Chapter 87
Chapter 87
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Misunderstood Soccer Genius
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After the match, I returned home and rested for a bit before going grocery shopping with Jiu.
Jiu had dragged me out, saying she would make a special meal for me.
Thanks to that, both of my hands, holding the shopping bags, felt incredibly heavy.
As we walked home, brimming with anticipation, Jiu asked me.
"Hey. You know earlier..."
"Hm?"
"You got your uniform taken? From that tall guy."
"...What are you talking about."
"You got robbed. He came over, said something, and you immediately took it off and gave it to him."
"...I wasn't robbed."
"Then what was it?"
Under her absurd interrogation, I let out a sigh and shook my head.
Who's getting robbed? Not me.
"People call that an exchange. It wasn't a robbery."
"It looked like you were getting mugged, plain and simple."
"...Why would I get mugged?"
"Don't you remember? Back in 5th or 6th grade. In front of the bookstore in the central shopping district. You were surrounded by kids from other schools..."
"Keep it down—"
"You were about to get mugged, and I saved you."
"...I said keep it down."
For some reason, Jiu started giggling.
She was bringing up something from ages ago.
"I remember you had tears welling up in your eyes back then. Even after I chased the kids away, you were so scared you begged me to take you home."
"..."
I stared off into the distance for no reason.
She really has a good memory.
I don't know how she remembers something from four years ago.
...Though, to be honest, I remember it too.
"If those guys saw you now, they wouldn't dare say a word to you, huh?"
"...Yeah."
I gave a small laugh at Jiu's words, and she chuckled along with me.
Now that I think about it, when we were kids... it was like that.
I was already timid by nature, and on top of that, I was small, so those kinds of incidents happened a few times.
The kids in my class were all nice, so it was fine, but whenever I went out to play with Jiu on the weekends, there were always kids like that.
If I was sitting alone waiting for Jiu, groups of two or three kids would come over and talk to me.
Of course, it wasn't with good intentions.
Embarrassingly, Jiu would save me every time.
That's because Jiu was taller than me back then.
Which meant I was that much smaller.
"Haa, you were so tiny back then, Jee-an. What did you eat to grow this much?"
"Why are you talking like an old lady."
Well, after I started playing soccer, those incidents stopped.
Strangely, no one messed with me when I wore the soccer club uniform.
So, I remember wearing the uniform even on weekends.
Like it was some kind of armor.
Thinking about that time, I spoke to Jiu.
"...Speaking of uniforms, I just remembered something."
"Hm?"
"That uniform I gave you back then... do you still have it?"
"The uniform I gave you?"
Jiu tilted her head at my question.
I remember when I first said I was going to play soccer, Jiu pestered me saying she wanted a uniform too, so I gave her one.
Our school soccer club uniform.
I wonder if she still has it.
"Who knows? It's probably somewhere."
"...Is that so?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"No, nothing. I just suddenly thought of it when you mentioned uniforms."
I shrugged, and Jiu gave a dry laugh.
"I don't remember where I put it. Well, it's not like it's important anyway."
"Well... I guess not."
Hmm. Is that so...
Since she doesn't even remember well, it seems she just stuffed it away in some corner.
Well... I didn't expect her to treasure it, but I thought she'd at least remember.
I gave it to her after a lot of consideration back then.
Back in the soccer club days, uniforms weren't as plentiful as they are now.
By giving one to Jiu, I had to do laundry more often.
But I guess it was a long time ago for her.
Well, it was an important uniform to me, but to Jiu, it was just a gym uniform.
...Though, I think she wore it a lot in gym class.
"Hey, wait a sec."
For some reason, I was feeling a bit down, but as we passed by Jiu's house, she spoke up.
"I'll be right back."
"Why?"
"I need to grab something. Wait here for a bit."
"Okay."
With that, Jiu ran into her house, and I stood there holding the shopping bags in both hands.
"..."
Hmm.
Standing alone, breathing in the night air, my heart felt restless.
The dark sky and its unique, damp scent definitely had some kind of allure.
Otherwise, just feeling the night breeze wouldn't make a person this sentimental.
Well... we were just talking about old times, too.
Now that I think about it, the weather has gotten much warmer.
Just as I was about to get lost in some strange sentiment, I turned my head at the sound of a door swinging open.
"Sorry! Let's go!"
And Jiu came running out.
I stared at her blankly for a moment.
Jiu's outfit had changed.
As I stared at her with a dumbfounded expression, Jiu giggled.
"What, surprised?"
"Uh... no..."
"It's been a while, right? It's been a while for me too. It still fits? I guess I haven't gained weight."
Jiu spoke casually, but I was speechless.
That's because the clothes Jiu had changed into were that very uniform.
Hwayoung Elementary School, number 10, Lee Jee-an...
"...What the hell. You said you didn't remember where you put it."
"You believed that? Of course I kept it safe."
"This is ridiculous. Seriously..."
As I clicked my tongue, Jiu peered at my face and laughed again.
"You were disappointed earlier, weren't you? When I said I didn't remember."
"Why would I be disappointed."
"You were. When I said I didn't know where it was, you suddenly got all gloomy."
"I didn't..."
...Did it show?
My face got hot, so I turned my head away for no reason.
At that, Jiu laughed even louder.
"Ah, seriously, Jee-an. This is why it's fun to tease you."
"What are you talking about."
"Hey. What do you take me for? Did you really think I'd just shove this thing in some random corner? Of course I kept it safe. It was the first gift I ever received from a friend in my life."
"...It wasn't a gift."
"Why! It was a gift. You might not know it, but it's precious to me. I'm probably the only one left who still has this, right?"
"...I have one too."
"Ah, well of course you have one! It's just you and me..."
Jiu trailed off mid-sentence, suddenly closing her mouth.
"Well, anyway. Wearing it after so long brings back memories. Back in gym class, when I wore this and walked around, the kids would tease me a lot."
"...Tease you? About what?"
"What else? They teased me, asking if I was dating you. We were so childish back then."
"We were childish..."
"Of course, all the boys who teased me like that got a punch from me."
Jiu said this while raising her fist like an uppercut, and we both burst out laughing.
"You were definitely scary back then."
"Why do you make it sound like I went around bullying kids?"
"...You did."
"...Do you want me to show you what real bullying is?"
"Ah, no."
"Haa, I should just..."
Jiu held her fist up to my face, but it just looked adorable.
Back then, it was a scarier fist than any of the boys'... but now it just looks small.
"Come to think of it, you've changed a lot."
"Me?"
At my words, Jiu pointed to herself, and I nodded.
"What's changed?"
"Back then, you dressed and acted like a boy."
"Tch. My hair was short back in elementary school. And I didn't wear skirts or anything."
"Why did you do that?"
Jiu shrugged as she spoke.
"Who knows? It was more convenient? There are three women in my house. Me, my sister, and my mom. So every morning was a war."
"Why?"
"Hey, imagine three women trying to wash and dry their hair at the same time. It was a real war. Because of that, I just got frustrated and cut it all off."
Strangely, that memory came back to me vividly.
It was probably in 4th grade.
One day, Jiu came to school with a boy's haircut, and it left a deep impression on me.
Back then, I had the fixed idea that boys have short hair and girls have long hair.
But Jiu was a girl, yet the short hair suited her so well that I remember being confused.
Thinking about it now, it's funny.
Why was that confusing...
Well, I was young and didn't know any better.
"But why did you grow it out again? Short hair was more convenient."
That Jiu's hair grew longer again, and I remember it was almost to her shoulders by 5th or 6th grade.
I remembered that and asked her, but Jiu suddenly gave me a terrifying look.
"...What?"
"What do you mean, what? Why did you grow it out again?"
"...Yeah. Why...?"
Did I ask something I shouldn't have?
Jiu's scary gaze made me shrink back like I was back in elementary school, and she let out an exasperated sigh.
"Haa... Why did I grow it out? You've got to be kidding me."
...Is this something you shouldn't ask a girl?
But asking why she grew her hair out isn't a strange question...
But Jiu kept grumbling and started walking ahead of me at a fast pace.
Muttering something under her breath.
I couldn't hear it well, but it sounded like, "It's because of you..."
"W-wait up."
I don't know what it was about, but.
Remembering the famous Jiu from that era sent a chill down my spine.
···
"What are you looking at."
"..."
"I asked what you're looking at. Lee Jee-an."
"...Huh? Ah, n-nothing..."
"Why are you staring at me like that? Are you gonna answer or not?"
Class 3-4, Hwayoung Elementary School.
Kim Jiu leaned in toward Lee Jee-an, who was sitting next to her, and asked.
At Kim Jiu's action, the already small Lee Jee-an shrank even smaller, looking like a tiny mouse.
As Kim Jiu reached her hand out, Lee Jee-an finally spoke in a tiny voice.
"Y-your... your hair's cut..."
"So?"
"...So I was looking... it's surprising..."
"What's so surprising? Is this the first time you've seen short hair?"
"...First time..."
"Keep it down. First period is Korean, so get your book out."
"Okay..."
Kim Jiu clicked her tongue and took her book out of her bag, and Lee Jee-an quietly took his out as well.
"Hmm."
After putting their books out and waiting for the teacher, Kim Jiu touched her own hair with her hand.
...It definitely felt very awkward.
The hair that used to reach her back now didn't even touch the nape of her neck.
The most surprising thing was the side hair.
She never knew that showing her ears could feel this refreshing.
Yesterday, it was hot, and it was annoying having to wash and dry her hair for almost an hour every morning, so Kim Jiu just cut it all off.
She was almost late for school many times because her older sister always hogged the bathroom and hair dryer first.
So she cut it, but to be honest, she didn't intend to cut it this short.
She'd clearly told the hairdresser to give her a short bob, but the hairdresser cut it all off.
That hairdresser had been a bit suspicious from the moment she picked up the phone to make the appointment.
Well, anyway.
It was shorter than she thought, but it was incredibly convenient.
Now, 20 minutes was enough time to get ready in the morning, and her head didn't feel hot anymore.
Most of all, it was incredibly light.
It felt like she'd lost about 1kg just by cutting her hair.
She was quite satisfied.
The only downside was that she felt really awkward whenever she looked in the mirror.
"...Hey."
"Huh...?"
"Does my hair look weird?"
At Kim Jiu's question, Lee Jee-an flinched and looked at Kim Jiu's hair with an uneasy gaze.
Kim Jiu pouted at that look.
She had been perfectly satisfied until she got to school, but Lee Jee-an's reaction was starting to annoy her slightly.
Because Lee Jee-an was looking at her like she was strange.
"...It's not weird..."
"It's not weird?"
"No..."
"Then why are you looking at me like that."
"Look...?"
"Why are you looking at me like I'm something strange?"
At Kim Jiu's question, which was more of a threat, Lee Jee-an scratched his head.
Even so, he ended up saying what he wanted to say.
"...It is a little weird..."
"..."
"It's a boy's haircut... it looks like a boy..."
"...Looks like a boy?"
Lee Jee-an nodded hesitantly, and Kim Jiu got angry.
"So what? Huh? So what?"
"Ah, no..."
"What does it matter if I get a boy's haircut? Huh?"
Though Lee Jee-an's eyes seemed to say, 'You're the one who asked,' Kim Jiu ignored him and propped her arms on the desk and buried her head in them.
Because of that, you couldn't see it, but Kim Jiu's lips were sticking out a mile.
'Damn... looks like a boy?'
Her face soon became a little gloomy.
Yesterday, and just a moment ago, she had been so satisfied with her hair.
She suddenly felt a huge sense of regret.
She shouldn't have cut it.
She wanted to go back to yesterday.
She wanted to go back to before she cut her hair!!!
"..."
Kim Jiu decided that when she got home, the first thing she would ask her mom was how to grow her hair out quickly.