029 – When I Returned to My Hometown After a Long Time # 3
Being dragged out to speak to a girl was the first time since middle school.
In middle school, the girl who called me was the third prettiest in our class.
I think her name was Kim Mina.
She was kind and always smiling, and all the boys in the class had a slight crush on her.
When I said, “It’s been a while since I ate an orange,” she just laughed.
I thought this was definitely love.
So, when such a girl called me to tell me something, my heart raced.
When I imagined marrying after graduation, Mina said to me like this.
“Hey, Haildo, aren’t you good friends with Yongtae? Does Yongtae have a girlfriend?”
Mina called me because she liked my friend Yongtae. I had tried to connect Yongtae and Mina while holding back tears.
Anyway, this time, being dragged into an alley by the delinquent girl Lee Jin-A felt similar to that moment. I vaguely sensed that it wasn’t anything romantic, but I still felt a flutter of expectation.
So, I asked a little shyly.
“What do you want to tell me?”
What if she says she likes me?
As a guy, I couldn’t help but think that way. Plus, while Jin-A had an intimidating beauty that resembled a wasp, upon closer inspection, she was quite pretty.
If Kim Mina was the third prettiest in class, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say Jin-A held the second prettiest position at the very least.
She might even have been the prettiest in the class.
Jin-A spoke.
“You asked if I was working a part-time job, right? That’s right. I do work part-time. This side is my main job, and the other side is part-time.”
This side must refer to the moving and transportation work, while the other side must involve being an Awakened. It was evident.
Well, it wasn’t a thrilling youth story─I felt a slight bittersweet disappointment and curiosity at the same time.
“Are you working two jobs?”
There were quite a few Awakened who worked two jobs, from F class to D class. While it could be said the tiers for them were low as Awakened, there were many places to call upon them in today’s fifth industrial field.
However, C class was a sufficiently high tier.
From C class onwards, one could earn enough from being an Awakened to support a family, and it was often better in terms of earnings and prospects to dedicate oneself to working as an Awakened.
Jin-A was in C class.
While she didn’t have a friendly demeanor, her skills were sufficient, so there must be many parties that would invite her.
But calling the Awakened job part-time and the other the main job was interesting.
“You seem skilled. Aren’t you thinking of moving up?”
I asked out of pure curiosity.
Then Jin-A kicked a stone lying on the ground, saying,
“I like this job. I enjoy driving. So please keep my Awakened work a secret from the neighborhood adults. Okay? They nag too much.”
So that’s how it was.
I thought there were indeed all kinds of people in this world.
All I could do was nod in agreement.
“Sure.”
What could I do? She asked me to keep it a secret.
However, Jin-A slightly frowned, annoyed.
“I can’t help it. I’m just not at ease.”
“Not at ease? Why?”
“I’ve felt it for a while, but if you have a secret, you look like you’re going to prattle on about it.”
Isn’t that quite an rude thing to say?
But when I thought about it, I wasn’t one to keep secrets well. I had just blurted out everything to Lee Joon-Hun’s younger sibling a little while ago.
Am I really someone who can’t keep secrets?
What a shocking self-reflection!
At that moment, Jin-A raised her index finger.
“Then let’s make a deal. Since my request to keep it a secret is one-sided, I’ll also keep a secret for you. Aren’t you bothered that your mom and dad keep saying you should get married?”
That was true.
The reason I had almost cut off contact with my family was partly due to my own insecurities, but also because every time I called, my dad would ask if I had a girlfriend and told me to get married─those conversations were endless.
It was the same today.
It would continue that way in the future.
“To be honest, you’ve never had a girlfriend, right? Have you ever held a girl’s hand? From the way you put a soccer player’s photo on your Tel-Tok profile, you don’t seem that popular.”
“……”
What’s wrong with a soccer player? Is that not good?
Anyway, her factual attack hurt too much.
Even if I took a direct hit from Lee Joon-Hun’s beam saber, it wouldn’t have left such a grievous wound.
Just as I was about to get angry, Jin-A wrapped her arms around my waist.
“Smile. Pretend to be close. Pretend to be close.”
With lines that felt like they might trigger PTSD, Jin-A brought her face close to mine and snapped a photo with her phone.
It all happened so suddenly that I didn’t have a moment to react.
“Show this photo to your parents and tell them you’re dating me. I’ll pretend to go along with it. Then you can avoid being bothered by the adults asking about various things. Deal?”
So she was going to pretend to be my girlfriend?
I wondered if this deal was really right.
Then Jin-A added.
“Didn’t you say you wanted to move up? You won’t have time to really date or get married. It’ll be hard to keep hearing nagging from your parents every time.”
Still, having to lie about having a girlfriend?
While my conscience pricked at the thought of deceiving my parents, Jin-A touched her phone and then shoved the screen in front of me.
It indicated that she had sent a Tel-Tok message to my mom with the photo we had just taken.
“I told your mom that we’re dating from today.”
“Already!?”
I was thoroughly surprised.
It was true that the owner of the moving company was known for her strong life skills and drive.
After his wife passed away due to an accident, he promptly gathered himself, found a job, raised a family, and managed the store; it was a well-known story in the neighborhood.
His daughters were also strong and headstrong, resembling their father.
“Then I should check if the washing machine installation went well, so I’ll go first. Keep my secret well. If not, I’ll tell your secret too.”
Whoosh.
With that, Jin-A headed into my house.
# # #
“Our Haildo is dating a girlfriend! Should I show you a baby photo of him? I think I still have the album! Let’s see!”
My mom was an overly enthusiastic and expressive person.
She was so exaggerated that whenever I did something slightly better than others, she liked to announce it with banners around the neighborhood.
My mom quickly fetched the album for Jin-A, showing her various photos and seeming immensely pleased.
“This is when he came first in the running at kindergarten.”
I was extremely nervous.
My mom was treating Jin-A, who was pretending to be my girlfriend, way too warmly while chattering annoyingly.
Jin-A, who was usually prickly and cool in the C-class group chat, left me tense, wondering what kind of reaction she would have.
What if she got mad at my mom?
But my worries were in vain.
“She’s cute. Do you have any more pictures?”
Jin-A wasn’t unfriendly or rude in front of adults. Her demeanor resembled the sprightly second daughter of the neighborhood moving company, and I felt a bit of a disconnect.
So that’s why my dad was dying to marry someone like her.
What could the real Jin-A be like?
At that moment, OinOi, who had been deeply focused on Minesweeper, came out angrily to the living room.
“The computer in this house has too many mines…! This OinOi keeps stepping on Nymph-phobic mines and dying…! This OinOi….”
OinOi and Jin-A locked eyes.
Now that I think about it, wasn’t this their first meeting?
I was curious about how OinOi would react to this delinquent girl.
Would she tremble like when she saw Yu Ara and try to hide in her room?
Or would she want to punch Jin-A like when she saw Lee Joon-Hun?
“There’s a girl I haven’t seen before…!”
But OinOi’s reaction was rather bland.
On the contrary, it seemed Jin-A was more flustered.
“…Who’s this?”
“This is Nymph OinOi.”
I quickly explained.
Jin-A then trembled slightly and said, “Nymph….” Upon reflection, Jin-A seemed to have liked Squirrel Beasts.
She would sneak peanuts she hid in her pockets when no one was watching.
Does a chic person like cute things after all?
If so, maybe she would like OinOi as well.
Jin-A said, “I’m Lee Jin-A, Haildo’s girlfriend. Nice to meet you.”
“Ah…, girlfriend!? This OinOi thought you were undoubtedly Core Ye-rim’s home’s girlfriend…! Indeed, the arrows of Eros fly without regard for the rich or poor…!”
“Core Ye-rim? Haildo, who’s Core Ye-rim? Is she a foreigner?”
My dad, who had been listening carefully to Jin-A and my mom’s conversation from the couch, frowned slightly. Feeling ominous, OinOi raised her hand and said.
“Core Ye-rim is a very cool Core…! Just so you know, the term Core refers to a very cute young lady and a virgin of spring, and this blonde lady also has the qualities of a Core…!”
So that’s how it was.
My parents wore expressions of confusion, but they said almost in unison, “I see.”
They do say couples resemble each other.
Soon after, Dad asked.
“What is it, Haildo? Do you have someone else you’re dating? Who is Ye-rim? Is she an ex-girlfriend?”
“No, it’s not like that. What’s it called? Ye-rim is a colleague. You know Seo Ye-rim? She appears in ads and dramas.”
Seo Ye-rim.
Mom gasped at that name.
“Seo Ye-rim! The one who did the water purifier ad! I just switched to that water purifier! The one over there! Oh my gosh, Haildo is working with a celebrity? Shouldn’t we put up a banner!?”
This is exactly why I don’t come back to my hometown often.
I felt that if I stayed any longer, this fire would grow too large to extinguish.
In times like this, the best solution was to retreat.
“I think I should get going. I wanted to see my younger sister’s face, but she’s taking too long. It’s already 5 PM, and she still hasn’t come home. Why is she out so late at just 21 years old? I should set a curfew!”
“Haildo, don’t forget to take some kimchi on your way out!”
With those words, I slipped out of the house.
Soon Jin-A emerged with me.
“Are you heading home? I’ll give you a ride. When pretending to act, you definitely need to ensure adults don’t get suspicious.”
Saying that, Jin-A drove a 1-ton truck.
Vroom-!
It was an old truck that dated back to when manual transmission was the norm, but she skillfully shifted gears with one hand; it clearly wasn’t her first time driving.
OinOi seemed to really enjoy being in the truck, likely because it was her first time.
“This truck is awesome…! I think it would be wonderful to take the Nymph sisters to see the spring flowers in that spacious backseat…!”
I kept imagining bizarre scenes.
While OinOi gazed out the window, Jin-A drove expressionlessly.
She looked like she could get annoyed at any minute.
Could it be that my mom had been too bothersome today?
We continued on in silence for two hours.
When we arrived at the well house, we got stuck in after-work traffic, and it was already 7 PM.
A black electric car parked in front of the yard looked fairly familiar.
Was Seo Ye-rim here?
“Thanks for the ride.”
As I got out of the truck, I thanked Jin-A. If I had taken public transport, it would have taken longer and been tiring.
At that moment, the yard door creaked open, and Seo Ye-rim appeared, frowning.
“Hey, Haildo. Didn’t I tell you to reply quickly when I contact you?”
Oh, did Seo Ye-rim call me?
I thought it would be rude to check my phone while sitting quietly in the passenger seat.
I casually replied to Seo Ye-rim.
“I just came back from my hometown. I didn’t have time to check my phone since I was sitting in the passenger seat.”
“Really? You weren’t driving, so why didn’t you have time to check your phone?”
Seo Ye-rim scrutinized the moving truck with narrowed eyes.
It seemed that the old moving company vehicle was fascinating to the daughter of a wealthy family.
Clunk-.
Just then, Jin-A opened the car door from the driver’s side and stepped out.
The bright blonde hair startled Seo Ye-rim.
“What? It’s a girl?”
Did she think the driver was male because of the truck’s appearance?
Jin-A casually started taking down the boxes of kimchi from the truck bed.
“Here, take the kimchi.”
