Chapter 20: Doki Doki literary club

“Hmm…”

Before leaving my room, I looked at myself in the full-length mirror my mother had bought for me, knowing my lack of interest in fashion.

The smooth, spotless surface reflected a girl who looked…decent, I thought.

Skinny denim jeans and a bright red hoodie.

A simple outfit, but for me, it was quite dressed up, considering I usually wore sweatpants.

“This should be fine, right?”

I muttered to myself, worried about what people might think.

Even though I was generally indifferent to appearances, I’d been receiving so many comments about my fashion sense lately that I was trying to make an effort.

I smoothed down a stray hair and left my room, heading to my sister’s room next door.

The dreadful weekdays were finally over, and it was the weekend, so I could go anywhere, but I thought it best to let my sister know I was going out.

I stood in front of her door and turned the knob.

A familiar yet strange sound reached my ears.

“Hey, Sis—”

“Ha… haan…”

The voice I heard almost every day, without fail, was now letting out breathless moans.

And a wave of heat emanated from the slightly open door.

I hadn’t understood at first, but after hearing the same sounds a few times, I finally realized what was going on.

My gaze fell on the rhythmically moving back of a chair.

…So, that was what she was doing.

I quietly closed the door and tiptoed away.

I thought I saw a familiar scene on the screen she was watching, but I didn’t have the courage to look closer.

My sister is just human, I told myself, a small comfort.

I quietly slipped out of the house.

Even close family members should respect each other’s privacy.

It was basic etiquette. Now, if you’ll excuse me. Adios.

After about a ten-minute walk, I arrived at the busy shopping district.

The streets were crowded with people, various shops lining the sidewalks.

I looked around, then sat down near the fountain and watched the people passing by, still slightly shocked by what I’d just witnessed

. My sister was watching that kind of thing?

“What are you spacing out for?”

“Huh? Oh, Seon-a. It’s nothing.”

A familiar voice called out to me.

Seon-a approached, a wide smile on her face, her auburn hair catching the sunlight.

Perhaps in anticipation of the approaching summer, she was wearing a unique sleeveless t-shirt with only one sleeve missing and a short high-waisted skirt.

It was quite different from the pure white dress I’d seen her in before, but it was a bright and cheerful look that suited her.

“Let’s go. We have a lot to do today.”

I took her outstretched hand and stood up.

We walked towards the area where the clothing stores were concentrated.

Today was the day we’d promised to go clothes shopping together.

Seon-a, who was always dissatisfied with my lack of feminine clothes besides my school uniform, had arranged this outing.

Of course, I’d initially refused, but Seon-a was persistent.

I knew even the prettiest clothes would look like pearls before swine on me, but she insisted they would look good and dragged me here.

I glanced at her sideways.

She had her arm linked with mine, a bright smile on her face, as if she was enjoying this moment.

It was nice to see her happy. That was all that mattered.

“Let’s go in here first.”

I followed Seon-a into a store.

I glanced at the sign above the entrance, the store’s name written in a strange font.

The glass door opened with a chime.

A salesclerk with a slightly artificial smile greeted us. Seon-a, seemingly used to this kind of atmosphere, confidently walked in and picked out a few clothes, holding them up against me one by one.

“Hmm… I knew you would look good in anything. Hey, Sia, you like black, right?”

“Y-yes.”

“Then try this on first.”

I took the clothes she handed me and went into the fitting room.

Inside the small, square space, I unfolded the clothes.

A mini pleated skirt, a knit crop top and cardigan set. The skirt was black, and the top was white.

It wasn’t bad, but it was a little too revealing for me…

“…I guess I should try it on.”

There was no point in hesitating, considering Seon-a was waiting outside.

I sighed and took off my clothes, revealing my plain underwear.

Even though I was in a fitting room, being in my underwear made me feel self-conscious.

I slowly put on the clothes Seon-a had chosen and looked at myself in the mirror that occupied one side of the wall. My midriff was slightly exposed below the short crop top, and my bare thighs were visible almost halfway down below the short skirt.

Feeling increasingly embarrassed, I fidgeted with the hem of my skirt.

I wasn’t overweight, but I felt like people would laugh if I went outside like this.

“Are you still not done?”

“I’m done. I’m coming out.”

I tried to hide my embarrassment and stepped out.

But I must have looked awkward in the outfit, as Seon-a pressed her lips together as soon as she saw me.

I told you so. Why did you make me wear this?. I lowered my head and fidgeted with my fingers, dreading what she would say.

“Y-you look a little—”

“You look amazing!!”

“Huh?!”

“Quickly, try on the next one!”

Seon-a pushed me back into the fitting room.

Confused, I changed into the next outfit, another revealing one.

But Seon-a exclaimed that it looked good and patted my back hard.

I smiled awkwardly at the unexpected force.

This went on for two hours.

Finally, after trying on a pink dress, Seon-a stopped bringing me new clothes, and I emerged from the fitting room, exhausted like a zombie.

Seon-a, oblivious to my state, walked confidently to the cashier, her arms full of clothes, her face brighter than when we first met.

“I knew it. You look good in anything, Sia. This shopping trip was a success, right?”

I nodded weakly at her enthusiastic question. I tried to say something, but I was too tired.

Seon-a had been unusually energetic, a stark contrast to her usual quiet demeanor.

I didn’t mind seeing this different side of her, but being dragged around for two hours had taken its toll… I couldn’t say I was completely happy about it.

“Excuse me, can I pay…”

“I’ll pay.”

I couldn’t let her pay after she’d picked out the clothes for me.

I stopped her and stepped forward, my exhausted body dragging slightly.

I had brought enough cash, anticipating this, so I wouldn’t mind splurging a little.

I felt relieved that the countless try-ons were finally over. I opened my wallet without hesitation.

But as soon as the cashier told me the total, my hand froze mid-air.

“Since we’re having a sale… with the discount… the total is 682,000 won.”

“Six hundred… what?”

“682,000 won.”

“Oh, that’s cheap.”

I stared at the cashier, her smile still plastered on her face, my own face frozen in shock.

Seon-a, oblivious to my inner turmoil, spoke cheerfully.

Let’s see. 680,000 won… if a fried chicken, which I could barely afford once a week, cost around 16,000 won, that was equivalent to about 40 chickens. Enough to eat chicken for two months straight. It was also equivalent to 80 hours of work at minimum wage.

I knew women’s clothing was expensive, but I’d expected it to be around 300,000 won.

That naive assumption had just been shattered.

What should I do? The cashier’s smile was starting to falter, but I only had 270,000 won.

Wait, let’s change perspectives.

Did I really need to spend 680,000 won? Was there a reason I had to buy all these clothes? No, of course not.

I rarely even wore the clothes my sister bought for me. This would be a pointless splurge. I could just put some of the clothes back…

“Um, can I just get these two…”

“…I’ll pay for everything.”