#lookismverse

Or so you thought.

It has been a week since the main character started attending J High but the two of you didn’t cross paths again. The number of students visiting you during breaks have doubled though.

“Excuse me.” Soft knocks on the clinic door interrupted your lunch. 

With a sigh, you told them to come in.

A girl stepped inside. “Hello…”

“Stomachache? Or do you need sanitary—”

“No! No… My name is Zoe Park and I’m here because…um…”

You knew what she was here for. “Well, don’t just stand there. Come in and take a seat.”

Every newcomer was like this. They would twiddle their thumbs, hesitate and get all shy. Sometimes they would run away before you got the chance to ask them what was wrong, but you could tell that this girl has been gathering her courage for weeks now. 

You just wanted to eat your sandwich. 

“You look like something’s on your mind.”

“I have…a friend and she has a problem.”

Yeah, right. “Go on.”

“My friend has a crush on this guy, but she’s worried because there’s another girl in the picture. She’s…aggressive and doesn’t think twice about making the first move. She also has a job so she buys gifts for my—my friend’s crush.”

“So your friend is jealous.”

“Yes, she is. She’s worried because she really likes this boy but what if he ends up falling for someone else.”

Ah, young love. You wanted to throw up, but luckily, you’ve built up an immunity after working with teenagers for so long. “This boy must be a real player to have two girls pining for him.”

“He’s not a player!” She flinched and apologized before muttering, “He’s not like those guys who string girls along for fun. Sure, he’s handsome but he’s also sweet and thoughtful.”

“Mm~ sounds to me like your friend has another rival.”

She blushed and looked away. “A-anyway, what should she do?”

“Dear, does that boy like the other girl back?”

“I don’t know.”

“Does he know that you like him back?”

She said nothing.

“I’m not going to say ‘go and confess,’ I know it’s not that simple.”

“Then what should I do?” It seemed that she was asking herself more than you.

“...don’t overthink it.”

“Huh?”

“This guy isn’t in a relationship yet, right? Well, there’s a saying in the West: ‘all is fair in love and war.’ If you want to defeat your rivals, you need to be more proactive.”

“Y-you’re right! I’ll get a job and buy him gifts, too!”

“Wait, no–”

“I’ve been meaning to get a job anyway!”

“You mean your friend’s been meaning to get a job?”

“Ah. Ahahaha…” She rose from her chair and bowed. “Thank you for listening to me.”

“Hey, wait, before you go—”

“Yes?”

As a reader of the story, you used to hate Zoe because she was mean and superficial, but she became your favorite after she changed and became a better person. However, that change came at a price—she was stalked and almost murdered because of her future job. “...there’s been a rise of weirdos in the area so be careful when you’re out at night.”

“I will, thank you so much, unnie!”[1]

And just like that, she was gone. 

As usual, people will hear what they want to hear. 

You rubbed your temples. You wanted to tell her not to waste her money on something as foolish as boys, but you guess this was part of youth too. 

“I hope it works out for her,” you mumbled, hoping your words won’t mess up Zoe’s development.

***

“And you are—”

“Zack! Zack Lee, ma’am!”

“There’s no need to shout, plus I already know who you are.” You fixed him up after his first fight with Daniel.

“I’m sorry, ma’am.”

“And don’t call me that. Makes me feel old.”

“R-right.”

“Well, what brings you back here, Zack? You don’t look injured to me so I’m guessing you’re here to talk.”

There was a beat before he took a few steps back away from you and then knelt down on the floor. “Please teach me how to court a girl.”

“Uh—”

“Hear me out, please! There’s this girl I’ve liked for a really long time, and I think she likes me too, and we go out together just the two of us—but it’s always as friends. I want to confess, but I don’t know how. Please help me, please!”

“Okay, fine! Just calm down!”

***

Two boys, one of them looked old enough to be a father and the other had Dumbo ears, stepped inside. You knew exactly who they were.

They bowed in unison. “Good afternoon, miss.”

“Yes, hello. Are you feeling sick?”

“Please let us introduce ourselves first. I’m Jace Park and this is my friend, Euntae Lee, but we call him Vasco.” 

“Okay, why don’t you two take a seat first—”

Vasco fell to his knees and kissed the floor with his forehead. “Please, madam, teach me how to attract girls!”

Jace grabbed him by the shoulders. “Vasco, no! We talked about this, you can’t surprise her like that!”

“Please, I want to experience a sweet romance, too!”

You and me both, buddy.

Sighing, you gestured towards the monoblocks. “Come on, sit down.”

***

Jay Hong sat in front of you like he was sent to the principal’s office after doing something bad. He hasn’t said a word since he knocked at your door, or maybe he did and you didn’t have Daniel’s telepathy. 

He looked troubled though.

How should you deal with this…

“Let’s see, is this about a classmate?”

His head shot up. 

You were right!

“Is this about a male classmate?”

He nodded.

“Something tells me it’s not about bullying.”

He shook his head.

“Okay, hold on, lemme think… Are you struggling with certain feelings about this classmate?”

He looked down and twiddled his thumbs shyly.

Right. 

You swallowed the desire to laugh, not wanting to embarrass him. “He must be a very special person.”

He raised his head again, smiling.

***

Another week passed and Zoe was back in the clinic, looking redder than before. 

“Hi Zoe—”

“Good morning!”

“...anything interesting happened to you lately?”

“What? No, why would you think that!”

“It’s written all over your face, you know,” you teased her. “You got the face of a young woman in love.”

She squeaked and covered her face. “Please don’t say that!”

“Did you finally get together with your crush?”

“No, actually…there’s someone new…”

“Judging by that lovestruck expression, he must be really charming.”

“N—well, yes. He’s a little chubby, but he’s cute and brave and kind.”

“Heh~”

“Please don’t look at me like that!”

Every now and then you got a kick out of the kids’ reactions. 

[1] Korean. What girls call their big sisters or older women.

Disclaimer: The image used is a screencapture from Ep. 4 of the Lookism manhwa.

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Manager Kim is the Main Character in his titular series and a minor characters in the main series Lookism.

He's a member of White Tiger Job Center, a minor antagonistic group, and fought against the main character, Daniel Park (Park Hyunseok).

He will be the teacher of the minor supporting character, Warren Chae (Wonseok Chae).

Please note that although it shares the same universe as Lookism it actually happened a few years before the start of Lookism.

MAJOR SUPPORTING CHARACTERS THAT APPEARED OR WAS REFERENCED IN OTHER SERIES:

Seong Hansu is the father of Seong Teahoon, a main supporting character in Viral Hit. He also made appearances in Viral Hit several times.

Jincheol Park is the father of Dabin Park, one of the main love interest in My Life as a Loser. He also made appearances in the series.

Tom Lee (Dogyu Lee) minor supporting character in Lookism. He is the teacher of the major supporting character Eli Jang (Hyun Jang), had relationship with several characters (including the main character and several antagonists) and played minor to significant roles in various arcs of Lookism.

White Tiger Forces is Lee Dogyu's self-made organization. The major supporting character Johan Seong (Yohan Seong) will join this center for a time and ot will be contracted by a major antagonist of Lookism, Eugene (Yoojin) of Workers.

MINOR CHARACTERS THAT APPEARED OR WAS REFERENCED IN OTHER SERIES:

Samdak a minor supporting character in Viral Hit. He is the father of the supporting character, Ga-Eul and the teacher of the main character, Hobin.

EXTRA CHARACTERS THAT APPEARED OR WAS REFERENCED IN OTHER SERIES:

Seong Taehoon, a main supporting character in Viral Hit and the son of Seong Hansu.

Lee Manseop, a North Korean member of Security Team who fought the young Seong Hansu during the "First Assassination Attempts" is the father of an extra antagonist character in Viral Hit. He was mentioned by his son during his fight with Seong Teahun.

Park Dabin from My Life as a Loser (Chapter 89).

Goo Kim (Kim Jung Goo) is a minor antagonist character in Lookism.

Sofia Alexander, a minor character in Lookism is the sister of Alexander Alyssa and the cousin of Alexander Valentina. She also made a cameo and is assumed to be the "Sofia" that the Russian Killer, Broflovski is speaking with on the phone call.

Samuel Seo (Seong-Un Seo), a supporting character in Lookism (Chapter 188)

Alexander Hwang, a minor character in Lookism (Chapter 190)

Yohan Seong (Johan Seong), a supporting character of Lookism (Chapter 193)

CHARACTER FROM OTHER SERIES THAT MADE CAMEOS:

Ga-Eul from Viral Hit (Chapter 77)

Xiaolong, a minor antagonist from Lookism (Chapter 108)

Warren Chae (Wonseok Chae) and Sally Park (Serim Park) from Lookism (Chapter 188).

Daniel Park (Hyung-Seok Park), the protagonist of Lookism. Along with Doo Lee and Warren Chae (Wonseok Chae) (Chapter 191)

Charles Choi and Gun Park (Jong-Geon Park) (Chapter 191)

OTHERS:

The Sacred Celebration Assembly, a human trafficking Yakuza (Chapter 57) mentioned that they had previous dealings with Warai Oni, the main antagonist on the first part of Viral Hit.

The minor antagonist, Vivi's father is the chairman of T Group that appeared during the successor arc. He also made a cameo along with Xiaolong.

Brebdak, the mentor of Vasco (Eun-Tae Lee) the major supporting character in Lookism (Chapter 180)

An-Cheol Jang, the protagonist of My Life as a Loser (Chapter 182)

You hand him his order in a box as your soft warm fingers brushes against his rough large calloused ones and he feels something warm creeping up inside him. A fuzzy warm feeling, a familiar spark and jolt of electricity and passion that he thought he might never get to feel before. His heart twinged slightly as he bade you a goodbye and sighed as he walked out of your bakery. However he started heading over to your bakery everyday, sometimes just to make conversation with you since he does find your company and presence rather pleasant. He doesn't want to burden you with the stories of his past from when he was Code 66 back during his military days nor does he want to tell you that he works at the white tiger job center for a certain fighting obsessed lunatic since he doesn't want to scare you off. He wants to protect you and shelter you from the bad things that keep happening. He can see the glimmer of innocence in your eyes, something that's quite rare these days since most people he's encountered were just plain egoistic corrupt people. But you're so different...a ray of sunshine in a dark world filled with chaos and entropy

He's an ex soldier with God tier fighting and detective skills. He'll ask Hansu to find out some information regarding you, ignoring the teasing from Jincheol about how he's fallen head over heels in love with you already. He just sighs and pointedly looks at him but he doesn't deny it. Hansu will end up finding everything about you in less than an hour and he'll have pages and pages of your biodata for Kim to take a look at. Kim knows he's being a bit out of line here but he just can't help but be curious. If you're in any kind of trouble or whatever he'll take care of the problem quickly. If someone's harassing after you or you have a creepy landlord, well good news for you because you don't need to pay your rent next month. Just ignore the broken bones and the bruises on the landlord given to him by a certain man who comes over to your bakery everyday

Have you seen this man fight? His kill ratio is insane, there's a reason people shiver when they're facing him against a fight. He might be soft and affectionate and warm towards you but when it comes to dealing with people to protect you, he'll be absolutely ruthless and will give zero damns who he's up against. He'll use his string and his fighting skills and put that person in the hospital for a while. Or just straight up murder them, depends on the sort of crime they do to you. Either way he will not relax or let it go if someone messes with you and harms even a single strand of hair on your pretty little head. When he goes on a murder rampage, not even Hansu and Jincheol would be able to stop him which is why they just let him do his own thing. Oh, and speaking of Hansu and Jincheol, congratulations, you now have them both looking out for you as well

His obsessive and possessive feelings for you would start when he feels like you're in danger from something. He'll invite you to stay over at his house for a few days and you can't even refuse him because the way he speaks will make you doubt yourself whether or not you're truly able to take care of yourself. You don't get a choice in this matter, you're staying with him and that's final. It's also a good time to introduce you to Minji. However little did you know, both father and daughter were obsessed with you. Minji greets you with a polite smile and she's finally glad she got to meet the person who's made her dad happy. She's another one who's willing to do whatever the hell it takes to ensure you'll stay with her dad. She's a sneaky one, if your coworkers are messaging you things she's not too pleased about, she'll sneakily delete their number from your phone and make it seem like you blocked them on social media. You're supposed to be with her dad, not some other undeserving person

Breakfast, lunch and dinner include you sitting with them and having your meal. Of course, no phone during that special time. Kim would love to do the cooking, he'll cook the best meals ever to ensure you have a good meal. He does get slightly tempted to embrace you from the back at times and kiss the nape of your neck softly while you're busy doing the dishes while Minji is secretly smirking to herself about how things are going well and how you're a part of their family now

If you try to go back to work, Kim might be a bit disgruntled at first but he'll allow you to do so to not seem controlling. However he'll fill your head with things like how you don't need to earn when he's there to take care of you and you could take a break for a while and such. He just wants to take care of you and shower you with his love. Minji would side with her dad too. They both are possessive over you, they know they're being possessive but they're overlooking it. It's for your safety after all. If you try leaving them, Minji would be hurt and upset and Kim would be hurt and devastated too. But he'd be determined to bring you back and it wouldn't take him long for him to find you. He'll just carry you in his arms and you can throw all the tantrums you want but he's not going to budge while he's taking you back home with him where you belong. He won't yell at you or raise his voice at you, he doesn't believe in hurting the ones he loves. But he'll gently chide you like a stern parent telling off a naughty child for their bad behavior. The next day the locks of the house will be changed and there'll be bars on the windows to prevent you from leaving

“It’s a bento.”[1]

“It’s a homemade bento.” 

“So your eyes aren’t completely useless. Congrats.”

“Since when did you carry around Pompompurin lunchboxes?”

When Gun didn’t say anything, Goo snatched off the lid, yelling “Sneak attack!”

He paused. He blinked. He took off his glasses, wiped them with his sleeve, then slipped them on again. He gawked at the poorly made tamago and unevenly cut octopus sausages.[2] Gun Park was a perfectionist, he even cut his apple slices into bunnies, but this was one sad display. 

“Did you make this?”

Gun didn’t answer.

“I knew it! It’s her, isn’t it? That, that woman of yours that you refuse to name. She has you wearing poor people’s clothes and carrying a Sanrio lunchbox—which is kinda cute, I will admit—but you’re an adult man for God’s sake! You’ve been emasculated!”

Gun retrieved the lunchbox lid from him. 

“And look at your hair—you don’t even comb it back anymore. I’ve been trying to get you to let it down for years and suddenly she’s got you doing it?”

“Go order your noodles or I’ll eat without you.”

“I don’t believe this, you’re really going to eat this crap? I’ve seen convenience store waste that looked tastier.”

“Joongoo…get lost before I kill you.”

“Heh, you’re going to kill me? At least I finally got you to look at me and away from your phone.”

“You have to be the neediest woman I know.”

“Say that again, I dare you. I’m going to cut out your tongue.”

“Try me. I’m gonna break your hands for touching my lunch.”

“You fucking simp!”

“You nosy bitch!”

***

You received an SOS message from Goo pleading with you to come to his hotel suite, a five-star hotel with gargantuan crystal chandeliers in the lobby and a receptionist that gave you the stink eye. At least this place didn’t need a key card for the elevator.

You found his room and rang the bell.

When the door opened, you were welcomed by a blood-soaked towel. “Angel!” He spoke through the towel, voice nasally.

You held his chin by instinct. A few superficial cuts, a black eye and a nose that required resetting. There were very few people alive who could injure Goo this badly. “You really should go to the ER for this.”

“But you smell nice and you don’t charge.” Beat. “You don’t charge, right?”

“No, I don’t. I’m using the school’s infirmary supply. We got tons of troublemakers and no one ever bothers to check the inventory.”

“You are bad.”

“Yup, I’m a criminal.”

Goo ushered you inside and you had him sit next to the dining table. Aside from his nose and a sprained wrist, he sustained no other major injuries, so you cleaned him up and gave him ice from the fridge.

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” you muttered as you threw away the used cotton balls. “Otherwise I would’ve ignored your message completely. I’m a busy woman, you know.”

“With what, studying?”

“Falling asleep during a very serious TV marathon.”

“Drama?”

“Murder mystery.”

He raised an eyebrow. 

“I don’t like drama, it ruins my day.”

“But murder doesn’t?”

You shrugged.

“What’s the show called?”

“It’s American, I don’t think you’d like it.”

“You don’t know that.”

“It’s esoteric.”

“Quit gatekeeping and tell me.”

“I just don’t want to recommend a show I love and then have you bitch about how boring or nonsensical it is.” You placed a sachet of pills on the table and picked up your first aid kit. “The medicine is for the pain. See ya.”

“Hey, wait.” He grabbed your kit and you almost fell backward.

You blinked and he was towering over you, holding you by the waist. “Whoops.” 

“Damn. That would’ve been the perfect opportunity for a lawsuit.”

“Too bad for you. But I don’t want you to go home empty-handed, let’s order room service.”

You narrowed your eyes.

“Don’t give me that look. I know how to treat my friends.” He handed you the leatherbound booklet containing the menu and other amenities being offered. “So what do you say?”

“Well, as long as I don’t have to pay…” He didn’t need to bribe you. You could spend hours observing Goo Kim’s expressions.

“Awesome!” 

***

After devouring the lobster meal, you two sat on the sofa and watched Murder, She Wrote.

Goo was surprised that he actually enjoyed watching an old lady solve crime in the 90s.

“I knew it! I knew that guest star was going to be the killer.”

“...”

“Angel?”

He looked away from the screen, only to find your head lolling to the side. He slipped a pillow under your temple before he muted the TV. 

“I can’t believe she passed out just like that. Lol. She’s lucky I’m a gentleman.” He leaned against the backrest. “Hm… she’s prettier than I remember..."

Your phone started ringing and he swiped it off the coffee table. The caller ID said “Kiddo.” Probably one of the students. He turned back to you. The circles around your eyes told him to set the device to vibrate. 

He grabbed a pillow and stared at you until he fell asleep. 

“Hey!” Goo woke up on the floor. 

At some point you moved from sitting against the backrest to lying facedown on the sofa cushions. 

“Kicked out of my own couch and not even by my girlfriend, this is a new low.” He rubbed his elbow. “And what is that annoying buzzing?”

It was your phone, still on vibrate. The battery had been reduced to a quarter of its life and there were 198 text messages plus 89 missed calls. 

“Can’t this guy take a hint?” 

He glanced over to you, then glared at the phone. It was ten p.m. Maybe he should tell this brat off. A gentleman shouldn’t answer a lady’s phone, but you did seem to struggle with setting boundaries. After all, your patience for Goo himself seemed limitless, a feat that could put the likes of Mother Theresa to shame. 

So maybe you needed this intervention.

That’s it! That’s right.

“Perfect reasoning as always, Goo,” he huffed with pride and answered the next call. 

“Hey, kid, don’t you know what time it is? You can’t keep calling the school nurse like this, you’ll get her into trouble! I know she’s hot but you gotta fish in your own pond, y’know? Stick to your age group.” He hung up without waiting for a reply.

The doorbell rang, which puzzled him because he could’ve sworn he hit the “do not disturb” button.

As he went to check, the phone vibrated again.

“Enough already, brat! I didn’t want to say this because we were trying to keep it quiet, but she’s taken, okay? I’m her boyfriend so why don’t you go…” 

There was no maid behind the door.

“Gun? Did you forget something?”

Gun Park held his own phone to his ear. His black eyes shot from left to right, stopping at the sofa.

“If you’re here to apologize—”

“Joongoo Kim, get ready.” Gun took off his shades. “I’m going to bury you.”

***

You were back in Japan, leaning over the pond outside your room.  

“Hi Nugget,” you greeted the goldfish. The fish didn’t speak, of course, only swam around hypnotically, each flick of his tail left wisps of glitter in the water. You could watch him all day.

But then, a blonde fox wearing human glasses hopped into your yard. It made brief eye contact with you before a giant black dog with angry scars arrived, barking furiously.

The fox threw back his head, laughing, and then leapt around the garden. The dog chased after it. You watched with awe, it was like being in a Tom and Jerry skit. You applauded as they tore through the bushes and flowers, but then the fox dove into the pond and swallowed your fish—

“Nugget, no…! Ah?” You jerked awake. For a moment, you were lost, then your memories caught up with you. 

You went to Goo’s hotel room to help with his injuries, then you ate lobster, then you watched TV together, then fell asleep—

“What the hell is your problem, man!?” Goo shouted and you hurriedly sat up. 

A dining room chair was in pieces, there was an ugly collection of fist-shaped indentations on the walls, broken glass was everywhere—

Your heart sank into your stomach. Gun’s back faced you as he approached Goo. His whole body was tense and you could see the veins threatening to pop down his arms. 

You figured out what happened instantly. 

“Is this because of lunch?” Goo reached for the floor lamp. “I told you I didn’t mean to knock it over. I even offered to buy you something better!” 

Gun took a step forward but you slid between them, holding up your arms sideways. 

You heard Goo click his tongue. “Move outta the way, angel!”

You sprang on your toes and wrapped your arms around your brother. “I’m okay,” you whispered.

Gun’s whole body flinched, but he was still wound up so you rubbed gentle circles on his back. “I’m not hurt, so please breathe and calm down.”

He closed his eyes and inhaled.

“That’s the way—just breathe for me.” 

He laid his forehead on your shoulder.

“I’m okay. I’m right here,” you cooed. 

He raised his head and cupped your face with both hands. He regarded you with wide and worried eyes, looking like a lost child.

“I’m okay, see?” You sucked in your cheeks, emulating a fish. “Even Nugget would agree.”

The faintest sound escaped him and he pulled you in for another hug.

“I was so worried…”

“I know, I’m sorry.”

“I thought you—”

“I’m okay, Gun. I promise.”

You squeezed him gently, reminding him that you were very much alive. Gun exhaled and he was back to normal. 

“I’d hate to interrupt such a touching moment but—”

You both looked behind you. Goo was holding the lamp like a spear.

“—what the fuck was that?!”

“Don’t swear at her, you rude fuck.”

“HUH?!”

“And don’t point that lamp at her.”

“You can’t possibly be angry at me, right? You son of a gun, you know how much damage—look at this place!”

You pulled away from Gun’s embrace and clasped your hands together. “Let’s all calm down first.”

“All right, ‘fess up, lady. It’s you, isn’t it? Gun’s elusive, balls-stealing, bento-making woman—”

“I told you to stop pointing at her.”

“Or what?”

“Wait.” You raised your arm between them. “Stop it, Gun. You’re in the wrong here.”

He glared at Goo.

“Gun.”

He stepped back and mumbled, “I’m sorry, nee-san.”

“Well, this is partially my fault so don’t worry. We’ll fix it together.”

“Wait,wait,wait,wait,wait. Back up—‘nee-san’? As in big sister? You’re Gun’s sister? The one who died? That sister?”

You could only smile.

“Holy shit.”

Gun tugged on your sleeve. “How do you know this bag of turd?”

You sighed and then motioned for them to sit around the coffee table as you searched for the complimentary teabags. 

While the water boiled, you explained the circumstances that led to your friendship with Goo and why you ended up in his hotel suite—it almost led to another fight, but the clicking of the electric kettle stopped them.

“This is what I’m talking about, nee-san, you are too nice. I told you that one of these days you were gonna attract a weirdo. Now you got the biggest freak of them all.”

“You hear the way he talks to me, angel? He’s supposed to be my friend.”

“Don’t call her angel.”

“You wouldn’t let me call her onee-chan—”

“Don’t call her anything. Don’t even look in her direction. Don’t even think of her. After tonight, you’re dead to us.”

“Excuse me? Your memory can’t be that bad. We all just agreed that I’m the victim here so you have no right to be mad.”

“We didn’t agree to shit.”

“You’re paying for these damages—”

“The hell I am—”

“We’ll split it three ways,” you cut in. 

“What?” They turned to you in unison. 

“I shouldn’t have fallen asleep and worried my brother, that was my mistake, and Gun should have never attacked you in the first place. But Goo shouldn’t have answered my calls without permission.”

“But—”

“We’re all going to pay for it.” Your teacup made a nice clink as you set it down. “Okay?” 

“...okay.”

[1] Bento: Japanese. Any meal, although most commonly lunch, that is homemade and packed for work/school/special occasion.

[2] Tamago (Tamagoyaki): Japanese. It's a rolled omelette. Tako ("octopus") sausages: Japanese. This term refers to sausages that have been cut to look like, yup, octopuses.

a/n: I love Goo and Gun's dynamic. It's something straight out of a sitcom. I was debating whether to go with "Bert and Ernie," "Chandler and Joey," "Troy and Abed" or "Kramer and Seinfeld." Ultimately, I figured Bert and Ernie was the most recognizable. Anyway, just a heads up: I'm going to have to slow down with the updates from now on so I won't be able to post every day.

taglist: @sm3156, @placid-plastic, @yin-yun, @ixchelhernandez4, @janeisnotonline, @cocooola, @ficrepostblog, @peachmangoe, @saltyeli

Disclaimer: The images used do not belong to writerclaire. They were lifted from Ep. 107 & 521 - Lookism, Webtoon.

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MAIN MASTERLIST

***

It was Mother’s Day again, and although he didn’t want to, Gun joined his classmates in making a card.

The teacher passed by and then did a double take on his table. “I see you’re using glitter this time.”

“Yes.”

She tilted her head. “Wow, is that a goldfish? Is it the mama or the baby?”

“No, it’s Nugget.”

“Nugget?”

“Our pet goldfish.” He then blew the excess glitter off the page. “Apparently, we call him that because Nugget gives good advice, otherwise known as ‘nuggets of wisdom,’ but I think it’s because Nugget resembles a chicken nugget.”

Holding back her laughter, the teacher nodded and Gun reached for the cup of gel pens.

“What are you writing?”

“I’m not sure.”

“Tell me if you need help with the characters.”

“Um, teacher?” He kept glancing between two pens. “Do girls prefer pink or red?”

“Let’s see… what’s your mom’s favorite color?”

“My mom?”

The teacher tilted her head. “Well, you are making this for her, aren’t you?”

He said nothing.

“If you don’t know her favorite, then you pick one for her. Trust your gut. It’s a very valuable trait for a man to be able to choose for the women in his life,” she encouraged before getting called away by another pupil. 

Gun put down the pens and stared at the card he thought he didn’t want to make. It was the opposite of what he wanted last year: the base was a gentle blue and he overloaded it with green origami leaves and pink flowers, on the front page was his clumsy drawing of Nugget, glittering orange and gold. The only thing missing was a message. 

When the bell rang, everyone rose to their feet, bowed and sprinted out of the classroom, everyone except Gun, who stopped by his teacher’s desk.

“Is something wrong?”

“Teacher…”

“Yes?”

“Do I have to give the card to my mother?”

Her head jerked, taken aback by the question, but she regained her composure immediately and smiled. “You know, Gun, a mother doesn’t always have to be our mothers.”

“What do you mean?”

“A mother is anyone who is kind, loving and supportive to us, it can be whoever inspired you to make the card you’re holding so protectively to your chest right now.”

He blushed. 

“Did that help you?”

“I think so.”

“All right then. Go on now, I’m sure your chauffeur and guards are getting worried.”

Gun bowed. “Thank you, teacher.”

When he exited the building, three men in black were in front of the gates, eyeing down the security guard until they saw Gun. 

The three men greeted him in unison, “Young master.”

“Let’s go—oh.” Gun gazed at the security guard.

He then bowed, shocking everyone. Gun’s uncle and mother taught him never to lower his head for anyone outside the family, but he was discovering many new things, like how his family wasn’t always right. 

“Thank you for your hard work, mister.”

“Uh, sure. No problem…”

Gun turned to the men in suits. “Let’s go home.”

“Yes, young master.”

The trip back home felt abnormally long. Gun tapped his foot the whole way. 

When he finished with his usual duties, he snuck his way to your garden, to the other wing of the estate. 

You were sitting on a picnic blanket and leaning over the pond. “—so anyway, I put cat poop in the sandwich. You should’ve seen that kid’s face when he bit into it. I almost gave myself away and laughed.”

She’s talking to the fish again. 

“Ane ue,” he called, stepping into your space.

You looked up and flashed him a bright smile. “Well, look who’s here. Sit down, and I told you that ‘onee-san’ is just fine.”

He approached your blanket but didn’t take a seat.

You held up a plastic bag from the convenience store. “They were selling a new brand of iced tea, let’s try it together.” 

Gun wasn’t allowed to even enter a convenience store. Everything he ate, drank, wore—everything had to be the best, from the best. Rather than be impressed, the children in his school regarded him like something was wrong with him.

When he didn’t make a move to sit down, you raised a brow. “Gun?”

Gathering his courage, he bowed and shoved the card towards you. “This is for you.”

“Eh?”

“It’s…it’s something we had to make in school.”

You put down the bag, stood up and accepted the card. As you examined the paper, he felt his cheeks burn. He knew it was childish.

“You can just throw it away if you want. You don’t have to keep it—”

He was pulled into a hug. A warm hand perched on his head. “I can tell you worked hard to make this, I’ll be sure to treasure it.” There was no coldness or mocking in your tone. “Thank you, Gun.”

“You live here alone?” 

Gun made a face. You lived in a one-storey, one-bedroom house with too-low a fence and gate that any intruder can climb over. 

“Yup. Make yourself comfortable, I’ll get you some coffee.”

“I’ll do that—”

“You paid for the barbecue and then the ice cream, let me do this for you.”

He sighed, then smiled. “All right.”

He sat cross-legged on the living room floor. The house was cheap and he understood why: the ceiling webbed with water stains and he could tell that it leaked during heavy rain, the pipes groaned so loudly he couldn’t hear the neighbor’s dogs, and the paint was peeling everywhere. He searched for his phone, eager to look up available condos, when he saw several printouts on your coffee table.

“Online Gambling Patterns and Predictors of Problem Gambling Among Korean Adolescents During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-sectional Study,”

“Problematic online gambling among adolescents: A systematic review about prevalence and related measurement issues,” and

“Gambling, Youth and the Internet: Should We Be Concerned?”

He shouted, “Why are you researching online gambling?”

“Oh, that?” you yelled back from the kitchen, “I'll be holding lectures to warn students about scammers and the dangers of betting.”

“Why?”

“Why not?” You reappeared with two mugs. 

“That doesn’t sound like something a nurse is assigned to do.”

“It’s not, technically, but I volunteered.”

“Tell me they’re at least paying you extra.”

“No, but the teachers have been super supportive and they’re helping me with my outline.” You set down the mugs and joined him on the floor.

“Okay, why gambling specifically?”

You shrugged. “If I told you it was a revelation from God, would that satisfy you?”

He sighed, but he couldn’t help but smile. He already knew why you volunteered. You called them brats but anyone could tell how much you cared.

He  could never understand it. How something as filthy as the Yamazaki blood could give birth to you and Haruto. At least Haruto had his father’s love and support, but you were alone in that abandoned wing. You never spoke of it, but he knew the reality you lived. You had to visit the kitchen yourself lest you starve, you said that you enjoyed cleaning your room but the truth was the servants couldn’t be bothered, you washed and ironed your own laundry. Unlike him and the rest of the family, you hiked the expanse of the land everyday just to reach the bus station for school. 

He had “everything.” That’s what they said, but Gun felt like he was born with a leak. No matter what he received or what he did, nothing would ever be enough because everything leaked out. 

But you didn’t have that leak. Your eyes were clear every time you looked at him. Your light never dimmed in the years you spent alone in this country and far from the barest comfort the Yamazakis gave you. 

“Nee-san.”

You paused blowing into your mug. “Yeah?”

“How did…” It was a miracle enough that you survived getting hit and falling into freezing water, but how did you continue after surfacing in Korea? 

He quickly changed the subject, “I think you should move.”

“I’m perfectly comfortable here, I have my favorite pillow.”

“I meant that you should move houses, this place is a death trap.”

“You’re overreacting, plus I’m trying to save money.”

“Then I’ll—”

“No, absolutely not, don’t even suggest it.”

“I can’t leave you here alone. I’ve seen the fence, anyone can just break in.”

“I know exactly what you feel. I worried about that when I signed the papers, but it’s been a year and nothing’s happened. Besides, I've decided I’ll stay here and save money for later.”

He picked up his mug. “What’s later?”

“For when I move in with my boyfriend, of course.” You winked—

Something hot splattered in his hand and lap.

“Oh my God! Are you okay?” You ran over to his side with the box of tissues. “Take off your pants before—”

“—you…you have a boyfriend?”

“What? No, I just said that as an example. Hurry up or the burn will get worse!” 

Boyfriend. He hadn’t thought of that before. You, his precious sister, in a romantic relationship… No, he can’t picture it. Not without his hands wrapped around that faceless man’s throat. 

a/n: some fluff because Gun deserves it.

taglist: @sm3156, @placid-plastic, @yin-yun, @ixchelhernandez4, @janeisnotonline, @cocooola, @ficrepostblog

Disclaimer: The images were lifted from Ep. 520 and 432 - Lookism, Webtoon.

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***

Festivals were joyous occasions. It was easy for people to lose themselves in the partying and forget to take care of themselves.

The student volunteers approached the first aid station carrying someone over their shoulders.

“Another one?” You sighed. “We have water stations and paper cups, don’t we?”

Dehydration. A total moodkiller. 

“Sorry about this, noona.”

“Well, this is my job. Bring him in.”

Luckily, no one was so dehydrated that they required an IV. 

While you plugged in another electric fan for the patients under the tent, you overheard the volunteers mumbling and arguing with each other.

“Um—”

“What now?”

The two exchanged glances and then grinned at you. “Noona, you’ve been sitting here since dawn, you should enjoy the festival, too.”

“We’ll take over for you.”

“I don’t know about that.”

“If there’s an emergency we can handle it!”

You snorted, “What if it wasn’t mild dehydration, what if it was a heat stroke, do you guys know how to handle that?”

The confidence drained from their posture.

You sighed and then waved them off. “Thanks for worrying, but this is my job, you kids go and enjoy the festival.”

They were going to protest again when a blonde came tumbling through the tent. 

“Jay, you almost gave me a heart attack!”

He clasped his hands together like in prayer.

“An emergency?”

He nodded.

“All right, let me get my first aid kit.” You turned to the volunteers. “You guys, watch over the tent.”

The two saluted and watched you run with Jay.

One student then asked, “How does noona understand him?”

“Jay…you said there was an emergency but this is the boyfriend auction, isn’t it?”

Daniel Park stood on the stage and the bid was quickly rising. Jay shook his head, his way of telling you that there was no time.

“Oh yeah, guys aren’t allowed to place bids on other guys…”

He nodded.

“You want me to act as your representative?”

He nodded.

“Fine.”

A student from a private all-girls school shouted: “One million won!”[1] 

You raised your hand. “Two million won.”

The girl glared at you and yelled, “Three million won!”

“Four million won.”

“F-four million and five hundred thousand won.”

You checked on Jay, who only nodded. You raised your hand again. “Ten million won.”

There was a flurry of gasps.

“Ten…ten million won! Going once, going twice…SOLD to the Angel of J High—”

“DON’T CALL ME THAT!” you screamed at the auctioneer but it was drowned out by the applause and sobbing. 

You were about to reprimand Jay for tricking you into this when a chill ran down your back. You covered your nape and looked around. 

The itching was back.

You excused yourself from the crowd and half-ran out the school gates, where you threw up next to a tree. 

“Excuse me, do you feel sick?”

“Ah, I’m okay, don’t worry about me,” you answered, heaving against the tree. “You should go back and enjoy the festival.”

“You don’t look okay to me, nee-san.” 

You only just realized that you two have been conversing in Japanese.

The alarm bells in your head rang crazy and you spun around. The itching in your brain vanished. Time itself seemed to stop.

How could you forget something so important? This was when he first appeared in the story—

The man in the yellow shirt offered you a handkerchief, but you held his wrist instead. “Gun?”

He palmed your cheek and you realized that you were crying. “All this time you…I thought you were dead.”

You wrapped your arms around his waist and buried your face to his chest. “I’m sorry! I couldn’t save you—I couldn’t—hic—I couldn’t protect you…”

You expected him to shove you off, but instead he returned the hug. His hold suffocated you but you didn’t dare to tell him off. 

“Don’t blame yourself,” he said, kissing the top of your head. “I was the weak one.”

You shook your head.

“From now on, no one can hurt you again.”

***

“What!?” Zoe and Yui exclaimed in unison, nearly shocking Daniel to his knees. “You saw the nurse with a man?”

“Y-yeah, Jay and I went to look for her and we found her in the parking lot and she was being embraced by a tall man. We didn’t think it was our place to interfere so we backed away.”

“Daniel Park, you should’ve checked up on her! What if that man was a creep?”

“At first, that’s what I thought, but she was clearly hugging him back.”

“Did you at least take a picture?”

“Why would I do that?” 

Zoe and Yui exchanged a look before shaking their heads. “Men.”

The news of you and your “boyfriend” spread like wildfire, becoming the trending topic along with Duke and Daniel’s performance. 

The morning after the festival, the rumor mill was in full motion. 

“I didn’t know unnie has a boyfriend,” Mira said.

“Every time I asked her about it she said she was ‘too busy,’ and I thought that was an excuse but maybe she just wants to keep her love life a secret. I read somewhere that secret romances give the best thrill!”

“What does her boyfriend look like?”

“I want to know too, but someone didn’t take a picture.”

“I’m sorry, okay?”

“Well, what did he look like, Daniel?”

“Let me think… he has black hair. He’s tall and lean and he was wearing a really flashy shirt—what’s that, Jay? His clothes were all designer? Even his shoes?”

Zoe and Yui squealed. “So he’s rich? Unnie’s amazing!”

“No wait,” Yui interrupted. “If her boyfriend’s rich, why does the nurse never wear anything expensive? Do you think he’s cheap with her?”

“G-guys, let’s not jump to conclusions.”

“You don’t understand, Mira, a man who wears designer from head to toe but lets his girlfriend walk around with a cheap purse, is scum!”

“You’re just insulting the nurse at this point.”

“Come on, Zack, aren’t you worried? Aren’t any of you worried? Unnie can be prickly but she’s kind and selfless—I know plenty of men who’ll walk all over her.”

“...Dammit, you’re right.”

“She is?!”

“What should we do, Yui?”

“It can’t be helped, I’m going to confront her.”

***

Something was wrong. 

Usually, when you walked to school everyone would be in your face, to greet you or bombard you with life questions, but today the students only gave you smiles and then proceeded to whisper amongst themselves.

It’s already been an hour since the first bell and no one has snuck out of class to speak with you. 

You didn’t want to use the Q word and jinx it though, so you accepted the temporary peace with mild suspicion and used the free time to think.

Gun didn’t hate you. He was as relieved as you were when you found each other again. You wanted to treat him to dinner, to sit down and talk to him over a hot meal just like old times, but he said that he had to deal with work first and to wait for him in the meantime. 

It's barely been a day but you wished he'd message you again.

Knock knock

You put away your phone and smiled. “Good morning.” The greeting came out too cheerfully for you, even your guest seemed shocked.

“Good morning, I hope I’m not interrupting your work.” 

“It’s been a while since you cut class to visit me.”

“I’m sorry it’s just that…”

“I know, it’s something of an ‘emergency,’ right? Tell me what’s wrong.”

She hesitated.

You cocked your eyebrow at her behavior. Yui had a very full speed ahead personality and never hesitated before. You leaned closer. “What’s wrong?”

Her eyes flitted about, reluctant to meet yours. “Oh, well, I wanted to—!” 

“What is it?”

She narrowed her eyes and you suddenly felt like covering up your chest. “That necklace…”

“Huh? Oh.” You touched the panther-shaped pendant hanging below your collarbone. Gun sent over a dozen shopping bags to your house, stating that each one was for every birthday you spent without him. “It’s a gift from someone dear to me. I-is it too much? I know it’s not my usual style—why are you crying?”

“Nothing, nothing, I suddenly feel guilty. Please excuse me…”

“Eh?”

She sprinted out of the clinic, leaving you to wonder what the hell just happened.

***

Yui burst into the classroom. Luckily, math class just finished and there was no teacher.

“There she is!”

“How’d your investigation go?” 

“So, is she with a scumbag?”

Yui raised her phone, displaying the online shop of a store. “The nurse was wearing this exact thing when I went to visit her.”

Daniel leaned in a little closer to read, butchering his words as he did so, “Panthère de Cartier pendant…”[2] His jaw almost hit the floor. “How can a necklace cost this much?”

Zack pushed his head away. “You’re overreacting, how much can it—what the hell? Who would buy this?”

“I’ll tell you who,” Yui cried, “a man who treasures unnie!” 

[1] In the Webtoon translation, Lala Kim bade 1000 dollars, but I've decided to use KRW as the main currency in this fic. Anyway, the conversion is: 1 million KRW = 41,248.80 PHP = 707 USD 2 million KRW = 82,497.60 PHP = 1,414.20 USD 3 million KRW = 123,746.40 PHP = 2,121.30 USD 4 million KRW = 164,995.20 PHP = 2,828.40 USD 4.5 million KRW = 185,619.60 PHP = 3,181.95 USD 10 million KRW = 412,488 PHP = 7,070.99 USD

[2] Panthère de Cartier pendant, diamonds. Price: $12,600. I've attached an image of the pendant below. Source: https://www.cartier.com/en-us/jewelry/necklaces/panthere-de-cartier-pendant-diamonds-B7224737.html

Disclaimer: The image used is a screencapture from Ep. 26 of the Lookism manhwa.

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But you weren’t a normal kid. You had your past life memories. 

One lifetime of trauma was already more than enough, so you decided to live as peacefully and quietly and as far away as possible from everyone else in this godforsaken estate, which was quite easy. Your mother killed herself because she considered giving birth to a girl her failure. The maids said that she died during labor, but you knew the truth. Though your memories were foggy, it was hard to forget the scene of a human body dangling from the ceiling. You remembered comparing her swinging form to the little animals of your crib mobile. You felt bad for the woman but you didn’t grieve her. (As far as you know, your true mother was still alive and happy.) At the very least, the dead lady married rich, so you didn’t starve. 

Despite being an abandoned child, or perhaps because you were an abandoned child, you were content with your position in the Yamazaki Clan. You had your own bedroom (it was smaller than your new apartment), you had three meals a day (with heavy caloric restrictions), you had nice clothes (which were super uncomfortable) and you attended school. The servants were too professional to pick on you. Or maybe they pitied you. You liked pity. Pity was underrated. You had a peaceful home life because of pity. 

You wish you could say the same with your school life. 

“Dammit, again?” Your textbooks were covered in chewing gum for the third time this week. You bet it was that little prick, Minoru. That rotund moron was the only child of some local businessman and you could tell that he has never been hit in his life. You were holding back because you were an adult, but even you had your limits. Now that you were in a child’s body, smacking the guy in the face wouldn’t be morally wrong, right? It certainly wouldn’t be illegal…

“Heh.”

Your lips furled and you cackled as you walked into the yard. Your room was on the first floor in the West Wing and had a back door that led directly outside. It was fenced off from the rest of the woods to prevent intruders and you treated it as your own little paradise. 

“Hey, Nugget, missed me?” You greeted the goldfish in your pond. You called it your pond but really it was already here when you moved into your room. The fish was something you got when you snuck out to attend a festival. 

“Guess what? You were right, it happened again. That little shithead destroyed my books.”

The fish swam around and you laughed. “I know, I know, you warned me. I should’ve wrapped them in paper or plastic.”

Many pet owners talk to their animal friends. The animals don’t usually talk back. No, your goldfish didn’t talk to you and no, you weren’t crazy, you needed this. Your peers were children, the servants acted like furniture, your dad was a shadow—you needed Nugget to act as a friend otherwise you would really go crazy. You considered a pen pal once, but the head servant said no. You didn’t even have your own computer to play games or troll people. 

So all you had was Nugget. A goldfish you won from some festival. 

“Anyway, I’ve thought about it and maybe punching a kid is too much. Maybe I can…I dunno, shave his head while he’s napping—who’s there?” You shot up from your seat next to the pond. You could hear rustling from the nearby bushes. The stray cats around here were ghost-quiet and they preferred going straight to the kitchen.

Was it a different animal? What if it was an intruder—a kidnapper?

Your heart sunk and just as you were about to run back inside, a white face with inky black eyes emerged from the darkness. 

You almost threw up from the shock. 

Regaining your composure, you rubbed soothing circles over your chest and then pointed a finger at the brat. “What the hell!? What’re you doing here, kid? This is private property, you know!”

The brat stepped forward and you realized that he wasn’t just any child. He wore a simple but exquisitely made yukata and his black hair was combed back. He wore no expression on his face. “This is my home.”

You’ve realized too late, but it was no surprise. You heard whispers but no one bothered to tell you about any siblings. “Oh.”

“Are you one of the servants’ children?”

“No.”

“Then, are you an intruder?”

“Kid, look at me.” You gestured over your school uniform. “I also live here.”

“Why would they keep a stray like you?”

This little—calm down. You are an adult.

You took a deep breath and walked towards him. He looked to be 43 inches tall, so he would be around five years old. 

You knelt down so you could be eye level with him.

“I’m not a stray, little man. And FYI, it is very rude to use that word when referring to people.”

He said nothing for a while, only stared at you. 

Then he said, “The way you talk is odd.”

“Oh?”

“You talk like an adult.”

That’s because you were one. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“How old are you?”

“You never ask a lady her age. It’s impolite.”

He stared silently.

“How old are you?”

“I’m three.”

“Bullshit.”

He flinched and those sharp eyes widened into plates. 

You covered your mouth but you couldn’t help your own chuckling. You surprised even yourself with that. “I’m sorry, but are you sure you’re three?”

He narrowed his eyes and stomped his feet. He held out three pale fingers. “I know my age. I’m three.”

“I’m sorry, I just…” He wasn’t just tall, he was awfully coherent for his age. “I didn’t mean to offend you. I thought you were older.”

“How old are you?”

“You brat, what did I just say? But I suppose it’s only fair I tell you. I’m eight so you better start talking more respectfully.”

“You haven’t told me your name.”

“Well, you haven’t told me yours.”

It was subtle but you could see that he was beginning to pout. His little fists balled by his sides. Perhaps he wasn’t used to being treated this way.

Holding in the laughter, you introduced yourself. “I’m the master of the house’s daughter.”

His brows furrowed. “You’re lying.”

“Why would I lie about something like that?”

“I don’t know but you’re lying.”

“I’m not.”

“You are.”

“Listen carefully, do you really think I would be so stupid as to lie about being that bas—about being Shingen’s daughter? Do you think the servants would let me stay here without proof?”

“...you called him Shingen.”

You rolled your eyes. “I’m not going to call him father.”

“Everyone calls him Master.”

Even worse. “It’s just the two of us here so it will be our little secret.” 

He went back to being quiet, but this time he was thinking hard instead of just staring at you. When he finally met your eyes he seemed to have realized something. “If… if you’re Master Shingen’s daughter and you’re eight years old then…”

You smiled. “Yup, that makes me your older sister.”

“But… no one ever told me…”

You poked the space between his eyebrows. “Stop thinking. There’s nothing to think about. If it makes you feel any better, no one told me about you.”

“That doesn’t make me feel better.”

“Worth a shot.”

He looked at the ground. 

Poor thing. He must’ve thought he had enough competition within the clan. Well, he had nothing to worry about. Once you graduated high school, you were going to attend college on a scholarship and forget this whole place ever existed. 

“You still haven’t told me your name, kid.” You ruffled his hair.

His hair fell over his face, making him more adorable. “It’s Jonggun…”

“Jonggun, huh?” Why was that name so familiar?

“You can call me Gun, everyone else does.”

Your hand stopped. 

Gun. 

That one name unlocked a distant memory, one where you binged on a webtoon instead of studying for exams. 

Gun, as in the Gun Park? Villain extraordinaire of Lookism? 

Of all the places to be reincarnated, you had to be reborn in this freakzoid place where teens look like they could be fathers of three and where extras get shafted constantly?!

You’re pulled out of your freak-out at the gentle tugging on your skirt. You glanced down to find Gun looking at you with concerned eyes. 

There was no mistaking it, those eyes, that hair! No wonder he looked big for his age. 

“W-what is it?” you asked.

“Since we’re siblings, is it all right to call you ane ue?” [1]

He was tiny and harmless now, but in over ten years, he’ll be a force of nature that destroys everything he touches. 

You didn’t want to associate with him. You weren’t delusional or altruistic enough to waste precious time preventing his black flags. Did the original story even have a sister? You’re pretty sure it only mentioned half-brothers…All the more reason to stop this relationship from deepening—

His hand was still on your skirt. 

Gun waited for your reply. His creepy black eyes looked more like a deer’s now. 

…well, it’s not like you were reborn in a world destined for the apocalypse. 

You sighed and knelt down to meet his gaze properly. “Ane ue is too uptight in this day and age, y’know. You can just call me onee-san.”

Finally, he smiled. 

[1] Japanese. Ane ue is an archaic and formal way to address an older sister

author's note: The first time I read Lookism, I was closer to Daniel's age, now I'm closer to Gitae's. 😭Bruh

Disclaimer: The image used is a screencapture from Ep. 520 of the Lookism manhwa.

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