episode_0012

“Here’s your meal. Enjoy your food.”

“Yes.”

“Thank you.”

A short while later, the lady from the snack bar brought out the ordered meals. It was tteokbokki, two rolls of kimbap, and pork stir-fry minus the fat. Except for the kimbap to share, it was just enough for each person. No, was it actually a bit too little?

“Isn’t your portion a bit small?”

“Huh? No, not really… This is quite a lot.”

“What? Did you always eat so little?”

I hardly ever saw him eat when he was a guy, but he couldn’t have eaten so little, right? He used to be robust, so he wouldn’t have eaten sparingly.

“Of course, this is how it is. Since I became a girl, my appetite has shrunk.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely. Why would I lie?”

“Well, I thought girls not eating much was just an act.”

“Do I have a reason to act that way with you?”

“Well, no, you don’t.”

What would she gain from acting that way with me? Come to think of it, it was a foolish thing to say. Sometimes, even I got confused because she looked like a girl. Useless words aside, we decided to just eat our meal.

“Darling, I can’t eat anymore.”

“Really? Then I’ll finish it for you.”

However, the conversation from the adjacent table was clearly audible. There sat a couple who seemed rare in this day and age, like a pair of lovebirds.

“Is it really okay? I left a lot.”

“Yes, I can finish it all.”

“Gosh, you’re so reliable.”

…They were like a rare sight in this era. But truth be told, couples like them were probably common in this kind of restaurant. Well, it had nothing to do with us anyway.

“Ugh… I’m so full.”

While thinking of the neighboring couple as an oddity, Park Si-hyun left her tteokbokki uneaten and spoke.

She had left almost more than half of it.

“What’s wrong? You barely ate half of it.”

“I had some kimbap, and now I’m stuffed…”

“Still, you really eat very little.”

“I told you… I can’t eat much. I shouldn’t have ordered so much.”

She looked at the leftover food as if it was a pity. Somehow, she seemed sullen for leaving it behind. Seeing her expression, I was reminded of the couple next to us a little while ago.

“Hey, then I’ll eat some of it.”

“Huh? Really? If it’s because of me, it’s okay.”

“I just wanted to eat more, that’s all.”

Of course not. I even ordered extra pork.

It’s like… I felt like I should do it for no reason.

Park Si-hyun and I aren’t really a couple, but we look like one to others.

So, I’m just doing it to appear like an ordinary couple.

I definitely didn’t want to imitate the lovey-dovey couple at the next table.

“…You seem different from before.”

“What do you mean all of a sudden?”

“Just… You’ve grown taller and you eat well now, and you seem more manly than when we were in school.”

“I don’t find it pleasing to hear those kinds of comments from you.”

“Just saying. Hmph.”

Park Si-hyun continued to gaze at me with a serious expression but a smiling face.

I don’t know why she’s smiling. Is she in a good mood today?

Anyway, I finished my meal roughly. I had to leave some of the pork because I had to eat Park Si-hyun’s portion too.

Instead, I finished the tteokbokki she left.

“Phew, that was good.”

“So, are we splitting the bill?”

“Yeah, that’s what I was going to-”

…Just as I was about to say that, the couple at the next table, who finished their meal before us, were paying their bill.

“Honey, I’ll pay today too.”

“No, I’ll take care of it.”

“But last time, you paid for everything.”

“We had a lovely meal together, so I should be the one paying.”

“Oh, I don’t know.”

Wow… this isn’t easy.

Is this how ordinary couples are supposed to be? That thought crossed my mind briefly.

This almost criminal behavior was witnessed by Park Si-hyun this time.

She also had a bewildered expression.

“…Let me pay instead?”

“No, there’s no need for that.”

“I feel like if I don’t pay, I’ll look like a lousy boyfriend compared to that couple.”

“Don’t worry about those people. Let’s just split the bill.”

“Okay.”

No matter what, that seemed to be going too far.

Come to think of it, when we ordered chicken at home, we always split the bill.

Back then, I didn’t want to seem like I was taking her money while enjoying the food.

Would I do that now, even after all this time?

In the end, we split the bill.

“Now what? Shall we head straight to the gym?”

“What about the afternoon classes?”

“They’re optional anyway.”

The private tutoring center doesn’t push us as hard as the college entrance exam prep centers do.

After all, it’s all about preparing for the national college entrance exam.

Of course, that’s different when the mock exams are approaching, but most of the time it’s more like self-study. In some ways, it’s closer to a study hall than a cram school. That’s why the tuition fee is reasonable. Though, special lectures or advanced classes are a bit different.

“Then… Shall we go? To the gym.”

“Let’s. We can take the bus to the gym.”

“Yeah.”

A little later, they walked along the slightly chilly winter street. As usual, they were walking hand in hand, and they saw couples walking similarly. It was sometimes strange. They wondered if there were so many couples in Korea.

“Hey, isn’t that it?”

“What?”

“The marriage rate for people in their 20s is 7%.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Only 7% of people get married by age 29.”

Upon hearing this, Park Si-hyun looked around. With an incredulous tone, she said, “With so many couples like that? Really?”

“Yeah. But none of them are getting married.”

“They’re all just having sex, right?”

“It seems like they’re only having sex.”

“Wow.”

Park Si-hyun let out a small gasp, looking surprised as she stuck out her tongue. “Why is that? Why do they do everything but not get married?”

“Probably because they don’t have money.”

“Is that so… Mostly because men don’t have money, right?”

“Probably? Men usually earn the money.”

It sounds a bit biased. Even though it has become a dual-income society, after marriage, it’s generally the man who takes responsibility for the livelihood. Just thinking logically, that’s how it is. It’s rare for the woman to be responsible for the livelihood while the man just plays the role of a homemaker.

Ultimately, the reason for not getting married should be seen as being due to money. The economy is tough, making it difficult to earn money, and it’s even harder to get good jobs. Women also don’t want to marry someone with bad conditions. So, even if they were a couple, they either just enjoy the relationship without marrying, or they marry very late.

“What about you?”

“What?”

“Are you going to get married early?”

“I haven’t even entered college yet.”

“That’s true for me too. And my family is wealthy.”

“? So?”

“Just because. Oh, the bus is here.”

After waiting a moment, the bus arrived. It was a relatively quiet time since lunchtime had passed. There were empty seats in the back, so they sat there side by side.

“It’s been a while since I took the bus.”

“When I was in school, I used to take the bus a lot.”

“Back then, I hated taking the bus so much. I really wished I could drive.”

Park Si-hyun raised her hand as if she were holding a steering wheel and said.

It seemed cute, but what she was talking about was the story of how she, as a high school student, wanted to drive a car like a boss.

“Come to think of it, you got your driver’s license too.”

“Yeah… because you dragged me to the driving school, you pervert.”

…I had nothing honest to say to the word “pervert.”

I also got my driver’s license last year, but it wasn’t a planned action; I just thought there wouldn’t be time for it if I didn’t do it then.

Last year, I was determined to retake the exam for another year. Why? Because I only thought about getting revenge on that guy.

In short, I was obsessed with getting back at him.

But that didn’t mean I couldn’t do anything at all, so I got my driver’s license. Last year’s me even took Park Si-hyun to the driving school. And of course, I got my revenge there too.

“You liked it too.”

“When did I? I didn’t like it when we were out, did I?”

“No, I mean when you got your license.”

“Oh, that… yeah.”

As a gesture of goodwill, I made Park Si-hyun take the driving test with me.

This stubborn head barely passed the written test, and I had to teach her a little from the side.

Actually, the driving test wasn’t that difficult, so it wasn’t a big deal, but she was so happy as if she had been accepted to college. Was that the reason?

“Hmm… when should we go for a drive again?”

“Like when we went to the beach before?”

By the way, after getting our licenses, we rented a car and went to the beach.

It was an impulsive decision because it was an incredibly hot summer, and we wanted to go to the cool sea.

At that time, I was in a state of doing everything impulsively. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have gotten my revenge without trying.

“That was nice back then…”

“Yeah, I liked it too. We saw the beach and…”

“We also had sex.”

“We watched fireworks together at night.”

“We also had sex.”

“We ate delicious food.”

“We also had sex.”

“…You perverted jerk.”

Park Si-hyun pouted as if offended by my teasing.

Is she pretending to be cute or is this also a behavior ingrained in girls as they grow up?

Sometimes I don’t know.

“So, are you coming or not?”

“Let’s go. If you can make time. They say taking the exam this year is important.”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

Last year was more important if all I thought about was the exam. If I’m going to do it, retaking it is better than taking it for the third time. There’s also the military issue.

But last year, I couldn’t think of anything else.

If I didn’t seek revenge, there was no way to restore my shattered pride.

If Park Sihyun had stayed the same without becoming a girl, I would have made an extreme choice or lived on with broken memories.

In other words, because of the past year, I am who I am now.

Over the past year, while preying on Park Sihyun, I was able to completely regain my confidence and self-esteem.

In that sense, I suffered the most damage from Park Sihyun, but at the same time, I gained a lot.

“Hey.”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you.”

“Why are you suddenly saying that?”

“Just because. Thank you.”

“?”

Does this stubborn woman know the truth? I’ve never honestly told her.

Actually, it’s strange to be thankful. What reason do I have to be thankful to the main culprit who ruined my three years of high school life?

Am I thankful for turning into a woman? Thankful for being preyed upon like an idiot for a year? I could be thankful in that sense.

But I didn’t feel compelled to say such things.

“Hmm, thank you? Then will you marry me?”

“Yeah.”

“Marry… what?”

“I’ll marry you.”

“Re-really?”

“It’s a joke.”

“Hey, are you kidding?”

“You started the joke first.”

Ironically, now it felt more like being close friends.

Is it because we shared the secret that this guy was originally a man?

Although we’re closer to being sex partners. Sometimes when I see this guy changed, I almost wonder if she was originally female.

Well… even saying that, I feel like I’ve changed.

“Hey, are you sulking?”

“Hmph.”

She really seemed pissed off, Park Sihyun.

No, maybe joking about marriage and all, what the hell.

Well, I did say I’d take responsibility if she got pregnant.

There’s a big difference between that and this, right? It’s not like I meant that intentionally.

…It’s not, right?

“Then I’ll really marry you.”

“Another joke?”

“Really. If you don’t have anyone to take you later.”

“What’s with that ambiguous statement?”

“Because it’s something I don’t know.”

It’s still something I don’t know.

Neither I nor this guy may always be together.

The future is unknown.

“I’ll go to college, join the military, get a job, buy a house, and if no one takes you, I’ll marry you.”

“That’s asking for an awful lot of waiting. Wait until then?”

“Yeah.”

“Until then, you won’t date anyone either?”

“Don’t know.”

“You jerk.”

“Yeah, I’m a jerk.”

I am a bad guy indeed.

I, too, filled my self-esteem by trampling on others under the guise of revenge.

“…Keep your promise. If no one takes me until then, you must.”

“Okay.”

Even then, it meant that his life would be pitifully ruined if things remained as they were.

I should take responsibility then.

“Alright, we’re here. Let’s get off quickly.”

“Yeah, let’s go slowly.”

That was the meaning, but somehow, Park Si-hyun seemed a little pleased for some reason.