* Please note that this article is a fabrication based on a creative work. *
A few days passed, and we continued on as usual, as if nothing had happened. After that day, no one was bothering me at school, and I could now go to school with peace of mind.
The college entrance exam for the third-year students was fast approaching, and Jeonghan was busy studying, barely having time to see him. But the bigger problem was that, with his tuition and the money he spent on reading, we were barely making enough to live on. So, I ended up taking a part-time job.
I worked part-time at a convenience store at night while going to school during the day. It was my first time doing this, so it was very unfamiliar, but the biggest problem was that I couldn't sleep much and always slept at school.
"Yeoju, are you sleeping again?"
"Yeah, I guess I'm tired."
"Quiet, you guys..."
I want to sleep a little...
But no one could keep up with the energy of the kids in my class, and with them chatting around me, I was completely out of it. Normally, I'd be sleeping soundly, but maybe because my lifestyle has changed, I just can't seem to adjust.
I went to bed late last night because I was looking for a part-time job to do on the weekend, so my eyelids were drooping on their own, and I was able to fall asleep during the relatively quiet class.
I decided to work part-time at a PC room on the weekends, but I knew the kids would barge in if they found out, so I decided to keep quiet. The convenience store worker kept trying to discourage me from going, saying it was dangerous at night. Even without saying a word, I was already starting to feel a pang in my chest.
"Hey, aren't you going to eat lunch?"
"Yeah.. Go eat.."
"Go to sleep. I'll eat and buy something from the store."
" blanket... "
I woke up in a daze to Mingyu's voice. It was lunchtime, but I couldn't bring myself to get up. Before Mingyu could finish speaking, I collapsed again, and soon I heard the kids leaving the classroom.
At that time, I received a text message on my phone, and when I checked the sender, it was from the owner of the PC room where I was working part-time that weekend.
PC room owner.
- Yeoju student. My morning shift suddenly ended, so could you do the morning shift too? I'll pay you more.
To be honest, I said okay because I was tired but I had to earn money first, and since tomorrow was the weekend, I thought I should go to bed quickly.
In the end, I didn't eat a single meal that day, so I went straight to my convenience store job after school. The kids were following me, panting, and Min-gyu was holding a bag of food he couldn't bring himself to give me.
"I'm sorry the ceremony ended late."
"No. By the way, are your friends here again?"
" hello. "
I shifted with my sister who worked part-time in the morning, and because so many kids came, we became practically acquainted. After she left, I sat down at the cash register and relaxed my stiff neck.
Then the kids came up to me and Min-gyu took a sandwich out of the bag, opened it, and handed it to me.
"Eat quickly when there are no customers."
"Oh, yeah. Thank you."
"Are you tired? Get some sleep, it's the weekend tomorrow."
" .. huh, I understand."
While eating the sandwich, I paused for a moment at Wonwoo's words, but I had no choice but to lie and quickly eat the sandwich.
The next day, when I opened my eyes, I had only 30 minutes left before I had to go to work. I'd clearly set an alarm, but I scolded myself for not listening, and quickly got ready.
It wasn't that far, so I arrived quickly, and since it was my first day, I was learning a lot and getting it all in my head.
So, the week passed without incident, but starting Monday, my condition rapidly declined. My fatigue was building and building, and I felt like I'd collapse at the slightest touch. The kids must have noticed, and I was incredibly worried.
"Hey, let's quit our part-time jobs. Okay?"
"Okay, we'll help you."
"Mom said to let me know if you need help at any time."
"I owe you guys so much. This time I'll take care of it myself."
Honestly, since we were little, our mothers have given my brother and I everything, and we've always lived with a sense of gratitude and guilt. That's why I always felt like I leaned on them even more, like they were my own children.
But this time, we were all grown up, so we didn't want to ask for help from adults.
"Why are you so late?"
".. What, my brother was here."
"I didn't have time to study today, so I just came. But what were you doing that made you come home so early in the morning?"
I finally finished my part-time job today, dragging my exhausted body home. I was surprised to see my brother at home. However, I didn't have the energy to express it, so I leaned against the wall, taking off my shoes, and I could hear him nagging from the side.
"I told you not to be out late. Just study at home. Why are you wandering around like that?"
"Oh, you're not late because you're working part-time!"
... ...
My brother's constant nagging finally gave me the urge to vent my anger, and my outcry was followed by a brief silence. Judging by his expression, I could tell he was displeased with my part-time job, and his mouth was practically empty as he continued to nag.
"Why are you working part-time? I told you I was saving money."
"You can't make money studying right now, so I'm doing it. I'm making a lot of money from the academy and study room."
"..Who told you to do that? I can do it myself, so why are you interfering?"
Our voices were getting louder and louder, and my brother was getting angrier as he ran his hands through his hair.
"Yeah! Why would I do that to you when you're not even my real brother? I'll consider it repaying you for taking me in and being so good to me. Isn't that enough?! "
"Yoon Yeo-ju!"
"If this was going to happen, why did you bring me here? You could have just thrown me out when I was crying and complaining."
I finally blurted out the words I shouldn't have and ran out of the house without even being able to look at my brother's face. I couldn't hold back the tears that were streaming down my face, and I just kept walking, not knowing where I was going.
I walked to the orphanage where my brother and I used to live. The exterior had remained unchanged. The only change was the playground in front of the orphanage, which had been replaced by a dirt floor and a rubber one, and the play equipment had been updated. I sat on the swing and swung back and forth, and old memories flooded back.
At that moment, familiar sneakers appeared in front of my eyes, and when I raised my head, I saw Sunyoung's face.
"What are you doing here, you idiot?"
"...young child..."
"My brother asked me why I didn't tell him about my part-time job."
" ... ... "
"You know, everything I said was because I was worried about you, Yeoju."
Sunyoung bent down to meet my eye level, and as I listened to her, the tears that had barely stopped welling up in my eyes began to well up again. Sunyoung wrapped her arms around me and patted my shoulder, and I leaned against him even harder, bursting into tears.
"Are you feeling better now?"
" .. Yeah, thank you."
"If you're grateful to me, you should give your life for me. After all, he's the one who saved you."
"Right... I was just angry and said that..."
"I know, I know too. I was just surprised when it came out of my mouth. You were surprised too, right?"
I was able to solve the problem by sitting on the bench with Sunyoung and talking, and I felt like I was able to solve it because Sunyoung was always the first to come running whenever something like this happened.
So when I came back home, I resolved the issue with my brother, and he allowed me to work part-time.
"Instead, don't get hurt, and if you feel like it, stop right away. Got it?"
A few weeks passed, and we continued on as usual. After school, I went to work, and on weekends, I went to the PC room, never having a moment to rest. However, since no one else knew about the weekend job, I was anxious that the kids might show up. And finally, today, things finally came to a head.
It just so happened that it started yesterday, and although my period pain wasn't that bad, I wasn't able to sleep well and my body was exhausted, so it didn't seem like it would go away easily this time.
"Where does it hurt, Yeoju?"
"It's my period..."
"Oh my gosh- why don't you just not come out today?"
"Then you have to do this all day, unnie. I'm fine, so you can go now."
I washed my hands and started working, saying hello to my sister who works the night shift.
I greeted guests, cleared empty seats, prepared food, and served—all the work was the same as always. But as time went on, my body seemed to be struggling, and I began to sweat profusely. Even turning on the air conditioner didn't help.
At that moment, a customer came into the store, and when I got up from my seat to greet him, I was so embarrassed that I immediately bowed.
"Ah, Seungkwan Boo is bad at games-."
"Hey, you can't do it anymore. Bet?"
"Hey, stop it, you can't do both."
Today, the kids came to my part-time job to play games. Luckily, they didn't see me, so they retreated to a corner. It's a bit far from home, so I wondered why they'd come all the way here. I tried my best to hide, trying to ignore the pain.
As I was about to leave the counter to work with all my professionalism, Seokmin was standing frozen in front of me.
"Sign up here, ...Yoon Yeo-ju?"
" ... ... "
"What are you doing here?"
" ... ah,! "
I was panicking and mumbling when suddenly a stomachache struck me, and Seokmin ran to me in surprise. Eventually, I collapsed into Seokmin's arms, and all I could hear was his desperate voice calling my name.
When I opened my eyes, I saw an unfamiliar ceiling and an IV drip in my arm.
" ... ... "
" ... he. "
"Are you kidding?"
" no.. "
I sat up and looked to the side to see Wonwoo looking at me askance. He gave an awkward smile, but quickly shut his mouth.
Eventually, all the kids were at the hospital, and even my brother and mother were there.
"Because of me... I'm sorry."
"I told you to quit when it gets hard. You're sick from overwork, too."
"It didn't hurt much..."
"Be quiet."
"Hey, tell your moms~ Hey, I can help you anytime."
"Yeah, really, the heroine is better than our son."
I couldn't say anything because I was being nagged by my brother and the kids, but the moms played little pranks to lighten the mood, and thanks to that, the mood became a lot more relaxed.
"You can rely on us, my lady."