Chapter 87

As usual, I woke up in the early morning to realize I was in a rather awkward situation.

First, Song Do-yun was crouched between my legs, his head resting on my knees as he slept.

With even a slight movement of my legs, it looked like he would topple over and bump his head on the floor.

Not that I could move my upper body either, because Yoo Hye-won and Professor Han were pressed against each side.

Professor Han was rather heavy and had my arm pillowed beneath her head, while Yoo Hye-won—oh.

My left hand was gripping Yoo Hye-won’s chest.

No wonder in my dream, I was enthusiastically kneading flour dough believing I was making bread—was this it?

Then the big raisins I planned to place on top of the bread—were they…?

If the kids had woken up first, it would have been a real disaster.

I tried to withdraw my hand from her chest, but Yoo Hye-won muttered something and firmly grabbed my hand.

“Feel free to keep touching…”

Even in her sleep, she was articulating the situation perfectly.

But if I kept my hand on her chest any longer, my teaching career would be over.

Not just teaching. If they claimed that I lured minors into my dormitory, got them drunk, and sexually assaulted them, it’s likely I would face a prison sentence.

This hand holds my entire life.

When I attempted once more to remove my hand, Yoo Hye-won firmly held onto it.

“Keep touching.”

The clarity of her pronunciation made it clear she wasn’t just sleep-talking. My mental barriers strongly defended my mind.

Instead of panicking or sweating, I replied clearly to Yoo Hye-won.

“Sorry, Student Hye-won. I apologize for this; it must’ve happened in my sleep…”

“You deaf or something? Just keep touching, professor.”

“No, I have no such intentions, and I’ll remove my hand right away…”

“Touch.”

Yoo Hye-won buried her face into my chest as she spoke.

“I’m fully awake, and it was me who put your hand there. I’ve given you permission, so just touch.”

“Let’s not do this. It’s no good for either of us.”

“Why wouldn’t it be good? I like it when you touch me, and you like touching the chest of a young and pretty girl, right? Who else do you think will do this for you?”

While she wasn’t entirely wrong, especially that latter point, I still had no intention of agreeing.

“Student Hye-won, please don’t…”

“If you don’t listen, I’ll scream loud enough to wake up the others right now.”

Yoo Hye-won opened her eyes wide.

“And then I’ll tell them you assaulted me. You know what’s coming, don’t you?”

“Hmm. Not sure if Student Min-ha and Song Do-yun would believe that…”

“I’ll tell the head of the professors’ office, the academy dean, and my dad. So if you want to keep your career, just shut up and stay still.”

Knowing full well her threats could be realized, I could only reluctantly keep my hand in place.

“You can keep it there until the others wake up. That’s all, and I won’t say a word.”

“Alright then…”

And so, I had no choice but to close my eyes in a false pretense of sleep, keeping my hand on Yoo Hye-won’s chest for some time.

I had to admit, it was soft and warm, but it was far from comfortable.

Meanwhile, Yoo Hye-won continued nefarious antics, rubbing her face against my chest and kissing me through my shirt, stopping just before waking the others.

This was ridiculous…

Her actions only ceased when Song Do-yun stirred awake.

As Song Do-yun woke up, Yoo Hye-won quickly removed my hand and pretended to be asleep.

Fortunately, Song Do-yun didn’t seem to notice anything and immediately headed to the bathroom, where he remained for quite a while.

“Hmph…”

Shortly after, Professor Han stirred and yawned lazily.

“I’ve drooled…” she glanced at us. “Professor and Hye-won are still asleep?”

She uttered a comment to no one in particular and started cleaning up the leftovers from the previous day while bustling around.

“Hoeng, we drank quite a lot… How many cans are there? Hye-won, Hye-won, wake up. It’s morning.”

When shaken awake by Professor Han, Yoo Hye-won yawned and stretched as if sleep had just left her.

“Ugh… What is it?”

“Get up. It’s morning. We need to tidy up.”

“You can handle the cleanup yourself.”

Yoo Hye-won walked towards the bathroom through the chaotic living room and realized the door was locked.

“What are you doing in there? Hurry up!”

“Just a moment, I’ll be out soon.”

In response to Song Do-yun’s voice, Yoo Hye-won muttered something and returned to the sofa.

“Wow, what a mess.”

“It’s all our doing. This is Professor’s place, so we should clean up before leaving.”

“Eh? Where are we returning to?”

Professor Han paused, confused, and Yoo Hye-won airily tapped her temple.

“Think about it. It’s Saturday today, which means?”

“Ah, so you’re suggesting we stay here the entire weekend, right?”

“Exactly. Correct answer.”

“Heeek! Hye-won is such a genius!”

With that, I could no longer pretend to sleep and opened my eyes.

“That’s inconvenient, Student Hye-won.”

“Good morning, Professor. Did you sleep well?”

Cheekily greeting me, Yoo Hye-won continued:

“Until when do you intend to leave the dormitory and stay in the faculty accommodation?”

“Until Sunday evening, a total of three days.”

As Yoo Hye-won counted the days on her fingers, Professor Han timidly applauded.

“Just thinking about spending the weekend here makes me happy!”

“No no. That won’t do. While I enjoy your company, even close friends need a sense of decorum. I also require periodic alone-time.”

At this, Yoo Hye-won crossed her arms with a wicked smile as she looked down at me.

“If you enjoy our company, we should stay together. And what about that personal time? Will you say such irresponsible words to your future wife after marriage?”

“We’ll think about that after marriage, but you’re clearly not married to me, are you?”

“Huh?!”

Suddenly, Professor Han clutched her chest, turned red, and seemed at a loss for what to do.

Seeing her reaction, I sighed involuntarily.

“Anyway, everyone should go now. It’s rather awkward if other faculty members find out.”

“Then let’s have breakfast together before we go. That’s okay, right?”

Breakfast… I glanced at the numerous beer cans, chicken and pizza boxes scattered across the floor.

Indeed, given my age, after eating oily food and drinking excessively, I needed something to settle my stomach.

“Alright. Let’s do that. But you have to return to the dormitory this morning. Understood?”

Thus, I ended up looking after the students for a few more hours.

While Yoo Hye-won and Professor Han cleaned up the mess from yesterday, I boiled noodles in the kitchen.

Living alone, and not very particular about food, I had little other than instant noodles to offer.

“Hey, what the heck is Song Do-yun doing in the bathroom for so long? I need to pee desperately!”

Yoo Hye-won threw down her mop and stood up.

At the same moment, the bathroom door opened, and Song Do-yun emerged with a somewhat disheveled hairdo and flushed face.

“You alright? Did you poop?”

“Huh? A-A.”

“Geez. I was gonna go, but now I have to wait. You’re ruining all concepts of propriety by pooping in someone else’s house!”

Song Do-yun should have retorted, but he quietly passed Yoo Hye-won and picked up the dropped mop.

“I didn’t poop, go ahead.”

“What? You said earlier you did.”

Ignoring her, Yoo Hye-won glared at the back of his head before storming into the bathroom.

“Hey hey. Do-yun, help me put the beer cans here.”

Professor Han grinned foolishly and handed a plastic bag to Song Do-yun.

With the living room table now cleaned, we gathered around and shared the freshly boiled noodles.

A minor hiccup ensued when we realized there were only three pairs of chopsticks.

Professor Han suggested a ridiculous solution of alternating chopsticks with me, but things settled when Song Do-yun unearthed some unopened wooden chopsticks from yesterday.

“Professor, you’re good at boiling noodles. Do you cook just noodles all the time while living alone?”

Yoo Hye-won lifted her bowl and slurped the broth while speaking.

“Pretty much, yes. Noodles are convenient and offer good taste for minimal effort.”

“Hooh, but if you keep eating such things, you’ll ruin your stomach. When you get married, your wife will cook you healthier meals, right?”

Professor Han looked at me with a hint of longing.

“Well, maybe. But right now, I’m not sure. First, I must ensure all of you graduate successfully.”

“So will you consider after graduation?”

“As of now, I can only say, ‘Hmm.'”

“Hiiiing…”

After finishing our noodles, we spent a short peaceful time lounging on the sofa or sitting on the floor.

Yoo Hye-won rummaged through the refrigerator and asked:

“Professor, anything else to drink besides radish tea?”

“Drink the leftover soda from yesterday.”

With that, I went to the restroom intending to brush my teeth, when I noticed something odd.

Huh? When did my toothbrush bristles become so bent?

The bristles, which were fine yesterday, were now bent in all directions like they had been used for months.

This was strange.

I’ll use this one last time and then get a new one promptly.

When I put toothpaste into my mouth, I felt something off.

Why does the toothpaste feel so slippery and salty today…?

Is my sense of taste affected because I tried a new drink yesterday?

This is really odd.

Despite the uneasiness, I finished brushing my teeth. As I walked out, Professor Han came running with my phone, her chest heaving.

“Professor, you have a call.”

“Thank you.”

Glancing at the number, it appeared to be from the guard post at the Academy’s main gate, where I’d previously stored numbers for receiving packages or letting them know if I’d be late returning from field trips.

What could the guard post want on a Saturday?

“Yes, this is Professor Hyun speaking.”

[Good day, Professor. This is the main gate guard station. We have a visitor for you.]

“A visitor? For me?”

[Yes. Half Wonder is here to see you, Professor.]