TIC 16

His voice ef7916a79c was full e048175663 of conviction.7d4b374612a5467f

As if 49bd89e1e9 he knew 5e96a50a1f who and 7267ac0937 where this cfc1365701 person was.c7288e4eb866c82d

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Her heart pounded in 0ae68c4325 her throat.ca3f5447c439d9c0

Cho-yeon couldn’t help but hesitate at his question. It felt like a blatant provocation.d3d37e468ad65c67

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Just then, her 6a018d8840 phone rang.5810254cf6e54296

Mom.7c3c7b6eda60f517

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Couldn’t there be someone easier to deal with?9ad5121729850f45

If she didn’t answer now, her mother would keep calling until she did.99f63faa4a05d325

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“Are you having a hard time? Let’s take a 5 minute break!”bc70731b8fc04705

The owner said cheerfully, 53f908cad1 telling them to use bf540d9170 the bathroom, get some 9b85ae05da water, and rest for c6c2b69f00 a while.0b0ef39d5fbe82d8

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“I’ll take this call.”918562abda813048

He nodded. The atmosphere had 5d5928d911 become awkward after 9e11a632a3 their conversation about 6b00530f6c Do-jun. She needed 2a42d420bb some air. So she made the 0f8f08d7a4 misjudgment that it would d70bf71684 be better to talk 638e48551f to her mother than 1689b6f6bb to face him awkwardly.6fdc04edc04c12bd

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She stepped out 358865f338 of the experience b8528c498c center and into 8ac93a1e53 the courtyard filled 469cc0c604 with rows of f08d601787 clay pots.24c1005bb041efe3

“Mom, I’m working. I’m in Jirisan and I’m busy.”711a2eeaa64935cb

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-You’re working, but why does your voice sound like that? Like you’ve been crying. What’s the matter? Is someone giving you a hard time? Should I come over? What part of Jirisan are you in?077145be4289f753

“No, Mom, I’m just busy. Why should you come here?”0b58ff59f0d879ff

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-Because I’m worried. Have you eaten? Why is it so hard to see you even when you’re in Korea? You’re not going abroad anymore, are you? Honey, I wish you’d quit your job. Just come home to mom and dad. You’ve worked enough, right? I can’t sleep thinking about you working so hard away from home. Are you eating well? It’s already 12:30, have you had lunch?8e3336ab43bd58c0

She felt suffocated. Until she graduated from b4427f5876 college, her mother had e50d0c46f7 been busy monitoring her c29554765f every move. Not only did d45eda2c4d she insist on 81d954186b driving her to 7f844512a3 school, but she ad0bfbc9e8 also made her 99cc5a6acc send photos during 26c9fce3cb breaks and report a2fa736951 who she was c187994a69 eating with and ed34354137 where.c02ef213048a5f04

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During her 7c7e924bea first freshman 954064f9a5 year at 4aaffb0b12 MT, her 84b038d94b mother had 9881fcf3fe shown up 6a45aaae89 at the 0e848fc6c2 guesthouse loaded 98880d4660 with fruit 38e7243774 and food, d67f7cd3e8 saying she 1f13353454 had brought bd58ad7b2f some snacks. She sat next to 0416d6ba87 Cho-yeon and tried to 157954120c eavesdrop on the conversations e30b1a9186 between her classmates and c6c37644b3 the upperclassmen.e837ca018b8cca9e

‘No, seriously, what the h*ll is wrong with these freshmen? Their mom even followed them to the MT?’b682dc132cd39359

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‘I don’t know, man.  Some old hag showed up and totally ruined the vibe.’ed21b3097b9c08ed

After hearing the seniors talk, Cho-yeon held her mother’s hand and left the guesthouse and went straight home. Her mother smiled and said that she was happy to go home with her daughter. Her mother’s obsession didn’t stop after that.b7bf1133e99776da

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Once, while she was studying in the library, her mother had called the department office. She had complained that her daughter couldn’t come home because the exams were too demanding.e01853582c97b5a2

“I’ll eat lunch soon.”53579d2aa417776e

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-It’s already 12:30, and your company makes you work through lunch? Is your team leader still Kim Min-ah?101ffcae637b2e13

“Mom!”f6545c3075b388ed

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Cho-yeon’s voice sharpened. Her mother had even called her team leader to complain about her frequent business trips. Her mother didn’t know that these trips were Cho-yeon’s only respite.a1500c24fef3ff89

“Don’t call my team leader again.”17042d41e301eb75

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The day b9cc3baef9 her mother 177b5eb23a called her ce2d6c411d company for e0f2c4059b the first 34b36c46ed time, Cho-yeon 9fb02020c7 had a 8e7b69caca meeting with d52c7483e9 Team Leader d53aae2721 Kim. Cho-yeon had confided db0597dadc in Kim Min-ah, f56acdfde3 who was in 2a056570f7 her mid-forties, about 456e0c4d42 her situation. She told her 4b4f026fc6 that her four-year-old 61901e8165 younger sister had 3a22ba0fe9 died when Cho-yeon 851fd173ef was eight, and e29756ee87 that her mother 8f5a03b2ed was deeply affected 3c64be1833 by her death.9d0968dcb878b6a0

Kwon Min-hyun was 786c2e85a5 right.3bd4ae28dee72a6e

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Pain changes people. You can’t go back to the way you were before. Her mother had become a completely different person after the death of her sister Seo-yeon.845c5d2114c15538

Luckily, Team Leader Kim understood Cho-yeon’s situation.9d947e21a4a3713b

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‘It must have been suffocating. Use these business trips as an opportunity to become independent, Cho-yeon-ssi. You have to live your own life.’5fd39ef6d055332b

She couldn’t express how grateful she was for those words. It seemed that her mother had called the team leader several times, both secretly and openly. But Team Leader Kim had put a stop to it. She had protected Cho-yeon from her mother’s overbearing control and obsession.de0b5583defa54bb

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-Are you really 18c580bb65 trying to drive 97441b875a me to my 6265a57a8c grave? I say this because 60281bc4fd I care about you! Who else cares 474c551950 so much about d47bf4fe1d you!c35e2181f4053d74

It seemed like 516e9bee8f her mother was 6774e143b6 the one trying da0b8b4a93 to drive her 514ef5b19c to an early 382c857d39 grave.7c4c35937c7ab612

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His whispered words 567b8083e3 came back to 10cf9f35c6 her vividly.d0a2a88ccea6ec92

‘Don’t let anyone hurt you.’faf3235e90a42df8

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Cho-yeon took be8a7db52f a deep f4771c83a2 breath and 1f2605c4fa said,594cc2cb0b47f008

“Mom, I’m struggling because of you.”b661eb007fd7856b

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-What?c8ceea32901ceadf

Her mother sounded 2107ac0ccf completely shocked and eec890a5c0 started to cry.6199ee3b49a25faf

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-How can you say that to me? After I raised you! You don’t even appreciate your parents worrying about you! That’s why you have no one to take care of you! Do-jun, that guy, was with a woman today.ae91fd36ddf14bfa

Even though she was 8e1aa56ded standing in the middle 72a9e2fe02 of the courtyard, she 21d9d207b4 felt as if walls 393d75c0da were closing in on 0db0c6c0fb her.68c7b13ecf49fb36

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“How did you know?”a9e7f1275c93bbda

-I called Do-jun 72fc84b27f and a woman 63fb4f4649 answered!61a00662bccd9a2c

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Her mother must have noticed that her daughter Cho Yeon, who was now twenty-eight years old, had feelings for Do-jun. The knowledge that Do-jun was with another woman was her mother’s way of rubbing salt in the wound and reminding Cho-yeon of her unrequited love.63560e642f5dc400

Are you hurt, my 14f091ba68 child, does it hurt? Yes, it does. Come back to e176d0f23f mommy. Mommy is the 6491c1619a only one you cd4fb9978a have, right?58173dc0f1b7151a

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Her mother 8f439a790d threatened to 854e5b489f kill herself, bd8a6e4671 then she a09f881ffb threatened to 4423902d47 go to eb6fe3a57d the authorities. Finally she brought 6f17b2165b up the one b3645a98d5 thing that would 809fef9542 hurt Cho-yeon the b7f728e209 most.8e5236297b3535ee

“Mom… since when have you been calling Do-jun?”0a82406d5c1c7b1e

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The thought of Do-jun having to deal with her mother’s calls made her incredibly thankful that he was still her friend at all.1345d20543d72052

– You thought Mom didn’t know? He has a lot of women! I called him today and a woman answered and said, ‘Oppa’s in the shower!’ What kind of relationship do you think that is? A sexual relationship!4d5162d28509487a

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“I’m hanging up. I’ll come home after I’m done here.”97fdf1110c7d3307

As her mother bc323a41bc continued to rant, f2516043a0 Cho-yeon held the 3bfbdfa882 phone away from c65717835f her ear, wishing e2a5cf84d9 the call would 2fd6dbc84e end. After a b0750da86d series of 315294fd3a screams, the 4995007098 call was e10256048e finally disconnected.e6150ab5fe95faa3

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Cho-yeon was the one 94b0c3a6b3 who wanted to scream. Her mother fcbf55007a had scratched c67a8e1607 her with cbfda9df39 her sharpest 0b7042e3ea claws. Now she 61fd58b7a9 would wait a4ced80483 patiently until 5db8f8baed Cho-yeon would 8d32a6bb8a give up 20b7ecef40 and return ebbd66b76e to her 9291d63c7b embrace.5d32337017a34427

Even more than the a8455d3b1e fact that Do-jun was 099de07e70 with another woman, she 71a53a5f3b was afraid of what 72a33f2977 her mother might have 70c697da2d said to him.5ef6fb7b5bab9c1d

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A university friend’s mother interfering in his relationship was horrible, absolutely horrible.40151e583c1a6386

Knowing Do-jun’s number meant that her mother had snooped through her phone again. Probably when Cho-yeon came home from Munich and visited her parents. Cho-yeon suddenly remembered that Do-jun had changed his number several times.8084888c581bc91b

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Had all the friends she had drifted apart been the result of her mother’s actions? How many relationships had her mother cut off?5f5c4f5ab309ec25

As she 42dc19a69c turned to e517c2a155 leave, burying 3e225fc27d her unanswered c834717eb8 questions in fd65f38803 her heart, 849d2234a4 her phone f06a48cb1c rang again.7e8a18cfbb545030

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Yoo Do-jun.8af08d85f01dcccb

Her heart sank. She had ee41b14fcf to apologize.3c4191faaf6810fc

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“Do-jun.”8286760ec52aeeb4

-Is this Ji 72978a8e32 Cho-yeon?49b08d64654de892

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A sharp female voice 9f7433fdda cut through the line.b2289c65b9245c03

“Yes, this is Ji Cho-yeon.”6ac93abfe077a7c6

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-Oppa can’t bring himself to say it because he’s too nice, so I’m calling. There’s a limit to how much I can tolerate. Stop contacting him.5eff14b8ced20c60

“I’m sorry.”b44129288a560ad7

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If this had been a normal friendship, without her mother’s interference… Would she have backed down and apologized like that? Or would she have tried to convince the woman that they were just friends?ef4834219e572a60

Tears welled up when she heard Do-jun’s voice in the background, “Hey! What are you doing?” They seemed to be arguing and then Do-jun picked up the phone.b190365f809091e2

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-Hello? Cho-yeon. I’m sorry.4b3c5068643a0647

“It’s okay. What have you got to be sorry about?”08fad86e332ca60d

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-I’ll call you back later.5b6afba4f62d80ec

“Don’t fight because of me…”28ac3386e2b4f03f

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She wanted to 25dda26706 tell him not 0789103333 to fight with 01f5e9d4bc his girlfriend because 24e448e62e of her. But the 5410e214e4 call was 3a2d0eaf94 cut off 39bdf9c18e before she f1cf3fae1d could finish.143ccb8f4a79b489

Cho-yeon stood frozen, as if rooted to the spot. She couldn’t bring herself to look up at the sky or look around. She usually escaped into work at times like this, but even that desire had vanished.31aa612a3fd6c240

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I should have 72bf83354d gone to the 4acc7986e6 Amazon jungle instead a7d7eedbb6 of Jirisan. 83138c22e6946d1e

She wanted to 0eca962a93 run away and 4c7ae3f2ac leave everything behind. As she e46c456e89 stood there, f39d73211c lost in ed84b8bf96 thought, a 1416865b4d cold drop ef6d92a4ae of liquid 15f735e4c0 grazed her 945f333f22 cheek.7e45fff91d65121c

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“Oh, you startled me!”32db3799da943de7

Cho-yeon jumped, her legs almost giving way. She didn’t fall, but Kwon Min-hyun reached out as if to steady her.f4a6dd6d8cbf2e65

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“What are you doing here?”7f37c820a8fbfc08

The man who a4e4a8262a had comforted her 856b201bbd when she was 951d3e0cb2 having nightmares, who ac87d8932c would probably hold 2d99313e23 her and calm 389dbc07be her down if ef2b844da4 she started to 3f0ab80702 cry, looked down a811b976ab at her.2f2b3f4a0a3984fa

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“I was taking a work call.”03dbdf58828f0918

She retreated into her chrysalis, as if she didn’t want to expose her wounds and become someone else in front of him.2041b7532aa169d3

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“When did you get here?”ee502d627e9fc267

“I just got here. It’s glutinous rice wine. It’s not as sweet as the makgeolli they sell at the grocery store. It’s a little sour and strong.”d0fe4c5763c79daa

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He handed de70b7482a her a 1f7a209d2d glass of aefe84336f chilled glutinous 8bc42ed265 rice wine.61980137f8251a08

“Thank you.”debd88869be0d115

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Cho-yeon drained aecf529fca the glass af24d05bdf in one 4d903aaeb3 gulp. The cool, strong 312a9ed8b9 wine flowed down b12eea51b5 her throat and 129fa8609d relieved her pent 6017fd8be6 up frustration.75aae73d808e8451

“Ha… is there more glutinous rice wine?”6f8f4af2aa79b0e5

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“I heard this is a brewery. And what we stepped on earlier was yeast.”210be7629c226bfc

His earnest explanation 23cf85e747 made her giggle.d3e902c569d81b4a

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“Right. That’s right. We are in a brewery, aren’t we?”6169fc630d1402ef

It was a laugh 9f09ea465f that seemed to bring 0bc0ee5a0d her back to reality, 858816f003 or perhaps a desperate a6ba3f5c72 attempt to escape it. She swallowed 9e036ea4d9 the lump 168e055876 in her 188cae6f89 throat.4345941ee1dc78e7

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“Let’s go! We have to eat lunch! And please fill out the questionnaire I’ll give you after lunch!”f9f51f6a3164e2da

He grabbed her elbow cb9f034e31 as she quickly turned c478c8dc39 to leave. His touch was 176aa40508 warm and gentle. And his gaze, 18eb11727b looking down at 4d686941c0 her, was dry. His touch, not overtly 5967effe01 intimate, made it hard 1b9a1a2d95 to pull away, and 97a398b7e2 his gaze, not clingy, 3902631bdf made her want to 100b2564a1 linger in his presence.e0997acbaacdafb4

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“Cho-yeon-ssi, let it all out.”b01ccbd9b7b80762

Her face crumpled f76d042d04 and her nose a49ea9157b stung. He pulled her 57986c8002 gently into his b47d47456d arms.39f2f3411ecd4f2c

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