Chapter 21
"Hello."
Lee Shin-a greeted him first.
Mr. Choi smiled affably and gestured toward the chair opposite him.
"Yes. Have you been well? Please, sit."
-Bow.
Like a proud peacock, Lee Shin-a nodded and took her seat.
While her gaze was lowered, Mr. Choi looked over the curves of her body from head to toe and flicked his tongue like a viper.
But when she sat down and looked straight ahead again, Mr. Choi spoke casually, wearing a serious expression as though nothing had happened.
"Then, shall we get straight to the point?"
"Yes. What were the test results?"
"It's dangerous to leave things as they are."
"D-Dangerous?"
Lee Shin-a's face was filled with shock.
‘Mr. Choi’ said.
"Yes. Based on my analysis of your son over the past two weeks, using what you've told me, he is a relationship-oriented person with high social self-esteem. He also takes unusual pride in his work compared to his peers, and his family environment, friendships, and relationship with his girlfriend were all stable."
Mr. Choi paused to catch his breath.
Lee Shin-a held back the tears rising in her eyes and nodded.
Mr. Choi said.
"Because of that, he will take ‘that incident’ more seriously than other people would. He might even... take his own life-"
-Lurch!
Suddenly, Lee Shin-a rose to her feet.
Her shoulders trembled as tears streamed down her face.
"N-No! My son... My son....!"
"Please, calm down for now. Try to settle yourself..."
Mr. Choi handed her a handkerchief and made her sit down.
Then, while Lee Shin-a's body trembled, he put the kettle on and flicked his tongue with a vile smile.
‘Even that stuck-up bitch loses her head whenever her son comes up.’
Mr. Choi poured hot water into a paper cup and dropped in a green-tea bag.
Then he handed it to Lee Shin-a and spoke.
"Ma'am, this is precisely when you need to remain calm. Please settle down and hear me out to the end."
"Yes.... I'm sorry..."
She looked as though her soul had left her body.
Mr. Choi said.
"I've considered several approaches to treating your son.... First, to prevent him from taking his own life, it would be best to have him admitted to a psychiatric hospital....."
After pausing for a moment, Mr. Choi continued.
"...But that would only be a temporary delay. In fact, it might be even worse for your son's mental health. People with high self-esteem like your son tend to see the very act of someone precious to them trying to send them to a psychiatric hospital as a betrayal."
Lee Shin-a nodded.
It was a perfectly convincing reason.
"The role of the people around him is important at a time like this. In particular, your role is the most important of all."
"M-My role?"
"Yes. I mentioned earlier that your son is relationship-oriented. Because of that, he is strongly influenced by you. After all, you are the de facto head of the household."
Lee Shin-a nodded and fiddled with her hands.
Just as Mr. Choi had said, she was the de facto head of the household.
Her personality was independent and enterprising, whereas her husband's was cooperative and self-sacrificing.
"If you try to approach your son by force at a time like this, he'll reject you. He'll even dislike the act of trying to comfort him. But you can't simply wait for him to recover on his own, either."
Lee Shin-a furrowed her brow and bit her lower lip.
Just as Mr. Choi had said, she had tried to approach her son, but he had rejected her every time, and if she left him like this, he might take his own life.
Then what on earth was she supposed to do?
Just as she began sinking deeper into gloomy thoughts, Mr. Choi said.
"Therefore, you need to change first. And you need to do so somewhat boldly."
"....Yes? I... have to change?"
"Yes. It may sound somewhat absurd, but what's important is that you change first."
"Why?"
"The purpose of the change is simple. It's to make your son focus his attention on you."
"..... Make him... pay attention to me?"
"Yes. Your son is currently obsessively fixated on ‘that incident.’ Even now, he must be relentlessly tormenting himself. Therefore, the first step is to draw his attention toward something outside himself."
"Yes.... I see... What should I change, and how? I still can't quite grasp it...."
"The most effective method is to change your appearance."
"My appearance?"
"Yes. Why don't you enter a fitness competition? You would participate with the goal of winning an award."
".....A fitness competition... What next?"
"You record every step of the process. You could upload it to Instagram, Facebook, or YouTube. Film yourself changing day by day and upload it."
"What effect would that have on my son?"
Mr. Choi briefly gathered his thoughts in response to Lee Shin-a's question.
Eventually, he opened his mouth.
"To break your son's obsessive fixation on ‘that incident,’ you need a stimulus just as strong. Something as significant as your ‘entering a competition.’ Once that fixation is broken, he will be able to temporarily escape the self-loathing that has been eating away at him all day. After that, watching the record of how you change day by day will give him positive stimulation. He may even experience vicarious satisfaction through the comments cheering you on and the attention you receive. As you win an award at the competition and attract even more attention, a desire to re-enter society will begin to take root in him. Your son is naturally enterprising enough to enter a competition himself, so he should be able to reach the stage of re-entering society in no time."
Hope appeared in Lee Shin-a's eyes at Mr. Choi's words.
She nodded repeatedly, feeling passion boiling up in her chest.
If she changed, her son could change too.
She had already steeled herself to do whatever it took.
"All right.... All right! Then... do I register at a gym now?"
"Yes. I'll lay out a plan for you first, so come with me today."
Lee Shin-a's expression showed her surprise.
She said.
"You're... going to help me choose a gym too?"
"Yes. Since my fee is so high, I want to make sure I do this properly. I'll personally oversee every aspect of your program so there won't be any problems, and I want to produce results good enough to satisfy even me. You understand, don't you?"
Lee Shin-a smiled and nodded.
She had felt somewhat uneasy because he was a man from the underworld, but seeing how thoroughly he intended to handle the matter made her trust him.
"Then let's go. I'll carefully check everything, from choosing a fitness center to your schedule going forward."
"Yes."
Lee Shin-a followed him, watching the dependable Mr. Choi's back.
But, ironically, he brought her to a department store.
"Um... why are we here...?"
"I thought we'd pick out some clothes for you."
"C-Clothes?"
"Yes. It's a necessary part of building motivation."
As he said that, Mr. Choi began rifling through the women's clothing section.
Eventually, he picked up a garment, examined it from several angles, then handed it to Lee Shin-a and said.
"I think this will suit you. Try it on."
"This? Right now?"
"Yes."
There wasn't the slightest hesitation on his face.
Lee Shin-a nodded at his persistence and changed clothes in the fitting room.
When she came back out, he smiled and lightly applauded.
"I thought it would suit you. The outfit has found its perfect owner."
"D-Do you really think so?"
Blushing, Lee Shin-a looked in the mirror.
Just as he had said, the outfit fit her perfectly.
He had an extraordinary eye for clothes.
"Oh my~ Ma'am! It suits you so well. Your husband has quite the eye~"
"Ah. I—my husband—"
"How much is it?"
Mr. Choi cut her off and pulled out his card.
The employee smiled brightly and said that would be 260,000 won~, and he handed over his card without hesitation.
"This is my gift to you."
"Ah, I... I can just—"
"You'll be paying far more than this, so accept it for now. We still have things to buy."
There were still more things to buy, and she would have to pay even more?
Lee Shin-a tilted her head in confusion.
Before long, Mr. Choi rummaged through the clothes once more and brought over another outfit.
"This outfit is your goal, ma'am. You'll wear it on the day the competition ends."
"....."
Lee Shin-a's expression turned aghast as she looked at the clothes.
Not only did it look incredibly expensive at a glance, it was also an extremely provocative outfit, with an open back, a plunging neckline, and a hem that was far too short.
"I... I'm supposed to wear this... later?"
"Yes. You can make wearing this outfit your first goal."
"But this outfit... isn't it a little too revealing?"
"Haha. You're rather conservative, ma'am. Think of it as an expression of confidence and pride in your body. People will only respond enthusiastically if you post yourself wearing at least this much on social media, and it will be a great help in drawing your son's attention as well."
The words ‘But I'm a married woman’ rose to her lips, but Lee Shin-a swallowed them.
If it was for her son, what wouldn't she do?
"Then try it on."
"What? I don't think this will fit... I-I should lose some weight first... Ahem... before I wear it..."
"That's exactly why we're doing this—so you can feel the difference for yourself. If it's truly impossible, you can simply come back out in your original clothes."
"Hmm.... Then I'll at least try it on...."
Lee Shin-a entered the fitting room again.
She stripped off the clothes she was wearing and picked up the short dress.