83. December, One Step Away From Becoming an Adult. (2)

The time was late December. Barely a week remained before turning twenty.

After the early admissions results for university were announced, Aki and I began earnestly looking for a place to live together.

Since there was nothing to do in class after the college entrance exam, we used apartment-hunting apps and online searches to find properties that looked good, and after school, we’d visit real estate agencies to check out the condition of the rooms with a broker.

“This place is really a great find. A two-room apartment with a balcony and fully furnished, 20 million won deposit, 650,000 won monthly rent, 80,000 won management fee. Since you two will be living together, split that in half, so it’s almost 350,000 won each, right? You absolutely won’t find a place like this for that price in this neighborhood.”

“Aki, what do you think?”

As the broker said, it looks good to me too.

There aren’t any obvious defects, and the apartment is located near school, so it would be convenient to get around. The subway station is only a five-minute walk away, too.

“Uh-huh, it’s not bad…Just a minute.”

Knock knock-.

Aki tapped the wall in the bedroom, as if testing it.

Following Aki’s movements, a clear, hollow sound, like the wall was empty inside, echoed.

“Is this a partition wall?”

“Yes. It’s a partition wall. A lot of studios and two-room apartments have partition walls.”

“……Hmm.”

Aki gently strokes her chin with her fingertips.

Judging by her expression, something doesn’t sit quite right. The broker, sensing Aki’s disinterest, speaks up quickly.

“Here, the security deposit can be adjusted. 1500 with 70, or 2500 with 60. Anything beyond that, I’d have to contact the owner, but they’d probably be willing to compromise within reason—”

“Um, no. It’s okay. Let’s go to the next place.”

“Ah, yes.”

The broker, clad in a black shirt and jeans, exits the bedroom.

I follow behind him, whispering to Aki who walks beside me.

“Why? You don’t like it here?”

“No, the room is nice. The price is decent, and the location is good.”

“Then why did you say let’s go to the next one?”

“The bedroom wall is just drywall. Drywall doesn’t block sound well. I tapped on it and it was practically a hollow wall. If that’s the case, the neighbors will hear everything me and Uju~chan say, right?”

“Ah.”

That wouldn’t do.

Since we both agreed to find a place with solid soundproofing, above all else, I nodded and followed Aki.

The next place was about a 5-minute walk from the first, a bit further from the school but closer to the station. It was a two-room apartment.

Well, honestly, 5 minutes on foot is basically the same thing. But originally, rent is differentiated by that 5 minutes difference.

“This place is a bit pricier. It’s a brand-new two-room apartment, built this year, and fully furnished. It’s a 3000 security deposit with 80 a month, plus 10 for maintenance. But it has a balcony, the rooms are spacious, there’s a kitchen, parking, and the interior is all white, so it’s really pretty. For the price, it’s a good value. It’ll probably go fast.”

“Can we take a quick look around?”

“Ah, yes. Of course.”

As if to say, take your time, the broker gestures towards the bedroom with his palm and gives a cheerful smile.

Since it’s brand new, there probably aren’t any major flaws, but we still need to look around. My eyes drawn to the all-white interior, I slowly followed Aki.

Creak.

Aki entered the bedroom, paying no attention to the bed, and immediately headed for the wall. She tapped it lightly, like knocking, then tilted her head, focusing on the sound.

“Uju~chan, this wall sounds a little more solid, don’t you think?”

“It does seem that way. It feels like something’s packed inside?”

“Yeah, that’s what it feels like to me too. This place has a real wall.”

“A real wall? Ah, you mean a proper wall?”

“Yeah, a wall that blocks sound well. A real wall.”

I see. So, she calls a proper wall a “real wall.”

‘Sometimes, I think she’s even better at Korean than me….’

At this point, wouldn’t it be fair to make her an honorary Korean?

“Bedroom’s done. Let’s see the other rooms now, Woo-joo~chan.”

“Ah, okay.”

Lost in silly thoughts like that, I hurried after Aki.

Aki, having arrived at the second room, meticulously compared the condition of the brand-new two-room apartment to her pre-prepared [Checklist for When Searching for a Studio!] to see if there were any defects.

After inspecting the veranda and bathroom, she returned to the bedroom and sat on the bed, which was a basic included option, bouncing up and down.

“How is it? Kinda fluffy, yeah?”

“Yeah, fluffy enough. I was thinking of asking them to remove it and buy a new one if it was weird, but it seems alright.”

“Really? Let me see….”

The word ‘fluffy’ suddenly piqued my curiosity. I subtly shifted my body and sat down beside Aki.

As my bottom made contact with the bed sheet, I felt a texture that was both moderately firm and soft. Compared to the bed I used at home, it was a little less, but considering it was a bed included as an option in a studio apartment, it was pretty decent.

“Woo-joo~chan, could you bounce up and down a little harder?”

“Why?”

“Just gotta check something for a sec.”

“……Like this, is it okay?”

Creak, creak-.

As I bounced up and down, the sound of springs emanated from deep within the bed.

Aki, who had been holding onto the bed sheet, suddenly looked serious and shook her head vehemently.

“I think we should buy a new bed, Woo-joo~chan.”

“Huh? Why suddenly the bed?”

“It creaked when Woo-joo~chan only bounced lightly. There will probably be times when you’ll be bouncing much harder, and the creaking from underneath will be super distracting, y’know?”

“There might be times when I’m bouncing even harder than this….”

“…….”

“…….”

Oh, right. There could be.

Reaching that conclusion, I clamped my mouth shut.

“…Let’s buy a new one. Okay?”

Aki said to me, her face slightly flushed.

“Yeah, let’s do that….”

I nodded, silent.

* * *

“The deposit has been confirmed, and you’ve both signed the contract, so now, as written, all that remains is for you to transfer the remaining balance by the due date. Do you have any other questions?”

“No, nothing in particular. But, about the optional bed we discussed earlier, when would it be possible to have it removed? Before we move in, I hope?”

“Yes. The homeowner said they’ll call a company to remove it as soon as the balance is confirmed.”

“Then I think that’s everything… Ah, Uju-chan, do you have any questions?”

“Me? Hmm… No, not really.”

Aki had come so thoroughly prepared, having researched everything beforehand, that she’d already asked most of the questions worth asking, leaving me with little to add.

If I *had* to think of something, it would probably be, ‘Who lives next door?’ but, well, not even the homeowner or the real estate agent would necessarily know that, so there was no real need to ask.

“Okay, then let’s go. We can head out now, right?”

“Ah, yes, of course. Everything’s been finalized with the contract, so feel free to go about your business.”

The realtor, springing to his feet, gestured with a nod toward the door, as if indicating the exit.

Aki and I offered our goodbyes of “Thank you for your hard work~”, leaving the real estate office and strolling slowly down the street in the neighborhood where we’d soon be living together.

Come March, when university starts, this will soon be a familiar road. But for now, it’s a place that’s still unfamiliar, and the scenery seems rather alien, yet… somehow familiar.

Even though this is my first time in the area around the university, it is, after all, a place where people live, and in the end, everything’s pretty much the same.

“Uju-chan, did you know that if you keep going straight this way, you’ll reach Sharosu-gil?”

“Ah, is that so?”

But what exactly *is* Sharosu-gil?

As if sensing my inner question, Aki giggled.

“Garosu-gil near Seoul National University. Shortened to Sharosu-gil.”

“Ah. I see.”

“I heard there are tons of great restaurants there. And tons of people, too. I heard that every restaurant is packed with customers on weekend afternoons, so it’s even difficult to get a meal!”

“Really? Sounds like eating out would be difficult, then.”

“It might be difficult, but it doesn’t matter to us, right? Because Uju-chan has to eat the home-cooked meals that *I* make.”

“You’re going to cook every day?”

“Yes, that’s how we have to save money. Just the rent and maintenance fees alone are almost a million won, you know.”

“…Ah, right? Just breathing costs us almost a million won a month.”

I’d seen it when we were signing the contract, but hearing Aki say it directly like that, it was startling anew.

Just the money we spend per month just existing, excluding things like food and transportation, is nearly a million won.

Since I don’t exactly have any savings of my own, there’s no way Aki and I could be living there together without the help of both our parents, right?

“Once I’m a university student, or no, once I get my license, should I start working part-time right away?”

“Huh? Why would you work part-time?”

“Because now that I’m a university student, I’ll have so many more things to spend money on, and it’d be good to help with the rent, right?”

“Heeeh, I see…. What kind of part-time job would you do?”

“Just this and that. Serving at a café or bar, or serving at a restaurant or something?”

A pause.

Aki suddenly stopped walking.

Wondering what was wrong, I stopped too and looked at her, and her face suddenly turned serious.

“A café, a bar, a restaurant…?”

“Why?”

“……”

Aki looked me up and down.

I’d just changed out of my school uniform into a shirt and slacks, so there wasn’t much to see, but Aki stared at me for a long time.

“Uju~chan.”

“Yeah?”

“Uju~chan… shouldn’t work part-time.”

“Eh? Why?”

“Absolutely. Abso~ olutely, really absooolutely, strange women will definitely swarm you.”

I was speechless.

That’s how Aki saw it, and I couldn’t exactly argue that I wasn’t as popular as she thought.

Just then, Aki made a determined face and grabbed my sleeve.

“Don’t you dare work part-time. Don’t do it, and if you need money… tell me instead. I’ll give it to you.”

“You’re telling me to ask you for money…?”

“Yep, I have a lot of money. More than Uju~chan thinks. So, I can give it to you.”

“No, still…”

“Uh-uh, answer me!”

“……”

I just closed my mouth and stared at her, and Aki wriggled her eyebrows up and down.

“Uju~chan, why aren’t you answering?”

“It just doesn’t feel right…?”

“Why? What’s not okay?”

“It just feels a bit…wrong. Getting paid without doing anything. It’s not like I’m going out with you for the money…”

“So, the problem is getting paid for doing nothing?”

“Um, well… to sum it up, yeah?”

“Okay. Then how about this?”

“How… how what?”

“If Uju~chan holds my hand, that’s ten thousand won. Interlock our fingers, twenty thousand. A hug, thirty thousand. A k*ss, fifty thousand. And… undr… mmmph, mmmph…!”

I hurriedly clamped my hand over Aki’s mouth.

Getting paid for doing nothing felt a little off, but this was even worse.

I couldn’t quite explain it. It felt a little, no, a lot wrong…

“Pah…! Uju~chan, why’d you cover my mouth…?!”

“Because you’re talking nonsense…”

“What, why is it nonsense? Uju~chan said so yourself! That you don’t like getting paid for doing nothing. So I’m making Uju~chan do fair labor, and giving you compensation for it…”

“…Aki.”

I took both of Aki’s hands in mine.

“I’m only going to say this once, so listen carefully.”

“Huh? To what?”

“I like you.”

“…Uh, uh?”

A start.

Aki’s body twitched slightly.

Surprised by my sudden confession, her face flushed a delicate pink.

I gently clasped Aki’s hands and continued.

“So, I can’t take money for actions I do because I like you. If it becomes that way, then from holding hands to hugging, to k*ssing, to more than that, it’ll all become something I do just to get paid, and not because I like you.”

“……”

“Got it?”

I carefully released her hands.

Aki stood before me, gingerly caressing the wrist I had held.

“……Yeah, I got it.”

She shyly nodded her head.

“Alright, knowing that is enough. Now, about us…”

“……Ah, but, Uju~chan.”

“Yeah, what is it?”

“That thing you said just now, about ‘things beyond k*ssing’. What, specifically, did you mean by that…?”

“……”

To ask about something like that, so suddenly, at this moment.

Caught off guard, I faltered, and Aki, seizing the opportunity, began to giggle slyly.

“Uju~chan and I, we haven’t done anything beyond k*ssing yet, ne. But if it’s ‘beyond’ that, perhaps, eh, *that*… Ah!”

“…I’m going to call my parents and tell them I signed the lease.”

“Ehhh, are you running away because you’re embarrassed…?!”

“……Hello, Mom? Yes, I just signed the lease. The remaining balance is due by next week. After looking around myself, there are no major problems….”

“Uju~chan, Uju~chan…! Aah, let’s go together…!”