Chapter 11
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Kindness Comes Without Warning
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Now, the face reflected in the bathroom sink mirror felt familiar.
It had been about a month since I'd become a woman.
A time that was short if short, long if long.
Thanks to my narrow social circle and limited range of activities, I hadn't felt much discomfort living in this "woman's body."
Aside from the initial panic right after the change.
"Haa..."
Back then, it hadn't felt like me at all.
Even now, thinking about it made me want to bury my face and hide.
Adapting to this body was the easiest problem I had to solve moving forward.
I still had plenty of issues left to tackle, and right now, I was working on the next one.
It was the end of the first month, and I'd been staring blankly at that name I couldn't bring myself to contact.
[Mom]
Having made up my mind, I tapped out the consonants and vowels with both thumbs, pressing firmly.
[Can I come down to the house this week?]
The message I sent after some hesitation.
Maybe she was looking at her phone, because the reply came right away.
[What's up? Our son is the one reaching out first for once.]
[Just... been a while since I saw Mom.]
[Is something wrong? Why so sudden?]
Our son.
That word on the screen stabbed at a corner of my heart.
I still existed as her son in her eyes.
[There's something I want to talk about in person.]
I sent the text, and not long after, my phone suddenly rang.
It was Mom.
I nearly dropped the phone in surprise.
A call I'd normally pick up without a second thought, but not now.
Letting her hear my voice would cause chaos; better to explain face-to-face.
I hit decline.
[Can't pick up right now.]
My fingertips trembled faintly as I lied.
[Nothing's wrong, right?]
[Yeah, I'll tell you when we meet that day. It's not urgent. No need to worry.]
[Well, you've always taken care of yourself since you were little, so Mom doesn't worry much. You got enough for living expenses?]
[Yeah, I'm good.]
[Anything you want to eat?]
[Mom's kimchi stew?]
[Got it~ Love you, son.]
[Love you too]
I pressed the phone hard against my chest and stared at the ceiling.
What was this tension?
A lie.
I was telling the biggest, worst, best lie of my life right now.
I shook my head vigorously to shake off the complicated feelings.
Cowardly, but for now, focus on the plans ahead.
This Iller Munfes was an event I'd been looking forward to for a while.
Time to enjoy it...
In front of the subway station, our meeting spot.
The weather was a bit chilly. Even a slight breeze made my shoulders hunch up.
'Do I feel the cold more now...? Ugh, it's cold...'
But layering up with thick clothes felt like it'd be too hot— that awkward in-between.
It absolutely wasn't because I was skimping on buying an outer layer to save money.
I rubbed my legs together, then stamped my feet in place to warm up, when I spotted Si-woo far off, across the crosswalk.
Excited, I waved my arm big.
I wanted to call his name, but that was beyond me.
Instead, I waved vigorously to make sure he saw.
Calling his name in my head.
'Si-woo—!'
Maybe he saw my enthusiastic greeting, because Si-woo approached with one hand in his pocket, casually waving back.
The moment he crossed the street and stood in front of me, his lips twitched, and then he burst into laughter.
"Pfft! Hey, what's with that bag?"
"...What? What's wrong with the bag?"
I furrowed my brows and glared. Si-woo pointed at the massive backpack slung over my back.
"Dude, it's as big as your whole body. You going hiking or what?"
It was a bag that had suited me fine as a guy, but now it looked ridiculously oversized on my smaller frame.
"Shut up. It's the bag I always use. I need this much space."
"You really need a bag that big...?"
Si-woo only had a simple crossbody bag slung over his front.
"I'm not buying anything. Just here to browse."
"Oh... right."
The subway was decently crowded, as expected for a weekend.
Luckily, there were empty seats on either side of a middle-aged man in the middle.
I gestured to the left seat and looked at Si-woo.
Getting the hint, he nodded lightly.
Me on the left, Si-woo on the right.
After sitting, I swung the big bag around to hug it against my chest.
But then.
The man in the middle glanced at us, gave a kind smile, stood up, and said,
"Come sit together here. I'll move."
"Ah, no! We're fine... We're getting off soon."
I waved my hands in panic, but the uncle chuckled heartily and stood in front of me until I moved.
Ignoring an adult's good intentions would be rude, so awkwardly, I slid over next to Si-woo.
Only after I sat did the uncle settle into my old seat with a satisfied look.
"Thank you..."
The uncle just smiled warmly, like it was nothing.
I leaned close to Si-woo's ear and whispered,
"That guy's seriously nice. He knew we were together right away."
"...Y-yeah."
Si-woo's reply was shorter than usual.
"Gotta become a sensible adult like that someday..."
"Hey, you're already a mess. You're already an adult."
"True..."
I poked his arm and shoved my phone screen in his face.
Pointing with my other hand.
"I'm buying this when we go."
"This price for one acrylic stand? You're actually getting it?"
"You gonna talk? The guy who whales on gacha games when he's bored? This at least leaves you something physical. You blow money on data scraps."
"I whale 'cause I'm unlucky, not 'cause I want to."
"Some people can't even whale if they wanted to..."
"And what do you even do with an acrylic? Just takes up space."
"Ugh."
"Pay back the money with what you'd spend on acrylics."
"S-stop..."
As we bantered, the train drew closer to the station near the venue.
Transferring lines for the venue made it even more crowded.
No seats left now.
I gripped the pole near the door and barely stood.
A seat opened right in front, so I quickly sat and hugged my bag again.
Resting my chin on it, face buried, a cozy sense of relief washed over me.
Si-woo stood in front of me, one hand on the strap, the other on his phone.
He's tall.
Since I was sitting, my gaze naturally lingered around his waist.
Every time the train rocked, the hem of his clothes brushed and lifted from my knee.
Nothing to see on my phone, so I kept counting the stops left.
Chatting to Si-woo nonstop.
"Hey, eight stops left now..."
"Yeah."
"Three stops left..."
"Yeah, almost there."
I knew station updates were pointless chatter.
Maybe I was just excited without realizing.
First time at an event like this—maybe I was thrilled like a kid.
Decided to forget all worries and have fun.
Gonna hold onto this feeling.
Finally, the train reached our stop. Doors opened, and a huge crowd poured out.
Me and Si-woo were part of it.
Everyone on this train at this time was probably headed to the same place.
First time at the venue, but no worries about getting lost.
Just follow the crowd in similar outfits.
So we walked to the venue.
Bus was an option, but not too far, and we'd probably miss a few anyway, so we passed.
We walked quite a ways like that.
As my legs started to ache, Si-woo pulled something from his pocket and popped it in his mouth.
"Eating alone...?"
"Gum."
"Give me some. Why you only?"
Si-woo snorted.
"Nah, don't have any of yours."
He wasn't stingy with snacks usually. Did he really not have any?
"Haa..."
Si-woo walked quietly, then rummaged in his crossbody like he'd remembered something.
"Ah, want this?"
He held a small white stick between thumb and forefinger—a lollipop.
The famous kind with flavors like chocolate, strawberry, vanilla, and more.
"Huh...? You carry these around?"
Surprising. He didn't even like sweets much.
"Don't want it? Fine."
"No, I do..."
My mouth was bored anyway—perfect timing. I snatched the candy to unwrap it.
But the packaging was sealed tight; scratching with nails, pulling—nothing.
Tick, tick.
Putting force in, my fingers slipped into empty air.
"Unwrap it for me?"
"No, it seriously won't open."
Si-woo took it with a pitiful look.
He confidently gripped it, but the wrapper held firm.
A wrinkle formed between his brows.
"Seriously won't open..."
"You can't either."
Seeing him struggle with the candy was funny; a little laugh escaped.
"What're you doing...? Here, gimme."
I snatched it from his hand.
"If it won't open easy, do it like this."
Without hesitation, I brought the top to my mouth and bit a hole in the plastic with my front teeth.
A bit rough, maybe.
"..."
I spat out the plastic bit by my lips with a "ptui" and grinned.
"See? Easy."
"...Yeah."
I stuffed the wrapper in my pocket and popped the lollipop in. Vanilla sweetness coated my tongue.
Si-woo watched me quietly.
"What're you staring at?"
"...Let's go."