Flashback - Taming the Cat Daddy and Claiming the Golf Goddess
"Manager? What the hell are you doing?"
"……"
The convenience store owner, infamous as the king of rudeness who never properly greeted customers with his perpetual scowl. Rumors swirled that he openly monitored part-timers via CCTV, terrorizing them with curses and abuse, and even fed stray cats around the store, causing a public nuisance. Common sense said business was tough enough without that—you'd go under. I'd dismissed it as exaggeration, but seeing it now, it was all true.
"Um, Manager? What are you doing?"
"Pardon?"
Only after I asked again did he finally turn to me.
"What are you doing? I've been waiting forever, and you've been out here feeding cats? Look, people already complain about the strays—why make it worse by feeding them?"
I've been waiting outside for 30 minutes, you asshole.
"Ah, right, right... Let's go inside."
"No, I asked you—why are you feeding the cats?"
His face hardened slightly.
"Hey, don't you feel sorry for these cats?"
He pointed at the cats with their heads buried in food bowls, chowing down.
I stared, wondering if they really looked pitiful. Nah, not really.
"They're not pitiful."
I said it straight, and he let out a scoffing laugh like he couldn't believe it.
"Jesus. You got no heart at all."
Did he just call me a psychopath?
Swear words rose in my throat, but I held them back. Stay calm. I tried again, nicely.
"Forget it. If you're gonna feed them, keep 'em at your place. Why here?"
"Nowhere else to do it."
"I waited 30 minutes. You didn't show, just fed cats?"
"What do you want me to do? Sue me?"
Wow. Listen to this guy. Is this how you talk to customers? Was I some crazy Karen picking a fight?
He was worse than I'd imagined.
"Just ring me up."
"Checkout's checkout. But seriously, feed cats at home. People can't sleep because of them. And that's not all..."
"I said nowhere else."
"Why not? Your house, the store. Turn your store into a cat tower."
"Goddamn it, you don't get it! Nowhere else! And what business is it of yours?!"
He bellowed before I finished. Looked ready to swing.
But I'm a pacifist. I pulled out my phone and opened the app.
"Here, take a look."
"What the...?"
His eyes locked on the screen, and he froze blank.
It works on guys too?
I'd worried it might not since it didn't affect me, but false alarm.
I took a deep breath and laid into him.
"Do you know how bad these cats get because of you? Crying day and night, waking people up, ripping trash bags and turning streets into dumps!"
"……"
The manager just stood there, dazed, listening.
Venting without backlash felt amazing.
"And it's okay just 'cause they're cute to you right now?!"
I yelled for a good while, then cleared my throat. Got too heated; he was hopeless.
"From now on, no feeding cats on the street. Feed 'em at home if you must. I don't wanna see your sour face every time. Smile, be nice to part-timers and customers. Got it?"
"Yes..."
"Good. When I snap my fingers, you'll wake from hypnosis."
Snap!
His dead-fish eyes lit up.
"Huh...? Why am I..."
"Manager, can you ring this up?"
"Uh, yeah... sure."
"Clean up that food bowl too."
"Oh, right away."
Smiling instead of scowling, he cleared the bowl, crossed the street, and scanned my items at the counter.
He barely glanced at blankly standing Heena—either didn't recognize her or hypnosis prioritized customers. Either way, less hassle for me.
"22,000 won."
"Here."
I swiped my card, not the app. He'd been a cat nuisance, but now reformed. Worth paying.
"All set. Have a good one!"
"You too. Sell a ton."
I'd doubted since it skipped me, but confirmed: the Hypnosis App was real!
"Haha... haha."
With this, I could do anything I imagined.
Thrilled, I clenched my fist secretly.
"……"
Heena stood frozen, obeying my order to stay put until done, staring blankly at me.
"Hm."
Now, what about her?
I cooled my head and thought.
I'd been too emotional earlier. Forgot even chaebol heirs and celebs kill themselves. Third-gen or not, she might have issues. My own crap life made me snap.
Still got a ways to go.
"Hm..."
Anyway, up close, Heena was stunning. No wonder the golf goddess.
Her real face matched TV—no makeup filter needed. Maybe even prettier, more ethereal.
That old YouTube thought resurfaced: I want a girlfriend like her.
Untouchable flower before. Now, I could pluck it.
"You... be my girlfriend."
"Ah...?"
I began rewriting her with hypnosis, implanting: Become my devoted girlfriend, truly in love with me.
"My name's Yun Geon-woo. Your boyfriend's name—remember it."
"Yun... Geon... woo... Got it."
I gave basics: age, birthday, address. She repeated, memorizing.
"All remembered? Snap wakes you."
Nod. Snap!
She blinked.
"Ah...!"
Then thud—lunged into my arms.
"Sob... Oppa Geon-woo...!"
"Uh, yeah?"
Sudden body slam. I panicked but hugged back with an awkward smile.
"What's wrong?"
"It's too much... I'd rather die... Hic..."
Right, she'd said it was hard, but not why.
"Let's go home first."
"Okay."
She nodded, released the hug, took my hand.
Athletic from golf, yet soft, fragile.
I led her to my place, bag of cleaning supplies in hand. Unlocked the door... and froze.
Shit.
No cleaning in a month—total mess. Why buy supplies otherwise?
Damn... first girlfriend ever, and this...!
"Oppa, what's up?"
She tilted her head.
I forced a smile. Obvious fake.
"Well... Heena? Been busy, haven't cleaned much."
"Yeah."
"So, wait here a sec. I'll finish quick..."
She shook her head no.
Asked why—she grabbed supplies, unpacked.
"Your place is our place. Together."
Even hypnotized to love me, showing her my pigsty felt wrong.
Tried leaving her out, but she insisted.
App again?
Hand itched for phone pocket.
But rehynotizing over this? Nah.
Damn, hate using it for this crap.
"Don't you like me helping?"
"No no! Absolutely not! Obviously! I brought you here—see? House is just messy. Plus, you drank. Booze makes everything worse."
"Don't wanna make you suffer alone. And I'm not that drunk."
Face said otherwise.
Her stubbornness won. Unlocked, led first girlfriend into my dump.
"Huh? What? For a month untouched, it's pretty clean?"
She glanced around, like much ado about nothing.
Felt like a real girlfriend vibe.
Hypnosis for the win.
"Let's clean."
Sad smile—maybe from earlier despair—as she started. Moved well at first despite two soju bottles.
Crash!
"Eek! Sorry... accident!"
Dropped a dish in kitchen. Fine.
Thud crash!
Wiping shelf, knocked grad album—bookshelf junk avalanched.
"Ah... Sorry, Oppa!"
"It's fine."
Chaebol heiress, never cleaned, drunk. This was progress.
"No biggie. Almost done—sit on bed."
I smiled, soothed. She hung head like wet puppy, sniffling.
"Wah... sorry. Just wanted to help..."
"It's okay. Your heart alone—whew, too much!"
Not empty words—I hammed it up gratefully.
"Still, can't let you alone... Thought cleaning'd be fine."
"Got it. Bed, now. Finish quick."
"I... I've always been useless... Always messing up like today..."
Self-loathing without prompt.
"A-And... Dad ignores me... Sis too... Thinks I'm a disgrace..."
"Heena...?"
Something was off.