How Could This Still Not Be Dating?
Even after the sushi that carried the old man’s memories, more kinds of sushi kept coming out, but I was so full I honestly couldn’t eat another bite.
Sia, sitting beside me, ordered an encore plate of horse mackerel and popped it into her mouth, smiling as if she were truly happy.
Watching her, I suddenly understood why older people used to be so fond of anyone who ate well.
“Wow. That was good.”
“That tuna jaw from earlier? It was different from regular tuna belly, so I liked it.”
After we finished everything and stood up to pay, the old man from earlier was suddenly right there beside Sia and me.
“I hope the food suited your taste.”
“Ah, sir. It was delicious. We ate very well.”
“I’m glad. I’m not as skilled as I used to be now that I’m older....”
He said it like that, but it wasn’t just flattery. It had truly been delicious, enough that I wanted to come back again sometime.
“If I can, I’ll come again.”
“Good. And, young lady?”
“Yes?”
The old man suddenly called to Sia. She startled and went stiff, and when he saw that, he spoke gently.
“Hold on to this young man, and even if he tries to run, don’t let him go.”
“Y-yes?”
“I’ve handled my knives for over thirty years, and men this good don’t come along often.”
With that, the old man turned and went back inside the shop.
Sia and I exchanged equally bewildered looks, both of us clearly not understanding what on earth had just happened, when the woman taking our card spoke up.
“My father sometimes says that to people who come in with someone he thinks is decent.”
“Oh. I see....”
“If that made you uncomfortable....”
“No, not at all. I was just a little dazed.”
We’re sort of dating... but saying that makes the relationship sound a little ambiguous.
At my words, the woman’s expression turned slightly sour. I wasn’t sure what she was thinking, but it wasn’t some strange relationship. It was businesslike and completely wholesome.
...Probably?
After we settled the bill, we went outside and got into the car. I really did think expensive restaurants were worth it. Money well spent.
The owner, who had gone to make a call and came out a little later, pointed the GoPro he was holding toward us. Had he been filming this the whole time?
“Boss. Does the GoPro connect to the broadcast?”
“Oh, this is for Sia’s YouTube vlog.”
So that’s what it was. As far as I knew, a GoPro couldn’t connect directly to a broadcast, so I was about to say as much when—
“Huh? A vlog?”
“Yep. A virtual marriage vlog. Didn’t Sia tell you?”
When I turned to look at Sia, she was pointedly staring out the window and pretending not to hear a thing.
Seriously, when was she ever going to grow up? On the outside she had that sharp, flawless, goddess-like perfect-daughter aura, but once you peeled that back, she was full of goofy little holes like this.
Sometimes it honestly felt like the Sia I saw on YouTube and on stream was a different person from the Sia in real life.
“Anyway, that’s how it is. The video’s going up on Sia’s channel, and the revenue will be split fifty-fifty between the two of you.”
“Then I’m the one who should be thankful.”
“Hey, what about this?”
While I was talking with the owner, Sia suddenly cut in. On her phone screen was a beige knit sweater.
“Looks good.”
“Right? Then what about this one?”
“Oh, that one’s good too.”
Everything Sia showed me looked fine. I’d thought she was just casually picking things out, but maybe she’d actually been carefully choosing the good ones after thinking it through. I felt oddly grateful.
“But how much is it?”
“That’s a secret.”
What was that supposed to mean? That made me uneasy.
“How expensive is it that it’s a secret?”
“It’s a secret because it’s expensive.”
The more she said it, the more curious I got. Wasn’t Pandora curious for the exact same reason, after being told not to open the box no matter what?
Humans just can’t resist curiosity. And after some persistent begging, the one who gave in was Sia.
“The knit is 200,000 won.”
“What?”
For a second, I wondered if I’d heard wrong. Two hundred thousand won for a knit sweater? I leaned on Sia until I’d pried the prices of the other clothes out of her too.
The mutton jacket was 350,000 won, and the coat was 500,000? I felt dizzy just hearing those numbers.
“I can’t buy this.”
“Why would you buy it?”
“You said you were picking out my clothes.”
“I’m the one paying.”
At Sia’s proud declaration that she was paying, I went blank for a moment. What exactly was going on here? Was I the only one who couldn’t keep up?
I asked Sia to explain from the beginning, and listened quietly while she did.
“There’s a year-end party coming up on Watch.”
“I know that.”
“But you said you didn’t have anything to wear. You don’t need a suit, but you should still dress up a little.”
That was true, but....
“And today I’m filming a vlog?”
“What does that have to do with the clothes?”
“Guest fee?”
What kind of content did they film that a guest fee came close to 300,000 won?
This was definitely something to refuse.
“Try this on.”
“No, how many times do I have to—”
“This one too! Hurry up and try them on!”
“......”
The clothes in my hands were telling me that refusal itself had been refused.
Since Sia said I should think of it as the price of the virtual marriage she’d started by force if I didn’t like it, I eventually gave up on resisting.
So now I was standing there like a mannequin, putting on the outfits Sia had chosen.
“Here.”
“This looks good too.”
My face was good enough that anything looked right on me.
I would’ve said that out loud, but the store was so quiet that everyone could hear. Fortunately, the employee nearby seemed to think it was just the mushy nonsense of a couple blinded by love, and only smiled.
“This time, try these two on too.”
“Aren’t you picking a bit too much?”
“No. So hurry up and put them on.”
I didn’t even know how many outfits I’d already changed into, but if she was telling me to try them on, what else could I do?
The outfit she picked this time was actually pretty good. A turtleneck knit and jeans. I carefully got dressed, tidied myself up neatly, and stepped out of the fitting room.
Sia had her back to the fitting room while she was choosing clothes, so she didn’t seem to notice me coming out.
“Sia.”
“Hm? You’re done alrea—”
She turned to look at me, then stopped mid-sentence. Was something wrong? I followed her eyes and checked the fit of the clothes again.
No, nothing seemed off.
“Do I look weird somewhere?”
“Y-yo...?”
Oh. She’d just bitten her tongue. Sia squeezed her eyes shut and covered her mouth with her hand, looking like it hurt quite a bit. Her eyes had even gone a little wet, so she must’ve really bitten down hard.
“Could I use some tissue, maybe?”
“Yes. Just a moment.”
While the employee went to get some tissue, I helped Sia sit down in the nearby seat. The tears that had only glimmered in the light were now pooling visibly at the corners of her eyes, on the verge of spilling.
“You okay?”
“I’m fin... ha....”
“You don’t have to talk. Does it hurt a lot?”
At my words, Sia carefully nodded.
The pain from biting your tongue can’t really be put into words.
It’s one thing to bite something, but when that something is the flesh inside your own mouth, how much do you think it hurts? People who’ve never experienced it will never understand.
Thankfully, the employee returned with the tissue and, helpfully, a paper cup with one or two ice cubes in it.
After taking the tissues and cup, I handed the cup to Sia.
“Hold some ice in your mouth. That should help.”
“O-okay....”
I folded the tissue and lightly dabbed only at the tears gathered around Sia’s eyes. She was holding the ice in her mouth and keeping her eyes closed, and the sight of her was so cute I almost let out a laugh without meaning to, but I barely managed to hold it in.
If I laughed now, she might think I was making fun of her for biting her tongue.
“There. Better? You okay?”
When she opened her eyes again, she was back to her usual self. With the ice in her mouth, one cheek puffed up like a squirrel’s.
“Pick out a few more clothes. I’ll go try them on.”
At my words, Sia stood up and pulled a few more of the outfits she’d already picked out and handed them to me.
“Keep holding the ice?”
At my question, Sia quietly nodded, and I headed back into the fitting room.
It was a little troublesome, but what was I supposed to do when Sia’s tongue hurt? I’d just go out once she felt better.
*
Watching Hazy disappear into the fitting room, Sia thought, I’m embarrassed....
Honestly, even Sia herself didn’t really know her own ideal type.
She’d only ever had vague standards, like wanting someone with this sort of personality or that kind of feeling; she had never once thought about specific details like clothes or hairstyle.
“Sia.”
Maybe that was why. The second she saw Hazy come out in that knit sweater and jeans, it felt like all the air had been knocked out of her.
They’d only met three times so far, but every time before this he’d just shown up neatly dressed, so she’d only ever thought he was good-looking.
But once she dressed him up, that was no longer all there was to it.
So this is the kind of thing I like.
She couldn’t tell whether she liked the clothes or liked Hazy, but one thing was certain: Hazy in a knit sweater and jeans was something she liked.
Do I look weird somewhere?
Y-yo...?
Because of that, she’d even bitten her tongue. Remembering the embarrassing memory all over again, Sia rolled the ice to the other side of her mouth.
As she was quietly reliving that shame, the employee came over and said in a low voice, “You’re lucky.”
“Hmm?”
“The man’s eyes were practically dripping honey.”
So even here, they were misunderstanding him as her boyfriend. Just like at the omakase restaurant earlier, Sia couldn’t understand why people kept assuming that when she and Hazy stood next to each other.
She was about to explain that they weren’t like that, but the employee got there first.
“Normally in a situation like that, guys would say, ‘Let’s just go to the hospital’ or ‘Let’s get out of here,’ because they don’t want to keep changing clothes.”
“...Really?”
“Yes. But look at him worried about you and then going in to pick out clothes like that.”
“......”
“I’ve worked at a department store for a long time, and this is the first man like that I’ve ever seen. You should hold onto him tightly.”
At those words, Sia thought it over carefully. Was that so? Come to think of it, it wasn’t wrong.
He’d been making a pained face just a moment ago, and yet he’d still asked her to pick out clothes for him.
He’s really such a...!
“Finished changing.”
As she was talking with the employee, Hazy came out of the fitting room.
The outfit she’d picked for him this time was a white shirt and black slacks. Classic, but a little too plain, so she’d hesitated over it.
“How is it?”
Looking at Hazy, Sia thought he seemed a little too ordinary, so she mimed unbuttoning the cuffs of his shirt sleeves.
Hazy saw that and immediately understood what she meant, slowly rolling up his sleeves a bit.
“Is this better?”
Sia nodded without saying anything.
Then, quietly, she pulled a card out of her wallet.
By then, the ice in her mouth had nearly melted away.
“Everything.”
Please pay for everything I tried on.