“Aaah!”
After trying to stop Hayang from doing the dishes and finishing our meal, Luche and I washed the dishes used by both of us.
Today, since she came as a guest, I let Luche relax after dinner, and she sat on the living room sofa and started playing a game with SuA.
I thought Luche wouldn’t be interested in games, but surprisingly, she stared intently at the game SuA was playing and immediately accepted SuA’s suggestion to give it a try.
Though I gave her some handicap due to her being a beginner, once the handicap was applied, she didn’t hold back. It was fortunate that Luche didn’t cry despite getting thoroughly beaten.
Suddenly, I remembered that Hayang, who had never played a game before, seemed to have an amazing gaming sense. Given that Luche, a biroid, should have excellent abilities, if she also had a talent for gaming, it would be strange if she didn’t want to play more games.
Fortunately, my prediction was correct, and Luche was decisively defeated by SuA, not winning even a single game. When she lost three consecutive times without successfully attacking, Luche cursed.
Despite being thoroughly defeated, Luche’s competitive spirit ignited, and she continued playing without tiring.
“Stop it! You keep losing because of me!”
On the sofa, besides SuA and Luche, another person was sitting.
Yura placed Luche on her lap and held her waist, preventing her from moving.
Although Yura was hindering the game, it seemed no one realized that having Yura there could serve as an excuse.
“It’s good that Luche fits in well. I was worried about fighting.”
“She said she wanted to come. I don’t think she ever planned to fight.”
Hayang, who stood beside me watching the two people play, smiled contentedly, even though I insisted on doing the dishes.
“Why did Luche suddenly say she wanted to come?”
“Who knows? She suddenly said she wanted to come, so I allowed it, but I didn’t hear the detailed reason.”
“…What happened at headquarters?”
Since I didn’t know the reason Luche wanted to come, I couldn’t explain it to Hayang, who was curious.
Milky Way, watching the game from the dining table chair, slowly turned her head and asked.
“There were some things.”
I briefly explained that Luche saw Esmeralda and me kissing. But Luche also saw them kissing and talking together at headquarters. Could that still be the cause?
After hearing this, Hayang and Milky Way looked at each other and then at me.
Their reaction seemed to understand, but I couldn’t grasp their feelings.
“Will you stay over tonight, Luche?”
Hayang raised her voice slightly, asking as if confirming something already decided.
“Yes!”
Luche, focused on the game, answered loudly without looking away, and Hayang nodded in agreement.
“Do we need to bring your pajamas?”
“Na and Red might be similar in height. Their clothes might fit.”
Yu-bin and Milky Way were similar in height. Yu-bin was slightly taller, but there wasn’t much difference when viewed with the naked eye.
Luche’s height was right in between the two. Although Yura’s height wasn’t significantly different, she had other differences, so Yu-bin’s or Milky Way’s clothes would fit perfectly for pajamas.
“Sigh.”
Yu-bin, who was playing a game on her smartphone while sitting across from Milky Way, pushed her chair back and stood up.
“I’ll get mine.”
Yu-bin, who had settled on moving, was gradually moving her belongings. Since she didn’t buy any new furniture, the move wasn’t too cumbersome, and she managed to move most of her stuff bit by bit.
It felt like they had already moved in. The lease would end once it was terminated, but it seemed there was still some time left.
“Aaaah!”
The scream from Luche redirected everyone’s attention back to the living room. On the TV screen, SuA’s character had no HP bar decrease, while Luche’s character was KO’d.
“Give up. Even with a handicap, it’s impossible for a beginner to beat SuA.”
“Even if I lose every day, I can’t lose in a game!”
I offered advice based on experience, but Luche didn’t listen. It felt like seeing myself in the early days when I challenged SuA in games.
“Won’t she cry?”
I was the one who had seen Luche cry the most. Her crying in front of the girlfriends made everyone realize she was a crybaby.
Hayang worried that Luche might cry despite not giving up, but I shook my head firmly.
“She won’t cry over this.”
When Luche loses a game, she doesn’t cry. She only cries when everything is resolved and she feels wronged, which I knew from experience.
“At least she won’t cry.”
“I don’t care if she’s a high-ranking officer or older. It feels like having a younger sister.”
Everyone agreed with Yu-bin’s words, even I couldn’t help but smile slightly.
“Who’s the youngest?!”
Luche got angry, but no one denied Yu-bin’s statement.
“Where do you want to sleep? There are many empty rooms.”
While handing Luche a makeshift pajama, Yu-bin asked, and Luche glanced at the clothes and looked up at Yu-bin standing next to her.
“Don’t you usually sleep with Senior?”
“What?”
“Huh?”
My puzzled voice was drowned out by Yu-bin’s low tone. While I understood sleeping together, I didn’t expect her to say she would sleep with me in front of the girlfriends.
“I’m staying here with Green. Why don’t you stay here too?”
“I came to sleep with Senior. Why should I sleep with you guys?”
“Didn’t you come to sleep with me?”
Luche and Yu-bin stared at each other, and Yura spoke up, startling Luche who quickly turned away.
“No!”
“Alright. Pink takes such good care of us. We can sleep together.”
Despite her firm refusal, Yu-bin seemed determined not to take Luche’s words seriously.
“No. I’m sleeping with Senior.”
“…Do as you wish.”
Was this within her expectations? Yu-bin easily allowed me to share the same room without pushing further.
“What do you have to say?”
When Yu-bin tried to return to the dining table, she noticed Luche’s gaze still fixed on her and stopped.
“Why? Do you have something to say?”
“You’re all on the same team, right?”
“Is this really something to ask? We’ve been fighting for years.”
“Then why do you call each other by code names?”
Luche found this odd and innocently questioned.
At first meeting the girlfriends, I was simply a member of Team HunterKiller, and the overall atmosphere was to call each other by code names, so I didn’t question it much.
Still, I had wondered once.
Previously, despite being on the same team, our relationship was awkward, so it didn’t seem problematic. But why continue calling each other by code names even after our relationship improved?
“Calling by name requires honorifics.”
As the leader of the team but the youngest, Yu-bin uses “you” with the other four members. Calling by code names avoids the need for honorifics, allowing her to focus better on her leadership role. However, calling by name with honorifics seems necessary for proper leadership, so they continue using code names.
“Honorifics? In Korea, honorifics were ‘older sister’?”
“Yes, and it’s become familiar. We’ve always called each other by code names, so suddenly using names feels awkward.”
I understood Yu-bin’s point, but I wished the girlfriends would call each other by names to appear closer. Despite being intimate, it still felt slightly off.
“You don’t look close.”
“That’s something we’ll figure out ourselves. Go change your clothes.”
Yu-bin ignored Luche’s half-hearted comment and turned back to the dining table.
“I should be called ‘older sister’ too!”
When Yu-bin returned to the dining table, Luche suddenly raised her voice. Upon reflection, it seemed she felt treated like a younger sister.
“Strictly speaking, or rather, there’s no need to argue, we are enemies. Why should I call you ‘older sister’?”
Now in a peaceful mood, we had fought each other for years, even among the closest teammates. There was no reason to use honorifics with Luche that we didn’t use with others.
However, someone acted differently from Yu-bin.
“So that’s it? Luche wanted to hear the word ‘older sister’?”
Yura, hugging Luche, called her “older sister” repeatedly.
Though calling her, the lack of appropriate honorifics made it seem more mocking than respectful.
“Don’t touch! Ah! Don’t squeeze!”
Despite the sofa blocking the view, it seemed Luche was being touched inappropriately.
“Ha ha…”
There was nothing else to do except laugh awkwardly. By now, the dishes were done, and after drying my hands, I headed to my room.
Since Luche wanted to sleep in the same room, it would be better to let her use the bed and lay out a futon for myself.
After taking a futon and pillow from SuA’s bedroom closet and laying them out in my room, I noticed Luche had changed into the pajamas Yu-bin had given her.
The pajamas were simple, consisting of a short-sleeved T-shirt and shorts.
“Why? Don’t you like it? It’s just a casual outfit, so just wear it.”
Yu-bin, noticing Luche examining her new clothes, looked sharply at her, concerned about any dissatisfaction.
“The size fits perfectly, which makes me uncomfortable.”
“What am I supposed to do?!”
Yu-bin raised her voice at Luche, who complained for an absurd reason, and they both went to their room.
“Next time, sleep with me. Got it?”
“No!”
Yura, continuing toward the room, still showed reluctance. With Yura and Hayang entering the room, only I, Luche, and SuA remained in the living room.
“Should we play more before sleeping?”
“Yeah. Go ahead.”
SuA, as usual, showed no sign of stopping the game and staying on the sofa.
Normally, I would have kissed her lightly before going to bed, but today, Luche’s presence nearby distracted me.
“Okay. Good night.”
After saying goodbye to SuA, I entered my room with Luche. The room was plain, but Luche explored it curiously.
She stopped at the futon on the floor.
“Why the futon?”
“Luche will use the bed. I’ll sleep on the floor.”
Seeing Luche’s shoulders droop, I wondered if she had come today with the intention of doing what I thought—suddenly.
Suddenly, I recalled that Luche knew about the ceremony with Esmeralda. If seeing the kiss at headquarters was resolved by saying she kissed Esmeralda…
Could Luche think she was being replaced by Esmeralda?
“Okay.”
Her voice sounded gloomy, but contrary to my expectations, she consented and went to the bed. After covering Luche with a thick blanket, I turned off the light and lay down on the futon on the floor.
Thinking back, spending the first night with Luche in a house with all my girlfriends was nerve-wracking. The main concern was what might happen if Luche shared the same room with me.
“This reminds me of old times.”
“Old times? Did we sleep together back then?”
I had no memory of sleeping in the same room with Luche when she was my training supervisor.
“On days when Senior was resting, I would sneak into the room and sleep next to her. I always woke up before her so she wouldn’t notice.”
“You did that?”
Although it was a new fact, it didn’t bother me. Instead, I was glad to learn that Luche had shown her emotions even back then.
“After work, let’s sleep together again.”
“Yeah!”
It wasn’t bad to sleep under the same ceiling in the same room. Luche responded cheerfully to the promise of future plans.
Tired from the day, my eyes started to close. Luche also fell silent, seemingly ready to sleep.
Opening my eyes at a rustling sound, I turned my head slightly to see Luche, who had gotten off the bed, pressing herself against me under the covers.
“Sen-ior.”
Luche, smiling widely, cuddled up to me, and her lips met mine.
