53 – Call me by name (4)

Baek Ah-hee was embarrassed. For a moment, he did not recognize that he was his client. Of course, it wasn’t even a few seconds, it was only a fleeting moment. However, it was true that it had such an impact.

Ribbon, as her mascot so casually said, was not pomade. It was naturally straight hair that fluttered in the wind. Her black-brown hair, neatly cut, was beautiful. The part exposed to the light or sunlight glowed brown, and the rest was a calm black.

The rustling hair that barely touched his eyebrows naturally drew attention to his eyes.

Deep black eyes greeted her. It is an eye that sucks others like the universe into it. The slightly cold-looking eyes and thick, dark eyebrows adorning his eyes made his eyes stand out even more.

When he blinked, Baek Ah-hee looked down as if avoiding something. A clearly angled lower official greeted her. It was neat. Whitish beard marks were visible, but they were not at the level of being called scars.

It was a normal level of management. The appearance was trimmed through minimal scissors and knife cutting.

But maybe it was because it was what she had seen before, and it gave Baek Ah-hee a refreshing feeling like carbonic acid.

Transformation that often appears in cartoons or dramas targeting teenagers.

Imagination of a gloomy boy becoming handsome after taking off his glasses and becoming a beauty after trimming his hair.

I thought all of these things were fiction.

The reason it became past tense was because that thought was broken now.

“Oh oh….”

Baek Ah-hee clapped her hands. It was a reaction you might think was out of the blue, but nothing more represented her feelings at the moment.

What was reflected in her eyes was clearly a handsome man. He wasn’t a homeless person with a good atmosphere.

He had a slightly raw impression, a moderately tall height, and a good-looking image, but also a good-looking image that women would prefer rather than men. Even so, the word ‘handsome’ did not change.

“Well done.”

“What.”

“My choice was also right.”

“What is it?”

Baek Ah-hee nodded. It was like finding a pearl buried in mud. So far, even in its shabby appearance, it gives a sense of decadent mystery rather than discomfort, so I was predicting that it would have an excellent appearance to some extent.

I hope it was like that

“nice….”

Deeply concerned admiration echoed with applause.

Han Jaejoong, embarrassed by such a grand hospitality, smiled and scratched the back of his neck, which had become much cooler.

“…Am I going to get caught?”

“Um… not yet? But there’s a risk!”

Baek Ah-hee, who had been making eye contact with him, eventually couldn’t handle it and looked away first. Certainly, the changed impression was of some use. Baek Ah-hee’s ears didn’t even transform, but red energy was circulating.

“Next time I meet Vega, I’ll have to shave.”

Throwing a boring joke, Han Jaejoong turned his gaze into the room.

“…Well, I don’t know if the next one will come.”

On the placard written in large letters, ‘Congratulations on graduating from Red Vega’s Counseling Room~!’ The text was written in pastel tones.

This is the 4th week of counseling.

Officially, this is the last consultation.

“So, what is the last consultation? Sir?”

Baek Ah-hee laughed at the unfamiliar title and ran to the desk where she was sitting and picked up the paper.

“Tada! It’s a test to see how positively Jaejoong-ssi’s mind has changed so far~ Please answer this with sincerity and have a few Q&A sessions with me before the consultation ends!”

Jaejoong Han smiled and held up the questionnaire.

“It’s formal.”

“Yes, formal.”

“So, is this really the end?”

Baek Ah-hee’s answer came back a beat later.

“…This, first! Write it down… Oh, the pen! The pen… is here…”

Baek Ah-hee handed the pen with both hands politely.

Jaejoong Han also sat down, receiving the pen with both hands. Immediately, they filled in their names on the questionnaire and started writing their answers.

‘Have you ever felt anxious or depressed lately… Very yes, yes, normal… Wow, that’s really classic.’

I read the contents carefully one by one and quickly checked the answers.

For a while, only the sound of his creaking pen echoed in the room.

“Hey, over there!”

“Oh right, I see.”

Baek Ah-hee barely opened her mouth, and her words were easily cut off because of that.

“There are some things I didn’t tell Mr. Vega. I should say it now because it might be helpful in interpreting the answer later.”

“Now, wait! That’s…”

“It’s probably different from what Mr. Vega thinks. It’s a story from my past.”

A life story he had told her before, some of which were missing.

He hated seeing his face.

There was a reason for this.

“I was cyberbullied. Ah… that cyber has carried over into reality, so it’s okay to call it bullying in real life. Anyway, I don’t like people staring at me. I hate cameras. I hate attention. Someone I don’t even know. I don’t like it when people look at my face and say, “I have a bad impression,” “My eyes are bad,” “I look like a bully.”

This was the reason why there was less resistance to Watcher’s activities.

Because that’s just a fake face, not his real face.

“Thanks to that, I get nauseated just by looking at the news, and I get chills just by reading the articles. I suffer from a major flaw in a modern society where everything has to be done electronically.”

His hand, which was making a long V mark on the answer in the questionnaire, stopped.

“Vega, can I change?”

Baek Ah-hee looked at him and drew an arc at the corner of her mouth that glowed light pink. It wasn’t a laugh. It was a benevolent smile.

“…Jaejoong-ssi, before I became a magical girl, I was like an idiot in the neighborhood. If you are poor, you should be smart, if you are not smart, you should be calm, but I wasn’t everything. I invested everything in my dream of being a magical girl and looked forward to the future. I didn’t think of any countermeasures.”

She calmly displayed her wounds.

“Should I have said that I was a recluse…? Not everyone was actively bullying me, but I was the kind of girl who didn’t pay any attention to anyone. I couldn’t do anything properly and couldn’t let go of my dream of becoming a magical girl until I was in high school. In a way, it was natural.”

What was there was self-help. remorse for one’s past. humor and regret. Even thinking about it now, my past self had no countermeasures.

A child who was blinded by dreams and reduced his life.

Originally, in order to be blind, light, not darkness, was needed, so the more difficult her reality was, the more she could not help but cling to her dream.

Because I needed hope to cling to.

“…What would have happened if I hadn’t become a magical girl. I was holding on to my dream until I was an adult, then I was holding on to a dream that would never come true… Maybe I would have been in Jaejoong’s position.”

Baek Ah-hee slightly raised the corners of her mouth.

“But I wasn’t like that. I became a magical girl, and I met a lot of nice people. It went through a lot of pain, but I was still able to change. It would have been impossible for me alone. My mascot… There was a ribbon, there were seniors, And… Jaejoong, you were there too.”

Baek Ah-hee put her hand on top of Han Jae-joong’s other hand, which was not holding a ballpoint pen.

“I mean people. Sometimes they find comfort in someone else’s hope, but sometimes they say they find comfort in someone else’s despair. It’s about finding empathy with yourself and others and gaining solidarity.”

It meant that she revealed her wounds. Share your situation, one of the things you read in the counseling manual.

“A person can change just by knowing that they are not alone. They can shake off their pain.”

It was a polite and good word. Some say it’s obvious and sell it.

But the fact that this is the standard means that it was worth it.

It means that it has universal power that can be used anywhere.

“Jaejoong, you are a good person to me. And I… believe that I can do the same for you.”

Han Jaejoong revealed his wounds, and Baek Ah-hee also revealed his wounds accordingly.

At the end of the consultation, the two were able to honestly confess their pain.

“Jaejoong can change. Even if it’s difficult, I’ll help you.”

Jaejoong Han laughed. Before I knew it, the pen was on its way to the last question.

“Now you’re having a proper consultation.”

“…! Ah, no, this is…”

“I know. The situation hasn’t been right. It’s a bad thing to push a person who hasn’t studied well in the first place and is so busy that he can’t even take care of himself to consult. I’m not blaming Vega for fault.”

“…It seems oddly ignoring me.”

Baek Ah-hee glared at him with an angry expression. Not caring the least, he played with the pen. It’s over.

“That’s right. It can change. After all, there is a guarantee of the red comet and supernova Vega, so of course.”

“No, don’t make fun of me!”

Han Jaejoong laughed hahahaha while watching Baek Ah-hee feverishly.

“Okay, here we are done.”

“Ah thank you~”

He pushed the paper and handed it to Baek Ah-hee, and she quickly accepted it with a smile on her face.

“Well, you responded very sincerely.”

Contrary to the initial clean look, the paper is covered with black ink.

After examining the contents carefully, Baek Ah-hee lifted the paper.

in the form of a portrait.

“Really… sincerely…”

Then, with force, it tore it apart.

“…?”

“Now, Jaejoong-ssi’s sincere response is becoming garbage here.”

“What are you doing!”

“It’s a useless process anyway! I can’t read Jaejoong-ssi’s heart written on the paper here! You’re going to end the consultation like this? I don’t like it!”

She did not hide her heart beating with excitement.

I raised my face to him with twinkling eyes and proposed.

“Jaejoong! Let’s get some fresh air!”

I returned the offer he had made earlier.

However, this time the meaning was more secular.

“You want to play?”

“Yeah!”

she said, crumpling the torn paper.

“I’ll buy you something really delicious this time! I’ll buy you some meat!”

“…No, the meat you get with kid’s money is a bit…”

“Specifications are for the strong. No matter how old you are, it’s useless in front of capital. The socially underprivileged just take it!”

“It’s getting cheaper and cheaper…”

Han Jaejoong let out a deep sigh and nodded.

“Okay. It’s been a long time since I’ve dreamed of being rich with my little friend’s money. Now, hurry up and break my wallet for me. Have you seen a beggar?”

“Sure. It’s right here in front of me. I’m not blind, so how can I not see? Oh, this is not discrimination against the disabled, okay?”

“Oh yes, yes.”

Baek Ah-hee smiled. What kind of happiness is it to be able to work and play at the same time? She was already happy at the thought of cooking beef and going to a dessert cafe to have a good day.

Jaejoong Han stood up while reading the longing for gustatory satisfaction behind her smile. With such high expectations, what did he do to refuse it?

“When you go, put on your disguise so that no one can see you. Then go right away…”

“Wait!”

Baek Ah-hee spread her palms and blocked his movement.

“Wait… wait… that’s…”

Unlike before, his expression was tense.

“In order to prove and commemorate the success of our consultation… We need a procedure to preserve the shape of an object by photographing it so that it appears on the photoresist film…”

“A picture?”

“Ah, uh, no, that, that’s…”

Only after pouting her mouth and twisting her body to express her agony, troubles, and pain, she was able to barely nod her head in affirmation.

“…Yeah.”

“Hmm…..”

Han Jaejoong stroked my chin and began to think. The slightly rough feeling left on the smooth chin was still slightly awkward.

The camera is still one of the things he is very reluctant to do. Even if it was her request, I couldn’t readily give an answer like ‘yes, that’s good’.

Knowing that, Baek Ah-hee must have been so cautious.

If it was usual, I would have just stroked my stomach and begged for something like ‘I feel sore here today…’.

“Is that going to be released?”

“Ah, that’s okay… Ki, only my face will appear in the article! For the sake of Jaejoong’s identity and safety, I won’t leave any clues about his identity, so don’t worry!”

The concentration of rejection deepened. Even if you can’t see your face, it’s a photo that’s going to be featured in an article…

‘What should I do?’

I thought deeply.

But the answer came quickly.

“like.”

“Yeah, that’s not going to work either, okay? Yes?”

“I said yes.”

I made up my mind that I had to change, and right after I thought I had to overcome my trauma.

I wondered if it would be okay if it was a malicious shutter sound intended to ridicule and criticize, and it would be okay if it was a photo that would not reveal my direct face.

“…But it’s true that there is resistance, so I have to end it with just one shot, okay?”

“Muh, of course! Ribbon, here’s my phone!”

Baek Ah-hee threw her smartphone into the air. It was through Jaejoong Han’s eyes, but not through Baek Ah-hee’s eyes. The cat-shaped mascot there, commonly known as Ribbon, grabbed the phone.

She quickly led Han Jaejoong’s arm and put it under the plan card, and herself posed eagerly.

‘Ah too…’

Han Jaejoong thought quietly while making eye contact with the camera.

‘It’s not a camera.’

When this was over, I immediately ran to the bathroom and closed my eyes, imagining how to empty my stomach.

“Come on, one~ two~”

Baek Ah-hee’s urgent yet cheerful voice came from the side.

“Cheese!”

“Cheese….”

click.

I heard the terrifying sound of a shutter. At the same time, his complexion turned pale, like someone burned in a centrifuge.

“Okay, it’s over… Jaejoong!”

As soon as I heard the sign that the shooting was complete, I immediately ran to the bathroom and emptied my stomach.

When I returned, Baek Ah-hee greeted me with a very sorry expression.

Okay, unlike the expression when I first saw it today, when death and tension were together, it was a very nervous and restless expression.

“Oh, I’m sorry…”

“If you’re sorry, buy me expensive meat.”

Looking at her expression, Han Jaejoong thought about what to add next, and soon decided on one thing and spit it out.

“Oh hee.”

“…!”

The corner of her mouth rose again.

Seeing that, Han Jaejoong also laughed.

**

“hehehe….”

Baek Ah-hee smiled as she saw a picture floating on the screen of her smartphone.

He was her pride.

He gave her a chance to change, and he also gave her a chance to change.

Of course, there were many complications after that, but…

Anyway, the fact that we became friends has not changed.

It seemed that the relationship would continue even after the consultation was over.

“Ribbon, what if Jaejoong tries to meet me too often? Maybe he’s still too nervous to contact me, so he doesn’t contact me in advance?”

[That… guardian… don’t worry… I don’t think that will happen…]

Even after several days had passed since the last consultation, he remained in Baek Ah-hee’s heart.

Since he suddenly became handsome and even changed his title, he had no choice but to leave a strong impression in many ways.

To the girl still dreaming of fantasy, her existence reminded her of the various situations of taming bad boys she had seen in comics and novels.

Have I finally found someone who has a crush on me? It was to the point of drinking kimchi soup.

“My daughter? What do you see?”

“Ah, everything, Mr. Davich!”

“A man? Aren’t you a man!”

White Davich suddenly approached her.

“This is betrayal! Mr. Vega is dating!”

“It’s not like that! This person is just my counselor…”

“Are you laughing at the counselor like that?! Usodesuyo! Don’t even say kura! That kind of kura doesn’t work for Watashi!”

Taking the phone from her hand, Davich looked deeply into the picture.

“Ho-oh, looking at your face… You look handsome. But you look bad. Did you seduce me with your face? Oh, tongue, threats! You may have been threatened!”

Soon, White Davich’s eyebrows curled deeply.

“Hmm? But I remember seeing it somewhere…”

“Why are you so noisy?”

“Do, give it back!”

Thanks to her scolding, even Pink Deneb, who was sipping beer around her, became interested.

“My sister-in-law has a boyfriend.”

“Oh, are you doing Ah-hee? Let’s see Wakku. Who seduced our Ah-hee?”

“Here you go.”

“Ah, it’s not really!”

White Davich lowered his arm to show the picture.

It wasn’t long before the beer can that Pink Deneb was holding fell.