Chapter 42: In The Bath

“One adult, one child, jjimjilbang, please.”

Jina, taking me to the jjimjilbang, skillfully receives clothes and towels at the counter.

And so, in my hands are jjimjilbang clothes and two towels.

I had only heard that women get only two towels, but experiencing it firsthand made me realize that I had truly become a woman.

“First, when you go in, put your shoes in the shoe rack and bring the key. And if you give the key to the counter inside the bathhouse, they’ll give you a locker key.”

Thinking that it was my first time at a jjimjilbang, Jina kindly explained each step.

However, those explanations did not register in my head.

‘I can’t believe I’m entering a women’s bathhouse….’

An absolutely forbidden area for men.

This is a place where a man can become a criminal just by opening the wrong door by mistake.

For me, a (former) man, to set foot in such a place.

Is it a crime for a person whose mind is still male to enter a women’s bathhouse?

If so, if a man undergoes s*x reassignment surgery to become a woman, should that be judged as a woman as a species?

And if a male spirit enters a woman’s body, should that be judged as male?

What gender should a person who has a male body but a female spirit and obtains a female body through s*x reassignment surgery have?

When questions that couldn’t be definitively answered began to stir in my mind, I felt the surrounding air instantly become humid and warm.

When I came to my senses and looked up, I was already in the changing room.

Fortunately, since it was still an ambiguous time, there were only cleaning staff and elderly people resting in their clothes in the changing room.

But my crisis started now.

“We’re here. First, leave the jjimjilbang clothes, and after washing up, put on the jjimjilbang clothes and go upstairs. Ah, it might be a bit late, but you’re not on your period, right?”

“Uh…, yes.”

“That’s a relief. Then, let’s go in. I’m so uncomfortable.”

Saying that, Jina started to take off her clothes.

She casually took off her coat and top and threw them into the locker.

Then, her figure, hidden under loose clothes, was directly imprinted in my eyes.

“Uwaaah, wait a minute!”

“Huh? What’s wrong? Ah, are you the type who’s shy about this?”

“L, let’s turn around and undress!”

“Our child editor has an innocent side. But you’ll see everything in the bathhouse anyway, so it doesn’t matter, right?”

“Th, that’s true, but please hurry up and undress and cover yourself!”

I covered my face with my hands and turned my head.

Seeing that, Jina tilted her head as if looking at something strange, took off all her clothes, and covered the front with a towel.

When she said she was done, I glanced, but there was no way that small bath towel could cover all of that body.

It felt like only the important parts were covered, so I quickly turned my head again and cooled my face.

“The child editor also has to undress to go in.”

“Ah, I know….”

There’s nothing I can do about it.

It’s best to get through embarrassing situations quickly.

I was uncomfortable washing in groups at the orphanage, so I washed alone,

so I’ve never seen anyone else’s naked body, nor have I shown my naked body to anyone.

I desperately endured the embarrassment, quickly finished undressing, and wrapped my body with a towel.

Fortunately, since it was a small body, even a bath towel was enough to cover everything even after wrapping it around my torso once.

“Let’s go in quickly!”

Having finished preparing, I grabbed Jina’s hand, trying not to look at her as much as possible, and headed into the bathhouse.

However, just like last time at Bom’s practice room, I couldn’t open the door with my strength due to the pressure difference between inside and outside and the strong tension of the door.

Seeing that, Jina held back a chuckle and opened the door for me.

I quickly entered through the gap in the door that Jina opened, and ran to the shower area, trying not to look at the inside of the bathhouse as much as possible.

“You shouldn’t run in the bathhouse.”

“Ugh, let’s wash up quickly and go in.”

“Okay, okay. I bought all the bath supplies here, so use them. You can wash yourself, right?”

“Of course!”

Swoosh-

I sit on the bath chair and turn on the warm shower.

And I squeezed out shampoo and body wash with my hands and quickly lathered my body.

‘I need to wash up quickly and get into the water…. Then, with the steam and water, it’ll be a little less visible.’

With that thought, I was quickly washing my body and getting up.

Jina grabbed my arm as I was about to enter the bath.

“You haven’t rinsed off the foam yet. Come here.”

“Ah, uh. Ugh.”

Jina pours water on my head and rinses the foam from my hair and back.

When the water shower is over, my vision becomes clear.

Then, my clear vision accurately perceives the flesh color in front.

“…….”

Jina could make a lot of money if she did a female cam broadcast.

Suddenly, that thought came to mind first.

Bubble bubble bubble-

Bururururu-

I lower my mouth and nose below the surface of the water and make bubbles.

It’s not that I’m particularly playing around.

When I sat on the floor of the bath, the water level just reached my chin, and at this level of visibility, the steam rising above the water surface made my vision a little blurry.

So, while desperately protecting my conscience from when I was a man, Jina, right next to me, stretched out her chest, rested her arms, and enjoyed the bath as if lying down, not caring about my efforts.

“Haaaah…, so good….”

“…You sound like an old man.”

“You’ll be like this when you get to my age. Groaning sounds will come out naturally. I can’t do 24-hour broadcasts like I used to anymore.”

Every time she sighed, her chest went up and down.

Like a submarine surfacing and submerging, two flesh-colored islands appeared and disappeared.

It wasn’t huge enough to confirm the fact that huge things float on water, as is often said in animation, but it was just before that level, as if to say it was, and it뿜ed out a sufficient presence.

“…Do you exercise a lot?”

“Exercise? Well, I do. I still have the habit from when I was in the basketball club in school. But why are you looking there so much…. Aha…?”

Noticing the destination of my gaze, she smiled slyly.

“You’re shy, so I thought you were precocious, but you were subtly interested, huh?”

“Wh, what!”

“You’re still young, so if you eat a lot and exercise hard, you’ll be fine.”

“That’s not it!”

I was startled and denied her words.

My body becoming like Jina’s.

I couldn’t even imagine it.

The reason I was able to wash alone and get used to it was because there wasn’t much difference from when I was a young boy.

A body that hasn’t yet undergone secondary sexual characteristics.

It was because it was a common child’s flat body that I was able to adapt to my body relatively quickly.

‘Come to think of it, I’m in 6th grade now, so it’s time for secondary sexual characteristics to start….’

In fact, some of the girls in the same class who were developing well were already growing like middle and high school students.

Even if secondary sexual characteristics come late, it will be in the next 1-2 years.

Thinking about that, my mind suddenly became confused.

“Come to think of it, I saw earlier that you weren’t wearing a bra. Even if your chest hasn’t developed, it’s better to start now.”

“Ugh….”

” If it is hard for you to tell PD…uncle, feel free to ask me. If all else fails, there’s also Sorin.”

“…… I understand.”

Song Writer had already said it.

Now I really need to think seriously.

‘Still, it’s fortunate that there are many women around… should I say that?’

My judgment is blurred because my body is hot and my head is complicated.

While I was putting my body deep and continuing to make air bubbles, Jina spoke.

“…Will you continue to work in this field?”

“Huh?”

It was a low voice, as if mixed with a little doubt.

“This field…, I mean the internet broadcasting world. You’ve become a little famous, but your main base is still as an editor for internet broadcasters. Are you planning to continue on this path?”

“Well, yes. I think so? Unless something extraordinary happens, I plan to continue.”

I started when I was twenty and did it until I was twenty-two.

At least until then, I plan to try.

Hearing my answer, Jina nodded and let out a small sigh.

“Do you have any concerns?”

“No, well. Just…. It’s not something to say to someone who’s just entered this field.”

“Tell me, it’s good to share your concerns.”

I already owed her a lot.

I could always give her some advice.

She pondered for a long time, then finally opened her mouth.

“I don’t know whether I should… continue broadcasting or quit and join a company.”

“Ah.”

A doubt that people who make internet broadcasting their profession must have.

Jina, who has been broadcasting for a long time, was also having that doubt.

“I’ve been broadcasting for a long time, but honestly, it’s hard to see a vision for internet broadcasting. The number of people starting anew is increasing, but the number of viewers is gradually decreasing.

In fact, the number of my regular viewers hasn’t grown compared to a few years ago.”

“It’s said that broadcasting is gradually becoming mainstream, but I can’t see beyond that. The older generation still sees internet broadcasting as an unhealthy culture, so their views are bad.

What we do is the same as entertainers or comedians, but there are very few people who advance to TV broadcasting. It’s natural because the public’s perception is bad.”

“In that situation, I’m thinking whether I can continue to live while broadcasting. If I lived in the United States or somewhere else, I wouldn’t have this issue.”

Saying that, Jina looked up at the stained-glass ceiling light.

The reason for attaching the place of residence is because of the unit price of advertisements attached to broadcasts or YouTube.

Places with an absolute number of users have a high unit price for advertisements.

Therefore, even with the same number of views on YouTube, the revenue difference between Korea and the United States is more than double.

This is why YouTubers desperately try to recruit overseas viewers.

‘And new broadcasters are increasing rapidly, but the number of people watching broadcasts is not increasing that much….’

That’s why some broadcasters or YouTubers who have established themselves to some extent have side jobs like opening cafes or running internet shopping malls.

Internet broadcasting was created relatively recently and grew rapidly, an industry without any database.

In particular, it was a natural step for Jina, who is at the forefront of internet broadcasting, to have such worries.

But I, who knows the future, could say for sure.

“It’s okay.”

“Huh?”

“You don’t have to worry about that.”

In the next two years.

If you wait that long, you won’t have to worry about that.

“Just trust me and close your eyes and broadcast for just 2 years. 2 years, it’ll go by quickly, right?”

Two years from now.

In 2020.

The internet broadcasting world will have an unprecedented boom.