Night of Two Women (2)

“Jua-ssi went in, wanna go one more round?”

“What if I don’t want to?”

“That’s too much, you could just say let’s do it later.”

While I was lying on the bed, fiddling with my phone, Se-ah rubbed her body against me, wriggling around.

I didn’t expect her to cling to me like this as soon as Jua-ssi went to wash up, so she kept whispering, approaching my defenseless body.

“Whyyy…can’t I have a little bit of you all to myself?”

“Nope, can’t. If you’re unhappy, go beat Ji-hye.”

“Ughhh…we made an agreement, but the more it goes on, the more unfair it seems.”

“Unfair?”

I put down my phone and looked at Se-ah.

She puffed up her cheeks slightly and looked at me with an expression that said she was sulking, so I looked at her with pitiful eyes and nodded.

No matter how much you do that, the chances of you guys winning are extremely low from the moment Ji-hye grabbed my reins, aren’t they?

I gently pushed away Se-ah, who was rubbing her soft body against me, with my foot and continued speaking.

“Isn’t it meaningless to complain now after agreeing? Even if you overturn it, knowing Ji-hye’s personality…”

“She’d probably come at us with a bamboo spear, saying where did you hear such nonsense…”

I imagined it.

Even if the four of them glared at her and protested, saying this promise is broken right now! Ji-hye wouldn’t even bat an eye.

Rather, she’s the type to stab each and every person who comes at her with a bamboo spear and tell them to get lost.

Even if I stayed neutral and watched from the side, nothing good would come of it, so there’s no point in saying it’s unfair in front of me.

“…I can’t argue with that. If it’s Ji-hye, she really would stab us all with a bamboo spear and chase us away.”

“If Oppa is next to us, it’s at least a little…better, right?”

I expected it, but I didn’t think she’d say it so openly.

It’s true that if I’m there, I can stop Ji-hye from going wild and going on a rampage.

I’m in a situation where I’m a little henpecked, but there’s also the dissatisfaction of talking about what happened at the swimming pool, and there’s a feeling that I’m being too henpecked.

I understand, but what should I say…it feels like a husband who got caught cheating and had all the initiative in the marriage taken away.

‘It’s not like I committed a crime worthy of death, so isn’t this treatment a bit too much?’

I can understand talking about the swimming pool incident, but doing it without consulting me.

I still don’t feel good about this even now. Not to the point of anger…but enough to ask, why did you do that? and question her.

Should I gather the kids’ opinions and talk about it at this opportunity? Hmm…

“What are you thinking so hard about?”

“It’s nothing, I was just thinking about something else.”

“When we’re having a serious conversation, please listen seriously…”

“What else would I do besides watch you guys fight if I’m next to you?”

“From Oppa’s point of view, you can say something if you think this isn’t right.”

“Would Ji-hye listen even if a henpecked man like me said something? I’d be lucky if she didn’t tell me to butt out…”

Ji-hye isn’t saying much because I’m slowly changing, but if we’re still talking about it, I’m thoroughly the weaker party.

No matter how much I fly and crawl, even if I get angry, if Ji-hye gets angry, the house becomes awkward…I just don’t like that.

I can fight again like before if I want to fight, but there’s no reason to do that when Jua-ssi is here.

“Why bother talking about it and fighting like that? I don’t want the house to feel cold again.”

“I didn’t mean for you to fight. I wonder if we’d end up fighting if Oppa got involved?”

“100%, we’d definitely fight. If we’re going to fight, I won’t get involved. I can’t stand seeing a fight break out at home when Jua-ssi is here.”

“Haa, what are the chances of beating Ji-hye without Oppa…I don’t think the kids would even participate in the fight.”

Se-ah sighed and rolled around in the remaining space, which was just enough for two people to lie down.

Ji-hye’s status is powerful. In fact, she’s the most assertive and has the clearest opinions among the five of us, and she’s also the type of kid who does her job perfectly.

Ji-hye is holding onto me, and I’m also holding onto Ji-hye a little, and the other four are attacking Ji-hye?

There’s no way they can win. Ji-hye would definitely take out a bamboo spear and stab them all.

Even Se-ah, who is only one year younger, is intimidated by her, so how much more would the other kids be?

“Then don’t fight. Are you unhappy with just being allowed to be next to me?”

“I am unhappy! Why are you keeping me all to yourself like you’re monopolizing me? I couldn’t say it properly before because I was intimidated, but this is something I can argue about.”

Even if I overturn a story that’s already been concluded, it just sounds like you’re ready to fight again now that you’ve prepared yourself.

“Are you confident you can win?”

At my words, Se-ah turned her back.

She probably knows it well, that she can’t beat Ji-hye even if she whines to me.

Unless the four of them really grit their teeth and argue, Ji-hye won’t even bat an eye, and I can’t help but take Ji-hye’s side as her older brother, not just because we’re close.

Unfortunately, I’ve spent the longest time with Ji-hye, I live with Ji-hye, and I’m her older brother.

No matter how close my four younger sisters are to me, this is something I can’t help.

“Give up, or make up your mind…oh well, I don’t know. Let’s talk about it once Jua-ssi comes out. I’ll be neutral no matter what.”

“Isn’t that a bit cowardly? Just take one side and be done with it, don’t be wishy-washy in the middle.”

“This is the fairest thing to do. Rather than taking one side and fighting like crazy, I’d rather not get involved and judge fairly.”

“Do you have the strength to break free from Ji-hye?”

“…I can’t guarantee that either. We live together, and in fact, Ji-hye is the most powerful person in the house right now.”

“So in the end, Oppa is being swayed too.”

I answered vaguely and brushed it off. There’s nothing to argue about. There’s no reason to win with strength, and even if I win with strength, there’s nothing left.

It would be different if I was a little better, but I’m still in a position where it’s hard to raise my voice at home, so it’s a lie to say that I’m not being swayed at all.

‘If Se-ah is thinking like this, the other kids probably aren’t that different.’

It’s surprising that Se-ah is having these thoughts in the first place.

The problem is that if Se-ah is like this, I’m worried about what the other kids are like.

If the youngest sister, who is the most annoying and uninterested, is making a sound, the other sisters must have definitely kept it in their hearts.

‘This might not just be something they’re not saying, but it might explode behind my back. Is job hunting not the problem? Or should I solve this problem while job hunting?’

My head, which was full of thoughts of finding a job, became slightly complicated by the discord that might arise later.

I can’t forcibly tell them not to do everything! But I can’t allow everything either.

Even if it’s not certain, there’s only one thing I can do in a state where dissatisfaction with Ji-hye is piling up.

‘The only way is for me to grab the leash that Ji-hye is holding…’

It was easy to say. It would be fine if I only did the minimum amount of actions so that Ji-hye wouldn’t catch anything.

But it was really just easy to say. I’ve only changed my attitude in a state where I don’t have anything right now, so in the end, what I’m actually feeling is still the same.

It was similar to the feeling of parents telling their children to study, and the children showing that they’re studying, but their grades not improving.

It looks like it on the outside, but if there’s nothing actually visible, then it’ll end up being misunderstood as just words, and if that continues, it’ll become no different from before.

‘…Let’s ask Jua-ssi when she comes out. If Se-ah is saying this much, I wonder if Jua-ssi has kept some of it in her heart too?’

It doesn’t seem like something to talk about when we came to play, but it’s been a while since Jua-ssi came home too.

She’s someone who lives with me, so she can definitely be dissatisfied with this situation, and more than anything, she’s my…sister.

Rather than causing a bloodbath in a house that has become friendly in its own way, I’d rather overturn everything and make it equal.

‘I don’t want to create discord on purpose, but if discord is going to happen anyway, it’s better for me to have the initiative.’

Rather than seeing the five of them fighting each other, I’ll have it all to myself and scold them myself.

I neatly organized my thoughts and lay down with a pillow under my head, and Jua-ssi came out of the bathroom, emitting hot steam.

“This is nice. It’s not as good as home, but it seems like a nice place in its own way.”

Unlike the image of her running around haphazardly in her underwear, she properly put on her clothes and came out with a towel wrapped around her head, looking at me.

She gave a satisfied smile and came up to the bed where I was lying, falling on top of me and Se-ah.

“Kehk!”

“I know I’m not heavy, Unnie.”

“Hey, you’re really heavy, lie down next to me instead.”

“Oppa is a bit hard, so…”

“Don’t make it sound like a misunderstanding…no, never mind. Then you two lie down for a bit. I’ll go buy something outside.”

At the word “hard,” I gave my spot to Jua-ssi and got off the bed.

My two younger sisters looked at me, leaning on the bed railing like meerkats, and asked.

“Why bother going outside? They probably sell most things inside.”

“What are you going to buy outside? Get me a bag of Doritos.”

“I’m going outside. Doritos for Jua-ssi, Se-ah, is there anything you need?”

Se-ah hesitated for a moment, then answered after Jua-ssi whispered something next to her.

“Then I’ll have a cola, a 500mL plastic bottle.”

I nodded and left the room, telling the counter that I was going out for a bit.

Walking through the darkened night streets, I went into a convenience store and bought a bag of Doritos, a cola, and a pack of condoms, and headed back to the PC Bang.

I didn’t buy them because I was definitely going to use them, but I had a feeling today.

There was also what Se-ah said in the bathroom, but also what Jua-ssi said when she lay down, that I was hard.

Given Jua-ssi’s playful personality, she could have joked with words like “health nut,” but why did she have to say those words?

Of course, this could be an excessive assumption, but I thought it wouldn’t be bad to prepare while getting some fresh air.

I turned my steps and headed back to the PC Bang.