My Younger Sister Was My First Love

55. Private Lessons Begin

Mina was supposed to come to our house on Tuesday evening.

“Hey, is two enough?”

“Yes, that’s plenty.”

“You won’t be hungry?”

“Anyway, Jihee doesn’t eat that much.”

In front of the chicken shop near our house.

Mina had dragged me to the chicken shop, saying it was time to return the favor from last time.

“I’ll pay the bill.”

“Ah, okay. Today, I’ll pay. Just for today, I’ll pay, and from next time on, you can pay.”

Mina handed her card to the owner, and I nodded in agreement, taking a seat at a corner table.

“But did you dress up like that on purpose?”

Mina, who usually had a variety of styles, was wearing an outfit that gave off a different vibe from what I saw at school.

“Why?”

“How can I explain… You look like a private tutor or something?”

I’d never had a beautiful college student like Mina as a teacher before, but if I had to imagine it, it would be something like this.

“I guess I did dress up well, then.”

“What’s with you coming to our place all dressed up?”

“The teacher’s image is important, too. If you’re too casual, you’ll lose the sense of tension, right?”

I said that, but I was the one who usually wore T-shirts and shorts to teach.

“Do as you please.”

“…Is that so?”

“Are you talking about clothes?”

“Yeah.”

Minju seemed to want to confirm her own style, so she bowed her head and checked her outfit.

There was no need for that, though.

If I were to directly say something, it would be okay even if Minju wore a bright green T-shirt and pink hot pants.

“You look pretty.”

I let out a slight sigh and said it in a casual tone.

“Really? Then you can take private lessons with Jihee and me together?”

“What’s with you?”

“Oh, I was supposed to teach you when you were retaking the exam.”

Minju found it funny and covered her mouth, giggling.

We waited for about 15 minutes and took the packaged chicken to go home.

When we opened the door, all the lights were on, unlike usual.

Jihee must have turned them on, saying that guests were coming.

“Jihee!”

As Jihee came out from the kitchen, Minju, who had taken off her shoes, greeted her younger sister with a characteristic high-pitched tone.

“Unnie! Hi! Wow, what’s this?”

“Chicken! I said I’d bring something delicious next time.”

“Whoa. So we’re drinking tonight too?”

Minju’s gaze turned to me at the question of drinking.

It felt like I was really a private tutor who needed permission from the parents.

“You can’t drink too much, not enough to get a hangover tomorrow morning.”

“How about one can of beer?”

Jihee stuck close to me, wanting to make a deal.

“Don’t drink more than that.”

“Yeah! Unnie, come sit down!”

Jihee naturally took Minju’s arm and led her to the kitchen table.

After washing my hands, I opened the paper bag and started setting out the food.

“But Jihee, you said you didn’t want to go to the academy. Is it okay for me to be your private tutor?”

“Oh, since Unnie is doing it with a good heart, how can I refuse?”

“Are you feeling burdened or something?”

“Ey, isn’t it more burdensome for Unnie to come all the way here? Unnie is the busy one, after all.”

It was already decided, so we might as well just do it.

Do both of them really need this kind of awkward confirmation process?

“Oh, okay. Sit down here.”

Jihee pulled out the chair next to me and pushed it back.

“Okay.”

My brother and I sat in a row.

Our private tutor, Minju, sat across from us.

“Since we’re going to have an OT session today anyway, why don’t we just talk here and wrap it up?”

Minju looked at me as if seeking permission and asked again.

“It’s up to you, Jihee.”

To be honest, I didn’t think we really needed an OT session.

“Hmm, I want to talk to my sister separately later, so…”

Jihee replied, sipping on a beer can.

“Ah, really? Okay, let’s eat and chat briefly then.”

“Sounds good!”

It didn’t seem like a big deal whether we had the session here or not.

I didn’t want to be a obstacle to the bond between the two of them.

In reality, I barely spoke while eating chicken.

On the other hand, Minju and Jihee chatted nonstop like they had motors in their mouths.

“Ah, right. There’s the school festival next month, sis.”

“That’s right. Oh man, I have to prepare for it as the student council president.”

Minju shook her head, saying she didn’t know when she would have time to prepare.

“Ah, you’re busy. I guess you won’t be able to enjoy the festival much?”

“Enjoy the festival? You mean the performances by the idol groups?”

“Yeah. My brother said he’d go with me.”

When they mentioned going to the festival together, Minju’s gaze fixed on me.

She was speaking with her eyes.

‘Are you kidding me right now?’

“Hey, let’s set the conditions first.”

Jihee’s words cut me off, and I had to clarify again.

“What conditions?”

Minju jumped in, “If I get a high score on the mock exam, my brother said he’d take me to the festival.”

“Really…?”

“Yeah, so if I learn from my sister for a few days, the chances of going to the festival with my brother will increase, right?”

Minju was saying she’d learn from me and then go to the festival with my brother.

Our private tutor, Minju, took a big gulp of beer, as if her throat was parched.

“I-Junho.”

“Why.”

“Are you really going to take a student to the festival on a weekday?”

Her tone was slightly stern.

I put down the chicken wing I was holding and faced her directly.

“Jihee said, ‘You set a condition.'”

“A condition that’s not getting a perfect score on all subjects in the mock test is unrealistic.”

“That’s too unrealistic.”

“Then is it realistic to bring a student who’s taking the exam to a festival?”

When Minju attacked, Jihee naturally started to defend me.

“Unnie.”

“Yes?”

“I’m sorry, but this is something we agreed on as a family, so we’ll handle it ourselves.”

It was like a scene from a boy’s battle manga, where a powerful warrior unsheathes their sword and cuts the ground in half.

Jihee was sending a strong warning signal, telling us not to cross the line.

“This is something we’ll take care of ourselves.”

If I defended Jihee, it would make Minju’s presence here pointless.

I glanced around nervously and added a lame excuse.

“Besides, Jihee’s target score isn’t low, and she still hasn’t finished one round of studying. There are many problems she can’t solve yet.”

“What’s her score?”

“First place in Korean, 60 points each in math and English.”

“60? Are you kidding me?”

“Even for Jihee’s level, this isn’t easy.”

I ended up becoming a protective parent who couldn’t help but make excuses for my child.

“Yes, unnie. I don’t know if oppa said it, but I’m not good at studying, so…”

“Then isn’t it better to skip the festival? I know it sounds cruel, but if you don’t do well on the exam, you’ll regret it later. There are so many people around me who cry and struggle to get into college.”

As I listened to Minju’s story, I realized that she and I think alike.

It was because the content of our nagging was almost identical to Lee Junho’s.

“It doesn’t matter.”

“It doesn’t matter?”

“Unnie.”

“Yes.”

“Unnie, you’re a Korea University student, just like oppa. Why did you study so hard when you were in school?”

Minju hesitated for a moment before answering the unexpected question.

“I guess it was a desire for recognition… I had a strong desire for it.”

“What do you get from being recognized?”

“Are you mocking me now?”

“No, that’s not what I mean. My point is, didn’t you study hard because you wanted to be happy, unnie?”

Minju’s face turned gloomy, and then she nodded as if in agreement.

“That’s not wrong.”

“I’m the same. I study for my own personal happiness and achievement.”

Jihee’s gaze naturally turned to me.

“Oppa, why aren’t you eating the chicken leg? I left it for you.”

Jihee stopped talking and gently placed the chicken leg on my plate.

“My happiness isn’t about getting a perfect score on the exam or getting into Korea University.”

Min-ju’s beer can was now perfectly empty.

“That’s it. I won’t touch that anymore.”

“Thank you for understanding, teacher!”

Ji-hee’s voice was laced with sarcasm, but Min-ju didn’t seem to care.

“Looks like we’ve finished eating. Should we clean up?”

The atmosphere had become slightly awkward, so I quickly got up from my seat to start cleaning up the leftovers.

“Hey, where do we put the recyclables?”

“You go wash your hands first and go in with Ji-hee. I’ll take care of this.”

“Let’s clean up together.”

“Right, oppa. I’ll help you.”

As the three of us worked together, everything was quickly settled.

In no time, the dining table was spotless.

“Ji-hee.”

“Yes?”

Ji-hee turned around at my call.

“Do you want to do it in your room or in the living room?”

“I’ll just do it in my room. That way, oppa will be more comfortable.”

After washing their hands, Min-ju and Ji-hee went into her room to talk, leaving me alone to do the dishes.

I started to worry again.

Was it okay for the two of them to be alone together?

If it were a normal private tutoring session, there would be no problem…

I gazed at Ji-hee’s closed door, feeling a bit uneasy.

* * *

This was the second time I had entered Ji-hee’s room.

It was the first time I had entered it with a clear mind.

My impression wasn’t much different from last time.

It was just that her room was really clean?

Compared to my messy room, which was a mess even after just two days of not cleaning, Ji-hee’s room was really tidy.

Maybe she had even cleaned up specifically because I was coming over?

“Unnie, over here.”

Ji-hee smiled and pulled out a chair for me.

“Thanks.”

“Did I maybe offend you earlier?”

“Nah, not at all. What’s there to be offended about?”

In reality, my bad mood was more due to Jun-ho’s problem than Ji-hee’s.

Someone was trying to reduce their time with their younger sibling and even offered to do private tutoring, while someone else was making plans to go to a festival with their friend.

Honestly, I was also feeling bitter about missing the festival and not being able to ask Jun-ho about it.

Ugh… why did I forget about that…?

Wait, no.

We were too busy to even enjoy the festival properly anyway.

I steeled myself and decided to shake off the annoying thoughts and start counseling.

“Let’s talk about studying first?”

“Yes!”

“I’ve heard you’re good at Korean, and I’ll focus on math and English……”

Although I didn’t show it, I couldn’t say anything nice about Ji-hui’s current grades, even as a joke.

How could someone get such grades without studying at all?

In reality, Ji-hui might have been a huge slacker during school days.

She was my first love’s younger sister, someone I had never met before in my life.

“So, when I studied English, I always did it like this.”

I tried to give tips for each subject.

Like the methods I used to study.

If you take a mock test, any instructor or publisher’s materials can be very helpful.

“Wow. I’ll try it like that too.”

Despite having some resistance to private tutoring, Ji-hui had a good reaction and attitude.

The lesson seemed to be going smoothly……

“Unnie, I’ll just go to the bathroom for a minute.”

“Okay. Go ahead.”

“Don’t clean up; just stay here, and I’ll be right back!”

“Got it.”

Of course, I had no intention of invading her private space.

As I naturally glanced around the desk, I saw Ji-hui’s textbooks and workbooks.

A small water bottle for stationery was stuck to the wall.

And next to it was…

“…Hmm?”

A small paper box, smaller than the palm of my hand.

It wasn’t familiar, but I had a rough idea of what it might be.

Could it be what I think it is……?

Ah, maybe.

I couldn’t take my eyes off the box and bit my lip with my front teeth.

If I want to confirm, now is my only chance.

She’ll be back from the bathroom soon.

With a trembling heart, I reached out, and…

[Super Thin 3P]

It was indeed what I thought.

Ji-hui, an adult, might have condoms at home. That’s possible.

But what really shattered my mental state was the fact that the torn wrapper was rolling around inside the box.