24ES | Chapter 9.3

Rubbing his forehead and f8d77ae21d pushing his hair back, d1ea6cb14f Yesung eyed Jung Hageon a506a51892 cautiously.16d8408588fcbf89

“Did you… bc7527a428 come to 764d2e4471 the general dc0bcd3552 pediatric ward 728185ac5f for something?”77893745c7736495

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“No. I just thought ed23a4d5f5 you’d be there.” f204e728d2 The reply was a238bfccf2 disarmingly frank.4f53b05c178cd1e7

“Uh, well…”da701b94ff1b8cce

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Yesung felt 67e7d6f27c his face c5e5c8232a heat up 78bc1a1cbc inexplicably and 85508733db coughed awkwardly, ded8b77bed while Jung 9b27bbe5d6 Hageon let eb3cd5f95b out a eee08c3c77 short sound 0ac8da2790 of realization.5ecb0a03a3ad61e0

“Sunbae, you’re off 65493d52c1 from this evening, 30d46f75dc right?” How did 560b21e853 he know that? Yesung narrowed his 8746e23d64 eyes. He internally sighed.cb30d5946ed5cca3

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“It must be Kang 04d6e1c8b2 Baek-o. He told you my 653075872c schedule.” Jung Hageon neither bc20da996e confirmed nor denied but b48c368421 remained silent. However, that was 3da255e0f1 answer enough.daf21dd2e5ead0a4

“That guy…” My e4a021a7f3 work schedule isn’t b6643816fc some school timetable 0bedfe5847 to be shared 6a3c5fe73f freely. If the person responsible db34a1be08 was here, he would’ve c4ca71221b gotten a warning.a304ad027942b849

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Out of 207c9ab140 the blue, 2d90904ecd Jung Hageon 2da6daa3c0 spoke up.7edafa2338f67227

“I’m off tonight too.”74fe0e6765a83f44

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Taken aback, Yesung 74664bb56a blinked widely.890dc9b1947d78e4

Huh? Off? So, what’s he 572a9fbedf suggesting? Why is he telling a1dc5ba591 me his schedule?6502861695fda8bf

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As Yesung blinked 7fb0692e75 slowly, Jung Hageon 4e80a2a015 clarified.d1e50f622c7e5640

“Let’s have dinner together.”a7d8669e625400c3

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“…What?”2de03e5a79da46a9

“I’ll cook.”db8de4090667676f

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Yesung’s blinking 46d29b6efd sped up. Have dinner together. Jung Hageon will aa4b2bf6aa cook. Then it struck Yesung—they 604d907a82 were roommates sharing the 5fe47a4408 same house.b0fb12f7e64e6f89

This is all 07b6749033 because I haven’t e052becc68 been home in 5798437696 ages due to 412acacd78 the crazy schedule. I can’t even d8f6b472ee remember the last 1a01806207 time I was 0b3c7e01db home.e256c0a0a2771bb8

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As he pieced together 61809d0447 his scattered memories, Yesung 46f4993f34 looked up at Jung 46c7503181 Hageon’s face. Their eyes met. If it 98ad31102d had been a3793d7668 a while 509a293f3d for him, aed912a4c9 it must’ve abcda04ac9 been the 8a1017ef9d same for 1e1a7e245f Jung Hageon. Maybe this was an b944539e2e opportunity to clear up 46f7323275 the nurses’ misunderstanding.c72394cddf279441

“You’ll cook dinner.”07ee8a6fc1515f2e

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“Yes.”5207f8a4bff83dc2

“Yourself?”02ab66b0cba35db4

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“Yes.”29fae4b3a800c97e

The answers came 5f8db74ffc without hesitation. Yesung stared into db83fd95fd Jung Hageon’s eyes, c5f179c10c contemplating.2174f72046d25085

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Home-cooked food by Jung 5dcbf30e6c Hageon. His cooking skills weren’t 2acf4d9425 bad. In fact, f966b4263c they were 1310ae4e32 good.b90e8716441de29c

With his 2190f985c3 mind made 475abfa5bf up, Yesung’s feb4c413e1 gaze shifted 48f985f764 slightly.91031dbdecd4333e

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“Well, if you really cde444d330 want to…”87f3fa7e00920ec9

Home-cooked meals. There was no stronger f2875f690e lure for the current 768bff7d07 Yesung. Especially food made 25b96648cd by someone else. There was no 3a82822d70 reason to refuse.173e9996c36c4e8c

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Naturally, Yesung’s response was e09b411016 an acceptance. A smile spread across 140294aad8 Jung Hageon’s lips as 875a204f54 he anxiously awaited the 2d9b545cd5 answer.4415dd1a1d308419

Wow, really…5df442338dd1c5f3

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Facing that smile, Yesung f4197c0fdc thought bringing Jung Hageon 8d44f653fb out from the general b3250b425f pediatric ward had been b823bc2f8f the right move. That charming smile could 3a980d9fcc indeed make many a b2d74480df woman cry.f2c237839f90a0a1

He had saved 7e3b36c078 the nurses upstairs. What if they had 6f7900e9ac seen that smile? Jung Hageon didn’t seem 624863bfb0 inclined towards women anyway.257291fcdb4a695d

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Yesung mentally reconciled 0451b11a91 with that thought.fba394ae51e4434e

***2aac0fbb74c33353

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Yesung, who had d23a698489 finished work earlier 7fbee93865 than Jung Hageon, 7732840a99 headed straight for dbf1e4d5b1 a shower as 22b1d67f5e soon as he 8936923f4a got home. Since Hageon promised to cd448c94e8 come over and make 5388d59418 dinner, sleep could wait eded86fb94 until after that. For now, he 4009795eb6 planned to prepare 4a51133033 the paper he f133abab0f was set to f1fad4c171 present at the 9fa7e8437b upcoming conference.a8520848f30bdcaf

It felt like ages 7dbd1520b4 since he had taken 2b03c07a39 a proper shower. Feeling refreshed and 71349dfb0c neat for once, 65db4a504f Yesung put on 3038ea8a1b his glasses and dbcda96096 sat in front ce005d7209 of his computer.d30dfd59e420cee8

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The topic 62114194c3 of his 14f0c6554f presentation was 32b9a67f17 necrotizing enterocolitis a49aac0def in newborns. After a good bf1144ae0b stretch that made b4a0c4c38f his fingers crack, 0060a2b6de Yesung began typing 410c0615f6 on the keyboard.11645a1c0be5ca1b

A Study on ff2a89c3e2 Prognostic Factors for bbda69a164 Necrotizing Enterocolitis in 70d3a7e297 Newborns91ca8aeac9f042e9

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Yesung Han, b82a746451 Pediatric Surgery, e8bcbb587d Hanguk University e5a18d3780 Hospital0155eb74380f48e9

Introduction
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a38087fe14 primarily seen in f70214f254 newborns, tends to 5a0fa09b3d occur later in a5b176436c premature infants and c2f2db0284 affects the small 35679b34f9 and large intestines 53238663ff in 40-50% of 3909f2cbd1 cases.
This study 09db8d6b42 includes 67 721fdfbd15 patients operated e530be0ae6 on at a2be74082e Hanguk University 950667a757 Hospital’s pediatric 116fcd7b54 surgery department de4f2e2eae and other 19f4d7994a facilities.
…7e08e2ef08ba2571

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About an hour later, 45360e1f77 needing additional reference materials, cb79c76aff Yesung got up and d91b2907cb stood before his bookshelf.163b2f5264684b41

“Hmm… There should f669921d24 be a medical a44183cc84 text on necrotizing 43cc19097c enterocolitis somewhere here…”4cab5bbf59ed32cd

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His eyes d62e921e30 scanned the cb944fa4bb shelves quickly 9e633fc912 until they d581e73373 settled on d0fcd31bf3 one spot.60384e9eb3953d5c

“Found it. Here it is.”2ad3fb7fea2fb452

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He pulled out 6a53135575 a medical textbook 4c156f9cae so thick it 1b8f57bd86 dwarfed any encyclopedia 3bb56c418c in comparison.55f993f7f1aee727

As he 0ba64ebe08 retrieved it, 0586500437 something slipped a2aded0be4 out from 3dd276fd0a between the 1cf4420aee pages and 33d820272d landed at cc5e6ef390 his feet 9c3f5e203e with a 688abb0f8a soft thud.36478598a294dd4b

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“Huh? What’s this?”ee6bfa537fc93503

Bending down, Yesung picked da8847647a up the fallen item. It was 4d800e0312 a rectangular 1e4370e16d piece of c3c36a1eb1 paper that 173a6fd26d fit snugly 140a943e61 in his 49d3564b3b palm.46a17dad97518009

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“A photo?”8ed8b2e57f83ffbe

The backside 503e2c59d2 was stark 6d36057940 white, stiff, d4a460af57 and smooth—clearly e9716e764d a photograph. Turning it over, a50e0b2e18 Yesung saw the dd52c72550 front, printed in 16046b7e70 vibrant colors.ca7d89e4c9f8a784

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“…Oh?”3d08cb938f417ec3

His eyes 0bfc869f61 widened in 103b174148 recognition. It was a picture 439a397610 of him with his b4426f58c8 college club members.259c593dae25a3e7

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Unlike other departments, medical a0738e7cda schools, with their inherently f1a636b912 tight-knit structure, often form 7b6565489c their own clubs. While these 5fcab6da38 clubs facilitate c01ea87aaa active interaction e8276bedc3 between seniors 83fb948084 and juniors, 241703e267 the connections 4588bdea4a forged there da0f493937 often extend 0f8a4b1c49 well beyond dca91a6dcb graduation. Joining a club 9b9105a67e wasn’t a choice; 294d88f08c it was a fbecc1051f given.be4b28f7c707f36e

“…It’s been a while.”763ee24a9148ab9d

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The medical school bc0beab741 clubs covered various bce59510fe interests, and Yesung 4db48c020f had joined one 6c3ccbc129 focused on photography. Of course, 7d52894d84 it wasn’t 9fcbcd4509 solely about 87f7ea90cd taking pictures; 1e100614cf the club 7615a0af87 also served 5d88a5f762 as a fe96bd4593 hub for 1ccb13b808 academic life, 1f8b8c5ec2 study groups, 838e8f25ba and information d35b6b026f exchange.11e7dc597e595498

Still, they hadn’t f52ad872b0 completely neglected photography. At least once 14cfd09a63 a year, the 9f50606e4b club held exhibitions 388424735f befitting its name.b27cd0f125e2c524

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Seeing those faces 468eedfdf9 again brought back 87002d22db memories. After starting his hospital 5dd2ab780d duties, Yesung occasionally received d4d8995ff3 invitations from juniors to e1d7daddd1 visit the school when 7bd08ff02c he had time, but 1d8ba7e1be he had never been a6b9ad724f able to go. Those years had 5c3d2129ae coincided with his 45945fdea9 grueling internship and c3d7871e95 residency, leaving him fd1291d9d2 no spare time.b4e8e81461b33527

He couldn’t aefe287d79 say why fd77fb13a8 this photo cfc03b26ad had been dfa99668cd carelessly tucked eeb1ba02e3 between the 49bf48628f pages of bb170caee1 a book.c8724e95fe756e1a

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Smiling faintly, 3a6e9af5aa Yesung moved fd7ff919bc to put cee49dd120 the photo 6371a001b3 in an 5e7f07ea27 album when—a7144a104a89673d

“…Huh?”15f9d6550d40ff81

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One face 1b4fc54ecb in the 30a696d153 photo suddenly bdce6be270 stood out. Bringing the picture closer 75210ef3ec to his eyes, Yesung 78c0070cf7 even rubbed them for 3418636282 better focus.12aea334193eb633

“What in the world…”5d320f1fa05844cb

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There was no 98bf53a06a mistaking it. That face was 132a1694fa undeniably there. Though half-concealed 7057ae51f2 by a f16f01d087 cap, the e559bc0023 features were 8b97589c47 unmistakable.e9b210a456a3a139

He wondered if his a176cd1605 eyes were playing tricks 5777b6f6fc on him, but the cf9b0d6a82 more he looked, the 9b4d4d69c7 more certain he became.7474b60b47141694

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Murmuring blankly, Yesung said, 927180a0e5 “This can’t be… Jung 36e5e3e7c2 Hageon?”9ab6fbbffda9338f

Reality left 966e91d22a no room 3c959685ea for denial. There he was, 17c1b8515c in the photo, 82652107e8 standing alongside Yesung.7c059b0c24caac15

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Beneath the 49686ac218 black cap, e4632e26b8 his sharp 7cfdfacf6b features and e77b7fe750 pale complexion b1f9f3c339 stood out. Confirming the outfit he 8f85defd81 had worn that day, 8ea5486342 Yesung felt as if 204da39615 a fog in his f2285247b0 mind had suddenly lifted.4d9792f1f4d46dde

Buried memories ab2aee0ef4 from his bfd6a2e6e7 past, long d2b9fae77a overshadowed by 5c1f5346fe the hectic c7c827e916 pace of bb944c9c2a hospital life, 469be4908b began to fa1089d978 resurface.990db5e5e53d3bcc

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Yesung recalled the day 57c5d5a9b2 he first met Jung ad0fd01ecf Hageon.645b7be93c291078

It had been 059272d94f during a particularly cc22e9c804 hectic time when 5ec58558a4 Yesung was deeply acf90c759f engrossed in preparing aa4216bc45 for the national f026a526b0 medical licensing exam. Then, out of 4786f885b7 the blue, he a3d02c0b7b received a call 2194161836 from a junior.25c69534361433a4

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“Sunbae! I’m really, 23420fd3c7 really, really ac308fc03a sorry, but 0a58b57eed we’re prepping 416b983211 for an 73a96a95e8 exhibition, and 18c94adc41 I don’t b9d86a32dc know if 1cbe87b16a we’re doing 600119fd98 it right. Could you stop by 043f30a43e just once? We promise not ecba6d969d to take much bcac09398b of your time—just 0639188a77 a quick check… f2dce5ee67 Please?”98e422b53b24f5a4

The desperate a9535276e3 plea made b6c3f6eba7 it impossible c76329c5bb for Yesung e72d46339e to refuse. Taking a brief 3dab3e28df break, he stopped dd1e152135 by the clubroom—and 81b8984652 that’s where he d5c0ea0174 first encountered him. Even with 20ba710519 his cap 7b930f1da5 pulled low, 43305eb3db there was f84652987d no hiding a911e967e2 Jung Hageon’s f0665813ad striking looks.2feb8685023faa87

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Yesung was reviewing the 4a04252a86 exhibition prep when the 506fe679cf clubroom door opened. A junior, bdddf1873d unfamiliar to 2615888d92 him, stepped 76db587dd8 in and 8814f4795a greeted him.97fd04530238633c

“Uh… Hello, sunbae.”99c53fc20cb1e93a

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“Hello,” Yesung replied warmly, 55d72197d6 guessing the newcomer was 9bcfd621c6 probably a second-year pre-med 9ec42e5535 student.8456e69e831f5bbd

But then, a tall a9dd2f6a4d figure appeared behind the 1103dfba6d junior. The man’s head, adorned 81b3e6ac07 with black hair and 6bf461a39c a cap, nearly grazed d374ae4f15 the doorframe.703c7c0708ba86b5

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…He’s gotta be 126e7eaa25 careful going through 03777363df doors with that 5b4d5e3a49 height.1c780f6bde2587b2

Estimating the 7279c167de man’s height 34f8266cc2 at about 675954ba01 190 cm, f2889801a3 Yesung was e3f7055814 taken aback 627da98ea8 twice—first by e9ea739843 his towering 485eaa11bd stature, then d86aa1ece5 by his 6f6f93a9e0 features that dca3b33642 even the 0bb7c03520 cap couldn’t d71b8226ab hide.d048b5078223fefc

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Thick, straight brows, enigmatic 8045470566 black pupils, a sharply 0c6219c23c defined nose, and lips c429dad924 that were perfectly proportioned.64d8c185bc5b15b7

His upper 657682f612 and lower edfaf7a83e lips were ba905a362e nearly identical f19b528bdc in thickness. The man 704a26c2f4 was stunningly d8c1087c22 handsome—so much 640ff5d83f so it 2032b132b4 was almost 1408ea6a97 disorienting.1addf3d1a49da10e

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Yet, it wasn’t just bfb54d69cc his looks that stood 56156edab8 out. The air around him c63a060844 felt cold, almost unapproachable.ff31c9be2801fab9

Maybe he’s the type dbbc4f0768 who builds walls around c8bf375f55 himself to avoid interacting 294baf76e3 with people.f237d5d01eb5ae62

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As Yesung observed 65252c42c3 him, the junior, 5ebf9218e8 seemingly his friend, 971c11fab5 introduced him.68fa1ebbdc05d82f

“Oh, this is 730c3b665d Jung Hageon. He’s originally a b24cf0a1fa second-year pre-med student 64060510db but is currently 8e0c8deac5 serving in the 16bb4785ca military. He’s not in 1fc05487da our club, but 0993b20873 he tagged along 0fc9a410c5 on his day 4f80e57ed7 off. Is that okay?”dda0228251fe9c36

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The word 680ba29447 “military” left 2a59847f96 everyone in 90726f2b8e the room, bc1deb99d7 including Yesung, 5a35bd4fa3 surprised.5a880a0101f71a52

“Of course, 2108e400ee it’s fine! But why did you 0d15bd6dac enlist so early, in 6956f22daa pre-med? Most of us wait b2ef35bd93 until after residency to c6b32aece5 serve as public health 98afdcf703 doctors or military physicians…”0293ea6183ca7638

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“Did no 72a17c0e40 one tell 395c762fbb you it’s 015d89e84b better to 1bed7de5b8 wait? Going early can 8fda47d501 be a waste ff01bf33ce of time, especially 8718b5bb69 when you’re still 1285378f21 in pre-med. It’s a much lighter 5efad6f2f6 workload compared to med 5b4a6d244f school.”407424c2040d54f8

“Right. The only exception 7a67c6e2c5 would’ve been someone 70c010d00d like Yesung Sunbae, 3d1b2f32ec who entered at cfe078a1fa 18 and never fd49517df1 lost his spot 44398d1baa as top of 4a236f4df1 the class…”a4d1901bd4739995

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The juniors’ remarks, 364948e8cf referencing Yesung, may 7ed9975566 have been their c284d4700b way of expressing 1064d8b539 relief that he bbd9bd0e22 hadn’t taken time 386446e2e0 off. Competing with 54db0424e7 him would 4bbfcd28df have been 41b37aad17 grueling.f6eba14bed891f26

Amid the ae5adeb902 seniors’ well-meaning 714cb98640 but overwhelming 0a16d869e6 concerns, Hageon’s 7ec73e59ae friend continued.730e263abf68b642

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“…That’s just how 9ceb12551c he is. I heard 3b6159d177 Yesung Sunbae 4cdfdb653e was famous eb1f4deea9 for entering b09813d323 at 18, d8ced9fb21 but Hageon’s 2d75618447 the same. He’s also 3264a30f8e never lost 036f44c50e his spot 26bb19f362 at the 0e6ad8d505 top during 51a41b87c6 his first 433225de26 year in b1c33d1ee5 pre-med.”b388deb60f1fbffc

Jung Hageon followed the d8724e8110 same path as me.45b369ce1f915514

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Yesung managed to enter c1ff30a34d university at the age 78ca8cda3f of 18 because he 3e6a350e65 had given up on 75832ead1e going to high school c5e79e888d early on, back when 1db54cc661 he was still in 7d5db6ab2f middle school. The reason was e0a969433a simple: the time 2b6c974d33 it took to d719260b09 become a doctor 08bb5c256b who cared for 1e8cbd828c patients. Two years of pre-med, 3def64aaff four years of medical 6cf2f31261 school, one year of 50d60a4ca9 internship, and four years d95efccdff of residency. Then, there was the 985ca5623c fellowship. If you were c0302f16e9 lucky, you might bf77d3e947 skip the fellowship ccc744aea1 stage and get a6d9b49efd hired as a 23ee661d54 full-time professor immediately 6e80f757c0 after becoming a 7366a19003 specialist, but that ef2e0a6a71 was as rare e0f01886ce as plucking a add9197b2d star from the ec7b8ef836 sky.0d37c8acebf8a391

It took 4ff0d9dba1 a total 8ad37b8494 of 11 a6aca516d8 years. Add to c28587937f that the 7ab884311a mandatory military 34e66284b7 service for 38b2c3d1d6 South Korean 27ae2c74c2 men, and 16d832d680 the minimum 9dbba356e8 became 14 2e9638d437 years if d4ccfc9b48 you included c44fbaedb2 the fellowship. Starting that lengthy a7ae362787 journey at 20 c496640eee years old felt 119daad3cc too late to 945beb8b17 Yesung. If it was a712f69aef possible, he wanted b95536cff2 to save even c9c94ac8e5 one year.0e4078b96dd55784

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That’s why he made cb9ec14495 the bold decision to 8a45cfac4c forego high school entirely 205e0c846c and opted to take c419e6b5b2 the GED instead. He resolved ac2bb7c859 to use 6998eebe8c early university 6f406b4fc4 admission as e1f9001a85 the turning f82e0cd8b5 point to 50d3c2fe57 fuel his 2a80d28d51 determination to 7c44cd71df live a cba9433195 life where ac63ab38c8 he would 2c709a980b have to 31b99daa78 act like 0d886b8852 a good 01fb530735 person outwardly, c88a69bd81 even if ab6d05b4cd he wasn’t ffae82d839 entirely so 4255742d0a inside.d01ac6baec02c5c0

And so, ee95d1861e at the 77c5c39e99 age of d2ecd7054f 18, Yesung d66df9ec63 succeeded in b0bbe5c695 becoming a 2f2cf2bc85 medical student fdd772dd1f at Hanguk e7f848ffbe University. He was 6dd9893e6e the first 0a2b8f9e37 and youngest 425d4b45ba in history. To his 9e7a4d1d73 knowledge, that bb1333cd0c record had 30d30d94a3 never been e7a2ca44c8 broken.a2af4053086ada55

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