“Let’s stop here for today. Thanks for all your hard work.”

Daemyung bid goodbye to writers Ahn and Bae, as well as Gwak Joon as he hugged the laptop bag tightly. The three of them told him that they still had things to do before they wrapped up. On the elevator down, Daemyung kept staring at the laptop bag. The pressure of having received an expensive product, the joy of getting something he wanted, and lastly, the weight of the words he heard as he received the laptop swirled inside his head and heart.

Along with a ringing sound, the elevator opened. When he went past the short corridor and down the stairs, he saw a little bird standing in front of the parking lot. The bird cocked its head a few times as though it was eating before flying into the sky. Looking at the bird that eventually became a dot and disappeared, a line popped up inside Daemyung’s head - I will create good writings with this laptop.

He put the laptop bag inside his backpack carefully and closed the bag. His chest heated up for some reason. He wanted to sit down immediately and start writing. Nothing came to mind though, he just wanted to write.

“Yes, Maru.”

-Where are you now? I’m just departing from Seoul.

“I’m still in Seoul.”

-That’s good, then let’s have dinner together. You haven’t eaten yet, right?

“I haven’t. Wait, is Bangjoo next to you? I think I heard his voice.”

After some noise, Bangjoo’s voice could be heard over the phone. It was as loud and cheerful as ever.

-Seonbae-nim!

“So it was Bangjoo. Let’s go have dinner together.”

-Of course! Seonbae, we’ll be waiting so come quickly.

“Okay, okay. I’ll go as soon as I can.”

-Yes! I’ll hand it back to Maru-seonbae now.

Maru picked up the phone.

-Do you remember the place we went to last time? The place we had jeyuk-bokkeum.

“I do. It was delicious.”

-Let’s go there then. Do you still remember the way?

“I vaguely remember. I’ll call you if I can’t find my way there. I do know where to get off.”

After hanging up, Daemyung spat out a deep breath before walking. He had just heard some heavy, no, scary words so it was true that he was feeling a little stuffy, but at the same time, he had the desire to focus on this path much more.

This would have been unimaginable for his past self. If it was the Park Daemyung of elementary or middle school, he would have a hard time meeting up with others outside of school. School was his only joy, and holidays were his paradise. If he continued living like that in high school as well….

‘I should be in my room right now, doing nothing.’

He was branded as the awkward guy and was being bullied because of his looks and figure. That gradually intensified until he was eventually ignored and was ripped off money. When he just entered high school, he believed that he could no longer change. He believed himself to be beyond saving. He believed that anyone who talked to him had ulterior motives. He was at the epitome of self-disgust and self-disbelief.

He dug himself a hole and hid in it without looking back, cutting off all of his connections. He insulted himself for being alone, yet he was relieved that he was alone as well. When that kind of life was about to continue for three more years, Maru talked to him. It was his salvation. That was the moment he bid farewell to his elementary and middle school days.

‘This story.’

Daemyung suddenly stopped walking. Then, he hurriedly took out a notebook from his bag and opened it. He was about to write against the wall of the building, before deciding to sit down on the spot and write. He saw the passersby watching him, and he was embarrassed to the point that his face was going to burst, but he didn’t want to miss this inspiration for a story right now. He felt that it would turn blurry and disappear if he turned around, so he quickly started writing. He found himself pathetic for his lack of vocabulary as he wrote things down, but right now, he focused on getting the story written.

“What is he doing?”

“I don’t know.”

Girls around his age stared at him as they walked by. After Daemyung wrote the last letter, he quickly stood up from the spot. He met eyes with people who were staring at him, and Daemyung covered his face with his notebook and ran away with all of his might. He went past the bus stop right in front of him and went to the next one over to take the bus. He sat down in the middle of the street and started writing. That was really unimaginable.

‘But even so.’

Daemyung tightly grabbed onto the notebook inside the shaking bus. The play script he was working on right now felt rather lacking the more he wrote. The story he started off after talking with Mintae-hyung, had been polished thanks to Gwak Joon-hyung’s advice. However, he felt that it was becoming more lacking the closer it reached the finishing line.

He finally realized what he was lacking just now.

‘My story.’

It might be pathetic and uninteresting, but it was his own story that he knew best and could sympathize with. It wasn’t a story he could introduce to others, but he felt that turning this story into a script would be more interesting than any other writing.

“I think I’ll listen to them as well.”

He promised Maru and Mintae-hyung that the three of them would one day put on a play. Han Maru would be the main character, it would be directed by Park Daemyung, and the stage would be set by Yoon Mintae. If he could complete this story and make it into a play, he would be happier than ever.

He got off the bus with an excited heart. He came to this place before with Maru. He just had to walk down the street until he came across the alleyway and if he just turned there….

“Huh?”

Daemyung took his eyes off the notebook and looked up. There was a boy who had dyed his hair yellow and wore baggy clothes. The moment he had a closer look at his face wondering if he knew that guy, Daemyung remembered the boy’s name.

“What is it? Why’d you suddenly stop?”

“What’s happening?”

At that moment, others gathered around him. Two girls and two boys. He didn’t know the girls, but he knew the three boys too well.

“It’s Park Daemyung. Wow, it’s piggy, isn’t it?”

“Dang, you lost some weight. Though, you’re still fat.”

“Wow, it’s nice seeing you here.”

Daemyung stepped backwards. They were boys from his class in his third year of middle school.

Just as the nightmares of that year became vivid again, he felt the texture of the notebook he was holding, as well as the weight of the laptop on his shoulders.

“Hey, it’s been a while.”

The boy approached him and hooked his arm around Daemyung’s shoulders. The nervousness engraved in his cells went back in time and became active again. These boys always approached him like this, bullied him, then eventually ripped money off him. Daemyung felt that his heart was racing all by itself. It wouldn’t be strange even if it stopped at any moment.

“Who is it? A friend of yours?”

“Yeah. A friend of mine from middle school.”

The girls approached and stared at him. Daemyung looked at the boys before walking forward. The arm around his shoulder naturally fell down.

“I-I’ll get going.”

In this blood-wrecking tension, Daemyung barely spoke out. If it was before, he wouldn’t have been able to utter a word. Though, his legs were still shaking.

“Hey, where are you going? We haven’t met in so long. Aren’t you glad to see me?”

The boys stopped him again. He saw the girls making a suspicious smile. They looked like they found a nice toy. They were the eyes that Daemyung had seen many times before.

“Daemyung.”

“Uh, yeah?”

“We haven’t seen each other in so long, so why don’t you treat us to something? Aren’t we friends?”

A fishy smile poked his eyes. Daemyung clenched his eyes shut. Money, he had. He still had leftover pocket money after all. Should he just give them what they wanted like middle school? Well, that was definitely the easy way out. If he just lowered his pride a little and gave them some money with a smile, the boys would probably end things with a pat on the shoulder. Just as he was about to take out the ten thousand won bill in his pocket,

-Don’t ever do anything that brings you damage.

He remembered Gwak Joon’s words. It felt as though his words were holding him.

“Uhm, I’m sorry about this, but I can’t.”

“What? You don’t have any money?”

“N-no… I do have money, but.”

“But?”

“Sorry. I can’t.”

He pushed away the guy that hung his arm around his shoulder. The boy then started laughing.

“What are you doing?”

“Uh, what?”

“Park Daemyung, I asked what you were doing.”

He looked devious. Daemyung looked at him in the face for the first time. So his facial features looked like that. He suddenly chuckled when he thought that he finally saw the face of the boy that bullied him viciously for a whole year.

When he did, the boy’s face crumpled. The others around him did the same.

“You’re fucking crazy.”

The boy grabbed Daemyung by the collar before dragging him to the alleyway. For some reason, Daemyung was still smiling.

* * *

“...It hurts.”

His cheek hurt since he got hit.

When he was slapped after being dragged into the alleyway, he became scared for a moment, but he soon calmed down. His legs were no longer shaking either. When he looked at them, he even thought that such ‘characters’ talked like that.

At that moment, a low ‘what are you doing over there!’ could be heard. The people around him became startled and ran away, and Daemyung was able to escape the alleyway without much trouble.

He put his hand on his cheek and turned left after walking two blocks. When he climbed the gentle slope, he saw the store on the right.

“You’re here?”

Maru was standing in front.

“Why are you outside?”

“I just came. But hey, did your teeth rot or something?”

“I-it’s nothing. Rather than that, let’s go inside. I’m hungry.”

“Okay. Let’s eat first.”

Maru hung his arm around his shoulders as he said that. Daemyung blinked and looked at Maru.

“Let’s eat.”

“Uh, okay.”

Maru smiled and opened the door. Inside was the owner, who was clearly expressing that he was bothered.

“Why the hell are you here again? I thought you lived in Suwon. Why do you come all the way here to eat?”

“Because your food tastes good. Rather than that, we’d like three servings of jeyuk-bokkeum.”

The owner clicked his tongue before walking to the kitchen. He was an interesting man. He grumbled but he did everything anyway. The sound of meat being fried could be heard from the kitchen. While the food was getting prepared, Daemyung cautiously showed the things he wrote in the middle of the street to Maru.

“I tried writing it, and I’m wondering if it’s okay to change the story to this.”

Maru received his notebook before reading it with his chin resting on his hand. The writing was short, so it shouldn’t take that long for him to read it.

“Hey, Daemyung.”

“Yeah?”

“Were you in a hurry or something? Your writing is through the roof.”

“I-I guess I was. But how is it? Is it a little boring?”

“No, it’s good. This, is this your story?”

“Yeah.”

He was embarrassed to admit, but his answer was firm.

“Then there’s no problem. You’re the one writing the script anyway.”

Maru gave him back the notebook. Daemyung felt relieved. He felt better to hear that from the friend he trusted the most.

“It’s all thanks to you,” he said that subconsciously.

“What do you mean?”

“The thing is… if it wasn’t for you, I would not have joined the acting club, and would still be the weird guy in class. That’s why I’m thankful and… you know.”

“Geez, hey. Those that don’t have the will to change will not change no matter what you do to them. The reason you’re in the acting club and are writing is because you wanted to change yourself, not because of me.”

Maru shivered as though he was cringed out. Daemyung laughed.

“What about Bangjoo though?”

“He left for a brief moment for something urgent.”

“Something urgent?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Just then, the rice and the jeyuk-bokkeum were served.

“Let’s eat for now.”

“I thought he left for a brief moment. Let’s eat together once he comes back.”

“It’s fine, you can eat. Bangjoo, that guy is sturdy, so he doesn’t need to eat something like this.”

Maru urged him to eat and even stuffed a spoon in his hand, so Daemyung ate a spoonful. It was definitely good. The reason this place was filled with people at night was probably because of the taste. Just as he was about to talk to Maru about food, Daemyung saw Maru hold his bowl with one hand and eat in a hurry.

“Man, that was good.”

“Y-you finished already?”

“Yeah, Daemyung, you can continue eating. The owner will keep you company.”

“Where are you going?” He asked Maru, but Maru just left after telling him to stay.

“I don’t plan to talk to you guys,” the store owner spoke as he kept watching the TV.

Just as he didn’t know what to do due to the awkward atmosphere. The store owner suddenly stood up before sitting down where Maru sat.

“Eat.”

“Eh, what?”

“I said eat.”

“Yes!”

He started stuffing himself due to the scary eyes. Just as he ate a few spoonfuls, the store owner spoke again.

“Is it good?”

“Y-yes. It’s good.”

“Really?”

The store owner abruptly stood up and went to the kitchen. Then, the sound of meat being fried could be heard again. Daemyung scratched his head and looked at the kitchen and the entrance alternately. He didn’t know what was going on.