This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 36

“Um…”

What is this?

How did it end up like this?

Even if I want to stay quiet, questions keep bubbling up.

“Hey.”

“…Yes?”

“Which one looks better, this or this?”

That just-received question hit hard.

Holding two tinted things in both hands and asking like this, honestly, the only thought I had when I heard that was:

“Are they really different?”

To my eyes, the one in the left hand and the one in the right looked pretty much the same.

“Are they different?”

So I genuinely wondered and asked, but the response I got felt like I was being asked whether a tiger and a lion were different animals.

“Of course, they’re different. Can’t you tell at a glance?”

“I can’t really tell.”

“First of all, their names are different! This one is Lollipop Pink! And this one is Juicy Coral!”

“Juicy Coral or whatever, I followed you here to buy a scarf and now I’m stuck looking at tints, which makes my heart feel a little juicy.”

Was there not a slight guilty corner in that statement?

Normally, I would have shot back with a rebuttal, but instead, all I could do was subtly turn my head aside and avoid the gaze of the liar standing in front of me.

“Ahem… I think it might be easier to distinguish once applied. Uh… sister!”

“Yes?”

“I want to try applying these two, is that possible?”

“This isn’t a tasting area, it can’t be—”

“Yes, just a moment! I’ll bring you some samples we set aside.”

This actually works.

And it didn’t even take long to prepare.

“I guess these two are selling well these days?”

“Right. It is winter, after all.”

“True…”

What does the fact that it’s winter have to do with those Juicy Corals, anyway?

Cosmetics and all are fine, but I wish they wouldn’t talk about things only they understood, because I can’t make heads or tails of what they’re saying.

“So, your hand.”

“Why my hand?”

“Just give it to me!”

In that situation, being quick to cooperate was the only way to escape this perfume-smelling space as soon as possible, so even though I grumbled internally, I stretched my hand out.

“Alright… look closely…”

What am I supposed to see?

I must have been tilting my head while letting Yoonseo hold my hand.

“Hey, hey…!”

Yoonseo picked up the tint and straight up applied it in a line on my wrist.

“Ah, just stay still for a moment.”

She did it with both of them!

I ended up getting body-painted on my wrist like it was some kind of festival, and I was just dumbfounded.

“Hey, am I a canvas?”

“No, you said you couldn’t tell them apart, right? So? Even now?”

…It honestly looked the same when it was in the bottle, but after applying it, it did seem like there was some distinction.

But do you really need to burn your friend’s wrist just to pick a tint?

“Huh… I’ll endure because I bought you something…”

If it wasn’t for that, I would have totally turned the tables on that shiny forehead.

How about if I just sent a little something to the account now and messed it up real good?

Whether she knew or not that I was stuck in that mindset, Yoonseo was busy scrutinizing my wrist which she’d been holding onto.

Then—

“…Hey.”

“What?”

“Just imagine for a second.”

“For what?”

“Imagine that… you have a girlfriend.”

“And?”

“But that… girlfriend is about to kiss you?”

Well, that’s an interesting hypothetical.

“Hmm… and?”

“What color do you think she’d be wearing on her lips… huh?”

“Out of these two?”

When I asked that, Yoonseo nodded her head while holding a tint in each hand.

“Um… probably this one?”

So after some deliberation, I picked one, and she placed the one I didn’t choose back before heading toward the cash register.

“No way…”

I thought I was needed for a man’s opinion, right?

If so, then why did she ask me in the first place?

While Yoonseo seemed to head toward the register, she was actually gauging Dogun’s reactions via the mirrors scattered around the shop.

*

“Lollipop Pink, huh…”

In front of Dogun, she pretended to choose a different product from what he had picked, but if she really meant to do that, then why would she intentionally put herself in an embarrassing situation by asking for Dogun’s opinion?

The reason she’d acted like that in front of Dogun while pretending to buy something else was purely out of embarrassment.

Moreover, the moment Dogun picked something and dashed for the register, wouldn’t it honestly be too obvious?

Although I wish Dogun would one day realize how I feel, I certainly didn’t want to be ‘caught’ like that.

Unless there was no other option, that was how it was.

“I hope I didn’t stand out too much…?”

In that sense, my recent actions were pretty risky as well, but… it should be fine.

After all, the one involved is Dogun.

He usually has a keen sense of awareness, but in moments like this, he becomes a complete fool, so he probably won’t think much about our previous exchange.

Frustrated by Dogun’s cluelessness, yet somehow relieved as well—was I truly under a spell?

With that thought in mind, I pretended to check out and made my way to the staff with the item I had brought.

“Yes, would you like this wrapped?”

“No, um… I’d like to have… the Lollipop Pink.”

And I said that quietly so that Dogun behind me couldn’t hear, and at first, the employee looked puzzled, but then they nodded knowingly.

Really… if only I had that much insight.

Anyway, after secretly switching out the item without Dogun noticing, I returned to his side, and for some reason, he was intently looking at the cosmetics displayed on the shelf.

“What’s up?”

“Oh, just… I was thinking of buying something to gift as well.”

A gift.

The moment that word slipped from Dogun’s mouth, my heart pounded loudly, but the flutter didn’t last long.

Logically thinking, the only two people Dogun would likely gift cosmetics to would be—

“It couldn’t be… me, right?”

So he must be thinking of getting something for an old lady.

“Are you planning to gift it to the aunt?”

“Yeah.”

“By the way, how is it… when will she be coming back this time?”

Since I was genuinely curious and asked, he returned with a wry smile mixed with a shrug.

“Well… she’s said she will try to get back just in time for the graduation ceremony…”

Maybe it’s because I’ve been deceived too many times by promises of returning after this and that, but he seemed unsure even saying it himself.

So I thought, grinning.

“She… should definitely come this time.”

“…I hope so.”

Seriously, what a foolish girl.

She could have just ended it there, but why delve deeper, ruining the atmosphere that was okay in its own right?

Thanks to that, I was unable to find opportunities to wander around alone with Dogun and stretch our time together.

We were finally alone, and thinking it might end like this, a sigh escaped me in frustration, but what could I do?

Using my talent could bring spilled water back, but once a word is let out, you can’t gather it back.

“Um… should we start looking for scarves…?”

“…Sure.”

As Yoonseo carefully watched Dogun’s mildly downcast expression, surprisingly, Dogun seemed to be unaffected, bearing a look that didn’t match his sulky demeanor.

Yet, it was worth noticing that he feigned being downcast in front of Yoonseo only to escape from the hell of shopping.

“Not a chance!”

No way I’m getting dragged around for more!

Having only went along with that a few times, if I tricked myself three times already, that’s more than welcomed.

So now, it was truly time to fulfill the purpose for which I came to this department store.

Of course, whether that sulky expression was 100% acting, not entirely, because I’m human too, and the thought of being left alone without a single family member to congratulate me at the graduation ceremony made me feel a tad disappointed.

But, so what?

It’s not like they’re not coming intentionally; they are busy.

They’re working hard, probably to support me. So I should understand that.

Of course, the reason I could even think this way was all due to the influence of my first life.

If I had no memory of it?

I might have felt quite grieved even knowing it couldn’t be helped.

Well, in any case…

“Hurry up and choose already.”

“Ah, can you stop rushing me? We just got into the store!”

Those scarves are all pretty much the same, what’s there to choose from…

For me, unless the design is outrageously bizarre, scarves only need to be soft and warm when wrapped around my neck.

But Yoonseo, who was probably still in her sensibly sensitive age, seemed to have many considerations.

From a cute design featuring a character known for its emojis to a standard one with a check pattern, there were a bunch of types lined up for her to touch and bring to her neck.

I took a step back and watched the scene, when suddenly an arrow shot towards me.

“What are you doing?”

“Huh? What?”

“You said you would buy it for me, right?”

“I… did?”

“Then of course, you should help me choose what’s suitable for me too, right?”

I found myself thinking that indeed it was like that, but… to escape this shopping hell one second sooner, I had no choice but to cooperate.

So while I pretended to help her choose, she exclaimed—

“…Hey.”

“Yeah?”

“What about this one…?”

Among many choices, she seemed to be drawn to the red one with brown patterns as she carefully put it around her neck and asked me.

“Hmm… that’s not bad.”

“Ah, don’t just answer vaguely!”

“No, really, I think it looks good. It suits you.”

There’s a saying that fashion is completed with the face, and it’s true.

Even if you wear the worst clothes, if your looks are on point, you’ll pull it off decently.

From that perspective, while it may be a little bold, Yoonseo, with her cute face, suited pretty much everything.

“…Really?”

“Yes, I mean it! So let’s go with this one. Let’s see… the price is just right too!”

Though I said that, truthfully it was a bit more expensive than I had in mind.

Nonetheless, considering it a ticket that could help me escape this hell of shopping, it wasn’t a bad price at all.

“Then let’s get this one…”

“You’re serious? Okay. Just wait, I’ll be right back with the payment.”

Finally, I was able to escape the so-called hell of the department store by gifting Yoonseo a red scarf that felt eerily familiar.

And time passed again… the last day I could spend as a middle school student had arrived.