90. A Cozy Onsen Trip with Aki (1)

The evening is the busiest time for a ryokan.

Therefore, we only chatted briefly with Grandmother, promising to talk more tomorrow, and left the room. The stay lasted roughly ten minutes. A short time, perhaps, but we managed to convey all the important things.

Our university entrance exam results, the fact that we would be living together from this year onwards, the date we were returning to Korea, where we would be staying in the meantime, and where we planned to visit—things like that.

However, Aki’s grandmother wasn’t particularly interested in the minutiae of our lives.

Or, more accurately, she was fixated on the fact that we were ‘living together,’ and everything else took a backseat.

When we told her that we had gotten into good universities, she nodded approvingly and showered us with praise, as if we were praiseworthy. But the moment Aki said, “Oh, and Grandma, we’re renting a place near the school and living together starting next week,” her eyes changed completely.

She was definitely old-fashioned. She immediately concluded that “living together = marriage,” and started asking when we would be holding the wedding, when we would be having children, and even suggested that if we didn’t have jobs lined up yet as students, we could live and work at the ryokan while learning the trade… She was getting way ahead of herself.

For some reason, Aki wasn’t denying any of it, simply blushing and looking shy. I was left to explain all alone that it wasn’t quite like that yet. That while we were seriously considering the future, there was the matter of mandatory military service, and other practical concerns, so marriage was premature, leaving me a bit fl*stered.

“…Ah, hot.”

It’s no joke, a few beads of sweat are actually trickling down.

Aki’s grandmother is Japanese, so she didn’t know that Korea maintains conscription, which made explaining that part all the more difficult.

I sat on the chair and lightly wiped the sweat from my brow.

Then, *creak*.

The closed bedroom door opened. Aki, who had said she was going to change her clothes, peeked her head out.

Aki looked around for me, and when our eyes met, she playfully gestured for me to come over.

“What is it?”

Is something the matter?

I got up with a light heart and walked toward Aki.

“I can’t reach my back… Could you tie the ends of this towel together here?”

Aki wasn’t wearing any clothes.

Instead, she had wrapped herself in a large towel, exposing her fair nape as she turned her back to me.

“Ah, okay.”

I was stunned for a moment, then quickly moved my hands to tie the knot.

“Alright, all done.”

“Mmh, thank you. But… Uju~chan, aren’t you going to take your clothes off?”

“…Huh? Why would I?”

“Why? You can’t wash with your clothes on, can you? You have to take them off to wash… right?”

“…….”

Ah. That’s right.

You have to take off your clothes to wash.

I must have been more drained than I realized, forgetting such an obvious thing. I belatedly remembered that I had agreed to wash together with Aki.

“Want to head in first? I’ll get ready and come too….”

“Ah, should I? Should I go in first…?”

Aki asked cautiously, glancing at me.

I felt like if I opened my mouth, strange noises would come out, so I just nodded. Aki seemed to understand and nodded slightly as well, carefully passing me and scurrying towards the outdoor bath on the terrace, where the water was ready.

I watched Aki’s receding figure, her smooth thighs clearly visible, and cleared my throat awkwardly before entering the bedroom.

The suite had tatami mats on all the floors and sliding doors. Opening the door at the head of the futon led directly to the closet – about 1.5 pyeong in size. Unlike the Western-style bedroom with a bed and a bunch of other things, this bedroom really only had a futon and a pillow.

‘Let’s see….’

I took out the suitcase I had put in the closet.

And, after taking off all my clothes including my underwear and grabbing just a towel, I paused and hesitated.

Should I take out the condoms I had packed in the corner of my suitcase beforehand, or not.

Well, it’s unlikely I’d need them, but… you never know.

If the occasion arose, it meant the atmosphere had heated up to that point, and if I started fumbling around looking for condoms then, it would really kill the mood.

But if I took them out in advance, what if Aki found them? She’d tease me, asking if all I could think about during this trip was having s*x.

“…….”

This is a real dilemma.

Should I take them out, or not… ?

──Uju~chan, are you almost ready~?

I was facing a dilemma almost as great as “Do you like Mom better, or Dad?” when I heard Aki’s voice from afar. It seemed she was calling me directly because I was dawdling and not coming, even though the bathwater was ready.

I shouted back that I was coming right away, closed the suitcase zipper, and quickly got up.

I put the clothes I had taken off in the laundry bin – the staff in charge of our room would wash them, they said – and with the condom box in my hand, I casually placed it on the low table in the living room and pushed it further inside. That way, it wouldn’t be easily seen.

With a towel wrapped around my waist, I headed towards the terrace.

Because this was a separate suite in the annex, specially given to us by Aki’s grandmother, the bath and hot spring were completely separate from the room and located outdoors on the terrace.

드르륵-.

“Oh, you’re here already…?”

I opened the door, and there she was, Aki.

She had a large towel wrapped around her like a tube top dress, only her thighs and calves dipped lightly into the onsen water.

“Mhm, I just needed to confirm something… But why didn’t you soak a bit first? Aren’t you cold?”

“Heheh, no. It’s really warm here. Look, steam’s rising everywhere~?”

Aki gestured, as if telling me to look, parting the thick vapor that filled the terrace with her palm.

“……”

But my gaze was fixed solely on Aki, not the steam.

‘If we’re talking about exposure, a bikini swimsuit would be more revealing.’

I didn’t know why, but her current form, wrapped in the towel, felt more alluring.

The reason was probably because that single towel could slip down at any moment with the slightest misstep. And maybe because I had been pacing the room just moments ago, a box of condoms clutched in my hand.

“Uju~chan?”

“Huh? …Ah.”

‘……Pull yourself together.’

Enough with the condom thoughts already.

I didn’t want to waste our precious time alone together on carnal desires, so I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them, secretly swallowing hard.

I was trying not to show how nervous I was, and thankfully, Aki didn’t seem to notice my actions.

I walked to the opposite side and dipped my toes into the water. She slightly grabbed the front of the towel to prevent it from slipping, leaning forward to submerge herself further.

“Oof-cha….”

“……!”

I abruptly lifted my gaze.

The instant Aki lowered herself to touch her bottom to the floor, in the gap between the towel she held and her chest, something that shouldn’t have been seen had been glimpsed.

Just for a moment, really. I swear to God, I didn’t see it for even half a second, so I wasn’t entirely certain, but…

A shade similar to her own hair, adorably tucked inwards…….

“Wow, it’s warm. Uju~chan, Uju~chan, hurry and come in. It’s so warm here…!”

Completely unaware of what had just occurred, Aki scooped some of the onsen water into her palm and showed it to me with an innocent face.

‘……Ah.’

That girlish innocence sparked a horned sense of guilt in my heart, poking at my conscience.

Even at this moment, Aki was saying things that showed she was thinking of me, yet her boyfriend was dwelling on thoughts that would earn him a slap if he were found out…

“Ah, hot…!”

I dipped my calves in and flinched slightly. It must be the natural hot spring water because the temperature was considerable. No exaggeration, it’s hotter than the hot tub at a public bath.

“Heheh. Woo-joo~chan, you can’t handle the heat very well, huh?”

“…….”

Before fully submerging myself, I checked the towel wrapped around my waist.

Guilt was guilt, but what I’d seen was what I’d seen, so my body had almost reacted instinctively.

Confirming there was nothing amiss, I sat down just as I was. I couldn’t let Aki see me hesitate because of the hot water.

Splash.

“How is it? Nice, right?”

“……Uhh.”

Hot.

Seriously.

Frankly, I couldn’t understand how Aki could immerse herself with such a nonchalant expression. Shouldn’t she be showing some kind of reaction if it’s this hot?

I wasn’t sure if I was just bad at handling the heat, or if Aki was just good at enduring it. I didn’t know which one it was. Not wanting to run out because it was too hot in front of my girlfriend, I clenched my fists in the water.

If I just endure a little longer, I’ll adjust. Just 30 seconds. No, let’s clench my teeth and endure for just 20 seconds…

“Heeeh, this is nice….”

Aki slackened her body in the hot spring.

Even though the swirling steam obscured my vision, I could see Aki’s completely relaxed face. The warm water seemed to be melting away all her tension, and since she didn’t know what was going on inside me, she could leisurely enjoy the hot spring without a care in the world.

“I want to stay like this forever. Don’t you…?”

“…….”

“Oh, right. Woo-joo~chan.”

“……Huh?”

“You know what Grandma was talking about earlier?”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“That, if we were thinking about an engagement ceremony, even if not a wedding, to tell her. Remember?”

“Ah, that….”

It was what Grandma said after I explained that marriage was premature.

She asked if we were considering even an engagement if marriage was difficult due to realistic problems, and if so, this grandma would handle everything from start to finish, so just say the word anytime.

Thinking that far, I relaxed slightly. Somehow, as I half-forced myself to endure, I’d adjusted to the hot spring and felt a little better. Though it was still hot, of course.

“Yeah, yeah. That. What do you think, Woo-joo~chan?”

“Well, I don’t know….”

I drew out the words, considering.

To suggest even an engagement ceremony if a wedding was out of the question, they must be quite impatient.

Well, Grandmother and Grandfather, they are sprightly for their ages, so it doesn’t really hit home. Grandfather’s in his eighties and Grandmother in her seventies, so I suppose they have reason to be.

If I were in my eighties, and my granddaughter brought over some guy, introducing him as her “boyfriend of this year! We’re living together now!”, wouldn’t I be badgering them about marriage, wanting to see a great-grandchild while I’m still spry?

“I don’t know about anything else. But I got the feeling they both want Aki and me to get married, pronto.”

“…Really? You felt that too, Uju~chan?”

“Yeah, I did.”

Frankly, you’d have to be daft not to notice.

They both brought up the topics of marriage and children so openly. Grandmother even suggested considering an engagement if a wedding was too much trouble.

“Uju~chan.”

“Yeah?”

“…Does Uju~chan… want to marry me?”

“……”

I do want to.

That’s what I wanted to say, but I closed my mouth.

Because I’d have to go to the military, earliest next year, latest within a few years. I wanted to postpone marriage until my military service was sorted out.

Let’s face it, who knows what might happen in the army? It’s the army after all.

Even though it’s supposedly improved, accidents still happen every year. The news doesn’t report everything, but there are deaths not uncommonly.

Of course, if you ask where such accidents *don’t* happen, I wouldn’t have an answer. But still. I didn’t want to force Aki to bear risks that I alone should shoulder. Marriage wasn’t a game for children.

…That’s as far as I got in my thinking.

*Splash-*!

“…Uju~chan!”

Suddenly, a spray erupted, and hot spring water splashed onto my face. Leaning against the wall of the onsen, caught off guard, of course the water went into my eyes. Panicked, I instinctively squeezed my eyelids shut and wiped my face with my hands.

“Why didn’t you answer right away?!”

“…W-wait a minute. Just, I need…”

My eyes are stinging. The sudden attack caught me off guard, I couldn’t think of an answer. I was just trying to get my bearings when I heard splashing noises from the front. Aki couldn’t wait, and was coming closer.

Aki, creating a swirl of water with her whole body, grabbed my shoulders with her hands and pressed down hard before I could even say anything. Then, before I could stop her, she hopped onto my thighs, straddling me like she was riding a horse.

“Don’t tell me, you don’t… want to marry me?!”

“No, that’s not it….”

“If that’s not it, you *want* to, is that it? Is that what it is?”

“Ah, uh-huh. I want to. I *do* want to. But, um…”

“You want to, but you weren’t answering…!”

*‘Give me time to explain, then I’ll answer…’*

The voice in my head was smothered entirely as Aki grabbed my shoulders and shook me back and forth. Having already been splashed, now my head was rattling around, and I lost my balance, slipping downwards into the hot spring water, ending up half-reclined on the bottom of the bath.

Aki didn’t seem to have any intention of moving off me, planting her palms on my chest and staring intently down at me.

I clamped my mouth shut and stared right back at Aki.

Due to the violent movements of the last moment, the bath towel that had been covering Aki’s chest had slipped down, revealing parts that my mouth simply couldn’t bring itself to name.

“……”

A furtive glance.

My gaze drifted just a little lower.

And immediately after, I couldn’t help but murmur inwardly, ‘Wow….’

Even through her swimsuit, I could kind of tell. But seeing it directly, with no obstacles, with my own two eyes…

Yeah, Aki really *is* half Western.

Her chest is so big, lying here beneath her, looking up, I can barely see her face…….

“Answer me now.”

“……What?”

I can’t tell if I’m talking to her chest or to Aki right now.

“Are you gonna marry me, or not?”

“……”

……Caught up in such insane thoughts, I finally snapped back to reality.

Marriage.

Yeah, I guess I *should*…

But not right now. Not right this instant.

At least not until I’ve finished my military service, when we can live together without the sudden separation. At least then seems like the right time.

I opened my mouth and said, “I *will*, but not right now, let’s do it a little later.”

“……I will.”

“When?”

“Well, as quickly as possible…?”

“…….”

“…….”

A silence stretched, thin and taut.

And then, belatedly, I realized something was amiss.

“Hey, Aki. What I mean is…. …Mmph.”

“……♡”