Chapter 7: A part-time job with a surprisingly high hourly wage

In the end, my only friend left me,
and my small studio apartment was left with just a lonely soul.

“…”

I expected this outcome, but being truly alone now, I couldn’t shake the hollow feeling.

‘I’m completely alone now.’

My only talent, gaming, has regressed. My already limited social skills have tanked. And I’ve lost the one friend who was like family.

‘Why did it turn out like this?’

All I wanted was to live a little more comfortably.
To switch from life’s hard mode to easy mode.

Why does it feel like everything’s going more and more wrong?

I never asked to be born in the first place.
I didn’t want to be abandoned by my parents.

I just wanted to live a little happier. I never asked for much.

“…”

Sniffle.

A single tear finally escaped.
And then, a thought hit me.

‘Wait a second.’

This emotion. This feeling…
Could this be the ‘tragic beauty’ I always wanted to be?

Seizing the moment, I plopped down, buried my face in my knees, and curled up.

In a dark, empty room.
Unable to bear the sorrow of losing a friend, curled up in a corner…

I finally feel like I’m getting close to the ‘tragic beauty’ I’ve always dreamed of.

‘Ohhh…’

Imagining myself alone in a dark corner, I felt like a deeply storied, cool person.

‘Yes. This is it. This is it.’

A tragic beauty, despairing over a life, society, and relationships that never go her way…
This is exactly what I wanted.

My long-unfulfilled desire was finally being met, sending adrenaline coursing through me.
Thrilling, electric. My fingers and toes tingled.

“…Sob. Sniff.”

My emotions surged, tears falling two, three drops at a time onto the floor.
As I sank deeper into my tragic self, face buried in my knees—

‘What’s that smell?’

A nutty sesame oil scent disrupted my tragic mood.

Sniff, sniff.

I was finally reaching that tragic state…

Sniff, sniff.

But the sesame oil smell was too savory and fragrant to ignore.

I slowly lifted my head, following the scent.
My gaze landed on the table, where all the side dish containers were open.

Besides the jangjorim, there were soybean sprouts, pickled radish, stir-fried anchovies, rolled omelet—a variety of side dishes.

“Oh. I forgot to put these in the fridge.”

Like nothing happened, I stood up, brushed off the dust, and carefully started moving the side dishes to the fridge.

I worked so hard to reach that tragic feeling.
I wanted to linger in it longer.

“But what if they spoil from sitting out?”

I couldn’t let Jihoon’s mom’s heartfelt side dishes go to waste.

These are precious, so I should save them for when I’m hungriest and eat them with rice.
They’ll taste even better then.

“Hehe, they’re gonna be so good…”

Before I knew it, I’d forgotten about wanting to be a tragic beauty.
Lying on the floor, imagining how the side dishes would taste, I drifted off to sleep.

The next day.

Woken by a call about overdue rent, I sat at the table with a grim expression.

Current assets: 190,850 won. Rent due: 300,000 won.
Living expense support cut off long ago. Savings blown on tuition.

Days until university starts: 4.
Textbook costs, monthly food expenses: unmeasurable.

‘No income sources whatsoever.’

So, I entered job-hunting mode.

For 30 minutes, I scoured job apps with fiery determination, but no luck so far.

‘Must be because the semester’s starting soon.’

All I could find were grueling jobs like short-term warehouse work, barbecue restaurants, kids’ cafés, or club staff.

But I couldn’t apply for such exhausting labor.

…I’m a pretty girl now; backbreaking work is a bit much.
I’ve got some pride left.

“…”

As I scrolled through job listings with unfocused eyes, a too-good-to-be-true job caught my attention.

Hourly Wage: 20,000 won
Payment: Daily or weekly options available.

Duties: Simple cleaning, document organization.

Guaranteed easy job!
Only women, please
Super nice boss – All-female staff, family-like atmosphere~

‘Whoa, 20,000 won an hour for just cleaning and organizing?’

That’s enough to cover food expenses and more in just a month.

Plus, daily or weekly pay? Perfect for someone like me, barely scraping by.

I doubt I’ll find a better job than this.

“Let’s do it.”

Without a second thought, I called the number listed.

And, oddly easily, I secured an interview for the 20,000-won-an-hour job.

The interview location was in the heart of the bustling downtown area.

I almost went in my hoodie and underwear due to lack of clothes, but luckily, I found a truck selling cheap sweatpants on the way.

Black dolphin shorts, 5,000 won.
Not a bad price.

Anything’s better than wandering around in just underwear.

“I’ll take these shorts.”
“Aigoo, it’s cold out; get long pants.”

‘Long pants are 20,000 won…’

I’m job-hunting because I’m broke; anything over 10,000 won feels daunting.

‘It’s not that cold…’

I didn’t feel chilly, so it seemed fine.

“It’s okay. Oh, no need for a bag; I’ll wear them now…”
“Yes, thank you—”

After paying via bank transfer, I slipped into the sweatpants the lady handed me. But then—

“Hey, young lady!”

The lady smacked my back and quickly wrapped a blanket she had around her waist over my lower half.

Her frantic glance around felt like something out of a spy movie.

“A grown woman changing in front of everyone, what’s that about!”
“Oh…! Sorry…!”

I wasn’t sure why I was apologizing, but I did.
Then I stood there getting scolded for a while.

“There are so many weirdos out there… A pretty girl like you needs to take care of herself, or you’ll get in trouble.”
“Hehe…”
“Laughing in a situation like this? So silly.”

I’d never been scolded so warmly before, so it didn’t feel bad.

Feeling bad for yelling at a stranger, the lady gave me a pair of 20,000-won long sweatpants for free.

‘This feels too shameless…’

My conscience protested, but I suppressed it.

Life’s Easy Mode Rule #1: Never refuse what’s offered.

“Thank you…!”

I made sure to thank her loudly.

“Wear them warmly, okay? The world’s rough, so take care of yourself.”

‘…So warm.’

A stranger’s kindness doesn’t always feel burdensome.
As the lady said, I’ll be more careful from now on.

After walking a bit, I arrived at the five-story building for the interview.

But the vibe at the entrance was… off.

It looked like a normal building, but my gut screamed, ‘Run away.’

The interview was in the basement, of all places.

I considered leaving, but the 20,000-won hourly wage kept my feet glued.

‘I don’t have any other job options…’

Rationalizing, I descended to the basement, where a rough-looking man covered in tattoos, smoking a cigarette, greeted me.

“Here for the interview?”
“Uh, y-yes…”

He asked in a tone that felt almost confrontational, blowing out a puff of smoke.
Then he slowly scanned my bare legs and face.

“…”

‘Should I run now?’

Swallowing hard, my eyes darted around, when a man in a black suit appeared.
The tattooed man introduced me curtly with, “Interview.”

The suit, with a badge labeled “Manager,” smiled with satisfaction, inspecting me closely.

“Nice face. You’re hired.”

“Can you start tomorrow?”

Unlike the tattooed man, he spoke kindly.
But I was too frozen to answer.

“No, start today. Normally it’s 50,000 won per shift, but since you’ve got a good face, I’ll make it 80,000 an hour. Go to the storage room, change, and come out.”

‘What? Shifts? Change clothes?’

The job listing said simple cleaning and organizing.
Sensing something off, I asked in a trembling voice.

The suit cut me off with a chuckle, as if I were cute.

“Nah, those spots are already filled. But we’ve got an easier, better-paying job.”

“Just sit in a room, listen to customers, and smile at their stories. Easy, right? A pretty girl like you should be making money just talking, not doing grunt work like organizing papers.”

He placed a hand on my shoulder, continuing.

“And, well… since you’re in a small room with customers, there might be some touching. Just refuse if it happens, no big deal.”

His suspicious tone and words were clear.
Unless I was an idiot, I knew I had to get out of there.