Here’s the translated text:
Without much thought, I suddenly found myself screaming at the horror movie with my girlfriends. The first scream came from me as a scary scene unfolded.
“Kkiyaak!”
I was the one who screamed.
I had momentarily forgotten about my girlfriends, but I wasn’t good at watching horror movies anyway. Even though I don’t believe in ghosts, the fear they evoke is scary regardless of belief.
“!!”
I trembled even at minor changes in scenes, keeping my eyes fixed on the screen. My girlfriends sitting next to me directed their gaze at me whenever I flinched, and I couldn’t bear to meet their eyes.
“What? Is this scary?!”
SuA, who seemed to mock my fear, laughed mockingly, but when a loud noise came from the movie, she shrank her shoulders in surprise.
“It looks dangerous too.”
“Who would be scared of something like this!!!”
Yubin tried to deny it, but SuA jumped in fright at the following scenes.
“Kkieeek!”
It wasn’t just SuA who was startled. I was equally shocked and couldn’t hold back my scream.
When I looked at the screen with a pale face, I noticed Yura sitting on the floor.
“……”
She had her eyes tightly shut and covered her ears with both hands, trembling every time there was a loud sound in the movie or when I screamed in fright.
“Yura?”
I slowly reached out and tapped her shoulder.
“Aaaah! I’m sorry! I did wrong!”
“Kkiaaah!”
Her scream startled me, and we both shouted simultaneously at the sudden touch on her shoulder.
Evenha Milky Way, who had been calmly watching the movie, turned her head sharply at our screams rather than the movie sounds.
“If you all don’t like horror movies, you should say so…”
When Hayang first suggested watching a horror movie, no one refused. I was excited at the prospect of seeing my girlfriends’ scared faces, while SuA and Yura didn’t speak up due to their pride.
Unexpectedly, Evenha watched calmly, and Yubin didn’t seem particularly shocked. Hayang watched with interest, showing no reaction despite her suggestion.
“No, I don’t dislike them!”
Despite SuA’s refusal to give in to pride, no one believed her unconvincing words.
“Yura, are you okay?”
“I’m not okay!”
Yura, whom I thought wouldn’t be scared, turned out to be the most frightened.
They weren’t really fearless, but their reactions were the strongest when watching a horror movie compared to real life.
Though Yura was more scared than me, I couldn’t just leave her like that. I held her close and patted her back.
As soon as I hugged her, Yura, who had been covering her eyes and ears, nestled into my embrace and remained still.
Seeing Yura slightly calmed, SuA also clung to me.
The movie continued, and by the end, I was drenched in cold sweat, and Yura was still in my arms. SuA stayed close to me, holding my arm tightly until the end, then released it once the movie finished.
“Are you okay?”
I started by checking Yura, who had been in my arms. When I released her, she stepped away, her eyes slightly wet, suggesting she had shed tears.
“I’m not okay. This is the first time I’ve seen a horror movie.”
I was surprised to hear she had never seen a horror movie before. Unconsciously, I had avoided them, but today, I ended up watching one.
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
“…No one said they didn’t want to.”
Though it seemed like she didn’t want to ruin the mood, Yura’s expression showed she couldn’t say she was scared when everyone else wasn’t.
In the end, I watched my first horror movie, though I couldn’t see it properly because I covered my eyes and ears. Would it be okay if I said I watched it?
“Then let’s avoid horror movies next time.”
Hayang, who hadn’t expected us to be so scared, stood up and said they would exclude horror movies if they watched another film in the future.
After breakfast and watching a movie, it was already lunchtime.
“I’ll start preparing lunch. Everyone, take a break.”
“Yes.”
Everyone responded nicely and turned their attention back to the TV. The paused screen displayed a menu for selecting other movies or TV programs.
“How about a game?”
“Sure.”
Scared as she was, SuA nodded immediately at the mention of a game and pressed the remote control to switch the TV to a game screen.
Seeing SuA start the game, Yura relaxed visibly. Yubin and Milky Way enjoyed a comfortable moment watching SuA play while looking at their smartphones.
Thinking about having such moments continuously felt like a dream. The realization of how much work lay ahead to create such a routine brought an involuntary smile.
“Hey?”
Just as I was thinking this, Hayang’s voice came from the kitchen.
Though it was a small voice, everyone turned their heads since it was audible to all.
“What’s going on?”
“No, I wanted to make stew, but I don’t have tofu.”
Understanding it was nothing serious, I nodded and got up from my seat.
“I’ll go get it.”
“No, it’s fine. It’s just one piece of tofu. We can use something else.”
“But changing the planned menu seems a bit odd. I’ll step out for some fresh air.”
Even though she said I didn’t need to go, after sweating during the horror movie and feeling hot, I wanted to cool down a bit.
“Wanna come with me?”
Yubin suggested coming along, but I waved her off lightly.
“No, what if someone recognizes us?”
While it might be possible to avoid recognition with a hat or mask, someone recognized Luche yesterday in town.
Moreover, I didn’t want to draw unnecessary attention by going out with my recently high-profile girlfriends.
Above all, buying a single piece of tofu wouldn’t take long, so going alone seemed more convenient.
“Then I’ll count on you.”
“You can leave it to me.”
Considering the weather, I put on a thick coat, grabbed my wallet and smartphone, and left the house.
I couldn’t remember the last time I went out alone for any reason other than commuting to headquarters.
Reflecting on recent events, I realized I hadn’t gone anywhere alone when there was something to do or when there was free time.
I realized how much time I spent with my girlfriends. As I walked towards the market, thinking about past events, I wondered what my girlfriends would do when I wasn’t around.
I didn’t think they would fight. While there were occasional disagreements, they rarely fought.
Even if the period of not communicating was longer, the time spent together far exceeded the period of silence.
Since I started observing, it became impossible for me to be absent, but I imagined it would be amusing to see them interact without me someday.
Arriving at the market, I bought a block of tofu and some snacks, then headed home.
On the way back, I felt an unusual presence at the entrance of an alley. No one was inside, but a strange feeling made me turn my head.
The voices inside grew louder with each step. There were several people, and it sounded like children’s voices.
“Damn, I hate this. Why do people like this?”
When I entered further, I saw a disturbing scene.
It was hard to tell their age, but four teenage boys were surrounding and bullying another boy.
“Hmm.”
At my cough, the four boys stopped their violence and turned to look. The beaten boy finally fell to the ground.
Fortunately, there were no visible severe injuries.
“What are you doing?”
“Just ignore him?”
Kids these days are scary.
I sighed deeply, looking at the four boys with disdain.
“Is it right to bully someone with many people?”
“Fck off.”
One of the boys approached me, fist clenched. His walking pattern indicated where he planned to hit.
Even though I often lose to my girlfriends, I’m not weak enough to be beaten by a 10-year-old.
But it’s not right to retaliate with violence against a young child. So, I tripped the approaching boy.
“Really!”
Seeing the first boy fall, the others showed hostility and approached me.
“Oh no.”
Worried about dropping the tofu, I hurriedly put it down. One of the boys swung a punch, but I ducked, causing it to miss. As I stood up, I faced another boy rushing at me.
“I can’t beat you guys, so why don’t you just leave?”
As a Spaceystro soldier, I can’t use violence against civilians. Especially against a child.
“What are you saying? Fck off. Don’t act tough alone!”
The hostile boy charged at me.
I figured I could at least subdue him without violence. So, I grabbed his arm, twisted it, and tripped him.
“Don’t move. You’ll break.”
I wasn’t bluffing. If I twisted his arm any further, it could break. I held it firmly, making movement impossible.
“Ugh! Ah! Ah!”
The boy cried out in pain from his twisted arm. After a moment, I released his arm.
“How about ending this here without escalating?”
I felt it might be overkill to act tough with kids, but they shouldn’t be ignored. If I hadn’t intervened, this situation could have turned bad if a regular man had been there.
Judging they couldn’t physically overpower me, the four boys left after spitting curses. Seeing them completely disappear, I picked up the bag I had dropped.
“Are you okay?”
I approached the boy lying on the ground. He seemed to have fallen due to being pushed, but fortunately, there were no visible injuries.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
Though the situation was threatening, the boy’s voice was steady.
Feeling relieved that there were no major issues, I noticed his backpack. There were five buttons on it, shaped like the HunterKiller Team’s helmet.
“?”
I was puzzled. Since the hyper-humans aren’t well-known in a positive light, related products usually don’t exist.
They would just become a laughing stock and wouldn’t sell.
And from what I knew, there were no buttons featuring the HunterKiller Team.
Noticing my gaze, the boy covered his backpack and looked at me with shaking eyes.
