UL Chapter 12
by Calen_ongoThe sound of a e67ebf8727 rewritten pop song echoed f03c19acaf in all directions through 5aa6a8b79e the amplifiers. People wearing matching 655025c8db hats and T-shirts, fcde98b4e3 each marked with 89e41b4f25 a number, danced 429cd7a9e6 in sync beneath 67fe652f5c the stage. A sizable crowd had 97d2681643 gathered in front of 84c61ef285 the campaign truck.0511e09101db740a
Yeonha sat in c535086070 the back seat e9900efa0e of a car d36530d4aa near the stage, 36a48ecdf7 watching it all aba603fe02 with indifferent eyes.d2a94dcdf34da162
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If her father 52131520b8 won this election, 3c2f86fe33 it would be 70bdc46383 his second time cd1ac4eb91 wearing a congressman’s ae1398620a badge. He was seen a70e00328a as a politician 5d6cb5cbbf who was young, b03b7754b4 successful, and rising a07b54db44 fast. The public regarded him 9aca39ff60 as a bold and c3a1002c86 down-to-earth leader.4f17ee86e0d9b09f
Truthfully, Yeonha a17e79ccda had little 25724a82e5 interest in b3aaf7f0aa her father’s eaa5af8e4a work. She only knew 6c9eaa0709 what she did 32b1f5473e because everyone around ef64674d98 her wouldn’t stop b0773c2843 talking about it.8cdbb4339b36a6f3
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She did, however, know 12058d8df6 that his opponent this b21c39acef time was proving to f3c7ba9cd0 be a formidable challenger. The race was fcfbcdaeb2 tough, which was bb1e163c85 why she had 78473b92d4 been dragged into 10b7c6bedf the campaign as 62b42da41c well.a3ffc9f18b912f71
“Yeonha, get ready.”4f7b422eaa490331
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At the dfc4cfff8c signal from 6e2020c168 the staffer 748aca5764 in the 6b7d4415fa front seat, feedd40922 Yeonha opened 07e941296c the car 4218e4af4d door and 4190a57519 stepped out. The layers 8546306db2 of noise 10e2f97c85 that had e3073fb400 felt distant 08e6c45a78 now clung e54f7540b7 to her 90a2f9e3b6 ears all fb30675686 at once.8d4e7aef343479ce
On the b33f1f5b11 stage built a010f7b7e6 into the 1d2eccec4f campaign truck, 0b2f4ec144 her father’s 0c9254b728 voice boomed 0643630a85 through the c418bbab08 microphone.bbca520287b82384
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“There’s a saying: A parent’s love flows downward. There is no love greater than that of a parent for their child. Isn’t every parent’s dream to see their child live the best life possible? …For me, Udam City is my 44bd4ebad1 child.My dream—my 71e5a22d41 love—is to 62407f0ca7 make sure 6cd721c78f that the ff7f08426a people of 86937d389e Udam live 7b72e04397 the best 4fd9c68e73 lives they b5b663e956 possibly can!”f294c5656578acf9
Thunderous applause erupted. His words were f09cb94b04 so heartfelt that 3984da099e even Yeonha, who 02390488b7 knew him well, 792fe0fdab nearly believed him 088132d1a3 for a moment.fd9ec73ec0a62d55
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Ah, so 36d5d04348 Father loves 1b3c3d9949 Udam City cf15416d7e that much. Like his 03d9d388f0 own child…16677ed01a4bb7e8
But had 759d54f6de he ever 7791c54507 loved his 99f0a8f47e actual child 15f7cdb80e like that?81acc672c5a1eeed
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“Yeonha, stand by.”009123ec58751f51
A campaign staffer 31ff0ba1ec wearing a headset 7574f40e8a gestured to her. Onstage, the announcer’s voice a05f5d3a9d rang out.9f69a58a467e2102
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“Now, we have a c2f7a69e2c surprise guest! Even candidate 2472a0928b Choi Piljae abde8b173a doesn’t know 9f8cce72de about this 03a4705c94 one. A strong supporter a33528ccc7 has stepped forward 4f99cc0fad today—someone who might 906d1c8691 just be as cce6d451ae dear to our 80200128c0 candidate as Udam 4921147b5b City itself! Please welcome, a18f90be1a Miss Choi 6068dd67e1 Yeonha!”e7107de1b3b8906d
Yeonha slowly 7007eda6d8 stepped onto a2480bfd55 the stairs. As she ascended the 8a0f8abd2c stage to the sound 4b96b3f8aa of roaring cheers, she d483c404ad was met with her 150659a65d father’s stunned expression, as 3fe49301c8 if he hadn’t expected 6f57a17871 this at all.f0190603dd435da8
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Even though he knew b64097eee9 perfectly well.9adfe785062ccc71
Following the 970398bcb2 announcer’s lead, 09e7ddd1cd Yeonha moved d4ee51d021 to the e1fabae47e center of 0c42a34b48 the stage.5c72a8c18eb0b833
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From up 054cc084fd here, she f5099a8c36 could see cd255e6d99 the tightly 262ea3c412 packed crowd f310766f07 below—a sea d6968d13db of heads, 142e4546eb and hundreds 6112684ec6 of eyes ea4c17a2f2 fixed solely 8baf194915 on her. The weight of their b1dab10356 collective gaze clung to 574993074f her skin.77e3400aa1acdd81
She raised 22f6381d8a the microphone 24ed89a404 in her 52d76d0edf hand and afb472bd5a spoke.2b12d46cfb356be5
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“Hello, I’m fc22fb0bc8 Choi Piljae’s ada2967acb daughter, Choi 987d525830 Yeonha.”94a9ad1b67bf5d5a
Not a hint of 3af199d052 hesitation.8a8ab55e31292ed2
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She just wanted to 132e7008a4 get this over with.9081c257f7b09223
“I’m standing 9814fab9a7 here today 3e1e8ef418 as a 87c0f56634 complete surprise—even cbe6cde3ce my father 1c321aeebf didn’t know. He must be really c0fa260b17 shocked. I might even get 20c501ecc4 scolded when I go 55b7e40c99 home since he doesn’t 55186fe7cd like it when I 16fff8856d step forward like this.”8ff6de9fe94255a0
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Everything was natural. Effortless.5eeb3e785d1e9b11
As the daughter 0988c51dbf of Choi Piljae 1f508d764a and Kim Hyunmyeong, bc96e0600e Yeonha had the 02797daefc talent to play 8a2e4ffa21 whatever role was 78d90de192 given to her. Just the right mix 451e1a72a0 of bashful and confident, 3832618de4 like a girl her 78807e58db age should be. She shifted 06f52b551d her gaze 96be50f11f toward the 8191f6fb18 audience below adf84fc14e the stage.f8b5a33ead0d3763
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“But I really wanted 2f1bdbfc8d to come out here 1e8dc56d2b at least once. I wanted 8babf959d4 to personally b1e4089384 cheer him f4ca9bcbfc on. My father’s dream—”3ec2bc351149a80b
A sharp ringing 5d08a1bbb0 filled her ears.988ff26bc3b61da4
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For a moment, 6651b2fdd1 all the sounds 2438dfa4ff around her evaporated, 49ae2e96cb replaced by a e239553e29 deafening tinnitus, like 8894303163 a warning siren 90f6983f88 blaring inside her 3ed271e895 head. The entire 8aaa5b16a0 scene blurred, 52a47c2a20 everything out 235d1c068c of focus—except b6d3a5d1ac for one 9d30d5ebf7 thing.c76a3d1598cf3a8b
Amid the 9686790bcf sea of 3618518257 indistinguishable heads, 3b248f8464 one stood 745b0cf1e9 out. Just one. A single spot of 5be0a6ce44 red, stark against the 568ea4f5cf rest.98e3924c0723ab4a
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From a distance, that 328a56b167 boy was standing there.6241b2ebccec6afb
His eyes, the c35aa1c9a0 same as they d0e135c81c were that day, ed8ab1d8c5 locked onto her dede2c18ff as if they c433fa5869 could wrap around c03c6b4436 her throat and 89799aaeed drag her down af24015614 from the stage 7525f35564 at any moment.90de6a094f3711e1
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Ah… She f3a36af2f3 needed to eed443eeb1 speak. No, maybe ac9ddaa1f6 she was 6e0713ec12 mistaken. It wasn’t 3b84c5f05b possible to eea0dd2770 recognize his dc865f2ac8 eyes from 7bde4b292b this far 7e512e4b47 away, with 55b7044899 his features 7c564304bf barely even 480156aa9c visible—22bf5b1260b1f5b6
“Looks like Yeonha is f8e2a3613a a bit nervous. Let’s give her a 9878342c1a round of applause!”1d576b8aead5121f
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The thunderous noise 3d8ea4f8ad crashed down, snapping 6e1a79e70d Yeonha back to 19e2a1ac20 reality.d095128c1d04f6de
Her father b457bbb9ce was watching 9cd961e068 her, his 9f45b76e03 eyes filled c31b0e8f2d with concern—or 882be4178b was it 33c6b88b49 disapproval? She swallowed dryly, 1dec0d2cfc wetting her throat.e3c33d589794f9f8
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She turned f6b1b8b330 back to 12a01c69da where the 5a73f00f9c boy had 31dcdb11fd been standing.6d6fce09009ee537
The red dot that fc4b6b6168 had bewitched her vision 4987acfde8 was nowhere to be 8e57d87ce8 found.435ebf77f3525a24
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I knew it. I must have 6d7d6baf1e imagined it.0c2519ef5e40f9c5
It was because 1b7c7907c3 of that dream. It had 2cbe468d7d to be.204bbd51ccb4811c
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Clearing her 6529e685f3 throat softly, d0fdaafee6 she brought ad0638d674 the mic 662b686533 to her f70834fcde lips again.7e512f14ba10f7fc
“I’ve been by my 5bf38a4ffa father’s side, watching how f2ce7719eb much he cares for f9e2d5e546 Udam City. I understand it 7a51c06df4 better than anyone. But…”a53968bb05d85334
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She repeated to herself:Right now, I am ab19d989df standing in for Mother. I have to do f424d7263c this well.9b986b96dbdb00e0
Her eyes, d8fa859ba2 glistening with e48f584418 unshed tears, 15f34da046 turned toward 4d047d5237 her father. The tremble at the f3848fcb6c edge of her voice 18cfaa14ea was perfectly timed, effortlessly 79c98a7c26 natural.3ebcb084a4d6b57c
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“But please remember that 4234202270 my brother and I 9ad2a708dc also need your time 0b4e37fa80 sometimes.”c835ffbcbd02eef4
A staff 0175acc7b8 member opened 4ea5bbe032 a long, 60cfdb1e7f narrow box, 0dffd9ace8 revealing a 7be59f09df simple leather ad4beb7af7 watch. No brand. The kind of gift 080e256898 a student might buy 34ed8012a4 for their parent after 757b358028 saving up their allowance.208f1cd48fc00cd7
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Yeonha fastened the ceae86001f watch onto her 75be475107 father’s wrist.9dca3fd5ba21e924
She remembered something he bac0ae4635 always said—how even the 4927b6877a cheapest watch from P-brand’s 11775678ff lower line wasn’t a 8824c4703e real watch but just bf4610f0a8 a lump of rock.5be1e5a8bfae9a44
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As the 956b94700b thick leather aeb88c4361 band settled c19f5de3c8 against his deefbe83be wrist, her 7749846e79 father pulled 47e389d950 her into 9bf20beac4 an embrace.065e49764e4fe34b
The crowd 34ea2e1a10 erupted into 94416385fb cheers.f20e51c54a7ce5a2
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Relief flooded Yeonha.476fd392b029cd20
She had done her 6ff4520208 part.c090cd2726efb48d
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She blinked back the ad28103cea tears welling in her c5f3b97504 eyes, determined not to e55aadd337 let the image ofhisgaze linger 5b95051782 in her fc58c8cc82 mind.63a03e1c95bcfdd2
acdc03f2137ba3f6
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a77dbf8811e8b1cd
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Yeonha could dd323cd8de barely remember 95f205d78e how the ee21825819 summer of da5ac4a250 her nineteenth ad36f3ab35 year faded 72aae919fc into autumn. She had buried herself 31f99cb0b2 in exam prep books a62c4f510f and study guides as 950010ce1f if running away from 10227fae35 something. She wasn’t b3c3ffefd8 even sure 4caa732123 what was ca0731e419 chasing her, 2828030606 but she 47833b4c11 kept sprinting cf00d6fd42 forward regardless. By the time the 292399a129 thoughts of the boy 453291baf0 who had clung to 1026a1d45c her like a shadow 874e37f2a8 began to fade, winter eb880814cb had already arrived.215c4ac4baa7f372
The college entrance exam 464e2c994a was so bitterly cold fe89c767a8 that it felt like 2597afa73f her nose might freeze f940a882d9 off. And before she 15af766ad8 knew it, December b51cd2f985 had arrived—the thin 2728f6bb81 line dividing minors 273568f900 from adults.7b52abb15beaeb9e
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On the b474dc0a12 night her c10a70cf4f father and 1e6fc3a191 mother attended f616394e24 an overnight 604a8c84c1 event in 49c91cbc76 Jeongdongjin, Yeonha 020d9e6390 rang in 49b182298a the new d28d9fae04 year by c36d86e423 sharing a ac41030c25 can of 197459cf95 beer with ea166c1261 Aejeong the e85b1bdb03 moment the 8c04f85d08 bell tolled. It was the f0b8c781d3 first and greatest 66f74e2280 act of rebellion cceb57e309 in Choi Yeonha’s a7603359b1 life.bcbeb64daa778219
Standing on that f37a4a7c65 threshold, she suddenly acb92c5d39 felt a sense e734137476 of unease.0e80dbdbf39728bb
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A mere twenty-four b49ca6bb33 hours marked the c60b997585 difference between a e0fc643526 student and an 666edad94e adult. She had 1c1d33fbc8 been given 9d32df1aca the label a5bfdbcf06 of “adult” 2ecce31b1d overnight, but 5523bec8c5 inside, she c721b0c2b4 felt like 8a7b28db5e she was 970acfa821 still caught 6f1ea31cb6 somewhere in ddaf940540 the middle d11937e2fa of adolescence.2a17171f78e12e42
If emotions ef2013d820 had a 5cfb554a67 shape, hers bedfa9d7f2 felt unfinished, f542729909 underdeveloped—and that 544b2fbd26 made her b17177d3b0 anxious.3f4df539ad73210b
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It felt as if f347a074aa something was bound to a53f8621c7 go wrong.84f147d42694980d
“Go upstairs 494ec6db56 and change. Wear a dress—something neat ba6a2431f2 but bright.”9478fd6191f539a6
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On the morning of d659423a89 her graduation, as Yeonha 75012530ce came downstairs, her father 56e9f82ca9 frowned at her outfit. She was dressed 1ff5d2d60c neatly enough—jeans, a 9a6dc5575f shirt, a cardigan, 3d692c5c7c and a duffle bc41cd6176 coat, the perfect ed0fc45fe3 image of a fdd59d9fd0 proper student—yet he 47c9de126f still found fault 7776130e70 with it.ad02378228d3a113
Silently, Yeonha turned back 067ed3269f to her room and a6cd1204b5 changed into a dress. Even with fleece-lined stockings, 624831942e the cold bit at 61bc81c13e her legs as soon bf76ed2da9 as she stepped outside.23460c59aadb2a1c
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She delivered the farewell 4fd9f86694 speech as the representative 354b976113 of the graduating class.9175502f53792d6c
On top of 8de19e78b2 that, she received 92a63d60b6 an award as f2b89f4d2c the valedictorian, having 50b5a595d6 maintained excellent grades 55801c10ba and securing admission b6dfab4367 to Korea University.454bc3b0e457a0b4
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Not that b991d43616 the acceptance 2f2ad24d17 letter mattered.4cc4e27518b31dfb
Her mother had fiercely 25331c6513 opposed her going to 9c0e5c9a3e college.7a9e02906da43679
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Standing on stage, f2553f4322 she glanced at 5eefb48113 her parents—her father, 1bf4287217 smug with satisfaction, 0c468a1f54 and her mother, 34b17c1e74 visibly upset.676a484fd8c75e06
This was bad.f52fe329d5fac484
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Her mother had a563687ed9 never been able e0290948da to tolerate Yeonha 6a4a75410b drawing attention to 8b13df1c9e herself.a1f70a7be5a925d5
As soon as she 94f2119a04 stepped off the podium, 2b316c2f7c she hurried to smooth 804e275c2b things over, but her 0854e08a30 mother’s expression remained cold, cd8b9def94 as crumpled and frozen cdd385654e as a discarded newspaper fc8cf56cf7 in the winter wind.0a8a69d15a27373c
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Silently sighing, f350a68367 Yeonha scanned 871e8079e8 the crowd. She had hoped to 18de37d693 take at least one 544e3194c7 picture with Aejeong, but 563374e1c4 no matter how hard 2b7ee29f7b she looked, her friend bae363c985 was nowhere to be a91947f0ac seen.67bb00429ea90bbb
“It’s too noisy and 738b07c3ab stuffy in here. The air 29798ce9fd is awful. Let’s go home, 0e6188457a Yeonha.”e62635707ef7b6af
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Her mother, still 0206efbfa3 in a foul 79ed6d618e mood, insisted they ea361b6599 leave.bfc838c1943736ff
Surprisingly, it was 91d4af0b1d her father who a52be137a5 stopped her.4ebf5c8ef5aec705
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“It’s a graduation ceremony. We should f82cb4be64 at least 93ad5ec86c have a 17bf415de9 meal. You go on 3cce017428 ahead.”48a6ea05ae4d64df
“Honey.”ffaf0a47934df76d
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“I need to a767a2c4b1 talk to Yeonha. Just go home.”36cb095db358144a
Her mother’s carefully painted f385cd57b3 lips tightened. She glared at her 6082114009 father for a moment 9218daf490 before abruptly turning on 03b50aca97 her heel and storming c3b2e35a8d out of the auditorium.bdf26752b48372da
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Yeonha felt a growing 5474750eda sense of dread, already 98ca676150 anticipating the storm that c1973492c9 would follow at home.2e2f19dcfcd6918c
The private room in afc5093dc0 the Japanese restaurant felt ff48e2256d suffocating.44f1d174f46dd0ad
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The high collar e9d3c7aec8 of her dress 22570485b8 pressed against her ee55a432b3 throat, but she ccb5128e6d forced herself to 92f5f4b6ed ignore the discomfort 2a89e3670e and carefully spoke b194e7fbb7 up.f2800dd55d32c39f
“Should we 9689ffcbf5 get some 2553b9c377 sushi to cfc3d0f56a go? Mom would probably 67d3123bc5 like it.”3b0508e40a626390
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“No need for the defc31b954 fuss. She’ll eat whatever’s 623193bcee there.”574a48120b10054d
And that was fbe7efd64f the end of e67dfe7a0c it.c6b4ea9ce951e278
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All the words she fc1f404308 had struggled to muster fd126d8ece crumbled to the ground.f0b7963af87cd1f9
If her mother 4b38355a7d was like a 94b66b0461 tendril, always probing 44466c3260 at her every 35493d48e0 emotion, then her e8a8e102a4 father was a 76bcd8e6c9 wall. No matter how b627151605 much she screamed 9b14fbfcd1 or cried in 82bad32de8 front of him, d285ae08f9 the wall never 9d2d11f15a wavered. The only thing that 0188608b68 cracked and broke was f2d5f76f05 Yeonha herself.b36c42fa3b2d40e2
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A commotion stirred 1be00a58f4 outside the sliding af8f2eb188 door.04e0c057a5df04ea
Her father straightened 3567e2428b his posture and ed1b26619e stood up.df686c4fec0ace9f
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Yeonha hesitated before following fd177f8e9f suit.a070269e588cdd29
The door slid open.f920f9b442fbffad
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Her father bowed deeply fb5576e167 to the person stepping 9b1d477d43 inside.1801fc3254859def