READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 242
The car raced and raced from Gangwon-do, arriving in Gyeonggi-do.
Not even half a day had passed, but I already missed home terribly.
Stepping into the apartment complex parking lot, I thanked the uncle who drove.
“You worked hard, go on in—”
“Huh?”
With a hearty uncle-style response, the car left the parking lot, beeping away.
“Yawn…”
A long day, and I let out a lazy yawn.
Holding a heavy PX bag with the slogan “Competent Security, Strong National Defense,” I trudged toward the common entrance.
Trying to hide my exhaustion with my palm, I took heavy steps, as if wearing military boots.
Entering the common entrance, I saw a familiar figure by the elevator on the first floor.
It was Tae Hyun.
“Hey.”
The guy was staring at the elevator door, oblivious to the sound of the entrance opening.
I walked up behind him and lightly tapped the back of his knee with my foot, pretending to know him.
Only after the physical nudge did he turn around.
“Huh? It’s you?”
“Yeah, it’s me.”
After a brief exchange of greetings, the elevator announced, “First floor,” and I peeled my shoulder off the wall.
We stepped into the elevator together, and I asked why he was outside.
“Did you just come back from cram school?”
“Yeah.”
My guess was correct.
“Did you go to the nearby mart?”
Tae Hyun guessed why I was outside, probably thinking I went shopping, seeing the bag in my hand.
But it wasn’t a mart—it was a military PX, and not even nearby.
I rustled the plastic bag, showing him what was written on it, and casually revealed the truth.
“I went to a military base in Gangwon-do.”
“What?!”
His eyes widened, and his voice rose an octave, giving a delicious reaction.
A truly out-of-this-world answer that defied common sense.
If I were Tae Hyun, I’d probably react the same way.
Who would think someone would come back with a bag from a military PX in Gangwon-do at this hour?
I chuckled, knowing he knew my side gig as a magical girl, and pressed the 4th floor button, starting to explain the truth behind the bag.
“I had some work there, and yeah, things were way cheaper.”
“How was the military?”
“Why, curious?”
Seeing the PX bag rustle, he seemed to finally understand and asked about the military.
It’s not every day a female friend talks about the military, especially one who’s been to the PX 3-4 years ahead of him.
It must feel pretty complicated.
“Well, it’s a bit…”
He awkwardly scratched the back of his head, trailing off with a compressed thought: “I’ll probably go someday, so hearing about it from a friend…”
“Fourth floor.”
“Uh, next time?”
I wanted to explain more, but the monotonous elevator announcement cut me off, and I had to postpone the conversation.
After a light farewell, I dragged my heavy steps down the apartment hallway.
Stepping into the home I missed so much after less than a day away, I felt an indescribable sense of relief.
“I’m back—”
“Welcome back?”
As I loudly announced my return, Siyeon’s familiar voice greeted me, and her door opened.
She came out to the entrance to welcome me, even though she could’ve stayed in her room, so I handed her the heavy bag.
She naturally took the bag.
“What’s this?”
She rustled the bag, peeking inside, but still asked what it was out of habit.
I took off my sneakers, stepped inside, and felt the cool breeze from the AC, cooling off my sweat.
“Just some snacks? I went all the way to the PX, so I had to get something. Couldn’t bring frozen stuff because of the distance.”
“P-X?”
When I explained the story behind the bag, she tilted her head, as if she didn’t know what it was.
Baffled, I tilted my head back at her.
“What, didn’t you buy anything from the mart there? You went all that way?”
The term “PX” might be a bit unfamiliar to a high school girl.
I rephrased it as “that mart” and asked if she didn’t buy anything, to which she nodded.
“Yeah, isn’t it just a convenience store?”
With pure innocence, she replied as if it were just a convenience store.
Comparing a convenience store, where a cup of ramen costs 1,800 won, to a PX? That’s downright blasphemy.
But then again, what would girls know about the military?
“It’s so much cheaper there, what a waste.”
“That much?”
“Large snacks don’t even go over 2,000 won…”
“Wow.”
When I gave her an example using snack prices, Siyeon let out a gasp, looking as if she’d missed out on a huge deal.
The reason PX is cheap is because it’s exempt from value-added tax, located inside the base, so no rent, and they use conscripts as cheap labor.
Thinking about it, it’s a product of pure irrationality.
“So, I bought a bunch of snacks while I was there.”
I rustled the bag and pulled out the beef jerky from the bottom.
A square packet of jerky with a Hahoe mask design.
After tearing off the top, another white plastic bag appeared inside.
A white bag filled with about twenty irregularly shaped, dark pieces of jerky.
I chewed on a piece, savoring the strong jerky flavor.
It was like chewing on a piece of dried meat-flavored gum.
Not exactly gourmet, but it had a strange allure that made you want to keep chewing and reach for the next piece.
Once opened, I decided to finish it all.
A jerky tasting session began, with even the mascots joining in.
“What… is this taste?”
Siyeon, chewing on the jerky, wrinkled her eyebrows.
Clearly, it wasn’t to her liking.
“Jerky flavor.”
“Weird… Baemi, is it okay for you?”
It didn’t taste spoiled or anything.
When I calmly replied it was jerky flavor, she looked around at the mascots for someone who might share her taste.
But those two gluttons would eat anything.
“Yeah, it’s fine?”
“Just tastes good to me.”
They didn’t sympathize with Siyeon at all, chewing the jerky vigorously as if tearing through leather.
Come to think of it, this was Siyeon’s first time trying jerky.
I remember she liked dried squid after microwaving it a few times.
She probably enjoyed that, right?
As I emptied the jerky bag with my fingers, I decided to buy some dried squid next time.
“If I go out again, I’ll bring some dried squid.”
“Okay…”
A round trip to Gangwon-do, 4 hours, plus 6 hours at the military base.
Today, I sacrificed a precious 10 hours of my golden vacation.
Too tired to even lift a finger, I rolled around on the bed in the evening.
Physically, I wasn’t that tired, but mentally, I was exhausted.
Too lazy to cook dinner, I carefully rolled off the bed and landed on the floor.
“…?? What are you doing?”
Gomteng, watching me like I was crazy, furrowed his brows.
We made eye contact, but I ignored him and stretched out my legs while lying face down.
I wriggled like a worm across the floor, finally reaching Siyeon’s room.
She hadn’t noticed me yet, engrossed in her computer screen.
I opened and closed my mouth, speaking in a low voice.
“Siyeon.”
“Ah! You scared me…”
Startled by my sudden appearance, crawling in without a sound.
When her eyes met mine on the floor, I blinked and spoke in a low voice.
“Let’s order dinner tonight.”
“Ah, okay…”
A bit flustered, but she seemed to understand my mood and nodded.
I hadn’t even brought my phone, crawling all the way to her room.
Something must’ve seemed off, because Siyeon asked me back.
“What do you want to eat?”
“I don’t know.”
‘What do you want to eat?’ and I replied ‘I don’t know.’
Yeah, I know it’s a shameless and pointless answer.
But what can I do? I’m really in that kind of mood.
I suggested ordering food, but I have no idea what to eat.
I don’t want to cook at home, and I’m too lazy to do dishes and all that.
I just want to order something simple, eat, and clean up, but I don’t care what it is.
“Don’t you want anything?”
Beyond shameless, I even asked Siyeon.
Even though she loves food, being suddenly tasked with choosing dinner made her stop her pen mid-air.
“Suddenly? I don’t really have anything in mind…”
“Burger! Let’s order burgers!”
The moment food was mentioned, Gomteng flew out of his room like a bullet.
Normally, I’d scold him for butting into human conversations, but I was too lethargic to care about his suggestion.
“Siyeon, are burgers okay?”
“Yeah, sure!”
“Then let’s go with Burger King…”
Naturally, I chose Burger King, a franchise known for its burgers.
The brand name slipped out effortlessly.
“Wow, seriously…”
Hearing that, Gomteng looked utterly dumbfounded, letting his limbs go limp and letting out a hollow laugh.
He must’ve remembered the last time I ordered burgers, I went with Nobrand.
When it comes to humans eating, you can’t skimp on money.
Seeing his dissatisfied attitude, I glared at him and spoke sharply.
“What, you don’t want to eat?”
“No! I’m freaking happy!”