My Platinum-Blonde Childhood Friend is Too Pretty - Chapter 122

WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

◈ My Platinum-Blonde Childhood Friend Is Too Pretty ◈

Chapter 122: 47. As the Farewell Draws Near

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After the university festival ended, I applied for KATUSA.

"You definitely qualify, right?"

"Yeah. Technically just the TOEIC score is enough to apply, but to be safe I went ahead and got my TEPS and speaking scores sorted too. I figured showing off my conversational English might bump up my chances."

"You're getting in, no question. If you fail, you're dead."

"It's a lottery, so there's not much I can actually do... but yeah. I'll hope for the best."

Her sincerity came through clearly in her voice, how much she wanted this to work out. I did too, but at this point it was out of my hands.

All I could do was leave the rest to luck.

Being apart from Elli for months at a time wasn't something I wanted either.

I could only pray it would come through.

* * *

Late September brought Chuseok, the national harvest holiday.

Elli woke up early in the morning and shook me awake.

-shake, shake

"Get up."

"Why...?"

"I told you. It's Chuseok, so we have to go to your parents' place. I need to help get the food ready too."

"Haamm... You already went over yesterday to fry jeon... and it's only four in the morning..."

"It takes a long time to wash up and get ready."

"Even accounting for that, this is way too early..."

"Hey, Lee Do-yoon."

"Yeah..."

"Shouldn't we do it before we wash up. We probably won't be back until evening, so let's charge up now while we can."

"......"

"You're not going to? I'm only wearing underwear right now. Can you hold yourself back?"

"...No, I can't."

"Then get up right now... ugh...!"

There was a brief and tender interlude first, but either way, we finished getting ready at an unreasonably early hour.

Then we headed straight to my family's house. As naturally as a wife visiting her parents-in-law with her husband, or a husband going along to his wife's family home.

"I'll handle the tteokguk, Mom."

"Go ahead. Dad won't be up for a while anyway, so take your time."

"I was going to do the galbijjim too..."

"What?! That sneaky little fox, the nerve! She wants to make the galbijjim for my own son too...! That one's mine!"

"Hmph."

The moment we arrived, I got to watch my mom and her future daughter-in-law bickering affectionately.

"Is my daughter-in-law here?"

"Good morning, Father."

"I slept in a bit. Are you making tteokguk?"

"Yes. It's almost ready, so just wait a little."

"Of course I'll wait. Did Elli make the galbijjim too, by any chance? Somehow it smells even better today..."

"I made that one."

"...Should be delicious then."

"Come to my room."

"No, I just said it should be deli-"

"Now."

I also got to watch my dad, who absolutely adored his daughter-in-law, get dragged off by my mom to argue about it.

Once all the food was ready, we stopped by next door.

"Mother-in-law."

"Hehehehehe... Mother-in-law, I love that so much~ You'll keep calling me that from now on, right?"

"Of course. Oh, and Father-in-law."

"......"

"Dad, he's calling you."

"Right... come on in, Do-yoon..."

Auntie Ye-rin, or rather my mother-in-law, was absolutely over the moon at my new address for her. Elli's father, on the other hand, looked a little sour about it, probably feeling once again like Elli had been taken from him.

After that, we all gathered in one house, shared a meal, ate snacks while watching television, talked loudly and happily, and had a drink together.

A proper Chuseok with family.

"Elli, do you know how much you looked like a daughter-in-law today?"

"So you're saying I didn't before?"

"You did before too, but today was even more so. It really felt like one family, you know..."

"Hmph. We don't even have kids yet, so what family."

"......"

"Why did you go quiet all of a sudden. Want to die?"

It was genuinely something I longed for, the day when we'd have a child of our own and our parents could fuss over their grandchild together, but...

Still too early for that.

"Elli, I love you~"

"Save it."

"You know how I feel, right?"

"Maybe I will if you skip the condom tonight."

"I'll put in enough effort that you'll feel it even with one. I'm not letting you sleep tonight."

"Oh, we'll see about that."

And so even on a holiday, we spent the night as tangled up in each other as ever.

* * *

October brought midterms.

Naturally I threw myself into studying with everything I had. Elli supported me the whole time, just like always, right there by my side.

She took care of everything around the house without missing a beat, made sure meals were ready and snacks were always there too.

-rustle, rustle...

"Tension builds up and makes it hard to study. I'll take care of it for you, so just relax."

"My girlfriend is stripping off her clothes and her underwear and climbing on top of me. How am I supposed to relax."

"I'll do all the work, so just lie there... mmn..."

She looked after me with her body at night as well.

Probably thanks to keeping up with the gym consistently, my body held up a lot better even with studying and sex both on the schedule.

My midterm scores were good, thanks to Elli's dedication.

And then came my birthday right afterward.

"Meow."

"Did you put the tail in again this time?"

"Meow~ meow~"

"You're so cute, my little Elli-nyang."

"Meow, meow..."

There she was, wearing cat ears and a tail, barely dressed, meowing at me.

Puppy mode had been something else, but cat mode was right up there with it. Unlike the puppy, she moved on her own initiative, licking all over me, which was almost too much to handle.

Thanks to that, I couldn't hold back and spent the entire night doting on Elli-nyang.

* * *

Before I knew it, November arrived.

The KATUSA results announcement date, which Elli and I had been pretending not to think about while actually thinking about constantly, was here.

We'd been pacing anxiously around the computer since that morning, and as the announcement time drew close, we sat down in front of it, wound tight with nerves.

"Okay... should I click?"

"......"

"Don't worry too much. You'll get in. Get in for sure and come out to hold me all the time."

"...Obviously you have to. Click it."

I told her not to worry, then carefully pressed the mouse button.

-click

And on the monitor screen.

"......"

"...Final acceptance?"

"...This actually worked?"

"You got in!!"

Against all odds, the message declaring KATUSA acceptance appeared on screen. I'd hoped for this, but now that it was actually here, I was stunned speechless.

At the same moment, right beside me, a shrill cry of pure joy rang out, the kind I heard maybe once a year from Elli.

"You got in! This is real, right?!"

"Oh, yeah. Looks like it..."

"You got in! Hehehe...! You got in, Lee Do-yoon!"

"Yeah..."

"What's with that face? Why don't you look happy? Did you want to go off to the military and leave me behind?!"

"No, no! I'm thrilled! It just doesn't feel real yet... I heard the competition rate was really high this time. Wow, this actually came through?"

I'd hedged my bets by also qualifying for Air Force administrative and information processing certifications just in case, but thankfully KATUSA had come through.

Even looking at it, it didn't feel real. I kept clicking the acceptance page over and over with the mouse, while Elli called someone to share the news.

"We got in! Yes, yes! That thing I mentioned before, KATUSA! Yes! That's the one! He just has to get through the training center now... well, he won't be commuting from home exactly, but he can still come out on overnight passes regularly. Yes. Dinner out tonight? Let's do it! We'll get ready and head out. See you then!"

She was buzzing with excitement as she chattered away, and I had to laugh at the fact that the first person she'd called was my mom.

Anyway, it was a relief... but there's something to the saying that how you feel going in is different from how you feel coming out.

I'd figured that as long as I got into KATUSA, the training center would be no big deal. But now that I'd actually gotten in, even the training center felt like something I'd rather skip entirely.

It would be at least seven or eight weeks before I could see Elli again, between the five weeks at Nonsan Training Center and the additional KATUSA training.

No wonder I wasn't thrilled about it.

Still, well.

"Lee Do-yoon! Your parents and my family are all going out to dinner together, so go get ready!"

"Got it. But right now? Dad hasn't gotten off work yet, has he?"

"Not now, at seven!"

"Then we've got time. Can I at least get a kiss as a reward until then? I did good, right?"

"Hehe... you did! Yeah. I'll give you your reward, come here!"

-smooch!

Seeing Elli this happy.

I really was glad I'd gotten in.

* * *

Time passed again, and mid-December arrived.

Final exams were over.

The semester had ended, I'd submitted my leave of absence, and winter break had begun.

Elli, who had devoted herself to supporting me just like before until my exams were done, started dragging me out everywhere the moment break started.

"Tomorrow we're going to Nami Island."

"Nami Island sounds good."

"The day after that is a shoot, so the day after that, Sokcho. Remember."

"Yes ma'am."

Except when she had modeling shoots, under Elli's direction and setting everything else aside, we went out together constantly.

Partly to celebrate the KATUSA acceptance.

Partly to celebrate doing well on finals.

But really, whenever we had the time we were always heading out hand in hand anyway.

We just slapped whatever excuse we could find on it and ran off together.

We went to date spots all across the country, and at Christmas we visited a slightly pricey hot spring hotel we'd booked in advance.

"Mmn..."

"Sleep well?"