After confirming he was gone, I picked up my cracked phone and went back to my room.
Even though I had vented at Si-hyun, I still felt off.
My emotions were out of control. It was like my fuse had suddenly shortened, too easy to act on impulse.
Back in my room, I shut myself in.
I wasn’t even hungry. I just felt like I was going crazy from the chaos inside my head.
Lying in the dark on my bed, I zoned out.
At some point, there was a knock at the door.
“Time for dinner?”
It was Mom.
“Not eating.”
“Si-yeon?”
“I said I’m not eating!”
I snapped at her again.
Ah… I’ll probably get scolded.
Just as I thought that, Mom unlocked the door and came in.
She sat on the edge of my bed with a gentle look.
Her fingers were soft as she brushed my bangs aside.
“Sorry…”
Mom didn’t say anything. She just kept stroking my hair, her expression still calm.
Her steady touch slowly soothed my tangled nerves.
“Feeling rough?”
“Yeah.”
“Close your eyes and sleep.”
“Okay…”
I fell asleep to the rhythm of her patting my back.
My stomach hurt. A dull, constant ache woke me up.
The pain kept growing. Each time I drifted off and woke again, it felt worse.
When I finally sat up, a heavy discomfort settled in my lower belly.
It wasn’t just pain, something else, hard to describe.
I felt awful. Just… awful.
As I pushed myself up, I noticed a strange wetness between my thighs.
“Damn… Did I wet the bed?”
At my age? How embarrassing.
I dragged my uncomfortable body to the bathroom.
My underwear was red. Red…?
When I took it off, I caught a metallic smell. Blood?
Blood?
The moment I realized, my head cleared.
“Ah… my period.”
Luckily, Mom had taught me about this, so I wasn’t as panicked as I could’ve been.
Still, experiencing it firsthand was annoying.
“So damn annoying.”
That’s the only way to put it.
I took off my pajama pants and underwear, both stained with blood, and soaked them in hot water.
What a hassle to deal with in the middle of the night.
I rinsed off quickly.
“Ah… I didn’t grab a pad.”
I knew I should’ve brought one, but just as I thought about going back out, I spotted a pad and a clean pair of my underwear already in the bathroom.
No idea why they were in the second-floor bathroom, but thank goodness.
Right then, I felt deeply grateful for Mom’s teaching.
Since I knew how to use a pad, I handled it easily, no fuss.
I scrubbed the stained clothes, tossed them in the laundry basket, and went back to my room.
Worried the sheets were stained too, I checked and found a disposable underpad, with blood on it.
…Mom came in before I fell asleep.
She must have prepared all this.
A sudden wave of emotion hit me, and I wanted to see her right away.
I forgot I was only wearing underwear and rushed straight to the master bedroom on the first floor where my parents were.
I gently pushed the door open and lay down next to Mom.
As I pressed against her and felt her warmth, the pain seemed to lessen. Whether from exhaustion or the comfort of her embrace, I fell asleep again.
-
-
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I woke to morning sunlight streaming in.
But this wasn’t my room.
"Huh?"
Sitting up and looking around, I realized I was in the master bedroom, not my own room.
Then I remembered what happened last night.
I actually came to sleep with Mom like a seven-year-old. I had no idea why I did something so embarrassing.
Just as I was about to get up and leave, Mom walked in.
"Feeling better?"
"Yeah. You knew?"
"Of course. Mom has been through it too."
She gently stroked my hair.
"I should get up."
"Put these pants on."
After changing, I left the master bedroom to find Dad and Oppa eating breakfast.
Probably because I skipped dinner last night, my stomach was growling, so I headed straight to the table.
As soon as I sat down, I noticed Oppa watching my expression. That wasn’t like him.
"What, got a problem?"
"No."
He kept sneaking glances at me, but I ignored him and kept eating.
Seems Oppa already heard about my situation from Mom.
Maybe it was because I was full? The stabbing pain in my lower stomach returned, the one I’d forgotten while hungry.
It was hard to even stand. No way I was going out today.
Back in my room, I checked my phone with its cracked screen.
There was a reply from Si-hyun in the messages.
Sent around eight.
I was already asleep by then, so no surprise I missed it.
-
-It’s fine. I’m the one who should apologize.
Tch… He has no reason to say sorry. I don’t know why he’s apologizing.
I’m the one who messed up… He’s just too kind.
= Might not make it today. Sorry.
= Really sorry about yesterday.
= Sorry for leaving you alone.
= Take care on your way.
After sending several messages in a row, Si-hyun replied right away.
-
-Uh, you rest well too.
Honestly, I was relieved not to see Si-hyun today.
After how I acted yesterday, how could I face him?
Just thinking about yesterday made my cheeks burn.
Damn it. That emotional outburst yesterday was probably because of my period too.
I looked it up online, and sure enough, some people said those symptoms can happen before your period. That must be it.
I had no idea emotional control would be this hard.
If I’d known and gotten used to it beforehand, could I have handled it better?
Before I could think deeper, the ongoing pain in my lower abdomen cut my thoughts short. I tried warming my stomach like Mom taught me, but it didn’t help.
I ended up spending the whole day writhing in menstrual cramps.
Lately, my friend’s behavior has gotten really strange.
Ever since that attention-grabbing incident at the gym, he’s suddenly turned quiet.
He was never the super outgoing type, but at least he was cheerful around me. Now he’s completely different.
I figured there had to be a reason and tried pressing him about it, but got nowhere.
Time passed, and then on Ability assessment day, something happened.
He did get a Status Panel, but the Ability details were hard to make out, and he was much weaker than me.
As the final part of the test, his score from hitting the straw dummy was pitiful.
He knew what that meant, but he just thought if he worked harder, he could catch up.
That’s when the laughter started, people mocking my friend from all sides.
Normally he wouldn't have heard - the distance and ongoing conversations should have masked it. Unfortunately, his body strengthening ability had sharpened his hearing.
The words angered him. No matter how weak his friend's ability was, hearing such insults was unacceptable.
Yet he had no right to confront them. His only option was to comfort his friend.
From that moment, his friend began avoiding him.
Training ended without them exchanging a word.
He wasn't worried though. She always rode home with him - they could talk during the drive.
But when he saw her by the car, she couldn't even manage basic pleasantries.
Defeat was written across her face.
Seeing her so wounded, he made a mistake in his impulsiveness.
He instinctively pressed her with demanding questions.
Her continued silence during the drive only heightened his frustration.
Guilt over his behavior warred with his urgent need to help.
So when they reached her house, he stopped her from getting out.
And once again... he confronted his friend with aggressive questioning.
"What's wrong?"
He asked despite knowing, hoping she'd share her troubles.
"Nothing. I just feel pathetic."
That wasn't the response he expected.
"Really? Just because of that?"
He was confident he understood her frustration completely.
Her answer surprised him.
"What else? You saw my score! 99 points! Ha! Only 99 points! Not even E-class hunter level!"
In that moment, he realized his mistake.
He shouldn't have pushed like this. Her raised voice made him panic.
"It's fine, I'll handle things."
The words felt empty even as he spoke them.
"That's the problem! Why should you have to take care of me just because we're friends? Even if we can't be equals, at least I want... I want to be useful too!"
Her outburst carried frustration, envy, and longing.
"I can't do anything right! You even have the car ready! Driving me around! Why are you so kind? What am I? Some worthless trash that gets stared at by men and insulted!"
"I can't even study properly! What am I as someone without a job? Why? I gained this ability! I don't understand! I just don't understand!"
Finally, her emotions overflowed into tears.
He thought he understood her feelings as a close friend, but this pain ran deeper than he'd imagined.
Witnessing her like this shook him - he'd never truly known his friend.
"Sorry... I'm going now."
He couldn't stop her from leaving the car in tears.
Couldn't find any words to say.
"What kind of friend am I?"
He reflected on himself.
Perhaps he'd always subconsciously looked down on her for lacking ability.
Acting superior, believing he was the one guiding her.
When in truth, he was the one being saved all along.
"Sigh."
He thought hard about how to handle the situation.
This was their first major fight, leaving him equally confused.
While wrestling with his thoughts, his phone buzzed.
A message from her.
She was apologizing.
The fact that she wanted to apologize when he was the one who'd been aggressive troubled him deeply.
What was the right way to apologize?
With other friends, he wouldn't overthink it - just offer a quick apology and move on.
But this friend was different, so he kept worrying and thinking.
Even after reaching home, he failed to apologize, fearing their friendship might break.
That was the one thing he couldn't allow. Resolving to apologize no matter what, he calmly replied to her message.
= It's fine. I'm the one who should apologize.
But she never read it.
Am I being hated?
Is this the end of our friendship?
Or does she not want to accept my apology?
I must have done something wrong after all.
Lost in these thoughts, he stayed awake all night with his eyes open. By dawn, he couldn't resist contacting her brother.
First, he briefly explained what happened yesterday.
"Is that so? That happened?"
"Yes. Oppa, how is Si-yeon doing?"
"Hmm... should I tell you?"
"Is something wrong?"
"Hey, if you dare say I told you, you're dead. Just putting that out there first."
"Okay, Oppa."
"Mom said Si-yeon got her period."
The reply was both unexpected and completely unforeseen, leaving him at a loss for how to respond.
"Well, girls tend to be more sensitive during... that time, right? Si-yeon might be like that too. Mom said it's worse because it's her first time."
The words from his friend's brother hit him like a thunderbolt.
The back of his head burned.
He did know his friend had become female.
After all, he'd felt the texture of her chest and seen her naked.
Even so, he'd always thought of her as just his friend. Hearing she was sensitive due to her period made his blood run cold.
"Ah, I see."
"Oh, and she probably can't go out today. Just keep that in mind and don't worry too much."
"Okay, thanks Oppa."
"Remember what I said earlier. Never mention I told you."
"Yeah."
Though his call with her brother cleared up his questions, he fell into deeper turmoil.
The news shocked him at first, but after calming down, he wondered: did I make things worse while my friend was suffering through her first sensitive experience?
How should I apologize? No, is apologizing even appropriate here?
Maybe she doesn't want others to know?
Wouldn't most women prefer quiet understanding during those days?
But his worries didn't last long, because his friend sent a message.
She said she couldn't meet today and kept apologizing in her text...
This troubled him greatly. What expression should he wear when he sees her tomorrow?
So he deployed his ultimate secret move.
Thinking "women's matters should be asked of women," he contacted his female friends from high school.
[How do I apologize after accidentally upsetting my friend during her period?]
He had no idea what events this message would set in motion.