Today, my sister left early in the morning to catch a flight for her competition.
For the next four days, she wouldn't be home.
Of course, that didn't mean I was completely free from her…
[Serena Noona]: Hey
[Serena Noona]: Woojin
[Serena Noona]: Woojin
[Serena Noona]: Aren't you gonna answer?
[Serena Noona]: What are you doing?
[Me]: Yeah
[Serena Noona]: I said, what are you doing?
[Me]: Watching TV
[Me]: (TV emoji)
[Serena Noona]: When are you gonna do it?
[Me]: Yeah
[Me]: I'll do it after this
[Serena Noona]: Do it properly
[Serena Noona]: Take a pic and send it
[Me]: A pic??
[Me]: No, noona
[Serena Noona]: What's the problem?
[Me]: We can't leave evidence like this in photos
[Me]: (Crying emoji)
[Serena Noona]: Just do it
[Serena Noona]: Woojin
[Serena Noona]: You're not gonna listen to me?
[Serena Noona]: Hey
[Serena Noona]: Hey hey
"Haah…"
Sitting on the living room couch, I couldn't hold back the sigh that escaped me as I exchanged texts with noona.
How could I convince her?
Honestly, even the texts we were sending now were pushing it.
If these got leaked, it was obvious that noona's image would take a huge hit.
These days, it wasn't uncommon for private conversations, photos, or videos of celebrities to get exposed, causing major scandals.
Since my entire family was full of public figures, I was especially careful about these things.
I didn't want them to suffer because of me.
But did noona even remember she was a celebrity?
I wished she'd be more careful.
And while conversations might be unavoidable, photos were absolutely out of the question.
Even if our texts got leaked, I could somehow talk my way out of it.
But if weird photos got out, there'd be no recovering from that.
While I was lost in thought, more messages kept popping up in the chat.
Knowing noona's personality, pretending not to see them wouldn't solve anything.
Just as I was about to type a response, my phone rang.
The caller? Serena Noona.
"Ah. Noona."
[Hey, Woojin. Why aren't you replying?]
Noona's voice was sharp with anger.
Going against her when she was mad was dangerous.
But this was one thing I couldn't back down on.
"No, noona, I really can't send a photo."
[Why not? If I tell you to do it, you do it.]
"It's seriously not okay. What if someone sees or it gets leaked or something?"
Are you really scared of that?
"I don't care about me, but I don't want something bad happen to you"
At my words, noona went silent for a long moment.
Had she finally understood?
[…Tch. Fine. But don't half-ass it just because I'm not watching, Okay?! Do it properly!]
"Yeah."
Thank god. It seemed like she finally got it.
[And! Be ready when the competition's over! I'm saving it all up to do it all at once!]
"Huh?"
...?
What did she mean by saving it up to do all at once?
But before I could ask, noona hung up.
Saying her piece and then cutting the call was one of noona's specialties.
I could deal with it, but she really shouldn't do that to other people.
I was a little worried about how she handled her social life.
[Me]: Noona, do well at your competition! (Golf emoji)
[Me]: (Cheering emoji)
I sent her a message with the encouragement I hadn't got tge chance to say on the call.
Of course, I didn't expect a reply…
As I was messaging noona, mom sat down beside me on the couch.
"Who were you talking to? A girlfriend?"
"…I don't have a girlfriend. It was noona."
Mom was always busy, but after her drama filming was completed, she was taking a much-needed short break.
Noona was at her competition, and Mia was on set. (Mia: Lil Sis)
So right now, it was just me and mom at home.
"That's weird. Why doesn't Woojin have a girlfriend? Girls these days must have no taste."
Mom sounded genuinely baffled.
"You're the only one who thinks that way, Mom."
Mom was just as special as Noona, but at times like this, she didn't seem any different from ordinary mothers.
"Really? If I'd met a man like Woojin back then, I would've confessed right away."
Mom linked her arm with mine and rested her head against me.
But if we had met as strangers, she probably would've seen me as no more than a pebble on the roadside.
Back in her youth, Mom was stunning enough to have her pick of men. Of course, she was still a knockout now.
"So, have you ever had a girlfriend before?"
"Why are you curious about that?"
"It's only natural for a mother to wonder about her son's love life. She could end up being my future daughter-in-law, you know."