Disaster
Hongdae's Bam Street was bustling with people even though it wasn't the weekend. Individuals expressing their own unique flair strolled along the streets.
The most common way to express individuality was probably through hair and clothing. People adorned themselves in styles that suited them, or even if they didn't suit them, in styles they wanted to project.
I'd been taking an interest in fashion lately myself. It was because I'd really liked the look Bam Nuna and Saebyeok Nuna put together for me last time. Just touching up my hair and clothes a little could lift my mood and self-esteem—that was a pretty fantastic thing.
So lately, I'd made a habit of walking the streets and observing other people's hairstyles and fashion. It was fascinating how the same clothes could feel different just by changing the type of shoes or a single pop of color.
However, today my interest was a little different from usual. My gaze drifted more toward other things than hair or fashion.
'Maybe because we were in Hongdae, I was seeing a lot of people with tattoos.'
Even though more people are getting tattoos these days, they still tend to draw negative attention. Even I, who was planning to get one today, wasn't immune to that bias—it couldn't be helped. For a number of reasons, tattoos just don't sit well with Korean sensibilities.
But certain areas attracted people who valued individuality. For one thing, Hongdae was one of those areas, and tattoos were a fairly powerful means of expressing individuality. Here, just by turning my head slightly, I could see a whole lot of people with tattoos.
'Oh, a mugunghwa like that is less off-putting. Ugh, skulls or dragons, though... not so much.'
Maybe because I'd decided to get a tattoo today, they especially caught my eye. I walked along, checking out other people's tattoos.
As I was doing that, Saebyeok Nuna asked me,
"Are you really okay with this?"
"Huh?"
I blinked, and Saebyeok Nuna pointed at the left side of her own neck.
A sharp thorn vine tattoo.
From her neckline to her collarbone. Probably on her back too.
It was mirrored left to right from mine, but she also had a tattoo in a spot similar to where I was planning to get one.
"Once you get one, it's hard to reverse. Erasing it is way harder than putting it on."
"...Yes. I thought a lot before deciding."
"Well, that's a relief."
Having said that, Saebyeok Nuna looked ahead again.
Her attitude was rather chic, but I could feel her concern, so a smile crept onto my face. Saebyeok Nuna was the one who had suggested the tattoo, yet she'd checked with me for caution several times like this.
Still facing forward, Saebyeok Nuna said,
"You said you wanted the tattoo design to be a tree branch, right?"
"Yeah. With an ink wash painting feel. I'd like the branches to not be too thick. Ah, and I'd also like to avoid a sharp feeling."
Branches not too thick, but avoiding a sharp feeling. That was quite a difficult request.
She glanced at me sideways and traced over her own tattoo.
"My tattoo came out looking a bit sharp, didn't it?"
"Huh? No, I wasn't saying that to single you out."
"I know. I was just saying."
That was Saebyeok Nuna, smirking at my flustered reaction. Had what she'd just said been a joke too? Anyway, she seemed to be smiling more often today.
'She also seemed subtly excited.'
Maybe because we'd been talking more often lately, I was starting to see expressions on her face I hadn't seen before.
I glanced at her, gauging her mood, then spoke again.
"Is something good going on?"
"...Hm? Do I look like it?"
"You just seemed to be smiling more often today. Even now."
Fortunately, it seemed I'd guessed right.
She gave a little laugh and nodded.
"Yeah. Something good happened."
"What kind of thing?"
"I got the chance to sell clothes I designed."
My eyes widened. She hadn't even graduated yet, and she was already selling her own designs?
From what I'd heard from Hana, Saebyeok Nuna was a talented person who had never missed the top spot in the Fashion Design department. Not only could she make clothes, she was good at designing them too.
So much so that she could already sell her own designs.
Saebyeok Nuna said in a slightly excited voice,
"Gahyeon unni is preparing a shopping mall. She decided to use my designs there."
"Gahyeon Nuna is?"
I tilted my head. Gahyeon Nuna was the owner of Scarlet Ink that I'd seen before.
"What about her tattoo shop?"
"She said she's going to cut back her operating hours a bit. There aren't many customers anyway."
"...Not many customers?"
Scarlet Ink was famous for its excellent artistry even among the many tattoo shops in Hongdae.
But it didn't have many customers?
Saebyeok Nuna let out a small sigh and explained the reason.
"It's because it's a cover-up specialist shop. They're selective about their clients."
"Ah......."
I understood what she meant.
Cover-up specialist. Meaning they only took clients like me, with scars.
"You don't take regular customers at all? Like, fashion tattoos......."
"Yeah. Unni's principle is only doing scar cover-ups. So a lot of people come looking because they heard she's skilled, but... the people she actually takes on as clients are rare."
"I didn't know that. I heard you were a cover-up specialist, but."
Still, I hadn't known they only do cover-ups. Naturally, you'd assume they'd also do fashion tattoos for revenue.
Saebyeok Nuna shook her head.
"That unnni is kind of an eccentric. She tries to live only doing what she wants."
"Haha......."
"The shopping mall is just an extension of that. Well, she did graduate from the Fashion Design department too and even studied abroad, so it's not completely out of the blue."
So Gahyeon Nuna had also graduated from the Fashion Design department. Maybe that had influenced Saebyeok Nuna's decision to go into the Fashion Design department.
"Anyway, for you, it's a good thing, right? I don't know much about fashion, but being able to sell your own clothes is a great opportunity."
"Well, yeah."
There was a reason she was smiling more today. Even I knew how happy I'd been the first time I earned money from a drawing I'd done myself.
"I didn't know either, but she'd been preparing for quite a while. For now they're just planning to run the online mall, but once it gets established she said she'll open an offline store too."
A faint smile rose to Saebyeok Nuna's face. From the way she was talking more than usual, she seemed to be looking forward to it herself.
"I hope it goes well."
"Yeah."
We were walking along, chatting softly like that, when it happened.
"Huh?"
"What?"
I sniffed the air and looked far off into the distance. There seemed to be an acrid smell. At the same moment, I got the sense that something was off.
Wee-woo! Wee-woo!
The sound of a siren rang out sharply.
*
Disaster was something unpredictable and sudden. An unforeseen calamity could not be controlled by an individual.
"Gasp, haah!"
Suddenly, Saebyeok Nuna's face went pale and she dashed forward.
"Nuna, I'm coming with you!"
I chased after Saebyeok Nuna, who had bolted off. In the direction we were running, black smoke was rising.
Whoosh!
A two-story building. Scarlet Ink.
Crimson flames flickered and blazed. Black smoke spread over the red-stained sky.
I caught up in an instant and grabbed Saebyeok Nuna by the shoulders.
"It's dangerous!"
"Let go! Unni, Gahyeon unni!"
Even at a glance, Saebyeok Nuna wasn't in her right mind. Her usual calm demeanor was completely gone, and she was trying to shake me off, her face white as a sheet.
"Let go of me!"
"I told you it's dangerous!"
"Let go! I said let go! Unni! Gahyeon unni!"
Held by me, Saebyeok Nuna thrashed convulsively. It was a struggle fierce enough that it was hard to believe it came from a woman's body. I held her tight to keep her from rushing in.
'I understand you're worried, but......!'
I couldn't compare to Saebyeok Nuna, but I was just as worried about Gahyeon Nuna. But there was no way I could let go of Saebyeok Nuna while she was trying to rush into a burning building.
"What's up with her, is she crying?"
"Oh no. You don't think there's someone inside, do you?"
The attention of the people around us focused on us. Since a fire had broken out, there were a lot of people around, and among them were firefighters who had arrived before us.
One firefighter wearing a helmet approached us.
"Are you related to the building?"
"Ah, yes. I'm someone who had an appointment today, and this person here is an employee of the tattoo shop."
No sooner had I finished speaking than Saebyeok Nuna followed up.
"F-Firefighter! What about people inside? A, around forty—no, a woman who looked around thirty. Long hair, lots of tattoos on her body! A-and......!"
"P-Please calm down for a moment. When we looked around, there was no one."
At the firefighter's words, Saebyeok Nuna's eyes flew wide open and she asked again.
"N-No one? Are you sure you looked carefully? The shop should be open right now......!"
"Is there perhaps a hidden room or something inside the building that's hard to find?"
"N-No. There's nothing like that."
"First off, we checked all the visible places. There were no people, just a few mannequins......."
The firefighter was in the middle of explaining.
From behind, a familiar voice rang out.
"...What is this?"
"Oh! Gahyeon Nuna?"
At my words, Saebyeok Nuna's head whipped around as if it would snap. The moment she confirmed Gahyeon Nuna's face, Saebyeok Nuna slumped to the ground as if the strength had drained out of her.
"U-Unni, you were safe......."
"Phew. Thank goodness."
I also let out a sigh of relief and rested my hands on my knees. My heart, which had been pounding in fear that something might have gone wrong, calmed down.
The firefighter who had been calming Saebyeok Nuna also let out a small breath and smiled.
"It's a relief that no one was hurt."
There were several people around who also expressed relief, calling it fortunate. They were the people who had been watching our exchange.
But there was someone for whom it was not fortunate at all.
"Wh-What is all this? Why a fire... my tattoo shop... my building......."
It was Gahyeon Nuna, looking as if she might burst into tears at any moment.