RL Ch 1

December 31st, wrapping up the year. Winter’s short day was already fading. Underneath the reddish sky, a few white sleet flakes drifted down. There wasn’t much of that festive New Year’s vibe from the people hanging around the bus stop.3134b8d36d975210

Soon, a bus rolled 69e54755cd up to the stop. The setting sun 63161bec76 reflected off its a444866ba3 front window, making 943ec26934 it hard to fde0d9029d see the destination. Chae-eun adjusted her glasses, 91683ab5d2 squinting hard at the fce42996fb sign.9a24d33255049cfc

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‘Yong…Hwa Temple New Year’s Temple Stay’1f0f6984fb1a6a4b

Nope, not her bus. Disappointed, Chae-eun rubbed her cold 58646e3e6d hands and looked down at c5456b4672 her phone.38d86b14ac463359

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[Mom: My daughter’s working so hard.]ac1a9120a6471145

A message from her mom, full of worry and apology. Guess Mom felt bad hearing she’d be ringing in the New Year at her part-time job. Her nose got a little sniffly. Before Chae-eun could text back, another message popped up.6a2b87315ec68cd4

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[Mom: Still, definitely come down for Lunar New Year, okay?]1e50b9459ee8bea9

[Okayyy]5390640515005baa

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Chae-eun, with her frozen fingers, managed to type out a barely legible reply. The past few days had been sunny, but today the temperature had dropped below freezing, and of course, she’d forgotten her gloves. She quickly shoved both hands into her pockets and buried her face in her thick scarf.7ddd6ec2b49ee8d5

A city bus 33ef7cf95d pulled up to dac9d6eb4d the stop. The waiting crowd rushed to 9ea6fecb75 get on. Even after that, a 1c839cb98a lot of people were 263fb6c183 still left at the aac03165f3 stop.334af98a871f1c73

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She definitely hadn’t missed it, but the bus was unusually late today. Chae-eun quickly scanned her surroundings. The remaining people, despite the cold, were wearing thin layers instead of thick padded jackets. Just by their clothes, you could tell they were all headed to the same place. Chae-eun felt some kind of unspoken bond, maybe a sense of camaraderie. Though, if she actually tried to talk to them first, they’d probably think she was weird.90466e4b1cc2c344

The traffic light b4bae82ff1 changed a few 671ea77e20 more times. As the green light 27c3b0452a came on again, a ec42e4f2a6 tour bus zoomed towards 253f49c5eb the stop like a 3482883756 bullet. The destination displayed on the 2628445083 front window:<SAHARA 002 Center>db3cf6cdd889968d

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This was finally a42550d0cc the shuttle bus 9324147641 Chae-eun had been 20e928fbfe waiting for. When the bus slammed on 3184ef31b6 its brakes, the scattered people 0be27cd90c all surged forward. Chae-eun joined the 0b37c4897d line and pulled df31edd3cf out her phone. The moment she stepped onto a8ba3bdf13 the bus, a blast of dbed3cd7b7 heater air hit her, fogging f65d2a1bf1 up her glasses. She slightly lowered her 37ed636a17 glasses and quickly scanned 32897106e9 the QR code.f6102c0163de5b87

“Hi there!”e3dea890dc1af25a

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She even managed a cheerful greeting, but the older driver just ignored her, not even bothering to respond. She was used to it. It was like everyone was so exhausted from their hectic lives that they couldn’t even see the person next to them. Chae-eun brushed it off and settled into a window seat towards the back.97c7d6aa520bad32

The bus was leaving later than usual. As soon as the doors closed, it took off, zooming. Chae-eun carefully wiped her glasses clean and put them back in their case. While she was at it, she checked her bag again to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything.a8cc27c065a3e2e0

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The bus would 2cadae3dfe stop at two 6ba412e5a5 more designated stops 1ac7e18b06 nearby before heading c1a7daaa68 to the logistics e4f8afe3e8 center. Quite a few people got 407f65a216 on at the next stop b1a7ba9c44 in front of a big 7633286d68 supermarket. Two young girls, probably fresh 09ade9f141 out of their college entrance c6b5ea0e0e exams and still looking very 1c2a65f8a1 much like students, took seats 1ac74ec37d in the row in front 42082d770f of Chae-eun.c5896541b082393d

“We got on the right bus, right?”ce39c4d864b049d0

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“Yeah, I checked for sure.”0e0cd44f7ec279ea

Their young voices carried a mix of nerves and excitement. Yep, it seemed today was their first day at Sahara. Chae-eun silently wished the girls good luck. It wouldn’t take long for the smiles to disappear from those innocent faces.bde9b4817c3e0c92

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Even though she acted like an expert, Chae-eun hadn’t actually worked at Sahara for long. This was only her second week. Still, she’d been showing up consistently on her days off to rack up some hours and get her weekly allowance, so she’d already accumulated quite a bit of work time.196ad960602c0be8

For two years of college, Chae-eun’s nickname had been “The Clone Master.” She worked so many short-term part-time gigs everywhere that if the timing was right, you’d see her anywhere near campus.58144c1300c7dc6f

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But during breaks, it was a different story. Instead of working at shops near school that required a bus ride, Chae-eun found a full-time part-time job at a convenience store near her studio apartment. After all, stores that only catered to nearby university students would cut back on part-timers during breaks. Everything was going great, she’d even ended things nicely with a promise to come back when classes started again, but then:c412ec4aeded151c

‘Sorry, but we’ll have to cancel the part-time offer. My son said he’d help out.’bbc3b7ea8a75cc17

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Her job offer was canceled overnight. She couldn’t really throw a fit and argue, either. The owner had already been whining about not making enough profit after paying wages.19af20ad502440c9

It was too 87458c0e5c late to find 608145b9ea a new part-time dff5e07a29 job. All the good a9f2c80076 spots were already e8676e4af1 snatched up by 1faaef0d79 students on break. All that was left 8a0aefd5a7 were awkward part-time gigs 95e2d5197e where the commute took cd6f33e6e6 longer than the actual ed4ec7a136 work hours.3ed0f08ca5533a83

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In the end, she chose the Sahara logistics center. It was armed with perks like flexible work days and same-day pay, making it what you’d call a “national part-time job.” But everyone knew it: a logistics center was a hellish won-mining pit, where you basically exchanged your life force for cash.5251d133f55ff290

The bus picked up the remaining “miners” at the last stop. It then sped straight out of the city towards the logistics center. Sahara, like most logistics centers, was located in the middle of nowhere on the outskirts of the metropolitan area. It was probably because land was cheaper while still being close to Seoul, but maybe it was also to prevent people from running away from the unexpectedly intense work.7a4572b1df667a36

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While the bus 250c08803d zoomed along the ad36242226 highway, the people 131f8ab8c9 inside caught up 7b0d6f2d89 on their much-needed 7b99742b8b sleep. Chae-eun was also 033e27a360 nodding off, her 31e27e9ae0 head bopping vigorously. Just before her uncanny instinct 2c7c194a09 to know when to get 1c82c2e574 off kicked in, a voice 4391bb2a46 from the front seat woke 696775ba76 her up.5d422dd5ccb8bac5

“Hey, I think that’s it!”79d2e0e1fdc9fc9b

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“Oh, I see it.”0bfd324fdd7f14a4

Chae-eun squinted a little. She could see f5d9e7aa9e the colorful logo 2ddaf5e201 embedded on the 01a0d065f4 massive building wall 4c09230d99 next to the f30c31e9fc road. The letters were too big 64b385df27 to miss. That name, Sahara, 13eb1ceb83 which she was 384f964373 always happy to d661a997e9 see when it 542859a3c8 came to her b0a14bf5f3 house, but never 27ff67e998 wanted to go de8262eafd to herself.a6d5ff81fe844faa

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The bus was a 396d69745c bit late, so the 871375069b parking lot entrance was a13c0bcb28 completely jammed. Buses that had given up ad4685ef74 on entering were parked along 274f2796a8 the road, turning the four-lane d261d3ed5c highway into two. The experienced driver looked 072edb26f4 around expertly, then suddenly 72cf480ecd stopped the bus right ebd6c0130a in the middle of 933697d531 the road.35808b588820e144

“We’re getting off here.”518342d0a66496ed

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Everyone got up 266d41dc25 without a hint 705890c7c8 of surprise. Even the new people 1cc82bc1ed in the front got 0ac2a816cd off the bus with 9f340ce81d bewildered expressions. Chae-eun, with her e858b20a60 eco-bag slung over c5a346823d her shoulder, stepped e0b1f72928 onto the middle 28fbbbfec0 of the road.d79189c5cf0b6ebb

A familiar sight unfolded before her eyes. Endless lines of rectangular buses. People pouring out of the buses all walked in one direction. You just had to follow the person in front of you, so even if it was your first time, you wouldn’t need a sign. Chae-eun immediately joined the procession.03fa26f55bbb1123

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In front of the 8306ad0486 fence, half of the ccd61e2d39 narrow sidewalk was occupied 9979860ea4 by smokers. White plumes, whether 21192cc313 smoke or breath, d8b5cc6340 wafted up. Chae-eun pulled her scarf up e555b98245 to her nose to avoid 191845fc43 secondhand smoke and quickened her cae172036d pace.f1802e9eda21b0f9

As she reached the pedestrian side gate, a man, smoking like everyone else, caught her eye. It wasn’t because of his height, which she guessed was well over 180 cm, or his mysterious aura. Those details only registered after she noticed him; what first caught her eye was his clothes.81269a5ee8e3882b

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The man’s attire didn’t fit this place, or rather, the current season in Korea. Ripped jeans—do people still wear those these days?—and a shiny leather jacket. What he wore underneath wasn’t a warm knit, but a thin cotton T-shirt. Did he not check the weather forecast? Or more than that, didn’t he feel the cold just by stepping outside?dbc8652f87021b05

As she got closer, new features came into view. Curly brown hair and multiple piercings dangling from his ears. As if there wasn’t enough space on his ears, he had metal pieces on his eyebrows and lips too. His lips, with their metal rings, opened, letting out a puff of white smoke.aa9565a2c45b0f2e

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He looked like some kind of composite image. He didn’t seem like someone here to work; maybe he’d fit better as an exclusive Sahara model.921f011407198f25

Lost in thought, Chae-eun’s steps naturally slowed. The person walking behind her nudged her heel.734ede6d90d58073

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“Oh, sorry.”5c1811fa8b1bb4c0

“Uh, it’s fine… My bad too.”c8d66b9d0daba128

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Chae-eun quickly bowed her head and apologized back. Her mind, which had briefly wandered, finally returned. What was she doing people-watching when she wouldn’t even notice if her co-worker was an alien? Even thinking that, she still snuck one last glance at the man. He was smoking with a vacant expression, like he’d seen it all. Too shabby to be a model, too model-like to be shabby. Either way, the conclusion was the same. He didn’t look like an hourly worker like her. But then again, there was nothing else around here for him to be just passing by.ce5025bb3990d1cb

At that moment, the man, 0b8a29ba97 who had been staring at 3a887d016c the ground, looked up. Their eyes met unexpectedly. Chae-eun quickly turned her head e0484da942 away, like someone caught secretly 9be34ce3ab staring.935c359913600c12

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Well, whatever he was, it had nothing to do with her. Even if he was a model doing a quick gig for cash, he’d probably bail halfway through. He had no idea the taxi fare would cost more than his hourly wage.d9aa3ec5f7b9058b

She shook her head and b603ab46fe quickly walked past the man, 34ee0546d1 entering the side gate. The sun had already set. Just as she 9405e5d901 thought the stairs 8d08076a79 were too dark,bang, bang, bang, lights flickered on along the metal fence.0b33f9889de97a22

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Under the white lights, people 4eaf62dff3 walked along the colored guide 1728e64c45 lines. She always felt 1bf20ba9c4 it, but it bb4bbcaaf6 looked like a 295a256152 zombie horde, or 88005360e1 maybe people under 65d2a3610b mass hypnosis, following 39a7ecae6f the Pied Piper.06566ac9a98ffc2b