the son my mother had given birth to.