A place where unreasonable parents throw away their concepts, but send their children there first.
The maximum enemy of living expenses, which reportedly siphons hundreds of thousands to millions every month, is the cram school.
It’s a bit concerning that the conversation after a long time is about money…
“I had to say it at some point.”
“Go into your room and wait.”
With a perfect timing to bring up the money topic, I decided to have a serious conversation.
There isn’t much needed for a serious chat.
One bankbook with consistent deposit records is enough.
Among the two stacked bankbooks, the one at the bottom is the paper bankbook.
I picked it up with my thumb and index finger and gracefully headed to Shiyeon’s room.
After entering the room, I sat across from Shiyeon, who was sitting on the floor, and handed her the bankbook.
The bankbook passed directly into Shiyeon’s hands.
“Open it.”
Right after I finished speaking, I heard the sound of stiff paper turning about three times.
The nine-digit number stamped on the bankbook, showing an amount close to 500 million.
For students around the same age, it’s an amount that they couldn’t even imagine holding in their hands.
Even for Shiyeon, her eyes widened in surprise.
The huge sum of money in her hands came at the moment she realized the value of several tens of thousands.
“What, what is this money…?”
“It’s the money you earned as a magical girl after leaving the orphanage.”
I pointed firmly with my index finger at the direction in front of me in response to Shiyeon’s question.
Whether she goes to a study academy or a piano academy, it doesn’t matter.
Since the smartphone bills and living expenses come out of my account, if there’s anything else she wants or needs, she can use that bankbook.
“I was going to tell you as soon as you entered middle school…”
Originally, I was supposed to discuss money-related matters as soon as she started middle school…
I added that I had missed the timing, and that’s why I’m explaining it now.
Still not believing the amount, Shiyeon, holding the bankbook, was staring blankly at it.
“Is this really my money?”
“Yes, you need to use it sparingly. Earning money is hard, but it goes out really quickly, so I’ll get you a check card soon.”
Having said everything that needed to be said, I decided to get up and return to my room.
By the way, what kind of academy is it? Piano? Computer? Or just a study academy?
I don’t know what type of academy she plans to attend, but she chooses it because she wants to, so it’s not my place to pry.
Just as I lifted my butt off the floor.
“…Ah.”
Perhaps she still had something to say, as I noticed Shiyeon seemed to be trying to speak.
“Huh?”
With my steps momentarily stopping, no words came back.
An awkward sound hung in the air, so I concluded I must have misheard, and resumed walking.
Our conversations grew increasingly sparse.
Well, isn’t this the normal state of sisterhood?
If I think about the typical relationships between sisters and brothers that circulate on the internet, it might even make more sense.
Even if we send messages on messenger apps, it’s basic not to read them, and every time we meet, we bicker like we’re enemies.
Compared to those kinds of angry relationships, at least when we send messages on messenger apps, we get a response.
[Photo sent.]
As I fiddled with my smartphone, a new message notification slid down from the top of the screen.
‘Huh?’
But it didn’t stop there; a flood of messages quickly filled the screen.
[Photo sent.]
[Photo sent.]
Before I could check the first message, a barrage of messages arrived.
‘Who is it?’
Urgently tapping on the deluge of message notifications, I found the conversation filled with one-on-one chat windows.
The name written there was Anne/Tiara.
The conversation was filled with photos of familiar suited uncles and one foreigner oddly wedged in.
Where on earth had she been roaming around for the past few days? Each photo taken in front of various cultural heritage sites seemed endless as I scrolled down.
Even without replying, her messages filling the screen felt overwhelming.
[I’m discovering good sources in Korea!!!]
The last photo and message that appeared in the chat window showed Ms. Anne holding a large green container of ssamjang with a delighted expression.
I’ve seen videos that say foreigners go crazy when they grilled meat and dip it into ssamjang, and she seemed no exception.
[Be careful going back.]
After leaving a message, the “1” notification disappeared.
Where could she possibly be that she’s staring at her smartphone?
Maybe she’s not used to typing in Korean yet, as a short message came up after a brief silence once the notification vanished.
[Goㅁㅇa Wowㅡ]
The message seemed too short for the time spent, and I thought she might be getting help from someone nearby to type in Korean.
Anyway, I’m now free from the American magical girl.
While it’s concerning that I left my contact information, could it be that I’m the only person she knows in Korea?
She’ll probably lose interest after a while.
[Sent 8 photos.]
[I grilled meat Korean-style with my American friend. It’s delicious.]
[Photo sent.]
[I’m heartbroken that there’s no ssamjang.]
[Photo sent.]
[I found ssamjang at the supermarket! It’s a miracle! (emoticon)]
[Photo sent.]
[I found a place selling Korean food. I’m really happy.]
‘Ha.’
…It was a time I thought of.
Whenever something connects to Korea in daily life, Ms. Anne sends a bundle of photos and her impressions.
Sending a reply too short seems insincere, but if I send a long reply, I can’t think of anything else to say.
“Did you eat well? That’s too bad, right? That’s good, right?”
I don’t know why I’m having to think about these responses, but this time I decided to change it up a bit and sent a longer message: ‘You must be able to feel the taste of Korea even in America :)’
[It’s a bit different from the taste I had in Korea, but it’s really delicious! :)]
With the conversation sufficiently wrapped up, I turned off the smartphone screen.
Finishing the exhausting chat on my way home and walking leisurely homeward.
Taehyun, who was matching my pace, cautiously asked.
“Who are you texting so much?”
I had been typing so much that my steps had slowed down, and I wondered if I should have just walked ahead.
I slightly lifted my head from being bent over my smartphone and replied.
“An acquaintance from abroad.”
Matching my speed, Taehyun widened his stride.
Today, our group had been blown off by the others who claimed to be busy with academies.
Unlike Shiyeon, who decided to go to the academy on her own, they were just sent by their parents, and it didn’t matter if they resisted.
Interestingly, Taehyun was different.
Though he looked like the most studious among the three guys, he had no intention of going to an academy at all.
“Why aren’t you going to an academy?”
“Why waste money on an academy?”
He was the type who studies on his own.
His grades are decent, at least in the upper middle range.
And since he doesn’t have highly educational parents, he leads a quite free life among middle school students in Korea.
Just as we were nearly at the apartment, he spoke up.
“Do you want to have dinner at my house today?”
An enticing offer.
There’s hardly any reason to go straight home, and the food made at home has become repetitive lately.
Is it a mother’s touch?
Since I had met his mom at his 17th-floor apartment when I happened to visit, I had been dropping by occasionally.
Of course, I was there for home-cooked meals.
“Hmm, what’s for dinner?”
“I don’t know, should I call my mom?”
“Go ahead.”
Taehyun tapped his smartphone in time with the signal and called his mom.
His mom’s high voice rang out from the smartphone speaker, reaching us even though we were quite far from the speaker.
“Hello, Mom, what’s for dinner today?”
“…!! …!”
“Oh, stir-fried pork? Is Mary coming too?”
So, it seems dinner at Taehyun’s place would be stir-fried pork.
The food at Taehyun’s house, which is adjusted to a mild flavor, suits both my and Shiyeon’s taste.
When it’s stir-fried pork, you can fill a spoon with the red-flecked sauce and well-marinated onion and carrot pieces on top of white rice, and when you take a bite…
Ah, I’m already salivating.
“…! …!!”
“Oh, you’ll make it quickly? Hurry up and bring me over? Alright-”
After exchanging light words with his mom, Taehyun hung up.
A characteristic of guys—there’s never a call that lasts more than 30 seconds.
After his call ended, we headed into the elevator.
The elevator went straight up without stopping at the fourth floor, beginning its ascent to the 17th.
Ding, with the announcement of “17th floor,” the doors opened, and I followed Taehyun as we entered someone else’s house.
“Mary, are you here? Come in quickly! Just sit on the sofa and watch TV!”
“Ah, okay…”
“Taehyun, bring the bowls and spoons over first.”
No matter how many times I encounter it, the enthusiastic welcome of his mom feels a bit awkward.
Having told Taehyun to bring the bowls and spoons to the table, she rushed to greet us and headed back to the kitchen.
The rich and sweet-spicy aroma of stir-fried pork wafted through the air.
Though I felt a bit shy, if I tried to help, his mom would be startled, so I patiently sat on the sofa in front of the TV waiting for dinner to be ready.
The TV continued to show a drama whose title and content I didn’t know.
It was a bizarre scene where a strange lady brought a container of kimchi to an office and faced a suited man.
“What the…?”
I had no idea what had previously transpired, but the actress, a lady, pulled out some kimchi from the container and splattered it on the man.
‘No matter how it’s a drama, can that be real?’
I wasn’t particularly interested in the drama, so I picked up the remote lying limply on the sofa and changed the channel.
Somehow, Taehyun, who had already set the bowls and spoons on the table, had quietly approached behind the sofa to watch the TV with me.
“What are you watching?”
“The news.”
What was playing was the 5 PM news.
“Next story. Recently, the American magical girl ‘Tiara’ has captured great interest with the news of her visiting Korea.”
What was on the news was Ms. Anne, the foreign magical girl who had just returned to America.
I suppose that in her neighborhood, everyone knows who each magical girl is, which is why she can appear on public broadcasting news like this.
I thought it was just a typical article about a foreign magical girl, but…
“She posted a photo on her SNS community, saying she made good friends in Korea.”
“Huh?”
The issue was the subsequent screen transition.
The problematic photo displayed on the screen was enough to make Taehyun, who had been quietly watching from behind me, blurt out something in disbelief.
Ms. Anne, transformed into Tiara, alongside the picture of me before transforming—appeared directly on the news screen.
‘No way, this is crazy.’
…Without even a mosaic on my face.
