Proof That Today Was Fun
“Eunhwa-ya, it’s fine to pet the animals at the animal café, right?”
“Yeah, it is.”
“But if I touch the maid at a maid café, why do I get dragged away?”
“You’re kidding, right?”
“I’m joking.”
“…….”
“I really was joking.”
We traded all sorts of lighthearted jokes.
Not only that—I adored the Mutant Type awakened, the ones whose bodies changed with animalistic traits. A small animal café where the animals gathered felt like the most cheerful place in the world to me.
“…Manager.”
“Yes?”
“You seem to be loved by the animals way more than I expected.”
“Really? They follow me even more than I thought they would. They’re cute, but… it’s a little too much sometimes. If I keep this up, I might not be able to leave at all.”
Before long, the little animals started gathering around me one by one.
First the puppies and cats, then…
A snake had somehow climbed onto my neck and taken up residence like a scarf…?
Even a tiny hamster nuzzled right up to me, and foxes smaller than the usual pet fox I’d been called still stayed close.
By rough count, there were already more than ten of them around me…?
“Pffh… the kids are so cute, huh?”
“Cute is one thing, but it’s a little… fascinating.”
“Yeah? This is my first time at an animal café, and I never expected them to gather like this.”
“Exactly.”
Having more than one or two animals, let alone ten different ones leaning against me and climbing all over was bound to be surprising.
A bit much to handle, maybe, but I just stayed still and watched, strangely amazed.
“…I think we should start getting up soon. If we keep monopolizing all these animals, we’ll be a nuisance to the others.”
“Ah, right. Kids, just a moment…?”
“…….”
As Baek Eun-hwa had said, the animals had clustered around me so thickly it was almost serious.
We had no choice but to leave.
We weren’t the only ones in the animal café—there were plenty of people around.
Monopolizing the animals for ourselves, no matter how innocent it was, felt wrong. I felt sorry for the children nearby.
“……Hah.”
“Hehe.”
But because the animals liked me so much, Baek Eun-hwa had to gently peel them off me.
“Still, it was fun, wasn’t it? I bet the animals were looking at our faces like people do.”
“Really…?”
“Huh?”
“Well, maybe.”
We somehow escaped the animal café and naturally headed toward the goods shop right next door.
It was literally right beside us, and the rides had already closed for the day anyway.
“O…?”
“Why?”
“Oh… Eunhwa-ya, want to take a photo together?”
“……Yes?”
Besides the dog, cat, and bear headbands, there were all kinds of costumes like school uniforms, Japanese-style outfits, and even hammer toys.
Just looking around the goods shop itself was nothing special, but…
A tiny self-studios box right inside caught my eye, so I asked her.
Normally, girls crowd into a place after eating maruta or tteokbokki and take group photos. It was right next to us.
We’d come all the way to the amusement park for the first time in a while.
I hadn’t taken even one photo yet, so I decided to bring it up.
“That one there…?”
“Yeah. We came all this way. Eunhwa-ya doesn’t have to buy those headbands like me. You could just let your ears pop out with your powers, right?”
“…….”
“How about it?”
It felt like a normal daily activity that had gone beyond just relaxing.
I suggested a fun way for us to enjoy ourselves and show our closeness—something we could do together as friends.
I’d already heard she didn’t have many close friends or people she could call a friend after spending days with her.
I wanted to give her at least a little taste of what real closeness felt like.
From what I heard, she’d focused more on unlicensed hero work than studies or school life since high school.
She probably didn’t do things like this very often.
Of course, I hadn’t done them either.
It might have been an unfair worry, but… it was probably true. My photos had only ever been for advertising shoots anyway.
“…If the manager wants to. Let’s do it once.”
“Hehe.”
She nodded and agreed to my suggestion.
Actually, I’d never taken a photo like this before either.
Well…
The explanatory instructions were all prepared, right…?
They had to be.
“Hmm…”
“Choosing the headband?”
“Yeah. I’ll let my ears pop out with my powers, so it feels a little selfish if I just take the photo by myself.”
“What kind of animal did you have in mind…?”
“Hmm… there are sparrow, chick, squirrel, and rabbit ones… I’m having trouble deciding. Eunhwa-ya, you pick.”
It felt tiresome, but I wanted something that would look good on her and still be naturally cute.
I just handed the decision over to her.
“…A mouse?”
“Mouse, huh?”
“Doesn’t matter, it’s just a photo anyway. Let’s go with that.”
“Huh, you’re right.”
Following her words, it was just a photo.
There wasn’t much need to overthink it.
“Still, the squirrel ears match the hair color you usually hide, so I think it’s nice. My impression is that they’re cute.”
“You really think you’re cute? I didn’t know you could say that so boldly.”
“It’s not wrong, is it?”
I said it while wearing the squirrel-ear headband.
But honestly, I am cute, aren’t I?
Pretty, even.
I’d just told her the pure, objective truth—nothing narcissistic.
Being attractive had always been a huge advantage in life, and I believed I’d actually harmed myself by not fully understanding and using it.
“…….”
The sight of the nine-tailed fox refusing to argue with me at all was genuinely fun.
Anyway, we stepped into the self-studios box together… and—
“Hmm.”
“Hmm.”
“Do you know how to use it?”
“I bet you’ve used one before.”
“No, I haven’t.”
We both had no idea how to operate it, so we hesitated for a moment.
But luckily, the instructions were written right below the machine in front of us. We read them carefully until we understood everything.
It was simple, after all.
I probably could’ve done it without looking, but…
“Pffh… I’m such an idiot.”
“Yeah.”
Neither of us had done this before, but our actions were so clumsy I couldn’t help laughing.
Of course, Baek Eun-hwa was laughing too.
“Oh, Eunhwa-ya. We can pull the curtain to hide inside. What if we also change your hair back to your usual color? We decided to let your ears pop out again, remember?”
I asked while thinking it over.
The self-studios box had curtains to block the view from outside.
She’d been using illusion magic to hide her hair as plain black whenever she went out in public lately, but now there was no need.
There was no reason to hide anymore when no one could see us anyway.
“……Right. Wait a second.”
“Got it.”
Her black hair slowly turned back into pure white.
Her usual look after seeing it all day for days.
Plus, the cute fox ears she’d been hiding.
“Hah…”
“Why are you laughing?”
“Because the fox ears are super cute?”
“Stop joking and get ready to take the photo. Manager, you’re wearing the headband too.”
“Of course I am.”
The photo captured me wearing the squirrel-ear headband and the pure-white nine-tailed fox—Baek Eun-hwa.
Both of us were stunning beauties, so we hadn’t taken the actual photo yet. We were just staring at the camera screen… but I could already guess how it would turn out.
The camera clicked, click, click.
The controls were literally just a few button presses.
It really wasn’t hard at all.
“Fufu…”
“…It came out nicely.”
“Right?”
“The camera and lighting used in ads were way better, so I was worried it would be terrible. But… it’s perfectly fine, isn’t it?”
“I agree.”
We stared at the photos with wide eyes at each other.
Of course—neither of us had ever taken one of these before.
Baek Eun-hwa probably hadn’t taken model photos either. My photos had been limited to advertising shoots or graduation pictures, at best.
“It’s good.”
That was the honest truth.
Doing something this close and personal with someone my age was rare.
Helping each other felt wonderful.
Helping people was normal in society, and I believed that was how it should work.
But actually doing it was surprisingly refreshing.
“Hmm… I’m getting tired earlier than I thought. What do you say we call it a day here?”
“I can’t stay if my stamina’s low.”
“Hehe.”
“I had a great time too. Let’s head back.”
A little early exit.
But we’d had so much fun at the amusement park that it felt perfectly fine.
Neither Baek Eun-hwa nor I left with our mouths still upturned.
“…Chimaek?”
“Would you?”
On the way home, this came up naturally.
It was proof that today had been fun.