Chapter 205

**Title: [White Nongjjugi Menhera Fashion Direct Shoot Run ㄱㄱㄱㄱㄱ]**

‘Deformed Seol-guk giving a middle finger meme’

Are these idiots still falling for it? Hahaha.

**Comments:**

[You have been hit by a lawsuit beam.]

[You bastard, do you want to die?]

[Ah, damn, you really are a piece of shit.]

[I captured this post with PPAP, sorry.]

[These idiots believe a story with not a single photo is real.]

[There are more than a couple of eyewitnesses, and you don’t believe this?]

[That person isn’t mentally ill, so why are they wearing such clothes?]

[Normal people go insane if their gender suddenly changes overnight.]

[It hasn’t even been a year since the change; why are they wearing that kind of outfit?]

[I could wear it in a day.]

[Gay.]

[TS isn’t gay. That’s common sense.]

[It only takes a year for a person to go downhill… lol.]

A sigh escaped me.

These guys truly have not changed at all.

Periodic online exploration had somehow become part of my routine. It wasn’t because I enjoyed such posts, but rather to collect public opinion about myself and to prepare for potential lawsuits. They say that catching things early reduces the chances of such incidents happening later, so it can’t be helped, right?

In truth, there were some moments that were amusing. There were also times when it felt unpleasant, but communities are places that showcase a lot of ridiculous stories, aren’t they? Though I wasn’t actively participating, there were times when just watching was funny.

Perhaps due to the effect of the lawsuits, the previous sexually harassing posts had nearly vanished. I couldn’t monitor every post, but my fans, or perhaps people who just wanted to see someone get wrecked, sent me PDF captures daily, so I could tell that overall, they had significantly decreased.

Why should I browse the community when everyone is sending me stuff?

…Maybe because I might miss something?

Just kidding. The real reason was that ego-searching was a bit fun, and I was curious about the reactions to wearing the clothes of a minefield. Naturally, I didn’t want to hear compliments of being pretty; I was just worried about what people would think.

There were plenty of perverts who liked me to an absurd extent and asked where my photos were, but I could also find the viewpoints of ordinary people.

“If they’re not mentally ill, they wouldn’t wear those clothes.”

“It’s just perverted to wear those kinds of clothes less than a year after becoming a woman.”

I didn’t know how to respond. If I wasn’t mentally ill? The truth is, I had already lost my mind multiple times long ago. Therefore, those kinds of comments struck a chord. In a certain sense, they were right.

But it hasn’t even been a year; such words… hurt a bit. Yeah, it hasn’t been a full year. Within less than a year, I had fallen to such a state. It was exceedingly pathetic. I was curious about what I, a year ago, would think of myself today.

“I am your one-year-later self.”

“Kid, stop mumbling nonsense and get lost.”

Or maybe

“I am your one-year-later self.”

“I’ll come back with a noose.”

Well… at least they wouldn’t hit me. Being lenient with children was one of my few advantages.

In any case, it had yet to be a year.

But what can I do? This past year felt incredibly long.

This year was certainly longer, thicker, and fuller than an ordinary year, whether it was for good or bad.

So I’d like to make an excuse. A year is by no means short.

My year was so long.

~

As much as I tried, I didn’t spend all day glued to the community doing ego-searches. Seol-eun’s serialization was still ongoing. Until now, there were still leftover chapters, but that would soon run out.

I couldn’t just sit around. It was time to focus more.

Most of the people who gathered out of curiosity had left, and only true readers remained. This meant the fluff had dissipated. Of course, the comment section was still filled with odd nonsense.

I wrote all day and checked the date. Then suddenly, a forgotten fact crossed my mind. It was still April, which meant Hwa-won’s birthday was soon. Hwa-won’s birthday was at the end of April.

We didn’t usually celebrate birthdays, of course. Legally, my birthday was marked as the day I was abandoned in the orphanage, so I hated my birthday.

Thus, I had no reason to pay special attention to Hwa-won’s birthday either. We always aimed for a zero-sum relationship. A simple wish of “Happy Birthday” while buying a chicken was enough. Naturally, nothing happened on my birthday. That was within the error range.

There was no sudden urge to give a gift now. As always, I intended to keep things normal. Just wasting a day eating chicken together would be perfect.

It had been about a week since Hwa-won returned from the U.S. I hoped that day would arrive soon.

But time didn’t flow as fast as I wished. It seemed even slower in recent days since neither Eun-a nor Mira, including Ji Kang-hyeon, came to my place. Even though I told them not to come, I didn’t expect them to actually abide by it.

They did have their reasons for not coming.

“I have midterms.”

“I’m busy as usual.”

“I’m free. Can I come over?”

Ji Kang-hyeon, go away, seriously.

Eun-a was facing midterms soon, yet she was wasting time at my house like this. Even if she switched majors, she should be ensuring her grades first; was she confident?

Anyway, I was feeling a bit bored. So after finishing my writing on the computer, I browsed the community again or looked up social issues or online articles.

And soon, I came across an insane article that made my jaw drop.

[‘Actor Ji Kang-hyeon spotted on a date with a mysterious woman again.’]

What? What? What’s this jerk doing again? Is it me? Is it again me? But I never went out with her?! Surprised, I clicked the article without hesitation, and a large, candid photo welcomed me. Ji Kang-hyeon was happily smiling, and next to him stood a woman. Though her face was obscured, I couldn’t miss it. I knew that face all too well, even if not visible.

It was

“Why are you there?”

Seo Eun-a.

~

“Hey, you have midterms!”

“It’s a misunderstanding.”

“I didn’t know you liked younger guys. I thought you were just a plain pervert.”

“It’s a misunderstanding.”

“But you actually have a more normal taste than I expected. I’m impressed, bro. But wait, that’s not it. Ji Kang-hyeon is a minor, so if you touch him, you’ll be in danger…”

“No, that’s not true!!”

I scheduled to meet Eun-a on the day the midterms ended. I could have asked in advance, but I held back thinking that doing so would lessen the fun of teasing her on-site.

And now was exactly that moment.

“So, is it fun? How’s your first love? Is Ji Kang-hyeon treating you well?”

“Ah, I’m telling you, it’s not like that! Damn! We just ran into each other, and suddenly he asked me to hang out, and I got dragged along!! He’s really thoughtless, isn’t he?”

Wow, I haven’t seen Eun-a this annoyed in a long time. It was a delightful sight. I had lived getting teased by her all the time, but now the situation was reversed.

“But if you hate it, why are you smiling in this photo?”

“There’s no face shown, so how can you tell I’m smiling!”

“The corners of your mouth are lifted?!”

“It must be photoshopped! Ah, do you know how much trouble I’m in right now because of this?!”

“Why, he’s still a great catch for a son-in-law.”

This was genuinely amusing. I could understand why she teased me all the time. It felt like a buildup of stale emotions had suddenly released. Revenge was always sweet.

“Ugh… I shouldn’t have deleted the recording.”

“If that recording had still existed, the roles would have been reversed, huh?”

Of course, the recording being mentioned here was the one where I recorded my embarrassing words on the Monopoly game.

If that recording had still been with Eun-a, I wouldn’t have been able to act so confidently now. But since I had already deleted it during a phone check back then, there was no way for Eun-a to stop me.

I thought so.

“I was going to say that.”

“What?”

[I get it… meow. It spins… meow. Damn, it’s a deserted island!]

[If you don’t complete a penalty one more time, the next round is an extension!]

[Where’s that rule?!]

“…I deleted it for sure.”

“I never said there was only one recording, you know.”

“Damn it, hey!”

I lunged to snatch Eun-a’s phone, but before I could take it, she immediately turned off her screen. After I got the phone, the screen was already closed, and I needed to know the pattern to unlock it, which I obviously didn’t.

“Hey, unlock it!”

“I’m sorry for being cheeky, sister. If you say that, I’ll unlock it for you.”

“I won’t say that, damn it!”

I would never do such a thing again. I completely gave up on Eun-a’s phone and grabbed my phone instead. I had a more convenient method.

“What are you doing?”

“Calling a lawyer.”

“Oh, come on! I’ll just keep it to myself, so stop it.”

“You keeping it to yourself is also a problem.”

I didn’t truly call a lawyer, but this would serve as a warning. Of course, the recording itself wasn’t illegal, but I knew from the internet that it could get annoying if I poked at it.

I knew Eun-a wouldn’t really be someone to post something like that. But even if it wasn’t online, there was a chance she would genuinely send it to Hwa-won. That was what I was really worried about.

In the end, I obtained a sworn statement that she would never share it with anyone and likewise got an assurance that she wouldn’t make fun of me anymore.

“By the way, it’s unexpectedly surprising to see you and Ji Kang-hyeon being in a dating rumor.”

“I’m an ordinary person, so it’s fine if I can’t show it to anyone.”

“They’re digging up your personal information online.”

“Truly pitiful trash.”

“You do it too, in the community.”

“It’s a misunderstanding.”

In truth, I had expected the dating rumors to arise. Given that Ji Kang-hyeon was thoughtless in general, it was only a matter of time before it erupted.

And Eun-a wasn’t famous like I was before, nor was she a celebrity. Aside from a single ambiguous photo, there wasn’t really anything. The photo wasn’t even caught in the devil’s angle like when I was kissing before. There was also no evidence of Ji Kang-hyeon dating someone else.

By the time it got to this point, it wasn’t a particularly troubling issue. It was just that a journalist had written a trashy article. Unlike before, I just had to keep my mouth shut, and it would naturally die down.

And ultimately, it wasn’t my problem. I merely had to watch Eun-a suffer and munch on popcorn. I was only a little surprised.

What was surprising was the subject.

I vaguely predicted that if any romantic relationship arose from this, it would involve Ji Kang-hyeon and Mira. They had exchanged phone numbers, and both had some level of affection for each other, and they met earlier than Eun-a.

So if those two were dating, it made sense that rumors would break out.

But in reality, before those two could date, an unexpected twist occurred where Eun-a took that place. Thankfully, they weren’t actually dating, but I did have some concern about whether Mira might be hurt by it.

That worry lingered a bit.