Chapter 12
12.
At 9 a.m., as promised, Seong Ji-hoon showed up, though I hadn't wanted him as my personal bodyguard.
“Why are you here so early?”
I snapped at him in an unnecessarily irritated tone.
Seong Ji-hoon looked bewildered, then returned to his usual stern expression.
“You told me to come by 9 a.m., Ms. Ha-won….”
“Did I?”
“Yes, you definitely said that.”
“Did I? I don't remember….”
How's that? Annoying, isn't it?
Makes you want to kill me, right?
But contrary to my expectations, it was hard to find any sign of agitation in him.
I'd been hoping to find even the slightest hint of annoyance so I could pick at him, but this guy was tougher than I'd thought.
“I'm sorry. I must have misheard you.”
Huh, he's just going to admit it?
How much was he being paid to throw away all his pride and dignity?
If I were in his shoes, I'd have cussed him out and spat in his face on the spot.
Well, whatever.
I don't want to waste my energy first thing in the morning.
“We'll leave so we can get to the hospital around 11. You must have had a rough time getting up so early, though.”
“It's all right.”
I'd gotten up early myself just to annoy Seong Ji-hoon, so I was still sleepy.
I went to the kitchen and brewed some capsule coffee.
I made two cups, one for Seong Ji-hoon, and offered him one.
“Have some.”
He blinked, looking surprised.
“What's with that look? Are chaebol not allowed to drink cheap capsule coffee?”
“No, that's not it….”
“Then take it. My arm's about to fall off.”
“Yes, thank you.”
He took the coffee while standing and was about to drink it right there.
“You're so frustrating. Sit here and drink it.”
“I'm fine.”
“Want me to send you off duty right now?”
At that, he hurriedly sat down in one of the chairs at the kitchen island.
I sat across from him, too.
I took a sip of coffee and glanced at Seong Ji-hoon.
‘This guy is quite….’
His face reminded me of my old self.
He was every bit as handsome as I used to be.
He was as tall as I was, and unlike my former slender self, he had a firm, muscular build.
‘Still, for now, this feels more like a competitive drive, a desire to win, between men than romantic feelings.’
Should I be relieved?
Every now and then, feelings I don't understand keep bubbling up out of nowhere.
Lately, I've been getting worried because it seems to be happening more and more often.
I mean, worried that I'll really end up a woman through and through.
Maybe he felt my gaze, because Seong Ji-hoon cleared his throat and looked away.
“How much do you know about me?”
I asked out of the blue.
“Pardon? What do you mean…?”
“Before being assigned to a security detail, you usually look into the person you're protecting, right?”
He looked surprised that I knew that.
Seeing how clearly his emotions showed on his face made him seem a little unsuited to being a bodyguard, but Secretary Shin had said he was practically a rookie, so I could let something like that slide.
“I know that you're the third daughter of Guwon Group's chairman, and….”
“That I have a terrible personality and you should watch out?”
Seong Ji-hoon jumped and waved both hands.
“N-no! Absolutely not. I've never heard anything like that, and I've never thought that, either.”
“They say a strong denial is a confession.”
“Really! I really haven't.”
As expected, his reactions were fun.
Maybe I should tease him a little more?
“All right. Then, after spending a few days with me in person, what do you think?”
“What do you mean?”
“Just… various things. I mean, your impressions of protecting me? Whether it's difficult or not.”
Seong Ji-hoon thought it over for a moment, then answered.
“I don't have much experience yet, but I haven't had any major difficulties protecting you, Ms. Ha-won. You've been considerate in many ways, and honestly, I'm satisfied.”
“I see. Then….”
I tucked my hair behind my ear and leaned forward a little.
“What do you think of me as a woman? Am I pretty?”
Even if I was only doing it to tease him, I'd reached the point where I could say something like this without batting an eye.
Honestly, even after saying it, I was surprised at myself.
His face, which had been impassive until then, seemed to flush slightly.
“Th-that….”
“Pfft, hahahaha!”
I couldn't hold back my laughter any longer.
I pointed at Seong Ji-hoon's face and laughed, clutching my stomach.
“Kikik, that face! Hahaha! You're so funny!”
The way he looked flustered, not knowing what to do, was hilarious.
‘Being pretty really is a woman's weapon.’
I'd felt that plenty even when I was a man, but now that I'd actually become a woman, I understood it for sure.
Any woman who'd ever been told she was even a little pretty must have used her looks as a weapon, deliberately or without even realizing it.
It couldn't be helped.
This was an age when looks ruled everything, after all.
Maybe someday, I'd get to use this face as a weapon, too?
“Then just relax for a while. I'll go wash up and get ready to leave.”
“A-all right.”
One thing that had become easier after turning into a woman was not having to shave.
Strangely, no facial hair grew on my face.
Hair did grow on other parts of my body, though, and I hated the sight of it so much that I shaved it all off.
It was just starting to get warm, and I couldn't go around wearing long sleeves, so I had to shave at least my armpits.
There were downsides along with the upsides.
My hair had gotten so long that washing and drying it took forever.
‘Would it be easier to just go to a salon and have them handle it?’
Even when I was a man, I'd never gone to a salon for my hair or makeup.
Sometimes I'd see the sons and daughters of other conglomerate families, always dressed up, and I couldn't help thinking they were incredibly diligent.
The funny thing was, even after all that effort, they didn't get as much attention as I did.
Since I didn't know how to take care of my hair or skin after becoming a woman, I thought it might not be a bad idea to go to a salon once or twice.
After all that, washing up, drying my hair, and changing clothes took over an hour.
And that was with me trying to hurry.
“Should I just cut my hair short? I should ask Seo Geon-woo.”
Hm?
What did I just say?
Why would I ask him?
I looked in the mirror and slapped one cheek hard.
“No, he's my errand boy. I just want to ask his opinion.”
No one had heard me, and no one had said anything, but I was struggling to justify it to myself.
What was wrong with me?
I was starting to feel like I was going crazy.
“Let's go.”
I came out of the dressing room and spoke to Seong Ji-hoon.
He was already waiting in the hallway between the living room and the front door.
I was wearing a short-sleeved T-shirt and denim skirt I'd bought while shopping with Woo Da-yeon.
It was simple and fairly comfortable.
Maybe I'd used the hair dryer wrong, because my hair was puffed out all over like a lion's mane, which I didn't like, but I didn't know what to do about it.
I hesitated for a moment in front of the mirror by the entrance, then went back inside, grabbed a snapback, and put it on before coming out.
“Why are you staring at me like that?”
“I'm not.”
Why had he been staring at me so intently?
It made me uneasy for no reason.
We went down to the parking garage, and as we headed for my car, I tossed Seong Ji-hoon the keys.
“You can drive, right?”
I wasn't asking whether he had a driver's license.
I was making a little jab at him, reminding him how he'd ridiculously rear-ended my car before.
Contrary to my expectations, he replied with an easy smile.
“Of course. I'll get you there safely.”
“Please do. I don't want to die yet.”
“Don't worry.”
Fortunately(?) there were no traffic accidents on the way to the hospital where Seo Geon-woo was admitted.
I headed for the VIP ward on the eighth floor.
I strode over and flung open the sliding door.
With a bang, Seo Geon-woo, who was packing his things, looked over at me.
‘Damn it, I hadn't seen my errand boy in a while, and now I was actually glad to see him.’
But there was someone else beside him—more precisely, a young-looking girl.
She was looking at me, too.
“I'm here.”
At my brief greeting, Seo Geon-woo immediately smiled.
“Ha-won. What brings you here? Today's my discharge day, anyway.”
“I know. I came to make sure my errand boy doesn't run off.”
“Haha, I see.”
My gaze drifted over to the girl beside Seo Geon-woo.
Our eyes met.
She looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn't remember who she was.
“By the way, who…?”
In the end, unable to hold back my curiosity, I asked first.
“Oh, right. It's been a while since you saw her, Ha-won. Don't you remember? My younger sister, Ha-yoon.”
“Ah!?”
Hearing her name made a light flash in my mind, and a buried memory surfaced.
“That little brat….”
Oh, right. She didn't know I was the former male Jeong Ha-won, who'd changed.
I almost made a mistake.
“It's okay, Ha-won. Ha-yoon knows everything, too.”
What exactly did she know?
Did he go home and blab every little detail to his younger sister?
I felt a little resentful, but I couldn't exactly blow up with his sister there, so I held back.
I glanced behind me.
I was wondering if Seong Ji-hoon had followed me inside.
Fortunately, he seemed to be waiting outside the hospital room.
‘If I heard any weird comments here, things would get complicated.’
I didn't need any more trouble than this.
“Ha-yoon, you should say hello.”
At Seo Geon-woo's words, his younger sister, Seo Ha-yoon, reluctantly gave a little nod.
“Hello.”
A bored expression and insolent attitude.
I didn't like her one bit.
The first time I'd seen her was when I was a freshman in high school, right?
Back then she'd been a cute little girl. Was she in high school now?
Unlike Seo Geon-woo, her eyes were sharp. Overall, she'd grown into a pretty girl without changing drastically from her childhood looks, but it seemed her manners had disappeared.
“Since you heard everything, I don't have to explain all this, right?”
“Yes.”
As if uninterested, she turned away and went back to stuffing her brother's things into a bag.
‘Should I smack her one?’
Seo Geon-woo let out an awkward laugh, apparently a little embarrassed by his sister's behavior.
“Hahaha, she's been like this lately, probably because she's going through puberty. Sorry, Ha-won. Please try to understand.”
“Sigh, all right….”
Ugh.
She was needling me, but I had no choice but to put up with it for now.
I was a twenty-one-year-old adult. I couldn't lose my temper at a high school girl. That's right, exactly.
I, Jeong Ha-won, was not such a classless person.
“Excuse me. If you're not going to help, could you go wait outside? You're distracting me.”
Crack.
Her unexpected words came from a completely unexpected direction and struck my eardrums.
For a moment, I felt the veins in my forehead bulge.
“Hey, Seo Ha-yoon!”
Seo Geon-woo raised his voice, but the sharp glare in Seo Ha-yoon's eyes didn't fade.
“It's fine. Leave her alone.”
I raised a hand to stop him.
‘What an insolent little brat!’
I walked over to Seo Ha-yoon.
She'd only just started high school, but she was about as tall as me.
“What? Are you going to hit me?”
I forced a smile.
“Ha-yoon, you must be confused because I've changed so much. I'm Jeong Ha-won.”
“So?”
“Not ‘so.’ Don't you remember how sweetly you used to talk to your brother and act all cute?”
It was true.
She'd been such a cute, adorable little girl. How could she have gotten this rude in just four years?
“Hmph. I don't care if you're my brother, my sister, or some monster.”
At her words, Seo Geon-woo flared up like an explosion.
“You little punk, what kind of way is that to talk?”
He raised his hand.
I stepped in front of him and grabbed his raised arm.
“Don't.”
Seo Ha-yoon couldn't hold back any longer. She tossed the bag she'd been packing onto the hospital bed and strode out of the room.
“Seo Ha-yoon, get back here!”
I smacked Seo Geon-woo's arm as he shouted after her.
“I told you to stop, you idiot.”
“But the way she talks is too….”
“That's enough. It's fine, so stop and hurry up packing. Have you finished the discharge paperwork?”
“No… I was going to pack up and do it downstairs.”
“Then finish packing. I'll go take care of the paperwork.”
“No, you don't have to….”
“It's fine. I wanted to talk to Ha-yoon, anyway. If I take care of the paperwork too, you can get out sooner.”
Seo Geon-woo's face, which had been angry just moments before, filled with gratitude.
“Don't make that weird face. Take your time and come down.”
I left him with those words and quickly walked out of the hospital room.
As expected, Seong Ji-hoon was guarding the hallway in front of the room like an old tree.
I asked him,
“Where did the girl who just left go?”
“She went toward that elevator.”
I hurried forward and gave Seong Ji-hoon an instruction.
“Don't follow me. Help him finish packing in the room, then come down to the first-floor lobby together.”
“But, Ms. Ha-won!”
“Don't get on my nerves. Do as I say.”
He wasn't completely oblivious.
Perhaps he sensed the bloodlust in my eyes and voice, because he didn't continue.
I hurriedly half-ran to the elevator and got in.
“Ha-yoon. Wait there. Your big brother's going to teach you some manners.”
Or am I her big sister?