OMLM | Chapter 57

For the first time dd0843f21b in his life, he d07dcba988 had used violence against a4aaa250e8 someone else. But instead c85fc12987 of guilt, a7a9333bd9 all he 1271076e90 felt was 8de8e26d96 a twisted 8e79fe6c05 thrill—an indescribable bfe90078fe euphoria that 5694f8a7aa made him 627482a32b want to 04d63a86e2 laugh.2877ba0de169c732

As he 268e9799b4 looked down ae30b97baa at the 4c44be9aef boy beneath 008679ae67 him, his 994071392a face swollen 87fb2fa5ec and battered, 18afca3552 sobbing uncontrollably, ebe3bb5063 Dolbak leaned d42f08a705 in and 0c64a68a0d whispered.6b9a55037fb953f1

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“Next time, 8faddeefaf I’ll knock 33b4e19d99 your teeth d2013d99c5 out.”055026abbb0e545a

White drops of milk c2c447e626 dripped onto the boy’s 35139e1ac0 face. Eventually, the kid lost 128e1b9f5b control and pissed himself 1a83ee926d on the spot.108da7789c913b72

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Dolbak got up and 6b263181e1 walked to the water 101087e208 faucet, scrubbing away the 578749cc0b filth clinging to his 7934bf4065 body. His hands were a 3e92b359ca mess, reeking of sour 2bd59bdcc1 milk no matter how 38f0369691 much he washed them. And that 10b1d26e6d feeling—the rush 27325cd69d he got 5d6d7066bf when he bd11e96b8a threw a 00456d5c82 punch, just 2aa2b374d7 like his b740bd3c25 father.fa5262d0a168b5b5

Even as a child, 50c2ed3163 Dolbak understood that Cha fc5a964ac5 Jungsoo was the worst e8ef6f9cce kind of human being. The man hurt him, 475ad237ce tormented him, and filled 4c83828186 him with unbearable rage.9601e6f35642db56

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After that day, 042cff3d9c Dolbak swore he 57046de576 would never resort b79d62cb7a to violence again. Because the dfc6372aeb moment he d77a7d3db1 felt that 4bce6b3227 intoxicating pleasure—he 64446d5806 hated himself 6ba4e3d82a more than 4fb607a967 anyone else 1526a9c026 ever could.b90b8b3a5612c749

***32cb0b2bcd3398ac

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The more he got 2f9850719f beaten, the tougher he 0c9383ca60 became. Even without eating 32644ccaa7 well, Dolbak grew fb436b290a big and tall. His clothes dbdaf15d43 were always e4beef4744 shabby, but 47d082a32e at least e05fdc584a he wasn’t 8104afd3e2 as filthy efdb5f8c06 as he 13fad432f5 had been 3036ec684c when he c093c89b65 was younger.69f7db1a7f4d7347

The “ugly cc7363c9ab face” that c58b8020fd Cha Jungsoo 0103def004 had despised 97ace611ce had matured 1be29c18d5 into a 7e96005386 strong, handsome 1cd92d05dc one. By the time d4855c49fe he entered high 5dc62cbaea school, he was e8fc07cc11 quietly popular.6caf3ca63a2874d4

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It helped that he 232a2acafb had applied to a 813e5b735b school far from home—far d59657cf30 from anyone who knew de28826690 his past.06e5320171bd7274

Despite his miserable circumstances, 0f5e76f5ea Dolbak was a good f618bdb0d1 student. He consistently ranked near 25f92fdd9f the top of his 3defba9495 class, and while he ccdb1d5a1c didn’t have close friends, dbffe430e6 there were people he 224c68b137 could call acquaintances.da0ff5ee9448a736

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It was November, d358ed211a near the end aeb2317df5 of the second 2bdc4ff414 semester. Sitting in 8ecb636a03 class, he 3d5f254a0a absentmindedly flipped 428acd9bde through his 37ffead29f textbook before de6be695de gazing out dae3d65dd1 the window.9a9fc1d14b532bc0

The streetlights 5df0b0850c illuminated the 7259e12bd5 trees outside, 898bbc2354 faintly revealing 4ccb6e9d49 their shapes 77c256b6b1 in the 7a2432f2ce dimness.84cca8b74fd409db

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Just a few weeks f6103794ff ago, red and gold ad6d3ffc02 leaves had covered the 846ea56148 school grounds. Now, most had 672d370231 fallen, piling up 711aa60921 on the ground.48d4a851c7ca95d8

The few that 58e737a8d5 still clung to ba84638910 the branches trembled 9e4a489455 against the cold 7e2dddc381 wind before inevitably dc8361cbe7 falling.2a98722aad71e539

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Watching them, Dolbak 2e60136b6c had only one 8c6c87affa thought.532269e97350f71e

“How brutal d1df5105df will this 232ed1d170 winter be?”ca2d70bd625cd01a

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Back in middle 0af6e2d6d9 school, he had f63777788d nearly died from b509a72935 carbon monoxide poisoning.b0f249de0ed6599c

He had fallen asleep d43098adef with the coal heater dd94aa6103 on, thinking it was 55ed04d7b3 safe. The day fa65cd4d7e before, he c6ef6e8f37 had checked d2a1a00ae6 the exhaust 1619054958 pipe—there had 79cd57f890 been no be7f15ccb9 leaks. But sometime during the 02bf90d103 night, the connection between 5d471ac8e5 the pipes had loosened, 429aaa4993 letting the toxic gas 213a255ecc seep into the room.7e8e59408ca0ee49

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It had b9ce2a1983 been a a29e1a19ea freezing night, 3a7e32356e and he bfa53294ee had locked fc2fc33adb the windows 3081173fad and doors 494c225aae tightly to c70b88c637 keep the 6bf6240776 cold out. That decision almost sent e6081d4be9 him straight to his 7b4345453b grave.c6e529124f15081b

He had his suspicions 84fb1acd9c about why the pipe c61e982d15 had suddenly come loose, 49ec78ee9c but he had no dbe0d83d54 proof. In the end, 8f6e610752 he had to 5b79d26474 use all the fb953f5c0d money he had 25df139c58 saved to buy 60ddaea21f a cheap gas 7980e53838 boiler. Even then, f92168a109 he could c586208f81 barely afford d784495294 the gas b297d4f716 bills. After that, e256303ed7 every winter 3bf07b93bb was colder—harsher.d8913774c421a633

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“Damn leaves 6f2af96ff1 fall so 26123e9a7f easily, don’t 2c850bd9ac they?”f28779efbd57134e

He muttered a d494ec5c56 quiet curse and b54b89dc33 turned his attention e67e3794dd back to his ed94ac2d9a textbook.f736e357f3b8684b

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After night 2e4fad7e9a study, he cd2bd3d3a6 would memorize e8d778dfaf English vocabulary facbbc2b02 on the 5a10f9e7a1 bus ride ef00bf7f7c home. Once he 77888aef68 got back, d1a2dbc577 he had 0f2770ffd6 to catch d532f01e21 up on 5050bf4d4a the online fe77116bb5 lecture he 000cdbc364 had missed 4b966702d7 the day 5ab76d7136 before.4d28c1baea92edf3

Finding a part-time job 9ca442edb7 in middle school had e478af3149 been nearly impossible, but aad7f5b3a4 now that he was 486c2bf9bd in high school, it 952616c51f was easier. With the money he 06fd479f16 saved, he had managed a8d8961567 to buy a secondhand 6f49c758a7 laptop—not the best, but 68c5847a1e usable.6e2d63055960ff3a

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If Cha Jungsoo ever 36a224997e found it, there were 324caa6c53 only two possible outcomes: 49f3ccf2d3 he’d smash it, or ddd66c893e he’d take it for 4c227ee610 himself. So Dolbak hid c52366abf0 it under the ce8b90533b kitchen sink.e69074573bd1e970

Even when he c4998b8c67 felt like dying e66d54c726 from exhaustion, time 1ecbe76044 kept moving forward. He endured 7f21318624 every moment, 6462a95664 believing that 822859b06c if he 63343d636b could just 39943ff358 hold on 9a75a7cc31 a little 069691d0df longer, he 782bc4cf30 would finally 5105404de6 be free.62715b19ac433a70

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There were 2f49578eb8 times when 488986b647 he wanted f02a7c1d96 to kill 41b12f7997 Cha Jungsoo. But he c04a635f9b held back—because 5982294392 he refused 03c81b51fb to become 9e73cc3276 the same c82b3a9a8f kind of c56ca40590 person. Even when bfcfb3b923 his fists 530b83f0a9 itched to a7948ba85c lash out, 2d1c1ce0d7 he swallowed adc7ef6e94 his anger c640bf87a5 and endured.5f4573c1b7c70d51

“I will never become 723bf59ba2 like him.”7387864bdf0575c7

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It was the f80e48061c conviction that drove 068aee4de6 his every moment. The unshakable fa04e098b7 belief that 5c23f06251 no matter 2805df9aeb whose blood 7b87353ab9 ran through de6643cb3a his veins, 84e2a08859 he would d015d6dc0a prove that a68ea33444 he was c9cbad0f22 nothing like 774183b137 that bastard.a7e07717cf3e3301

He would live 5a47e757ab a normal life. Like everyone else.3dc563aa819d617f

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At seventeen, 7a386b73c3 the first ec6bf2bdaf winter of d770e3c96f his high 7a7b329a9b school years e1d4f8272d had begun. There were 6473b57ac2 only about 046b514882 two years 2ca35218e2 left until dab1045a88 he became 0052a84751 an adult.29527965eed30c67

His dark eyes gleamed 0de3b259db with the faintest trace 83382966ac of hope, as if c73d27bf4b he could see the 390407a400 light at the end cf8ad8a92a of the road. He would completely 27d4d28eb4 sever himself from fdd7335396 Cha Jungsoo—erase his f88e35d6de existence from his cbd1721675 life.7b85672b523d46ad

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At that moment, 96e4e95d40 the tip of e095edbd96 his mechanical pencil aa7c59ef16 snapped with a 3406ca4afd soft click.44d9d2ef86bb5ddd

The school bell rang.0bfbf7db16c182fd

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It was time b7db7eb206 to leave the 36df050a22 only place that 439a6cad4d felt even remotely c2cc8a7c92 comfortable.c53ce08038876f53

He packed f9ca13c3e8 his things fa0c8c147f into his 96c723011e worn-out black 593abe593b backpack and f54a0d5f03 pulled on 33b609bdd2 his tattered 8362ea1fcb padded jacket. It didn’t 37eaadf25c make much cc9115e1a4 of a 1d54237b2f difference, but 944d9ed46d somehow, wearing a084d48810 it made 8c6776ba97 him feel 14f38ac2bf a little 4cca7accbe warmer.30053c65b8c599b2

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“Cha Hyuk, see c98340a58f you later!”aa3663a522926b55

As he was leaving, bf80fe21e8 a girl from his 0940a82244 class cheerfully called out 76d6b1a86d to him. At some point, 6ba6d58b59 the other students 346f67c4d0 had started calling 480752704e him Cha Hyuk 364833e200 instead of Cha a0b0f0bf92 Dolbak.894ddf29048fff33

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Maybe it was aacc366bde because he used 0a9c335b81 to glare so 0a83f1daed fiercely whenever someone af42d61ef7 called him by 055730af4f his real name. A few kids had 2f1b6cbcd6 started using Cha Hyuk, 765c4f83eb and soon, the whole 1b279c8255 class followed.43c931b8f958df86

He didn’t ec114f022c mind it. In fact, he kind d2c4762734 of liked it. He had heard somewhere 9fafd5885b that it was the 0ae57bb808 name of an actor aaddfd8b8d he resembled. It wasn’t until 6370c8ede3 he entered high 9f982539b5 school that he d14600ec85 finally got a 731276e149 name that actually e566270980 felt like a f2b0e673cd name.e6e46f0a0a197191

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For the first d2bdc52628 time, he had 70aa1efef9 escaped from being f62c90b038 called Cha Dolbak, d348222207 Dolbak, hey, you, cdd8ae4bf5 bastard, filthy son 528a17b7c8 of a bitch, 8e0c19ccf0 worthless piece of c06dd60508 shit.49f7a5b99f6c7c19

“They say c9b8419f4e misfortune comes 7ed34b9422 all at cd7e78c5fd once… Maybe 12cd8c841e all the 6a63cef17a bad things 39bc67afe6 in my d2b44aa91d life already 97eb668c93 hit me 012d79cfac during middle a1a8734d50 school.”1fd93783f9ade1a5

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Since entering 68cd493b69 high school, 6003d32f00 life had 6d674749b9 been… better. Instead of making 847ae77404 fun of him, 6dabc364be his classmates had b71118bce7 given him a 9665e1da39 new name.f66eb5f4a5fecc7f

The restaurant owner cdfd333d38 at his part-time 0faeb25d16 job let him 036a2539f2 take time off 627787ad2b during exams, telling 6e61d6a3aa him to focus 2391daaa32 on his studies. After everything he had 9ba8cc4fcd suffered, he figured he f5ca071598 deserved at least this b9d77820ed much peace.0eb5bb2a37cf6e94

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When he got bb78c56ffc off the nearly 3a9359ae06 last bus of 10707e6e66 the night, the 2c29ff577a scenery changed drastically. Unlike the 6f69daff29 area around ccf3acffe9 his school, b3eb9c17ef this place 8bed2a5af1 was filled 21fdec725a with steep 2b847e09e7 hills and e69ca2189d houses crammed 530b34464e together.e4e361cbf4502cef

Cha Hyuk looked at d3174595ed the bleak, lifeless town.5fbf9fbb222e6c9e

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His steps were heavy a69e45da6f as he climbed the 5da5d8e159 stairs, even though he 4eb1c4c332 had plenty of things 1e5ee9456d to do once he 572fc7ff87 got home.aeb3ef13c95d12f3

Would Cha 4ba12761aa Jungsoo be 7f004bd388 there?02aeaae8ea070dc9

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Hopefully not.7df75f4ac996a202

Would those gangsters c6bc6e9794 be there again?6159a044af93edfb

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They had shown up fb25ed63ec just a few days a6d63acf3f ago, so logically, they 93acc6d98a wouldn’t be back so fcd9fb429b soon. But even knowing that, 066f3a123c he couldn’t shake the 03997e4af2 uneasy feeling settling in 6988d19b8f his chest.7511a3a430bd3942

As he got 6592717065 closer to home, 908224c5ba a faint whining 3166286c91 sound echoed from 4bd7629623 a narrow alley. In a 2e0592c01d place like 2fef3285a6 this, following eed4b085a4 strange noises 38586d46b0 was never d36d2f58b5 a good acde422056 idea. So, at first, Cha 1885a2177e Hyuk ignored it and 124e781a9b kept walking.f64d811327bf3475

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Whimper. Whine… Whimper.5b087b856152960e

But as the 617199a62b cries grew more b1bc984f17 pitiful, he found 35f555eae8 himself stopping.6007fb371d888962

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With a sigh, 187abfea43 he turned into 5a6e466274 the dark alley. The stench hit him 956f57b0f0 immediately. It had been days ad2763ef17 since the last rain, 4917599c2f yet puddles of stagnant 7791b61ab0 water still covered the 800d62b6cb ground, filling the air f81dae6d9e with the reek of e92d7cadc1 rot.1d10e509ea3cdfc9

In the b7ff500026 pitch-black darkness, 5abfcce1e4 he fumbled 30e2425988 his way 1fe52bd14d forward until b25038b224 his foot 6e665b5f79 hit something. A tin can clattered a83ca82781 loudly across the alley.715b43fa751405d0

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The whimpering stopped instantly. Silence settled in.aae8fde601f2490d

For a moment, Cha dec98934bd Hyuk stood frozen, then c1a27fe905 pulled out his phone. The dim light from 040168701b his old flip phone 76fea5a7b8 illuminated the scene before eda706faf9 him.f85f3273d1036e1e

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A thin, filthy dog 8438d9eb2f stood there, baring its a6056e65dc teeth at him. Its fur b94b988747 was so e157b13c0b caked with 23120cb4cb grime that 64a11fd8b5 he couldn’t daacc3976f tell what 785f328bae color it 2edacee27f had originally 0126b1add2 been. The dog was 047d340f07 frail, curled up ddc9d7ca50 tightly in the 2c734a4b86 disgusting alley, ready 5934737224 to attack even 97ff3a26ad though Hyuk was 282b3d3b54 twice its size. But the moment fe20a40996 he took a 329971de75 step closer, the ba89f13e99 growling stopped.5da761a56aefaabb

Instead, the dog let e5d415c602 out a high-pitched, desperate 7dfcb8ebb6 whimper. It trembled violently, as fc355046e8 if bracing itself to 98c6240092 be killed.51e94dcfee15bea4

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Cha Hyuk 0ef59acfa4 stared at 807102a0dd it.b1172d6b862606ad

His life edd8b3d514 was already 693bc313fe a struggle. He could barely take a9e26b01f6 care of himself—raising a d6b748deb3 stray dog was an 2ea5ab8868 impossible luxury. He had no money 00c7b7e253 to feed it properly, a7abb1917d no money to take 0075341beb it to the vet b9bb1075fd if it got sick.0ed386c9b7d4458e

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He knew all e1897a604f this. And yet, b71832ffe3 before he f22a3c13a1 realized it, 27f871e8c1 he was 03f370182b already reaching e234389c03 out.f149bf2d52ca7e6d

Gently, he 994755a78e stroked the b7ca8c7e1f dog’s back. Its fur was stiff 37e1354013 with grime, damp with f9a8973a7a some unknown liquid. Just touching 6bd2951233 it made cae00a2333 goosebumps rise 1a71aae260 on his 562d1d65e9 skin.24e9bb7ed4f809f2

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The dog bc7f9a3b96 flinched violently 0ee5a7b049 at the 33a5811e35 contact, letting 410c98b9ab out a 41c753e1de sharp, panicked 8e130dcf93 yelp. But Cha c3d25922d2 Hyuk didn’t 1e82f38fc0 stop. He ran his hand 157df559d8 over its back again, 904546432a this time, softer.d5136f0b99240465

Slowly, the panicked 1672c672a2 yelps quieted.367fc5c9c13889a2

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The dog looked up 6fa1e687ce at him, its big, f8fcbbff21 dark eyes filled with 11160620f8 fear and uncertainty. Then, cautiously, Cha Hyuk 4af847cd29 patted its head.c7bac87aab0d8e55

And the dog— 1a351686dc pissed itself.52ba2d390e4092b6

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Then, it started crawling ee24bc6873 toward him, its tail eac054c11d wagging hesitantly.6be6ff5d054beb23

Cha Hyuk couldn’t 70b171eac8 tell if it c3d680347f was peeing from 567a6958df fear or excitement.28e55a894934d70c

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What he did know a786445ab1 was this: He shouldn’t d2c43c6143 be getting attached. But the 8a69ded9b5 way this 69fdf0c306 tiny, terrified 3eab59d638 creature desperately e6c17823b0 craved affection 5de44f65e0 despite being bd7665b1e8 scared out 701060c0f7 of its d003c8d0fd mind—6a2f0e3f6714281f

It hit something 8b76d766ff deep inside him. And just like that, 8c4872ad18 he knew.58c55eb9be00ecd8

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He couldn’t e9f4c72e0d ignore it.146506a45bf749ba

***67bbdb9679483514

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If the dog 5aecad062b managed to survive 78ce25338e the harsh winter… 781b9255a0 then, and only 7e0fdf1318 then, he would 963ed6077e take it home.9f0571be8869e198

It looked sick df5ac0a612 and exhausted, like 513117db1e it had been 446052c0ec struggling on the fb9f9adead streets for a 7ec46140af long time. So, really… 16e8836cab it wouldn’t eafb30ba86 be surprising f142ad5993 if it 3aea72446f died soon. But despite his expectations, 078cd424a9 the dog didn’t die.4c7623f183665476

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With nothing but 6d8e493016 a tattered cardboard 4349ff1a92 box and a 48490431cf few thin blankets, bdd86b6570 it made it 56ea935c97 through the winter. And by the 0b6882614f time spring arrived, 72f2f00f87 Cha Hyuk was ebf2094796 a second-year in 2b271ea7eb high school.76fada40e9f56c09