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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
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The “drunk and made a mistake” trope is common. It often appears in Korean dramas as a plot device between men and women, and you see similar scenes in foreign movies and shows as well.
But I always wondered how people could lose their inhibitions and have sex just because they were drunk.
I’d never been that drunk, and I’d never had a partner to even consider such a scenario.
As someone who considered themselves a decent drinker, I thought blaming it on the alcohol was just an excuse.
I thought people just acted on their impulses while drunk and then blamed the alcohol afterwards.
That was what I thought, until yesterday.
“…”
I woke up in the afternoon, and my eyes met Yu-ra’s. Before I could even process the situation, the events of last night came flooding back, and we both sat up abruptly.
“Oh?”
I instinctively let out a small sound, the memories of last night making me wonder what I’d done. Yu-ra also seemed to remember everything, sitting up and covering herself with the blanket, a dazed look on her face.
The heavens weren’t on my side. The rain clouds from last night had disappeared, and warm sunlight streamed into the room.
After a brief silence, still dazed, we turned to look at each other. I covered my face with my hand, and Yu-ra flopped back down onto the bed.
“Sorry…”
“Sorry.”
We both mumbled apologetically, and Yu-ra, after staring at the ceiling, turned to look at me.
Our eyes met again.
For some reason, we both started laughing, having slept together while drunk. The situation wasn’t funny at all, but we couldn’t help it.
“What? You’ve been through 20 men?”
“Of course, it was a lie, idiot. When would I have time to date?”
Now that she mentioned it, there hadn’t been any mention of relationships in her story yesterday. I pulled back the blanket, revealing the aftermath of our passionate night.
We were both naked, but there was no sense of shame.
“Why would you say something like that and make people misunderstand?”
I felt bad that she’d been misunderstood because of a lie she’d told out of pride, and I stroked her hair.
“Did you do it on purpose?”
She pouted playfully, and I reached out and pulled her lower lip.
“!!!”
Startled, she flailed, then smacked my waist with her hand.
“Ouch!”
The stinging pain made me release her lip, and Yu-ra sat up abruptly.
“Well, you surprised me!”
I rubbed my waist as she glared at me.
“I did it because you’re cute. What’s the big deal?”
“…I’m going to shower!”
We spoke curtly, but there was no real animosity. I wanted to continue this playful banter, but Yu-ra got out of bed and walked towards the bathroom, naked.
I watched her go, then pulled the blanket off the bed.
I wondered what to do, then looked outside at the bright sunlight and felt a pang of hunger.
“I should order food.”
As I walked out to the living room, I noticed my clothes, which I’d spread out to dry before we started drinking, were now dry. I figured they were wearable and opened the bathroom door, hearing the sound of the shower running.
“!!”
Yu-ra, startled, jumped and looked at me, startled.
“I’m ordering food. What do you want?”
“You’re supposed to knock!”
She scolded me for not knocking, even though we’d already seen each other naked and slept together. Did it really matter? I should remember to knock next time.
“So, what do you want to eat?”
“What are you ordering?”
“I’m asking because I don’t know.”
“Something for a hangover.”
She closed the bathroom door, and I sat down on the sofa and started browsing a food delivery app. A hangover cure usually meant soup, but nothing appealed to me, so I spent a while scrolling through the options. Just then, Yu-ra came out of the bathroom, freshly showered.
She was wrapped in a large towel, drying her hair with a smaller one, and she noticed me sitting on the sofa.
“Did you order?”
“Not yet.”
She glared at me, then sighed and sat down next to me.
She leaned close to look at my phone screen, and I felt the presence of her ample breasts against my arm, even through the towel.
“Order jjigae and rice. We’re both hungry.”
“Okay.”
I placed the order and was about to go shower myself when I looked at Yu-ra. She was also looking at me, seemingly wanting to say something, and we fell silent again.
She was probably going to bring it up last night. I also thought we should talk about it.
“Um…”
“Should we pretend it never happened?”
She interrupted me before I could speak, and her unexpected words made me pause.
This incident ruining our relationship was the last thing Yu-ra wanted. I wasn’t oblivious to that, and I needed time to think.
We couldn’t just pretend it never happened; we’d crossed the line between friends.
Ignoring it would only make things more awkward in the long run, so I couldn’t answer right away.
“…I’ll shower first.”
“Okay.”
I couldn’t think straight and wanted to talk after I’d freshened up, so I went into the bathroom. As I stood under the cold spray, my thoughts revolved around Yu-ra. Last night had been fueled by alcohol and a series of unfortunate events, but I couldn’t just dismiss it; too much had happened.
The most uncomfortable part was the prospect of maintaining a friendship while pretending last night never happened.
When I came out of the bathroom, dressed, the food had arrived, and Yu-ra was setting the table.
“That was fast.”
“Come eat.”
I sat next to her and helped her set up, and we started eating in an awkward silence.
The heavy silence made the food feel like lead in my stomach, and Yu-ra finally broke the silence.
“What are we going to do?”
Yu-ra had suggested pretending it never happened, but I’d postponed the discussion. Now it was my turn to offer a solution, and I decided to be honest.
“…I don’t think we can just pretend it never happened and stay friends.”
Yu-ra put down her spoon and took a sip of water, looking nervous. I waited for her to finish.
“It happened. How about we just… continue as we are?”
It was the best I could come up with, but Yu-ra looked dissatisfied, her expression sullen, and resumed eating.
She clearly had something else in mind, but I couldn’t figure it out.
“You said you didn’t have a girlfriend, right?”
Yu-ra put down her spoon again and spoke. Her sudden question about my relationship status made me swallow hard before answering.
“Yes.”
I had a girlfriend, but I couldn’t tell her that, so I lied. Yu-ra stared blankly at the food, then suddenly turned to look at me.
“I don’t have a boyfriend either.”
“Yeah, I know.”
She’d told me before. She was currently single, and her claim about 20 ex-boyfriends was a lie, so technically, she wasn’t single now; she’d been single until now.
“So… what do you think… about dating?”
Her voice was barely a whisper, but I heard every word. I covered my face with my hand.
I had Yu-bin. While it felt wrong to say it like that, Yu-bin wasn’t the reason for my hesitation.
Yu-ra didn’t know about Yu-bin, and from her perspective, after what had happened, it was a natural question to ask. She probably wanted me to be the one to suggest it, but I hadn’t considered that possibility.
Having multiple partners wasn’t a big deal, universally speaking. Traveling across countless planets with different civilizations, I’d encountered diverse values. Even within a single planet, with multiple nations, sometimes, there were shared values across the planet.
One such shared value was the concept of marriage, and there were various forms: monogamy, polygyny, polyandry, and so on. On Earth, monogamy was the norm. Of course, there were exceptions. There were always exceptions.
There hadn’t been a clear standard on my home planet. Technological advancements had led to diverse societal changes, and depending on the nation, there were various relationship structures. The prevailing value was that the choice was up to the individual.
I didn’t have a preference. I believed the choice was a personal one.
However, this was Earth. I couldn’t impose my home planet’s values on the people here.
But aside from the question of how many partners I had or whether I was being deceitful, I couldn’t give Yu-ra a clear answer.
She’d asked because she wanted to be with me, but I felt that being with her while my feelings were uncertain would only hurt her more.
The problem was, I knew rejecting her would also hurt her, so I couldn’t just say no.
All I could do was postpone the decision.
“Can I think about it?”
“Okay…”
Seeing her dejected expression made me feel even worse.
“It’s not because I don’t like you.”
Yu-ra, who’d lowered her head, looked up at my words. Her downcast eyes regained a spark of life.
“I just want to be sure of my feelings, too. I understand how you feel, but let’s take it slow. My feelings for you won’t change, so don’t worry.”
I stroked her hair. I knew I was just delaying the inevitable. But it was the best I could offer her right now.
It felt wrong to start a relationship just because we’d slept together, as if I didn’t value her enough, and I didn’t like that.
Yu-ra was my friend, and we’d become closer after sleeping together. That’s why I had to think carefully.
While Yu-ra was still insecure, she seemed to respect my decision, and after a moment of thought, she nodded.
“If you say no later or say you can’t be friends anymore, I’ll kill you.”
She gave a playful threat and started eating again, and I smiled and replied, “That won’t happen.” I didn’t want to lose her friendship either.
After dinner, we cleaned up together. We took the soiled sheets to the bathroom, soaked them, and stomped on them together, playfully splashing each other, which earned me another scolding.
After putting the sheets in the washing machine, we tidied up the room.
“You were good, by the way.”
“Really?”
My face brightened at her compliment about our lovemaking. My male ego was boosted by her praise, and Yu-ra smiled.
“You like hearing that you were good?”
“Of course. No man dislikes that compliment, whether it’s their first time or not.”
That was a universal truth, regardless of the era or the planet. No man in the universe would be offended or discouraged by being told they were good in bed.
“…How was I?”
Last night had been Yu-ra’s first time, and while she seemed to have enjoyed it, she was curious about my experience. Even the usually cheerful Yu-ra blushed as she asked about my impression of our lovemaking.
“You? You were great.”
I gave her my honest assessment. She’d entrusted herself to me, someone with a little more experience, and I’d enjoyed exploring her body.
“Really? Okay.”
She replied shyly and continued cleaning, and I watched her for a moment before joining her.
By the time we finished cleaning, the sun had set. Having woken up late, the day had felt short, and I got ready to leave, putting on my shoes in the entryway.
“Are you going to tell them you’re quitting when you go to the café tomorrow?”
“Of course. How can I keep working there? I need to find another job.”
“Okay. Get some rest, and I’ll see you around.”
I said goodbye and reached for the doorknob when Yu-ra grabbed my shirt. I stopped and turned to look at her. Her eyes held a flicker of anxiety. She was still insecure.
“We’ll see each other again, right?”
Her voice trembled, afraid that this might be our last meeting, and I knew the best way to reassure her.
I looked at her for a moment, then gently caressed her face and leaned in, kissing her softly.
It was a light, chaste kiss, but Yu-ra’s trembling stopped, and she looked at me as I pulled away.
“I’ll see you around.”
I waved goodbye as she opened the door for me, and she closed it after I left.
The moment the door closed, Pink realized he was gone. She stared at the closed door, her face flushing, then ran to the bedroom and buried her face in a pillow.
Unable to describe the emotions swirling within her, she rolled around on the bed, kicking her feet and pounding the mattress with her fists.
Calming down slightly, she lifted her head from the pillow, and the memory of their kiss, of cleaning together earlier, of everything that happened last night, flooded her mind, and she blushed, a shy smile spreading across her face.
Exhaustion hit me on the way home.
While I’d taken something for my hangover, I hadn’t slept well, and all I wanted to do was go home and sleep.
“I’m going to die.”
As I stood at my door, entering the passcode, a nagging feeling that I’d forgotten something lingered, and the moment I opened the door and stepped inside, I realized what it was.
“…”
Yu-bin, sitting on the sofa with her arms crossed, slowly turned her head and looked at me.
The door clicked shut behind me, and I finally came to my senses.
“Where were you?”
Yu-ra had said there was no Hunter Killer meeting today.
That meant Yu-bin wouldn’t be at the meeting either.
And the only other place Yu-bin would be, as far as I knew, was my apartment.
Yu-bin’s red eyes, usually warm and bright, seemed colder than ever today, and having not contacted her since my text message about drinks yesterday, only one thought came to mind.
‘I’m screwed.’
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Death