Black Label [EN]: Chapter 12

Black Label 11

12. Sold Out

It wasn’t a phone call.

It was just that texts kept coming in, one after another, making the phone ring incessantly as if he were receiving a call.

Standing blankly, Young-guk finally snapped out of it after staring intently at the phone screen.

“Hey! Lee Jae-seung! Lee Jae-seung!”

He started shaking Jae-seung, who was sleeping soundly as if he were dead, to wake him up.

He had just fallen into a light sleep. Jae-seung forced his slightly bloodshot eyes open and asked in a slightly hoarse voice, “Why? What’s going on…?”

“Hey, Jae-seung. You need to get up now. This isn’t the time to be lying around like that.”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden…?”

“Texts! Check your texts first!”

Young-guk shouted urgently again and immediately handed over Jae-seung’s phone, which he was holding tightly.

‘Phone? Texts…?’

He felt a spark, like something flashed in his head.

An unsettling anticipation made his heart pound.

Soon, Jae-seung busily moved his fingers and immediately opened his inbox.

At that moment.

“Huh…?”

Jae-seung couldn’t help but doubt his own eyes. His phone’s text message inbox was filled with unread purchase inquiries.

– I would like to purchase the Re-Bite Reform Jeans.

– I contacted you after seeing your post on the used market. Is it sold out?

– I want to buy the Wappen attached reform hoodie.

– Is it possible to talk on the phone? I contacted you after seeing the listing you posted.

Even as Jae-seung was checking the messages that had arrived, new messages kept arriving.

Bee-beep-!

Bee-beep-!

Jae-seung let out a burst of laughter and then checked the time.

It had only been about 10 minutes since he had posted the listings.

‘What is going on….’

Jae-seung took a deep breath and then opened his mouth. “Young-guk, I’m sorry, but can you help me for a second?”

“How can I help?”

“Please reply for me.”

“Huh? Reply?”

“Yeah.”

Jae-seung replied briefly and sat back down in front of the computer.

He rubbed his sweaty palms on his pants, waiting for the monitor screen to light up.

As soon as the monitor turned on, he moved his hands busily.

First, he accessed the ‘Wall Flower Reform Shop’ blog and began to modify the content of the posts he had posted today.

Tap- Tap tap-!

It was a simple task. All he had to do was add a one-line phrase to the title of the post and the end of the body.

– Sold out.

“Young-guk, first, you have to reply in chronological order. Reply to the buyer who contacted you first.”

“What should I send?”

“First, accurately confirm the item they want to purchase, paste the account number saved in my phone’s memo, and send it to them. Be sure to tell them that we will ship it immediately after confirming the deposit and send them the tracking number.”

“Okay, I got it.”

Since it was a similar procedure to an online used goods transaction, it was clear that Young-guk would be able to do it without difficulty.

The moment Young-guk started tapping on the phone screen, Jae-seung immediately added another instruction. “Ah! Address. Ask for the address too. The address where they will receive the item.”

“Okay!”

The leisurely atmosphere in the room was instantly transformed.

Young-guk was pressing down on the phone screen with fierce eyes, and Jae-seung was tapping on the keyboard and moving the mouse frantically.

This was because he had not only posted the sales-related posts on the blog.

He had also posted articles on five clothing-related web communities that were quite large and had active used goods transactions.

He had to find each post he had written and modify the body.

– Sold out.

He suddenly wondered, ‘Was this phrase ever so pleasant to say?’

He had been hoping that ‘Wall Flower Reform Shop’ would be the first step.

That’s why he moved with momentum and was busy trying to bring forward the day of the challenge.

However, it was only an expectation. On the other hand, there was definitely doubt.

‘Will this really work?’

After witnessing the results with his own eyes, the doubts he had harbored were naturally dispelled.

Is this really going to work?

It works.

And it will, unconditionally.

“Jae-seung! The deposit [money transfer] text came?”

“Did all three of them come?”

“Yeah. 80,000 won [Korean currency], 80,000 won, 45,000 won. A total of 3. Right?”

A total of 205,000 won.

Compared to the income he had earned in his previous life, it was literally a drop in the bucket.

However, Jae-seung had a happy smile on his face.

The current income is just a trigger.

Regardless of income, he became confident in his value. The unfounded doubt about himself that had been lurking within him was swept away at once.

‘Now it’s really starting….’

Jae-seung had a faint smile on his face and began to tell Young-guk how to respond again.

“Now that I’ve almost finished modifying the posts, there will be almost no more texts coming in. Even if they do, there won’t be many.”

“Yeah. So what should I do now?”

“First, reply in the order they contacted you. Tell them that the item has already been sold and that you are sorry.”

“Okay, I got it.”

With Young-guk’s answer, the two began to focus on their respective roles again.

Young-guk was constantly tapping on the phone screen, and Jae-seung was finding the posts that he had not yet modified and adding the phrase that the sale was completed.

Not long after, Jae-seung took a long breath and opened his mouth. “Ha-! I’m done modifying the posts.”

“Oh, I’m sending the last reply now.”

For now, they had put out all the urgent fires that needed to be put out. As soon as Young-guk returned the phone, Jae-seung began to check the message history himself.

“You sent it well. Thanks, Young-guk.”

“You little punk. Buy me food.”

“Of course.”

Jae-seung put his phone in his back pocket and stretched out his fist.

Young-guk, who was staring blankly at Jae-seung’s fist, smiled and bumped his fist against it.

Tap-!

“Young-guk, let’s go out for now.”

“Huh?”

“Let’s send the packages first and then go eat.”

“Okay. Then wait a minute. Let me change my clothes first.”

The moment Young-guk opened the closet and took out some clothes, Jae-seung began to look at his feet with a faint smile.

‘Haa-.’

He was happy. But it wasn’t just unfamiliar joy. He had tasted it a few times before, so it was a kind of joy that he felt relatively familiar with.

He had never forgotten this joy for a single moment. That’s why he was able to immediately recall when he had felt this joy.

It is the joy he tasted briefly before making imitations in his previous life.

It is the joy he felt when the clothes he had struggled to make, cutting down on sleep time, were displayed in the small shop where he worked.

It is the joy he felt when customers who visited the store showed interest in his clothes, not the clothes that came out of the factory.

Also, it is the joy he felt when he sold those clothes himself. It’s faint, but still familiar joy.

A joy that he had missed so much. So, it is the joy he desperately wanted to regain.

“Hoo….”

Sentiment and sorrow intersect. If you touch it, it felt like tears would pour out at any moment.

Jae-seung started pressing his temples for no reason. He didn’t want to suddenly show tears.

Especially not on such a happy day.

Suddenly, one thought flashed through Jae-seung’s mind.

If he is so happy that the reformed clothes are sold, how happy would he be when his own self-produced clothes are sold?

Also, how happy would he be if he encountered someone wearing those clothes on the street?

Jae-seung was continuing his happy imagination when.

“Let’s go.”

Young-guk, who had already finished preparing to go out, spoke with an imposing tone.

Jae-seung smiled deeply and replied in a rather solemn tone. “Yes, let’s go.”

With conviction. Without wavering. Steadfastly.