20 Results in the "Until I Become an Orchid" category
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Chapter
UBC Ch9
"Uh, uhh," I said, my words half-formed, and cast my gaze toward the man. As my attention, which had ceased resisting, shifted elsewhere, the tutor also looked back. A long shadow passing behind the car erased the tutor's expression. "Do you know him?" A black plastic bag was tied to the wrist of the walking man. The man, wearing slippers similar to mine, roamed the night road with a strangely relaxed gait. There was no way a man who acted as if he had no interest in the world would help…-
34.7 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
UBC Ch8
It was such a sweltering night that a single fan was not enough to bear. Lying face down, utterly limp, I pressed the button with my toe to increase the wind speed. “Teach me some studying.” The face of the man I broke up with just the other day makes an unauthorized visit to my mind. Annoyed, I turned the fan up to the maximum. Lukewarm clumps of air entered my open mouth. “Should I not have refused?” My aunt had an uncanny knack for sensing things. My mom, busy with her beauty…-
34.7 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
UBC Ch7
The seat of the new bicycle my aunt had bought me at great expense was covered in a fine layer of dust. This was because my old, low-seated bicycle—converted from a four-wheeler by removing the training wheels—was responsible for most of my outings. Still, out of consideration for my aunt's sincerity, I rode the new bicycle when going downtown and only took out the old one for short trips around the neighborhood. Even when speeding along the rice paddy paths, I slowed down when passing the…-
34.7 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
UBC Ch6
“I must be crazy, utterly crazy.” The chopsticks for correcting your posture, lying on the desk like an eyesore, pricked my conscience painfully. I’d coaxed my friend to go out, gone all the way to the very end, and then, abandoning my pride, I’d rushed to grab those chopsticks. A sigh fluttered over the chopsticks I’d bought without a plan. I was already buried under a mountain of practice problems, and now I was just increasing my unnecessary expenses. I bit my lip hard, chastising…-
34.7 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
UBC Ch5
The verdant tree laden with fruit now glowed warmly in the reflected moonlight. I carefully leaned my bicycle against the wall of Eui-joo’s house and pushed open the gate with my shoulder. My intention to simply drop off the side dishes, receive the letter Eui-joo had supposedly written, and leave after this exchange vanished the moment I saw the long shadow sprawled on the wooden floor. Seeing his languid posture, as if he wouldn't even bother taking food out of the fridge to eat, I changed my…-
34.7 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
UBC Ch4
In my nineteen years without Eui-joo, life tasted like unsauced acorn jelly. The ingredients were excellent, but the flavor was bland, missing the key element. Chowa-ri forgot Eui-joo as easily as boiling instant curry. Perhaps because he was an unremarkable presence at school and in the neighborhood, most people barely remembered him, only recalling the news that he had died of disease of the lungs. The village, extremely wary of outsiders, would bristle and watch any unfamiliar car that entered.…-
34.7 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
UBC Ch3
Just as the man, who had become silent, was trying out different kinds of drinks, the power went out. As it turned one o'clock, even the next room, adorned with five wreaths, saw a lull in the flow of mourners. As the man had said, I couldn't just sit there comfortably. It was time to leave. The moment of departure, at least, felt like a proper funeral. I offered incense to Kang Eui-joo as I had learned, and performed two bows. The man, who had acted as if he'd eaten all the etiquette in the world for…-
34.7 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
UBC Ch2
All the funeral etiquette I thought I had diligently studied turned out to be useless. The chief mourner, Eui-joo’s brother, arbitrarily skipped the silent tribute, incense offering, and bowing portions. He dragged me to the table, saying we should eat first since a guest had arrived. The black suit he wore, with his back to me, was covered in tiny fuzz. His tie was crooked, and I thought, "So this is what they mean when they say a person's circumstances show in their appearance." Yukgaejang in a…-
34.7 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
UBC Ch1
Kang Eui-joo died. Kang Eui-joo, the outcast of Chowa-ri, died. Chowa-ri, Maewa-ri, Dongwa-ri—my home was in this mountain village where these three ris (villages) gathered, a place called Wari Village. According to the village chief, it used to be called "Wari Village" until the Korean War. I had never experienced the death of anyone close to me, except for my father, who passed away when I was a baby. So, I casually asked my mom about the proper etiquette for a funeral, just to be prepared. I put…-
34.7 K • Ongoing
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- Story
Until I Become an Orchid
How long can a good person stay good? My mother’s hope, my aunt’s dream. Women whose bridges of life are broken, using the lives of others as crutches. I don’t want to say it coldly, but looking back on my life, I was just someone’s crutch. Because I loved, because I was good, because we were family. Days when beautiful words didn’t feel beautiful…- 1.8 K • Apr 28, '25
- 1.7 K • New
- 1.6 K • Apr 24, '25
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