Chapter 43: In The Sauna

After warming up our bodies sufficiently in the hot water of the bathhouse.

I shook off Jina, who was trying to scrub my back, and after changing into jjimjilbang clothes, we went up to the jjimjilbang area.

Unlike the slightly humid bathhouse changing room, the refreshing air greeted us pleasantly.

“I’ll be sleeping in the sleeping room. Wake me up if anything happens.”

“Okay.”

“Ah, if you want to eat something, you can order with that locker key, so eat as much as you want.”

“Okay. You look like you’re about to collapse, so go to sleep quickly.”

Jina’s eyes were half-closed, and there were severe dark circles under them.

Her body was warm, and she was walking unsteadily, as if her head was swaying, so I pushed her into the sleeping room and came out.

‘It’s been a while since I’ve been to a jjimjilbang.’

I found a place to sit nearby by dragging a mat.

It was a weekday afternoon, so there weren’t many people, and only the sound of the TV was quietly flowing.

It’s a national rule to eat snacks like roasted eggs or sikhye at a jjimjilbang, but I wasn’t hungry yet, and I thought I wouldn’t be able to eat dinner if I ate now, so I put it on hold for now.

‘Where should I go first?’

I look around with a slightly excited heart.

I didn’t say it, but I quite like bathing or jjimjilbang.

It feels good to relax my body in a hot place, sweat, and endure until the limit, and the feeling of liberation when I come out is addictive.

It’s nice just for that moment, but the feeling of being refreshed after sweating a lot is also irresistible.

“Then shall I start lightly with 50 degrees?”

I boldly approached the door and opened it.

The door opened easily, and at the same time, the heat inside instantly covered my face.

“Gasp?!”

Instant pressure that makes it impossible to breathe.

And I was surprised by the temperature that stung my skin, and I hurriedly closed the door.

“Ugh, it’s hot….”

I rubbed my still tingling face with my hands and calmed my surprised heart.

This is 50 degrees?

I didn’t think it would be this hot.

My skin has become thinner and I’ve felt sensitive to temperature, but I didn’t know I wouldn’t be able to withstand this temperature….

The memory of starting at 60 degrees and entering the fire sauna has now become the past.

I quietly gave up and entered a sauna with a slightly lower temperature.

It feels a little uncomfortable to breathe, but it wasn’t an unbearable temperature.

I brought a wooden pillow nearby and lay down, stretching my legs and arms.

“Ugh…. So gooood….”

There was no one around anyway, so I didn’t hold back the sounds that came from within.

There’s nowhere to get stiff, but I felt like something in my muscles was being released, and I enjoyed the feeling of being cooked at low temperature.

Just as my body was getting drowsy and my eyelids were getting heavy.

Ring-

The phone in my pocket rang with a call notification.

“Hellooo….”

-Hello? I called because you called earlier. Is something wrong?

“Nooo, it’s okay nooow….”

-But isn’t it still school time? Why is your voice so slurred….

“Heheee….”

I caught my slurred pronunciation and told Osorin what happened today.

And I also told her that the incident was settled and that I came to the jjimjilbang with Jina, and that Jina was sleeping in the sleeping room.

Hearing that, Osorin suddenly raised her voice.

-Why didn’t you call me! I want to go to the jjimjilbang too!

“You didn’t answer the phone….”

-Ugh…, I have to turn on the broadcast in a few hours…. Should I just take a day off?

“Just behave and do your broadcast….”

Broadcast time and regular broadcasts are promises to viewers.

Even if growth is on track and it is maintained a little, you have to keep that promise to increase the number of viewers who keep coming back.

Knowing that well, Osorin grumbled and muttered that she wanted to take a day off.

-Then, as a second best, let’s do a video call. I just woke up and I’m bored.

“Video call? There’s no one around, so it doesn’t matter….”

-Then I’ll call you, so wait.

I immediately took the phone away from my face and pressed the video call button.

I just woke up from sleep and kept rolling around in bed, so I was in my pajamas, but it didn’t matter.

‘It’s been a while since I’ve seen Sua’s face, so it’s okay to be bare-faced.’

No, since it’s been a while, should I have put on makeup instead?

I suddenly thought that, but the video call button had already been pressed.

The call was connected immediately, without ringing a few times.

-Uwaa, hellooo….

“Hello, Sua. It’s been a while…”

Click.

My hand moves quickly and captures the screen.

Slightly flushed cheeks.

Skin and hair wet with sweat.

A small, soft cheek pressed against the side as she lay on her side, and long, disheveled hair accordingly.

Even a dazed, relaxed expression.

In an instant, a tremendous protective instinct arose, and I took screenshots continuously without saying anything.

It seemed difficult for her to hold the phone up while lying down, so she lay on her side and talked.

It was like the look she would show before going to sleep.

A heart-stirring appearance.

Her voice was languid, making that cuteness even more pronounced.

“God, thank you for giving me daily bread.”

-Did you believe in Christianityyy?

“I think I’ll believe from now on.”

I think I can eat two bowls of rice with just this screenshot.

Ding.

Finally, I turn on the screen recording of my phone, and I smile brightly and greet Sua.

“It’s nice to be at a jjimjilbang~ I want to soak my body after a long time. I think my back and neck are starting to get stiff from sitting in a chair all the time.”

-It’s because you sit for a long timeee. Be careful of your back and neck discs. I also suffered a lot from that in the past…

“Huh? Sua, you have a disc?!”

-…I was worried that I might suffer, so I’m trying hard to stretch.

Somehow, Sua’s tone suddenly returned to normal.

“That’s right, I should stretch often too. But you seem to be sweating a lot, shouldn’t you go out soon?”

-Hmm…, I want to do it a little more….

“Jina isn’t next to you. It’s a big deal if you collapse from dehydration, so do it for a little while and drink water.”

-Yes….

Sua obediently gets up at my words.

As she did so, she held the phone down, and the screen became an angle looking up at Sua from below.

Even though it was an angle that is commonly called an unflattering shot, Sua’s small head and thin neck made her look rather cute.

Seriously, recording the screen was the best choice.

Sua drinks water from the water purifier and exhales.

And she wipes the sweat on her forehead with her sleeve….

“Gasp.”

-What happened…?

“…Nothing, just, um…. Thank you.”

The camera was below, and her sleeve was lifted, so her clothes went up and her white belly….

…This is a bit perverted.

“Ahem, didn’t you have a towel? Wipe it with a towel.”

-I have to wash again when I go out later. I only received two towels, and if I use a towel to wipe sweat, I can’t wipe the water after washing.

“Anyway, Jina is paying. Just get more towels. It’s uncomfortable to just wipe it with your clothes.”

-That’s true, but….

“You keep sweating, and if you don’t wipe it, you might catch a cold. So listen to me.”

-…Okay.

When I spoke a little coercively, Sua reluctantly agreed and went to the counter to borrow more towels.

Since she got two more towels, Sua wiped the flowing sweat with one towel and cooled her body.

“And you make a sheep’s head with the remaining towel.”

-…You told me to get more towels because of that, right.

“Of course not. Your head gets cold because of the sweat, and you’re likely to catch a cold. It’s strictly for Sua’s health.”

-Your lies are skillful.

Sua glared at me.

I smiled slyly, raising the corners of my mouth.

Isn’t it natural that I want to capture Sua wearing a sheep’s head on the screen?

-Well, I’ll let it slide this time. I also wanted to make it after a long time.

“Nice!”

-You’re so happy, I suddenly don’t want to do it.

“Not nice….”

-Hehe…, okay. Wait a minute.

Sua, holding back a chuckle, put her phone down towards the floor.

The camera was covered, and only rustling sounds were heard on the darkened screen.

After a while, the screen brightens.

When the focus is adjusted, the screen shows Sua wearing a towel in the shape of a sheep’s head.

-H, how is it?

“Cute. Lovely.”

-N, not that! Did I make it well!

The flush that had faded slightly turned her entire face red.

An angry little sheep is threatening me, hiding her embarrassment.

I laughed out loud at that sight.

‘I want to show this cuteness to other people.’

Like an otter showing off its cub, I want to show Sua to other people and spread this cuteness far and wide.

Is this what motherhood is?

But because Sua doesn’t like appearing on broadcasts and is uncomfortable with people’s attention, there’s probably no chance.

‘But her popularity is gradually increasing…. Maybe she actually likes this kind of attention?’

Contrary to saying that people’s attention is burdensome, Sua’s popularity was gradually increasing.

If she really didn’t want to be noticed, she wouldn’t have revealed that she was the editor.

‘I’ll have to ask her properly later.’

If I just ask directly, she’ll obviously refuse, so I’ll have to beat around the bush a little.

‘Someday, I’ll definitely show her on broadcast.’

I have another small goal.