My Younger Sister Was My First Love

38. The Megaphone

“You said you wanted to meet my friend before.”

“Introduce me only to guys. I don’t want to see girls.”

Jihee, who was devouring the fried chicken she had bought as a snack, firmly rejected my proposal.

“…Why do we have to distinguish between friends based on gender? Minju isn’t that bad of a person.”

“What’s with you? You said there was no chance of romance with someone who had such a personality, but now you’re acting like you’re on a date or something.”

“We didn’t hold hands.”

“Did you do something else, then?”

It seemed like she was interrogating a cheating husband caught in the act.

She pushed back her bangs and let out a deep sigh.

“There’s nothing like that. We just watched a movie and had dinner. See? I even brought snacks according to our plans.”

“That’s not it.”

“Eat and talk. Eat and talk.”

Jihee continued to eat while trying to communicate, as if she was being chased by someone.

“Anyway, I don’t like it! Don’t meet that girl!”

“Alright, alright. I won’t force you. If you don’t like it, then it’s fine.”

“And there’s one more thing.”

“What is it?”

“Did you make another promise with that girl?”

“I didn’t make a promise, but we just said we’d hang out again next time.”

What’s with that smile?

For a moment, Jihee looked like a villainous character from a webtoon, with a wicked grin on her face.

“Hmm……”

“What’s wrong now?”

“You’re going to be with that person at a place where I’m not present.”

I wondered how Minju’s image was stuck in her head like that.

It might have been better to set up a meeting between the two and clear up the misunderstanding.

“Minju isn’t my girlfriend. She’s just a friend.”

“That’s what you think.”

“What kind of answer do you want?”

I’m tired of going around in circles.

I wanted to hear the point of the story.

What’s the conclusion?

So, I shouldn’t meet Minju separately?

Shouldn’t I go to school with my friend?

In the end, Jihee had no logical reason to force me to do anything.

I didn’t think she had any grounds to make such demands.

If she wanted to make such ridiculous requests, shouldn’t she at least be my girlfriend?

No.

Even a girlfriend wouldn’t have the right to intervene in my personal life.

When I watch relationship counseling channels, they always talk about how far they can tolerate such things, like it’s a World Cup.

But Jihee’s demand, which flowed out of her mouth, was surprisingly realistic, contrary to my expectations.

“Even on Sundays, you can’t not meet?”

“Sundays?”

“Yeah. I only have Sundays off, you know.”

It’s not like I’m saying don’t meet at all, but asking to exclude Sundays only…….

“Alright.”

“Heh. Thanks.”

“But don’t you think it’s weird to spend every Sunday with me, even if it’s not with Minju?”

“What’s weird about it?”

“Just…… something……. I want to spend the day alone, rolling around in bed and healing. Or maybe meet other friends.”

“Don’t you like it?”

Jihee is someone who has a lot of dislikes today.

“Anyway, I’m family, so I see you every day. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Sometimes I meet other people too.”

Jihee seemed to think that was enough, flicking her index finger left and right.

“I know better than anyone what I like the most.”

“That’s true.”

“I’ll say it straight out. I like spending time with my family on holidays. As a student, I only have one precious day off, so I wish you would respect that.”

When you only hear the words, it doesn’t seem like a problem at all.

In fact, it might even seem like a charming aspect of being faithful to one’s family to others.

“But what if something comes up on Sundays and it can’t be helped?”

“Oppa, am I a kid? Can’t you understand that? If it’s something necessary or urgent, then go, okay?”

The more I talk, the more it seems like I’m the one who’s being unreasonable.

“Alright. I have to start studying again tomorrow, so I shouldn’t stay up too late tonight.”

“Yes!”

Only after getting a clear answer did Jihee’s face brighten up with a smile.

After cleaning up the remains of our late-night snack, I returned to my room and lay down, while Jihee went back to her room.

It was time to think about Jihee again.

Today’s theme was ‘What kind of kid is Jihee?’

First of all, Jihee isn’t a bad kid.

She doesn’t do things like play truant or make her parents angry.

In fact, even when I’m not around, she studies hard and gets good grades.

From a lifestyle perspective, I have no complaints about her.

Then, is there a problem with her personality?

No.

She’s very considerate of her mom and gets along well with her friends.

She’s even the kind of person who would make soup for her hungover oppa from morning.

Diagnosing this kind of person as having a bad personality would be weird on my part.

But that doesn’t mean her personality and actions are perfect…….

It’s excessive skinship for siblings.

Pecks. Kisses. Lewd jokes.

An excessive obsession with a large ‘family’.

“You’re quite playful, aren’t you~” I laughed it off, but Ji-hui’s actions had long crossed the line.

I knew that this couldn’t continue, but the reasons why it was bad were weaker than I thought.

Forcing someone to do something they dislike is bad.

I didn’t dislike it.

So, is it okay like this?

Can I really watch movies with my younger sibling every weekend, holding hands and kissing?

“X, is this okay?”

I usually refrained from swearing, but it was legal when I did it to myself.

Ah, I wish I could sleep a bit earlier today.

I wondered how long I had to sacrifice sleep for my younger sibling’s sake.

* * *

The start of April meant that midterms were approaching.

The attitudes of the first-year English majors towards the exam were extremely diverse.

“Ah, what’s the point of the exam! We should enjoy our first year! Who cares!”

There were those who boldly rejected the system like this.

“And you’ll be crying your eyes out when you’re a senior, re-taking the exam. You might as well study hard from the start. X, you’re such a foolish student.”

Many students were already obsessed with studying, as if they were on the extension of high school, and were deeply invested in their academic pursuits.

“What’s going to happen, hyung?”

When Ji-hwi asked me, I rubbed my cheek with the back of my hand.

“Just, you know, moderately? Not too badly?”

“If it’s going to be that ambiguous, let’s have a meeting with Gyeong-ho and jump into it one more time?”

“No, I won’t go. These kids are scary.”

I was afraid that Ji-hui might suddenly appear again.

After lunch, I arrived at the club room.

The club room had become quite comfortable, and being there gave me a sense of mental stability.

“Jun-ho’s here?”

The club president, who was operating the screen in front, waved at me.

“Ah, yes.”

The club president, who was a senior, had a unique, laid-back atmosphere.

“Have you seen the study plan for the day after tomorrow’s exam?”

I hadn’t even prepared for the midterms, let alone the club study plan.

“No, I’ll do it tomorrow.”

“It’s better to take a look beforehand. If you just come without preparing, you won’t be able to keep up and it’ll be hard to understand.”

“Okay.”

Huh, I have a lot to do when I get home.

There wasn’t a designated seat in the club room, but I always sat in the same spot.

Second row from the back, by the window.

There was plenty of space to put my bag down, and it was a place where people didn’t bother me much.

Not many people came to find me deliberately.

Yeah, except for this one guy.

“Lee Jun-ho.”

Surprisingly, Min-joo and I had a lot of overlapping free time.

“Hi.”

“Are you playing games again?”

During my small breaks when Ji-hee wasn’t around and I didn’t have classes, I would often get threatened by Min-joo.

“Yeah, I have to.”

Ji-hee had lost interest and stopped playing the mobile game, but I was still passionately playing it.

I was about to reach level 40.

I was very satisfied with my rising ranking in the guild.

“Is it that fun?”

“If you’re going to tease me, then leave.”

“Why are you teasing me? I’m just curious.”

Again, he sat down next to me.

There were many seniors and other kids in front of us, but Min-joo always chose to sit next to me.

“Hmm, should I try it too?”

“I won’t stop you, but why bother?”

“Can I play with you if I do?”

“We can’t play together directly, but we can be on the same team, right?”

“Really? What’s the name of the game?”

“Kingdom of Delight.”

I didn’t know if he was serious, but Min-joo installed the game on his phone right in front of me.

“……Are you really going to play?”

“I’m actually good at games, you know? It’s not like I’m bad at it.”

It wasn’t a game that required delicate control, but anyway, it was welcoming to have a friend.

“If you’re going to play, I’ll help you a lot.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. I started playing because my younger sibling asked for help, but they ended up quitting.”

“Ugh, that guy is a repeater, of course they can’t play games.”

My words came out of Min-joo’s mouth like a recording.

“If you’re going to nag, go tell my younger sibling directly. Don’t tell me.”

“You’re the guardian, you do it.”

He didn’t listen to me. That guy.

He heard what I said, but only chose to listen to what he wanted to hear, which was the exact definition of selective hearing.

After I explained the game’s system to him, Min-joo asked a lot of questions enthusiastically.

“So, isn’t it more economical to focus on strengthening quickly rather than just farming?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Should I focus on this when I’m at a low level?”

“Yeah. That’s correct.”

“What did you buy at the store?”

She was already establishing her own system, and it was impressive.

Minju, whom I met before I started studying seriously, had this image back then too.

She was someone who could do anything by herself, effortlessly.

I thought her only flaw was her reckless personality, but now I couldn’t find that aspect of her anymore.

Her appearance had also improved to the point where I couldn’t criticize it.

Watching a movie with her again felt like a new experience.

In fact, our meeting that day was a part where I should have been grateful, wasn’t it?

“Junho, what’s this?”

“What.”

“Your spouse? Are you married or something?”

“Ah. In the game, it’s better to get married. There are many benefits.”

“Really? Then I’ll do it with you.”

Minju said it casually, but my mouth went dry.

“Ah. I already did it with someone else.”

“Really? Then add me as a friend or call me by my ID.”

“Jiheeoppa.”

“Huh?”

“That’s my nickname. Jiheeoppa.”

Now that Minju knew who Jihee was, she gave a rather awkward response.

“Did you take your younger sibling’s name?”

“When I first created it, I didn’t think much about it. Oh, I got an alarm.”

Just then, I received a friend request notification from Minju, and I quickly clicked the accept button.

“Your level is high? Did you play a lot?”

“No. Compared to the high-level players, it’s…”

I didn’t spend a lot of money, nor did I grind that hard.

While it might seem high by beginner standards, it would look like dust to heavy users.

“But you know.”

“Yeah. Is there something else you’re curious about?”

“No. It’s not that I’m curious, but…”

Minju showed me her phone screen.

—

Profile of [Jiheeoppa]!

Spouse: [Junho’s younger sibling]

—

“Is the person you got married to your younger sibling?”

I couldn’t bring myself to look up.

“…In the game, guys can get married too, so what’s the big deal.”