About

My school years were like a gutter where not a single ray of light could reach. Unable to endure my father's violence, my mother left home with my younger sibling when I was a child. I was the one left behind in that house. It was my job to absorb my father's rage and endure the hands he swung while drunk. The bruises on my body were covered by new marks before they could even fade, and it wasn't just once or twice that I bled from being scratched by broken liquor bottles. And it wasn't hard for me to guess that my father was frequenting gambling dens with money borrowed from loan sharks. "If I win just this one round, my life will turn around." My father repeated the same words until I was sick of them. But far from turning his life around, the debt only snowballed. The house was filled with the unending smell of alcohol, cigarettes, and those loathsome shouts. And so, my gloomy school years came to an end. By the time I graduated high school, there were a few universities I could have attended with my grades. But for someone in a position where even next month's living expenses were uncertain, let alone tuition, university was a luxury. I eventually gave up on further education and started earning money. Working two part-time jobs a day was the baseline, and when things were tight, I increased it to three. I slept in snatches and usually made do with haphazard meals. Even though I earned money so relentlessly, my circumstances didn't improve. The money I made vanished into living expenses, and the debt my father had racked up showed no sign of decreasing. No matter how much I struggled, I was stuck in the same place. Now, I was exhausted to the bone. Five in the morning. Having finished my overnight shift at the convenience store, I headed home, exhaling a faint white mist. I wanted to collapse and fall asleep right then, but I had to go to another part-time job in two hours. When I walked down the villa stairs and opened the front door, the house was empty, as expected. "...Where did he go again?" I hoped my father hadn't gone to borrow money again. Of course, it wouldn't change anything even if he had. I sighed and tidied up the messy house. I cleared away the ramen bowls and empty soju bottles on the table and roughly organized the dishes piled in the sink. After washing away the fatigue of the night with lukewarm water in the bathroom, I returned to my room and spread out my bedding. 'Let's sleep for just two hours...' About thirty minutes had passed since I barely managed to fall asleep, closing my heavy eyelids. BANG—! I woke up with a start at the sound of the front door being thrown open violently. My heart dropped. I thought my father had returned, but soon, unfamiliar footsteps were heard along with the thick smell of cigarettes. It wasn't just one person. Two men. The sleepiness vanished in an instant. I hurriedly sat up and looked out of the room. The man who entered first had a menacing look, and the man standing behind him... My gaze drifted toward him involuntarily. Strikingly tall, with prominent features. I stared blankly for a moment at his relaxed attitude before quickly snapping back to my senses. No, that's not what's important right now. Is he an acquaintance of my father? Or could it be... A chilling premonition spread down the back of my neck. I opened my mouth cautiously. "...Who are you?" The two men's gazes fixed on me simultaneously. After scanning me for a moment, the man in the back slowly curled his lips into a smirk. As if he were someone who already knew exactly who I was. "Hey, kid." "Where'd your old man go?"