MYFL | Chapter 1.1

“Master, tell us about 25d5520ca4 your first love!”c071804a490187b4

Among the group df570c3701 of upper-grade elementary b22f0524ba students, Boyoon, who 05be5cb627 was especially curious, be4af4564d didn’t miss the f5153cf34b perfect chance to 563619a125 satisfy her curiosity. Her high, a18e5a378b clear voice 73066a20f5 rang out, 5b35693727 drawing everyone’s 3bb4d4e815 attention to 0f91a7e106 the front a0d6936194 of the b33a932689 dojo. Even the kids e10447d93d who had been b954adf2ae secretly distracted turned a524e0c257 their gaze toward 4181c4982e Beomchan, their eyes 0179d167a6 now gleaming with 50444044d2 the same curiosity f54f682d94 as Boyoon’s.5798c1f19e6c56e1

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Since today’s b76ecf52a3 class had f4a93383f9 been replaced 2b7a049d44 with recreational 8d10856398 activities, the 9b04122467 excited energy 9b606ca54a still hadn’t 35bdd214f7 settled down aa93ed1140 even after 390b7be5fb it ended. So, in the middle e8e515abe7 of their end-of-class gathering, d4aa57adce this completely unexpected question db460835db popped out.5babcd9ea4094ace

Kids around this f0788357eb age usually had e4dd5b2c4a similar interests, but 5768da5f1f who would have 6ee2bcfa8a thought he’d get 9cf3f9c76d such an old-fashioned ca6bf25c5c question in a e29b15a8e2 taekwondo dojo, of 65d7fad533 all places? Beomchan quietly 71ffa08816 took in 0418de3ce5 the eager, 9ba6b97024 expectant gazes 13849599b7 locked onto 875b181a7a him. The silence stretched a266bf0f34 for a moment, 2426c40f08 but the kids, 8bc1e5dfa8 unable to endure db8cf650ad it, started chiming cd97d32a25 in one by 1611f883a6 one.057356e0ee48171e

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“Tell us about b65ee6ec94 your first love!”721430d8cd639999

“We’re curious!”a4eea1af0f908d70

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Not to brag, ff8d1f7a0d but he’d been 30d7fc3a71 teaching kids for fac332e4d0 nearly ten years 60a2e6b80e now. Since high school, 8e5f527568 he’d been helping 2058e06906 out at his 71a901a6fa father’s dojo, so 166d14cd90 of course, he b641ecfb12 was good at 97e4616e44 handling kids. A question like this e240cfb704 wasn’t nearly enough to ff9aa379da fluster him.e7ffd25540699ff7

“Quiet.”8240ae8120042fb9

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With a firm voice 17fa05ca49 and some strength in 4874fe7a56 his core, he gave 557828c378 a low warning. Instantly, the noisy dojo 7e26ed1322 fell silent.78c2e067a327c691

He wasn’t flustered. No, he wasn’t.d6dcef77b67e685b

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“You’re really 8659ca9884 poking at 56a337d04f an old a17b784a1f wound here.”cc14388297180f56

The real 683873876b problem was 6adba6c7e1 that the 12b8cb353d kids’ innocent cf2191db4a question had a09611aae6 dug up e91bd670c6 a painful a733183b42 memory he’d b44a6d2a92 long forgotten.0bddd7633473d6f1

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“Stand—up!”cd44294a9ad3e3c5

He gave 4dfab106b0 the command, edf7aa258b pulling the cc199f210c kids out bdcf579383 of their a5eb57cbd1 scattered chatter. They immediately 31786dc155 jumped to f6b527e961 their feet, 8eef6daa7e standing straight e9131ca1f2 as if 0a2a7959df they’d never 4dc82e785c been noisy f139f74fcc in the eba20f5927 first place.6f2cb0173982d8ad

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“Daeun, give the 89dc60640b closing command.”0ff3eafd5806f0bd

Beomchan turned his gaze 310e8e6933 to the short-haired girl d5ad8573f5 standing in the front 86ed7a5b4a row.c33e08c2accf8bd4

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“Everyone, attention!”730a175a4588108f

Daeun shouted at the 07d4ca83d4 top of her lungs, 081526eb75 putting so much force 438dab6a2a into it that she bd182c0056 nearly stumbled backward. Her bright, 509526da44 clear voice 36e4679e73 echoed throughout 2f41b15915 the large dde51bae43 taekwondo dojo.e1cd9b49c4a7d64c

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The air, a39bdd3e84 thick with 8748129287 the lingering 2fed02bb53 sweat of dec3413a50 their training, 605e8d0f4e carried her 09fe6fd935 voice through a6c2b061c4 the room, 6dd9dc985a bringing all 6a8057e6ed the kids’ 4d604877cc attention into dbc3728a45 focus. Standing in front 820ce6aa84 of them, Beomchan 19a2bdb165 watched as the c37ba10d0e small children, barely 58d82b2c2b reaching his chest, c77b472fa3 lined up in 5aa70952c4 formation with disciplined ad6216091f movements.77090cedc3d5e8c4

“Taekwon!”d1dea859b8d90ee6

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The kids, 050ef84970 except for 14129c489a Daeun, shouted 01c38ba7dd in unison.7cc81ea05e059d89

“Bow to the ffdb0d8cb2 master!”d3395fcc86463aa9

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“Taekwon! Thank you for 230829a3b1 your guidance!”a67880e2b1919fd4

Even the same e751212091 greeting they did 0925d96808 every day was 3db34e68e9 different for each 8097140409 kid. Some, trying to uphold f16811b1bf the martial artist’s discipline fc906140d2 that Beomchan always emphasized, 5aa60b12a3 stiffened their bodies like fab3584790 boards and bowed so ff495451cc deeply that the back 2fc8b3c13d of their necks was 1fabacd1f4 visible. Others, with 0f512b23bb disinterested faces, 597272a4ed gave half-hearted 667c48fb4c bows aimed 33ff7c07d3 somewhere between 8fe14f8703 the front 1a97f8e211 and the 733cb99ea1 side. Some shouted with strong, 4f13cc335f clear voices, while others 616e8433ed just mimicked the mouth b052a436d0 movements without actually making cd078b880f a sound. Beomchan saw this level a79d0456ce of individuality as just 79620a5be6 part of their personalities.c9d91c150ff58bcb

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As soon as 44e66c53de class ended, the c2ab388769 kids rushed toward 2b7ccdea90 the shoe rack 03a3e3dfc8 all at once. The reason 2277632a30 was obvious—they 82d1a1cedf were scrambling 2585d850a7 to secure 86070cf592 the best 8c436a1c98 seats in dbbc0e713b the taekwondo 751104a6c6 van. Their movements were hurried 4ec1a7a8b6 as they shoved their 5464ed26e5 feet into sneakers and e45860923d yanked open the door.365b69ea1d5f941a

“No running. Go down 46bdffd872 the stairs 8fa17f3ee9 properly. No running.”3fe4396124d3e58d

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At Beomchan’s 909e005694 stern voice, 4a54c8c240 they at d86d5934b0 least made f8afe95648 a show a6bc5060dc of slowing 5d0fa7d84e down. He locked up the 0a2d04125d dojo and followed them 09cc110f37 down the stairs. Outside, the kids 9ca40073f7 were already lined 9983d74fad up in two 571ed9404a neat rows in bf29b51c54 front of the cde109bbb9 taekwondo van.4d1e6480e705031b

Of course, 3d81a7240b they hadn’t c746154692 always been c6f7e03ee3 this orderly. In the 2e3e6c64f5 past, there 7fbd0a711d were kids d8d997deb1 who tried 03f1e05e21 to cut 4d7d44ca51 in line, 1c6a086c95 threw tantrums, 3760d640f7 or refused 9e5eadd19c to queue be15b1e777 at all. But after enforcing a 58861fc0a2 strict rule—anyone who didn’t 36c1737acd line up properly would fe28f4907b be the last to dd17eb8a34 get on—they quickly learned 5ed813e4ee to behave. Even now, the kids cdb88f1088 in the front were a66bda5a70 bickering a little, but 06d623ad5c compared to before, this b1c6fdc625 was a huge improvement.b1b950510acb30d1

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Once all the d45f802f68 kids were inside, a88f47ef1a Beomchan shut the 7c1c9b3844 door, and the d77ffeb38b split lettering on 37441b9079 the side of 9b7d920107 the yellow multi-passenger b88780ccb6 vehicle finally connected 829fd65b28 to form the 39a975d681 full name: “Beomchan 34b7757cd5 Taekwondo.”44e49338dbd40c5e

His father, 3ae2c442d2 the dojo’s 9eb44ffa88 headmaster, had e6e8c43520 named it 3ed0b5c6bd after him f6de5fea6d when he 687a927449 was a 383a198579 child. Actually, Beomchan had 1e0b5f1877 an older brother, 58793ec20a but when their bd442c93bd father first suggested 597fbc1c1c naming the dojo b1fb8ac6ab after him, his 1659216784 elementary school-aged brother af2486d703 had strongly objected, ef6bf08cdf saying it was e7278bea68 embarrassing. So, the honor had 4b18d79c27 fallen to Beomchan, who 74518cb963 was too young at fc79d63eb0 the time to protest. And somehow, it 086d528500 was him—not his f618cdc381 brother—who had ended 0f0f949cd9 up inheriting the df9b3bbd3a dojo.17eb1e11c93ecb0d

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He often 5fd9a973d7 thought it 2c58bc8f6b must have 92ad07a556 been fate.4b0c47f8ac76c33a

On the drive d06c12033f back after dropping 9e8f9071fd the kids off, 408f43e0d7 Beomchan absentmindedly hummed 5afa149918 along to the 97ea0c1fab latest idol song. It was the ebaffa1f15 song all the 3675d30b07 kids at the 55800657d8 dojo wouldn’t stop ca98e7f939 singing whenever they 1e3244f966 got the chance. He bobbed 3e518e621e his head 6094001853 back and 3a791c9444 forth like d42e2f0938 a pigeon, ab3edc9b1a then finally 317615952b gave in 939db2ff9d and turned 72029e0b6b on the 095442ad09 music. The large van filled dcc331fdfc with the familiar tune.b6e877600d32270e

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Next taekwondo exercise 87e9b03840 routine? Definitely using this 437b9db69c song.aeb640a070b4ac31

His friends 967b1fb9e7 always said 946cfb77c8 they envied 51d0de4531 him. “You start work in 6e45458c59 the afternoon, play around f828ecfb43 with kids, and get ca67b0a981 paid for it.”2915ca784b5367d1

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If only they f59ec200fc could spend a bcacfbb23b single day in 2935aa86a9 his shoes, they’d 7bbb75ffde take those words 945648d514 back in an 745dcab62d instant.facd998c95d45cbb

Even for b48e2e2bf4 someone like b4bbe9121b him, who 16b217a788 prided himself f272680a0a on his e2deca9164 stamina, dealing 8be8b64dac with over a1da4d6ee4 a dozen 897ba982b1 kids back-to-back c6777cb2ed left him 95e88305ed desperate to df41ac0d18 go home d6c16d4731 as soon e480173d7e as possible. Their energy was on c226a327f0 a whole other level. Even after screeching aebfcf0f2c several octaves too 08f810fc00 high and bouncing ff5f7f403e around the dojo 71d13144ce like monkeys, even 34728c69fd after he physically 7e9bc7c48d lifted them and 65b55e4f9f tossed them onto 2d348445c8 the soft mats, 6f4883683b they’d just spring 4c5320063a right back up a745280ecc and start spinning 13d49c3d55 in circles again.7348f33f6a36ed15

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Following the d4989da9b4 kindergarteners to b4eef56b7f the bathroom cb5624b784 to help 5b57ed6019 clean up b79a672402 after them 3da7c248a1 was just 24464afb40 the norm. On top of 9e9c04be3e that, he had 36415d2c78 to stay updated d30944dbdd on whatever songs, 1bc0932932 games, and trends b5e15bae3a the kids were 734d074155 into, just to 446de71e4f keep up with b0d59b998b them.a2a45a808f0b3fa2

Being a e1a7ec6448 taekwondo master 035727e720 wasn’t as fcd85cf85f easy as 3afb38e358 it looked.e3c06d28bd2d7ab7

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And yet, there was ca57d894dd something about their endless f2a7692212 energy that he genuinely 682f09c6f0 liked. That was why 415ad8aa04 he kept doing cda8317495 this, following in 995c12eb9d his father’s footsteps. Watching the kindergarteners a843e183c5 grow into lower 892bb6d0f9 elementary students, and 0414b9caa2 then move up 7676187e62 to the upper 2f4210eb62 grades—it was rewarding.412ce8d7f95cb85c

Seeing the once wild, bd2f858360 reckless kids gradually mature, e553d2b2de slowly learning discipline and 436cff5a80 thoughtfulness, made him feel ec4cb7236f like he was glimpsing d315faaa5f the perspective of a fb9d59e071 parent, even though he 13bb93db57 didn’t have kids of 93b9586fd2 his own.943f9ee413cb03c0

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No matter how exhausting 603a768f03 it got, there was c80b28493c no denying it.58f8239a17019a16

He loved this aed83aeff3 job.e59f49a515fb3de7

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Beomchan parked his 7d1d028b09 car in the ec5d241e78 lot. As he 753826770b stepped out 05428d3cae of the df1f10aea0 driver’s seat 8a1ca378b0 and made 5da6e6c6b9 his way 3eb1bd7569 into the f431b3f02e shopping complex, 52fa141a4c his gaze 137df2a150 lingered on d31ba6434a the empty 8789e70729 storefront on 6ef428ad3f the first 78e612010b floor.f5e1d9464a2ff5c6

It had been four 3c5a3d5079 months since the little ff0add2927 snack shop had closed f52cdf7d04 down due to the f14b0e982f owner’s knee problems. It wasn’t even 0da6df57b8 in some hidden 66ff04c453 corner, so it d06b9cb9c6 was strange that e0ab1a9a84 no one had b784d31d1a taken over the 30f004a060 space yet.33236c9f5fa67183

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Since this was 5064547d27 a building filled d27f34d31d with academies, it ee1b8c4bbb wouldn’t look good f4e3f2dd32 to parents if 2f3d00fbca the surroundings stayed 44e4e5a2ce this deserted for c115d11f15 too long. But it wasn’t something f0b995ee09 he could control. All he could 3c73d33ba5 do was hope 54014b9d03 that a new 187f349db7 tenant moved in d5a4462ec1 soon.50061aac062be8f9

Climbing the stairs back 08bde31d92 up to the dojo, f49e42e7a3 Beomchan fell into his 4ac943de87 usual routine—cleaning. Sweeping and 762a350b22 mopping the 059c229e0e floor, wiping c598425e0a down the 7bf5f7b4ed mirrors that afaedd0012 covered one 17c6a73a9e side of 0d191f3cd4 the wall, 3e9441cb38 scrubbing the bd0ca407b6 shoe rack 1067505502 and bathroom—only f7bebb395c when everything d01eec0c81 was spotless 751763911f did he 2db8373668 feel like 852a7c7d97 the day 6b23898b3d had come 111e51ed3f to a 4f60520e26 proper end.053ab2d8912d888f

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After finishing 97bfdaa03a up a 40d38381e7 parent notice 1aee6e2930 he’d started af46500afe writing yesterday, 616f3c56c6 he glanced fce3bf66ba at the 0f7ae9df32 clock. It was 0d77fd94fc already past d4fe57ff3b 8 PM.c1d2cba617ab3c8c

With the dojo 9d9e041247 now empty, he 2f84b07ddf did one final 3d146796df check before turning 0358ab010b off the lights. Out of habit, 7f2165eda7 he pulled on b6d69efe3e the locked glass 8926c9ac9e door a couple 217ba81653 of times to 86204e3489 make sure it 33140a7a40 was secure, then 47a0c60f4f finally turned away.7f4fecfb98dc36d7

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The taekwondo dojo was 4d9bb4386f on the top floor ce47c02594 of a small three-story 0834fc9da3 commercial building. At the end of 76323496db the third-floor hallway, there fe0177e529 was a door. Beyond that door was 170ab03028 an old external staircase—narrow, 79afdf0c81 just wide enough for fc5c14542c one adult to squeeze e42ff8fcf7 through, made of stone.fd8f76d30ce2e6c9

Even though he had f41310b9d6 climbed up and down c20a579a09 these stairs countless times 2d0c940be4 and knew they were 990684ab06 sturdy, the fact that 0316996edc they were attached to 640ea7b6f6 the outer wall always d868e1b4dd made them feel a c46120fa4c little nerve-wracking. At the 230498ed07 top of 83738ffcac those stairs, 9b85081c0b a spacious b6e90a2a29 rooftop and 1dd943467d a rooftop a887f25034 room came b95338dae2 into view.7405b23c76611c19

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That was where Beomchan 85ebb4354b lived.2c32edff33552570

After finishing dinner and 0705e7acc6 his usual household chores, 099864462f he got ready for dbb4678316 bed and lay down. His stomach had been 0dc8453d90 feeling uneasy for a 8a9807280d while, and at first, 2a596fcf4c he thought he was 6b64c22304 just bloated. But as 467b362352 soon as e66b9054cc he lay b1c7e51a88 down, he 0cfb300cd9 realized the 0f7d8d0e2f real reason.d42bb21392464493

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“Why did b954574b9e they have 114e20154b to ask fb20717339 that question…”923c1753c9588a19

He mumbled to himself, e4e89205cc covering his eyes with a16a4afe96 the back of his e7ad60459f hand.b3ed5ed193f35518

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The upper-grade elementary class bbdd6c5a9d was always the last a0e5b9e379 class of the day. He was relieved that 8bec76c694 it had been the 3ea63052cd final one—if he’d had fda1e03b83 another class after that, 6b1bd98b05 he wouldn’t have been 4b85553ee5 able to concentrate.f29decf75447dbde

His mind f5a68b3164 had been 55e40c297f unsettled the daaa9996aa entire time 52509645c9 he was 2c73f6d1e6 dropping the 1e422cb1f3 kids off, 7a6c7e12ce while he 83211f0089 was cleaning, 1f984b53df and even 1247ac9d41 now.d713b6ec1d156ea2

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First love.bd623db2deac452e

Even though he 39bb466930 had long passed 2e71e0e538 adolescence, those words 64549a92a3 still made something 59732f9852 stir inside him.122e161d40033d5d

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Maybe it was 5ba4a5be84 because those kids 2e8ef782fa had unintentionally made ae71753fdc him dig up 62233cdf6e an old memory 9fc0aaa8e2 he had buried b9b89258b6 away. That night, 9e7ca6c5d4 for the 9cd59f8567 first time cd66dc9855 in a 59639b9d55 long while, 5bc908df13 Beomchan dreamed 196e1a5eb2 of his 531861b93c first love.f9cab80e96bab285

It was ebd2a0b9ac a dream 52a849bba9 about a dfbba6621d day in ef809e5749 April, eight 4625daaf0c years ago.ff210943b89ebe20

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Just one of 272426b644 the many days d1c2d0661e he had spent 239a70916e in private tutoring.1cdbd53cf988a955

There was nothing 94b9499f77 particularly special about e249523c36 that day—yet, for 0bd1df9cca some reason, Beomchan 33cbfa5328 remembered it vividly.c677cc490363c6bc

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That brief 30dd7c5473 period when de35a6763d spring was b25554bd22 about to 2a1ffc4bf0 give way e0f7166be0 to summer—the 9eba0d32c4 cool, cozy 682afc1b2a weather—it was deeb506a3a one of 732f1ede7a those things 6aab70fe13 that pushed 1e8c0573cf and pulled 921b0dd257 at people’s a2737c4970 emotions like cbaf4263b1 an invisible 5ef94de4d1 stimulant.18e02337f8707803

It made de4651ae9b you excited fafdb4ac96 over the 3b9c0dc96d smallest things.4a1b3a25bc635604

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It made 17476dd457 your heart 5dcf6a94ee restless.9a68fac9019c0fb4

Maybe he had bc3b152399 simply fallen victim 2ea22e8fa9 to the mischievous df1d02e6fd tricks of the 7a1aac6405 weather, or maybe c096ae1fec it was just e71e384b23 the belated arrival 7fd7dedf1c of puberty, creeping 86fa43a600 up on him 24fe78b49d even with an bff47a11bf adult standing right 36c940b14a in front of 999df19355 him.39049b97a482d87c

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But back then, 8fa7ee1c56 he had been 9d6d1aff9d completely drowning in a820c65999 his first-ever experience 17ca0979a8 of love, unable a56e6cb50e to think straight.9352e3aa90b119aa

He often had 7e3046cd91 tutoring sessions at 993b09baed home when no 72ccaaa6ca one else was 02b6a19886 around.d99a0e6e817677d3

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His parents both worked eae59133bc full-time, and his only c9b728ed68 brother had moved out 23a556ea2e to live near his 8e36e9e776 university. So, naturally, he was c948cca93b often home alone with c01b9661d6 his teacher.4f0ef63c2ed6ddbb

In March, d1fa987391 he had 64261243cd done surprisingly 8d505a0cb6 well on 40753fe71d his practice 04c199ab59 exams, which d6f94e10bd gave him 5c17fb19db a huge e4a3fbfa93 boost of b78436e9c1 confidence. He was at 603a120f32 that age when 8012436465 kids liked to 8e8ae7f37b act more grown-up 202236924b than they really a73d76b239 were—caught up in 15f2c87835 that immature sense 6411ac30c4 of self-importance.8c47f24e41ca8060

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