Chapter 275

Dreaming?

It was the first thought that came to mind when I opened my eyes on the bed where I didn’t want to wake up due to its coziness. Had I shared past stories with Esmeralda and ended up spending the night entangled with her after realizing each other’s feelings?

I never thought I’d have such a dream. As I got up, the scenery around me told me that last night’s events were not a dream.

I woke up in a large room that Esmeralda had intended to use, instead of a small room where I had packed my luggage. The gown I had discarded last night was hanging on a chair, and used condoms were thrown away in the trash bin under the vanity.

“Haha…”

The night before, it wasn’t alcohol that had intoxicated me but emotions. As we poured out our long-held stories, heightened emotions made me emotional, and likewise, Esmeralda became emotional, and we embraced each other.

After the emotional intoxication subsided, rationality felt like a hangover. I felt a boiling sensation and discomfort.

There was no regret in embracing Esmeralda. Instead, I felt as if lingering regrets had dissipated, and I thought I might be able to do better in the future.

However, the problem lies ahead.

I couldn’t think of what expression or gesture to use when facing her.

Esmeralda was not there. Her figure was nowhere to be seen in the large room with the tightly closed door. Did she leave early? Although I wasn’t sure what expression to show, I thought meeting her was the priority and got up from the bed, putting on the gown I had taken off.

When I opened the door and went out, the morning sunlight brightly illuminated the guest room.

Esmeralda, who was sitting on the sofa with neatly arranged items while drinking coffee, turned her head at the sound of the door opening and smiled when our eyes met.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, you woke up early.”

“Just my eyes opened early. Want some coffee?”

“Yes.”

Seeing her smiling comfortably despite my disheveled appearance, I wondered if I had worried unnecessarily. As Esmeralda headed to the kitchen, she turned on the coffee machine and immediately made coffee.

Approaching the sofa where she had been sitting, I sat opposite her and watched what she was doing since she woke up early.

On the living room table were documents to be checked today. Next to it was her smartphone, which she had been looking at just moments ago, and steam rose from the coffee cup she was drinking from.

“Shall I heat it up? Or make it cold?”

“Cold, please. I need to wake up.”

As I replied to her, I picked up the documents on the table and looked through them.

“I didn’t check much yesterday, just looked for any omissions.”

There was no trace of the atmosphere from last night in Esmeralda. Her standing posture and the way she made coffee were no different from usual.

Could last night’s incident be just a minor hiccup to her?

While washing away some of the guilt, I didn’t want to quietly bury last night’s incident.

I’ve always taken responsibility for things with my girlfriends, and I will continue to do so. This thought remains unchanged regardless of the object.

“I received a message from headquarters saying the traffic might delay us a bit.”

“Then we can leave leisurely, right?”

“Yeah, we can eat, rest, and then go.”

Esmeralda brought over a glass of ice-cold coffee she had made with one hand and placed it in front of me.

“Thank you.”

I took a sip immediately. The bitter taste and aroma of the coffee spread through my mouth, and the cold sensation seemed to permeate my entire body. It felt as though the sleep I hadn’t broken until just now had suddenly vanished.

“……”

Feeling the energy return to my body after drinking the coffee, I noticed Esmeralda’s gaze and looked at her.

“What did you ask?”

Was something stuck on my face? Looking at Esmeralda who was staring at me intently, I wiped my face with my hand.

“No, it’s not that… ”

Esmeralda, whose words trailed off, drank the coffee on the table and gathered the scattered documents.

Although I thought she was the same as usual, there was an inexplicable sense of awkwardness.

Could she be aware of last night’s incident? If she isn’t, I would consider it a lie. Even though I thought she would handle it more calmly, her unexpected reaction left me unsure how to act.

“If anything happens, let me know. I might not notice if you don’t tell me.”

This was something I often said to my girlfriends. I thought I was quite perceptive, but when it came to dealing with a partner, I wasn’t.

Although I couldn’t call myself her partner right now, given last night, I wanted to treat her somewhat like a partner.

“Why are you using formal language?”

“Oh.”

Realizing my mistake at her words, last night we hugged each other, and I used informal language at her request. We even called each other “sister,” which I had never imagined before, narrowing the gap between us.

But when I woke up this morning and saw her in the living room, I completely forgot that we had dropped the formalities.

Her image sitting on the sofa drinking coffee was exactly like the commanding officer Esmeralda I had always seen. Her composed and mature demeanor was vastly different from what she showed me last night.

“I need to work when I get to the accommodation, and there’s a chance I might make a mistake in front of others.”

Offering a plausible excuse, I spoke, but Esmeralda’s stern expression did not soften.

Even though Esmeralda’s demeanor had returned to normal, I also wanted to drop the formalities with her. However, there was one reason I couldn’t do that right away.

“Can’t we keep calling each other informally for a while?”

“Why?”

Esmeralda, looking at me with a sharp gaze as if my question was unreasonable, asked back. The red and green odd-eyes that felt so warm last night now seemed somewhat threatening.

“Well, there’s a lot to see at headquarters, and training is coming up soon. I’m afraid being too casual might affect my concentration at work.”

This could sound like an excuse, but it’s genuinely how I feel.

I’ve always done my best in assigned tasks, and I’m currently preparing for designing the training.

Though getting closer to Esmeralda is something I welcome, I don’t want it to interfere with my work. At headquarters, discussing work with her might lead to inappropriate actions if I suddenly start addressing her as “sister.”

Respecting my opinion, Esmeralda softened her stern expression and nodded.

“Alright.”

I was surprised by her quick acceptance.

“Why are you surprised? You just asked me to do that.”

“That’s true, but aren’t you sad?”

We had finally resolved lingering feelings and become closer. Given that I suggested we act normally right away, I thought she might be sad.

Just moments ago, I thought she might view last night’s incident as a mere mishap, but now, it seems I am the one trying to treat it lightly. Of course, I didn’t intend it that way, but she might interpret it that way.

“No, since you want it, why should you be sad? Actually, it’s more like you.”

Hearing her dismissive response to my heartfelt concern, I felt touched.

“Thank you. I’ll do it for now.”

“However.”

Putting down her glass, Esmeralda’s sharp gaze returned to me. I stopped halfway through drinking the coffee, waiting for her next words.

“When you hug me again, be prepared.”

“Again?”

Is this not a one-time event? Hearing “again,” I silently cheered inside. I didn’t want to end my relationship with Esmeralda just yet.

There were still explanations to give to my girlfriends, and I might face criticism. But despite that, I wanted to continue a special relationship with Esmeralda.

“Why? Do you dislike it?”

Did my reaction seem like I wanted to end the relationship? With a frown and an anxious look, Esmeralda asked me.

“No, well, um, yes. Please take care of me again.”

Thinking I shouldn’t respond with formal language, I answered casually like I did when hugging her last night, and Esmeralda smiled.

“Okay.”

Smiling broadly, we drank our coffee together, had a meal, returned to the room, and packed our bags.

Leaving the accommodation, I felt a tinge of sadness thinking about calling her “sister” for now.

A lot happened overnight, but I didn’t feel tired at all. Instead, my heart felt lighter and more at ease than when we left in the car with Esmeralda.

When we arrived at the training ground and 1st Team members were already there, I apologized to them and explained that we solved the issue by staying at a nearby motel.

If nothing happened while sharing a room, that would be fine, but if this story reached someone else’s ears, many might not believe it.

It’s not necessarily a secret, but it’s not something to announce publicly either. Therefore, I decided to keep it as our own secret for now.

At the final inspection of the training ground, Esmeralda’s demeanor was entirely back to normal. She didn’t reveal any personal emotions when we met, and her meticulous work ethic allowed me to focus on my tasks as well.

Considering we had spent the whole day inspecting the training ground yesterday, I thought today wouldn’t be very busy. However, fueled by the momentum, Esmeralda and I continued discussing the training while rechecking the inspected areas.

By late afternoon, everything was settled, and I organized the documents and training equipment I had reviewed during the inspections.

“You all worked hard. Once the schedule is wrapped up, we can return to headquarters. You can clean up tomorrow.”

“Understood.”

With many people, the 1st Team members quickly finished their cleanup in the van. Watching the 1st Team members leave after finishing their cleanup, I rushed to finish mine as well.

“It’s tough working alone?”

“No, compared to previous training, this is nothing.”

“Weren’t you trained for ten days in Kurat?”

“I was a mess back then.”

“Come to think of it, we went home together after training?”

“I was out of it. Singing songs about being tired on the way back, we even went to a park.”

A chuckle escaped at recalling old memories. The biggest change after last night was that I no longer felt uncomfortable talking about past experiences with her.

Previously, when we were reinforcing forces to invade a planet, we underwent serious training. That was when Esmeralda and I were becoming close, and after the exhausting training, we went on a date, though I didn’t realize it at the time.

“How was today?”

“Let’s see. What’s along the way?”

“There are many things. Maybe just stopping at a rest area would be fun?”

“Then shall we stop by?”

“Then we need to hurry.”

Esmeralda, who was cleaning up with me, started hurrying as well. With the sun setting, considering the time needed to get home, we didn’t have much time left.

Maybe I wanted a short date? There was no reason to refuse, and I didn’t want to anyway. Excited to spend time alone with her, I finished cleaning up as quickly as possible.

On the way back, we could talk more freely about past events.

And we could be more honest about our feelings from back then.

Good points. Disappointments. Joyful moments. Unpleasant moments.

No matter how much we talked, there were countless stories to share, and we hadn’t finished when we reached the rest area.

“Let’s go.”

Stepping out of the car and seeing Esmeralda with a bright smile, I offered my hand.

Surprised, she smiled again and took my hand.

Though it wasn’t a long time, we decided to enjoy a brief date.

What I thought would be a routine pre-inspection turned out to be more significant than expected.

And with that, my pre-inspection with Esmeralda came to an end.