My Younger Sister Was My First Love

32. The Way My Younger Brother Expresses Gratitude

I thought we were making progress.

It wasn’t just me who liked Oppa; Oppa also showed clear signs of liking me.

Love is always expressed more through actions than words.

Oppa blocked me from being with other men with his entire being.

And to top it off, he made an absurd request, saying I shouldn’t attend meetings from now on, as if he had gained some kind of privilege.

Of course, it might have been just a drunken remark, but I was thrilled by Oppa’s unreasonable demand.

It was proof that he wanted to ‘onopolize’ me.

He didn’t even reject my subtle advances.

I could feel myself becoming more and more a part of Junho Oppa’s world.

Of course, the process wasn’t smooth sailing.

I had to study hard every day to gain Oppa’s favor, and I had to intervene in events where Oppa would mingle with other women.

But now that I’ve somewhat grasped his feelings, I thought I could handle it well on my own.

“Hey!”

– Thud

Oppa, who had come to his senses, tried to push me away, but it was too late.

The mission was already complete.

I had left my mark on his neck.

The lip print, somewhere between pink and plum, was clearly visible on Oppa’s skin.

“What are you doing!”

“What about you?”

“What did I do?”

“You told me not to attend meetings for life, and now you’re going to watch a movie with another girl?”

“No. She’s just a friend. And isn’t it my freedom to watch a movie with a girl on my own time?”

Oppa looked at me with a ridiculous expression.

Is this how it’s going to be?

“Oppa, do you like that noona?”

I had my own thoughts on the matter.

“No, I’ve told you several times that I don’t like her. From the start, we’re not even in that kind of relationship.”

“Then listen carefully.”

The person called Democratic Noona seemed to have a crush on Oppa.

Oppa stubbornly denied it, but I could sense his rational interest and was confident that I was several steps ahead of him in detecting it.

“If Oppa really doesn’t have feelings for her, then it’s not possible with that noona.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s not like we can help each other out. Didn’t Oppa say he wanted to try dating me? If he goes to the movies with Democratic Noona, it’ll spread as a rumor. Or she’ll post it on SNS.”

“What’s the big deal?”

“If someone who has a crush on Oppa sees that, they’ll give up, right? Does Oppa want to date a girl who goes to the movies with a male friend as if it’s nothing? Wow, I really hate that.”

Even if I didn’t reveal my true feelings, I could still interfere.

In terms of studying, Oppa might be good, but I was far ahead of him in this aspect.

“……Who do you think has a crush on me?”

“If you really want to date, you shouldn’t talk like that with low self-esteem.”

As his younger sister, I could tolerate this much.

If it were someone else, Oppa would’ve already been gone.

I gently touched the scar I had left, and the appearance of being hurt was satisfying.

“Want to watch a movie? Let’s watch it together instead.”

“I already made plans. Can’t do it.”

Seeing him come out with this, it seemed like Oppa had already made up his mind to watch the movie with that person.

Ah.

My heart was boiling with a mix of emotions.

It was the first time in my life I felt this kind of heavy, sticky feeling.

I suppose the name of this emotion is ‘jealousy’.

But this was also something I had to endure.

I understood my situation well.

There weren’t many webtoons that started with a romantic relationship between siblings and ended with a happy ending.

There were always people who interfered.

Those who pointed fingers, saying that Ince#st was crazy, and the sub-female characters who always appeared to seduce Oppa were classic.

But the winner was always the one and only, invincible younger sister.

In the end, Oppa’s existence would always come back to me, and they would swear eternal love.

So I had to put him under a spell.

This was the painful time before I got to taste the sweet fruit.

If I showed excessive attachment from now on, the probability of a backlash was high.

It would become a so-called “rapid development” situation.

So I had to calm my head and accept that this was a time to take a step back.

“Okay, got it. Don’t come back late then.”

“And, Iji-hee, stop trying to provoke me or whatever.”

“What’s with that?”

“There’s excessive skinship and stuff like that.”

“Just now, it wasn’t skinship, I was angry and snapped at you.”

“You’re a beast? You’re mad, so that’s how it is?”

I chuckled and nodded my head.

“Oppa said you’re not a 7th-grade person, after all.”

So, I guess I’m a beast, then.

* * *

“Lee Jun-ho!”

I ran into Min-ju again on Friday.

I was heading towards the bus stop after class ended.

The sky was gloomy, and it looked like it was going to rain soon.

I hoped it wouldn’t rain before I got home.

I had forgotten to bring my umbrella in my bag.

“Hi.”

“Yeah, didn’t you forget our appointment for the weekend?”

“Yeah, it’s at 5 pm on Sunday.”

What’s with the fancy outfit?

Ten years ago, I couldn’t have even imagined wearing something like that.

A leather jacket, a black skirt that’s slightly above the knee, and high-heeled boots.

It was a look that was hard to get used to, even after seeing it multiple times.

“Do you have an appointment or something?”

“No, why?”

“You’re all dressed up.”

“Aigoo, what’s so fancy about this? I just wore it because I felt like it.”

I guess that’s not even considered fancy to Min-ju.

“But what’s that on your neck?”

“Ah, this.”

My hand naturally went to the band-aid on my neck.

“A cat scratched me.”

“You have a cat at home? I didn’t know that.”

“It’s not a cat at home, I just feed stray cats.”

A lie slipped out of my mouth naturally.

It’s true that Ji-hui’s face resembles a cat’s.

If I had to compare our teacher to an animal… definitely… yeah…

It’s not a cute image like a puppy or a rabbit, though.

A more sly and cunning image suits them better.

“That’s unusual. You don’t usually do that when you feed them.”

“It seems I didn’t meet your expectations. Whatever.”

“Ugh, be careful, okay?”

When the bus arrived, we got off at the subway station and walked side by side to the bus stop.

“Don’t be late on Sunday.”

“Okay, I’ll go.”

I touched the lingering scar on my neck again, got on another bus, and headed to a bookstore near my home.

Tomorrow is the day of Jihee’s mock exam.

As the director, I promised to observe her taking the test alongside her.

Mock exams are never easy schedules.

It’s a marathon from around 8 am to 4 pm in the afternoon.

I thought I should prepare myself for it too.

It’s too long to kill time with mobile games or reviewing university classes.

Buying a book and reading it seemed like a good way to spend my time.

As I entered the large bookstore, the unique smell of paper tickled my nose.

I brushed past the bestseller shelves and took a big turn to see what caught my eye.

It’s better to find something that can help me rather than just novels.

Surprisingly, my footsteps stopped at the parenting corner.

“[Education 1st Place: Managing Your Child’s Studies]”

… Should I read this?

The author is a mom from our neighborhood who sent her son to medical school.

Since she’s from the same neighborhood, I feel a strange sense of familiarity.

I picked up the book, checked the table of contents, and flipped through the pages quickly.

There were many stories about college entrance exams, so the cost-effectiveness was a bit low.

Jihee is impossible to get into college through early admissions.

She’s a fighter who aims to get into college through regular admissions, no matter what.

But there were many stories about how to help students manage themselves, so I coolly made the purchase and headed back to the entrance.

“Ah.”

The raindrops were falling heavily.

My uneasy feeling was proven right.

There were many people like me who couldn’t leave the store, lingering around the entrance.

I’m worried.

Should I buy an umbrella?

Or should I just run home?

I took out my phone and opened it to find a message from Jihee.

“[Do you have an umbrella?]”

“[If you don’t have one, I can come pick you up?]”

Although she refused my offer to come to school, it’s only a 10-minute walk from here to my home.

I called Jihee.

“Hello?”

“Yes, it’s me.”

[Oppa, no umbrella.]

[Yes. So, can you come to the bookstore next to the intersection?]

[Huh? Why did you come all the way here, Oppa?]

[I need to buy a book.]

[Really? Alright, I’ll go right away. Wait for me!]

I didn’t even get a response and just cut off the call, standing alone in front of the entrance, waiting for Ji-hui to arrive.

My younger sibling showed up about 15 minutes later.

“Ta-da!”

My sibling, dressed in sportswear, came carrying an old man’s golf umbrella that went up to their waist.

“Did you bring that one umbrella?”

“Yes!”

“Why didn’t you bring two small ones?”

No matter how big the umbrella is, it’s not efficient for two people to share one.

“I was worried that Oppa might get wet and ran here frantically, but it’s ridiculous.”

Ji-hui clenched their fist and pretended to wipe away tears.

“It’s a shame. But thanks anyway.”

As we went outside and opened the umbrella, Ji-hui stuck close to me.

“I don’t like getting wet.”

“Then you should’ve brought two umbrellas.”

“Is it not okay to stick this close?”

Ji-hui almost glued themselves to my arm, like a cicada on a tree trunk.

“Hmm~ Hehehehe~”

Despite not liking to get wet, they seemed to be in a great mood.

“How was studying?”

“I’m doing okay, I think I can pass the mock test tomorrow.”

“You’re going to make mistakes if you’re too confident.”

“Do you think 7th grade is being too confident? What about you, Oppa?”

Well, yeah.

It’s not like I can just pull out a business card or anything, but…

“First, I’m definitely getting 1st place in Korean, and in math… 5th. And at least 5th in English. And as for exploratory subjects…”

“Why don’t you know exploratory subjects?”

“I’m not confident.”

If national exams are like hamburgers, then exploratory subjects are like french fries.

I didn’t bother to nitpick since the quality of the hamburger came first.

“It would be great if I could do well in June, though.”

“Yeah! By then, I’ll have finished studying the entire curriculum, right?”

“As long as I don’t slack off.”

“When did I ever do that?”

“You skipped evening study and came to the meeting, didn’t you?”

“……I did, too.”

“Did you just use informal language?”

“No.”

It felt like a long way when I walked alone, but I arrived quickly while chatting with Jihee.

“Wait a bit for food.”

“Should I cook for you, oppa, since you’re tired?”

“No, I’ve already bothered you, so it’s only right that I cook.”

After washing my hands and changing my clothes, Jihee also changed back into her usual attire.

“So, what did you buy at the bookstore? A textbook?”

“No.”

It seemed like Jihee was curious, so I took out the book I was going to read tomorrow from my bag and handed it to her.

“This.”

“Are you telling me to read it?”

“No? The title is about child management, so I’ll read it.”

Now, I’m the representative of Jihee’s parents.

And it’s better for a student like her to solve an extra practice problem instead of reading a book like that.

“So, did you buy it because of me, and you want oppa to help you?”

As I said that, Jihee’s face turned bright red.

Unlike earlier, her voice became softer.

“……I’m really grateful.”

“Uh……?”

“I’m really thankful. I want to do something for oppa too.”

“It’s okay. You just focus on studying hard.”

Jihee looked like she was struggling with her thoughts, then suddenly raised her head.

“Oppa.”

“Yes?”

“Can I touch your chest?”