I Don’t Want to be a Villainess

That was just a misunderstanding on my part.

For some reason, when I brought Son Ah-reum in, Ha Neul and Sua looked a bit tense.

Thinking it over, the reason I couldn’t use excuses like “she’s just a girl” or “she’s just a friend” is because after that confession, if I hang out with another girl, it would be seen as “messing around with other girls after receiving a confession.”

But then again, it’s not like I wouldn’t be jealous if I hung out with a guy. Relationships between guys and girls are way more common here.

It just seems impossible to navigate these feelings! If getting close to guys is a problem, and getting close to girls is a problem, then who exactly am I supposed to hang out with?

…No, wait, that’s just me making excuses.

The real issue is that I’ve been confessed to by three girls and now I’m bringing another girl around. If I had firmly rejected those confessions, it might have been a different story.

But before I could reject anyone, I ended up running away, so whatever.

Thinking like this is just making me feel more frustrated…

…Is it all Sara’s fault?

Is this all happening because Sara is just too pretty? Who knows! If Sara hadn’t been that pretty, things might not have escalated this much.

But if you trace it back to the cause, it ultimately leads back to the fact that Sara was just born pretty. If Sara was pretty, that means her real mom and dad must have been good-looking too. So, at the end of the day, there’s no escaping the conclusion that Sara is simply pretty.

Back to square one.

As I’m letting out a deep sigh, I hear a knock knock at the door.

Could it be Yang Hye-in returning after finishing her gift distribution?

“I’ll go check!”

I shout, quickly getting up and opening the door.

“Happy birthday!”

Sohee stands at the door holding a cake.

The cake she’s holding isn’t as extravagant as the one we saw at the party, but it looks like she made it herself, slightly crooked with ‘Happy Birthday to You!’ written on it.

There was a giant candle stuck in the middle, and a small flame flickered atop it.

If she walked all the way over holding the flame, I thought that was pretty impressive.

“Wow, whoa…”

As I let out a somewhat deflated cheer and stepped aside, Sohee beamed as she placed the cake on the table.

“Oh, Areum is here too. Hi.”

“Ah, hi…”

Fortunately, Sohee greeted Areum nonchalantly. It seemed she didn’t see her as a rival.

“Come on, everyone gather around. We have to make a wish for Sara.”

“Uh, um…”

“Y-Yeah…”

Sohee’s straightforward words made Ha Neul and Sua a bit flustered, but they quickly shuffled over near the table. Naturally, Son Ah-reum followed suit.

“Ah, right, right.”

Sohee clapped her hands and exclaimed, rushing to the corner of the room to turn off the lights.

The room instantly went dark.

Now, the only light source was the single candle on the cake.

Every time we moved, the candlelight flickered precariously, casting a warm orange glow that created a gentle atmosphere.

“Happy-birth-day—to—You—”

As soon as the lights went out, Sohee clapped her hands and started singing.

“Happy-birth-day—to—You—”

We all sang along somewhat dazedly in unison with Sohee. Even I, the birthday boy, joined in.

“To my beloved—”

It was only when I got to “Sara’s—” that I remembered this birthday party was meant for Sara.

So, you know, I had no reason to stop singing happy birthday.

“Happy birthday!”

And we all clapped.

The song had started somewhat unexpectedly, but in the midst of singing, we all blended our hearts into the chorus.

Listening to the sound of applause, I blew out the candle.

The room was enveloped in darkness.

And in that moment, something soft touched my cheek before falling away.

Even after the lights came back on, I couldn’t tell whose lips had been the ones to touch mine.

*

Still, it’s not like I didn’t eat anything during the party; it just so happened we couldn’t finish the gigantic cake by ourselves.

In fact, I had already had a proper meal before the party, and what I ate during the party was mainly cake, so it made sense to be full.

The cake, crafted by a beginner’s hands, still appeared well-made and tasted pretty good too.

“Did you make this?”

“Yeah. My senior helped a lot though.”

Ah, that’s why Sohee had disappeared for a while. I had wondered where she’d gone.

“You did a great job. It tastes good.”

“Hehe.”

Sohee smiled shyly at my praise.

And Son Ah-reum was looking at her like she was some sort of fascinating creature.

“Why, what, why? You got a problem?”

Noticing that gaze, Sohee blushed and unexpectedly pouted.

“No, it’s just. You’re so different from the image I had of you in school.”

That’s understandable.

When I think back to the first time I met Sohee, it’s hard to believe the Sohee of now.

Well… all that change must be because she likes me.

…So when exactly did Sohee start liking me?

Looking back, it seems like it was a much longer time ago than I thought. I can’t specify a moment, but it doesn’t feel like it’s been ages since we met.

At the very least, it must have been long before she started working as a maid…

Sua claimed she liked me first before Ha Neul, and Ha Neul said she liked me since almost our first meeting, which means these three girls have liked me for a ridiculously long time.

*

Just then, a ding echoed in my head.

…So you’ve finally woken up.

*

However, in response to my thoughts, Sara had no reply. She seemed to be sulking instead.

…Now that I think about it, Sara has liked me for quite a while too—

*

Whoa—ow!!

Ah, that startled me.

Sara’s scream filled my head, and I jumped, my shoulders flinching. Thankfully, the other kids in the room seemed lost in their thoughts and didn’t notice.

…It’s not like she should be so embarrassed.

*

Don’t you feel embarrassed having kissed three girls? Where’s your dignity, where’s your dignity?

It seemed like she had read my mind or something.

Or rather, that first kiss—well, the kiss Ha Neul gave me is probably something that Sara couldn’t hold back from.

*

See? You have no argument.

*

Who, who said what!?

That’s how I feel.

But hearing Sara’s voice puts me somewhat at ease.

It’s probably less confusing to take it all on together rather than all alone.

*

D-Don’t say scary things like that…

But that’s reality.

“Ah, Sara.”

“Yeah?”

While I was slightly lost in thought and eating cake, Sohee sitting next to me called me.

“You’ve got cream on your mouth.”

“Ah, yeah.”

I must have been too lost in thought to realize I had something on my mouth.

As I went to wipe my mouth by placing the fork I held in my right hand onto the plate in my left hand,

thud.

Sohee grabbed my hand.

“Huh?”

I probably didn’t just make that sound with my voice alone.

Even Son Ah-reum, who looked like she wasn’t paying any attention, and Ha Neul and Sua, who sensed Sohee was going to ‘do something’, couldn’t help but make some sort of noise at that moment.

And naturally, I, who was the subject of the event, felt the same shock.

“Ah, wait, wait! Sohee!”

I shouted that, but it was no use. Sohee was already barreling toward me.

The only thing I could do was try my best to not drop the cake I was holding in my left hand.

clatter.

Well, judging by the noise, it seems I couldn’t stop the fork from dropping.

While the other kids were taking one beat longer to get up, Sohee pressed her lips against mine—

Um, how can I put this?

Would ‘she licked’ be an accurate description?

Yeah. Fortunately, she didn’t just go in and lick my mouth with her tongue.

Instead, it felt more like she came in and took a big bite, grazing my lips with hers.

Our faces turned slightly towards each other.

Sohee’s upper lip brushed against the tip of my right lip.

Her lower lip met my left lip.

And just like that, Sohee’s lips closed, picking up the cake that had been smeared on my lips.

Sohee’s mouth closing felt distinctly through my lips.

That moment, although it was brief, felt overwhelmingly long until it ended, and Sohee slowly pulled her face back.

Sohee’s lips had bits of cream that had yet to be wiped away.

That was a clear reminder that just a second ago, our lips had touched.

Sohee presented her tongue, habitually licking up the cream before popping it into her mouth.

“Ahh!”

A moment later, screams erupted from the three girls.

Shocked, I turned to see Ha Neul, Sua, and Son Ah-reum standing bolt upright. I thought it was impressive that they didn’t drop the cake they were holding.

“Hehe.”

Sohee made a peace sign at the three of them.

…Umm, Sohee.

Could you at least try to gauge the atmosphere here?

---