What’s With That Woman?

"Jia-unnie."

Sahyang called out to me, then bowed from the waist in greeting.

"Thank you for coming with me to the nursing home today. Grandma was so happy I’d made a friend. Thank you so much."

I waved my hands and shook my head at her.

"It was no big deal. And I’m not just pretending to be your friend. I am your friend, so what’s the big deal?"

"...Thank you anyway."

Of course, her parents were alive and well, but my grandparents had passed away when I was young, and my father had passed away too. The way I felt about my mother was probably similar to the way she felt about her grandmother.

"It’s just... I saw myself in her. Anyway, are you keeping in touch with your parents?"

"Oh. Now that I think about it, it’s been quite a while since I contacted them. I should call them soon."

"You should call them often, at least. Maybe send them for a health checkup or something..."

But why, even though I knew all this, had I never done it for my parents?

I sighed and scratched my head.

"You make sure you do."

"...I will!"

We’d had some casual banter during the collab, and judging by her KakaoTalk messages, even the editors thought they could get two or three videos out of it.

"Hey, what kind of food does Kang Shinwoo like?"

"Huh? Oh, is this because of what happened yesterday? No, you don’t have to do that. It’ll be fine~"

I scratched my head at her words.

"Still, damn it. I hit him with a mop and didn’t even properly apologize. I basically said, ‘You were the one in the wrong~’ and all that. I’ve got a conscience too. Acting like that just doesn’t feel right."

At my answer, she nodded slightly as if convinced and replied.

"Maybe inari sushi...? I think he likes sushi and that sort of thing. Shinwoo edits a lot, so... I think he likes food that can be eaten cold, doesn’t get soggy, and can be taken out and eaten one piece at a time."

"Mm, thanks. I can just drop it off at your place, right?"

"Yes. I’ll talk with Grandma a little longer, so you can go ahead! I’ve probably let him know by now, so he should be home."

"Okay."

I left her and wandered around the nearby restaurant district.

'How long has it been since I went out?'

Not walking around near my home, not walking around near my office, and not taking the subway or bus to commute.

Just going for a walk nearby, at ease, without a care... It must’ve been almost three years.

It was 1:30, and early to mid-July.

Back when I’d graduated high school and was taking another shot at the college entrance exam, the neighborhood where I lived had more bars and places serving drinking snacks than restaurants. Instead of studying at the study room near home, I studied at the library.

Back then, if I wanted a good meal, I’d walk twenty or thirty minutes to the academy district and eat there.

If I left sometime between one and two, I’d get to the academy district around one-thirty or two-thirty. By then, office workers’ lunch breaks were over, and the streets were quiet.

The warm streets, sunlight pouring down, shadows falling from the buildings.

On those streets, where there were more residents than students walking by, I ate all kinds of meals.

Because it was so bright outside, the restaurant interior seemed dark by comparison.

'It’s been a while.'

Growl. Since I hadn’t eaten lunch, my stomach growled.

In weather this hot, food would spoil quickly if you left it sitting out even for a little while.

Thinking that, I went into one of the restaurants.

When I sat at a table where I could be alone in peace, a cheerful-looking server approached me with a smile.

"Um... one chicken kalguksu."

"Coming right up~"

Kalguksu. Just hearing the word brought back memories, soft and hazy.

There weren’t many bookstores near my house, so to get to one, I’d have to go to the academy district, visit a neighborhood one or two subway stops away, or take the subway a long way to Kyobo Book Centre.

Whenever I went to Kyobo Book Centre, I always stopped at the food court. They had ramen, tteokbokki, dumplings, and all kinds of food, but of them all, I always picked kalguksu.

Clam-and-chicken kalguksu. It was always what I ordered.

I closed my eyes, thinking about that food, and before I knew it, a bowl of kalguksu had appeared in front of me.

Kimchi sat in one big piece in a clear plastic container. They expected you to cut it yourself with a little pair of tongs and small scissors.

"Haaap."

I put a piece of the cut kimchi in my mouth and chewed.

'Store-bought.'

Well, I hadn’t expected anything special.

Slurp.

"Still, well, *smack*, it’s good."

I shoved an enormous mouthful of noodles into my mouth and chewed away.

'Mm, there’s a lot of chicken too.'

I always ordered delivery at home, so it felt different to eat hot food fresh from the kitchen at a restaurant.

Anyway, I’d seen people online saying they generally hated it when people slurped noodles loudly and kept at it.

Even so, feeding the noodles into my mouth one at a time with chopsticks instead of slurping was a really difficult task.

"Ugh."

And maybe because my hair had gotten longer, strands kept getting into my mouth, so I had to tuck my hair behind my ear and keep eating.

Also, maybe my mouth had gotten smaller too, because even kimchi pieces I could’ve shoved in whole with a big bite before now had to be halved or quartered to chew with the noodles.

'This is so fucking inconvenient.'

Then, suddenly, I felt someone’s gaze from somewhere.

I turned my head slightly and saw a few guys who looked like college students staring at me.

"Damn, she’s gorgeous."

"Hey, go ask for her number."

"Are you insane? You go."

They seemed to be talking about me.

In other words, they saw me as a 'potential girlfriend.'

After finishing the noodles and sipping a little broth with my spoon, I paid, then looked over at their table before leaving the restaurant.

The guys were looking at me with expressions that said, 'Why is she looking at me?'

They still had quite a lot of kalguksu left, so they probably wouldn’t be able to follow me.

I smiled sweetly at them, winked, and went outside.

"Hey, hey, she winked at me, right? Right?"

'No, you idiot, she did it at me, fuck. You’re ugly as shit—why would she wink at you?'

"Quit talking shit, you ugly bastards. Of course she winked at me. I’m going to get her number."

The young men who’d received Lee Jia’s wink could only smack their lips as they watched her disappear.

#

'Still, I hit him with a mop. Inari sushi doesn’t seem like enough.'

I opened a delivery app and picked a sushi place nearby with pretty good ratings.

'No special delivery deal, huh.'

There were some decent-looking reviews, so I went inside the restaurant.

"Welcome."

"Can I get this to go? One premium assorted sushi platter, please."

"Sure. Is it just for you?"

"Yes. Just one pair of chopsticks, please."

While waiting for the sushi, I turned on my phone and browsed the internet.

But I kept feeling people’s eyes on me, so I glanced around.

People really were sneaking looks at me.

I checked my hair and clothes in selfie mode to see if anything looked weird or had something on it, but nothing seemed out of place.

'What’s going on?'

Since I didn’t know why they were staring, I forced myself to ignore them and look at my phone.

"Excuse me."

I lifted my head at the voice and saw a guy who looked about college age standing in front of me, fidgeting nervously.

"Yes?"

"Um... it’s just, you’re really, really my type, so could I maybe get your number...?"

"No."

As if I’d give my number to some guy.

"Ah, oh. Okay..."

Maybe I’d been too blunt, because he couldn’t say anything and just went back to his seat, while the other guys glanced at me and seemed to pat him reassuringly.

'Ah, is this why girls go out so often?'

Certainly, if I’d been born a woman and was someone who craved men’s attention, I’d like these advances and stares from men. I’d probably enjoy them.

'What a pain.'

As soon as the sushi was ready, I took it and went straight outside.

Even as I walked down the street, I could feel people’s gazes. I saw several almost comical, almost sad scenes where a man glanced at me and the woman who seemed to be his girlfriend said something to him.

Of course, from the moment I became a woman, I’d looked in the mirror and realized how beautiful my changed appearance was, but I never thought that becoming a woman—and actually being beautiful—would change my life this much.

'Fuck, back when I was a guy, not once did a woman ask for my number, and half of them turned me down when I went up and asked for theirs.'

And even when I did get someone’s number, they’d stop replying after a few days. So in the end, being handsome or pretty really was everything?

Still, it’s not like that’s wrong. Aren’t I a pretty woman now, after all?

Right, let’s try being a little foxy. I need to practice this from now on if I want it to come naturally when I reveal my face later.

"...What?"

Since Sahyang had given me her door code, I opened the door to her house and went inside.

Kang Shinwoo was drying his hair, wearing only a pair of underwear, apparently having just gotten out of the shower.

"Oh, you just got out of the shower? Here, I felt bad about hitting you yesterday, so I picked up an assorted sushi platter from a nearby place. Anyway, I’ll be going now."

Since it would be awkward for both of us to be standing there with him half-naked after a shower, I hurriedly left the sushi and slipped back outside.

Kang Shinwoo stared at the door Lee Jia had left through and muttered.

"...What’s with that woman."