Chapter 196

Originally, I had planned to go buy clothes a while ago. I had made arrangements with Kang Hye-won and Hwa-won, and that date was just last week.

However, Hwa-won postponed the promise because something important came up, so I casually replied that I understood. And before the new date we set, there was another uproar in the community.

Hwa-won wasn’t someone who enjoyed the community much, and since there hadn’t been much talk via chat, I thought it might just pass by unnoticed…

“Hey, are you writing something lately?”

Ugh, it came up right away. The moment I got into the car, Hwa-won brought it up instead of greeting me.

Should I deny it and say there’s nothing? I briefly considered that, but Hwa-won would definitely have seen my writing. I just confessed honestly.

“Uh, yeah.”

“What’s the title? What’s it about? Ah, you can drink that.”

Fortunately, Hwa-won didn’t seem to know what my writing was about, so she didn’t bring up any strange topics. I felt relieved inside while holding the sweet iced coffee that Hwa-won seemed to have bought from a café, and we continued our ordinary conversation.

“The title is… um, a secret. I liked fairy tales more than I thought when I was a kid, and I do somewhat enjoy fantasy novels, so I’m writing it happily in that vein.”

“What’s the secret? It’ll come out quickly if you look it up. And I prefer something more grotesque, so I like gothic stuff over fairy tales.”

Fortunately, Hwa-won didn’t seem to have much interest in my writing yet. Maybe she was just busy with her own work at the moment.

“Your taste is too gory.”

“True, it might be a bit much for someone like you.”

“We’re the same age, right?”

Up to that point.

“Yeah, yeah, got it. White kid.”

Pff!!!!

An absurd sound erupted from my mouth as I spat out my coffee. At the same time, Hwa-won screamed in shock.

“What the hell, how can you spit that out?!!”

Naturally, I wasn’t in the right state to answer right away. I was busy coughing.

“Cough! Cough! Ugh…! Ack…”

“Ugh, damn. Are you okay? Should we stop for a moment?”

“I’m fine, don’t… cough.”

Fortunately, I quickly recovered without any serious issues, but the car was a bit messier. Hwa-won clicked her tongue at the sight.

“Ugh, I’ll have to take it out later and dry it separately.”

“I’m sorry…”

“You don’t have to apologize. It happens.”

“You crazy idiot, you’re the one who should apologize.”

Why does she think it’s obvious that I should apologize? She started it, damn it.

“Don’t you see the mess in the car? Do you know how much this car costs?”

“What do I care? You started with the nonsense first, idiot. Damn, what’s with ‘white kid’!”

Neither of us was genuinely mad, but there were some mixed emotions involved.

“You act like a really young kid. It seems your nickname suits you well.”

“Should I spill coffee here?”

“If you do, be prepared to pay for a car wash. This car is expensive.”

“You better prepare to receive a lawsuit.”

So, a bit of a nerve-wracking exchange continued, but eventually we both got tired and sighed, stopping our bickering.

“Sigh.”

“…Do I really look that young?”

I already looked up what ‘kid’ meant, and I know it. But honestly, I don’t think I look young enough to be called that. Of course, I look quite young for my age, but I’m at least 149cm tall. That should be about the average height for a middle school student, right?

“149cm is shorter than the average height of a 6th-grade girl, you fool.”

“…Is that true?”

“Since Hye-won told me, I’m sure.”

Shock. Really, shock. I thought I looked at least like a middle school student, but I actually look shorter than a 6th grader? It felt like taking the red pill in the Matrix. There’s no way this could be reality.

“And you look somewhat youthful, so sometimes you look even younger than your height suggests.”

“That’s a lie….”

“There was a time during your period when I thought you were a real elementary school student.”

“Damn, shut up, please.”

“How does it feel to be Kim Seol-guk, a 5th grader?”

“Do you want me dead?”

Fortunately, Hwa-won didn’t seem to want to die; she just smiled and didn’t tease further. Honestly, I wanted to hit her just for laughing, but it would be dangerous to do that while driving.

“Just let it slide; it’s just a nickname. It’s not a bad nickname anyway. It’s funny, though.”

“It’s pretty bad.”

“I heard you have other nicknames; maybe ask them to call you by those instead.”

“Are there more nicknames?”

I asked with a hint of hope, thinking maybe there’s a more normal one, but reality was harsh.

“I heard they call you Seol-jjuk. Which do you like more between that and the other one?”

“Damn, I’ll sue everyone.”

When I get home today, I’ll immediately contact my lawyer. I’ll ask if there’s any way to sue over this. Even if it turns out to be dismissed, just receiving the lawsuit might make people be more cautious around me. But as soon as I thought that, Hwa-won doused cold water on my hopes.

“That won’t work, right? It’ll probably get dismissed, and then it’ll be certified that it’s okay to call you that.”

“Damn, what am I supposed to do then?!!”

“Giving up would be easier. White kid.”

“Aaaahhh!!”

As soon as I arrived at my destination and got out of the car, I kicked Hwa-won’s shin three times. The caught-off-guard Hwa-won clearly looked hurt, and I felt a bit of frustration release.

~

“Wow, you look pretty today.”

The moment Kang Hye-won saw me, she elongated her words to compliment my outfit. It wasn’t anything special; it was just one of the variations that came up when I decided what to wear with Han-bom and Eun-a before.

It meant a skirt.

While I had said before that I didn’t always wear skirts, and now I wore one again, it might lead to misunderstanding, but there was really no special reason. I had worn it a few times since it suited me quite well, but would I really care that much about what to wear when meeting Hwa-won?

If I wore a skirt just because of my period, that wouldn’t be the case, either. If I was in pain, I wouldn’t have even thought about coming out like this.

The reason I wore a skirt today was just that I wanted to easily change when I bought new clothes. It wasn’t that I couldn’t change into pants, but skirts were definitely more comfortable.

Hwa-won didn’t say anything about my attire, by the way.

The reason I specifically came to buy clothes today was because I couldn’t keep wearing clothes from when Eun-a was young, and it was also to prepare for the approaching summer.

Since last year when I bought clothes from Kang Hye-won, I have always been coming to her for clothes. She gives me a huge discount for being an acquaintance, and after the first time, she prepares good clothes in advance, so there’s no reason for me not to come here.

Even though Kang Hye-won has a habit of elongating her sentences, I got used to it, and it was more comfortable than having someone like Han-bom be excessively clingy.

She hadn’t brought up the modeling question again after I rejected it once.

Both Han-bom and Kang Hye-won have younger siblings, so I wonder why there’s such a difference…

Anyway, I accepted Kang Hye-won’s compliment.

“Thank you.”

“Hehe, you’re not getting shy?”

“I’m used to it.”

Honestly, this wasn’t even a teasing moment, and for someone like Kang Hye-won, it would be a genuinely pure compliment.

“Pretty? Please.”

And then Hwa-won, who still seemed to be feeling her shin, threw in a remark. I immediately tried to kick Hwa-won again, but this time, she adeptly dodged.

“You need to fix that habit of yours, swinging violence around just because of minor things. You might get caught.”

“You make me do things that deserve a hit.”

“You didn’t used to be this way; why have you changed so much…”

Back then, I didn’t use to be like this. There was a reason I hit back whenever Hwa-won or others said nonsense.

In the past, talking would have been enough, and I hardly heard nonsense to begin with. But now, this situation seems too casual, and many people tease since they don’t listen even when I try to communicate.

In the end, all I can do is resort to violence out of necessity. Honestly, it wouldn’t hurt if I hit back anyway.

“Anyway, it doesn’t even hurt, so stop pretending.”

“Hey, a kid’s shin hurts too.”

“I’m not a kid!”

“Okay, okay, Kim Seol-jjuk.”

“Hey!”

Damn, she dodged again.

“You two seem to be having fun.”

Kang Hye-won was looking at us with a strangely satisfied expression. That smile gave me chills, so I stopped targeting Hwa-won’s shin and changed the subject.

“Let’s try some clothes on.”

I still tended to buy clothes based on what Hwa-won and Kang Hye-won picked out for me. For underwear and such, Kang Hye-won usually chose something relatively neutral, while for other clothes, we would pick out decent ones together.

Should I call it a fashion show? When I change clothes and come out, the two would say if it looks good or not. It definitely didn’t seem to start this way at first, but it somehow ended up like this now. It’s a bit embarrassing, but since I’m getting a shopping assistance, I can’t really help it.

…Is it really something I can’t help?

“Hmm, but while our shopping mall clothes are nice, they really lack variation.”

“Really?”

“There are limits to the small-sized clothes. You don’t buy a lot of clothes usually, but I think it would be good to go to a larger store and choose from them.”

That’s right; this wasn’t a specialized children’s clothing store from the beginning, and I was just picking from among regular clothes that had smaller sizes. I had a subtle aversion to children’s clothes regardless of how nice the designs were, so I thought this was sufficient for me.

“That’s true. Should we go check out a bigger store?”

“I have no money.”

“This time we’ll go to a regular place. Something similar to here.”

“I’m fine with this place.”

“Thanks for the suggestion, but larger stores have prettier clothes.”

“I don’t know about that…”

I’m not that keen on deliberately seeking out pretty clothes. It’s fine as long as I can find decent ones among what’s available.

“Just treat it like you’re going for a look around.”

It seems these two want to have a bit more of a fashion show. In the end, I was in a position to receive help. If they want it, I might as well go along with it.

“Okay, let’s do that.”

Damn, I shouldn’t have agreed.