“Actually, if you think about it, don’t I have two birthdays?”
“Huh?”
“March 15th and April 9th. So please make sure to double the gifts next year!”
“Are you out of your mind? Give me back the gift.”
“Taking back gifts is cheating!”
Adela hugged the gift box tightly and turned her body around.
Rugged turn.
Is it that her body has shrunk and her mental age has become younger too, or was she always like this? Sighs just come out.
She scratched the wrapping paper with her nails and finally opened the box’s lid.
“Wow, is this for real?”
I hesitated briefly to answer because I couldn’t tell what Adela meant.
“It’s not a fake.”
“I mean, is it really for me?”
“Yeah, I thought it might come in handy soon, so I picked it up. Use it as a bag when you go to school.”
In Adela’s hand was a very simple design of a black messenger bag.
“Isn’t this limited edition? It must be expensive… Wow, Unni, look at this, it’s so cute!”
Her cheeks were about to burst as Adela held the bag in the light.
On the part she pointed with her finger was a picture.
A black mouse wearing red pants and yellow shoes was lying on a fluffy cloud, looking down at the Earth.
“Wow! Now even if I drift on an uninhabited island, I won’t have to worry. If I draw something like Mickey Mouse, he’ll just come find me!”
It was a trendy Prada Disney collaboration making waves among high school students.
This product had made its way into Korea’s proud lineup of back-breaking prices without bloodshed.
Adults were always critical of this luxury culture, but surely they should also look through the eyes of teenagers.
Just like the way parents differentiate people based on wealth, education, jobs, salaries, and residences, kids form their own classes based on cosmetics, clothing, bags, and IT devices.
After all, that’s all they can see right now.
This practice isn’t something that happens only in modern times; it’s a very natural human trait that transcends time and place.
The Middle Ages might have been even worse.
While one might face social isolation in Korea, in the medieval social scene, simply wearing the wrong dress code could ruin a family business.
There’s no doubt that it’s very wrong.
But at least it was a gift given with the hope that Adela wouldn’t fall victim to such discriminatory views.
“Hehe, thanks. I’ll cherish it.”
“Just to be safe, I’m saying this.”
“Yeah?”
“If I hear that you bullied other friends at school, I will lock you in a capsule forever.”
“Gasp…!”
“If you don’t want to lose the body you worked so hard to get, act properly. Got it?”
“Yes! I’ll remember!”
Adela saluted sharply.
Well, I guess Adela isn’t the type to act like that, so I’m not too worried.
In fact, her social skills might be much better than mine.
“Brush your hair, Adela. I’ll help you dye it.”
“With ID, name, birthday gift, and dyeing, today is going to be a speedy delivery? At this rate, we might even end up having a baby!”
“… That joke isn’t funny at all?”
“Haha! Look who’s shy. Wait, Na-me Unni, I’ll go wash up!”
Adela quickly took off her white T-shirt.
Whoosh.
Actually, before she could properly throw it off, I used my two hands to stop her head from popping out.
“Hold on, aren’t you supposed to wash your hair before dyeing?”
“Oh, really? I didn’t know.”
Adela scratched her cheek sheepishly and put her clothes back on.
*
[So, give me some name suggestions. I just can’t think of anything.]
[Cheon Ji-won.]
[Don’t want something so common.]
[Cheon I-seul.]
[That sounds vague and too weak, doesn’t it?]
[Cheon Jin-beom?]
[That’s way too extreme!]
[Cheon Yeop, Cheon Ja-mun, Cheon Won-man, take it slow, Cheon Bang-ji-chuk, Cheon Ri-gil-do-han-geol-bun.]
[I’m feeling more and more distant from being human…]
It wasn’t new, but Na-me really had no sense in naming.
‘Speaking of which, her name itself… how can someone be called NoName Puhup!’
Of course, saying this directly to Na-me would be asking for death, so Adela kept it to herself.
In the end, she was kicked out of the house as retribution for bothering Na-me.
[Here, I’ll give you a card so go to the bakery up front and get whatever cake you want. By the way, I hate sweet potato cake and like chocolate or strawberry cakes.]
[It’s my birthday, why do I have to…]
[If I say go, then go.]
The sun was still hanging high in the western sky.
This should have been an emotional first outing, but it ended up just being a chore.
“Ugh.”
Adela spread her arms wide and took a deep breath.
Looking at the clear sky with not a single cloud made her feel refreshed.
People were out enjoying the short-lived spring weather.
As she exited the apartment complex, the number of people suddenly spiked.
Just-returned high school students, couples poking tteokbokki with toothpicks while walking amicably, and families walking to the mart for groceries.
Adela stood amidst the crowd, absorbing the tangible scenery.
Now she would be a part of this landscape too.
Everyone passing by stole glances at Adela, but didn’t show any further interest.
In shady spots, her nearly black hair sparkled under the sun, turning into a faint orange-brown hue.
Her pupils also shimmered with circles of brown from wearing colored contact lenses.
‘Better hurry up before it gets too late. I don’t want to hear nagging.’
The bakery was located on the left at the very entrance of the main road after leaving the apartment complex.
Holograms sprouting from the floor showed newly released breads.
And with the subtle aroma of baking bread wafting through, Adela’s mouth watered.
She cleared her throat and stepped into the store.
“Welcome!”
The enthusiastic greeting from the female part-timer made Adela jump and tremble.
“Ah, yes, thank you for having me…!”
Where did her confidence from before leaving the house go?
‘Do you say welcome when you’re the customer? Shouldn’t you say hello instead? That would look weird, right?’
Realizing her slip of the tongue made her grimace.
She pretended to look around at the bread, then solidified her resolve and hurried to the cash register.
“How much is this Happy Birthday Fraisier cream cake?”
For an instant, Adela’s vision dimmed.
[One tuna baguette sandwich and, um, one sparkling wine too? How much is it?]
And then an intense nightmare she had forgotten rushed back.
[What do you mean how much?]
The owner, looking like a wooden puppet with no facial changes, and customers spinning around stiff in the store.
In this game world filled with nothing but fakes, she was trapped in an eternal loop.
That terrible nightmare lasted for her every day until she managed to escape the virtual reality.
“Ha… Ha…”
“Excuse me, ma’am?”
Again bright light entered her eyes.
‘Ah, so this is what it feels like to be dizzy.’
Surprised by the sudden onset of dizziness, Adela swept her pounding heart.
“Yes? What did you say earlier?”
“36,000 won. Would you like to have it packaged?”
“Yes, yes.”
“Do you have a discount or a rewards card?”
“Uh? I was going to pay with this…”
Adela, her brain feeling fried, showed her the card Na-me had handed her.
“You have 2,000 points. Would you like to use them?”
“Uh… yes.”
At this point, she didn’t even know what was what but nodded her head up and down automatically.
“How many candles do you need?”
“Candles? Ah, how many did I need…!”
Adela still didn’t have a definitive ID out yet.
Listening, it seemed she was entering 1st Grade, but she couldn’t even determine her exact age.
Feeling she shouldn’t delay any longer, Adela made a request.
“Just give me one for now.”
“Excuse me?”
“No, wait, wait. Please give me plenty for under twenty.”
“Then, I’ll give you two big ones and nine small ones.”
After a series of ups and downs, she was finally able to pick up the birthday cake.
‘Oh, what’s this? It’s nothing remarkable.’
Everything is hard when it’s new after all.
“Huh?”
[Risking my life on salmon – Salmon Special Sushi (24pcs) 35,000]
With an added boost of confidence, Adela entered an unplanned sushi shop as if lured in and swiped Na-me’s card like crazy.
“Boss! I’ll take a lot of salmon sushi! For takeout!”
*
The next morning at dawn, Adela woke up clutching her stomach.
“Ugh… my stomach hurts…”
Adela’s birthday party was grandly held.
However, it seemed she may have overeaten, as her stomach felt bloated and the lower part throbbed like a pressure.
‘Maybe I should just endure it and sleep again.’
Thirty minutes rolled by as she groaned and rolled around in bed.
It was right around the time when the sun was about to rise.
Eventually, Adela dashed out toward the living room and carefully opened Na-me’s door to go inside.
She tiptoed over to the sleeping girl and gently whispered in her ear.
“Sister…”
“…”
“Sister.”
“Umm…”
“I’m really, really sorry for waking you up while you’re sleeping, but do you have something like stomach medicine at home? My stomach hurts so much.”
Na-me turned over, still half asleep, and asked.
Her cute little mouth opened and yawned.
“Yawn… Where does it hurt?”
“Here, my lower stomach.”
“Come here and lie down.”
“Okay.”
Adela burrowed into the blanket.
Thanks to the warm body of a young child, the inside of the blanket became hot.
Na-me spread her daffodil-colored aura thinly on her palm and gently rubbed Adela’s stomach.
“How’s that? Are you feeling better now?”
“Phew. I finally feel a bit better. I should have asked you sooner.”
Poof.
The pain vanished like magic.
‘If I ever get to learn about aura later, I definitely need to make sure to learn this type first.’
I can’t keep depending on Na-me forever.
“Okay? Now go.”
“It’s six in the morning, can’t I just lie here a bit longer? You’re going to take a shower soon anyway.”
“Do whatever… if you want.”
“Hehe. Thanks.”
Adela smiled as she tidied Na-me’s bangs.
In that moment, Na-me’s eyes flew wide open.
“Don’t touch my hair.”
“Oops, sorry! I just wanted to—”
Sleepily.
“What? Are you sleep-talking? Or not?”
It was impossible to fall back asleep after awakening at this ambiguous time.
Eventually fully waking up, Na-me stared at Adela for a long time.
“Adela, did you open the bag I gave you yesterday?”
Shake shake
Adela shook her head.
“No. What was inside?”
“I thought you’d need it by now, so I just bought a large one and put it in there. I figured you were being too carefree.”
“A large one? What kind of large?”
Na-me tilted her head as if asking whether she really didn’t know.
“Do you really think I wouldn’t use it?”
“Not use it? What do you mean by that… Wh… What… Oh!”
Adela stammered, gaining deep realization and struggled to continue her words.
“Ah… No, no! There’s no way! I’ve never even done it once in my life…”
“If you need more pads, just order them online or go to the convenience store in front of you and get some. But you know what they are, right?”
The next day, Adela truly experienced what it was to be a girl.
