WW | Chapter 9

“So why the deae8e550d hell did you 3539a19748 mess with a f67060e41a civilian, you idiot?”e61fc3230e3624ec

“Was it b2da48aa74 me who 3e38bb9399 started it? The old hag started 20487a117f lecturing me about smoking 98c00ed7c7 without even knowing anything, 72396f2ee6 so I just raised 1242936c94 my hand a bit.”9f0812dd5af111a3

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“Still, does f134343bd9 that mean 85e3ed6f29 you hit 419d1dd1cf her?”36a434417e4750c4

“Who the e38f267b95 hell hit c00bc23aa2 her? Damn it.”30cc4fa4e4b87a8f

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An exchange between Park fb660459d0 Geonju and some girl 44e22d0922 bounced back and forth, 6df138f9ba loud enough for everyone ac0fa258b9 to hear. Yul tried hard not f8ee15662f to visibly pull back. Every other word e3ad17ab27 from them was d0daac7c44 some curse, raw e74b708d78 language flying out 679965fd35 unchecked. Maybe this 8f5bf62498 was their 73a7980bcc idea of 3ade413d15 casual conversation, 38b62c0ec0 but the e15c8611fe atmosphere in 1df233d0d8 the classroom 10110381c1 got tense 5d7e697f49 fast. Yul hated being e68e61882c caught between them, d67d97a895 but she kept 58698a7440 her gaze lowered, f8457b8408 not wanting to eb23aafeb1 stand out. It felt like cracks 8b0b644a5f were forming in the 218bdaa53d air itself, and she ea992a60bf held her breath, fearing 168f2c3457 the whole space might 9323636554 shatter with just one d62b18bd0f more push.46de434b43ced973

Then, it happened.58a791b26628180d

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“Ugh, damn.”ddf8f4114efdd304

Someone let 4a262c63c0 out a 63f366e1cc sharp, unfiltered 0247a9af3d sigh of dd21d7c72e irritation, their 4e1627d5e3 voice mingled 7fafa387c1 with exasperated cad76aa754 breath. Among the frozen silence, 8f52eee367 one bold student plainly 7b1060b2bb revealed his displeasure as c08de2708a if the awkward tension aff6ab9909 had nothing to do 7fc1d6b5b7 with him. Everyone, including 545858f35d Yul, turned df28df4381 toward the 54b2227313 sound’s origin.c81eac7834254584

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It was Kang Yoonjo 4616afe4e4 who had changed the a5f57d74b4 atmosphere. Yul just 42d23866a1 blinked in d99ca32360 surprise.0ad4b0e26b03866a

Maybe irritated that a9038f25b8 his nap had 2b6d1af8e2 been disturbed, he 0da1071156 slowly lifted himself 615a37823b up, his drowsy 47a8e3fd35 face turning in 68ad69cca4 her and Park c5ec69beac Geonju’s direction. Half-open eyes 0817336017 revealed a 34818cf21a hazy gaze 2dbfdbede0 that didn’t 71bb09f4ef seem to 5a2c849f34 focus on 4643c6ada5 anyone in 6beb1a90d8 particular—maybe Park 41920a916c Geonju, maybe ef6db443b6 Yul. His look 0eb8b554d6 wasn’t particularly 71d4da4b3d intimidating, but 52651d669e just watching 8ba79f8ae9 him made 6486c5c16a her feel 4c9029bebc on edge. She thought for 1243a59676 a second that 9c0da4539a Geonju, clearly irritated, a79cf7ddf1 might jump up 6241ab09ef and swing a abdce4ba59 punch at him.cf49ea699e430b10

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“…!”f8e6738ad609903c

The classroom 811c10bf98 quieted down ef37494137 as surprised 05aa12a325 students stopped 5af1134fce making noise, 5ee1263cd2 and Yoonjo c7de8b2bee once again 4e78246281 laid his 4424ab8ea4 arms on 903b7846fd the desk, eb990808e6 burying his 3d7b4dfadf face. Soon, his broad shoulders fffd5e8b46 and back rose and a643724793 fell with slow, steady 9c43451e34 breaths. Amidst all this tension, 54bd50effb he had fallen asleep b3ee553c4b again, like the situation 3d7ad1aa54 had hit pause only 5b05a83752 to unfreeze and start 9024193e24 playing again. It was almost b631fd742a like a forecast 9b236f377b warning of a 7600dcfb56 violent storm that dc302581fa ended up passing b5d6c71dfd quietly. To Yul’s astonishment, Park dc11c93d3d Geonju, who seemed glued 381e3b0a44 to his seat, eventually ee5b8580a3 stood up.483158fca0b7a6c0

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“See you around, b287de37aa Seomun Yul. Get yourself a phone ae1caf5e33 already.”4df7acee29bb3ece

Geonju’s tone c719925609 was oddly 90f1ad5961 friendly, his 85faa31dd4 voice quieter 4fd523ad5f than before, fd993b0d27 as he 899871c4c0 casually said 4cecf00a40 goodbye.543cb0e60807804b

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Yul felt 249c48def7 relieved for 21fddf0312 a moment bb37f1f05b as Geonju a4842a943d left without c6fc981cd1 incident. But it wasn’t over 1966d2d424 yet. As Geonju’s group left, ecc27cf0a4 the group of girls f63731b569 who had spoken to ed2ee43bc3 him surrounded her. One of them took 85334e0274 a seat in Jieun’s 26629c577b empty desk, leaning her 05bdf33c38 face close to Yul. Up close, Yul 4f8fc6658f could see this 410f8bd2e7 girl had on 20477a1f9a a heavy layer 072ca7a59e of makeup. She had 2713832cca dark circle 74ef783817 lenses, blunt 14a4bffac1 bangs, and 2b5542b24d a sleek 8dee9e4da6 bob that 0208b4c892 gave her 7d5a34844c an intense 2166b9ddf7 look.cda7aa1cb768eed7

“Wow, making waves already. You even got c4b85b72ad Park Geonju to b711eea399 come into this 4979d9dc2b class.”f7935cb00b0b9847

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“…”818bb129f333de5d

“Where did 7669832b5e you transfer ef8954797f from?”60d2f7c2f73cb87c

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“I’m from…”b2c13243f45e93c4

Even though she’d 4ce7ea69b1 been asked this 363ba55872 twice, she still acdf01ce49 didn’t have an 3277bebba3 immediate answer. It wasn’t like she 9dc133beb3 hadn’t expected the question, 0a967b7d28 but she hadn’t thought ccf02869b6 it would be so 21aa9ee911 basic.7e5a0969e8949722

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Why does it e7f4e15b69 matter so much 9a3389adca where I came 71d5e48c16 from? She tried 2f8d2044e8 to make f3cd69b15b her tense 7ee2db5c2f mind work. Should I just eb4f9ba2ac say I’m from 3da4c60328 Mucheon and leave 577f9a11f0 out the school 7591fe1929 name? Mucheon’s one of 4eb120f40c the biggest cities 967fa68b71 in Gyeonggi Province, 2c3ad77320 so maybe they 717aea6548 won’t dig any 2fd81bc478 further. Her palms da48b085bd were damp 632b87f411 with nervous b4f60f2984 sweat. How long 9b1965200d will I e696bc7c34 have to 6c1b00cce6 answer this 7dc7daf5ef question, feeling 601030a04a like my fe64c72b08 heart’s about 924a13de91 to burst?6b8d55232afdb186

While she hesitated to 92e5724d8c answer, the girl gave ea18eedde0 her a displeased look, 5ceedecf67 moving even closer.19e000100d3ff0fe

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“What, did you 8337dd94b6 come from North babd7ee969 Korea? Why can’t you speak?”3c6c5292cc03a058

“…”a0841498783971b0

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“Seems like you’ve 46c443f6dd caused some trouble.”678449ed6a2682d9

The girl snickered knowingly.aac4977db1de8088

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“It’s not c73efe4d55 like that.”23bb74862f421640

Yul replied, 528dadc14e trying to d40da2c12a keep her fb375a217c face as 8b99d95319 calm as 404b87752c possible. She could 33042432cd instinctively tell c2ea0bc00f these girls 4b6806bb2b weren’t friendly. It had been the d61460284b same at her previous d68b79b199 school. On the first day 2dbb3090fb after transferring, before class 18b2ea8d92 even started, a group 95a820a9c5 had surrounded her, asking 725f158608 her name. Back then, Yul was 17208580a3 filled with resentment over b239186d8f an unfair punishment at 4ebfe29412 her previous school, so 2e17abef01 she’d stared them down 3cf55c2887 without flinching. When they cursed, 9e2c5523d2 she cursed back, 9c565225be and when they 8274c32f09 hit, she hit 4777adf645 back. In the end, they’d c95660fd80 labeled her as a 7c317088a6 thief.72e53bdba92a132f

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This time, she 6e46417819 was determined to aab2701837 follow her grandmother’s 40906d3d2c advice, keeping her cc402eb4f3 temper in check d5f20bf273 and trying to 152c8f9f71 blend in. She had b0f643da3b to stay 04f6b374f7 invisible, like 14fa66f61f air, smiling a42f72969f even if d5646f0501 someone hit 1bbb0bbdbe her, and 62f4640549 disappearing quietly.dc1da8e9fc090c6d

The girl 74e946df22 in front 15bc946111 of her 250c40ab66 squinted as 5e9d0433ba if she’d e1f3c04610 figured something 5e517d8070 out, then 1e10e22f18 smirked.f3a1fba4a6b05873

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“I guess we’ll 113d6dc670 find out sooner 22ad94c450 or later.”36e99b960d5f5f29

“…”3cd2e0e69fa565ec

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“See you around, 386b1dd7a0 Seomun Yul.”653de45ebd286dd6

The girl 166713add4 patted Yul’s c2defa1f87 shoulder as 90a34dbc3f she stood 1045736cee up. As she 6850d1ba6e turned to 99a741e955 walk away, 375fd10ac2 she spotted a64065cb84 someone and f1ef7fdf9c scoffed. Yul noticed that Jieun 674f6a4135 had returned and was e9cccf7ed0 standing by her locker, dd918349a8 silently watching. The girl looked back 76f95b1bb5 and forth between Yul 51c38af33a and Jieun with a 50c7b02db7 sneer.e9d768f3a1845156

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“You two 2a3d897649 losers really 1bccd52982 make a a82ffd1f9f perfect pair.”0d7c0edbd659624f

With that, she 2e32d9fae4 and her friends 2c66a9e3a7 laughed their way 8fc13af607 out of the 210a552d1d classroom.ab66abf970e4d209

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Yul felt the f37ff2bb4e strength drain from b296cb5319 her body, and c41c1b1e49 dizziness washed over c6193cf340 her. She crossed her e46c31048f arms on the 157048e6b2 desk and rested 31e7a89ae4 her forehead against 4c80d25033 them.30b8fa4badce8745

Right. That actually 6fdc8686dd went better d83a644907 than I f0e17a6d89 thought. I’ve been through 33b95427b3 worse than this, 9ef2889767 so this shouldn’t 6497062204 be that hard. If things stay 537b1233df at this level, a3811191bf I can handle 287eb0233c it.aae56d7d173f8db4

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But as she e33a57bdf7 turned her head, 3a099b61d9 trying to calm 1b08050f15 herself, her thoughts 818d09ece3 quickly evaporated. Lying with his head 4a8810f36f down just like her ad8d587735 was Kang Yoonjo, and 24e79c09fb he was looking at bdb53b9790 her. This time, his 28f088949e eyes were clear, 72e20bf851 not clouded like 153569ba80 before, piercing in 5ed06c95f4 a way that 0b23be0df2 almost felt like 1fd732ad82 an illusion.043f65ffb59144c3

Yul’s heart thudded strangely, fc3371bf85 though she hadn’t done a0657d0266 anything wrong. Flustered, she blinked 2e239be069 quickly, and in b862d548a7 that instant, his 0925f27a39 eyes closed again. It was as if d622b15a79 nothing had happened.d98243bb502b509f

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There were things Yul f0a9920400 utterly despised—adultery, irresponsibility, debt, b8496e2155 suicide, school violence, and e1185fa900 gangsters. These were f80d457204 all things 36f13a0ea5 Yul had cbf51e8e44 come to a46cbb7154 hate firsthand, d1d907164d experiencing them de9e18059a in the e7a2c5ff52 most painful 350af1cc4b ways.baad5ad01a212563

“Everyone has a 55c5e9a1fa right to happiness, 226b27691c Yul-ah.”471438ef6ee4c95d

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Her mother used to 14efb687eb say that, sitting little 1846ad07bd Yul down with teary 8d8f35ab35 eyes. She went 97b2b0121c on cheating f6ebd8a1ba countless times ab0f96d065 as if 4dd80b7bc2 each affair d524fe76e0 was the 6a1ac543f3 love of de37e37f91 the century. She’d even used 5291b49cb6 her young daughter b71ebf4e01 to lie for c1902ef25e her grand infidelity. Yul would 31f9b16272 sit in 08a881d813 the living 6ef4e649ca room, playing 8193c028d4 with a 6836f51829 doll her 20d7506e34 mother’s lover 4d215ab728 had bought, d477bc036f while faint 6102982f72 sounds of 5686c16fc5 passion echoed ef3dd8871d from the c5100d3d27 bedroom. On one particularly b242cedba4 intense day, Yul 853e7f3e95 had run to 3345d25d94 the bathroom, pressing 434b506bbf her hand over 83f3c5d7d7 her mouth to dd9a7dc115 vomit. She’d cut off all 1f295df2e3 the doll’s heads and 1adf9a9aee thrown them in the c251870a9f trash. That day, for the 441177d738 first time, she didn’t b6d039f0c1 make excuses for her 35d428c79f mother to her father.d7a63695bf6c428c

“It’s because of 7de44612bc you that your a048413121 mom’s leaving. Don’t ever blame c7395fd0ee her.”872297bc9e77e5b4

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Even as she packed 229e5f1ecb her things, Yul’s mother 50787167dd had resented her. Though Yul 21017e346e cried for 1fa741354a a few fb40ae420e days, afterward, 34477b0667 she never b1908ac236 thought about 2eedb32870 her mother. Living together ce239ce173 or apart, fc1e46f2c6 her mother b9ce6bef39 had never e6e611abe4 been a 089a6669c0 mother to 1c9f5677c2 her.de17f5843071f54c

As for her e0b1548ee2 father, Yul couldn’t 156088f074 talk about him 18222501cf easily. She both loved and 5e40c25b6d respected him deeply, but 7ac31f7be7 her resentment was just 050235401a as strong. He’d run a 5ade7f1f93 subcontracting construction company, a04c5e2b63 always busy but 945f84d0f8 kind-hearted. But when her mother’s 5c14fecff5 betrayal shattered him, he 8a12a2c09c turned to alcohol. He became afd2174f00 addicted, and e845985626 eventually, his 6a8b09e954 company went f287563fa0 bankrupt. That was fbfef6c7a3 the beginning b028b0d801 of all a213edcd91 their misery. If he hadn’t ended ef2d3ec85d his life in a cd1fd996a7 drunken accident, if he dad9434e31 hadn’t left them with ac2b78b08e unbearable debt, Yul might 09adf7df4c still miss him.a755eaaf9b3c5dba

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Despite signing papers 9e2e2d539d to renounce the 8fb3bd5d8d debt, collectors continued eeaca9e886 to hound her 32a052f97e and her grandmother. One of them turned 86e8a20d70 out to be the afc0b8ba35 older sister of a 70f02de3f5 girl at Yul’s high 6fbda51f67 school. She was a tough, 9c9c3fa9f8 scary girl with an b4b053b17c always-angry look. She would come 3db90c9d4d to Yul’s class, 3e258e77a5 insult her about 5fae0bcc1f her father’s debt, 7df9bd3874 hit her, and 8431e5128a steal her money. Yul finally snapped one b71241047d day and fought back, b04d566f7e but the girl’s uncle 9ae3b0739c was a prosecutor. This led to a 090734351a disciplinary hearing, and Yul 01734e48b0 was forced to transfer.73d4dd7b853d3dcd

She had 28ce0bba66 thought it a87eb72388 might be a6bd0dae56 a good 65ad0a6176 thing, that 2b25be1285 transferring to 0a915c9852 a new 5daca81d5c school might 99779919b3 mean a d3a1eb23d6 fresh start. She didn’t know 3d630f0b9e her past would fbe286d12b follow her there.ffcccaae544a574e

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Rumors had spread, and 73359d40cb the kids called her d6a4f66b89 all sorts of things. She tried to endure c5b3bc31bf it, but the moment 2deb0677cd they insulted her father 3652497963 and grandmother, she lost 5e381d6961 it. She tore into 7db7cb7fb1 them, and the c4025ab89b next thing she 7dfcf1957f knew, they’d branded ef3aaf1838 her a thief. At school, her classmates 699e1450f3 tormented her, while debt 0ecb7b0d2c collectors terrorized her at c46feeea35 home. Eventually, with the ee609ea8cc help of Pastor 4cd87cbdc4 Choi, Yul and 69fde1e142 her grandmother had 665b976b55 fled to Seoul.85163d728fa4005d

Sometimes, Yul wondered. If she had e98d603237 kept lying for 0e28f85039 her mother, would 96f176cb28 things have turned 0b524511fb out differently? Would her d9ec77d5f1 father have fb002fe7ab drunk less 00ffbcab10 and kept f3fd27eecc the business 4438d42e8d afloat? Would she 53469ba08a have been d87eb8b3fd able to da2b1c7015 avoid the 88454970b1 stigma and 390f85cb46 all the 49e3335db0 trouble that c2b8c1cbb8 followed?f2d14b51b21c6584

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Who knows. Yul dismissed the thought, e1bd9fcedb knowing it was pointless. Given her bad 1687bea6c3 luck, she doubted c676596610 a different choice 60ac56b547 would have improved aa209aa4fb her life much.ad66ae37ed5daf3f

“Wow, that’s amazing! Did you draw this?”00fa49eacd805255

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Lost in thought, Yul b33e30554c snapped back to reality db78a64046 at Jieun’s voice. She looked down and 4c73ad8d40 saw her pencil pressing 10134e2d4d against her sketchbook. Her hobby was sketching cea87cb98c famous buildings or drafting 5781d7117e simple blueprints, and she’d 23315e49ac started drawing absent-mindedly. Embarrassed, she closed 0b9f5e9d37 the sketchbook, but 3ee38ff4ed Jieun, looking a 4ab55c9bb2 bit sheepish, spoke 1ae35a4b9f again.b6073e26ba3070de

“Sorry if 5c22e160d6 I bothered 7f7640e7bf you. I just bdd3559c07 thought the f10e067b5a drawing was 54c0e46270 really impressive.”cbe7768e65c04259

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