Soothing the Soul
After receiving the suggestion to meditate, Jeong Seung-ah exhaled a relieved sigh.
“It’s fine… Thank you, Harang-ah.”
“No need to thank me. I was going to do it anyway, and I figured I should try meditation once anyway.”
And so, no matter how much Seong-a had helped me in the past, I simply could not turn her down.
When I saw the smile bloom across Jeong Seung-ah’s face once more—the face that had looked oddly tense just moments ago—my heart finally settled.
Happy time spent with the angelic senior. If only the barracks life could always be like this.
And now meditation was to be added to that list! Let’s go in search of peace and serenity of the heart!
Even as we walked toward the place I had mentioned earlier, I never once let the smile on Jeong Seung-ah’s face fade.
“This is my first time meditating with someone. There was no one around who matched my hobby.”
“Yeah, everyone was just fiddling with their phones.”
“...You don’t think people who have meditation as a hobby are a little strange, do you?”
“No. I actually think it’s a wonderful hobby. That’s why I’ve been wondering why Senior Jeong-a is always so calm.”
“Uhu… Harang really is kind.”
Aah! If I keep getting praised like this, my steps are going to get light and carefree!
Praise makes even whales dance, the saying goes, but I forced my normally light steps to stay heavy in the warmth of Seong-a’s words.
“I feel good too, seeing Harang smile.”
“Huh? Did I smile?”
“Your mouth corners are completely upturned.”
I reached out to check. Indeed, the corners of my mouth were lifted. It must have been the smile that had risen instead of my feet.
“Ah… It was a little awkward to be praised.”
“It’s fine. You can relax in front of me.”
As we chatted casually, we soon found ourselves standing before a large tree.
“Oh, but how exactly does one meditate? I don’t know the method very well.”
“It’s simple. Just close your eyes and let the rustling of leaves serve as background noise while you clear your mind.”
“Clear your mind… as in, erase thoughts?”
“Yes. So that no matter what question arises, you can immediately answer from the deepest part of your heart.”
There was a rather detailed condition attached. Still, the way she explained it so precisely was good for me too.
“I’ll give it a try.”
I closed my eyes and set out to feel the vastness of nature.
—Rustle…
The sound of wind brushing past the leaves…
“You think this is supposed to make sense? Huh? Min-ji.”
“Superhuman Kim Min-ji! I’m so sorry!”
“It’s not that I’m sorry. Huh? You should have thought of it in advance, right?”
Cheerful voices drifting from behind the barracks…
“Should we rob the corrosion warehouse? If this goes wrong, it’s going to be a huge problem, right?”
“It’s fine. We’ve tried robbing it several times and we haven’t been caught yet. How about a bowl of jjigae while we binge-watch the drama tonight?”
“Binge-watch? No way, then I’ll get so sluggish tomorrow I won’t be able to go out on deployment.”
“That’s exactly why we assigned the backup deployment quarters. If our condition isn’t good, they’ll take over the deployment.”
Even the cheerful plans for the warehouse heist from behind us tickled my ears.
They all became part of nature.
Samsara. Manwhigun.
If someone suddenly asked me what I was muttering, I wouldn’t know the answer. It was the kind of thing the old foreman often said, but it just popped into my head now.
Anyway, my heart had grown peaceful, like a quiet lake.
“Harang-ah.”
“Superhuman Seo Harang.”
“How is it?”
“It feels good.”
“Does it feel right?”
“It does.”
It was as if I had become a vast lake that no pebble could stir.
As the rustling of leaves wove into the background, Jeong Seung-ah spoke again.
“Harang-ah.”
“Superhuman Seo Harang.”
“How old are you, Harang?”
“Twenty-one.”
“How old is your little sister?”
“Twenty.”
“What’s Harang’s favorite food?”
“I eat anything and everything.”
“Is there anyone you think is the strongest in our barracks?”
“Well, right now I think Senior Kim Heejin is the strongest. I’ve seen her fight up close.”
Speaking straight from the heart without a second thought. Was this the ultimate level of meditation Senior Jeong-a had mentioned?
Actually, I had never said anything like that, but I found myself thinking it probably was.
“...Harang-ah.”
Perhaps she was pleased with me, so Jeong Seung-ah lowered her voice slightly.
“I’ll ask one last time… Ah, the concentration break was annoying, wasn’t it?”
“It wasn’t. Since it’s something Senior Jeong-a is doing, feeling annoyed by it wouldn’t make sense.”
“...You trust me?”
“Of course. Senior Jeong-a is an angelic senior.”
The words stopped there. Was that the last thing she meant to say before apologizing for the concentration break?
“One final question.”
“I’m listening.”
“What do you think about girls dating each other, Harang?”
“I don’t really have any thoughts on it.”
“Re, really!?”
“Yes. After all, I’m not dating anyone, so there’s no reason to say I like or dislike it.”
“Ah… Then… I’m sorry for asking so many times even though I said it was the last time… If Harang were to receive a confession from a girl, what would you do?”
My concentration shattered.
It was due to the oddly timed question from Jeong Seung-ah.
My body was that of a woman. But my heart was that of a beast. No matter the choice, one side would inevitably look strange.
Setting aside the possibility that I couldn’t date at all, let’s think about it.
If I dated a girl? Then I would be dating a girl while wearing a girl’s body.
What if I dated a boy? Uwech!
...Either way, I didn’t fit in with her.
Even thinking about it was nonsense to begin with, because I was too busy piling up money in my account right now. There was no room in my life to love or be loved.
“I don’t think I’ll date anyone.”
Thud.
And the entire world seemed to freeze.
I felt as if the timing of my words had somehow stopped the blowing wind. Jeong Seung-ah was doing the same.
It was as if time itself had stopped, and the way I suddenly fell silent was strange. I opened my eyes.
She was looking at me quietly from right where she stood.
That gaze was unbearable.
“Why?”
The tension that had nearly crushed my chest eased just a little.
“Um… I don’t really feel like dating anyone right now, and I’m focused on making money…”
“Ah, so you’re not being negative?”
“Well… I don’t really have any negative thoughts.”
“Oh, really!”
Jeong Seung-ah laughed. It was her usual laugh. Thank goodness.
“Then shall we start meditation again?”
“Yes.”
This time, Jeong Seung-ah closed her eyes along with me. The peace that had come felt as if it would not break for a long time.
…
“It seems my heart has become peaceful.”
“It’s good… Honestly, I was a little worried. What if Harang didn’t like it?”
“Then just tell me! It’s not like my pride would be hurt over something so minor, right?”
“Huh? Didn’t you cry last time?”
“That’s! A black history…”
“I’m joking. Uhu…
“Ah!”
It seems we’ve become close enough to joke around! Is this the power of meditation!
“Should we head back soon? It looks like dinner time.”
“Ah, I see. I lost my focus because I started smelling something delicious halfway through.”
I stood up. My body felt light too, as if lightness came to the body when the heart lightened. It was almost unreal.
Leading the body and heart that had grown wonderfully light, we entered the barracks.
Then, as if she had been waiting, Han Jihye shot up her upper body.
“Hey! Harang!”
“Superhuman Seo Harang.”
“I was waiting for you! You idiot!”
“Hah! Really?”
Is the world changing when one’s mindset changes? I felt happy, as if I had become a necessary existence for no reason.
“What’s for dinner? I was going to ask you, but you weren’t here! Where were you?”
“I wasn’t looking for you.”
“Kim Heejin’s sense of awareness is nonexistent. What are you supposed to do if I say that?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Your face doesn’t look sorry at all. What?”
“And if you were really trying to find me, you could have just sent a message, right?”
“I don’t want to.”
I don’t want to either?
I had exchanged numbers with Han Jihye. It was probably just exchanging them during combat breaks for the flow of things.
But we hadn’t exchanged messages. Maybe because we were all crammed together in one space, the importance of contacting each other hadn’t been felt so keenly.
“Anyway! Seo Harang!”
“Superhuman Seo Harang, I’ll tell you about today’s meal.”
“Oh! It’s detailed! What is it?”
White rice, squid jjigae soup, cabbage kimchi, cucumber salad, pork rib stew.
“Ah, no sense of rhythm.”
“What do you mean?”
“You should mention the delicious things first and the bad ones later. Hey, why am I the one who has to teach you this?”
“I’m sorry.”
Jeong Seung-ah apologized on my behalf. Seeing the senior who had just returned with me apologize looked rather amusing.
I wanted to kneel right then. But seniors don’t give such time.
“Let’s eat. I’m starving because it’s my first meal today.”
As soon as Han Jihye stood up, the others followed immediately.
Follow the devil king.
One senior following me from behind checked Jeong Seung-ah’s face.
...Checked her face. The senior did.
“Seung-a, are you okay?”
Another senior asked Jeong Seung-ah’s mood.
This was the most inappropriate thing to do in the barracks.
Actually, in our unit, there was almost no one who could easily touch Jeong Seung-a. Even Han Jihye was safe.
Not only the seniors from other quarters, but even the seniors in the same quarter checked her. Even though they knew Jeong Seung-a was harmless and didn’t cause trouble to others.
“I’m fine.”
Jeong Seung-a answered briefly. Her usual smiling eyes came along with it.
“Shall we go? Harang-ah?”
“Superhuman Seo Harang. Understood.”
Jeong Seung-a fell in behind the seniors. I quickly followed her.
Thank goodness she was managing her own life well. If her personality had twisted even a little, it would have meant several people would have seen blood.
To say it again: Jeong Seung-a was the healer Awakener.
The only one in our unit.
Among all Awakeners, the ratio was extremely small.