A New Look

It was cozy and relaxing. Kaiden sat on the wooden bench, savoring his slowly cooling cocoa.

His eyes gazed upward until they met the sky. The sea's mirror-like surface seemed to have receded, as if the ocean had pulled back. The barrier appeared almost as tall as the atomic bomb Kaiden once saw in a classroom.

As he pondered all this, he couldn't help but feel the surreal nature of the events.

Two years had passed since he woke up, just like the characters in video games and stories he used to hear about.

It felt like he was in an entirely new world, not only because of the fantastic happenings but also because of the money.

When Kaiden finally finished his thoughts, he stood up. Pushing off the bench with his hands, he let his legs become his mode of transportation.

He left the other cup of cocoa, now cooled, behind and strolled along the promenade toward the city.

****

The previously quiet and tranquil atmosphere, filled with a faint fishy scent and the fresh breeze, had transformed into a bustling crowd.

Though the city was large, it felt cramped. There was space to walk, and he wasn't bumped into, but it was busier than usual.

What day of the week was it again? He wondered.

After asking himself, he answered: it must be the weekend, which explained the crowds. However, Kaiden seemed particularly out of place. Not because he was Awakened, but because he was the only one dressed in thin, simple clothes.

It almost looked like a thin pajama. When he realized this, he knew what he wanted to do: go shopping.

He'd never done anything like it before. He'd always heard his friends talk about how much fun it was, especially the girls in his class who were crazy about it.

But Kaiden could never do it, as he had to work part-time after school. His brother didn't earn enough, having just finished school himself. So he uniformly went about in full attire, from head to toe.

Kaiden was a little excited, like a small child. Finally, he could do something he'd never been able to.

The others all walked around in complete outfits, with long pants, sweaters or t-shirts, jackets, and other accessories.

They left Kaiden in the shade, but he wanted to change that. Determined, he walked through the crowd toward the first store he saw. The name of this store was unknown to him, like so many others.

He didn't even know the famous brands properly.

Upon entering, he immediately felt a source of warm air, causing his long blonde hair to fly about wildly. The cold from outside, though bearable, Kaiden could endure, especially since he wasn't naked.

But the warmth that greeted him here filled him with a sense of belonging. Much like here, Kaiden felt entirely out of place.

Everything looked elegant, decorated in white and golden tones. Everything was neat, and there were only a few items of each offer. Kaiden looked around and wanted to start with upper clothing.

So he walked into the men's section, which was clearly marked on the right, and looked around. The first thing that caught his eye was a simple white t-shirt with a dark motif on the front.

He liked it a lot, so he took a closer look. He held it in his hands and wanted to ask if he could try it on.

A saleswoman, dressed uniformly in white and black, with a long brown braid, kindly informed him that this store catered to customers with a slightly higher budget.

Kaiden was confused, because a t-shirt couldn't be that expensive. But when he looked at the price tag, he couldn't believe his eyes.

160 dollars for a piece of silk with four holes. Internally, he thought they were trying to fool him, and he almost wanted to yell at the saleswoman.

But Kaiden didn't want to be like that and simply said with an arrogant tone, "Is this the most expensive thing you have?"

The saleswoman denied this and said they had even more expensive t-shirts. As far as she knew, the most expensive one they had in stock was about 1500 dollars.

If Kaiden wasn't composed, he would have already fainted. Again, he thought to himself: 1500 dollars!?

That was his brother's monthly salary.

But Kaiden just wanted to play along and said, "Show it to me."

The saleswoman looked a little surprised at the seemingly homeless Kaiden and said she was really sorry, but they only showed such things to customers who actually had enough money.

Kaiden, who was now getting a bit nervous, thinking he could just walk away after revealing the 1500-dollar t-shirt, said, "No way." And added, "I have the money!"

As he said these words, he pulled out his wallet and took out the card that was now inside.

While the saleswoman still had the same opinion of the seemingly homeless Kaiden, it quickly changed.

It was an Awakened Express card, only issued to Awakened.

Shortly after realizing this, she apologized by bowing, followed by the words:

"We thank you for your service."

Kaiden hadn't actually expected the young woman to suddenly bow. But it wasn't just her, everyone else in the store seemed to bow briefly, showing respect.

Kaiden, who couldn't do anything about it, just went along with it and said, "You could have figured that out earlier.

Anyway, I'd like to leave now." Suddenly, the saleswoman seemed to panic, while the other customers whispered about what was happening.

The young woman then announced that he would receive something on the house. For everyone, this seemed totally exaggerated, giving away a 1500-dollar t-shirt for free.

But when you looked at it from a future perspective, some purchases would disappear, as the store would get bad reviews, like "anti-Awakened".

Kaiden, who kept his poker face, but was inwardly beaming with joy, agreed and took it as an apology gift.

****

What followed wasn't just the purchase of the t-shirt, but also other things. This included the light blue t-shirt with the white design, which was complimentary, a white vest, similarly loose white pants that felt like joggers but looked more like jeans.

A few white socks with black stripes, white underwear, a black leather belt, and a pair of white and black shoes with a peculiar curving black design. When he reached the cash register, Kaiden knew it would be a bit more expensive.

After all, he also had to somehow get rid of the money, as it wouldn't be his for much longer. But when the saleswoman stated the amount, he couldn't believe it. It was 8960 dollars.

"How can simple clothing be so expensive?" he thought to himself, but he kept his poker face.

"Yes, that's all," he said to appear composed, and inserted the card, typing in the code 1899 again.

The transaction was successful, and Kaiden, now completely clad in new clothes, left the store with a strange feeling.

This time, it wasn't just because he had spent a heap of money on clothes, something he would never normally do, but because the gazes didn't stop. However, they had a slightly different tone.

Before, they looked down on Kaiden, who had a rather shabby look, but now they seemed impressed, as most recognized the designer clothes.

But Kaiden, who now tried to forget the crowd, just wanted to focus on himself and gazed at the shop window in the next store. Not because he wanted to look at more clothes, but because he wanted to see himself.

In doing so, he noticed one thing he still wanted to change before he left. The most important thing that determines appearance: the haircut.

Initially, it didn't look bad, but he knew he could look better because his hair was about a meter long. So he followed the crowd, not knowing where a hair salon would be.

But with a bit of luck, he found one after only a short search. He walked for only ten minutes along the seemingly endless sidewalk, made up of stone slabs and various attractions like monuments, parks, or shops. But now it was time for the finishing touch.

Upon arriving at the somewhat smaller store compared to the clothing store, instead of the warming air, a bell rang out when the door opened.

The atmosphere was entirely different. Everything seemed randomly decorated, not as elegant as in the clothing store.

Plus, it was colorful and filled with posters of hairstyles that apparently belonged to customers. Greeted warmly by a slightly older man, around his 40s, he turned kindly to the Kaiden, characterized by long and unkempt hair.

"How can I help you?" he asked.

To which Kaiden said he would simply trust him, as he had no idea about hairstyles. Everything seemed to proceed rather quickly and haphazardly, as the room already promised.

****

The man only glanced at Kaiden, who viewed his haircut through a slightly smaller, oval mirror from the back.

With a rotation around Kaiden's head, he seemed impressed. Before, he always had a rather short hairstyle, which didn't look bad either, but now with this one, he wouldn't deny that he looked attractive.

To be precise, if he were a girl, he wouldn't refuse a night with him. Happy as he was, he asked the hairdresser how much it would cost.

The also smiling man said it would be 30 dollars.

"You know what," said Kaiden, "today is your lucky day."

Surprised, the hairdresser asked what he meant by that, after all, he was just cutting his hair.

When Kaiden inserted his card, he transferred the remaining money on it to the scanner. Surprised and happy, the hairdresser still didn't want to accept that amount of money, as it would be impolite.

Kaiden, who understood this and would have acted the same way, simply said it would be fine. In the end, with a bit of tears in his eyes, the hairdresser took a photo of Kaiden, which he wanted to hang in a special place later.

Embracing, the two said their goodbyes, and once again Kaiden left the shop. But this time, he wasn't looked down on or stared at with envy. Instead, it was almost as if he were a model.

It was probably the combination of neatness and expensive designer clothes, although Kaiden was probably imagining a lot. He continued walking along with the crowd, when a thought struck him like lightning.

He remembered that he had to be somewhere at 6 pm. So he took his phone out of his left jeans pocket and noticed that it was already shortly after 5 pm.

But that wasn't the only problem. Kaiden, who didn't know how a phone worked properly, could find the call button because of the symbol, but he couldn't find the email button anywhere.

****