Chapter 5

The house in Hannam New Town looked as though it might collapse at any moment. Because of the redevelopment, almost everyone in the neighborhood had moved out, and the only people living here were the old man across the way and Soyoon’s family.

She opened the door to the house on the right, not the house on the left where the owner lived.

She carefully stood the umbrella he had lent her on the floor. Carrying her thoroughly soaked bag and sneakers, she went straight into her room beside the door. Every step she took made a creak- sound.

After taking off the dress that had felt so stifling, she changed into comfortable clothes.

Taking her sneakers with her, she went to the bathroom and roughly wiped only the dirty parts with a wet rag. Then she came back to her room, covered herself with the blanket, and dried her sneakers with a hair dryer. They probably would not dry completely, but she had to dry them as much as possible.

“Be quiet!”

At the sound of her mother’s hysterical voice, Soyoon quickly turned off the hair dryer.

There had been tears mixed into her mother’s voice. Leaning her back against the wall, she looked up at the ceiling. Water had collected in the middle. It looked as though it might drip at any moment, so she placed an unused pot on the floor.

So in the end, the roof really was leaking. She had thought it had held out well enough. If water seeped in, mold would grow, so repairs had to be done, but there was no money for that. Even telling the landlord would be useless. They were now in a position where they had to move out immediately anyway, so if she said anything, he would surely be delighted and shout that it was perfect, and tell them to leave at once.

At the sound of the door opening, Soyoon turned her head. It was her younger sibling, Hayoon.

“…The landlord came by.”

“He did?”

“He said if we don’t clear out of the house right away, we can deal with the consequences ourselves.”

Remembering the landlord making a huge scene, saying that since they had not moved out, an eviction lawsuit had already been underway for quite some time, Soyoon sighed where Hayoon could not see.

“Okay. It’s late, so hurry and get some sleep.”

“Okay.”

She had found the reason why her mother’s voice had sounded wet, but it was not welcome at all. After the door closed, Soyoon drew up her knees and buried her face.

They had gotten into an accident while running away from debt collectors. She had gone straight to work without properly doing rehabilitation. Maybe because she had not done the rehab properly, her leg tingled and stiffened whenever it rained, but she had never taken a break. She worked at anything she could get her hands on.

Her mother, who had once lived like a princess, fell into depression and cried every day without doing anything, and her younger sibling was too young to earn money.

It was overwhelming, but she really had paid it back diligently. The reason they had even gotten this place was because it allowed monthly rent with no deposit. Other than the 300,000 won monthly rent, her phone bill, and utilities, all the money she earned was being paid back to the bank.

Soyoon’s shoulders trembled faintly.

Where could they move without a deposit? She did not know. She really, truly did not know.

Her father’s company, which had been close to the top among midsize firms even if it was not quite a chaebol, had collapsed in an instant as if it were a lie. Her father, who said he would go earn money, was eventually found collapsed after drifting from one day labor job to another. In place of her deceased father, the debt collectors seized her mother and daughter by the collar.

It was from then on.

The time when she learned that money was frightening. And she learned that the world was not easy. There were not many proper places for someone like her, who had not even graduated from university, to work. She had tried several part-time jobs, but they were always unstable.

It was only because a shop owner recommended that she try becoming a nurse’s aide that she first learned such a profession even existed.

With help from a government-funded support program, she enrolled in an academy and earned her certification in a year. Even during her two practicums, she kept up her part-time jobs.

When she got a job at the orthopedic clinic, she had thought that, at least, things were finally becoming more stable than before, so she had even gone out to eat with her mother and younger sibling. But in less than a month, the notice telling them to move out because of redevelopment came, and Soyoon collapsed all over again.

It was true that they ought to move out, but they had nowhere to go. No, they had no money.

Because she had drunk after such a long time, her eyes kept closing. Contrary to the heaviness in her heart, she dropped over to the side. She curled herself into a ball. More than usual, the musty smell stung her nose today. So different from the scent that had lingered in Seohyeon’s house or in his car.

A hollow laugh escaped her at the smell of mold.

Drip. Drip.

Using the sound of water falling from the ceiling as a lullaby, she closed her eyes.

Everything that happened today felt like a lie. She had to return to reality, but what if it took a long time? Suddenly, she was afraid.

***

She woke earlier than usual.

A delicious smell was coming from outside. Soyoon got up from where she was and rubbed her eyes as she opened the door.

Her mother was washing dishes at the sink.

“Did you make kimchi stew?”

“Yeah. It turned out delicious. Sit down.”

She quietly looked at her mother, who was smiling brightly in complete contrast to how she had been shouting and crying yesterday, then sat down in front of the small table. She thought her mother, smiling after such a long time, looked so beautiful.

When her father was still alive, her mother had been a princess. As if, other than washing herself, she had never even touched water. But after the father who had cherished her devotedly passed away, everything changed.

It was not only her mother who had changed. Her younger sibling, and she herself, had changed too.

People say humans grow accustomed to their circumstances. Soyoon lowered her eyes as she looked at her mother’s damaged fingertips, the same fingertips that had once been painted with a different color of manicure every week.

“Um…… Soyoon.”

“Yes.”

“The landlord……”

“I heard from Hayoon. Mom, don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”

Though it was obvious from the look on her face that she did not believe her, Soyoon lied because she knew that if she did not say it like this, her mother would sink into the ground.

The food would not go down her throat, so she kept drinking water. She felt chilled all over. Still, she could not leave behind the meal her mother had worked hard to prepare, so she ate all of it.

There was a little time left, so she tried drying her shoes with the hair dryer, but they did not dry completely. She had no choice but to put on the still-damp sneakers. Because that unpleasant feeling felt exactly like her own heart, Soyoon pressed her lips tightly together.

As she put on her sneakers, she saw his slippers, but deliberately ignored them.

***

“Miss Soyoon, are you okay?”

“Cough. Yes. I’m okay.”

“Then stop coughing. Sit here and rest. Got it?”

In the morning, her head had definitely only felt a little heavy, but by the time it was almost time to get off work, she was a mess.

Her head felt heavy, and she was coughing too. The director had left work early for some reason today, so she had not even been able to get any medicine prescribed. Miss Park grumbled, asking why she had hidden the fact that she was sick.

“The director’s not here anyway, so leave early.”

“No.”

“It’s only thirty minutes early, so what’s the big deal? Hurry up and go rest.”

Miss Park, who did not know that she worked a part-time job, pushed at her back, telling her to hurry and go. She was left with no choice and was changing her clothes when it happened.

Bzzz-

When she checked the screen at the vibration of her phone, it was an unfamiliar number.

But she knew who it was. Because it was a number she had seen many times already, on the bus on the way to work, and during lunch break as well.

The phone kept vibrating, but Soyoon did not answer.

If I don’t answer, he’ll probably stop eventually-.

Soyoon’s thoughts missed the mark beautifully.

Hoo- How many times had it been already.

She had even set it to silent, yet it was still enough to keep bothering her. At the vibration sounding again, she hesitated over whether to answer or not, but in the end, she picked up.

He had said he was persistent, and he really was.

“Hello?”

-You finally answered. Why weren’t you picking up?

“Cough. I couldn’t answer because I was working.”

-Working?

At the voice colored with puzzlement, asking whether she was still working at this hour, Soyoon cleared her throat.

“Yes. I’m working.”

-Where?

“…Why?”

-I asked where you are.

“I get off late.”

Was he asking her to buy him coffee today?

She was not feeling well. And on top of that, the sneakers she was wearing today kept bothering her.

-I don’t care. Where are you, your workplace?”

She had just been thinking that maybe she should buy herself a new pair of sneakers, but then the image of Hayoon’s worn-out shoes came to mind, and she shook her head. Even in the middle of that sensitive age, Hayoon was the kind of younger sibling who did not nag and beg to be bought sneakers.

-Lee Soyoon?

When she gave no answer at all, he called her name. He seemed like the type to drink expensive coffee too. Suddenly, she became worried.

I need to buy Hayoon new sneakers. What should I do?