Pygmalion

Sukyung bowed a few times in appreciation and left only when Sungwoo waved his hand for her to leave. She felt so relieved and hopeful now. 

This was it! This man, who seemed so capable, told her he would help, so everything was going to be okay! All she had to do now was become pretty enough for Jaewon. Then, she would be able to stay by his side. Just a little while longer… and she was going to be able to stand in front of him confidently. 

The treatment coordinator looked at her suspiciously, but Sukyung didn’t care. She made an appointment for next week and left the store humming. 

Meanwhile, Sungwoo rubbed his chin for a long time before reaching for his phone. He looked through his contact, and when he found the number he wanted, he called it.

After ringing for a few seconds, a man answered.

“Hello, this is Kim Jongwon.”

“Hey, it’s Jin Sungwoo.”

“Huh?! Hey! What’s up?”

“I wanted to ask you something. Did you hire someone recently who returned from abroad? I heard he used to work there even before he left to study.”

“Why do you ask?”

Jongwon asked suspiciously. Sungwoo leaned back and smiled as he watched the ceiling.

“I just need some information on him. Don’t worry. I don’t plan on stealing him from you.”

***

When Sukyung returned a week later, she found the shop empty. 

“Umm…”

She barely whispered, but because the place was empty, it felt like her voice echoed throughout the entire office. The three chairs placed in front of the mirrors looked so lonely, but the whole place was spotless. Sukyung spotted expensive hair dryers, the kind she used to see in Jaewon’s salon. 

Before he left for England, he used to work in Carter’s. Wanting to see him but not wanting to bother him, Sukyung used to go get her hair done every month there. She never once could make a conversation with him at his workplace, afraid she might annoy him. But she used to keep glancing at him working hard. At the time, he was working as one of the cleaning staff, so he was always sweeping the floor or hanging coats for the customers. Sukyung remembered feeling worried for him. 

And now, she couldn’t even go to his store anymore. 

All because he was embarrassed by her. 

So she needed to do this. Feeling determined, Sukyung yelled, 

“Hello…? Anyone here…?”

“Stop shouting and come upstairs. There isn’t anyone else here today.”

Sukyung jolted when she spotted the man sitting at the top of the stairs. It was Sungwoo again. That domineering man…

Even though he had long hair, there was nothing feminine about him. In fact, it seemed to make him look more masculine for some reason. 

Suddenly, Sukyung wondered if she was making a mistake. Perhaps she should’ve asked Jaewon if she was doing the right thing. She has heard so many times about these conmen who took people’s money and scammed them. Maybe this man wasn’t skilled at all… Maybe all those reviews online were fake. She has heard that some shops hired people to write good reviews for them.

Her heart began to pound rapidly. 10,000 dollars was a lot of money. She started to wonder if it was worth spending all that money.

“Hurry up. I told you to come upstairs!”

At the man’s annoyed voice, Sukyung flinched and ran upstairs. 

The last time she was here, she was so confused that she didn’t get to see it properly. Now that she had the time to look, Sukyung realized that the second floor was a wardrobe section. There were so many racks filled with clothes. She even saw several body-sized mirrors. She saw Sungwoo sitting on a chair nearby with a frown.

“Do you plan on wasting my time? You gotta move faster. I only work four hours per client per day.”

She stared at him in confusion. Four hours? But…

“Umm… I thought you were going to work on me full time for a few days to get everything done at once…”

“Everything in a few days? You think you can handle that?”

When he smirked at her, Sukyung frowned.

“But I thought all I needed  was maybe a new hairstyle and some new clothes…”

“You see those clothes over there? Just try picking out an outfit for yourself. I don’t care what it is. Try to pick something you like or you think will suit you.”

Sungwoo pointed at the racks with his chin. His condescending manner made Sukyung’s frown deeper, but she turned around obediently to look. The racks were filled with clothes of different colors and styles. 

There were so many that there was no way she could look through them all.

Fine! She was not a little girl. She was a woman of 28! That meant she had 28 years of experience to know what suited her and what didn’t. So…

Or maybe… She didn’t know…

With a confused frown, Sukyung looked at the clothes. She liked the color black, but she heard somewhere that black was only for people who had zero fashion sense. Then… What should she pick? Brown? 

It was fall, so brown was probably a good idea. Alright, brown it is. Now, should she pick a skirt or pants? Maybe she should play it safe and pick a pair of pants and a blouse? She has heard a flowy silk blouse was the new trend, so…

This place was like heaven. There were so many clothes here! 

Hesitantly, Sukyung picked out the most boring pants, blouse, and a cardigan. She looked around to find a changing room, but there didn’t seem to be any. Realizing what she was looking for, Sungwoo glanced at her and said to her, 

“There isn’t a changing room here. You can change in the corner over there, or if you want, you can just go to another room on this floor and change. There’s no one here, so it doesn’t matter.”