Chapter 4: To be caught

“Wh-what is this…?”

The marks triggered a flashback to the fox’s sly smile right before I woke up.

“…What the…”

I touched the marks, wondering if they were real or just some redness. They were real.

“…Huh…?”

I checked the time, certain I was awake.

“…Sh*t.”

I was late. Late for school. Damn it.

Tap, tap, tap

“I’m leaving…!”
“Okay~”

I couldn’t miss the subway. That would mean another 30 minutes added to my tardiness. Not good.

“Ugh…!”

Flap, flap

With every stride, my shirt flapped open, revealing the marks. I was so self-conscious. Why was I so embarrassed? It was nothing. Just marks left by a dream creature. Or maybe not…

I just felt… shy. I don’t know.

“Haa… Haa…!”

Screech

I made it just in time.

“…Ugh…”

But I was a mess. My ears and face were burning. The two marks were clearly visible if I didn’t keep my shirt closed properly.

It was like they were screaming, “Look at me! I’m a hickey!”

“…”

Did the fox really do this? Did Mom drop something on my neck? No, this had to be the fox. But how could she, a being from my dreams, affect my real body?

“I heard spirits can influence the real world… But if that were true, wouldn’t more people be complaining…?”

My mind raced, conjuring up unnecessary worries. And I still had Hyeji’s sleepover to deal with after school.

I mumbled to myself, drawing stares. I self-consciously clutched my shirt.

“…Haa…”

There was nothing I could do now. I decided to ask the fox about it later.

“S-sorry I’m late…!”
“Whatever, sit down.”

But as soon as I made eye contact with Hyeji, I remembered the sleepover.

“…Oh.”

I was screwed.

“…”

If they saw these… What would I do? What excuse could I possibly make? How could I explain this without them thinking I had a boyfriend? Would they even believe I was seeing someone? I’m technically a guy.

And what kind of underwear was Hyeji planning to buy me, anyway? Would it be expensive? What should I do, what should I—

Slap

“Semin?”
“Ow…!”

I slapped myself.

Get a grip, Semin.

“N-nothing…!”

I didn’t really need to attend school anymore. I’d finished the CSATs. All I needed to do was fulfill the attendance requirement. School was just… a place to hang out now. But a promise is a promise, and I was always punctual.

“Semin’s got good manners. Look at you all… And that guy’s sleeping.”
“Hey, wake up.”

That was the general vibe of our class. Maybe that’s why I was so strict about being on time.

Bell

“Semin~”
“Y-yes…!”

Lost in thought, I hadn’t even heard the bell. Hyeji’s voice snapped me back to reality.

“Don’t forget about tonight~”
“Y-yes…”

There was something menacing in her voice. A tone I’d always found a little scary. She was pretty, but intimidating. I’d kept my shirt buttoned up, so the marks should be hidden.

“Good, good~”

Hyeji seemed satisfied with my nervous reply. She perched on my desk.

“What do you think of this?”
“Huh…?”

She showed me something on her phone.

“…M-me?! “

It was lingerie.

“Yeah, yeah~ I think it would look good on you~!”
“Are you crazy…?”

I vehemently refused.

“What~? Come on, Semin~! As a woman, you have to try these things at least once!”
“R-really…?”

Her sweet voice almost swayed me, my mind still racing, but…

“No! No way! I’m not wearing that!”
“Fine, be that way.”

I managed to regain my composure and firmly declined.

“Still clinging to your masculinity, I see…”
“Huh?”

I heard her menacing mutter.

“I’ll make a woman out of you tonight.”
“Wh-what are you talking about…”

I scooted my chair back, trying to create some distance, but…

“Heehee~ Where do you think you’re going~?”
“Go away…!”

She tried to sit on my lap.

Bell

“…Seriously, the timing…”
“…”

The bell rang, saving me just in time.

“Class is starting~”
“You’re dead tonight.”

I couldn’t resist her teasing. Maybe that’s why I suffered the consequences later.

Tap, tap

“Where should we go? The department store~?”
“I don’t have any money!”
“….. Too expensive!”
“………………”

The chaotic school day finally ended.

 

“…”

This was torture. Taeyeon kept throwing her arm around my shoulders, oblivious, her hand brushing against my collar. Yura kept glancing at me. It didn’t seem like she noticed anything, but she seemed to sense a change in me. Hyeji kept talking about lingerie. I was going to lose it.

What if they saw the marks?

“What do you think, Taeyeon?”
“Hmm~!”

Hyeji’s question diverted Taeyeon’s attention, and I was finally free to readjust my collar. But the feeling of unease remained. And why weren’t they asking me what kind of underwear I wanted? Well, I didn’t know where to buy it, either.

Damn it, Semin, focus. You can survive this if you just stay calm.

 

“Welcome~”
“Heehee~ I wonder what would look good on Semin~”

We arrived at the outlet mall and headed straight for the lingerie section. They started picking things out, critiquing each item.

“This one~? Nah… This one?”
“Uh… Um…”

For some reason, I still had no say in the matter.

“Ooh, how about this!”
“Ooh~ Pretty~”

Hyeji held up a particularly frilly piece against me. Taeyeon approved.

Slide

“…”
“Y-Yura, that’s…”

Yura brought over a very… strappy number.

“…”

Thumbs up

With a straight face, she gave her signature thumbs-up.

“No way!”
“Huh?”

Taeyeon grabbed Yura and dragged her away.

Slide

“Okay, now let’s go try these on~!”
“Uh…”

Hyeji handed me a pile of lingerie and pushed me into a curtained fitting room.

“You’ll show us, right?”
“Wh-what are you talking about…?”

Her demands were getting weirder and weirder.

“…”

Thankfully, the final selections weren’t too bad. The material looked comfortable, and they weren’t too revealing. It’s not like I’d be showing my underwear to anyone, anyway.

Click

“Eek!”
“How does it look?!”

As I finished getting dressed, Hyeji poked her head through the curtains.

“Wh-what are you doing, you perv…!”

I covered my neck, not my body, and yelled at her.

“Aww~ Come on~ It’s just us girls—”
“What are you doing?”

Thwack

Once again, Taeyeon came to my rescue.

“Why~! You want to see too, don’t you? Honestly, Semin’s body is amazing! Admit it!”
“Hmm… She was a guy until recently, so give her a break~”
“…”

Listening to their conversation, I wondered if this was normal girl talk. It was all so confusing.

“…”

And those two red marks on my neck… I tried not to think about them, but they were constantly on my mind. I felt like everyone was staring at my neck, not the lingerie.

Slide

“I think this one is okay—”

I finally composed myself, changed back into my clothes, buttoned up my shirt, and opened the curtains.

“Oh, really? Then try this one~!”
“And this one!”
“…And this one too.”

Apparently, they weren’t done torturing me. They were waiting with even more lingerie.

“…It’s not like we’re all lesbians…”

I sighed and tried them all on.

“Just… these two…”
“See? They’re the ones I picked! She says they’re the best!”
“You picked all of them…”

I finally chose two sets. Hyeji puffed out her chest, taking all the credit, while Taeyeon pointed out the obvious.

“Heehee~”

Hyeji, unfazed, happily paid for them.

“Huh…?”

I was surprised. She hadn’t said anything about buying them for me.

“Hyeji, I-I can…”

I reached for the card she was handing back to the cashier.

“What are you talking about~? We dragged you here. It’s the least we can do~!”
“…”

I realized Hyeji was actually quite considerate. Or maybe that was a weird thing to say about a friend. She was kind.

“Th-thanks…”

I thanked her and was about to ask what we were doing at her place, but…

“But you have to shower with me tonight~!”
“Are you insane?!”

Hyeji immediately ruined the moment.

“Aww~ Come on~! It’s just us girls~”
“You’re crazy!”

I ignored her fantasizing and…

Slide

“Geez, just ignore her, Semin~”

Taeyeon covered my ears as we left the store with Yura.

“Wait for me~! Take me with you~!”
“You’re such a perv…”
“…Yeah.”

Hyeji, for some reason extremely excited, skipped after us.

Click, beep

“We’re home~!”
“Didn’t your parents say they were going on a business trip today?”

We arrived at Hyeji’s empty house. Taeyeon spoke as we dropped our bags.

“Yep! That’s why I invited you over!”
“Heehee~ Karaoke?”

Hyeji’s house had a karaoke machine in the basement. We grinned, ready to party, and even cracked open some alcohol hidden in the back of the fridge.

“Yay~!”
“…Yay…”

I wasn’t participating in the drinking, though.

“Singing loudly and off-key“

“…Yeah… Yeah…”

I wasn’t the partying type, so I was already drained, sitting lifelessly on the sofa, just waving my arms around. Yura, a completely different person when drunk, was belting out songs like a maniac.

“…Haa… Haaa…”

I was tired. And for some reason, I remembered the fox’s insistent warnings about being with Hyeji.

I couldn’t let them see the marks. I adjusted my collar.

“…”

That’s what I was thinking. That’s what I was thinking…

“Hey, are you asleep?”
“Huh?!”

I must have dozed off. My arm, which I thought I’d been moving, had fallen onto a cushion. My head was lolled to the side, and I was drooling.

“Your mouth is hanging open. You’re passing out before even drinking?”
“Uh… Um…”

Taeyeon, noticing me, covered me with a blanket while the other two continued their revelry.

“…You always got tired easily like this…”
“…Yeah…”

Plop

She sat down next to me, put her arm around my shoulders, and started chatting.

“Just because your gender changed doesn’t mean you changed.”
“…Right…”

She chuckled and continued,

“I was worried you’d become a different person, you know? You were always so popular with everyone.”
“…Really…?”

She pulled me into a hug.

“Ugh…”
“Yeah~! I really like you~!”

She’s drunk. What are these underage kids doing drinking?

Well, I’m not underage anymore.

“More drunken karaoke“
“Ugh…”

Taeyeon suddenly jumped up and joined the other two, jumping around like crazy.

“…”

I was sleepy. I needed to sleep.

Slide

“Huh?”

My shirt was unbuttoned. What? Who did this? Did I undo it in my sleep? I hope no one saw.

Slide, slide

“… “

Whatever. Time to sleep. They’d probably wake up in a couple of hours and want to keep partying.

“…”

I hoped I wouldn’t see the fox tonight. I wondered what she’d say about all this.

Obsessive…

Crazy, right?

But I shouldn’t have fallen asleep there. I should have left.

“…Ugh…”

I woke up to the feeling of someone on top of me. That’s all I could think.

“Huh…?”
“…”

Slide

I was lying on the sofa. I looked around, trying to understand what was happening. The lights and karaoke machine were off. The room was a mess, but the girls were gone. They must have gone upstairs to sleep.

“…”

The air was cold, a chill running through the room, but I didn’t think much of it.

“…Hye… ji…?”
“…….”

Hyeji was straddling me, my shirt wide open, her hand pressing down on my chest.

“What are you…!”

Thump