The Ordeal of a Wet Tail
Water streamed down my body from the showerhead. Hiiik...! I shuddered, screaming inside at every droplet that slid along my skin as if tracing its curves. Somehow my skin felt far more sensitive than before. Or rather, it wasn't sensitivity so much as my whole body was fundamentally screaming Don't let water touch me!
Even so, I kept the showerhead pressed close and slowly brought it to my hair and tail. "Uuuugh..." A strange groan slipped out as I mercilessly doused my hair and body. The moisture worming between the dense fur sent chills racing across me. It felt like something alien was piercing straight through my skin. I was on the verge of yelling, but I clenched my teeth and endured. The moment that scream left my lips, I was certain I'd be abandoning something vital about being human.
In the middle of that painful ordeal, a rattling clack-clack echoed from the door. Someone was grabbing and twisting the bathroom handle.
"Oppa, are you done yet?!"
"W-wait...!"
My sister's irritated voice rang out next. From her tone, she clearly had an urgent need. I moved faster, quickly finishing the soap and rinse, then snatched a towel and hair dryer before stepping out.
"Jeez, hurry up already."
"You could've gone earlier if you were in such a rush."
We traded barbs even in that brief moment of passing each other. The door slammed shut behind her as I hurriedly toweled off. Once I'd wiped every trace of moisture from my skin, I stood dazed on the bath mat outside the bathroom.
How on earth do I dry the tail?
The real problem was this absurdly long hair and the tail attached to me. I'd never dried long hair before, but the tail—which was awkward to reach with my hands—was an even bigger headache.
"Mom...? Mom?"
After a short, silent debate, I finally called for her. The second time I shouted, a loud voice answered from the living room.
"Huh? What is it?"
"How do I dry this?"
My pleading tone was followed by the scrape of a chair. Soon Mom was walking toward the bathroom. The moment she saw my dripping, waterlogged tail, she strode over with purpose. Without a word she took the towel from my hands, wrapped it around the tail, and squeezed hard like she was wringing out a mop.
"Ah—eek!"
My body jerked in reflexive shock. A high-pitched yelp flew from my mouth. The sensation of someone grabbing a tail that had never been part of me was more alien than I could have imagined.
"Does it hurt?"
"N-no, it doesn't hurt... it just feels weird—ah!"
When I told her it didn't actually hurt, Mom kept squeezing without mercy. Every time the water-heavy tail surrendered another gush of moisture under her grip, I flinched hard.
"Sigh, hold still, you fidgety thing."
"That's... not... something... I can control!"
Every time I jumped, my tail shot straight up. Mom looked at it like it was pathetic, so I pleaded that it really wasn't listening to me.
"All right, come here. I'll finish with the dryer."
At last Mom's unique brand of tail-washing seemed to be over. I unconsciously turned to look at the tail. The incredibly fluffy thing I'd seen in the mirror was now completely soaked and drooping, exactly like the wet cat tails from those videos. It felt like just yesterday I'd been laughing at the broadcaster struggling with a cat that went berserk at the first drop of water. I never imagined it would become my story. And on the cat's side, no less.
I had no idea one shower could be this exhausting.
A deep sigh rose inside me. I finally understood why so many cats in those clips fought so desperately against baths. The full-body goosebumps that came with water touching you—who would willingly submit to being washed? Even if the person doing it was completely trustworthy. Besides, cats and humans can't even talk to each other. Their freak-outs were perfectly natural.
Somehow I'm starting to empathize with cats more and more...
Once I noticed it, I realized I was gradually seeing things from the perspective of a four-legged animal instead of a person. Shaking my head at how wrong that felt, I left the hair dryer with Mom and walked off.
Late at night, the hair dryer's loud drone filled the living room. Drying the tail by myself was impossible from this angle, so it stayed in Mom's hands. The two of us—mother and son—sat there in that pathetic scene until the bathroom door suddenly burst open and Hyeonseo stepped out.
The moment she saw us she blurted, "...What the hell?"
"Can't you tell just by looking?"
I answered grumpily, watching her take forever to process the living-room situation. There I was, half-naked with my legs spread in an unlady-like pose, letting Mom dry my tail. Anyone would understand at a glance. Obviously I couldn't do it myself.
That strange tension with Hyeonseo kept stretching until—
"Ugh, look at all the fur coming out while I'm drying it."
Mom, who hadn't been paying us any attention and was focused only on the tail, spoke up and ended the standoff. At her sigh I glanced behind me. Just as she'd said, a thick pile of orange fur had shed onto the floor. It was the same when I dried my long hair for the first time. As the dryer brushed through the unfamiliar, swaying orange strands, loose hairs kept drifting down.
Wait, is this normal?
Hair loss? Do foxes even get that...?
The shedding was enough to make even me worry. Just as a bad feeling flickered through my mind—
Slap!
A short smack landed on my back, sharp and stinging, scattering my worries.
"Ah!"
"Hurry up and put some clothes on. It's unsightly."
A short sigh escaped me at Mom's scolding. She could have just said it—why slap my back? I swallowed my grumbling complaints, stood up, and fetched the clothes I'd forgotten.
"Ah, Hyunwoo."
"Yeah?"
The moment I came out of the bathroom I met Mom again. I lifted my head at my name, and she held something out like she'd remembered one last thing.
"Once the tail is completely dry, you have to wear this before you sleep, all right?"
"Ugh..."
What she offered was the tail cover she'd just finished sewing. A heavy sigh escaped me at the sight of the thing I'd momentarily forgotten. She'd even added a rubber band to the opening after my complaint that it was too loose. Mom's firm intention was that I must wear it to bed once the tail was dry. The forgotten inconvenience sank my mood instantly.
"I really, really hate this..."
Grumbling under my breath, I headed for my room. In my hands were the tail cover and a fresh set of underwear. I was still using my old underwear. The panties had elastic, so they fit without trouble, and the pajama top worked well enough in place of anything else. As for a bra... I'd had no choice but to borrow one of Mom's, but she said I didn't have to wear it at home. With everything that had happened—school, the hospital—neither of us had thought about buying new clothes yet. As long as I could wear something, it was fine for now. I started pulling the clothes on one piece at a time.
It was the same sloppy loungewear I always wore, but on this body the feeling was completely different. Had the top always felt this tight? A strange discomfort settled over me as I entered the room and found Hyeonseo already planted in front of our single computer.
The old me would have barked at her to get out so I could play games, then claimed the seat without a second thought. But today, for some reason, gaming didn't appeal at all. Maybe it was because too much had happened. Overcome by a peculiar exhaustion, I spread out my blanket and lay down first.
It would take at least dozens of minutes for the tail to dry completely. Lying on my back would keep it from drying properly, but lying on my stomach made it hard to breathe with the two heavy mounds on my chest. I wanted to flop down flat and comfortable. In the end I wedged the pillow under my neck and lay face-down on the blanket.
Ah, this is much better.
The pillow lifted my upper body and created a little space, making it far more comfortable than lying flat. Just managing to lie down comfortably put me in a strangely good mood. I stayed like that, fiddling with my phone for dozens of minutes. After midnight I collected the mobile game's login bonus, then put on the unfamiliar tail cover and got ready for bed.
I'd found a way to lie face-down without discomfort, but to actually sleep comfortably I still had to turn on my side with the pillow under my head. The moment I finished adjusting the tail cover, rolled over, and settled onto my side—
"Hey."
Hyeonseo, still tapping at her own phone, spoke up.
"What."
When our parents weren't around we just called each other "hey." I answered with the same curt syllable.
"Can I touch your breasts?"
She suddenly dropped that insane question. My eyes snapped wide open at the crazy words.
"What kind of bullshit is that? You wanna die?"
"Why not? We're both girls now, aren't we?"
I sat up and asked if she had a death wish. She replied that we were the same gender now. The way she kept deliberately needling me made my blood boil.
"Same girls my ass... you really want to get hit?"
"Then do it if you're so tough."
She started mocking me by repeating my own words, daring me. In the end I clenched my fist so only the middle knuckle protruded. This girl was really going to make me punch her today.
"Ah—kyaaak!"
I drove the knuckle mercilessly into her side. A small scream escaped Hyeonseo's lips. That was always the one sure cure for my bratty little sister.