UR | Chapter 4

Yujin returned home on Saturday afternoon and looked around her house with a bitter expression.

She was sure she hadn’t had time to tidy up her room yesterday morning when she rushed out, but the house was spotless, without a speck of dust.

It was all thanks to her younger brother, Yoosung.

Despite coming home late yesterday due to tutoring and leaving early today for a construction site part- time job, she felt a pang of sadness thinking about her brother who cleaned the house despite being tired.

According to her friends, most younger brothers are indifferent to their sisters, but not Yoosung. He was a good brother who would take care of household chores in advance, as if something terrible would happen if he saw his sister struggling.

‘Noona, I think I have to stay in Busan tonight. The flight got canceled.’

Lying to Yoosung was easier than unwrapping candy.

Kind-hearted Yoosung told her to come back safely tomorrow, feeling sorry for his sister’s hardship.

But Yujin had boarded the plane on time with Jihoon and went straight to his place from Gimpo Airport to spend the night.

“Phew…”

She felt like her tainted self was sullying her brother’s innocence.

Yujin sat down on the floor.

Even though it was a small house with two rooms, a living room, and a kitchen, she was grateful for the sunlight that streamed in during the day.

Thanks to taking out a loan and signing a lease contract, she didn’t have to suffer from monthly rent stress.

Compared to the days of moving from one semi- basement room to another on monthly rent, she was grateful for this much.

However, after spending a day at Jihoon’s place, this house sometimes felt particularly lonely.

“Ha.”

Her body felt heavy. After a day trip to Busan and being worn out by Jihoon all night, her limbs were trembling.

Still, Yujin didn’t neglect her duties.

– Oh, my daughter.

Her dad was always cheerful.

Even after driving for twenty- three hours straight to deliver goods at the designated time, or sleeping curled up in the truck, he would greet his daughter with a lively voice as if nothing was wrong when she called.

“Did you eat?”

– Of course. I quickly had a hot stew and a bowl of rice at the driver’s restaurant.

It was a lie.

Rather than spending a few thousand won on a meal, he wanted to use that money to lighten the burden of life on his children.

But Yujin pretended not to notice her dad’s lie.

“Where are you today?”

– Dad? I’m on my way to Jincheon, Chungbuk. Almost there.

“When are you coming home? It’s been a week since I last saw you. I miss you, Dad.”

– Why are you acting like a child when you’re all grown up? Still, it’s nice that my daughter loves her dad. I might stop by the day after tomorrow, depending on the schedule. I’ll let you know in advance.

Laughing cheerfully once more, her dad said he would bring home walnut cookies that Yoosung liked, so she should wait.

She could already picture Yoosung saying why he brought such things and telling him to take care of his meals with that money, but Yujin didn’t stop him. She ended the call after telling him to drive safely.

Yujin’s dad, Kim Deoksoo, was a logistics truck driver.

He would go anywhere he was called, traveling all over the country.

Despite cutting down on sleep and having no part of his body unscathed from driving all day, Deoksoo always said he was happy.

About a year ago, even after breaking his ribs in a car accident, he was back behind the wheel as soon as he was discharged.

Seeing her dad like that always left Yujin with mixed feelings.

She loved and respected him, but she felt sorry for her dad who always said everything was okay.

❀❀❀

Originally, her dad was someone who was called “President.” He was known as a big shot in the restaurant industry, running restaurants that were famous just by name.

From birth, Yujin was a rich girl. Before she even knew what she wanted, she had everything, and she grew up doing whatever she wanted.

With her dad’s strong support, she went to study abroad in America when she was in the first year of middle school, planning to graduate from college there.

But when her dad got caught up in an investment scam, their family went bankrupt in an instant.

Yujin had no choice. She ended her study abroad life.

Watching Kim Deoksoo, who had cleverly set aside some money to pay the employees’ severance, Yujin’s mom, Hwang Sunhyeon, clicked her tongue.

“With that money, we could have gotten a small apartment for our family to live together.”

Her mom, who had lived being called “Madam,” cried the whole time she cleaned the semi-basement one-room that didn’t get any sunlight.

“I’ll work really hard so we can get out of here as soon as possible.”

However, her mom, who was burning with determination and doing odd jobs, fell ill too easily.

When Yujin found out about her mom’s illness, she was twenty-one.

As with any serious illness, it cost a lot of money to treat her mom’s disease. Every time she received the hospital bill once a week, her hands trembled.

Even without money, shouldn’t she save her mom?

Her dad drove the truck even harder, and Yujin took a leave of absence from school and worked hard to earn money.

In the midst of it all, taking care of her young late-born brother, Yoosung, was also Yujin’s responsibility. The most heartbreaking thing in the desperate situation was that her young brother was overly considerate of Yujin.

“I’m full, so you eat more, noona.”

“I can sleep alone. So don’t worry and stay by mom’s side.”

“Noona, I’ll take care of mom today, so you take a rest.”

A child should be like a child, but every time she saw her brother acting more mature than he was, Yujin struggled to hold back her tears.

At least she had grown up comfortably until she was seventeen.

But Yoosung only enjoyed the benefits of wealth for a few years. Even then, about four years after he was born, those memories would have completely disappeared from Yoosung’s mind.

That broke Yujin’s heart.

Even after their mom passed away, it was the same. Yoosung would nag his sister, who worked day and night, with sad remarks.

“Noona, aren’t you going back to school? You should study. Aren’t you going to graduate from college?”

Because their mom had undergone several surgeries, the debts from the hospital bills couldn’t be paid off no matter how hard they worked. Just as they say debt begets debt, that was exactly the situation in Yujin’s house.

Still, she never once thought about wanting to die.

To protect her good brother, Yujin had to live fiercely.

As she endured, she got a job. But the joy of earning more money than her dad, who worked tirelessly, was short-lived. The salary that went into her bank account left at the speed of light.

Still, she didn’t fall into deep despair. There was hope that if she endured just two more years, she could roughly pay off the debt.

The work at the company suited her, and every time she attended external events, she received a hefty special allowance. Since it was a startup, the president could flexibly manage the salary system, making it possible. She didn’t know if other employees received the same benefits, but Yujin felt grateful to Han Jihoon.

Even though her heart fluttered uncomfortably whenever she was with him, she could handle it on her own. In fact, sometimes she even enjoyed that fluttering feeling.

It’s not a crime to like a man who is out of reach, right?

Sometimes those moments gave her energy, so Yujin didn’t particularly avoid Jihoon.

Anyway, the chances of her and Han Jihoon becoming something special were 0%, so there was no need to dwell on it.

When it seemed like the debt was about to be sorted out, they moved from a monthly rental to a lease. Thinking that if she saved and saved, she could prepare for Yoosung’s college tuition in advance, she took a breath of relief. But then misfortune grabbed Yujin by the hair again.

– Are you related to Kim Deoksoo?

On a particularly cloudy day.

Yujin, who received a call while in the lab, heard news darker than the storm clouds and rushed to the hospital.

It was a car accident. Her dad, who was driving drowsily, crashed into the car in front. It was a four-car collision, 100% her dad’s fault. Unfortunately, the car caught in the middle was so expensive that the insurance Kim Deoksoo had couldn’t possibly cover it.

The money she had saved while paying off the debt evaporated, and she took on another debt.

At that time, Yoosung said something weak.

“Noona, maybe I shouldn’t go to college.”

The good brother who said he would get into a good college, study hard, and quickly get a job to help their dad and sister, showed a lack of confidence, and it felt like her heart was breaking.

“What are you talking about? You have to go to college.”

“I don’t want to be a burden to you.”

“Paying for your tuition is a given for me. Noona’s salary will go up again. So just focus on studying.”

Even though Yujin said it clearly, Yoosung pointed out the reality.

“You’re going to solve my tuition with loans anyway. We’ve already taken out a lot of loans.”

“……”

“The college entrance exam is a month away. If I get in, we’ll have to pay the tuition in about two months.”

“Who told you to worry about that?”

That day, for the first time in her life, Yujin hit Yoosung’s back. She told him not to think about useless things and that she would send him to college no matter what, so he shouldn’t worry.

Yujin knew that her words wouldn’t resonate with Yoosung.

To a kid who already understood the household situation, it would all sound like lies.

But she hoped her brother, who maintained top grades without ever attending a private academy, wouldn’t lose hope.

Some time passed like that.

“Noona, I didn’t get into any school.”

When Yoosung spoke in a dejected voice, Yujin hugged him tightly and patted his back.

And she had a wicked thought that she had to keep to herself forever.

‘Maybe it’s for the best.’

She felt sorry for her brother who studied hard, but somehow it felt like she had bought some time. As Yoosung said, they had no room to take out more loans, and it was daunting, but with a year, she might be able to save some extra money.

However, Yujin soon found out how big a lie Yoosung had told out of concern for his sister.

❀❀❀

Ding dong.

The message notification sound pulled Yujin back from her memories.

[Noona, are you home? I agreed to cover an extra shift, so I’ll be a bit late. I’ll bring tteokbokki, so don’t sleep and wait for me.]

Yoosung seemed cheerful, even though working on a Sunday must have been tough.

She had tried persuading him several times to just focus on studying, but her stubborn brother wouldn’t listen. He always said that when you’re young, you should buy hardships, and he was just excited to experience various jobs.

Yujin couldn’t tell how much of that was true.

“Sigh…”

With a sigh, Yujin took off the clothes she was wearing and set them aside to take to the dry cleaners.