I am back – Chapter 116

I figured it would be a bit too long for my sister and the others to wait, so I hurriedly got everything ready and came out.

Surprisingly, there was wine among the drinks besides just beer and soju. It must’ve been a gift, given how expensive it likely was per bottle.

And there were also snacks, alongside cold dishes that could be heated in the microwave.

In terms of quantity, it was definitely enough for my party to finish off in no time. For normal people, it might be just the right amount or a bit too much, but my party could eat as much as I could, so it was an entirely different story.

Still, I couldn’t just ask my sister to buy more. Since it was my house, I felt it was only right for me to treat them. If they needed anything else, I could just order more myself.

With that thought in mind, I carried the prepared food on a tray and stepped out, only to find…

…a quiet living room just as I had expected. Dana, who was following me, seemed to gulp at the awkward atmosphere that made it hard to breathe.

“Uh, um.”

Honestly, I knew running to the kitchen hadn’t been the best move… but I had no idea it would turn out this awkward.

Come to think of it, I hadn’t properly introduced my sister.

No matter how much I might have talked about her, this was the first time they were seeing each other’s faces, so it was right for me to introduce them both. Besides, it would be only polite to introduce my colleagues to her as well.

Moreover, I was the one who invited her here. No matter what excuse I might come up with, I was the one at fault.

I wished I could go back five minutes and give my past self a smack.

Well, anyway, what’s done is done. I had to find a way to deal with the situation from now on.

First, I quickly walked to the table where my sister and the others were sitting and started placing the food on the table.

Kalia, Pia, and Dana seemed eager to alleviate the awkward mood, so they quickly jumped in to help. My sister did the same.

In no time, everything was ready, and I sat down around the middle of the table. It was the perfect spot facing the sofa and TV.

My sister took the seat next to me, while Kalia, Pia, and Arna sat across from me, and Dana settled into the corner between my sister and Arna.

“Ahem.”

Clearing my throat, I began to introduce my friends to her.

“First, let me introduce my friends—”

I was about to start when—

“Siyun.”

My sister interrupted me mid-sentence.

“Yeah?”

I tensed up. Did she get mad at me or something?

Ever since childhood, my sister had never really gotten angry at me. We’d never had a serious fight. There had been some minor squabbles, but they’d been so insignificant that we never needed to apologize.

But that’s why it was even more frightening if she did get mad.

If my sister was upset with me, I wouldn’t really know how to make it right.

She’d never complained about the food when we ate together, nor had she voiced any dissatisfaction when we went out. Of course, the food was just common stuff everyone liked, and we never went anywhere beyond Seoul. So, maybe there hadn’t been enough room for strong preferences to develop. But because of that, I never truly knew what she might really dislike.

People tend to overlook minor mistakes in front of someone who isn’t angry, but it becomes a huge problem in front of someone who is furious.

Honestly, I’d rather face death than deal with this, but… no matter how close we were, she was still someone I’d only known formally for three months… Well, I was confident our relationship was much deeper than that.

But because it was deep, I worried it could be completely shattered if I disappointed her.

My mind was racing to find a solution, but before I could even come to a conclusion, my sister spoke up first.

“You decided to be casual with your friends.”

“Yeah?”

My racing thoughts ground to a sudden halt.

What did she just say?

I should’ve shouted something, but my brain froze and couldn’t form the words.

But… we had just met those friends moments ago.

Of course, if they were all in the same school and were in the same class or grade, it would be normal to switch to casual speak. Even if you’d never talked before in school, if you learned you were classmates, it wouldn’t be weird to speak casually.

But here, my sister and my colleagues weren’t really people who had known each other beforehand.

And yet, they had switched to casual speak after just five minutes?

Was the awkwardness I felt just me overthinking? Had they really grown that close in just those five minutes?

“Oh, that…”

Noticing that her explanation might have been insufficient, my sister spoke carefully, her tone slow.

“You spoke casually with your friends, but I’m using formal language… and having both of us with different speech styles just makes it awkward, I thought.”

“Oh…”

My brain, which had been racing, started to turn again, albeit slowly.

Even in that moment, I didn’t fully accept my sister’s reasoning. I merely thought, “Is that so?”

In fact, while I was being casual with my friends, Pia was still using polite language with everyone. The respectful way Pia spoke didn’t come from the fact that her conversation partner was older; it was more like she applied the same attitude towards everyone.

That’s why it didn’t feel awkward. We all were very aware of that fact. Even if the party’s dialogues were mixed with casual and polite language, we were still able to become close.

“You and I have known each other for quite some time now.”

My sister said as she looked around almost shyly.

“So, I think we can speak casually with each other. I mean, I’ve already changed to casual speak, so you just need to do the same.”

Ah.

Is that how it is?

My slowly moving brain found its speed again.

So, my sister actually wanted me to drop the formalities as an excuse.

…Now that I think about it, it’s really not that awkward.

Even though it took me quite a while to drop the formality around Arna, I eventually got there. Same goes for other party members; we didn’t use formal speak when we first met either. It was just that through various experiences, we realized it was much more efficient to interact openly with each other rather than maintaining formalities. Eventually, we grew close enough that I could trust them with my life.

Even without those extreme conditions, it would be possible to drop the formalities if we got closer. If someone were better at making friends than I was, we might be on casual speak terms within just a week.

Actually, I only had been using formal language with my sister out of fear. I wanted to grow closer, but I had no idea how she would react if I suddenly switched to casual speak. Plus, the idea of asking to drop formalities feels off coming from the younger sibling or someone much older.

So, in that sense, if my sister were to say this to me, I had no reason to refuse.

“Okay, um, then, let’s do it that way. I think that would be good.”

“Hmm?”

My answer seemed odd to her, as she blinked in surprise.

“…I’m saying we should speak casually now.”

This time my sister seemed to mutter to herself, but it was clear she intended for me to hear her.

I felt my face getting red. By the way, my sister had already turned red long ago. I couldn’t tell whether it was because of the alcohol or her emotions.

“Uh, yeah, let’s do that…”

Ugh, if I had just drunk some alcohol, I wouldn’t have felt this embarrassed.

Why was it so embarrassing after previously speaking casually? The time I spent knowing my sister was much shorter than when I had known her before I returned to this world.

“Great.”

My sister said as if relieved.

“…”

I just bowed my head and said nothing.

It seems my sister becomes incredibly brave when she’s been drinking. Is that her drinking habit?

Well, in a way, it makes sense. Alcohol was often used to boost morale among frontline soldiers, so it’s not exactly a false statement.

“Ahem.”

After a while of that awkward tension, someone suddenly cleared their throat, startling both of us.

It was Kalia who coughed.

Ah.

We had spread out all the food, and it seemed we had momentarily entered a different world from each other.

Only then did my sister seem to realize this, and her face went even redder than before. I was sure it was because of something more than just the alcohol.

“So…”

Kalia looked around, clearly struggling to figure out what to say to change the topic. This was a rare expression for her to show.

“Um, should we drink first?”

Kalia suggested, and even though I wasn’t sure if it was just my imagination, she looked a bit flushed as well.