Four
Four
"Even if you're just going out as a courtesy, this much is the bare minimum, Oppa."
Se-na unleashed a storm of nagging at me inside the car.
Then, as if she suddenly remembered something, she asked me in a subtle voice.
"By the way Oppa, is that colleague by any chance a woman?"
"......Yes. I felt it from the first day, but you're quick on the uptake."
Taking it as a compliment, Seo Se-na flashed a truly charming smile and said, "Hehe, I'm a bit quick on the uptake~," while making a V-sign with her index and middle fingers.
It wasn't a compliment.
Besides, the car was moving forward, so I couldn't even see the gesture; why was she doing it?
"But Oppa, with this much, I feel like you could meet anyone, so why don't you have a girlfriend yet? You said that work colleague was a woman, too."
When I didn't respond to Seo Se-na's V-sign because I was focusing on driving, she asked me cautiously in a slightly lower tone.
"Her? No. She's not a woman, she's just a colleague. And where would I find the energy to meet a woman? I'm busy enough just feeding myself."
"Heh? You deceiver! You're not even thirty yet, so this level makes you a total man of ability! Being too humble isn't good, you know."
I tilted my head at Seo Se-na's words.
Humility, huh.
I didn't say I lacked the capacity with that intention.
I truly think I don't have the capacity to meet anyone myself.
"You can start love even if you don't have anything!"
"And that's the perfect way to get hurt."
"Ah, come on!"
It's not wrong to say you can start love without having anything.
It's just that I know from experience that relationships started without anything usually don't end well.
- Arriving near the destination in a moment. I will continue to guide you.
The end of the route guided by the navigation system was a large shopping mall, a place that wouldn't have much connection to my life.
As I parked the car without much thought, Seo Se-na's interjection, "Oh, Oppa, you're sexy when you park~," reached my ears again.
"Actually, if we're talking cost-effectiveness, it would be right to visit here and there, but you said you had to leave at 1 o'clock, right?"
As I got out of the car and checked the time on my phone, it was roughly 11:15 AM.
With less than two hours left, Seo Se-na was more motivated than ever.
"Ahem. I know your situation, Oppa, but time is so tight that I brought you here even though it's a liiittle expensive. You'll understand, right?"
I had a feeling the address would be like that, so I withdrew some money from my savings account as soon as I got out of the car.
As I followed behind Seo Se-na, she smiled and said, "Let's go quickly, Oppa!" and walked ahead.
'I hope no one sees me.'
Living at a distance where you need your own car to commute easily was convenient at times like this.
I'd rather not run into someone from the agency and get caught up in useless scandals.
That's how we entered the large shopping mall. People of all kinds formed crowds and wandered here and there.
Is this what it feels like to be thrown into a place you know nothing about?
Just when I didn't know where to go, someone grabbed my hand.
"Oppa, what are you doing? We really don't have time, you know? Ah, not me, but you."
Is this what it feels like to find a signpost in the middle of the vast ocean?
Seo Se-na, who seemed like an anxious child from the moment she first entered my house, felt like a much more mature adult than me at this very moment.
The first place Seo Se-na and I headed to was a famous franchise cosmetics store that I had never had any connection with in my life.
"Isn't this a store where women buy cosmetics?"
"Ayy, what era are you talking about? There are tons of men's cosmetics out these days, you know?"
Seo Se-na said that and began to ponder in front of the display stand with a very serious expression.
She looked back and forth between me, who was standing blankly knowing nothing, and the display stand filled with various kinds of unknown cosmetics, before picking up a few items without hesitation.
"Oppa, your card!"
Taken aback by her forcefulness, I handed my card to Seo Se-na.
After purchasing the cosmetics, I followed behind Seo Se-na, but she paused for a moment.
Following her gaze, a women's clothing store was stealing the attention of passersby, with mannequins dressed in pretty clothes as if beckoning them to buy from their shop.
"Let's go quickly, Oppa!"
Even though this was only for a moment.
As if her promise to help me wasn't empty words, she dragged me into a men's clothing store and deliberated while having me try on this and that.
Cosmetics were quick, but choosing clothes took quite a while.
Still, before it dragged on too long, she successfully chose a casual suit that gave a neat image, well-restrained so as not to look too mature for my age.
It was an outfit chosen according to Seo Se-na's theory that if it's a younger sister, giving off an 'Oppa' image has a higher success rate, but in the case of an older woman, looking too much like an 'ajusshi' is actually bad, so it's necessary to look appropriately young.
And the final course was a dessert time, stopping by a cafe to enjoy a sweet drink and a slice of cake.
"Fortunately, it only took 15 minutes to pick out cosmetics and 30 minutes to pick out clothes! You'll give me service for this much, right?"
Like a general who had successfully completed a mission, Seo Se-na, who was drinking iced tea cutely with a hehe laugh, struck me as quite cute.
When my thoughts reached that point, the day's events momentarily overlapped with Seo Se-na's current face.
We came out together in the morning, stopped by a cosmetics store to buy my cosmetics, and stopped by a men's clothing store where she personally picked out my clothes.
On top of that, a dessert time at the end.
It was no different from a picture of a girlfriend taking time for her boyfriend, dressing him up, and even satisfying a bit of her own greed, except for not holding hands.
'A date before a blind date...'
Was I the only one who didn't know I was smiling at the strange thought that had occurred to me without realizing it?
I could only realize it when Seo Se-na made a little-devil-like expression and pointed out my expression, saying, "Oh? Oppa is smiling."
"Ahem."
"Ayy, Oppa, tell me honestly. When would you ever get to walk around like this with a pretty girl like me, huh? Ah, of course, that unni you're having a blind date with today is also a beauty, but I'm still prettier, right?"
Horok-
Instead of answering, I put the straw of my almost-finished Americano in my mouth, and the sound of air being sucked in was clearly audible.
"He's shy~ He's shy~ Jin-man Oppa is shy~"
"Th-, thanks for today."
"Is that so? Then give me a reward, Oppa!"
Seo Se-na, who had eaten the last piece of the slice cake, clasped both hands on the table and laughed hehe.
And she spoke of what she had wanted from me from the beginning.
"Now, Oppa, treat me comfortably too! How is it? This doesn't cost any money and is perfect to give as a reward, right? Wow, you won't find an opportunity like this anywhere."
Actually, she dragged me out on her own and wandered around on her own, but I can never deny her sincerity today.
If she had intended to tease me, she wouldn't have been able to worry so seriously while picking out cosmetics and clothes.
"Ahem. I'll try, Se-na."
"Ehhh? That's not enough. It's so stiff when you call my name with my surname attached. Jin-man Oppa. Come on, try it. Se-na-ya~."
I burst into a chuckle at her words, which sounded like she was teaching a three-year-old child.
"Alright, Se-na."
It was the first moment I lost to this rude roommate who even borrowed money from me.
*
Seo Se-na's eyes are fundamentally different from an ordinary person like me.
The moment I looked in the mirror, that thought hit me to the bone.
Can a person who always just wore the same work clothes like a school uniform to the company, and dressed shabbily in private, become this neat?
Is this the transformation women talk about?
Grooming my appearance wasn't a hobby, but I think I can understand why people are so interested in their appearance.
Certainly, as my appearance became neat, I feel like some confidence is welling up.
Of course, that doesn't change my thought that it would be more beneficial to take a walk, read a novel, or play a game during the time spent grooming.
'She definitely had a reason to be confident.'
I looked at my face with light makeup and the hair that Seo Se-na had styled, then put on the suit she had chosen.
"Whoa, daebak."
When I came out wearing the clothes, Seo Se-na covered her mouth with both hands and expressed admiration.
"Oppa, you're totally my type. I'll just confess to you, just kidding."
After she had personally fixed me up, even though the watch on my wrist was a classic-style smartwatch with a metal band, the fact that even that was a part Seo Se-na had aimed for as part of the fashion was enough to give me goosebumps.
I also thought, so this is why the profession of a stylist exists.
"Se-na, you could try challenging yourself to be a stylist instead of something else."
I casually threw a word at her, who was still admiring.
I'll probably end up eating dinner with her, right?
Suddenly, I remembered that Seo Se-na had insisted on buying ramen to eat the other day because she didn't want to touch my refrigerator, so I took two 10,000 won bills out of my wallet and held them out to her.
"Eh? Oppa, what is this? I'm not your younger sister, we're just roommates. Why are you giving me this?"
"Just take it. You'll be eating dinner alone today, so buy something delicious with it."
To Seo Se-na, who showed signs of not wanting to take it, I finally threw, "Just consider it a service fee," and only then did she take it.
"It's a shame I can't hug you because I shouldn't ruin it. Then go safely, and I'll look forward to good results, Oppa!"
Seo Se-na waved her hand and saw me off to the door.
Feeling a corner of my heart filled by her support, I left the house.
Since I had originally planned the move on the premise of leaving about 30 minutes early, I left about 10 minutes later than the original departure time, but I still arrived at the cafe without being late for the appointment time.
I parked the car in the parking lot near the cafe, entered the cafe, and looked for the woman with light brown dyed hair from the photo, and a woman with hair similar to what I had seen in the photo was sitting there, not far from the counter.
"Cha Ye-seo-nim?"
I cautiously approached her side and called her name, and she, who had been looking out the window with both hands clasped, turned her gaze.
"Yes? Wh-, who are you?"
"I'm Lee Jin-man, who was supposed to meet you today through Hae-in's introduction. Nice to meet you."
As soon as we exchanged greetings, I could understand why Seo Se-na said I had to do my best even if I was just going out as a courtesy.
I could tell the meaning as soon as I saw Cha Ye-seo.
Cha Ye-seo was also far more outstanding in person than in the photo, so I could tell that she, too, had put a lot of effort into today's meeting.
For a moment, I thought that accepting Seo Se-na might have been a stroke of genius, not just tiresome meddling.