The Prep-Middle-School Blues
It hadn't been long since Sia and I celebrated Pookey Day, and now we had entered the new year in January. We had graduated from Noah Elementary School. On the graduation day, both my dad and mom came to celebrate with us. Because all of Sia's uncles and aunts were there too, both families went together to the buffet and spent the time enjoying ourselves. We had such a wonderful time together. But now Sia and I were prep-middle-school students, and as prep-middle-schoolers, there were quite a few things we had to do. One of them was buying school uniforms. There were only two middle schools near us in total. Both were about a ten-minute bus ride from home. One was a co-ed middle school, and the other was a girls' middle school. So I had no choice but to select the co-ed middle school, Pia Middle School. Sia, however, had a choice of two. But the middle school Sia chose was the same one as mine, Pia Middle School. When I asked her why, she smiled brightly and said, 'Because I can go to school with Siwoo!' and happily wrote down the name of the middle school. And luckily, Sia and I were both assigned to Pia Middle School. The two of us were overjoyed to be in the same middle school, but my mom surprised us with an unexpected offer. "Since you're both in the same middle school, shall I take you to get your uniforms tailored?" "Tailored? I thought uniforms were just given." "You have to buy them. It says so on the notice you got for the prep-recruitment day." "Whoa..." "So let's go buy your uniforms together with Sia." "Okay, I'll contact Sia." After receiving my message, Sia easily agreed, saying, "Sure. When should we go?" On the day of our appointment, Sia and I headed together to the city. There was a uniform sales shop that middle schools had partnered with downtown, so we went there. As I stepped out of the house, mom handed me her card and said, "Buy the uniforms and go sightsee downtown with Sia." "Sightsee?" "You can eat whatever you want while walking around. If you see anything nice while looking at Sia and me's clothes, you can buy it. In exchange, buy about two pieces of clothing around 100,000 won." "Got it." "It's not because I don't trust you, but because you can't spend money recklessly at such a young age." "I get it. I'll be back." My wallet now held my mom's card. As long as I had what was called the Emcard... I was invincible and the strongest. The first place I headed was the uniform shop. I suggested we look around first, but Sia said time would fly by if we did, so she suggested we buy the uniforms first. Following the map, we found the shop, opened the door, and walked in. The clothes on the hangers were neatly arranged by category, with shirts and vests hanging in rows. When we entered, the employee greeted us. "Oh my, which middle school are you from?" "Um... Pia Middle School." "Ah, Pia Middle School. Come this way." Following the employee to where she was going, there were white shirts hanging in a long row. "Are you both from Pia Middle School?" "Yes." "I see. What size do you usually wear?" "I'm an L." "I'm an S." "Here, try them on. Even though it's the same size, it came out a bit larger, so keep that in mind." In the fitting room, I put on the shirt and came out. It felt a bit tight on the shoulders, but overall it was slightly loose. "It's a bit loose." "Hmm... students should probably get a slightly larger size." "Why?" "It's still growing time. If there's this much room, when you enter second and third year you might not be able to wear them because they'll be too small." "Oh..." "This is XL. Try this one on." "Okay." When I put on the new shirt given to me, my shoulders felt more comfortable than before. "This one suits me. The vest will hug my body anyway, so it won't feel that loose." "I understand." But then... "Um... a little larger size... could you give me that?" "Hmm? It's too small?" "Yes... a bit..." "I got it. I'll bring it right away." Sia slightly opened the door of the fitting room and asked for a slightly larger size. I turned my head out of curiosity, and our eyes met. Whoosh! I peeked into the fitting room. "..." "......" Sia then peeked out with just her eyes again. "N-not hating it... I just feel embarrassed." "Ah... I'm sorry." Hearing Sia's words, I turned my body around. At the moment I felt ashamed for having no thoughts. "Here, try this on." "Ah, yes." The moment I worried if Sia would hate it. "Um... is it okay?" Sia came out looking a bit embarrassed, but the reason was... the clothes fit tighter than expected. Especially... the chest area. "Oh... um... it's a bit tight... it must be uncomfortable?" "...Yeah, a little..." "Just a second, there's a good one in the back room. I'll bring it." The employee went to the back room, and I tried desperately not to look at Sia. To avoid looking on purpose, I pretended to choose the vest and paid extra attention to nothing. Sia seemed to be staring at me intently. The reason I guessed was... I couldn't turn my gaze toward Sia, so it was the look she was giving me that I felt. While an awkward air flowed between Sia and me. "Um... Siwoo..." "Here, it's ready." Sia was about to say something, but the employee suddenly appeared. "Thank you." Sia almost immediately came out of the fitting room, and this time the size looked roomier. "Hmm! It's a bit larger, but it fits well. Does it feel uncomfortable when I move?" "No, it's fine." "There are only three of these left, so I can only sell one. If you need more later, let me know." "Ah... yes..." "Wait, let me try this one on." The employee took out an L-sized shirt and said. "You could buy it larger and have it tailored later... what do you think? The sleeve length might not match perfectly though..." "Hmm... I'll buy this one and two larger ones, then have them tailored to wear." "Then if you say you want it tailored in the back, they will measure the size and tailor it." "Ah! Yes!" Sia went inside the back area. While she was gone, I said. "All right, then shall we pick out the rest of the uniform?" "Ah... yes." Gradually, after trying on various clothes suggested by the employee and changing them, we got our uniforms fitted. "Hmm... only the pant legs need to be shortened, and it's perfect. How does it look?" "...It looks good." My figure in the clothes was reflected in the mirror. "For now, the formal wear and casual wear are both tailored the same." "Ah... thank you." "Yes... formal wear, casual wear, and gym clothes too?" "Yes, yes. And shirts are three each, and pants are two each." "All of them?" "Yes, three each please." "Ah... okay." Mom said she would buy three of each uniform. She bought three so we could rotate them every day. And in the meantime. Sia came out from the back. Naturally I turned my gaze toward Sia... but I had no choice but to freeze when I saw Sia's appearance. Even though I knew it was just a uniform, when Sia put it on. The formal shirt, gray vest, and checkered skirt in gray all came alive, as if they were wearing them. It felt like a model wearing them. I couldn't keep my mouth shut. Sia, coming out, immediately approached me and said with a slight bow. "How... do I look?" "Ah... um... you look pretty." "Really? Ehehe... I'm so glad." Even though the formal shirt was a bit large, somehow... that look nicely showed the cuteness hidden in Sia's beautiful appearance. "Hehe, it suits you." "Did you get measured?" "Yes, they'll tailor it according to the measurements." "Ah... how many will you buy?" "Hmm... like you, three each." "That sounds about right." "Right?" After buying the uniforms, we received the receipt. "Whoa... what price is this?" "Wow... it's way more expensive than I thought." The prices of the uniforms were quite high. "They are expensive... but this doesn't look very warm though..." "Yeah..." While I was surprised by the unexpectedly high price, the employee who was there earlier spoke up. "You can come pick them up in about an hour and a half." "Ah... yes! Understood." "And this is a map. You can make your name tag here." "Ah, thank you." Carrying the clothes, we stepped outside. Before long, it was past noon. "Whoa... time has already passed like this." "Yeah..." We had met around ten in the morning... and we had been buying uniforms for almost two hours. "Then... want to go eat?" First, I seemed to have to fill my empty stomach.