Chapter 58

The place Ji Kang-hyeon called was a bustling area not too far from his accommodation. Fortunately, it was also not far from my home. About an hour by bus?

Since I couldn’t just invite outsiders to the accommodation, it was necessary to meet outside, which was understandable, so I agreed without much complaint.

Having been outside for two weeks, I naturally couldn’t just go out right away. Ever since that day, for some reason, I felt uncomfortable about seeing my own naked body and almost didn’t wash. Of course, I washed on the days I wet the bed, but after that, I didn’t wash even once.

I quickly took a shower and changed into appropriate casual clothes. Looking in the mirror, I noticed that my hair had grown quite a bit again. I put on a hat that I had gotten used to wearing. Naturally, I tucked my white hair under the hat.

After getting on the bus, I began to feel a little calmer, but I couldn’t help but regret my decision. In reality, it wasn’t as hard as I had expected. Had it really been two weeks? It wasn’t difficult to be out, and I didn’t have any issues encountering other people.

Of course, it was unlikely, but I did worry a little—just a tiny bit—about whether I might run into a man or even an old man and trigger some PTSD like I had read in novels. But that didn’t happen, which made me feel somewhat better. It felt as if such things had truly never happened.

What I regretted didn’t amount to much at all.

It just felt a bit foolish to be going out to entertain a 16-year-old at the age of 28. I was definitely not a typical older person. However, the 12-year age difference made it feel somewhat… well, not right.

But it was like spilled water. I was already on the bus, and Ji Kang-hyeon would be coming to the meeting place. Backtracking at this point would not save my face. I sighed as I looked out the window.

When I arrived at the meeting place, it was past 1 PM. I had skipped breakfast and was planning to have lunch together, so I was starting to get a bit hungry. I looked around, but I couldn’t see Ji Kang-hyeon and sent him a text.

[Where?]

[At the dried persimmon vendor]

After sitting on a bench and waiting for about five minutes, I saw a figure approaching from afar. When I squinted, it looked like it might be Ji Kang-hyeon. The reason I said “might be” was that he was wearing sunglasses and a hat. Was he trying to cover his face as if he were a celebrity? Honestly, it looked ridiculous like a child trying to act grown-up.

Of course, there were certainly middle schoolers who were practically adults already. But as I had mentioned, Ji Kang-hyeon’s appearance seemed that of a typical middle school student, and to be honest, he was on the shorter side. His forced attempts to look like an adult only made him seem even younger and foolish.

… Well, I might have looked younger than Ji Kang-hyeon.

As Ji Kang-hyeon got closer and saw me, he walked over confidently. He must have recognized me easily since I was wearing a large hat.

“Wow, you really came. I’m a little touched.”

“What’s with the sunglasses?”

“If I don’t wear these, people line up to get my autograph.”

“That’s such a terrible sense of style.”

“A 28-year-old uncle is talking about sense.”

He teased me, but he didn’t insist that I take them off. Well, he was indeed a celebrity, and I was in an odd hat, so I had no room to criticize.

“So what are we doing? How are you going to entertain me?”

“Let’s eat first, okay? What do you like? Tteokbokki? Pasta? Mala tang?”

His choices were foolishly obvious, almost like he was teasing me, so I wasn’t even angry.

“Pasta? Let’s just have Gukbap.”

“No, that’s a bit much.”

“What’s wrong with Gukbap?”

“It doesn’t fit the image.”

“Then what do you want?”

“Chicken feet? Gopchang?”

“I’m going home.”

“Ah, just kidding. How about sushi? Sushi?”

Well, sushi was a reasonable and safe choice. The last time I had sushi was with Ham Yejin, but that was already about three weeks ago, so it didn’t really matter. Since it was his birthday, I thought I should probably pay, but going to a high-end sushi place like an omakase would be a bit much. I tried to keep my expression neutral and asked to gauge his thoughts.

“Is there a good place nearby?”

“It doesn’t matter where. Sushi is all pretty much the same.”

I had thought he would naturally want to go to an expensive sushi restaurant since he was a celebrity, but he simply found the nearest sushi place and went in. Was it just my prejudice? It wasn’t cheap enough to warrant complaint, but it was an average-priced sushi restaurant that could be found anywhere.

To avoid a repeat of last time, I asked them to put a little less wasabi in my order. Ji Kang-hyeon, naturally, started teasing me about that until I kicked him under the table, which silenced him.

While waiting for the meal to arrive and during the meal, we exchanged meaningless chatter. Since we weren’t on a blind date or anything, there wasn’t much to say, so I asked what his hobbies were, and he said gaming. Well, that was typical for kids his age.

“What game?”

“LOI.”

“Oh, LOI.”

“Do you play too, uncle?”

“Don’t call me that outside. I just started recently.”

“Do you know that guy?”

“I haven’t even reached max level yet.”

“Then what were you playing before you started LOI?”

“I didn’t play any games before.”

“Really? Not lying?”

“Why would I lie about something like this?”

“You’re really a natural monument, incredible.”

“So what rank are you then?”

“Silver!”

“… What silver?”

“Four.”

“That’s pathetic.”

“Hey, no. I think I’m higher than you, so it’s okay.”

“I’m still not at max level, you know?”

“Honestly, you’re probably bronze based on placement. Want to make a bet?”

“What kind of bet?”

“Are you scared?”

Well… that was roughly the extent of our conversation.

While eating, we decided what to do afterward, and we planned to go to the aquarium nearby after sushi and then go to an internet café. Suggesting to see fish after eating fish was quite ironic, but since it was his birthday, I decided to go along with it.

“Do you like fish?”

“I like whales. I don’t think they have any here, though.”

“I know there’s at least one aquarium in Seoul with dolphins.”

“That’s a bit far.”

It was a short walk to the aquarium. Had he planned to come here from the start? Since it was close to the accommodation, he could easily visit anytime.

“Is this your first time here?”

“I came once when I was young, in the second grade of elementary school, so I don’t really remember. It’s close to my current place, but my original agency moved once, so I never had the chance to come here before.”

“What do you usually do?”

“I just stare at my phone. I don’t go to school much, and since I don’t have many friends here, it’s mostly games and phones, you know? Hyuk-jin is into manga, so I read some of the manga he brings.”

There was nothing strange about watching manga. People who like web novels usually also enjoy manga. I, of course, preferred novels, but I had seen some well-known manga myself.

“What manga?”

“I read a variety, but these days I generally like the trashy ones where characters go to another world and get cheats.”

“… Didn’t you say last time that such genres have literary value?”

“They do, but they’re still trash, aren’t they? Not everything is trash, but to be honest, no matter how you look at it, there are trashy stories. But I like trash. Trash is the best. I want to go to another world too.”

“What would you do in another world?”

To be honest, Ji Kang-hyeon was quite good-looking, being an actor, and since he came from a wealthy family and was already a successful child actor, he probably had a lot of money. I couldn’t understand why a kid like that would be into such things. I didn’t watch those types of manga often, but I knew enough to recognize that this wasn’t the typical genre a kid like him would enjoy.

“Just get cheats, build a harem, have adventures, and go on rampages?”

“You’re the type of person who should never be sent to another world.”

“Why?”

“Morally speaking.”

Our discussion flowed naturally, and before long, we arrived at the aquarium.

I had heard that to write a novel in the past, experiences were important, and I had visited various cultural facilities before. I had gone to see plays, musicals, and operas, as well as visited museums and art galleries. I had naturally been to aquariums as well.

Back then, I usually went alone or with Hwa-won. I had often relied on Hwa-won as I wasn’t in a leisurely position at the time, and since I found leisure afterward, I hadn’t returned. So, in a sense, this aquarium was the first one I was visiting at my own expense.

The entrance fee for the aquarium was more expensive than I had expected, but it wasn’t so outrageous that it would be a problem. It was 30,000 won for children, 34,000 won for teenagers, and 38,000 won for adults.

I handed my card to the ticket booth employee and said, “One adult and one teenager, please.”

However, the employee stared at the faces of Ji Kang-hyeon and me and spoke in a somewhat flustered tone.

“Adult…? Is that correct?”

Ah.

Thinking about it, my appearance was definitely not that of an adult. Ji Kang-hyeon, even with sunglasses, didn’t look even remotely like an adult either.

I didn’t want to pay the teenage fare at my age of 28, but I doubted that anyone would believe me if I insisted that I was an adult. They might believe me if I took off my hat, but of course, that was out of the question. Since it didn’t cost me anything significantly more, I decided to just think positively.

“Oh, no, I misspoke. Two teenagers, please.”

At least I didn’t seem to look like a child, thankfully the employee’s flustered expression disappeared. I could hear Ji Kang-hyeon snickering from behind me. I was contemplating whether to step on his foot as he laughed, but the staff didn’t immediately process our payment and instead hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“Excuse me, we’re currently holding a couple discount event, and if you are a couple, you can receive a 50% discount. Are you a couple?”

“What?”

Pardon?