Realization
A few days ago, after finishing up my somewhat routine intern life, I was heading home. I ducked into a convenience store, figuring I'd grab some booze to drink alone. That was the start. The beginning of this inexplicable situation—my ability, or whatever the hell it was.
Ding~
"Welcome."
Did the clerk change?
This was a convenience store I frequented. Usually, it was some guy who couldn't even be bothered to greet customers properly.
"......Yeah, he deserved to get fired."
He wouldn't say hello to customers, and if you asked about restocking empty shelves, he'd just get pissy. It was weird he hadn't been canned sooner. I wasn't the owner, so I didn't care much, but I did feel bad for the manager who'd hired him.
"Ring this up...!"
"Sure, one moment."
I plunked down a bottle of soju and some snacks I'd grabbed without even glancing at the clerk, asking her to check me out. But then I froze, words catching in my throat.
Was it because the clerk was so pretty? She had a cute face that went well with her brown hair, but not that pretty.
Someone I knew, then? If she were, I'd have yelled, Have you lost your mind?!
"That's 18,000 won. Bag for 100 won?"
"Y-yeah. P-please."
So why was I so flustered? Because the clerk was stark naked behind the counter.
You'd call bullshit, but it's true. The cute brown-haired clerk was manning the counter completely nude. She scanned the soju and snacks I'd set down without a hint of concern—making no effort to cover her fully exposed breasts or bare skin.
"Um, aren't you gonna pay?"
"Oh, sorry, yeah."
Caught off guard by her appearance, I'd been spacing out, and she urged me on. She seemed genuinely puzzled by my reaction, like she had no idea why I was freaking out.
Am I the weird one here?
I scanned the surroundings, wondering if this was some hidden camera prank, but no cameras in sight.
"Here... you go."
"Card goes right here."
Once the payment cleared, she sat back in her chair behind the counter like her job was done, fiddling with her phone. She was so nonchalant, it couldn't possibly be an act.
Is this really normal? Have I lost it? Or did I suddenly get X-ray vision or some superpower?
Ding~
Too confused to leave with my bagged soju in hand, another customer walked in. He headed straight to the counter.
"One Mild Seven."
"Here you go."
"Nah, the sky blue one."
"Box okay?"
"Yeah."
Totally casual. He acted like the naked clerk wasn't even there.
So only I can see her naked? Actual X-ray vision?
But the guy's clothes looked normal. It wasn't like I could only see women's clothes.
"......Guess I should head home."
Sleep on it and think tomorrow. My head was pounding from the confusion.
Ding~
If I'm going crazy, might as well check into a psych ward.
The next day, on my way to work. The convenience store from yesterday was still there. From a distance, I caught a glimpse of her silhouette—flesh tones that had to be my imagination, right?
I desperately wanted to pop in and confirm, but time was tight for work. Any delay meant risking being late.
Reluctantly, I hurried past.
Please let this be a superpower.
I'd let it slide in shock yesterday, but this time, I'd enjoy it properly. With that resolve, I headed to the subway.
"Fuck."
Already cutting it close, the stop at the convenience store had made it razor-thin. I bolted down the stairs just as the train pulled in and barely made it aboard.
- The screen doors are closing.
"Phew...."
I sighed as the announcement played. Rush hour meant the car was packed, bodies pressed uncomfortably close.
A woman stood in front of me, probably heading to work too. Sweaty from the sprint, I silently apologized to the passengers touching me.
- ......Please do your best for a comfortable and pleasant ride. This is the ○○ bound for ○○ line.
The follow-up announcement eased my worry about boarding the wrong train. But the next one left me with question marks floating over my head.
- For your safety, passengers, please hold onto the chest of the person in front of you to avoid falling.
"What...?"
Whether I was stunned or not, the packed passengers started complying. Everyone reached forward to grab the chest of the person ahead.
"Gasp!"
Same for me. The woman behind pressed her chest against my back and gripped my chest.
"Hey, you too—grab the person in front quick."
"No way, for real? This isn't a joke?"
"What are you talking about? If someone falls because you don't and there's an accident, you'll take responsibility?"
Wouldn't grabbing be taking responsibility?
So many things I wanted to point out, but with eyes turning my way, I had no choice. I placed my hand on the woman's chest ahead of me.
Through her clothes, it felt like the hard edge of a bra, but groping a stranger's tits in public? Mentally thrilling, even if not the softest touch.
Unconsciously, my grip tightened on this stranger's chest.
"Hey, not so hard."
"Sorry. Just afraid you'd fall."
Even I couldn't believe what I was saying. But she took it differently.
"Mm... can't be helped, then."
Can't be helped? What can't?
The absurdity nearly made me laugh, but my kneading hand didn't stop. Whatever this was, I should enjoy the moment, right?
"Nngh...."
How long did I grope like that? The speaker announced our arrival.
- This station is ㅁㅁ, ㅁㅁ Station. Alighting doors on the right.
"Thanks for holding on."
"No problem."
I'm the one who's grateful. I'd heard somewhere that men looking at and touching women's breasts extends their lifespan. She'd basically given me extra years.
Maybe from the brief fondling, but I felt a strange intimacy with her.
"Hey."
She spoke up before exiting.
"Mind giving me your number?"
"Oh... sorry. I have a boyfriend."
Guess it was just me. Leaving my regret behind, she stepped off and vanished from sight.
A new woman took her place in front, and the same safety announcement played.
"Got you."
"Thanks."
A few stops later, we reached my company's station. Several women had grabbed me, and I'd grabbed several in turn, but the mutual chest-holding never changed.
"......Did I get isekai'd into a weird world?"
It reminded me of a cartoon from childhood. Doraemon had this "If Box" gadget—say what you want the world to be, and it becomes that. Nothing else explained what I was experiencing.
"And since no one minds being grabbed, I'm not hallucinating."
The feel of those women's chests in the rocking train was still vivid. No way it was fantasy or delusion.
"Anyway... better hustle to work."
Has anything else changed? Scanning the streets anxiously as I hurried to the office, everyone rushed to work normally. No weird scenes like the store or subway. Same old streets as always.
Some condition, then?
Convenience store and subway. Common factor...?
Indoors?
A boundary of doors. My gut screamed it was right.
Heading to the office, I racked my brain for other conditions, but nothing. Which meant stepping into the Jeonghwa Mulsan building ahead could trigger something new.
"Why me all of a sudden?"
No genie dreams, no weird surveys. Up to yesterday's store visit, my life was ordinary.
"Ihyeon, what're you doing out here?"
"Oh, Team Leader Yoo."
Before entering, lost in thought, Yoo Yeonhui called out to me.
"Intern about to be late? Hurry up and get inside."
She was a team leader but my age. Two years in the army had let a same-age woman climb the ladder while I played catch-up with late job hunting.
"Yes, ma'am."
Obviously, no dropping formalities. I'd dealt with similar in the military, so it wasn't awkward. More like, I was excited what weirdness the office held—and what Yoo Yeonhui would look like.
"What're you doing, Ihyeon?"
"Pardon?"
The moment she called and I turned, I knew common sense had shifted again.
How? Simple.
"Hurry up and strip your bottoms, Ihyeon. Interns need to move snappier than that."
She'd opened the door, stepped in, and shed her skirt, panties, and stockings—how could I not notice?