113) Chapter 17. What Should I Do? (8)

Uh… hmm.

Soi was looking at me with a face like she’d just been betrayed.

The sensation of Hyeonji’s face pressed against my chest still lingered, and even though she’d jumped away in shock, the faint leftover warmth remained on my body.

I can’t really be held by someone, but I think I really do like holding people. When I hug someone, I can share warmth with them.

And of course, Hyeonji really was a heroine—her hair was so soft.

“…Hey.”

Soi marched toward me and called out.

Her voice had a sharp edge to it.

“What are you doing right now?”

She called me, but the question was directed at Hyeonji.

“……”

And Hyeonji couldn’t answer.

I tilted my head.

“We were hugging.”

“…Why?”

“Uh.”

If she asks with a face that genuinely doesn’t understand, I don’t know what to say either.

Isn’t hugging allowed? We do it all the time.

“I made a mistake with Hyeonji earlier, right? So if she does the same thing back, doesn’t that make us even?”

“…What kind of logic is that?”

“Does it not?”

“It does not.”

“Then what should I do?”

When I tilted my head and asked, Soi was at a loss for words.

“No, you can’t apologize by hugging someone like that.”

“Why?”

“…Why, she says.”

Soi stared at me like she couldn’t believe it.

But seriously, why?

I don’t get it.

I’m not religious or anything, but don’t a lot of religions say things like “embrace even those you’re at odds with”?

Ah, not that I want to hug the witch or anything. I mean in theory. Like “embrace even your enemies.”

I can’t do that with enemies, but with a friend I had a small fight with, hugging should be fine, right? When kids fight in kindergarten and elementary school they make them do that to make up.

“So, um, you can’t hug just anyone.”

“Is Hyeonji ‘just anyone’?”

When I asked, Soi went silent again.

Hyeonji stared at her too, curious what she’d say.

“N‑No, she’s not ‘just anyone.’ She’s… um… a friend. Yeah. A friend. Definitely.”

Soi rolled her eyes around, trying desperately to find a logical explanation.

“Then friends can’t hug?”

At that question, Soi looked like she’d been struck by lightning.

“Uh…”

I tilted my head the other way.

Seriously, what?

Well, I get it. At first, Hyeonji wasn’t that friendly toward me. Not hostile, but cold.

Since I quit school because of bullying, it’s not strange that Soi remembers that attitude clearly.

Realizing she’d said something weird, Soi’s face turned red.

“Then… Soi, do you want a hug too?”

“No, that’s not what I meant.”

“You don’t want one?”

Now?

“N‑No, it’s not that I don’t want one. It’s just…”

Soi darted her eyes around, then squeezed them shut.

And she stepped toward me.

As always, Soi’s body was warm. Maybe because she’s always energetic, or maybe because of her ability. Hyeonji had been warm too, but her hair had felt a little cool.

Since it was her first time being hugged by me, Hyeonji had kept her body awkwardly distant, only pressing her face to my chest. But Soi was different. She didn’t cling tightly, but she pressed her whole body close, and since hugging only her head felt awkward, my hands naturally went to her back.

The height difference between me and Hyeonji was noticeable, but with Soi, it was tiny—perfect for hugging.

“Ah!?”

While we were hugging, a loud noise came from the shower room.

“What the—what are you two doing!?”

Tap tap.

I turned toward the footsteps and froze.

Chae‑yi burst out of the shower wrapped in a long towel.

Is that allowed? Even in a dorm?

Maybe she rushed out because she heard the cans drop earlier.

“Uh, no, we were just—”

Even when I took my hands off Soi’s back, she somehow stayed stuck to me. Without hugging or leaning.

How is she doing that? Is she floating a little?

“You two are just stuck together?”

“…Can’t we just be stuck together?”

“Huh?”

Chae‑yi looked confused at my question.

Because Soi and Chae‑yi always “just” stuck to me.

“No, no, that’s not it.”

But Chae‑yi recovered faster than Soi and shook her head.

“You don’t usually cling like that. Why?”

“Ask Hyeonji.”

My chest answered.

More precisely, Soi—whose face was buried in my chest—answered. Her breath tickled.

Flinch.

When Chae‑yi turned toward her, Hyeonji flinched and looked away.

“What? What happened?”

“No, just… Rua was apologizing for what happened earlier.”

“Apologizing?”

Chae‑yi narrowed her eyes at Hyeonji.

“Yeah. I, uh… buried my face in Hyeonji's chest earlier.”z

“That wasn’t your fault, was it?”

“It wasn’t, but I thought she might’ve felt uncomfortable. So I did the same thing.”

“…The same thing?”

At Chae‑yi’s question, I shut my mouth.

Hmm. Why did her voice suddenly feel… dangerous?

No way. Chae‑yi wouldn’t get dangerous with a friend.

“…Rua suggested it.”

Hyeonji finally spoke.

“Aren’t you the discipline committee? And you buried your chest in someone’s face?”

“She buried her face in my chest…”

I corrected her.

Though it's still weird even after correcting it.

No, is it weird? I don’t know. Is it something to get angry enough about that her words come out wrong?

“But Chae‑yi, you bury your face in my chest all the time.”

“……”

Chae‑yi went silent. Just like Soi earlier. And she didn’t recover quickly this time.

“T‑That’s because we’re friends! Yeah, friends! It’s friendship! A sign of friendship!”

“Hyeonji is a friend too. Isn’t she?”

Chae‑yi went silent again.

“…Y‑Yeah. She is.”

Why does she sound so defeated?

Also, how long is Soi planning to stay glued to me?

When I hugged Hyeonji earlier, I felt a weird sense of guilt, but now that Soi’s been stuck to me for a while, I’m getting used to it. Especially since I can now tell Soi and Chae‑yi apart just by how they cling. We sleep together every night, after all.

“…Me too.”

Chae‑yi suddenly shouted.

“I’m hugging too!”

“Uh, okay.”

When I answered, Soi’s body twitched.

But she still didn’t move.

Chae‑yi walked over and poked her in the side.

“Hyik!?”

Despite appearances, Soi was extremely ticklish. She jumped away instantly. Her smile didn’t last long though—she glared at Chae‑yi afterward.

“Hmph.”

Chae‑yi snorted and—

“Wait, Chae‑yi—”

Before I could stop her, she buried her face in my chest.

I couldn’t bring myself to hug her back.

Because she was still wearing only a towel.

What do I do?

I mean, I don’t wear a bra when I sleep either. Wearing both pajamas and a bra is too uncomfortable.

So technically, this isn’t that different from nighttime.

No, wait. I still wear panties under my pajamas.

She’s just wearing a towel.

“……”

No, I should stop thinking.

I looked at Hyeonji for help, but she avoided my eyes like she was uncomfortable too.

Soi was deep in thought.

…Um.

Isn’t this weird?

Isn’t this just like usual? We just added one more friend, so I hugged one more person.

Soi and Chae‑yi crawl into my bed every night. It’s not like Hyeonji did that.

Sure, maybe Soi and Chae‑yi are jealous because they’ve known me longer.

But still.

They had lots of friends in school too. I wasn’t there, so I couldn’t be jealous even if I wanted to.

“……”

So, I just decided to hug Chae‑yi tightly.

“…!?”

She was the one who hugged me first, but when I hugged her back tightly, she panicked.

Honestly, I was panicking too.

Her skin—still damp from the shower—felt soft and warm against my shoulders.

“……”

“……”

Now I really don’t know.

How do I end this?

Before, Soi and Chae‑yi kept interrupting each other, so the hugs naturally ended.

But now Chae‑yi is the last one.

Who’s going to interrupt? Should I just let go at a random moment? But what if she gets upset that I didn’t hug her as long as I hugged Soi?

If that happens, I’ll get stuck in an endless loop of hugging them both forever.

Not that I hate it, but I don’t exactly want that either.

Um… what should I do?

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Pub: 10 May 2026 09:02 UTC

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