A Visit to Yerin's School
Upon arriving at my niece’s school, I fall into unnecessary thoughts. ‘It’s already been over ten years since I graduated high school.’ My school days. Everything feels so distant now. How did I ever sit through classes in those cramped desks all day? And those uniforms—how suffocating they were. Midterms, finals… why were there so many damn tests? Every single moment was strung tight with tension.
Of course, not all the memories are bad. Kicking a ball around with friends, giggling over stupid jokes—those moments are still vivid. Now that we’re old enough to be called “uncle,” reminiscing with guys like that just feels like the same old stories anyway.
“Hello.”
“Yes… hello.”
As I walk across the school grounds, students greet me, probably assuming I’m a new teacher. A man in a suit definitely stands out at an all-girls high school. Worried I might give my niece something to complain about if I wander around too freely, I quickly ask for directions to the teachers’ office.
‘Is this how noona used to feel?’
My niece apologized for the trouble, but it’s nothing compared to everything she did for me. Parent observation days, sports festivals—whenever the school needed a guardian, noona showed up in our busy mother’s place. Even when she was far younger than I am now, younger even than Min-a, she never once looked embarrassed. Thanks to her, I got through elementary school, when the absence of our parents felt especially cruel, without too much hardship. After noona left my side, though, things became much more… painful. But that’s not what I should be thinking about right now.
I have a duty to raise my niece into a fine adult. So that noona and her husband in heaven can close their eyes in peace. Someday, when we meet again, I’ll be able to show them. How well noona’s daughter has grown. How she’s bringing honor to the family, just as the smartest kid in our house should. So noona never needs to feel sorry. She only needs to… be happy when we meet again. If my feelings can reach her, I’ll shout it to the heavens as much as I want. If my niece is happy, that’s all I could ever ask for.
I enter the teachers’ office and greet my niece’s homeroom teacher. I’d worried whether I should bring drinks or something, but my niece threw a fit. What era did I think we were living in? These days, that sort of thing doesn’t happen. She said she’d definitely kick me out if I showed up carrying drinks. The grades the teacher showed me were even higher than I’d expected. I knew she was smart, but this much? ‘Well, considering how she toys with her own uncle, it’s actually not enough.’ If she could get into college with that talent for playing with people, she’d rank first anywhere.
Even just this morning, when we were leaving the house, my niece had casually taken my hand. The moment the elevator reached the basement, though, her expression changed completely. She walked past the neighbors with a perfectly normal face while I was left wiping cold sweat from my palms. ‘She’s a scary kid. A really scary kid.’
“If we apply through the early admission track… how far do you think is possible?”
Shaking off my stray thoughts, I pull out my notebook and write down the schools the teacher lists. I also note down the unfamiliar college entrance procedures. She offers to print out the materials, but I’ll take those too. I need to organize everything in my own way. Time has passed and there are many policies I don’t know, but one truth never changes: good grades are required to enter the university you want. Still, with results like these, she’ll have no trouble becoming a junior to Min-a and me. ‘Mom would be happy too.’ She’s always bickering with me, but she adores her granddaughter. Besides, she’s the type who constantly brags about how smart the women in our family are.
After finishing my request for them to take good care of my niece, I stand up. It ended faster than expected. I plan to return to the company in the afternoon, but first I need to deal with this awkward block of free time. It’s too early for lunch and too late to head home. ‘Should I at least see my niece’s face before I go?’
My niece knows I’m visiting the school, but going to find her directly feels awkward. Kids her age don’t want to show their family elders to their friends. An uncle wandering the school grounds for his beloved niece—it’s not wrong, but it wouldn’t be proper behavior for her sake either.
As I take out my phone to send a simple message, I hear—
“Uncle!”
“Hello. Yerin’s uncle.”
“What, aren’t you studying?”
My niece and several familiar faces run over to greet me.
“It’s break time. Did you think I’d skip class or something?”
“I was just asking, just in case. Ah, hello.”
I’d been so focused on my niece that I forgot to greet her friends. ‘Still, it seems she’s not embarrassed by me.’ For some reason, that makes me feel proud.
My niece introduces me to her friends as if she’s bragging. This is one thing we have in common as uncle and niece. I’ve never once been ashamed of my mother either. If anything, I envied friends whose parents came to school and made a fuss. You guys are the lucky ones. Our mom was too busy to ever come. But the constant clashes between mother and son—that we could never fix. For some reason, we fight the moment we see each other.
“Yerin, did your uncle come because you caused trouble again? I told you to stop bothering the other kids.”
“Yeah, Yerin. Stop hitting us already. My bruise still hasn’t faded.”
“What nonsense. Do you want to die? Uncle, don’t listen to them.”
Watching my niece joke around with her friends, she finally seems like a kid her age. When she’s with me, she’s always so serious that it never feels real.
“By the way, how did you know I was coming?”
I only said I’d stop by; I never specified the time. I can’t exactly call it telepathy—that’s the kind of thing lovers say—and I worry some strange rumor might spread. Something about a guy in a suit wandering around looking for the teachers’ office.
“You said you were coming, so I came out just in case. The kids were all talking about some handsome uncle walking around.”
“Hey, be honest. Yerin bragged so much about her uncle coming.”
“Honestly, if it were my uncle, I’d throw a huge fit. Ugh, just imagining it is terrifying.”
“No, it’s different if it’s Yerin’s uncle.”
“That’s true.”
“Are you crazy? I already told you I’m not making any of you my aunts.”
“Hey, why do you get to decide that? You never know what’ll happen in life, right?”
Seeing this unexpected side of my niece is nice, but the chattering group is giving me a headache. When I make an excuse about work, my niece complains that I’m always busy. I calm her down and turn to her friends.
“Please get along well with our niece. I leave her in your care.”
I bow deeply. There’s no shame in an older uncle bowing to much younger girls. Even if they asked me to prostrate myself, it wouldn’t be enough. At home she’s always following me around with that serious expression. Without her friends, she wouldn’t have a chance to smile like this.
Leaving the awkwardly bowing girls behind, I head outside. There’s a lot to do. Company work can wait. Finding out which universities my niece can realistically aim for is far more important.
‘You idiot. What have you been doing until now instead of looking into this sooner?’ Are you only going to move once the fire’s already at your feet? My chest tightens with urgency. What preparations do I need to make for my niece’s future? What arrangements should I set in place so she can grow into a fine adult? It feels like an excuse, but because my niece acts so mature, I keep forgetting—she’s still just a child. As her uncle, I need to take better care of her. For my niece. Only for my niece.
Someday, when noona returns, the glory I’ve built up to offer her no longer matters. My niece is the one who needs to build that glory.
“Uncle, someone’s following you.”
As I quicken my pace, my niece hurries after me with quick little steps.
“You should go back and study.”
“Study, study. You just saw my grades yourself. You know how hard I’ve been working. Right now I can’t study anyway—everyone’s distracted worrying about their early admission applications. At times like this, I should rest a little more instead.”
My niece’s lips jut out in a pout. This side of her is truly childlike. Right now, my words about studying must sound like nothing but nagging. But for your future, it can’t be helped. Especially for people like us—people who can’t expect help from parents, like Yerin. I’ll do my best for her, but… a salaryman’s efforts have their limits.
“……Yeah. You’ve worked hard studying, our niece.”
Still, seeing her grumble like that makes my heart soften. There’s no way I—a complete fool for my niece—could properly scold her.
“But you still have to work hard until the very end. If you want to ask your uncle for a wish.”
I stroke her head, deliberately emphasizing the word “wish.”
“That’s right. I have to make a wish.”
A smile spreads across my niece’s lips.
“Just don’t make it too unreasonable.”
“Who says I will?”
She lets out a small whine, but… I don’t know. My niece shows no sign of lowering her demands. I don’t know what wish you’ll make. But if it’s what you want—
Even if it’s a star from the sky, how could I not bring it for you?