Gender Reversed Geum Taeyang - Chapter 81

Chapter 81 – It’s Alcohol

I don’t know how to describe this. It’s quite embarrassing.

To think that such a well-mannered person was writing those kinds of chat messages behind my back, and the fact that I’ve peered into my friend’s most private thoughts.

The most embarrassing part is that I was the target of those lewd messages.

The fact that someone I trusted sexually harassed me doesn’t particularly hurt.

If sexual harassment had bothered me that much, I would have forbidden it from the start.

When I think about receiving such words from someone as beautiful as her… For someone like me who’s not from a reverse world, it’s just amusing.

I thought carefully about Ari’s alternate account again.

If someone with the peculiar chatting habit of putting periods at the end of every sentence was going around making similar sexually harassing comments in other broadcasts, they should have gained some recognition, but among over a thousand viewers, no one ever sent messages indicating they knew Aristo235.

Which means she only did this to me all along.

The fact that she only sent such messages to me, and no one else…

Doesn’t this mean that this serious and strict person found me so attractive that she couldn’t control her sexual urges?

Doesn’t this mean I created a crack in that thorough personality?

Hmm. This must be certain, right? I don’t think I can dismiss this as my misunderstanding anymore.

Clearly.

Ari has feelings for me.

We’ve both been harboring romantic feelings for each other.

Though Ari seems to have expressed those feelings in a different way, this fact at least seems certain.

The corners of my mouth rise. My heart is pounding.

Among all the recent enjoyable events, none of them came close to this feeling.

As I recall, the nickname ‘Aristo235’ appeared quite a while ago. Had she had feelings for me since then?

Well, it doesn’t really matter when these feelings started.

I looked at the door Ari had rushed out of.

I remembered the moment when Ari angrily confronted me with that embarrassed expression.

I could tell even at a glance that those words weren’t sincere.

Her face was filled with guilt right after saying those words.

Honestly, if I had been caught with such an account, I’d probably react similarly, so I can’t fault her for that.

Wouldn’t Ari have been the most surprised? For a sweet guy like me, such things aren’t an issue.

I just hope Ari doesn’t blame herself too much.

Some might be disappointed to see someone who acts proper in front doing such things behind the scenes, but that doesn’t apply to me either.

After all, everyone lives with secrets they can’t tell others.

I think it’s strange to judge someone’s entire character based on what they did behind the scenes.

The Ari I’ve known has always been a serious and kind person, and that impression won’t change in the future.

I tried calling Ari on my phone, but it was immediately disconnected.

She’s probably still in the neighborhood, and if I run out, I could probably find her right away, but I think it’s right to give Ari some personal time right now.

I curled up the corners of my mouth while listening to the call end tone.

Now everything is certain.

It wasn’t just the delusion of a forever-single person.

We, who were suspiciously close, already had the same feelings.

When Ari comes to her senses.

When we get in touch and meet again.

We will no longer be mere ‘friends.’

###

Feeling the need to use the bathroom, I opened the door and walked out.

This room where we keep miscellaneous items has no windows to check the outside time, but seeing the bright light coming in as soon as I opened the door, it seems morning has already come.

It looks like a day has passed since I left Yuhan’s house.

As I was quickly walking to the bathroom, annoyed by the sight of light, my body, stumbling from the soju I’d been drinking all night, finally collapsed onto the sofa.

I’m not usually someone who drinks this recklessly…

The bright summer morning doesn’t sit well with me at all. Even if I close my eyes or bury my head in the sofa, the light still comes in.

Covering both eyes with my hands, I gathered my thoughts and headed straight to the bathroom again.

After using the bathroom, washing my hands and looking in the mirror, there stands a detestable woman.

A woman who hurt someone she likes and then shifted the blame onto that person. There she stands.

Seol Ari. It’s me.

Damn. Seeing my face starts rapidly building stress.

Setting aside the fact that we can never go back to those times, all the things I did to Yuhan came flooding back.

I don’t even want to be by Yuhan’s side anymore.

Someone like me doesn’t deserve to be with a man like Yuhan. Even someone as shameless as me has that much self-awareness.

Just… just thinking about the pain Yuhan must have felt breaks my heart.

Though he appears strong on the outside, he has a pure heart, and I know that better than anyone.

This trash of a human being acted all noble but hasn’t even apologized for what they did.

Even if I never see Yuhan again, not apologizing is a separate issue.

I think it’s basic human decency to make one last call to try to soothe his wounded heart at least a little.

But just imagining hearing Yuhan’s voice makes it hard to breathe.

Just a little more. I want to escape from reality just a little longer.

I don’t want to face this reality with a clear mind yet.

I dragged my stumbling body back to the small room.

My eyes, quickly adjusted to the darkness, took in the soju bottles filling the room.

Yesterday, I stopped by the convenience store near home and bought as much alcohol as possible, but quite a lot seems to have disappeared already.

If I drink at the same pace as yesterday, it’ll probably run out by this evening…

Damn. I don’t know.

My chest feels tight.

If I don’t supply more alcohol, I feel like I’ll sober up soon.

I opened the cap of a new bottle and put it straight to my mouth.

The bitter taste spreading in my mouth makes me feel more stable.

How many minutes passed like that? I, who had long since exceeded my drinking capacity.

At some point, I fell asleep.

###

-♩♫♪

-♩♫♪

A loud noise wakes me from sleep.

I tried to slowly get up and gather my thoughts, but the splitting headache made me lie back down on the floor.

The phone keeps ringing from a short distance away.

Hadn’t I turned it off yesterday?

The appointment with the video editors that was originally scheduled for yesterday was suddenly canceled just tens of minutes before the meeting time.

Despite that, considering there wasn’t a single phone call, I must have turned off my phone when I returned from Yuhan’s house yesterday…

Ah.

Earlier when I went to the bathroom and started drinking again.

I vaguely remember my heavily intoxicated self contemplating whether to call Yuhan or not after turning on the phone.

That was close. It could have been really bad.

Apologizing while drunk? I could have hurt Yuhan even more.

As I tried to calm my startled heart with that reassurance.

The unending phone sound was making my head ring even more.

Holding my head, I slowly moved my body to grab the phone.

Squinting my eyes to check the caller, the screen shows my college friend Yu Hana.

I wasn’t in the mood to take a friend’s call, but my hand had already pressed the answer button.

I don’t know why.

Anyway.

A voice came through the phone.

“Hey, Ari. Do you have time now? No stream today?”

Come to think of it, I couldn’t do the stream either. Well, that’s not important right now.

“Uh… I have time. Why…?”

“What’s wrong with your voice? Are you okay? It’s nothing much but… We’re drinking with some department people right now, and a lot of them miss you… I know you’re uncomfortable with this kind of thing…”

As expected, today’s business is also about drinking.

Checking the time on my phone, it’s already evening, and evening calls from her are only ever about drinking anyway.

Still lying down, I turned my head to look around the room.

Though the room is dark, my eyes have adjusted enough to see what needs to be seen.

Bottles are scattered all over the floor, and there’s no bottle with its cap properly closed.

Seems I drank it all earlier. Over there, a bottle has tipped over and is leaking alcohol – did I knock it over while sleeping?

Looking at that scene, I slowly closed my eyes and thought.

Whether it’s because this unnecessarily high-performing body is also excellent at metabolizing alcohol, I tend to sober up quite quickly no matter how much I drink.

Just seeing how I’m already more clear-headed than before, and how I can think this coherently despite drinking all that alcohol, proves it.

Anyway, I’m still not ready to be sober, and there’s no alcohol left at home.

Alcohol. I needed alcohol.

Actually, if I really needed alcohol, I could have just gone to a nearby convenience store.

Whether my head judged this to be right, or if it was an instinctive action, I’m not sure.

“Where are you drinking…?”

I made the choice to drag my tired body out to join the drinking party.

(End of chapter)