Seoul Dragon

I didn’t think Kim Nayeon had such bold initiative.
Is it because of the alcohol, or is this her original personality that hadn’t shown due to awkwardness?
Either way, she seemed to have quite a straightforward personality.
Without hesitation, she pulled out various things from her pouch and sat down on my left. Sihyun was sitting on my right, and Kim Nayeon on my left.
Somehow, there was a strange expectation lingering on both their faces.

“Here, come this way for a moment. Close your eyes please.”
“Ah, no… Is there really a need to do this right now?”
“We’re doing it because it’s now?”
“Who does makeup in a pork belly restaurant!”
“Oh my. What are you saying? Makeup should be done and fixed anytime, anywhere.”
“Hey, guys. Someone save me.”

I asked my classmates for help, but they thoroughly trampled my expectations.

“Why don’t you try it once?”
“Hey you.”
“Come on, Senior. You came expecting to get messed up today anyway, right? Let’s go all out!”

I can’t keep up with this socializing power.
Where does this friendliness originate from?
My face must have really inhibited people. I never imagined Kim Nayeon would be so clingy.

“Ah, fine, just let go. Really… why insist on doing makeup?”
“Because I want to see it? Your face is already that good without even basic makeup, so I’m curious how pretty you’d be with makeup.”

If it was my sister, I would have threatened never to do it, but it felt wrong to push away a junior who was just trying to get closer.
…Fine. I’ll make this sacrifice just once.
The untimely incident at the pork belly restaurant draws attention from around. Oh my, I expected this, but there are more handshake requests pouring in than I thought.
Then, even other female juniors join in. How about applying this, how about using that, they’re like professional stylists.
The expressions of my classmates watching this are strange.
Hey, this situation is because you guys didn’t stop them.

How much time has passed? The juniors are high-fiving each other.

“This is a masterpiece!”
“Perfect!”
“Wow, at this level, you could just be an actress?”
“You’re exaggerating too much.”
“Exaggerating? Senior, this is absolutely not exaggeration. You should see the result.”

Looking at the mirror suddenly thrust in front of my face… I could certainly understand why the juniors were making such a fuss.
Oh, um… my face doesn’t look like my face.
I know women are said to be a species that deceives with makeup, but isn’t this a bit extreme?
I was worried that innocent men might attack with confessions.

“Wow… damn, I almost fell for her, not knowing she was a man.”
“Ugh. Please don’t even imagine that.”
“I won’t, I won’t. You crazy.”
“I knew women’s makeup was deceptive… but is it because the original is so good? It’s amazing.”

Han Taehoon was being dramatic, and Yoo Hangyeol was carefully examining my face. You guys are creepy.

“Hey, don’t stare too much. It’s creepy.”
“Shouldn’t you say it’s embarrassing at a time like this?”
“What’s there to be embarrassed about with you guys staring? It’s just creepy. Especially you, Yoo Hangyeol. Don’t stare like you’re evaluating a celebrity’s face.”
“Alright, alright. This is really something to see in a lifetime. How did that macho man turn into this?”
“Shut up.”
“Senior. Won’t you get street-cast for real?”

Sihyun also stared at my face before dropping a comment.

“Even so, street casting is a bit… What era do you think this is?”
“Why? I heard talent agencies still occasionally cast people when they see someone really eye-catching.”
“No matter what, there’s no way a mentally deranged person would try to street cast a mutant.”
“You never know. There are no absolutes in this world, right?”
“That’s right, that’s right! Hey, maybe we’ll see you in movies, dramas, or modeling magazines later?”
“Absolutely not.”
“Why?”
“I’m already dying from the pressure, and you want me to feel that gaze for a lifetime? Ugh… horrible thought.”
“Hehe, is it too stimulating for a homebody?”
“Well, I guess so.”
“Still, it’s good to see. Don’t just lock yourself up in your room, come out a bit.”
“It’s too much for an asocial person like me, too much.”

“You just made an extremely insulting statement about asocial people, dude. Asocial people don’t even come to events like this in the first place.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yeah. You’re neither asocial nor social, just somewhere in between. At the very least, you’re not asocial.”
“Hey, honestly, if it weren’t for you guys, I wouldn’t have come to this event.”
“That’s why you’re not asocial. What asocial person in the world has acquaintances and attends events like this because they have acquaintances?”
“Um, well.”

I had nothing to say. Is that so? Am I unknowingly a social person who has taken ‘asocial’ away from actual asocial people?
No, but no matter how I look at it, I don’t think I’m a social person…

“And an asocial person wouldn’t say they’d put on a fire show in a place like this.”
“That’s right, the fire show!”

Just then, Kim Nayeon, who had been proudly showing off the results of my makeup to the juniors, flashed her eyes.
Not just Kim Nayeon. The Lee Sihyun next to me, my classmates, Nam Suyeon over there… there wasn’t a single person who wasn’t looking forward to it.

“…Wow, this is so fucking pressuring.”

Suddenly, I really didn’t want to do it.

“Come on, a man keeps his word.”
“I’m not a man anymore, though?”
“Shut your trap. A guy who lived as a man for 24 years can’t get away with saying that now.”
“Hey, what kind of man wears full makeup like this?”
“It’s an era where men wear makeup too these days.”
“Oh, damn. You just won’t back down, will you? I’ll die rather than suffer. Fine, fine. I’ll show you the fire show.”
“You should have done that from the start.”
“Before that, let’s go outside. It would be dangerous to do it indoors. Everyone seems to have drunk enough and eaten enough… is that okay, president?”
“Yes! Did everyone eat well?”
“”Yes!””
“Then let’s go out. I’ll show you something spectacular in an open space.”

“Oh… He really does know how to have fun once he gets going, doesn’t he? Right, Hangyeol?”
“Indeed.”
“I bet he’ll collapse once he gets home.”
“What are you betting?”
“I don’t know.”
“You just say whatever comes to mind, don’t you, Heo Jihwan?”
“Why, it’s fun, isn’t it?”
“These kinds of people are my classmates… Let’s go. I’ll show you that fire show you were so eager to see.”
“Hey, can you bring out your wings too?”
“Unless you’re willing to pay for my clothes, don’t mention the wings.”
“Stingy.”

* * *

And so, everyone who attended the opening assembly moved from the busy street to a nearby park just to see my fire show.
Sihyun seemed to have drunk quite a bit, as her steps were somewhat unsteady, and I was supporting her from the side.
I wonder why she drank so readily when she can’t handle it well.

“Hehe, fire show, fire show.”

Seeing her giggling as if it would be fun, I thought she was kind of cute. It’s even cuter when someone who usually moves calmly behaves like this.

While walking to the park, I got a call from my sister.

“What.”
-Where are you?
“Heading to a nearby park.”
-Huh? Why the park?
“The kids want to see a fire show, so I’m going to give them a good one.”
-You really do all sorts of things…
“Do you want to come see too? It’ll be more spectacular than fireworks.”
-…Should I?
“See, you can’t resist fireworks either, can you?”
-Yeah. I’ll be there soon then.
“Are you coming alone?”
-Yeah. I don’t plan on advertising all over town that you’re my sister.
“Alright then.”

“Who was that?”
“My sister.”
“Ah…”
“Did I tell Junior Sihyun about my sister before?”
“No.”
“My sister also attends Hanguk University. When I told her I’m doing a fire show, she said she’d come, so…”
“What department is she in?”
“Business. Anyway, I’ll start when my sister arrives.”

The juniors found a spot and sat down in the middle of the park.
There was a wide open space in the park, and to prevent sparks from flying to the nearby grass, we decided to conduct the fire show near the fountain in the center.
I feel like a circus performer. But it doesn’t feel too bad.
I don’t have many experiences like this in my life, so it was enjoyable just for that.
Of course, separately from that, mental fatigue was accumulating.
I’ll probably collapse and sleep as soon as I get home today. It’s Saturday tomorrow anyway.
Anyway, I sent my sister the exact location, and she arrived quickly.

“Hi.”
“You’re here?”
“You’re here. So, when are you doing the fire show?”
“I was waiting for you.”
“What’s this all about? Doing things like this.”
“I don’t know. It just happened.”
“All sorts of strange things are happening.”
“Wow, Yoon Seohyun has a sister like this? Hello, I’m Han Taehoon, Seohyun’s classmate.”
“Hello. Our unnie must have troubled you a lot? I’ve heard a lot from her. She said you’re good friends who helped her a lot with department life.”
“Oh… Did Yoon Seohyun really say that? By the way, what do you mean by trouble? We’re the ones who benefited from Seohyun.”

My classmates and juniors started showing interest in my sister.
Regardless, I gauged how much firepower I should use. Since it would be troublesome if sparks fly too much… I guess it would be best to spew it in a straight line toward the sky.
Is this what they normally call a breath?

“Alright, that’s enough chatting… I’ll show you just once, so watch carefully.”

As I thought about expelling flames, some kind of power started boiling up inside my body.
A feeling of hot heat filling my stomach.
Without hesitation, I shot that flame toward the sky.

KWAAAAAAAH!

Everyone’s eyes widened at the flame rising with tremendous force.
No, can this simply be called a flame? It seemed more appropriate to call it a pillar of fire.
Not only the juniors who saw the pillar of fire that started from my mouth and pierced through the clouds, but also the attention of people around focused on me.
Um, well. I expected this, but I think I went a bit overboard.