She stayed still.
As if frozen.
— … is that me?
she asked in a breath.
Aera looked at her, amazed.
— No. It's your 2.0 version. Your rebirth. A celestial apparition. An atomic bomb. A woman who's going to make all of Seoul fall at her feet.
Nari lowered her eyes, a little embarrassed, a little moved.
— I… I find myself beautiful.
— Because you are.
Then Aera turned proudly toward the saleswoman:
— We'll take it. She wears it better than all the models on the site.
They went back to Aera's place afterward, the bags full, their cheeks red from having run, laughed, talked, existed.
The apartment smelled like vanilla and clean laundry.
— Transformation time! announced Aera.
She pushed Nari in front of the vanity, clapped her hands together like a professional coach.
— Sit down. I'll take care of everything.
She took the curling iron.
The black strands wrapped around the curls, then fell in perfect spirals—light, sensual.
Nari watched herself in the mirror.
She saw the usual Nari, but also something else.
A spark.
A strength.
Aera did her eyes with a subtle smoky black, added light on the cheekbones, then opened a scarlet lipstick.
— It's… red.
— Yes.
— Very red.
— You're a femme fatale. Not a cracker. Open your mouth.
Nari laughed in spite of herself and let her do it.
The red transformed her face.
It sculpted it.
It made it live.
Then Aera took out a pair of black heels—high, elegant.
— Here. The shoes of power.
When Nari put them on, she gained almost one extra centimeter of confidence.
Then it was Aera's turn.
She put on a pale pink sequin dress, short, asymmetrical, that highlighted her hips and shimmered like a dawn sky.
Her short brown hair was curled until it had glamorous volume.
Her makeup was sparkling, iridescent, precise.
She was… beautiful.
— So? Do I look like a goddess, or a goddess?
— A goddess.
— Thank you, I thought so too.
They stood in front of the mirror, side by side.
Two women.
Two survivors.
Two sparks of life.
Christmas music was still playing softly behind them.
The dim light gave the scene an almost magical feel.
Aera grabbed Nari's hand.
— This. This is us.
— Real queens, Nari breathed.
— No.
Aera shook her head.
— Two girls who are going to take their lives back. Tonight, we dance. We breathe. We exist.
And Nari, looking at herself one last time…
felt herself being reborn.
Aera ran out of the building almost at a sprint, her pink glittery dress fluttering like fireworks.
She checked Nari's lipstick one last time, smoothed her curls, then made a theatrical gesture.
— On our way to pick up our gigachad!
They walked to the street corner where Ryo was waiting for them.
Standing against a lamppost, phone in hand, he looked like he had stepped straight out of a magazine.
Perfectly tailored black suit.
Shirt slightly open, revealing just enough muscular chest to turn heads.
Shiny brown hair, impeccably styled.
Playful gaze.
When he saw the girls, his smile doubled.
— Oh wow… you look like two goddesses straight out of a movie.
Am I your escort tonight, then?
Aera rolled her eyes.
— Ryo… why do you look like a Korean mafia guy on a date?!
— Because I'm handsome, he replied, adjusting his sleeve.
And also because you said "we're dressing up for the occasion." I'm just… consistent.
— Consistent my ass! You're way too fresh, YOU'RE GONNA SCARE ALL THE GUYS AWAY! yelled Aera.
— So… you admit I'm too fresh, is that it?
Ryo shot back with his insolent smile.
He leaned over his seat to murmur in Aera's ear, his voice low, warm:
— And I admit you're not bad either.
Aera turned tomato red instantly.
Peony red.
Nuclear-danger red.
She jumped back and almost screamed:
— HUH?!
AND THEN WHAT?!
GO BACK TO YOUR CAVE!!
She turned tomato red, scarlet, hysterical, hitting him with her bag.
— I never said you were handsome! You look like an earthworm dressed by Dior!! A luxury worm!!
Nari burst into such sudden laughter that tears came to her eyes.
Ryo put a hand on his heart, fake wounded.
— An earthworm? That's the worst insult I've ever gotten…
But coming from you… I'll take it as a compliment.
You're trying to hide something from me, Aera?
— NOTHING AT ALL!
she yelled, banging her head against the steering wheel.
Nari was still laughing, unable to stop.
Between their bickering, their pseudo-flirting, their stupid jabs, she was breathing.
She felt… light.
They finally left.
Christmas music echoed throughout the car.
Aera sang off-key but with Olympic passion.
Ryo imitated Mariah Carey as if his life depended on it.
And Nari… Nari sang too—shy at first, then louder and louder.
An improbable trio.
A perfect trio.
The light from the Christmas decorations passed through the windows, drawing golden reflections on their faces.
Aera suddenly turned around.
— NARI! This is an order: YOU HAVE FUN TONIGHT!
— Yes chef! Nari replied, laughing.
When they arrived in front of the club, Nari froze for a second.
Her heart sped up.
The façade was lit by violet and silver neon, suspended glowing snowflakes, and a huge sign read:
🎄 CHRISTMAS NIGHT – SPECIAL EVENT 🎄
People were waiting outside, sparkling like stars.
The bouncers wore ridiculous Christmas accessories: reindeer headbands, beanies, blinking garlands.
The music vibrated through the walls, a mix of deep bass and laughter.
Nari inhaled, impressed.
She had never been clubbing.
Never felt that heavy air of perfume, excitement, and light.
Never faced such a whirlwind of people.
Inside, it was worse.
The music made the floor shake.
Lasers cut through the air like claws of red and blue light.
The ceiling shimmered with suspended snowflakes.
An avalanche of glitter seemed to fall behind the stage.
Dancers moved to the bass, their silhouettes undulating like an electric dream.
Nari looked all around her, amazed.
The light smoke.
The flashes.
The DJ wearing a Santa hat way too big.
The colorful cocktails.
Hundreds of bodies in motion.
Laughter.
Bottles popping.
Heels sliding on the shiny floor.
Head-spinning perfumes.
Happy faces—red, tipsy.
— Wow… she murmured.
It's… it's incredible.
Aera grabbed her hand like an overexcited child.
— YOU SEE?! I told you you'd love it!
Nari touched Aera's arm, a little dizzy.
— It's… huge.
— And you still haven't seen anything! yelled Aera over the noise.
Aera pointed to the raised area where the lights were dimmer, the bottles more expensive, the looks colder.
— Up there, that's the VIP.
The rich, the influencers, the chaebol heirs.
And the gross old guys too.
Basically, nothing that interests us.
Nari narrowed her eyes.
The platform was suspended right next to the bathrooms, separated only by a tinted glass railing.
Aera burst out laughing.
— You see the worst part of all this?
When YOU go to the bathroom… you see absolutely everything that's happening in their corner.
The fights, the breakups, the screwed-up hookups, the drama, the awkward flirting…
It's free theater.
Nari's eyes widened.
— And… they see us too?
— Of course!
They love it.
They think they're at the movies: everyone passing by the bathrooms, they have a perfect view.
You pee? They see.
You argue? They see.
You cry?
They take bets.
Nari burst out laughing despite herself.
— Are you kidding?
— I wish. It's Seoul's Human Safari.
They don't pay for the bottle: they pay for the view.
Nari burst out laughing.
She felt electrified.
Awake.
A spectator in a completely new universe.
Ryo came up behind them, hands in his pockets.
— So, what's your first time at a club like?
— It's… it's beautiful, she answered sincerely.
Ryo smiled softly.
Aera clapped her hands.
— COME ON! WE SAID WE'RE LIVING! LET'S GO!
And Aera dragged her toward the dance floor, her laughter bursting through the air like a Christmas rocket.
What Nari still didn't know was that that night—under the red lights, the music too loud, and the laughter she was trying to find again—something was waiting for her.
A tiny spark.
Invisible.
A nothing that was going to make everything tip over.
And make her fall lower than she had ever imagined.