Call Me Big Sister
"Seriously, Mir! You didn't have to go that far. Why did you do that?"
As I walked along in a daze, Popo poked its head out from inside my clothes and grumbled petulantly.
"Just... wanted to test my power a bit."
Maybe it was because they were kids who usually clung to me and hung on my every word. Looking down on them from above felt... well, surprisingly fun, and I had gotten a bit carried away, which wasn't like me at all. Am I some kind of brat? Why did I do that? I need to exercise some self-restraint from now on.
"A teeeest? Why would you even need to do that?! Someone as strong as Mir could just go whoosh-bam and take down any magical girl in one hit!"
"Oh? Popo, are you praising me right now?"
When I teased, Popo realized its slip-up. Its face flushed bright red, and it puffed its cheeks out like a balloon.
"N-No, I'm not! Don't flatter yourself! I wasn't praising you, Mir—I was praising Ker's magic inside you!"
Its screeching was as consistent as ever. I nodded naturally and gave Popo a little squeeze.
"Thanks, thanks. You're the only one I can count on, Popo."
"...If you know that, then treat me better from now on. Hmph!"
I began to stroke the soft crown of Popo's head with my finger. The soft, warm texture tingling against my fingertip naturally put my mind at ease. It felt a bit like popping bubble wrap. Quite addictive, actually.
"But, Mir."
Popo, who had been quietly enjoying the strokes, suddenly narrowed its eyes and looked up at me.
"What's this been about? For a while now."
"I'm petting you."
"I know that, but why do you keep doing it?!"
I tapped Popo's squishy forehead and casually tossed out a lie with a perfectly innocent face.
"Didn't you know? Popo, in our world, headpats are a reward reserved only for incredibly cool and amazing people."
"O-Oh, really...?"
It was a total lie, of course. Popo's tiny ears perked up. Though it still eyed me with suspicion, it seemed to quite like my explanation. It slowly deflated its cheeks and happily rubbed its head against my finger.
"Ahem! Well, if that's the case... I suppose I can graciously accept it. Do it more!"
"Sure."
Scratching the crown of the happily purring Popo, I briskly made my way through the dark city alleys. Only when I arrived at the massive general hospital did I finally slow my pace.
Whirrr. I passed through the revolving doors and entered the hospital lobby. Perhaps because of the late hour, the surroundings were dead silent, with not a soul in sight. As I walked toward the elevators, the nurse sitting at the front desk spotted me, her eyes lighting up.
"Oh my, little lady! You're Seol-ah's friend, right?"
Huh. Did she have business with me?
"My goodness...! You are absolutely adorable in person! Seol-ah has been bragging about you non-stop. I can see why!"
Calling out to me so suddenly, the nurse rummaged under her desk before holding out a hard candy wrapped in colorful packaging. Judging by the dark color of the wrapper, it looked like a cola-flavored candy. Since there was no reason to reject her kindness, I bowed politely and accepted it.
"Thank you," I whispered softly before stepping into the elevator. With a soft chime, I arrived at the 14th-floor ward.
"No, what I'm saying is..."
As soon as the elevator doors slid open and I stepped into the hallway, a commotion drifted over from a distance. Turning my head, I saw familiar faces gathered in a corner of the corridor, right outside Seol-ah's hospital room.
Seol-ah, her grandmother, her grandfather, and even a man in a white lab coat—likely the doctor in charge—were all outside, making a huge fuss.
"What I mean is... according to the detailed test results, this was an incurable disease that modern medicine couldn't possibly fix. So how on earth..."
The doctor scratched his head repeatedly, flipping through his charts. Come to think of it, to the doctor, it must look like patients who were on the brink of death had suddenly and miraculously regained their vigor.
"Then, Doctor! My grandfather and grandmother can really be discharged now, right? They're completely cured, right?!"
"Uh, well... normally, the standard procedure is to keep them hospitalized for a few more weeks to monitor their progress closely... But no matter how many tests we run, their vitals are miraculously showing completely normal levels..."
The doctor trailed off with a helpless, bewildered chuckle, but the conclusion that followed was obvious.
"Yahoo!"
The moment the doctor finished speaking, Seol-ah jumped up and down, letting out a cheer that echoed down the hallway.
Hugging her grandfather and grandmother in turn while wiping away her tears, she looked incredibly bright and cheerful, just like any other girl her age—a stark contrast to her usual, exhausted self.
It was a good sight. I felt a deep sense of accomplishment. My shoulders practically puffed up with pride.
"Congratulations, Seol-ah."
"Ah, Mir...! You came!"
Startled by my voice, Seol-ah spun around. A radiant smile immediately spread across her face as she grabbed both of my hands tightly. She squeezed so hard my fingertips stung a little, but I didn't mind the warmth, so I just let her hold them.
"Are they allowed to be discharged now?"
"Yeah! Isn't it wonderful?"
"It is. ...So, now that your grandparents are healthy, what are you going to do?"
"Ah, about that..."
At my question, Seol-ah fidgeted, her fingers squirming against mine. It tickled a bit.
"First... I'm going to quit my part-time job at the convenience store. I want to focus on taking good care of my grandmother and grandfather for a while once they're discharged."
Seol-ah giggled and whispered softly, just loud enough for me to hear.
"I've actually saved up quite a bit of money. I'm going to throw them a surprise meat party with it. Normally, all of that money would have gone straight into paying hospital bills until the month after next..."
But now, she didn't need to spend it on that. Good for her. I quietly stared at her face, which was brimming with relief and happiness, and offered a small, gentle smile.
"Um, well..."
Seol-ah suddenly paused, her cheeks flushing as she cast her gaze downward. Her fingers began to fidget with mine once more.
"Thank you, Mir."
"Huh? For what? I didn't do anything."
In the first place, she was the one who had accepted the contract. I had merely healed them in return. It was just an action based on a win-win relationship that required no gratitude...
—Wait, no. What am I even saying? Seol-ah doesn't know that I am me yet. I mean, the bad side of me...? Anyway, that version of me.
"No, you did. You protected my family. Thank you so, so much, Mir."
Eyes filled with pure gratitude and affection gazed at me. A strange tickle stirred in a corner of my chest. What was this feeling? ...Surely, Popo was doing something weird inside my clothes again. I'd have to flick its forehead later.
"So you knew."
"Of course!"
"Well, um... I don't think it's really something to be thanked for."
Since I wasn't technically the one physically there, after all. And besides, no matter how good the outcome was, the fact remained that I was deceiving an innocent child. My conscience pricked at me. That was why, whenever Seol-ah's eyes sparkled like that, my gaze naturally drifted away.
"Hmph, I can totally tell you're just embarrassed, Mir."
But it seemed my behavior made me look like a young child who wasn't used to receiving compliments.
"..."
"I think you can be a bit dishonest with your feelings sometimes, Mir."
She giggled, openly teasing me and enjoying my reaction. I shook my head vigorously on the inside. That's a completely wrong assumption. I'm actually a very honest person.
"But, Mir."
"Yeah?"
"You probably didn't know this... but I'm actually a third-year in middle school."
Seol-ah puffed out her chest with a proud, triumphant expression.
"Okay."
"...Is that all?"
At my lukewarm reaction, Seol-ah's eyes widened in sheer disappointment. She had probably expected me to be more surprised or look up to her, and now she pouted, her face falling.
"Hey, why the weak reaction! Usually, this is the part where you go, 'Wow, you're my big sister!' ...By the way, how old are you, Mir? You look younger than me. Are you in elementary school?"
"That's..."
Should I tell her my real age? No, even if I did, she'd probably just treat me like a baby, just like Popo did before. But trying to estimate the age of this squishy body... I wasn't entirely sure how old it was supposed to be. What should I do?
"Hmm."
"Heheh."
In that brief moment of silent contemplation, Seol-ah's eyes sparkled, curving into crescents. She had clearly mistaken my hesitation for sheer panic.
"Mir, you know what I'm about to say, right?"
Seol-ah grinned mischievously, sensing she had the upper hand, and leaned in close to my face. The words that escaped her lips were—
"Call me big sister!"
"No."
"Eh?"
...Ah. Was that too fast?
"Sorry, that was a slip of the tongue. ...I should get going."
Without a second's hesitation, I shook off her hands and turned around.
"Eeeh! Mir, don't be like that! Can't you just call me big sister once?"
Seol-ah chased after me in a hurry, reaching out to grab my clothes, but I didn't stop walking.
"I really have to go. It's late."
"Ugh, fine, I guess I can't help it... But, um, thank you so much for coming today, even if it was late."
Ding! The elevator doors slid open smoothly, and I stepped inside. Seol-ah leaned her upper body through the closing doors, shouting desperately.
"But you have to call me that next time! Promise me!"
"..."
"You have to answeeeer me! Mir...!"
The doors won't close if you stand there like that. Sigh. In the end, I slowly turned my head and tossed out a reply.
"I'll think about it."
"Okay!"
Only then did Seol-ah step back.
"...Sigh."
Seriously. Kids are way too much work.