2
Again, Seventeen Years Old (2)
One hour later.
“You’re okay. I’m fine.”
After hearing that I had climbed a tree to get Chloe’s kite down and fallen from it, my father and stepmother were
extremely worried and insisted that I should go to the hospital.
“I’m just going to get some fresh air.”
Pretending nothing was wrong, I dusted myself off and left the house.
As I walked around a nearby vacant lot, my mind was filled with questions.
“Did I really... go back to being seventeen?”
What if I had simply gone insane?
Maybe I was mistaking an illusion for reality...
After thinking for a moment, I pinched my cheek.
“Ouch.”
I could actually pinch my own face.
I stared blankly down at my fingers, which were moving freely according to my will.
My two arms and legs were not only perfectly fine, but overflowing with strength.
When I lifted my head, overwhelmed by the sensation, I saw my youthful seventeen-year-old self reflected in the window
of the house next door.
And above all, my body was completely healthy, without a single thing wrong with it.
“...”
I bit my lip tightly for a moment as emotions welled up inside me.
Even now, if I closed my eyes, I felt as though I could smell the alcohol in the hospital room where I had lain for more
than a year.
“Hoo.”
That tremendous pressure that had crushed my entire body at the moment of death.
I closed my eyes for a moment and opened them again, feeling as though that pain was still vividly etched into my
memory.
“I thought I was really going to die like that, but did a miracle actually happen?”
I had been so shocked to see my father’s face, even though he had passed away long ago.
“...”
Forcing down the emotions rising inside me, I started walking again.
At first, slowly.
Then I gradually picked up the pace.
Without looking back, I ran as hard as I could.
“Huff, huff...”
I had no idea how long I ran.
Perhaps because I had filled my lungs with fresh air, I could feel my oxygen-fueled brain working rapidly.
After calmly processing everything that had happened, my brain arrived at a simple conclusion.
“I have to make sure that future never happens again.”
Although I had a family history of aneurysms, it could be prevented sufficiently if I was careful about my health.
No smoking, no drinking, and exercise.
By consistently following those three things, I would not only make sure I avoided being trapped inside a prison of my
own body in my mid-thirties.
“...Father, too.”
I remembered my father, who had looked at me awkwardly and hesitantly, and my stepmother, who had been so delighted by
even the smallest change in me.
That’s right.
How much had I regretted it in my previous life?
My father had passed away while I was in college.
He and I had never managed to repair our broken relationship.
As I remembered how, only later in life, I had tried to repay Kate and Chloe for their sincere affection toward me—
“I remember Father had symptoms similar to mine, too.”
So taking care of my father’s health came first.
And I should also treat my stepmother and younger sister well.
Perhaps this was a chance Heaven had given me so that I would never have to experience such regret again.
“Haa...”
The moment I reached that conclusion and felt relieved, I unconsciously closed my eyes.
“...”
The hot, humid air brushing against my cheeks, the refreshing scent of trees, and the warm sunlight falling from above.
At that moment, all five of my senses clearly told me that I was here.
“...!”
Just like when I had been lying in the hospital bed.
I realized that words were appearing in the darkness of my vision.
[Novels]
[Nonfiction]
[By Genre]
[By Era]
[By Author]
...
Not only the references I had organized according to my own criteria.
Even the drafts I had written while lying in my hospital bed and the ideas I had planned were all still alive and
breathing inside my mind.
Thump, thump.
Feeling my rapidly beating heart, I opened both eyes.
The countryside scenery I had longed for filled my vision.
“Now... I can write again.”
At that belated realization, my heart swelled with hope.
My fingers itched with the desire to write something, anything, right away.
But—
“Still, I must never rush.”
There were countless ways to succeed as a novelist.
Not only was I more familiar with the future state of the industry and its trends than anyone else.
“I have confidence, don’t I?”
...Confidence that I could write much better stories than I had back then.
The Kwon Yujin of today was no longer the inexperienced Kwon Yujin who had been frustrated by his poor English skills.
I had majored in humanities at university and worked for nearly ten years in the publishing industry, where the highest
level of English was spoken in America.
“Now I can confidently say that I speak better than most native speakers.”
So I would write countless pieces and all kinds of stories—
“I’ll write happily for a long, long time.”
This time, I would be able to do that.
An unfounded yet absolute confidence surged through my entire body.
“...Shall I head back now?”
With a smile on my lips, I turned and walked home.
Our Yujin had changed.
That was what Kwon Yujin’s stepmother, Kate Kwon, suddenly realized on Sunday morning.
“Not just changed. He’s practically a completely different person.”
Kwon Yujin was the Korean boy born to her Korean husband and his late former wife.
Even after living together for several years, he still remained distant toward her.
Once he became a sophomore in high school, it had gotten even worse. Even when their eyes met, he would not greet her.
Whenever she called him to come eat, he often refused to even leave his room.
“Kate, I only need to take out the plates, right?”
“Huh? Uh, y-yes.”
While Kate prepared breakfast, he naturally began setting the table.
“Is Chloe still sleeping?”
“Y-yeah.”
He even set out the toddler’s chair and dishes for his little sister.
“Is the sun going to rise in the west tomorrow?”
His attitude had changed so much that it felt strange.
Could he have injured his head when he fell from the tree yesterday?
Kate glanced at her son’s profile before carefully speaking.
“Yujin, you’re unusually kind today.”
“Pardon?”
“Thank you for helping me prepare breakfast.”
At the words she had gathered the courage to say, Yujin seemed to realize something belatedly and went, “Ah.”
“Oh no.”
Kate immediately continued, thinking she had said something unnecessary.
“No, no. I really mean it. I’m just happy. I think it would be nice if we could keep living like this from now on.
...But don’t feel pressured, okay?”
Flustered, she rambled on, but the boy smiled brightly with a clear, innocent expression.
“Why would I feel pressured? I guess I must have given you a lot of trouble all this time, haha.”
“...”
For an instant, that smile made him look less like a teenager and more like a seasoned working adult.
“Yujin, what’s gotten into you? You’re actually up early on a Sunday.”
Her husband, and Kwon Yujin’s father, had entered the room.
The stern, authoritarian father and the rebellious, hot-tempered son did not have a good relationship.
Just as Kate unconsciously tensed—
“Did you sleep well, Father?”
“...”
At Yujin’s smiling response, both she and her husband’s eyes widened as though they were about to pop out.
“Kate’s pancakes are really delicious. Hurry up and eat before they get cold.”
“Uh, ah... y-yeah.”
Her normally flawless husband was so flustered that he spilled maple syrup on his sleeve, which was quite a sight in
itself.
“What on earth is going on?”
But what shocked her even more was the way Yujin smiled warmly at his father.
A little while later.
After finishing his meal, Yujin stood up, scraping his chair against the floor.
“That was delicious. Thank you, Kate.”
“Uh, y-yeah.”
“And Father.”
“Hmm?”
“Promise me just one thing.”
“...?”
Facing his father directly as the older man looked up in bewilderment, Kwon Yujin spoke firmly.
“Quit smoking and drinking starting today.”
“What, what did you say?”
“I’m not joking. You should exercise every day, too.”
“...”
“At this rate, you’re really going to drop dead one day. Just like that.”
His attitude was far too serious to be taken as a joke, and his father was left speechless with his mouth hanging open.
Monday, the day after Yujin had spent the entire evening nagging his father.
“I never thought even math class could be this fun.”
Maybe it was because I was attending school again after more than a decade.
Or maybe it was because the things I had understood less than half of before now made perfect sense.
The teachers were visibly flustered by the way I listened attentively, my eyes shining with energy.
And then—
“Uh, ugh, hey, you’re suffocating me.”
“What the hell? You said you fell from a tree. Did that mess up your head...?”
“Guys, I love you.”
“Holy shit! Yujin, you’ve really gone crazy!”
My best friends Ned and Adele, whom I met in front of the locker room.
When I hugged the two of them fiercely and confessed my true feelings, everyone treated me like a lunatic.
“...Yeah. This is true happiness.”
At my sudden mutter, Ned, who had been happily slurping up noodles, choked.
“What the hell is wrong with you today? I mean, sure, the Shin Ramyun you make at your house is always insanely good,
but... did something seriously traumatic happen over the weekend?”
“I told you earlier. It’s definitely a concussion.”
Adele shrugged her shoulders.
Whenever she slurped up her ramen, her short red hair swayed over her shoulders.
“I’m serious.”
Being able to chew and swallow food with my own mouth.
Being able to fully savor the taste of the broth as it passed down my throat.
All of this was a blessing and a miracle.
Even now, remembering how I had been fed liquid meals through a tube sent chills down my spine.
“Come to think of it.”
What was it that I heard just before I returned to the past?
It was definitely something about a contract and a miracle...
I was lost in thought for a moment when—
“Hey, let’s go upstairs!”
Ned and Adele had already finished even the broth and naturally headed toward my room.
“Yujin, did you read this issue of Watchmen? It’s completely insane.”
Ned, with his pale skin and horn-rimmed glasses, was a superhero fan known throughout the entire school.
“Hold on. I think I’ve heard about that damn Watchmen a hundred times since this morning.”
And this was Adele Ashburn, who lived right next door.
Thanks to these two, I had barely managed to adapt to an unfamiliar American school.
“Even if I tell you about it more than a hundred times, you still don’t know Watchmen.”
“Do I need to? But, Yujin.”
“Hmm?”
Adele turned toward me with a slightly prim expression.
“Do you realize you’re really talkative today? Before, whenever anyone asked you anything, you always gave one-word
answers.”
Right then, Ned’s voice cut in.
“Oh, that’s it!”
“What’s it?”
“Yujin fell from a tree! The impact when his head hit the ground activated his neurons. So now, whenever he hears any
language, he automatically absorbs it—”
“Do you even know what a neuron is before saying things like that?”
I could not help but chuckle at the sight of the two of them bickering as usual.
“But when are you guys leaving?”
“In a little while.”
“I don’t really have much to do today either. Why?”
Unlike these two, who had nothing in particular to do, I had an enormous amount of things to do.
And just as many things I wanted to do.
My mind was already overflowing with ideas screaming to be released.
But if I had to choose the most urgent task—
“...Homework.”
“What? What homework?”
Unlike Ned, who tilted his head in confusion, Adele immediately clicked her tongue.
“You mean AP English Literature? I told you not to take that class. Even eleventh graders have trouble with it.”
“Oh, that one. A senior in the comics club took it, apparently. Leonard Sam is famous for being ridiculously strict.”
On top of that, I had only realized today that the assignment was already overdue.
When I said that even if it was late, doing it was better than not doing it at all, my two friends’ eyes grew moist.
“Hang in there, Yujin.”
“I wish you luck, my friend.”
With those words, they focused on their respective tasks.
“Heeheehee, hehe...”
Ned snickered while watching a YouTube game review.
“Don’t be that way...”
Adele brought out Kate’s acoustic guitar and began singing a Billie Eilish song.
With her sweet voice flowing in the background like music, I sat down at the desk and turned on my laptop.
The topic of the assignment was...
[Write a short story parody of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, approximately five to six A4 pages in length.]
“Not bad for a warm-up.”
I had been writing stories endlessly in my head.
But this was the first time in a year that I would actually write something down in a visible form, so it was perfect as
a form of rehabilitation practice.
Besides, I had even written a thesis about Shakespeare when I was in college, so I could say I was fairly confident
about this topic.
Then I noticed a file titled [Romeo and Juliet_Parody] inside my “Assignments” folder.
Was this something I had written before my regression?
“...”
Curious, I clicked on it, and for a moment, I was speechless.
Maybe it was because I had written it with inadequate English.
Every sentence was so crude that none of it was usable.
But—
“The idea itself is interesting.”
The key point of the parody novel I had written before my regression was—
Changing the “narrator” of this classic tragedy.
“Change the point of view...”
At that moment.
The first sentence suddenly flashed into my mind, and I began typing.
Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap—
The images in my mind unfolded one by one, taking the form of words.
The light, rhythmic sound of the keyboard gently echoed in my ears as though I were following a set of steps.
I became completely absorbed in writing, and before I knew it, I had reached about two-thirds of the story.
“Hm?”
I felt a sharp gaze on my back.
I glanced over and saw Ned standing behind me, his eyes frantically scanning my writing.
“What... what the hell is this?”
What else could it be?
I shrugged and turned toward my friend with an expression that said as much.
“Are you seriously saying this is your writing assignment? Your English Literature homework?”
Ned continued in a voice like someone being strangled.
“So you’re saying this isn’t some novel that already existed... You literally just wrote this right now, sitting here?”
“Yeah. Why?”
I answered casually, as though it were nothing important.
Ned’s eyes widened as if he had just seen a ghost.