My Feisty Sisters Are Coming After Me

Chapter 54

—–CROW—–

‘Contact Mom… Should I start with a simple greeting?’

I looked out from the cafe counter at the quiet tables, thinking about what to write in a text to Mom.

It might seem like overthinking things between parent and child, but given the delicate nature of what I wanted to ask, it couldn’t hurt to be cautious.

‘But worrying about this kind of thing can be endless.  It’s not like we contacted each other often anyway…’

Usually, calls and texts with Mom were Su-jeong *noona’s* responsibility. Geum-bi *noona* openly expressed her dislike for it, so she was an exception, and I naturally fell out of the habit during my military service.

‘Because we’re like this, the younger siblings seem to find it even harder.  Ha, it’s difficult to talk about this with anyone, given the situation.’

The only person I could ask for advice was Su-jeong *noona*, who belonged to the “Let’s wait for Mom to come back” camp.

If I brought it up carelessly, it might cause a fight like it did with Geum-bi *noona* last time.

“Ugh, my head hurts.  Should I just call her?  But international calls are expensive…”

“What’s up? Why are you scratching your messy hair like that?”

“It’s nothing, just something I’m thinking about. …And messy hair? I washed it properly this morning.”

“Really? I smelled something weird at the counter, so I thought it was your hair, *oppa*.”

“Hello, I use the same shampoo as you, Hwa-yeon.  Sniff your own hair and tell me if it’s weird or not.”

“Ouch, don’t mess it up! I styled it this morning!”

Hwa-yeon, out of the blue trying to slander me, ruffled my hair.

It was tied down, so the style wasn’t ruined, but just the fact that some stray hairs popped up seemed to irritate her, her face turning red.

“Hmm, watching you makes me feel a little better. Thanks, my little sister.”

“Geez, I was worried and showed some concern, and you repay kindness with spite?  So annoying.”

“Hey, let’s be clear. How was that concern?  Anyone could see that was just random nitpicking.”

“Whatever, I can’t be nice to an *oppa* who just grabs other people’s breasts.”

“You…! What if the customers hear you? Besides, I already explained that was a misunderstanding.”

“Hmph! Let them hear if they want.  And you explained it a *lot* to my *unnies*, but you just brushed me off with a snack.”

“Should I have given you a drink too?”

“Ugh, whatever! Forget it, I’m not interested in your business anymore, so do whatever you want.  Tch!”

Hwa-yeon, still resentful about the last incident, turned her head away, sulking.

Normally, I would have pretended to give in and soothed her, but my head was already hurting because of the Mom issue, so I left her alone.

‘Honestly, she naturally touched my butt too, so we’re even.  Let’s not worry about it.’

I put down my phone, tapping the screen and turning it off and on repeatedly.

Perhaps because of some new event at a nearby cafe, our shop was unusually empty today.

As the tapping sounds like typing and the quiet cafe background music continued endlessly, Hwa-yeon, apparently bored with her phone, came back to me like a puppy.

“So what are you really worried about? Want me to help?”

“Didn’t you just say you weren’t interested in my business?”

“A cute younger sister is offering to help, and you’re still being grumpy? What’s the matter?  Huh?”

“You’re just bored, aren’t you?  It’s not an interesting story, so go away.”

“Ow!  If it’s not interesting, it’s not interesting.  Why are you hitting my forehead?  You’re a total domestic abuser.”

“This isn’t home, it’s work, so it’s fine.  I was just personally taking care of a slow-witted senior.”

“If I’m the senior, then *you’re* the junior, so you should listen to me.  Why are you acting up on your own? Ow.”

“Acting up?  With that attitude, you won’t be treated like a senior.  Act like a senior if you want to be treated like one.”

She kept interrupting my thoughts, so I responded even more curtly on purpose.

But she must have been really bored, because Hwa-yeon didn’t stop lingering around me even after this.

“…What? Do you have something to say to me?”

“Uh, uh?  W-What could it be~ I don’t know~”

“Normally you’d either explode and yell at me or stomp away, sulking. Why are you unusually clinging to me?”

“Tch, unusually, huh?  Since when did *you* start clinging to my *unnies* like that…”

“You keep talking about my *noonas*. Is it related to what you want to say?”

“Ugh?! *Oppa*, you’re usually so clueless, but you’re sharp in weird places… Tch.”

Well, compared to my *noonas*, I’m not even close to being on the same level.

Or am I? If my younger sister thinks so, maybe I’m quite similar to my *noonas* from her perspective.

‘Similar, huh.  We’ve lived together for so long, so we’re bound to have a lot in common, whether we like it or not.’

I was thinking about how scary it was that one of us was adopted, when Hwa-yeon suddenly stepped closer.

“*Oppa*, you know…”

“What? Let me tell you upfront, I can’t give you any more allowance.  I haven’t even gotten my first paycheck yet.”

“That’s not it! Do you think I’m a robber who only sees you for money?”

“Not much different.”

“No, it’s not! Are you really going to be like this?!”

“But it’s suspicious that you’re suddenly picking a fight and bringing up breasts.  Weren’t you trying to get more allowance out of me with that?”

“No, I’m really not! It has nothing to do with that, absolutely nothing, never!”

“Really? Then I’ll listen seriously, so tell me.”

“Ugh, so… just in case, I’m asking…”

Seeing Hwa-yeon, usually so boisterous, hesitating like this, I adjusted my posture and listened attentively.

Hwa-yeon, as if finally realizing how close we were, blushed and fidgeted with her hair.

‘She’s kind of like Su-jeong *noona* when she does that.  Since her hair is tied up, she also looks a bit like Geum-bi *noona*.’

While waiting for her to speak, I looked her over.

Just looking at her face, she definitely looked like she belonged in our family, but her personality and breasts… well, those things made me wonder.

‘They’re not small, but the upstairs crew is just too big.’

Of course, I’m talking about the size of their hearts.

Unlike those two with their broad minds, Hwa-yeon’s narrow-mindedness is a concern.

“*Oppa*.”

“Yeah.”

“Did you… get scolded a lot by my *unnies* yesterday?”

“Huh?”

“Is that why you look so pale and listless since yesterday?  Because of me.”

I was worried about Hwa-yeon’s narrow-mindedness, but an unexpected concern came flying at me.

Confused, I tilted my head. Hwa-yeon, hesitantly gauging my reaction, brought up yesterday’s events.

“Actually, I saw you being called in by my *unnies* one after another.”

“Huh? You saw?  All of it?”

“Yeah.  Both Geum-bi *unnie* and Su-jeong *unnie* looked really upset… and serious.”

“No, no, wait. So you saw… you just saw me going in, right? You didn’t hear what happened inside?”

“I’m not a thief, I didn’t put my ear to the door.  But… I did keep track of how long you were in there.”

Hwa-yeon had a knack for surprising people.

I calmed my pounding heart, confirmed that the events inside the rooms hadn’t been revealed, and calmly listened to Hwa-yeon.

Unlike me, catching my breath in surprise, Hwa-yeon seemed tense for a different reason, her hands trembling.

“You were in there for a long time… with both Geum-bi *unnie* and Su-jeong *unnie*.”

“Y-Yeah.”

“When you came out of the room and the changing room, they both looked really troubled.”

“Yeah, they were. They must have been very troubled.”

“It’s all… because of me, right? Because I said something unnecessary to my *unnies*, ha…”

“No, not really.  From your perspective, it was understandable that you’d tell on me.”

“Still!  Then I also… I touched *oppa’s* butt before.  But I didn’t mention that when I told on you.”

So she *was* aware of it.

She had been teasing me about touching her breasts just a moment ago, but it seemed like she still felt uneasy about it.

‘Is that why she was grumbling?  Like she was telling me to be more upfront if I had something to say?’

But since I didn’t make a big deal out of it, she became anxious.

And since I had been looking worried ever since talking to my *noonas* yesterday, it seemed like she was the one feeling more uncomfortable now.

“I know *oppa* relies on my *unnies* a lot these days, but I feel like I’ve driven a wedge between you.  It was like that last time when I peeked in on you bathing, too. I keep making things worse.”

“No, it’s okay. Things aren’t as bad as you think. …And about the bath, I didn’t peek.  Let’s just say it was definitely an accident, okay?”

“Anyway, I was so flustered back then… I don’t think I considered how *oppa* felt, who was actually involved. Honestly, *oppa* must have been the most troubled.”

“Huh? What do you mean…?”

“Because *oppa* is the one who’s adopted in our family.  This must be the most complicated time for you, and it must be even harder because you got scolded by my *unnies*.  Right?”

Ah, so *that’s* why she was acting like this today.

Last time she talked about it jokingly, so I let it slide, but it seems like Hwa-yeon had already decided in her mind that *I* was the adopted one.

‘And she’s unusually worried because her *oppa* was drinking during the day and seems to have drifted apart from her *unnies* because of her. Now I understand everything.’

This was probably Hwa-yeon’s way of apologizing.

It was a sudden, clumsy, and self-centered message that prioritized her own feelings over the atmosphere, but regardless, it got across how sorry she felt.

“Ahem, I get it. I understand what you mean, so lift your head.”

“Waaah, I’m sorry. I really wasn’t trying to frame you with my *unnies*. I was just so frustrated and embarrassed…!”

“Okay, okay, I get it. You weren’t trying to deliberately bury me, so don’t be so down. I’m not really mad.”

“…Really?”

“Of course, really. If I was mad, would I be working alongside you and chatting like this?  Geez.”

Feeling like she was worrying over nothing, I ruffled her hair again.

This time she didn’t avoid my touch, and seeing her hair all messed up made me smile.

‘More than anything… there was nothing to worry about.  I got scolded by my *noonas*, but I also received plenty of other good things.  The reason they looked upset afterward… was 100% for a different reason.’

Rather than upset, ‘strange’ might be a better word.

From Hwa-yeon’s perspective, it would be unimaginable for her *unnies* to go in angry and come out looking shy, so she probably just thought from afar, ‘The mood seems bad…’

‘It’s an absurd misunderstanding, but I don’t mind.  She actually apologized after all this time.’

My gloomy mood from the Mom issue had cleared up.

So I ruffled her messed-up hair even harder, and at that point, Hwa-yeon glanced at me and poked my side with her finger.

“Ow, how long are you going to… keep touching me? Pervert.”

“Pervert?  How is an *oppa* stroking his younger sister’s hair perverted?”

“Your touch is creepy. It feels just like when you touched my breasts.”

“It’s completely different! I treat women’s breasts with great care.”

“Wow, what is that, disgusting. Pervert, trash, yuck.  Did you touch anyone else’s breasts recently, *oppa*?”

“…No.  I haven’t really touched anyone else’s besides yours.”

“Oh, really? Uh… I see, ahem.”

An embarrassing answer slipped out during our banter, and Hwa-yeon blushed belatedly, clearing her throat.

What the hell was I saying? That wasn’t something to say to my younger sister.

“…Come to think of it, *oppa*.”

“Yeah, what?”

“Even if you were troubled and drunk… why did you touch *me*?”

“Huh? What, what?”

“You know, you get along well with my *unnies*… but you left them alone and touched *my* breasts. I’m curious why.”

Wasn’t this all over?

Why was she bringing up the past again when she was embarrassed about it herself?

“Why are you curious about that kind of thing?  A drunk person did something stupid, that’s all.”

“Of course, I’m curious! It’s true, isn’t it? If you were going to touch someone, my *unnies* are much bigger and feel better than me.”

“You, you have no filter, do you?  Do you really want to get in trouble?!”

“…Coming from the guy who got drunk in broad daylight and groped his younger sister’s breasts?”

“I sincerely apologize for that.  But since I think it’s tit for tat, please let it slide just this once, my dear sister.”

Somehow the situation had reversed, and I quickly bowed my head to avoid getting reported by the few customers we had.

But Hwa-yeon’s curiosity didn’t seem to be quenched, as she continued to question me while scratching her cheek.

“You can be honest. I understand if… if that kind of thing is part of the reason why you’re troubled.”

“Hey, hey. What kind of scary thing are you about to say…?”

“It’s a common story, isn’t it? In families with adopted children, something… something happens with a family member who’s not blood-related? Ahem.”

“Uh, so? Are you saying I made that mistake because I’m interested in you, Hwa-yeon?”

“I don’t know. Whether it was a mistake… or intentional, hmm.”

Covering one cheek with the hand she had been scratching it with, Hwa-yeon averted her gaze and mumbled again.

But this time, there wasn’t a hint of the apology from earlier.

Instead, something else… a complicated scent of expectation, spread through the counter area.

‘Is it because of the shampoo scent…? I should buy a different one next time.’

In the increasingly awkward atmosphere, I glanced at the clock, but there was still a lot of time left on my shift.

—–CROW—–

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