Orange Girl (1)
Childhood.
After Yoo Suhyun turned fourteen and became a middle schooler, her fifteenth birthday passed, and somehow she managed to land a part-time job. On the day she received her first paycheck, she used some of the money to buy earphones, slipped them in, and hummed a song in a corner of the auditorium stage long after school had ended.
It was because of her low self-esteem—the belief that no one would ever want to hear her sing.
She even hid the earphones under her hair, terrified someone might think it looked ridiculous.
Then she hummed.
On days without work, her younger siblings went to their academies, but she couldn’t bring herself to go home. The thought of facing her drunken father filled her with dread. So Yoo Suhyun stayed in that corner of the auditorium stage, humming to herself.
A sorrowful yet sweet melody.
A girl who was part of the dance club at the time was drawn by the voice and found herself tapping her feet in the dance club room.
“…Who’s there? At this hour.”
“Hic, h-humming……”
Rain was falling outside the window.
The atmosphere felt eerie enough to make anyone shiver.
The girl turned off her phone and pulled out the single earphone she’d been wearing.
Even so, the singing didn’t stop. It continued to echo.
It was sorrowful, but it wasn’t the voice of a ghost.
The girl stood up carefully and slipped out of the dance club room.
‘…Who could it be at this time?’
It was already six o’clock. School had ended hours ago at four.
Though frightened, the girl slowly approached the curtained corner of the stage.
‘I can’t stand not knowing!’
With that, she took a lively step forward.
“…Hic…sniff, it hurts……”
“…!!”
The singing stopped, replaced by the sound of crying.
The girl froze mid-step and tried to hide her presence.
She peeked around the corner, peering behind the clutter.
There she saw Yoo Suhyun, wearing long sleeves and even a school cardigan despite the sweltering summer heat.
“Haa… I should go. I have to make dinner before the kids get home.”
With those words, Suhyun stopped crying and patted her legs. After tapping her left leg a couple of times—perhaps because it hurt—she checked if it would move properly before standing up. Watching the scarred girl, the other girl thought:
‘…She’s cute!’
She didn’t know which class the girl was in, but she was adorable. So adorable that she wanted to be friends.
Her uniquely dyed hair made her wonder how she’d managed those dumpling buns at the ends of her pigtails. Dark circles under her eyes, a pale face that somehow looked decadent despite her young age.
While the girl was busy getting excited, Suhyun had already picked up her bag and was about to leave.
Startled, the girl rushed forward, desperate to at least ask her name.
“H-hey!”
“Hic!?”
“Ah… uh.”
She’d jumped out, but seeing the cute Suhyun up close left her tongue-tied.
Suhyun, looking frightened, broke into a cold sweat and glanced at her.
“……”
“……”
An awkward silence passed between them.
“…Delinquent.”
“Huh? I’m not.”
Suhyun muttered “delinquent” out of nowhere and shrank back in fear. The girl waved her hands frantically in the air, flustered.
“No, no, no!! That’s not what I meant!”
“Hic…!”
Suhyun’s eyes welled up.
Panicking at the sight, the girl stammered before blurting out,
“Your song…!!!”
“…!!”
“I-it was… even if you’re sad, it’s okay, right…? That humming.”
The girl asked awkwardly.
Suhyun, stunned, widened her eyes but nodded.
Relieved, the girl let out a long sigh and patted her chest.
“Phew……”
“…D-did it bother you……?”
When Suhyun asked while clutching her bag, the girl broke into a bright smile, her earlier panic gone.
“No! I loved it!”
“…Eh.”
“What’s with that face? Stop glaring at me, will you?”
The girl chuckled as she spoke.
Suhyun hiccuped from her corner.
“S-sorry… No one’s ever talked to me before.”
“Huh?”
The girl tilted her head.
‘She’s this pretty, yet no seniors or friends ever approached her?’
She was puzzled by how someone as cute as Suhyun could say no one had ever spoken to her. But soon she found out why.
“Oh.”
“…Ah, th-this is, um……”
“Did someone hit you…?”
“……”
Though Suhyun had tried to hide her arms, the bruises and scars on her thighs were impossible to conceal. Realizing the situation, the girl let out a deep sigh.
“Everyone’s so mean!”
“…Yes?”
“Bullying such a cute kid like this.”
“…Ah.”
“Hehe.”
The girl smiled brightly.
Watching her, Suhyun felt something strange. No one had approached her like this since her mother and siblings.
“You sing really well.”
“…Empty praise.”
“You really think so?”
The girl sat down beside Suhyun and looked up at her.
“…W-what are you doing?”
“Sitting! I want to be friends.”
“F-friends……”
“Is that not okay?”
The girl looked at Suhyun as she spoke. Suhyun’s resolve weakened. With a troubled expression, she sighed and sat down beside her.
“Hey! Where’d you get your hair dyed?”
“…Natural.”
Suhyun answered while staring at the floor. She had no good memories tied to her hair color. Even back in elementary school, whether her mother was around or not, it had always been the source of her bullying. She expected the girl to react the same way if she said it was natural, so she braced herself by staring at the ground.
Of course, the reaction she got was the complete opposite of what she’d anticipated.
“…Whoa! That’s so cool. Your hair’s naturally this pretty?”
“……?”
“I have to dye mine orange all the time… I’m jealous.”
The orange-haired girl smiled as she spoke.
Suhyun looked at her with wide eyes.
“…It must feel bad.”
“Huh…?”
“Doesn’t it bother you? It’s gross and dirty… This hair color, just like my mom’s… It’s pathetic……”
“……”
Suhyun’s eyes filled with tears.
The orange-haired girl simply smiled gently.
‘I don’t know what happened to her, but she’s clearly been through a lot.’
Thinking she needed to comfort her even more, the girl spoke softly.
“It’s pretty.”
“……”
“To my eyes, at least.”
As she spoke, the girl showed her orange-colored eyes.
“Your leg… it looked uncomfortable.”
“Ah……”
“We’re similar, huh.”
“…Huh?”
The girl smiled and removed her orange contact lenses, revealing an unfocused eye.
“Ta-da.”
“…!!”
“I can barely see without them!”
She giggled as she spoke.
“Without these lenses, I can hardly see at all.”
“…Oh, I see.”
“You don’t care…!”
When the girl looked at her, Suhyun finally burst out laughing—the one she’d been holding back.
“No… I do care. Sorry for saying something weird.”
“Ooh… You turned it around positively.”
“How do you dance…? With those eyes……”
“I can see fine when I put them in!”
“…Isn’t it just bad eyesight?”
“One side’s okay, but this one has a story.”
The girl smiled awkwardly while Suhyun stared at her blankly.
“Huuu.”
“A sigh all of a sudden? Then I’ll do one too!”
Suhyun sighed, and the orange-haired girl copied her right beside her. The girl, seemingly delighted by something, burst into giggles and looked at Suhyun.
“You sing really well.”
“Ugh… no, I don’t.”
Suhyun denied it almost like she was having a fit.
The girl chuckled and continued.
“Why don’t you keep singing?”
“Huh…?”
“Let’s become idols together later!”
The girl grabbed Suhyun’s hand, her eyes sparkling.
Suhyun stammered in surprise.
“I-idols……”
“Yeah! It’s my dream. What’s your name?”
The orange girl smiled and asked.
Suhyun looked at her strangely. They were in the same class, after all.
“…W-we’re in the same class… I’m Yoo Suhyun.”
“What!?”
The girl was shocked.
Suhyun smirked and asked for her name in return.
“What about you?”
“…Sorry, I didn’t know we were in the same class.”
“…It’s fine. I’m basically a loner anyway.”
“I’m Joo Yeona! Nickname’s Orange!”
“…I can see why. Don’t the dye and lenses break school rules?”
Suhyun asked.
Joo Yeona grinned and flashed a peace sign.
“If I act pitiful because of my eye, they let it slide~”
“…Trash.”
“What about you?”
“I… just get scolded and that’s it.”
“Eeh?! That’s not fair! Yours is natural.”
“They don’t believe me.”
Suhyun gave an awkward laugh.
The girl huffed that the teachers were too much.
“Then just dye it.”
“I’d need money for that… Besides, I don’t want to.”
Suhyun didn’t want to hide her natural hair color with dye. Even now, as an adult, she didn’t understand why. When her father had tried to force her to dye it, she’d even cut her hair rather than comply. If asked for the reason now, she still wouldn’t know. But Joo Yeona seemed to understand.
‘…Something must’ve happened with her mom.’
She could tell the root of it all was connected to Suhyun’s mother.
“Huu… Whatever! Let’s be friends!”
“…Eeh.”
“You don’t want to!? After we’ve talked this much?”
Joo Yeona asked with wide eyes.
Suhyun shook her head. That wasn’t it. She was just surprised. She hadn’t expected to ever hear that word again.
But Suhyun gave one warning.
“…Just don’t get too involved with me. That’s the condition.”
“……?”
“Got it?”
Afraid of losing something precious.
That was what Suhyun said.
Joo Yeona agreed, and so their friendship began.
About a year later, at the graduation ceremony.
“Suhyun… Please, please… let me help you.”
“……”
“You’re, you’re bleeding… You’ll die…!! If you keep living like this, you’ll die!!”
“…Ye-Yeona… What did I say at the very beginning…?”
“…!!”
“Don’t… get too involved. You’ll get hurt……”
“……”
Without realizing their relationship was falling apart, the two of them had spent joyful times together.
* * *
Middle school Suhyun.
Middle school Yeona
