Growing Pains
I swept a quick look around and ran over to Mom.
"...Mom! What's going on?"
Her mask hid her expression, so I couldn't tell what was wrong. Detective Kim Young-min was nowhere in sight — had she gotten some kind of call?
Mom tugged her mask down a little and smiled.
"What's going on? I came to pick up my daughter, that's all."
"Really? That's it?"
"Oh, come on, I told you. I guess I startled you, doing something I don't usually do. How embarrassing."
There wasn't a trace of a lie on her sheepish face. I scanned the area one more time before I finally let myself relax.
I vaguely told the classmates who'd started to follow me that she was my manager, then took Mom's hand and headed home from school. We'd already moved, and the brief spike of recognition from the drama and the one-act special had faded by now, so almost nobody recognized me.
If I caught people whispering while looking my way, I casually turned my head and hid my face. Nobody wanted to meet me badly enough to chase me down and check.
"Huh? It's Su-a!"
...I'd barely finished that thought when I ran into kids from my class. Of all routes, we were heading toward the academy district, so of course they were on their way to the same after-school academy.
The moment they spotted me, they came running over, chattering away.
"Su-a, hi!"
"You heading home? Lucky! We're on our way to academy."
"I'm so dead. I didn't finish my homework — I'm gonna get in trouble."
"If you didn't do your homework, you deserve it."
"I couldn't do it!"
"Don't even lie! You were watching Wetube until late last night!"
"I told you not to use words like that in front of grown-ups!"
Honestly, it was amazing how the topic of conversation could whip around like that.
These friends seemed perfectly content with me just chiming in here and there. They chattered away, then burst into giggles and took off.
"Su-a, you're so lucky you don't have to go to academy! We're heading out!"
"See you tomorrow! If I can't finish my school homework, help me out just a tiny bit!"
"Don't you help her, Su-a! Bye!"
I waved back just as enthusiastically, then got out of there. We were still in the academy district, so my feet picked up the pace on their own, worried I'd run into more classmates.
Once we passed the academy strip and got close to home, I finally relaxed a little. I was wiping the sweat from my forehead when Mom, who'd been quiet until now, asked carefully.
"Su-a, I was wondering... do you maybe want to go to an academy?"
"Huh? Why? Do you think I need to?"
"No, your grades are fine. I just thought it might be nice if you went along with your friends."
Ah. Here it comes.
Just like before the regression, Mom still felt guilty that she couldn't raise me the way other kids were raised. The truth was I was fine — I had an adult's mind — but for any parent with an ordinary child, this was a perfectly reasonable worry.
But I really am fine.
I beamed at her so she'd feel better.
"I'm fine! We already spend plenty of time together at school. And once I start my next project, I wouldn't be able to keep going for long anyway."
But Mom came back with something I didn't expect.
"Then how about joining a group? A child actors' meetup... I'm sure we could find one if we looked."
"A child actors' meetup?"
Su-a echoed, eyes wide. Lee Ga-hee already knew it was hopeless, but she still tried to hide how nervous she was.
I actually said it.
Child actor gatherings were usually closer to social mixers. Not the kind of place an introvert like Lee Ga-hee would seek out on her own.
But watching Su-a with kids her own age, a sudden worry had welled up.
She should have at least one friend she can really open up to.
The kids from her class treated Su-a without any reservation, but Su-a didn't treat them the same way. There was a wall when she dealt with them — one you'd miss if you didn't know her well.
She didn't dislike her classmates, but she didn't try to know them beyond a certain point, and she didn't let them know her, either. In a way, it was good social strategy. If the other party hadn't been kids her own age.
Maybe she's spent so much time with adults that kids make her uncomfortable now.
Television programs often featured stories of gifted or genius children who couldn't adapt to their peers. Su-a wasn't the type to get bullied, but having a friend her own age she could just be comfortable with — outside of acting — would be good for her emotionally.
That was the deeper meaning behind the suggestion she'd worked up the courage to make. But Su-a's face suddenly went rigid, and she grabbed both of Lee Ga-hee's hands.
"Mom, no investing!"
"Wh-what?"
"I don't know who told you to come, but absolutely not! Do you know how many bad people there are in this world?"
"I know that perfectly well...?"
"You know? Then that's that! You can't just go to gatherings like that. Who knows what could happen."
Su-a's face relaxed just as quickly, and she started chattering away — real estate this, crypto that — you should never invest in something just because someone recommended it, and if you were going to invest you had to study it yourself instead of taking someone else's word, and we were still in the saving-up phase, and so on.
No, wait. I just wanted her to make a friend...
"I'm going to make a lot of money, so we can wait until life is more stable and we have some extra cash. Until then, let's study hard! And once we've saved up a certain amount, we can even hire a wealth manager..."
Su-a has it all planned out, doesn't she...
She laid out a surprisingly specific plan with such a serious face that Lee Ga-hee had no choice but to nod along.
And just like that, the suggestion to join a child actors' meetup fizzled out.
Mom worrying about my social life was something I'd already been through. Before the regression, I'd actually gone to a gathering and nearly gotten scammed.
Wanting to make the case that I did have a decent friend, I went over to Kwon Jin-ho's house. Mom remembered Kwon Jin-ho a beat later, and her face filled with relief.
"This brat. I tell her to rest, and she shows up at the CEO's house to hang out."
"You never actually told me to rest, though? And I'm here to hang out at my friend's house."
"Always got a comeback, this one."
Gwon Du-il grumbled for no real reason as he peeled and sliced the entire basket of fruit we'd brought as a gift. I speared a piece of apple with a fork, held it out to Mom, and patted my knees.
"And you told me to say something if anything hurt."
"What! You're hurting?!"
"Su-a, you're in pain?!"
Gwon Du-il and his son both startled, and Mom dropped her fork. I kneaded my knees as I answered.
"Yeah. My knees hurt. I think I'm about to grow."
"Ah, growing pains!"
"Ugh, those actually hurt like crazy. That stabbing, pins-and-needles ache."
"Su-a, you should have told Mom if it hurt."
"It only hurts a little at night. It's not like I'm sick or anything."
It was really mild right now. Compared to the growing pains that would hit around the time I graduated middle school...
Startled by the news that I was in pain, Gwon Du-il heated up a red-bean pack — the kind Ji Soo-bin used all the time — and laid it on my knees.
"Well, in that case, we oughta change up your fitness routine. Something that helps with growth without putting strain on the joints..."
"Sounds good. I want to get over six feet."
"That so? Height's mostly genetics, but your mom's on the tall side, so let's give it a shot."
"I'd only like to grow to six feet even, myself."
Kwon Jin-ho looked at his parents with a mournful expression. Sorry, kid, but you're going to sail right past six-three.
At the mention of growing pains, Gwon Du-il and Ji Soo-bin laid out a nutritious meal and snacks, and I ate my fill, then lolled around with the heat pack on for a good long while.
It was about time to get to the real reason I'd come.
"So, Uncle."
"Oh, it's 'Uncle' now? So this isn't CEO business — you've got something for your senior. Let's hear it."
"Didn't you say you had to film some kind of video?"
Gwon Du-il's shoulders, which had been puffed up with confidence, deflated. The self-assured look on his face wilted in an instant. Mom flinched at the sight of it.
Hmm. So someone asked a guy like that to film a video like that? Whoever it was, they sure had some nerve.
"Well... there is one thing I have to film. Did Ji-hyun mention it to you?"
"An article came out, so I got curious and asked. But I heard Jin-ho said he didn't want to be in it."
"It's not that I don't want to film...!"
Kwon Jin-ho waved his hands, his face gone pale. The poor kid had gotten a photo posted on Gwon Du-il's Inble once, taken a beating in the comments, and developed a camera phobia.
Poor guy. He'd get over it on his own, but if there was a way I could help, I should.
"I know, I know. Anyway, it'd be better to film with someone who's used to being on camera, right? That's why I came."
"Must be a slow news day. They'll make an article out of anything..."
Gwon Du-il couldn't quite deny it, and scratched his head.
Not long ago, he'd appeared on a Wetube channel run by a creator he was friendly with. He'd lost a challenge and, as a penalty, agreed to film a short parody video. The Wetuber had mischievously requested that he shoot it with a child.
For me, it was bait that had shown up at exactly the right time.