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156

Han Ye-an started to treat me like her younger brother from some point in time, but I didn’t accept her. I didn’t accept anybody, to be honest.

I had been too wild since I was a child.

‘Teacher~ Se-yoo is bullying the other kids again.’
‘Teacher! Se-yoo is fighting again!’

My personality was a bit more aggressive and different compared to other kids. I was strangely attracted to fighting and always walked along the streets picking on others. I acted polite and nice in front of people I wanted to look good in front of like my mom, but I acted like a hellion towards other family members or other people.

So I was known as a problem child, and everyone seemed sick of my interest in violence.

There were times when even my mom gave up on me and clicked her tongue, but Han Ye-an didn’t let it go.

‘I’m going to send everything and get you suspended from school. Stop it. Don’t do anything to ruin your own future.’

Han Ye-an threatened me with my weak points to try and get me to behave. When threats didn’t seem to work, she came to school and made a big deal out of it in front of others, embarrassing me. So whenever I tried to behave every once in a while, she showered me with so much praise that it was almost overwhelming.

She played an even more active role in my life than myself. She trusted in me where even my own mother couldn’t, and tried to understand and trust me where she could. When I came back home injured, she supported me wholeheartedly even without hearing the entire story.

Regardless of how factual it was, Han Ye-an treated me more like her younger brother than a problem child, so she tried to understand things that I couldn’t even think of. Was that what changed me? I realized that I had to fold and give up some things in life to get by without causing problems. I started to look at life with a more healthier outlook.

Han Ye-an probably only saw me as I raged against the world, but she only seemed to see the good parts of me. I didn’t know how to feel when she, someone who had only been aggressive and spiteful towards me, suddenly treated me as one of her own. I was elated for some reason. It was nice to get that kind of affection from someone who only ignored me previously. Han Ye-an accepted me more and more as time passed, so I was happy when our family suddenly had tragedy strike. I liked being on the receiving end of her free, unwavering attention.

Even though she accepted me as one of her own, she didn’t demand the same of me. She just showed me continued interest in myself and waited patiently. And that was how I let someone else into my heart, alongside my mother.

When our finances became rough, Han Ye-an always fixed things around the house. Electronic devices took at least ten thousand won* or more, so she always tried to repair things as much as she could. Personally, the only class I had an average of 70% or higher was in math, so the two of us always wracked our heads and tried our best to repair things together.

I wanted to become a pillar of strength for Han Ye-an, so I studied as hard as I could and researched as much as I could. Then, when Han Ye-an seemed to see me with a renewed gaze at my successful repairs, I decided to shift my future goals to math and science altogether. I liked achieving something after working with Han Ye-an, so I studied and tried my best to be able to teach her more. To be honest, if it wasn’t for her then I would’ve gone into health or physical training as my future occupation. Taekwondo or kendo, something like that.

Our lives were smooth coasting until our parents passed. Our lives began to slowly shatter, little by little. Han Ye-an also began to shatter, little by little. We were running a marathon as if it was a sprint. Our lungs were burning, slowly getting ready to combust as we ran without knowing when we could rest.