Swallowed - Chapter 39

Since she had met Jaeha’s cousin, Seyoung knew it was only a matter of time before word got to his parents. The fact that she was a senior in his department and had Broca’s aphasia—just those two keywords would be enough for them to realize who she was. Back in high school, Seyoung had been that well-known.

[Speeding at 100 in a 40 km/h zone, crash leads to driver’s death on the spot]

[Driver’s daughter was in the back seat, “Not drunk driving,” claims]

[High likelihood of intentional crash for insurance money, investigators say]

[Police investigating possible brake tampering]

Suddenly, Seyoung felt dizzy. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to regain her balance. Jaeha’s voice, filled with concern, asked if she was okay. After blinking a few times, she was able to look at him again.

“Let’s just stop for today. You don’t need to push yourself to hang out.”

“No, it’s fine. I just got a little scared, but I’m okay now.”

Jaeha carefully studied her face, as if trying to make sure she was truly okay. Seyoung bit her lower lip and forced a smile. The smile that formed on her lips wavered slightly, a faint one. She wished she could see her own face so she could give Jaeha a more reassuring expression.

“Seyoung…”

“Really, I’m fine. They’ve been waiting long enough. You go ahead. I’ll watch.”

“…”

Reluctantly, Jaeha gave her a slight push. He didn’t want to leave her, but with Seyoung insisting, he gave Yeong-ah the okay sign.

Upon hearing that Jaeha was with his girlfriend, Yeongjun had immediately said he’d drop everything and join them. While they waited for him, Jaeha and Yeong-ah decided to play a match first, and Seyoung sat down in the chair by the net, assuming the role of the umpire.

As the two of them faced off across the net, the atmosphere was completely different from before. It almost felt like a serious amateur tournament, with tension thick in the air.

Jaeha had the serve. His aura was much sharper now than when he had played with Seyoung. His serve sent the ball flying with explosive speed, so fast that Seyoung couldn’t even follow it with her eyes. But Yeong-ah returned it with ease, hardly moving from her spot, sending it back to Jaeha’s opposite side. Predicting her move, Jaeha quickly sprinted and returned the ball.

But it was Jaeha who faltered first. He overpowered the ball, and it went out of bounds. Smiling slyly, Yeong-ah teased Jaeha. After a few rallies, both players were drenched in sweat, and Jaeha grinned back at her, clearly determined not to lose.

Watching Jaeha’s serious face as he played, Seyoung found herself holding back sighs more than once. Her heart felt heavy.

After all, they had already agreed to break up when the semester ended. Whether Jaeha’s parents found out about her or not wouldn’t change that. However, she worried that if his parents opposed the relationship strongly, their breakup could happen sooner than planned.

Seyoung treasured every moment she spent with Jaeha. She didn’t want to lose a single day with him, which was why she hesitated. But that hesitation felt like it was hurting Jaeha, and she didn’t want to cause him pain.

Since she had started spending most of her time with Jaeha, Seyoung noticed a creeping selfishness growing inside her. That selfishness stank, festering deep within. No matter how hard she tried to cover it, sometimes it would leak out, tempting her.

“You were amazing. Why didn’t you become a tennis player? You’d have done really well.”

Although they had agreed to play just one set, the match got heated, and it ended up going for three full sets. The final score was 2-1, with Yeong-ah winning. Still, Jaeha didn’t lose without a fight, pushing her to the limit several times. He was really impressive.

Seyoung’s compliment about Jaeha’s performance made Yeong-ah’s eyes widen slightly, sensing something unusual in her tone. But when Seyoung glanced at her, Yeong-ah smiled as if nothing had happened.

“What about me? I won the match! But Jaeha was the one who looked cooler?”

“You were great too, Yeong-ah. It was impressive how you stayed in the same spot while Jaeha was running all over the court.”

“Oh, you noticed? I was deliberately hitting the corners. Jaeha was too focused on returning the ball to make me move much.”

“Oh…”

So that’s what it was. Seyoung nodded in understanding, and Jaeha pouted, pulling her close into a side hug.

“Still, I did great against my sister. I couldn’t even win a single set before.”

“He was flying all over the court to impress his girlfriend,” Yeong-ah teased, laughing heartily. Jaeha wasn’t bothered at all and leaned into Seyoung, showing affection. Just as Yeong-ah shook her head, pretending to be grossed out by the display, Yeongjun called to say he had arrived.

***

They all rode together in Yeong-ah’s car to the restaurant. It was a place Seyoung had never been to before. The high-rise building housed several restaurants, each with a quiet atmosphere. It seemed like a reservation-only place, as they were shown to their table without even having to ask.

The restaurant’s sophisticated, modern interior suggested it might serve Western food, but surprisingly, it was a Chinese restaurant. Since the dishes started arriving almost as soon as they sat down, it seemed Yeong-ah had already placed the order in advance. Even though she hadn’t asked what they wanted, the dishes were all crowd-pleasers, making it easy for everyone to enjoy.

“Eat a lot, Seyoung.”

After playing tennis together, the atmosphere had relaxed, and even the way Yeong-ah addressed Seyoung had become more casual. She was two years older than Seyoung, and Yeongjun was the same age.

As soon as Yeongjun reached for the food, Yeong-ah playfully slapped his hand, flashing a smile at Seyoung as if to say, “Let the guest eat first.” Yeongjun made a face, but didn’t argue. Meanwhile, Jaeha calmly served some food onto Seyoung’s plate, prompting an exasperated look from Yeongjun.

“Seyoung, try this. It’s really good here.”

“Thanks. Make sure you eat a lot too.”

Throughout the meal, Jaeha kept a close eye on Seyoung, making sure she didn’t feel left out. Most of his conversation was directed toward her, keeping her engaged. Watching him, Yeongjun muttered something about how love changes people, while Yeong-ah looked on approvingly. No matter how independent Jaeha was, he was still the youngest in the family and wasn’t one to prioritize others. Yet, in front of Seyoung, he showed none of his typical babyish behavior.

Since Jaeha hardly ate and spent most of his time serving her, Seyoung eventually returned the favor, making sure he ate as well. When she offered him food, Jaeha took it up a notch by opening his mouth wide, asking her to feed him. Although she was a little embarrassed, seeing him act so cute in front of his cousins made her laugh, and she fed him a bite. Yeongjun pretended to gag silently, clearly amused.

“You don’t have to pay attention to him,” Jaeha said, grinning. “He’s just jealous.”

“Hey! Do you think you’re the only one with a girlfriend or the only one who can date?”

“But you’re single right now.”

“And you’re rubbing it in my face, huh?”

Yeongjun, after huffing for a moment, glanced at Seyoung and chuckled. It was an awkward, almost goofy kind of laugh.

“By the way, if you know someone nice around you…”

“Don’t,” Jaeha interrupted. “Why would Seyoung have to worry about setting you up?”

“Wow, listen to this brat,” Yeongjun said, exasperated.

Jaeha brazenly covered Seyoung’s eyes with his hand, telling her she didn’t even need to bother looking at Yeongjun. Stunned, Yeongjun started stammering, which finally made Seyoung laugh. She told Jaeha to stop teasing and fed him a bite of grilled abalone.

At that moment, as if something had been on her mind, Yeong-ah spoke up.

“Seyoung, do people tell you that you sound like a nightingale?”

All three, except for Yeong-ah, stared at her in surprise. Even Seyoung, who was the one being addressed, blinked in confusion. For a second, she wondered if Yeong-ah was teasing her, but it didn’t seem like the kind of thing someone would openly joke about.

“Nuna…” Jaeha said in a low voice, but Yeong-ah just asked why he was reacting that way.

“Don’t you think so too? Her voice has this slight melody when she speaks, it’s really pleasant to listen to.”

“……”

“It’s like she knows how to make her words sound nice. Do you think about how you speak?”

Seyoung was taken aback. Jaeha had never responded like this. He was the type to love her voice no matter how it sounded—he would have liked it even if it were awkward or odd.

But Yeong-ah had touched on something that Seyoung had always been self-conscious about, and she did so in the form of a compliment. Seyoung’s face, which had been relatively neutral all evening, flushed a deep red.

“Oh, um… thank you.”

“There’s nothing to thank me for! Now, eat up. We’ve got all this good food, and it’s just sitting here getting cold. Hoho.”

Yeong-ah laughed lightly, and Yeongjun, who had been frowning in disbelief at his sister’s unusually gentle tone, quickly went quiet after a sharp kick under the table.

***

By the time they parted ways with the siblings and returned home, Seyoung felt more tired than she expected. She collapsed onto the couch, stretching out as Jaeha grabbed a cold sports drink from the fridge and poured it into a cup for her. She thanked him and took a sip, feeling the cool liquid soothe her throat and give her a slight boost of energy.

“Tennis really does take a lot out of you, huh?”

“Yeah, I didn’t realize it, but my arms are all shaky.”

At first, she had learned from Jaeha, and later, even from Yeong-ah. Despite it being their first time meeting, Yeong-ah made Seyoung feel at ease, promising that with just a few more lessons, she’d easily be able to beat Jaeha. Thanks to Yeong-ah’s friendliness, Seyoung was able to relax and enjoy herself without worry.

“If you like it, we can go often. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you work out.”

“Working out…”

“Do you do any exercise regularly?”

“Walking…?”

“How is that exercise?” Jaeha laughed as if he had heard a funny joke.

Suddenly, his tone turned more suggestive, and his hands, which had been massaging her tired arms, took on a heavier, more deliberate touch.

“No, I’m wrong. You’ve been exercising pretty often lately.”

As Jaeha rubbed her sore muscles, Seyoung flinched from the unexpected pain, her eyes widening in surprise.

“What are you talking about?” she asked, looking at him curiously.