Chapter 9
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Others' Kindness Sometimes Hurts
-----------------------------------------------------------------
90% chance of rain. Contrary to that 10% hope, it was pouring outside the window, just as the weather forecast had predicted.
It was the absolute worst weather for heading out.
Normally, I'd be rolling around in bed or killing time on the computer, but an unavoidable promise had me by the ankles.
If I backed out now saying I didn't want to go because of the rain, it'd obviously come off as a lie.
I hesitated for a moment in front of the front door before grabbing the large standing umbrella propped in the corner.
I stepped out the door. Even though it was daytime, the sky hung heavy and gray from the rain.
On the way to the subway station.
I tilted the umbrella far forward to shield my face.
My gaze naturally dropped to my shoes.
For some reason, the ground felt a little closer than usual.
The last pavement I remembered had been blanketed in a thin layer of white snow.
Before I knew it, the seasons had shifted silently, pooling cold rainwater where snow once lay.
Splash, splash.
With every step, puddles erupted in an unpleasant spray.
I walked on blankly, staring as the hem of my pants shifted from pale gray to a deepening shade.
The path to the subway station was a short distance that normally took less than five minutes.
Moments like this really made me think station-area living was the best.
Not that I went out enough to fully reap the benefits.
Finally reaching the turnstiles at the subway entrance.
I took a deep breath, folded my wet umbrella, and gripped it tight in my right hand. Card in my left.
I strode confidently toward the gate, extending my left hand to tap the terminal.
Beep!
A cheerful signal tone. I stepped forward in the familiar rhythm.
Thud!
"......Huh?"
A dull impact slammed into my navel. The hard plastic barrier blocked my path mercilessly.
[Already processed.]
What?
I stumbled back and tried again.
But the barrier still stood in my way.
Cold sweat trickled down my back.
'What? Why won't it open? I definitely heard the beep.'
Feeling my face burn, I jabbed the card at the terminal repeatedly.
Beep, beep, beep!
[Already processed.]
[Already processed.]
[Already processed.]
The card registered fine. Plenty of balance, too.
"Uh......"
This was embarrassing. People streamed past indifferently through the turnstile to my right.
What were they thinking as they went by?
Probably wondering what the hell I was doing.
"Hoo...... Hoo......"
My breathing quickened. Every gaze around me felt like it was raking over my body.
I could practically hear the snickers from those people fiddling with their smartphones off in the distance.
Mind blank, I mechanically kept thrusting the card forward.
"Excuse me, having some trouble?"
A deep, resonant voice from behind.
I whipped around in surprise. The station attendant had appeared out of nowhere, eyeing me.
"Ah.... Y-yes?! N-no! I mean, uh......!"
I flailed like a criminal caught red-handed. He gave a slight smile, as if my antics were amusing, and pointed at the terminal.
"Miss, if you tap on the left terminal, you gotta go through the left gate. What're you doing trying the right one?"
"......Ah."
Finally, it clicked.
Subway gate readers are usually on the right. Tap, and the right barrier opens.
But I'd held the card in my left hand and unconsciously tapped the terminal to the left of my body.
Charging straight into the untapped right gate like an idiot.
"Ah...... S-sorry......"
"No need to apologize~"
Mumbling my apology in a tiny voice, I switched the card to my right hand.
The left turnstile parted smoothly, no resistance.
In a world dominated by right-handers.
Readers placed on the right for easy access, funneling folks through the left gate by design.
What brilliant engineering. Everything in the world had its reason, after all.
My grip tightened on the card.
A train rumble approached from afar.
I bolted for the platform, fumbling with my wet umbrella. Couldn't lift my head the whole escalator ride down.
But was today just cursed with bad luck?
[The doors are closing.]
The instant my foot hit the platform, that damn announcement blared, and the doors slammed shut.
"Ah, no......!"
The train vanished without mercy, leaving the platform in heavy silence.
I slumped onto the bench edge, legs splayed. Missing the train over one stupid gate.
Grief surged up hot and bitter.
Seong Si-woo was flustered. Baek Eun-hae had become a girl.
What kind of situation even made sense?
The first time that guy called him to his place, there was this total stranger of a woman lying on the bed.
She'd claimed in a trembling voice that she was Baek Eun-hae.
Si-woo, in his shock, had blurted out half-serious, half-joking envy.
What burst out next was a wrenching sob. A real one.
Seeing her wipe tears with both hands and heave with sobs, he realized just how rattled Eun-hae was.
Truth was, Baek Eun-hae had no friends.
Whether by choice or nature, she never reached out first.
When he did, she'd welcome it warmly enough, but doubts always crept in.
'Am I the only one who feels close?'
Still, they'd stayed friends because he couldn't just leave her be.
A bond where if he didn't extend a hand first, it'd fade into silence.
Not forced, though. Time together was enjoyable enough. Shared hobbies, similar tastes.
But after all these years, this was the first time he'd seen her bare her emotions so raw.
She called herself a T—the guy who'd watch the saddest movies without batting an eye.
The one who'd brush off an anime he'd bawled over alone with a flat "Yeah, kinda sad."
Now heaving those miserable sobs right in front of him.
How could he walk away from that?
Of course, grasping it logically and what his eyes took in were two different things.
He didn't show it, but when the girl fell quiet, he couldn't spot a trace of the drab Baek Eun-hae he knew.
He even thought that if he'd seen the smartphone photo on SNS, he might've hit like without thinking.
[Baek Eun-hae: Arriving soon]
His smartphone buzzed. Eun-hae.
Si-woo took a deep breath, steeling himself once more. Act normal, like always.
Ding-dong.
He opened the door to the bell. But his view filled with empty hallway air.
'Ah, right.'
Swallowing his brief fluster, he dropped his gaze. Casually.
There was Eun-hae's face, about chest height, head craned all the way back to look up at him.
"Lo-long time no see......"
Eun-hae waved awkwardly.
Si-woo's Adam's apple bobbed sharply up and down.
"You made it? Raining cats and dogs out there—could've come tomorrow."
"Then you should've told me ahead of time...!"
Si-woo let out a snort at my grumbling.
"Come on in."
Passing the entryway into his room, a fragrant diffuser scent tickled my nose.
Lavender? Not sure the exact flower, but that familiar aroma I always caught in Si-woo's room.
I breathed deep, and amid the sweet floral notes, an unwelcome intruder slipped in.
Cigarette smoke.
As I sniffed, Si-woo cocked his head. "Something smell off?"
"Nah, just...... kinda smells like cigarettes......"
"Huh? Cigarettes? No way."
I marched right up to Si-woo, snatched his hand, and shoved my nose against it.
A harsh cigarette stench hit hard. Mingled with the fake diffuser, it turned downright nauseating.
"Wh-what're you doing?"
Si-woo's voice quivered a bit, but I ignored him, scowling.
"Smells this strong from your hand?"
He yanked his hand free, sniffed it himself, and looked flustered.
"They say you can't smell your own scent......"
"Yeah, you're probably just too sensitive."
"Maybe...... Cigarette smell's no big deal anyway......"
I brushed it off vaguely and flung myself onto Si-woo's bed. Outings were exhausting.
Soft sheets brushed my cheek.
With minimal courtesy, I kept my legs ramrod straight so the damp pant hems didn't touch the bed.
"So tiring......"
"No kidding—going out in this rain's a chore. Even I'm lazy about it."
Si-woo had settled into his desk chair, swiveling it to face the bed.
"What do you wanna eat?"
"Nothing specific...... Whatever you feel like. Treater's call."
Si-woo rubbed his chin, pondering.
"Hmm. Wanna head out?"
"Nope. Delivery."
I stated it flatly.
"Figured as much."
Si-woo laughed, exasperated.