Miribyeol Kindergarten [Lavender Class] Kumi
Homework for July 19th: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Prolog. [Prologue]
Would you like to replay your memories..?
Yes.
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Loading..................................................Start!
I don't know exactly when it started.
At some point I remember, I was trapped in this world,
When the set schedule is over, it starts again from this time.
It always starts at the park at sunset in midsummer.
On a bench by the lake...
석진
Phew... I'm back again....
Somewhere in the middle of an endless loop...
My life must have been somewhere across the lake, in the middle of a bustling city...
I couldn't possibly get out of this place.
For the past time, I have been closely observing the same time cycle, wondering how I can escape this place.
It seems like I have to complete some mission to leave this dreamy place... but what on earth is that mission...?
After I first came here and got a grasp of the situation,
I tried to deviate.
Out of the park,
Go to a cafe and drink coffee,
Take a taxi to the city center and go shopping,
I wandered through countless buildings trying to figure out where the company I used to work for was.
석진
It's almost time to come...
There is someone coming soon.
If I don't meet her right now, my time will reset. It's as if I absolutely have to see her...
So these days, I just sit on the bench and wait until she comes.
Once you meet her, observe her as she speaks naturally, the words that come out automatically.
Because I felt like she might have the key to getting me out of this place.
석진
Oh... heroine...
여주
Oppa... how could you do this to me...?
She repeats the same thing every time she sees me.
As always, he came with tears in his eyes
He sat next to me and cried for a long time, then got up, said his last words, and left.
석진
Lady, I'm sorry... I couldn't help it...
여주
Oppa, you call that talking??!
She had been crying for a long time and was about to leave me again.
Oh, if I do this, it will reset again...
I don't want this anymore.
석진
Lady, wait a minute..!
I grabbed the female protagonist's wrist.
여주
Oh, brother...
The female protagonist's eyes suddenly widened.
석진
Don't go... Can't we stay together a little longer?
석진
I'm ashamed, but I still want to be with you more.
The heroine stops, looking embarrassed.
Is the female protagonist only programmed to this extent..?
Why aren't you moving...?
When the heroine didn't move, looking flustered, I added.
석진
Heroine... I know this is the end for you and me...
석진
So, can't we spend a little more time together...
A faint smile appeared on the female protagonist's lips.
여주
Okay... Oppa... I won't go right away today...
Did you just say, "Today..?"
Was Yeoju another person who fell into the loop?
I feel like I need to know more about Yeoju.
Yeoju stayed with me until late at night and talked with me.
Little school stories, stories about classmates... what will happen after graduation, etc...
I was still unsure of how my relationship with the heroine would relate to reality, so I tried to approach her story rationally.
The way she smiles at me every now and then
It was so different from the way he had been crying and leaving, so it was very different and heartbreaking.
The heroine said that even though she only cried, she enjoyed the repeated time she spent here.
여주
But still... I can see you again...
여주
Oppa... do you still love me...?
Ah... I was embarrassed. The female protagonist and I were in love...?
Me... you..?
여주
Oppa... It's okay if you don't remember... Our last... was hateful... Let's not hold on to those hateful memories anymore...
Tears welled up in the heroine's eyes again.
It hurts...
The moment I heard those words, my heart suddenly ached so much.
Did my memory, which I don't remember well, work...?
석진
Lady...
The female protagonist, who was looking at my sad expression, got up and said she had to go.
석진
'Okay... see you soon...'
The heroine leaves the park, which has already become night.
I closed my eyes for a moment and opened them,
It was the park again at sunset in midsummer.
여주
Oppa...
Today, Yeoju looked a little different than usual.
석진
Lady, I'm sorry... I couldn't help it...
여주
It's okay... It's okay...
The eyes are still as bright as tears, but the heroine's attitude is different.
석진
Shall we... stay together until late at night again and then part ways...?
The heroine smiled faintly at my words.
석진
'I'm okay with our time being trapped in these memories...'
석진
'If I could spend time with you...'
My second summer night with Yeoju...
It is now clear that the length of the loop increases with the female lead.
석진
Lady... It's getting very late...
여주
Ah... uh... I see... This time... we should part ways here...?
"This time... we part ways here"...
As expected, the female protagonist was the key.
I feel a little more confident.
As our summer nights repeated and grew longer, I felt a pang of longing for the heroine whose expression brightened.
What kind of hurt have I caused you...?
Why did I treat you so coldly when you have such a soft heart?
여주
Now I'm happy and excited to see you, oppa...
여주
I can't cry anymore when I see my brother...
여주
Oppa, don't feel sorry for me anymore. Even though we broke up on bad terms, I think I'm okay now...
여주
Isn't it important that we are here together right now?
석진
... Yes, heroine.. Me too... I like being with you..
The heroine and I gradually became more familiar with each other.
We continued talking late into the night for several loops.
As the warm summer sunlight fades into the sunset, the cool night air takes away the heat of the day.
It was special and peaceful to walk in the cool night air and listen to the cicadas.
Every day, the same pedestrians, the cicadas hanging in the same place, the same scenery,
We were continuing that time with our own different memories.
The anxiety and fear I felt during the repeated times are disappearing.
Above all, seeing the heroine, who was filled with tears, gradually brighten up was a great reward for me.
It was something that made me feel alive.
석진
...
Looking at the female protagonist sitting next to me, I become convinced that I must now meet her in reality, not in the loop.
석진
'Even if I go back to reality now... I don't think I can forget you.'
If I can escape this loop... I will go back to the heroine in reality and confess to her.
Let's forget our ugly memories and only make pretty memories from now on.
So... in other words, neither the heroine nor I can stay in this loop any longer.
then...
How do we get back to reality?
여주
...
I didn't have time to think once the heroine left... So, I started to organize my thoughts as I watched the heroine silently looking at me from the front.
First, this loop seems to depend on the heroine. It starts when she arrives, and returns when she leaves.
Second, I don't have the power to end this loop. No attempt has ever succeeded.
Third, neither the heroine nor I have to say anything here. However, passersby and other things won't change unless we intervene.
That is, the only real people in the loop are the heroine and me.
So... what if the heroine doesn't come to me...?
Could this loop finally be over...?
When my thoughts came together, I said to the heroine.
석진
Hey, it's getting late... Let's meet again at the park later to watch the sunset...
The heroine nodded and turned around.
A park at sunset on a summer day, just like always.
석진
Oh... heroine...
여주
Oppa... Shall we go for a walk together until night again today...?
The heroine's changed and brighter appearance... As we started to have our own conversations in this repetitive and boring day, the heroine really changed a lot.
석진
Yes... Just like always today...
I gave the heroine a faint smile.
I'm worried about how I'll find you in reality... but I can't stay stuck here any longer...
I will remember everything, from your smile to your tears... I will definitely come find you...
The last night I've decided...
I think I'll miss the air of this summer day a lot until I find you again.
Yeoju talked a lot today.
I really like the fact that the female protagonist can now talk about her painful past with a bright expression.
The time I thought of is approaching.
석진
Heroine... Do you know that..?
석진
You look so bright and pretty today...
여주
really...?
석진
Even though it's the same old day over and over again, I really like how you're getting brighter and brighter and no longer sad...
석진
That lovely sight... I want to see it in reality, not in this dreamy place.
석진
So... let's go back to reality now...
The female protagonist's face hardened for a moment.
여주
Oppa... what does that mean...?
석진
I think it's time for you and me to return to reality.
여주
Oppa... I... like meeting you here too...
I could see tears welling up in the heroine's eyes...
I felt like I had to finish speaking before my resolve crumbled, so I had to say what I had prepared.
석진
I like you that much... I don't know if I have the right to say this, since I hurt you with mean and cold words in the past,
석진
Let's meet in reality, not in our dreams... Let's truly love and live there.
석진
I've been stuck here for so long, and I'm so glad I was able to tell you I'm sorry for the hurt I caused you... and that I can love you again.
석진
Do you know how lovely it is to see you brightening up again?
As I was speaking, tears fell from the heroine's eyes and I quickly wiped them away with my hand.
My eyes were filled with tears, so I couldn't see clearly. As the tears fell, the heroine quickly wiped them away.
여주
In the end... you're telling me... to go back to reality... right...?
I nodded.
여주
Oppa... are you serious...?
석진
Now that you are so precious to me... I don't think I can keep you here anymore...
석진
I'll find you somehow... So don't come here to find me anymore.
석진
Heroine... I love you so much...
여주
Oppa... Okay... See you in reality... I'll come find you...
I held the sobbing heroine's hand tightly.
The sight of her crying so sadly... It broke my heart because it reminded me of how I cried out loud when I was dealing with the female lead, without breaking out of the loop frame...
석진
We will meet again.. So you will believe and wait until then..?
여주
Okay... Then, one last time... Hug me just once...
We had a long hug for the last time,
The heroine kissed me before leaving.
Come to think of it, we only talked and never kissed.
I feel like we've finally become true lovers,
I felt like today would be a day I would remember with such fondness.
Is this feeling love?
석진
'The breakup is so heartbreaking.'
Would you like to replay your memories...?
...................................................... No.
Saving the data...
Saving the data............................
Saving the data .........................Complete!
Epilog. [Epilogue]
직원
Dear customer... it's time to wake up.
여주
ah...
My head hurts... I've been replaying the same memories too many times...
여주
I wanted to see you for as long as possible... as often as possible... in my fantasies...
여주
I'm sorry... I couldn't tell you, Jinah...
여주
You... can't come to me...
여주
Something that no longer exists in reality...
I beat my chest and sobbed.
After a while....
직원
Dear customer... Are you feeling better...?
I nodded.
직원
This time, I programmed an artificial intelligence that could learn emotions from the Jin in my saved memories...
직원
Are you satisfied...?
여주
Satisfied... He said he was sorry to me... He said that we should meet in person and love each other in real life...
직원
Wow... that's really amazing...
직원
Did he say he loved you, Yeoju?
여주
Yes... At first, he was just as cold as ever...
여주
At some point he changed...
직원
So, that AI learned about love through the heroine...
직원
Usually, artificial intelligence has to endure repetitive tasks,
직원
We've programmed ourselves to think we're stuck in a loop...
직원
Then, as he looks around, he becomes interested in the female protagonist, who is the only one there with self-awareness.
직원
The feeling at that time was just curiosity, not a state of rational affection....
직원
All the other emotions I learned from the heroine...
직원
In other words, the fact that Jin in her memories has awakened to love is also proof that the heroine still has feelings for that person.
여주
Ah.. yes..
He is proof that I still love Jini...
In reality, Jin-i hides the fact that she has a limited lifespan and meets me.
The day I found out about it by chance, Jin told me to break up with her.
After much deliberation, I finally met him at the park in front of the hospital.
Jin-i left me, leaving behind harsh words telling me to abandon my useless self and face reality, fearing that I would be heartbroken if she died.
Jin, who had strong self-esteem, did not want to show off the various devices he had on.
That day, it was so hard to wear the patient gown, to have to carry all sorts of things hanging from it, and to be in a wheelchair.
So when I saved the memories, I removed all the painful images and saved them here.
At that time, I think you were telling me to face reality because you were sick...
Even though I'm not sick, you still tell me to live in reality...
직원
Since the memory card that has been used repeatedly is prone to errors due to many distortions, we recommend formatting it to its initial state.
직원
What would you like to do, Ms. Yeoju?
여주
Please leave it as it was saved last.
여주
I will keep it in storage.
END.
All of the lines Jin says that are enclosed in single quotation marks (' ') are lines that directly reflect the female protagonist's feelings.
The fact that Jin's heart ached can also be seen as a projection of the female protagonist's aching heart as she spoke those words.
We would like to inform you that the material and scenes of the memory playback device in this work were borrowed from the music video for IU's song [Eight].
When I heard the theme of A Midsummer Night's Dream, I first thought of [Walking the Night] from the short film Persona, in which IU starred.
After thinking about it again and again, I think I've reached [Eight].
I think the meaning in the music video is heartbreaking yet hopeful, so I think about it often.
It's a very long story for a short story, but thank you so much for reading it to the end.
July 29, 2020. Miribyeol Kindergarten homework completed.
©️ Earthquake in My Head (2022)
August 18th, typos were corrected once.