MWM Chapter 3

The impulsive urge to swing her clenched fists at Haena’s face burst in a trembling voice.

“Apologize.”

Facing the small, shabby girl, Haena remained remarkably composed despite the sudden confrontation. Far from being frightened or startled, she flashed a leisurely smile.

“Apologize?”

“Yes. Apologize. For speaking rudely to my mom, for stepping on her hand, for pushing her.”

“What? Pushed who?”

“You threw the earring onto the road and told her to pick it up. That’s as good as pushing her onto the road.”

Soyi unleashed the words she couldn’t voice that day, pouring them out without hesitation.

“This is your only chance. Apologize sincerely.”

Haena let out a scoff as if the demand were absurd.

“This girl’s something else. Anyone listening would think I killed your mom. I was just giving her some advice on how not to live in this world. Ignoring the signal and running into the road—that’s your mom’s fault.”

“If you hadn’t threatened her, saying she’d have to pay if she didn’t pick it up, she wouldn’t have run into the road.”

“Got any proof? Proof I said anything like that?”

Haena’s eyes locked onto Soyi’s, her question sharp. Her face, stripped of any malice, looked genuinely innocent.

Soyi repeated herself.

“Apologize.”

At that moment, she meant it. If Haena admitted her wrong and apologized sincerely, if she showed regret, Soyi thought she could let go of her resentment and hatred.

“What did I do wrong?”

But the response was exactly as expected.

There wasn’t a trace of guilt in the woman facing her. Her expression, marked with a question as if she’d heard something absurd, seemed to glow with vitality.

“My mom died because of you. If you hadn’t done what you did that day, she wouldn’t have had an accident, gone to the hospital, or died.”

As venomous words spilled from the small girl, Haena let out a sigh-like laugh. After a moment of soft chuckling, she looked at Soyi and spoke as if admonishing her.

“Is this how poor people always are? Never reflecting on themselves, always blaming others or the world when things go wrong.”

“…”

“You need to change. Otherwise, you’ll never grow.”

Tap, tap. The cold touch of her hand gently patting Soyi’s shoulder sent a chill.

Her sharp nails, gleaming as if they could draw blood with a single swipe, caught Soyi’s eye. Staring at those pointed nails, Soyi parted her lips.

“I won’t forgive you.”

Her voice was barely audible, a faint whisper. Yet Haena responded faithfully even to that feeble declaration.

“Forgiveness takes strength. Do you have that kind of strength?”

“…”

“What changes if you say you won’t forgive me? Wielding nothing but willpower is like self-harm. In the end, you only hurt yourself.”

Her lecturing tone scraped at Soyi’s insides.

“What are you going to do if you don’t forgive me? Try taking revenge.”

Her confident smile, slanting across her red lips, dared Soyi to try. The pitying tone that followed crushed Soyi’s already flattened heart even further.

“You’ve lived here your whole life, right? I heard from Hwejangnim you were born and raised here.”

“…”

“She said it’s such a pity you lost your mom. A girl with only her mother to rely on, now an orphan—she felt so sorry for you.”

“…”

“So I made a suggestion to Hwejangnim. Why not keep you here? Your situation’s so pitiful, with nowhere else to go.”

“…”

“Poor thing.”

Tap, tap. Haena patted Soyi’s shoulder again, as if wrapping up, and delivered her final words.

“No need to thank me. The haves should help the have-nots.”

The thick scent of her perfume enveloped Soyi’s senses, then slowly faded.

Like a tattered scarecrow, Soyi stood motionless, watching Haena walk away, powerless.

 

***

 

From that day on, Haena’s words lingered in Soyi’s heart, resonating deeply.

“Forgiveness takes strength. Do you have that kind of strength? Wielding nothing but willpower is like self-harm. In the end, you only hurt yourself.”

As much as it pained her, Haena was right.

Soyi had no strength. No money, no connections, and no ability to stand on her own. At just fifteen, even if she left this place, her only option would be an orphanage. Even there, she couldn’t stay forever—she’d have to face the world once she came of age.

Without a home, money, or any foundation, standing tall was impossible. Seonamjae was the only shield protecting her now.

“Study and work.”

Soyi focused on the two things she could do best. Taking over her mother’s tasks, she worked tirelessly and then carved out sleep time to study diligently.

Even as she threw herself into her duties, her heart burned with a vengeance, imagining her pushing Haena down. She longed to see her face contorted in ruin, even just once.

‘If I work hard, maybe I can do it.’

But the more she steeled her resolve, the more doubt crept in.

‘Even if I work hard, can I ever gain the strength to bring Haena down? Can I build that kind of power…?’

No.

Each time, despair followed. The urge to give up everything ambushed her at times. Resignation hardened into a searing lump in her chest.

One day, while running through the garden to calm her mind and diving into work, a fleeting image of her mother, bustling about, flickered like a hologram.

“Soyi.”

Her mother’s welcoming smile burned into her retina. Soyi waved instinctively.

“Mom.”

The moment she uttered that longed-for word, her throat tightened.

Only then did Soyi fully grasp the reality she faced.

‘I’m alone now.’

‘I’ve become alone.’

‘There’s no one left to call Mom.’

‘I can’t see her when I miss her.’

‘The person who hugged me, saying I was the best, is gone forever.’

The crushing reality was both heart-wrenchingly sad and terrifyingly overwhelming.

As she struggled under the weight of her emotions, her mother’s habitual words slowly echoed in her ears.

“It’s okay. It happens. Understand and let it go.”

Soyi repeated those impossible words countless times. Even after mulling them over a hundred times, they remained incomprehensible.

‘Sure, it could be okay. It happens. I could understand.’

‘But Mom died.’

Shaking her head, Soyi choked back tears.

“It’s not okay. What’s okay about this?”

She shouted toward her mother, who lived buried in work, never once going to see the cherry blossoms.

“It’s not okay. Nothing’s okay. Is it okay that you worked so hard and then just left? How is this okay?”

Her body, rigid moments before, collapsed in the middle of the courtyard. Tears fell in heavy drops, splashing onto the ground.

Lost in a torrent of sobs, unaware of how much time had passed—

“Don’t cry.”

A soft, small hand gently wiped her tear-soaked cheeks. Soyi’s head turned instinctively. A young boy, no older than seven, stood before her.

“Are you hurt? If you’re hurt, you need to go to the hospital. Tell the doctor you’re in pain. Are you scared of needles?”

“…What?”

“Is it because needles hurt? You still have to get the shot. Life doesn’t always go the way you want.”

His clear voice and wide, worried eyes were filled with concern. The boy, around seven years old, spoke and acted in an oddly mature way.

“Who… are you?”

“Jigu.”

“…What?”

“My name’s Kong Jigu.”

‘Kong Jigu…’

Mulling over the boy’s name, Soyi asked, her tone laced with confusion.

“But why are you here? I’ve never seen you before.”

“I’m going to live here from now on. My mom and dad passed away, so I’m staying at Halmeoni’s house.”

“…What does that mean?”

“My uncle said so.”

The boy grinned brightly, pointing in one direction. Following his gaze, Soyi’s breath caught.

A tall man was walking toward her, holding a soccer ball in one hand.

Thump, thump. Thump, thump.

The sound of the ball hitting the ground echoed sharply in her ears.

The man approaching from a distance was tall—so tall she had to crane her neck to look up. But something else held her gaze, something beyond his height.

He stopped in front of Soyi, casting a large shadow over her like a tree.

With both hands stuffed in his pants pockets, he stared at her, his eyes devoid of warmth.

An inexplicable sense of danger prickled at her, yet she couldn’t tear her gaze away. Her eyes were glued to him as if she didn’t even realize her mouth was agape until a low, quiet voice broke the silence.

“Your face is a mess.”

A fleeting smile crossed the man’s impassive face.

“Right, Uncle? Her face is a mess!”

The boy, laughing along, pointed at Soyi’s tear- and snot-streaked cheeks, doubling over with giggles.

Flustered and unsure of what to do, Soyi froze as a large hand suddenly extended toward her.