2 Fatty Duckling

As I blinked my eyes open, everything was fuzzy. My head hurt as I tried to figure out where I was. Slowly, my vision began to clear as I started to see the room around me.

I was lying on a bed in a room with posters of K-pop stars in seducing poses on the walls. I could hear Korean pop music playing softly in the background. But what really caught my attention was the mess of –porn magazines and crumpled tissues scattered on the floor, and a gross smell in the air, almost making me want to throw up.

This wasn't my room. This wasn't even my body.

Looking down, I saw I was in the body of a 14-year-old boy, short and chubby, with sweat on my skin.

But then, amidst all the confusion, a strange feeling came over me. Despite being scared, I felt a bit happy. It was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders, and I smiled for the first time in ages.

I was alive, more than ever. But standing for too long made me feel like I was going to die out of breath.

Sometime later

After taking a nice cold bath, I felt so much better. I put on some clean clothes from the closet and left the stinky dark room.

Coming out and looking around, I realized the house was just like the ones in the manhwas I used to read. It felt cozy and familiar, like a typical Korean home.

But as I kept exploring the house, I started feeling uneasy, like something was missing.

 I couldn't remember anything beyond my own name. I didn't even know who my parents were or where I came from. It was like my past had disappeared, leaving only bits of memories behind.

Lost in my thoughts, I jumped when I heard dishes clinking together. Curious, I followed the sound to the kitchen. There, a woman was washing dishes, her hands covered in soap suds.

"KYAA!" she exclaimed, dropping the dish she was holding into the sink with a clatter. She stumbled back, her eyes wide with shock as she pressed a hand to her chest, as if she had just seen a ghost.

"I-I'm sorry," I stammered, feeling guilty for startling her. "I didn't mean to scare you."

Seeing me considered, she came out of her stupor and washed her hands before she approached me and put her hands over my forehead, checking my temperature.

"Mo-Mom?" I called out, feeling unsure.

"Yeah, baby, are you sick? Does your tummy hurt? Are you hungry?" she asked, her voice filled with concern as she bombarded me with questions.

A smile bloomed on my face as I took her hands in both of my palms. "I... I'm not sure," I admitted, feeling a sense of comfort wash over me at her touch. "But I'm okay now. I think I just... needed to see a familiar face."

Her eyes softened with understanding as she wrapped me in a gentle embrace. "Don't worry," she whispered, her voice soothing.

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"I-I'm sorry," he stammered, his voice barely above a whisper. "I didn't mean to scare you."

I reached out to him, my heart swelling with love and understanding. 

After that, everything felt surreal. He spoke to me like my sweet old little Jin, happy to see his mom after school. We shared dinner and laughed together, pushing aside all our worries for a while.

But then he started complaining about his body, feeling insecure about himself. He was determined to get into shape, saying something about "It's time to lock in." I couldn't help but wonder if he had met some girl online, but he just laughed and denied it, leaving me puzzled.

Throughout the evening, I couldn't stop thinking about what my son said. He used to be so carefree, but now he seemed upset about how he looked. It hurt to see him struggle, but I admired how determined he was to make a change.