episode_0018

“B-Babo-ya. Do you think I’d be happy to hear that?”

In response to Geonwoo’s words, I retorted with a typical reaction. Naturally, it must have been obvious that I liked it. Not only did my face turn crimson, but the corners of my mouth kept rising.

“I didn’t say I was happy, did I? I just said it’s pretty.”

Geonwoo replied sullenly to my reaction. Even as he said that, he seemed a little embarrassed. Unable to be honest…

Anyway, an inexplicable sense of happiness arose from his remark that I was pretty. No matter how much I tried to suppress it, her happiness was not something I could contain.

“Hmph, then should I buy this outfit?”

“Do as you please.”

“I’ll choose other clothes too.”

“…I’ll wait for you to come out in another outfit.”

“Got it.”

Despite Geonwoo’s sullen reply, I went back into the dressing room feeling strangely elated. Before going in, I had told the salesperson that I would wear the turtleneck sweater that Geonwoo had praised. The talkative salesperson nodded happily.

“How about this?”

“It’s not bad.”

Is this one not pretty?

“What about this one?”

“It’s pretty, isn’t it?”

OK, this one passes.

“How about this?”

“It’s cute, right?”

Seems mediocre.

After that, I repeated coming out of the dressing room, changing clothes like a small fashion show. Among them, I only chose the ones that elicited Geonwoo’s “pretty” response.

Not only the turtleneck that revealed my chest earlier, but also the fox mini dress, two-piece, crop top, leggings, off-shoulder, miniskirt, and so on… Everything Geonwoo called “pretty” were things that felt ‘revealing.’

The quick-witted salesperson soon began recommending only such items. I, too, chose only what Geonwoo found pretty.

“Did you buy everything?”

“Well, this should be enough. I bought a lot, is that okay?”

Having bought various things, it seemed like I spent nearly a million won. I asked if it was really okay, but Geonwoo surprisingly replied dryly.

“Well, let’s say I spent some of this month’s allowance. I don’t have anywhere else to spend it anyway.”

Now that he mentioned “anywhere else,” I felt oddly pleased. It seemed like I didn’t fall under the category of “anywhere else.”

Still, I wanted to respond in some way. Of course, what Gunwoo, the pervert, likes the most is sex, but we can’t do that right now…

“Then I’ll buy you clothes.”

“Huh? That’s not necessary, though?”

“…I want to buy them for you.”

“Well, I guess if you want to… No, then I’ll buy one. I should at least buy one outfit with your money to make it somewhat fair, shouldn’t I?”

Gunwoo seemed like he was going to refuse, but then he smiled as if using my money was better and said, “It’s good to spend my money.” It’s not like I’m stingy with money, but his smile was slightly annoying. Should I just make him dress up like a complete fool and send him out?

“You’ve thought well. If your boyfriend dresses properly, he’ll look like he has wings just from the clothes.”

While thinking that, the clerk swiftly came over to me and said. Originally, I was planning to pick out the clothes myself, but after hearing the clerk’s words, I felt regretful.

But still, this guy, his face is quite handsome and his body has grown quite sturdy. When he was in school, he looked like a nerd…

“Then, would you like me to recommend some clothes?”

“Of course. Here, first, this one…”

I immediately chose clothes with the clerk. Unlike women’s clothes, I could choose men’s clothes with some sense.

“Oh my, you have a good eye. You seem to be choosing men’s clothes well; did you study a lot for your boyfriend?”

I awkwardly laughed at the clerk’s whisper. Actually, it’s not because of that, it’s because I’m a man… I was slightly fluttered by hearing those words, even though it was a small misunderstanding.

It’s not actually like that… Gunwoo wouldn’t have a similar misunderstanding, would he?

“…Hey, come here for a moment.”

“Why?”

“To try on the clothes.”

After choosing for a while, I picked a few items. I called Gunwoo over to try them on. I put the clothes against his chest to see if they suited him or not.

“…Your shoulders are broader than I thought. And you’re quite tall.”

As I did so, I checked Gunwoo’s body again… In fact, I’ve seen his body every time we had sex. It felt like checking it again.

“You were definitely a skinny kid when you were in school.”

“I grew a lot last year. And honestly, it’s probably your fault that I was like that back then. You harassed me so much that I couldn’t grow properly.”

“…Sorry.”

Slightly forced, but there was no denying the fact that I had been tormented. I felt incredibly uneasy. It was the opposite of the happiness I had felt a little while ago, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that Gunwoo might hate me.

“Well, forget it. It’s in the past. Have you picked out your clothes?”

“Yeah. Want to try this on?”

“This is expensive, is it okay?”

“I have money too.”

“Then just get this set. Don’t buy anything else; our luggage will get too heavy.”

“But…”

“Oh, come on, listen to your boyfriend.”

Gunwoo went into the fitting room with only one top and one bottom. The clerk seemed slightly disappointed at not selling more clothes, but since Gunwoo chose the most expensive ones, they seemed somewhat satisfied.

A little while later, Gunwoo came out after changing his clothes.

“Hey, how does it look?”

“……Um?”

“How does it look?”

“That… looks cool.”

After changing his clothes, Gunwoo… really did look cool. I don’t know, it just made my heart flutter as if it had malfunctioned. No, objectively, nothing much had changed, but my heart just raced automatically.

“Is it cool? I’m not sure.”

“Yeah? It looks like that because you chose it. You must know men’s clothing well.”

No, I didn’t expect it to be this good. It seems clothes really do have wings. Or maybe there’s something wrong with my eyes right now.

“Well, let’s finish paying and go. Are you hungry?”

“Um…”

Seemingly a bit bored, Gunwoo quickly finished paying and left the store. Ignoring the overly enthusiastic clerk, we returned to the snow-covered street.

“It’s snowing even more than earlier. It’s really piling up.”

We could already see the snow accumulating on the streets.

“On days like this, we should go eat something warm. There was a hot pot restaurant earlier; let’s go there.”

“Okay… Ah, it’s cold.”

As I followed Gunwoo to the car, a sudden gust of wind blew. My mini skirt and thin turtleneck did little to protect me from the cold, which reached down to my chest.

“Hey, why are you dressed like that in this weather?”

“Why? It’s because of you…”

“Huh? How is it because of me?”

“…I don’t know.”

It’s strange, it’s the clothes you said looked pretty on me.

Pervert… Only likes revealing clothes because they look pretty. They’re so revealing.

“Hey, if you’re cold, wear this.”

As I continued to shiver, Geonwoo took off his coat and handed it to me.

“You must be cold too.”

“I’m fine. I’m a guy.”

“Hmph, are you subtly emphasizing that you’re a man? Are you trying to impress me? Putting on an act?”

“How did you know?”

“You jerk.”

“Yeah, yeah, since I’m a jerk, cover yourself with the coat.”

Grumbling, I put on the coat Geonwoo offered. It was incredibly warm. And… I think I could smell Geonwoo’s scent faintly, even though he just bought the coat.

“Hey, don’t cling to me. It’s hard to walk.”

“Idiot. I’m telling you to keep warm too, you blockhead.”

“Just because you say that, does it make me warm, you stubborn fool? Well, do as you please.”

Geonwoo and I walked along, bickering back and forth. After a while, we arrived at the hot pot restaurant Geonwoo had been eyeing.

“Wow, it’s really crowded.”

“It’s winter. Everyone’s thinking the same thing.”

Certainly seems that way… What should we do? Will there be a table available?

“Welcome, guests. Are you a couple?”

“Yes.”

“Then may I guide you to a table for two?”

“Yes, please.”

Luckily, it seemed there was a table for two available. Normally, regular restaurants don’t have separate tables for two, but in Itaewon, perhaps due to the many couples, they had prepared seating just right for two people.

“There’s a couple discount on the menu here. It’s rare for a hot pot restaurant, isn’t it?”

“Nothing’s impossible. Other restaurants do it, so that’s probably why.”

“That makes sense.”

Sitting at the couple’s table by the window, Geonwoo and I chatted while looking at the menu.

In the midst of our conversation, I suddenly realized something.

Neither Geonwoo nor I were reacting to being treated as a couple by others anymore… We were naturally accepting it without any reaction.

Well, we do fit the bill as a couple. Even if we’re just pretending for the sake of an experiment. And although we agreed to take responsibility if one of us were to get pregnant, it’s still just a fake relationship.

“Hey.”

“Yeah?”

How about stepping outside for a bit?”

“Why are you suddenly asking that?”

“Idiot. Because we’re on a date, how do you feel?”

“A date? What nonsense. I just came to buy clothes.”

“That’s a date, you know.”

“Hmm… a date, huh?”

Come to think of it, except for going to the academy last time and wandering around like this last year, I’ve never had this kind of feeling before. Of course, Geonwoo took me around here and there. But back then, it was kind of weird to call it a date because Geonwoo was just doing that to mock me.

I’ve never bought clothes for myself like today, so is it enough to call it a date?

“This isn’t so bad.”

“Right? Will we do this often from now on?”

“Not every day because of studying.”

“Chi, isn’t having fun with such a pretty girlfriend better than studying?”

“Hey, studying is better. If I’m with you all the time, I’ll get sucked into your weirdness.”

That’s because you’re a pervert.

As we were chatting, the jeongol arrived. It came out with ingredients that looked delicious, ready to be boiled in the pot.

“Wow, looks delicious. I should take a picture.”

“Do you take pictures of food too?”

“What are you talking about, you crazy person.”

“Take a picture and post it somewhere?”

“Of course, on Insta. Don’t you do that?”

“No, I don’t. I didn’t do it at all when I was in school.”

“You’re totally like a loner.”

“That’s only until you came along. But… can I see your Insta?”

At Geonwoo’s request, I showed him my Instagram. After looking at the pictures I posted, he said,

“Hmm… as expected, nothing. Your old self.”

“Yeah, I checked too, but there’s nothing at all. It’s all changed to female… Here, like this.”

“Really. In a girl’s school uniform… You look totally like a girl.”

“Even if you say that…”

I don’t know in what way the power that made me into a girl was achieved. It not only changed other people’s memories, but also things like records and photos.

“To me, it feels uncomfortable, but… others probably wouldn’t feel that discomfort.”

“…Well, they wouldn’t know because they never knew me as a guy.”

“Right. I don’t know who or why someone granted that power, but it was terrifying.”

Geonwoo muttered with a slightly stiff expression. Somehow, that expression seemed to be mixed with guilt and apology. Was it about me, or was it just his own conscience?

I don’t know. Whichever it is, I just hope it wasn’t like that anymore.

“Hey, but you posted a selfie too?”

Suddenly Geonwoo changed the subject.

“Yeah? Oh, well. Just because I was bored…”

“Hmm…”

Geonwoo’s expression twisted slightly. Could he be jealous?

“Why? Are you jealous? Because other guys are looking at my face? Wouldn’t that be nice?”

I teased. Then Geonwoo turned his head.

“No, not to that extent.”

So, there is some truth to that statement?

It seemed to imply that, and I subtly felt good about it.

“Hey, then look at me.”

“Why?”

“Just look.”

I got close to Geonwoo and took a couple shot.

Then I uploaded it on Instagram just like that.

I even wrote something like ‘My boyfriend>_<' there.

"Is this okay?"

"Hey, won't there be hate comments?"

"Let them come. I find it amusing when those jerks do that. It's more annoying when they assume I'm single and make a fuss about it."

"You rascal."

"Hey, it's boiling. Let's eat now."

As we talked, the hot pot started to cook. I enjoyed a pleasant meal and date with Geonwoo.