6th Grade.
6th Grade.
Ji-hoon realized the situation was serious.
Si-yoon, who used to be his boss and still occupied that place in a corner of his heart.
She had passed out after one drink.
'Shit!!!'
Seeing her flushed face and hiccuping, he confirmed she was at least still alive. He looked around.
"Wow... I'm screwed..."
Ji-hoon quickly capped the soju and shoved the bottles into a corner to destroy the evidence.
Then he lifted Si-yoon onto his back and started moving carefully toward the hotel. Something surged up against his back where Si-yoon's chest pressed against him.
And then from behind came the sound of retching...
"Ah!... Fuck... seriously..."
Ji-hoon felt the hot liquid slide from his shoulder down his back. He carried Si-yoon into the room where Ji-yeong was.
Si-yoon and Ji-hoon were both covered in Si-yoon's expelled mess.
"I'm screwed... screwed... screwed..."
He couldn't just strip off her clothes like this.
Ji-hoon quickly checked his surroundings and woke the sleeping Ji-yeong.
"Hey... Ji-yeong."
"Mmm...? Aah!"
Ji-yeong was startled seeing Ji-hoon. Luckily, Ji-hoon covered her mouth.
Ji-hoon pointed at Si-yoon. She saw Si-yoon fast asleep with a flushed face and looked at Ji-hoon.
"She drank..."
"What?! How?"
"I brought it... that's not the problem... she needs to get out of those clothes and get washed... No, just stay with her. I have to go destroy the evidence outside, alright?"
"....I think you need to change your clothes first...?"
"Ah... yeah, I should. Please~"
"Okay..."
Ji-hoon left Si-yoon with Ji-yeong and moved fast.
He quickly went to his own room and washed up.
After erasing the evidence, Ji-hoon returned, rubbing his forehead. He looked down at Si-yoon sleeping on the floor.
Ji-yeong was watching beside her.
Park Ji-hoon picked Si-yoon up and carried her into the bathroom, Ji-yeong following behind.
He laid Si-yoon on the floor and started washing the back of her hair as the conversation began.
"What happened...?"
"She got excited, had one drink, and ended up like that."
"...?"
After washing her hair completely, Ji-hoon hesitated while trying to undress Si-yoon.
"You do it."
"Okay..."
Park Ji-hoon rummaged through Si-yoon's bag, pulled out clothes, and handed them to Ji-yeong.
Once Ji-yeong had changed her clothes, she called for Ji-hoon.
"I seriously thought something terrible had happened... wow... So, where are the clothes she was wearing?"
"I left them over there... why?"
"I need to wash them... if we leave them like this, she'll get caught for sure."
Ji-hoon moved Si-yoon to the bed and went into the bathroom. He started washing the vomit-stained clothes.
Ji-yeong, who had been watching from the side, spoke up.
"...Isn't that disgusting?"
"What? The vomit?"
"Yeah..."
"It's not going in my mouth. What's disgusting about it."
"I see..."
Without any hesitation, Ji-hoon washed Si-yoon's clothes clean of vomit. Then his hands stopped short.
".....You do this one."
"Okay."
It was Si-yoon's very small underwear, pink with a white rabbit pattern.
Warm sunlight shone dazzlingly on my face.
When I opened my eyes slightly, the emerald horizon stretched before me and the sky shone blue.
"Ugh... ah... dizzy..."
"You're awake?"
I looked around and saw Ji-yeong watching me.
"Yeah..."
"Yesterday... I was really shocked... Ji-hoon suddenly showed up."
"Huh?!"
I quickly looked around and checked my clothes.
"What happened?"
"Ji-hoon said... you had one drink and passed out... your whole body was covered in vomit, so... Ji-hoon washed your clothes."
I smelled my hair, nodded, and went to take a shower.
There was a spot where my clothes had been washed and hung out to dry, and my underwear was off to one side.
"Haah..."
After washing up, I dried my hair and checked my surroundings.
"I had one drink and passed out...? Me?"
"...That's what he said? He said he'd never seen someone collapse like that from drinking..."
I took out my clothes and got dressed, muttering to myself.
"No way... come on... that can't be... me, a lightweight? That's over the top..."
I should have... faced reality then.
We spent time on various field experiences and recreation, and night came again.
"Let's just toss it..."
"No, that can't be right. No matter how much of a lightweight I am, there's still a digestion process. Does it make sense to pass out the instant it goes in?"
After thinking for a moment, Ji-hoon slowly nodded.
".....Okay."
Ji-hoon went back to his room and brought the leftover soju in a black bag.
"Why'd you only bring this."
Ji-hoon, who had been watching me, seemed reluctant to provoke me. He spoke carefully, slowly.
"I'm... not drinking."
"Bullshit. There was plenty of liquor."
Ji-hoon sighed, gauging my mood as he spoke.
"...When you can't even drink..."
"Bring it."
"Haah..."
In the end, Ji-hoon laid out the bottles he'd originally brought in front of me.
"Honestly, yesterday I forgot I'm still a kid. A whole paper cup was way too much, right?"
"Passing out in one second was even more..."
"...?"
When I stared at him, Ji-hoon watched my reaction and shut up.
I felt sorry, like I was taking my frustration out on the wrong target.
But... no matter how I thought about it, this was nuts.
I accepted the soju Ji-hoon poured for me.
An extremely tiny amount that didn't even cover the bottom of the cup.
"...? Pour more."
"No... we can just increase it slowly."
"Even so, this is ridiculous, don't you think?"
"Try drinking it, and let's slowly figure out your limit..."
I nodded and drank the extremely tiny amount of soju.
"See, I'm completely fiiii..."
In that moment, I understood.
In that moment, I had to accept it.
In that moment, I became fully aware.
That I had been born with the ultimate alcohol-trash body, a lightweight of lightweights unlike anything I'd ever seen...
I started getting dizzy as if I were on an amusement park ride. The floor began to move and rushed up toward my face.
Fine, I accept it.
That this body passes out just from smelling alcohol...
Honestly, I felt it before it even went into my mouth.
The way my face flushed hot the moment I smelled the alcohol...
But I didn't want to accept it.
Kang Han-seong, a legendary heavy drinker, getting wasted from the smell of booze?
It's so absurd a passing dog would laugh its ass off.
Beautiful memories came flooding back—competing with mafiosos by downing whole bottles of tequila in one go.
'Ah... the floor of Jeju Island is cold...'
'Even more than Milan...'
Ji-hoon caught Si-yoon as she collapsed and shouted.
"Ah!!! Fuck, seriously, you crazy bitch!!!"
It was the kind of remark that would normally get a fist thrown at him, but Si-yoon, already asleep, was quiet.
I sat on the bed and began to deliberate seriously.
'No way... that can't be... right?... There has to be another reason. There's no way I'd...'
'Haah... no... it must be the truth...'
Ji-yeong watched as I sighed and agonized.
"Si-yoon, are you okay?"
"....."
"Si-yoon?"
I wanted to go straight to the hospital and get my body tested, but how could I explain, as a 13-year-old, that I pass out when alcohol enters my system...
Above all, yesterday, due to Ji-hoon's earnest request, I drank only enough that the bottom of the cup wasn't even covered.
But this is just wrong...
This is seriously wrong... fuck...
All I could remember was my first kiss with the floor of Jeju Island yesterday. Beyond that, I had no memory at all.
Since I drank a full paper cup with this garbage body,
I started to understand how I ended up covered in vomit from head to toe.
What was ridiculous was that my vision was still spinning; I had a hangover.
'Damn, what an insanely cost-effective body, fuck me...'
If a time ever came when I wanted to go somewhere and wash away all my memories like erasing them with booze...
If I ever wanted to drink myself to death...
I could just borrow a glass of soju from the person next to me and cut it with water.
"Wow..."
A body where you can put one shot of soju into a 1.5L water bottle, shake it up excitedly, and sip it slowly...
'Wow... fucking great...'
Ji-yeong realized I wasn't in a good mood and approached carefully.
"...Si-yoon, are you okay?"
"Mm? Yeah, I'm okay... it's a relief I found out early..."
"Found out what?"
"My limit..."
Thinking about how I could never drink alcohol with good food again from now on made me dizzy.
How I used to crave a drink every so often with a meal.
How I used to yearn for that crisp, cold beer while eating greasy food...
To think I can't enjoy the refreshing sensation of chugging a mouthful, gulp!...
What a miserable life this is...
"Haah..."
I looked down at my body and sighed.
Thinking it was just because I was still young... I kept denying the truth to the very end.
I walked out slowly with Ji-yeong to get breakfast.
My eyes couldn't stay focused and kept drifting; the hangover seemed severe.
I figure it's natural to feel queasy in the morning after drinking alcohol.
But still...
'Seriously, from drinking that... isn't this insane...'
We tried to eat breakfast, but of all things, the main dish was braised short ribs.
Normally I'd think it was great and dig in, but not now.
Fortunately, they had egg soup, so I just carried my soup bowl and sat down with Ji-yeong.
"Is just that... enough for you?"
I sipped the hot broth and felt my stomach settling.
"Ahh... I'll just scavenge some snacks later, whatever."
Then Park Ji-hoon must have woken up too, because he entered the restaurant.
Judging by his appearance, he seemed to have come straight from his morning workout.
He glanced at me, then brought his food over.
"I told you not to drink."
"Shut up..."
"Wow... fuck, do you know I nearly died hauling you around yesterday!!!"
Recalling the previous day... I quietly sighed and said,
"...Haah... I'm sorry."
It had been eventful, in its own way... and with that lingering unease, my final elementary-school field trip came to an end.
At home, the memories from the field trip kept replaying in my head. I sat hunched over, fidgeting with my toenails.
To Dad's eyes, I must have looked pretty gloomy. He approached me slowly.
"Sweetheart, is something wrong...?"
"Haah... no."
"...Is it because Dad... came along on the field trip...?"
I glanced at Dad's face and let out a sigh.
"Jeez... no."
"...Si-yoon..."
Seeing Dad restless and anxious in front of me,
I patted the spot next to me as if to tell him to sit down.
Without a moment's hesitation, Dad sat down beside me.
I laid my head directly on his thigh.
"It's not because of you, Dad."
"Then...?"
"I can't say, but it's not because of you."
Dad, lost in his own thoughts, absently stroked my hair as he worried.
Alpha and Beta climbed up onto the sofa, wagging their tails, asking to be petted too.
I pulled Alpha, who was right in front of me, into my arms.
Alpha squirmed in distress, but didn't extend his claws.
"Is it a worry you can't tell Dad?"
"Yeah."
"It's nothing serious, right?"
"Right."
"Then that's fine. You're a smart girl, so you'll figure it out."
"Of course."
If only it were a problem that could be solved, as Dad said, that would be a relief.
Please... just let me build up even a little tolerance once I'm an adult...
So I can at least drink beer...
God already took my balls... why of all things my alcohol tolerance too... haah...
One more item was added to the list of things God had snatched away from me.
"School tomorrow..."
Dad looked into my eyes.
If I just casually said I didn't want to go, he was the type of dad who wouldn't make me.
"No, I should go to school... I've got nothing else to do anyway."
"Do you want to go on a two-day trip with Dad?"
I glanced at Dad.
"Where to."
"Mm... we could go to Incheon, or the East Sea is fine too."
I thought about the seafood season and answered Dad.
"Should we go to the East Sea and eat some shrimp?"
"Shall we~?"
"Let's do that, then."
The moment I finished speaking, Dad carefully lifted my head, got up, and called the private elementary school to make arrangements.
And the next day, Dad and I set off for the East Sea.
Splash~
Under the blazing sun, I wore a white bucket hat and sunglasses and gazed at the rolling sea.
Splash~
The scent of the ocean, sinking deep into my chest, and the cries of seagulls echoing from afar...
Splash~
The horizon that split the sky and the sea with its sound...
On a sea that looked like a painting you'd only see at an exhibition, I was now on a boat with Dad.
Splash~
With the rocking of the boat, nausea surged up.
Urp!
"A-are you okay...?"
As I clung to the railing and retched, Dad patted my back.
"No... why a boat... haah..."
"You said you wanted to get on..."
From vomiting, my eyes had welled up with tears and my face was flushed red.
"That's not... what I, urp!! Haah... I didn't know I'd get seasick..."
This garbage body that can't even drink gets seasick on top of it.
Remembering the past, I was an idiot to think I could catch a flounder and make some raw fish soup.
Every time the boat lurched, I dry-heaved.
Dad kept patting my back, and I shared a gourmet chum of high-class ingredients with the fish.
"Ugh... I feel like I'm dying..."
"This won't do. I'll tell the captain, let's go back, Si-yoon."
"No, I'm fine... I have to catch the ingredients for the raw fish soup..."
"We can just buy it..."
"I like... fishing too, you know?!"
Dad nodded, as if remembering how I used to fish for carp like a master angler.
The leisurely way I caught fish, skillfully removed the hook, and tossed them back into the water to set them free.
It was hard pretending to be a beginner at first.
With nothing left in my stomach to retch up, I finally felt somewhat alive again.
I pulled my bucket hat down low and looked up at the sky.
'The weather's disgustingly nice...'