Defective Banana - Chapter 22

If he pushed her too far, she might just call off their relationship altogether. So Seohyuk bit his lip and pressed down firmly on Ara’s pale back with his hands, massaging her hard and deep—as if they were in the middle of their third round.

A rush of heat surged through him, and he faltered for a second. But thinking about how much she must’ve gone through, he kept going, moving his hands diligently, not allowing himself a break.

“Hoo… haa, ugh… ha…”

Seohyuk’s breathing grew increasingly ragged. But his d1ck had gone completely soft and clearly had no intention of cooperating, so he just focused on satisfying himself through sight and touch alone.

A moment later, he leaned down and kissed the line of her spine.

Smack, smack.

He hadn’t planned it—it was pure impulse. Hands and eyes just weren’t enough anymore.

“What are you doing? Are you massaging me with your mouth now?”

“Want me to?”

“No, thanks.”

“C’mon. Just a little. If you don’t like it, tell me.”

Without waiting for a real answer, he lowered his lips back to her back and gently kissed her skin, dampening it with his breath. He kissed her nape, shoulders, and shoulder blades, then trailed down the curve of her back and to the dip above her hips, wetting her skin with soft, slow sucks.

Ara flinched at every kiss, but didn’t stop him—in fact, she was sort of enjoying this “oral massage.”

Tingling electricity danced over her skin, and there was something deliciously dangerous about the whole thing. Who knew this kind of pleasure was even possible? The human body really was full of surprises.

“Heh… it feels good, but… I’m so sleepy. Can I just pass out like this?”

Exhaustion was washing over her, and she just wanted to shut her eyes and completely sink into sleep. Maybe it was her body’s way of protecting itself, like some kind of instinctive reset after intense activity.

Still nuzzling and kissing the nape of her neck, Seohyuk murmured against her skin, his lips brushing gently as he spoke.

“If you’re tired, sleep. Don’t worry about me.”

Even his voice was starting to sound far away. Whether he was still kissing her or caressing her somewhere else, Ara didn’t care anymore. Her body and mind gave in completely, sinking into a deep, dreamless sleep.

***

The next morning, Ara slowly opened her eyes to find herself still lying on the white bed next to Seohyuk, her body drained and aching.

The early sun slipped in between the curtains with a soft pinkish glow, and she could faintly hear the cries of seagulls outside the window.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Mm… kind of. But my body feels heavy and sore.”

Unlike her, Seohyuk looked completely refreshed—probably because he’d spent the whole night wide awake, thoroughly enjoying her soft body.

“Want me to give you another massage?”

“Nope. It’s time to get up now.”

He rolled over beside her and propped her head on his arm, grinning with a bright, boyish smile.

“Let’s stay another day.”

She had just opened her eyes, and already that smile of his was dazzling enough to tempt her. The idea of staying an extra day didn’t sound bad at all.

But…

“I have to go home. I’ve got work to do.”

“Then when are we seeing each other again?” he asked as she sat up and stretched her neck lightly.

“Well… you’re off until the weekend, right?”

“Yeah. So how about dinner tonight? Let’s go get something good. What do you like?”

As she stretched her arms up high with a big yawn, Ara turned to look at Seohyuk and hesitated, chewing on her lower lip.

“Mm… I’m completely out of energy today. I kind of just want to rest. I’ll check my schedule and text you, okay?”

“Ugh… I should’ve put a minimum meet-up clause in our contract. At this rate, I won’t see you for ages. Don’t ghost me!”

His doubtful expression made her chuckle. Getting out of bed, she spoke slowly and clearly, like she really wanted him to believe her.

“I’ll text you. I will text you. Promise.”

***

Dragging her exhausted body home, Ara crashed into bed and ended up taking a long nap. When she finally woke up, she checked her phone and found a text from her next-door neighbor, Unnie. She stared at the screen for a moment, spacing out.

[Ara-ya, you’re coming back from Ganghwa Island today, right? When you get home, come grab some japchae.]

How am I supposed to look you in the eye from now on?

Then again… thinking about it, I didn’t really do anything that wrong, did I?

I mean, I just hit him a little, teased him a little… We both had fun, didn’t we?

Ara let out a snort and shrugged. She got up from the sofa, grabbed a hoodie, and went to the mirror to tie her hair up in a quick bun. But as soon as she caught a glimpse of her neck in the mirror, she cursed under her breath and let her hair fall back down to hide it.

“Ugh! That damn pervert. He really went to town on me.”

Now that she thought about it, even the morning after they first slept together, Seohyuk had ambushed her from behind the moment she stepped out of the shower.

She’d refused to let him go all the way again, saying no more penetration—but instead, he had just dropped to his knees and gone down on her like a man possessed.

He was way too good at tempting her. God knows how many times she climaxed again, all before breakfast.

“Jeez… this man has no chill whatsoever.”

Still grumbling, Ara slid on her slippers and stood in front of the door. Just in case, she shot Seohyuk a text before heading out.

[Running into my unnie is super awkward, so from now on, text me before you come over. We’re only meeting in public. Got it? Only in public. Don’t forget—seriously!!!]

She hammered the message with three exclamation points and let out a deep sigh. Finally, she stepped out of the house.

She could find Unnie’s place with her eyes closed. Just ten steps away. She rang the bell, and the door clicked open without a word.

“Unnie, I’m here!”

As soon as she stepped in and kicked off her shoes, she heard her neighbor’s cheerful voice call from the kitchen.

“Oh, Ara! Was Ganghwa nice?”

Ara shuffled into the kitchen, trying to act casual. “It was fine… Uh, so what’s with the japchae?”

“I saw it on TV this morning and had the craziest craving. So I made a little.”

“This is not a little,” Ara muttered. The huge bowl was piled high with glass noodles, veggies, and beef—easily enough to feed ten people.

But Donghee just ignored her and started scooping japchae into a container from the cupboard. As she moved around the kitchen, she glanced at Ara and tossed out a few pointed comments with a sly smile.

“You know, I’m amazed at how you’re always off doing your own thing. Alone at home, alone outside… You really think someone’s gonna come knocking just ‘cause you’re tragically single and mysterious? You’re not getting any younger, you know. Time to start dating.”

“I like being alone. And you’re single too, Unnie.”

“Psh. Don’t lump me in with you! I’ve been married, thank you very much. You haven’t even started!”

Ara let out a laugh and walked over, resting a hand on Donghee’s shoulder with a grin.

“Oh, come on. Who even sees you as an ahjumma? You don’t look much older than me.”

“Yeah, right. Wipe your mouth before that sweet talk drips off your face! If I were you, I’d be out here dating every guy I met.”

“Oh, please. Weren’t you the one who just went on that trip to Gangwon-do with that guy you mentioned? Wait… don’t tell me it was a different guy?”

Donghee waved her hand dramatically, like she was swatting away nonsense.

“Shut it, shut it.”

Ara chuckled mischievously, watching her Unnie. Then her thoughts wandered back to that one unforgettable day—the real reason they’d grown so close.

It had all started with the bathroom incident.

Last spring, Ara had moved into the top floor of the Sang-A Mansion. She’d fallen in love with the place at first sight—so much sunlight, a spacious layout—and she’d scraped together all her savings just to move in.

The apartment had a huge living room and kitchen, three bedrooms, a wide veranda, and even a cozy loft since it was on the top floor. There was also a decent-sized terrace you could step onto through a connecting door.

Sometimes she’d place a table and chairs out there and relax with some music. The rooftop was accessible too, through a metal door. Ara often went up there to work out.

Since the building was on a hill, the view of the city below was amazing, especially at night.

When spring came, the air was thick with the scent of flowers from the mountain out back. She’d leave the windows open all the time, and when the wind blew, soft pink cherry blossom petals would swirl over the terrace like a snowstorm. It was breathtaking.

Ara really loved her apartment. And soon, she grew fond of her neighbor too.

Donghee would sometimes hand her food with a casual, “Wait a sec!” whenever they ran into each other. Ara had started giving her little snacks in return, and that quickly turned into a back-and-forth of edible gifts.

But the turning point in their friendship came during the winter.

One snowy day, Ara was out shoving snow off her terrace with a mop and clearing a path to the rooftop. She was pushing away the icy slush when she suddenly heard a faint, echoing voice from somewhere.

“…Help… please…”

At first, she thought it was someone’s TV turned up too loud. But the sound was getting clearer—and it was coming from the ventilation shaft.

She pressed her ear closer, and that’s when she heard it properly, a woman’s voice, trembling and pleading.

“Please help me. Someone help.”

Ara’s heart dropped. That was a cry for help.

Panicked, she shouted into the vent, “Is someone in there?!”

A hurried voice answered from inside—it was unmistakably someone calling for real help.

“This is unit 901! Please! I’m trapped in the bathroom!”

901? That was next door.

Now that she thought about it… the voice did sound familiar.

“Unnie? Is that you, Donghee Unnie?!”

“Oh my god, Ara?! Yes! It’s me! Please get me out—I’m locked in the bathroom! The code to my door is three-three—…”

Ara memorized the code and rushed over.

Standing outside unit 901, she punched the numbers into the keypad just as Unnie had told her.

Beep-beep-beep-beep… click.

The door opened immediately.

“Unnie! I’m in!”