The Day I Finally Took My Sister Back
I bought a lottery ticket and stepped out of the convenience store. The clerk gave me a strange look and muttered, “He’s filling out the same numbers on every line...” but I didn’t care.
In the end, I was the one who was going to win first place.
I’ve bought the lottery ticket too... now I should call Seohee.
My younger sister, Kim Seohee. She was a freshman in high school now, three years younger than me since I’d entered school a year late.
Seohee was pretty enough that it couldn’t be explained away just by saying she was my sister.
Before our family started to shake under the weight of my grandfather’s debt, she had been bright and cheerful, with a personality that matched her lovely face.
But once the house began to collapse, she slowly drifted, and before long she’d started hanging around the wrong kinds of people. The “bad kids” my father had just mentioned.
I never cared about that sister of mine at all. I even thought she was pathetic. ...I should have scolded her properly as her older brother.
Zero’s comfort made my heart feel just a little lighter.
Still, what I had to do remained the same.
I had to set Seohee straight. Get her to attend school properly, study, get into a good university, land a good job, and meet a good man who deserved her.
Otherwise... she might end up selling her body again, just like before.
No matter what my sister chose to do, it was her life, but that one thing—I wanted to stop that.
For now, I should tell her to come home quickly. Then we can spend time together as a family while eating pizza. Even if I don’t mention the lottery yet, since I haven’t actually won it.
I took my phone out of my pocket and called Seohee right away.
The line rang, then cut off.
[The customer cannot take your call at this time...]
...She wasn’t answering. I’d thought she at least would pick up the phone.
Maybe my relationship with Seohee wasn’t as good as I remembered.
> That is correct. When debt collectors came to the house, or relatives caused a scene, your younger sister handled them alone.
> You were at your part-time job.
...
> It was an ordeal that would have been difficult for any middle school or freshman high school girl to endure.
So that was it. I’d been working part-time because I wanted to bring home a little more money, so the debt collectors would come later and the relatives would stop making trouble.
Working those part-time jobs to make a few tens of thousands of won didn’t just hurt Father. It hurt Seohee too, without me even realizing it.
> ...
Be honest with me.
> Yes. That is correct, Master. It was not your fault, but leaving your sister alone in the house caused her great pain. What she needed was not an older brother who sometimes bought her snacks, but one who would stay beside her when she was afraid and struggling.
Then... what do I do now?
> Even now, you should be there for her. Your sister is with those “bad kids” right now, but not because she truly wants to be.
> In fact, the probability that she is hoping you’ll come and pull her out is extremely high. Just as, in the future, when your sister was caught by the police while working at an illegal entertainment establishment, she called you—of all people.
That shocked me a little.
...So Seohee called me then because she wanted to quit that job?
> Yes. If you had pushed her—whether through love or through punishment—and told her to quit, she would likely never have entered the entertainment industry.
> But you...
...I slapped her and told her to deal with the police herself. Because I was too angry.
> That is correct. And after regretting it, you went back to the police station, but by then it was too late. She had already left.
Right. Zero.
> Yes, Master.
Is there a connection between Seohee hanging around with thugs starting at this point, and eventually ending up in the entertainment industry—no, selling her body later on?
> ...
Be honest.
> The connection is very strong. The “bad kids” are the same sort who are persuading her to smoke and drink now, and later they will be the ones encouraging her to enter the entertainment industry.
Hoo.
A sigh escaped me on its own. I was angry. Angry at those thug bastards, and angry at myself too.
I’d done my best back then, or at least I thought I had, but there were a lot of things I’d done wrong.
So all I have to do is stay by Seohee’s side from now on? And right now, I just need to rescue her from that crowd she’s with.
> Correct.
How?
> It is not difficult. I will explain. First, you must find your sister. She is currently at the playground in front of Sanbyeok Middle School with her other friends. You should go there.
After hearing Zero’s explanation, I headed for the playground in front of Sanbyeok Middle School.
On the way, Zero spoke again.
> Master, as I explained earlier, there is a very high probability that this will turn into a physical altercation. To prepare for that, I will download the combat data of UFC champion Marcos Silva.
Go ahead. Will it take long?
> No. From this moment on, the data will be overlaid onto your muscle reflexes. May I begin the download?
Yeah.
> Beginning combat module download: Marcos Silva. 10%... 50%...
I headed toward the playground in front of Sanbyeok Middle School while downloading fighting techniques.
Sanbyeok Middle School playground.
This was where the neighborhood’s toughest delinquents hung out, a place where the local thugs spent their time every day until late at night.
And today, too, there were plenty of them gathered there, laughing and shouting.
— Hey, Kim Seohee, got any cigarettes? If not, wanna smoke one?
— ...No, I’m okay.
— Just take one. I’m not gonna make you pay me back.
— Wow, look at that bastard only giving cigarettes to Kim Seohee. Damn, what kind of discrimination is that?
— Look at your own face, asshole. Even plastered with makeup, do you look like someone she’d want to give a cigarette to?
— Jesus, shut up. You’re the kind of bastard who can’t even upload a photo of his own face on his mini-homepage. What, you like Kim Seohee?
— W-what?! Why the hell would I like her? Are you insane?
— What’s with that face? Why are you blushing? Is it true?
— Wow... Kim Seohee’s really popular. But didn’t they say Do-hyun sunbae liked her too?
— What’s that guy been up to lately?
— I saw him putting some girls into a van and going to a karaoke place the other day.
That was when it happened.
“Seohee.”
Someone called Kim Seohee first from the playground entrance. It was Kim Dohyun.
At the sound of her name, Seohee turned her eyes that way. The delinquents around her naturally did the same.
— ...
— What? Who’s that?
— Seohee’s brother.
— Oh, that’s her brother?
— First time I’ve seen him. But he does look kind of handsome since he’s Seohee’s brother...
— You’re blind, you freak.
— What, are you jealous because I said Seohee’s brother is handsome?
— What the hell are you talking about, you crazy bitch?
Ignoring Kim Dohyun, the thugs went back to talking among themselves.
Kim Dohyun looked at the delinquents surrounding Kim Seohee and said,
“Could you move aside? I came to pick up my sister.”
— ...
— ...
— ...
“Seohee, come here. Let’s go home. But cigarettes... you’re smoking?”
“...”
“Who gave you the cigarette? You wouldn’t have bought it yourself.”
Even after Dohyun called her, Seohee didn’t move. She wanted to go with her brother, but she was worried that if she listened to the “goody-goody” older brother’s words, she’d get isolated from her friends.
Just then, a male student spoke up. It was the boy who had given Seohee a cigarette for free earlier.
“I gave her the cigarette.”
“...”
“And Seohee doesn’t seem like she wants to leave, so why don’t you go on?”
“...”
“Just go already. Seohee’s hanging out with us.”
Thud.
When Kim Dohyun kept standing there without moving, the boy shoved his shoulder. For an ordinary high school student, that would have been enough to make him flinch and shrink back. But Dohyun didn’t even blink; he just kept looking at Seohee.
“Ah, shit... are you ignoring me?”
The boy twisted his face and tried to shove Dohyun’s shoulder again, more roughly this time.
But before he could.
Smack~!
Kim Dohyun slapped him across the face. It was only a slap, but the boy staggered back as if he’d been punched, his cheek burning hot without him even realizing what had happened.
His eyes watered, too.
“Uh... huh?”
The thug was dumbfounded.
Looking at him, Dohyun said,
“You gave Seohee a cigarette?”
“...Huh?”
“I asked if you gave Seohee a cigarette.”
“I-I mean... I just... yes.”
The boy’s speech slipped back into politeness.
W-what the hell... was Seohee’s brother like that? At school he just looked like a loser...
Something about him was strange. I hadn’t even seen the slap coming, and there was that confidence he exuded, that inexplicable sense of adulthood.
He was scary. Like the older boys I’d seen in middle school—no, even scarier than that.
But for a hot-blooded high school student, pride came before fear.
Shit, this is humiliating, getting slapped around like this...
With the people around him watching him and Dohyun, the boy forced himself to summon some meaningless courage.
“Yeah, I gave her a cigarette! So what the hell are you gonna do about it, asshole?”
He shouted again, then lunged with a fist in anger.
But.
Swish.
Kim Dohyun dodged without even blinking, tilting his head slightly.
Thwack!
“Agh!”
He kicked the boy’s shin.
Smack~!
Smack-!
Then slapped him again. Twice, and so fast it looked like one motion.
The boy’s eyes flew wide open again, and his eyes turned red around the edges.
“U-uh...?”
Thud.
He forgot even his embarrassment and fell onto the dirt ground of the playground. Tears welled up in his eyes. He’d clearly been slapped, but he didn’t even know how he’d been hit.
Ignoring him completely, Dohyun looked at the others and said,
“Hey. You.”
— Y-yes?
— Yes!
“If any of you contact Seohee, come looking for her, or act like you know her one more time, you’re dead if you answer to me. You know where our house is, right? Don’t even pass near it. At school, if Seohee’s in the hallway, keep your eyes down and stay away from her. If Seohee’s using the bathroom, wait and use it later. If Seohee’s eating, then you eat late, and if she’s eating bread at the convenience store, then you don’t go there at all. Got it?”
— ...
— ...
— ...
“Answer me.”
— ...Y-yes?
“I said answer me.”
— Ah, yes!
— Ah, got it.
— I-I’ll do that, hyung.
“And tell the same thing to anyone you know. Just so we’re clear, if you contact Seohee behind my back and I catch you, it won’t end with a slap next time. Understand?”
— ...Yes!
— Yes, yes!
In just a few minutes, Kim Dohyun had taken control of the delinquents’ playground.
He tossed 20,000 won toward the boy sprawled on the ground. The two bills fluttered weakly and landed on the boy’s school uniform.
“Compensation.”
“...Huh?”
“I said compensation. Your mouth is split inside and bleeding, right? Use it to buy medicine or smoke a cigarette or whatever. Handle it yourself.”
“Ah... y-yes. Th-thank you...?”
He didn’t even know why he was thanking him, but the boy took the 20,000 won anyway.
Clack.
As Kim Dohyun walked in among them, the delinquents moved aside. Dohyun took his younger sister’s hand—the one standing at the edge of the group, Kim Seohee—and led her away.
“Seohee, let’s go home.”
On the way back home.
After I’d taken her from the playground, Seohee followed behind me in silence. Every now and then I could feel her stealing glances at me, but she didn’t say anything, and I didn’t know what I should say either, so we walked without speaking.
Would you like me to recommend something to talk about?
Zero asked, but...
No. With family, I want to think for myself and say what I actually want to say.
Just as expected.
I declined Zero’s help.
And kept thinking.
What should I say?
...I’ll just say what I want to say.
That seemed best. I didn’t need to force some cool, meaningful speech; I just needed to say what I, as her older brother, wanted to tell my sister.
Slowing my pace, I spoke to Seohee.
“I’m sorry, Seohee.”
“...Huh? W-what for?”
“For being so late. I should have understood how you felt sooner, and helped you sooner. You didn’t want to hang around those guys either.”
“...”
“But every time debt collectors came to the house, and every time relatives showed up... you were alone, feeling lonely and scared and exhausted, so you leaned on them.”
Seohee stopped walking.
At my words, she came to a halt. I turned back and kept going.
“I’m sorry. Your older brother should have realized all of that sooner.”
“...”
“From now on, I’ll stay with you. Tell me anything that’s hard, anything that scares you. I’ll take care of all of it.”
Seohee kept looking at me without saying a word.
Then.
With a sudden lunge, she threw herself into my arms and burst into tears.
“Hic... sob...!!”
“...”
Seohee still didn’t say anything, but I could understand.
She was telling me, Thank you.
I just patted her on the back.
“Yeah, go ahead and cry. Whenever something’s hard, you can come cry in your brother’s arms anytime.”
“Mm... hic... sob...!”
> Those were words worthy of more than 100 points, Master.
So you say, Zero.
Seohee cried in my arms for a long time.
Only after she finally calmed down did she look at me again, her eyes still red, but with a clearly brighter expression and voice. Sniffling as she spoke.
“Sniff...! Hehe, let’s go home, oppa. It’s cold.”
“Yeah.”
“But oppa. Didn’t you take the CSAT today?”
“I did.”
“How was it?”
“It was just okay, I guess.”
“I see.”
At my answer, Seohee didn’t ask any more about the exam. In her own way, I think she was trying not to pry since she figured I hadn’t done well.
“Oh, and oppa... about earlier, when you slapped Minho.”
“Minho? Oh, that guy I hit was Minho?”
“Yeah.”
“Why? You guys close? I should’ve just talked instead of hitting him?”
“No, we’re not close or anything—just, I didn’t know you were that good at fighting. Minho’s one of the better fighters in our neighborhood.”
So he was a fighter after all.
I had no idea.
“Who’s the strongest one?”
“The best fighter is Taeyeong oppa.”
“Geum Taeyeong?”
“Yeah. The one you work part-time with.”
Geum Taeyeong was one of my few high school friends. He had bleached blond hair and dark skin, a typical thug, and we’d gotten close over the course of working part-time together.
So he was the best fighter in the neighborhood.
Maybe that’s why he ended up becoming a gangster later.
“Earlier, after you took Minho apart, the others didn’t dare move a muscle.”
“I’m not even sure I’m that good at fighting.”
“Really? Ooh... our brother can fight a little, huh?”
Seohee teasingly tapped my arm. Cute.
Well... no matter how well he could fight, it couldn’t have mattered.
Because I’d downloaded the fighting style of UFC champion Marcos Silva through Zero.
But Zero. When I slapped that guy earlier, it felt kind of awkward. There isn’t some problem, is there?
> There is no problem. It is simply an unavoidable gap. Compared to Marcos Silva, you lack both “talent” and “training.”
> That is why your current physical ability cannot follow his data at 100% efficiency, and why it feels “awkward.”
> Your current synchronization rate with Marcos Silva is 42%.
Forty-two percent... So against local punks, that was enough?
> More than enough.
Before long, we reached home. Just as I was about to head down the stairs to the semi-basement entrance, Seohee asked a little cautiously,
“Um... oppa, earlier you said you’d solve anything that was hard or scary.”
“Yeah.”
“If that includes our family’s debt, I want you not to worry too much. There’s no way you can pay it off, oppa.”
“...”
“You working part-time until late every day... I hated it. It was just like Dad. Suffering pointlessly over money you could never even repay.”
The girl who had just been crying was worrying about me now. My chest ached a little. The old me had used making money as an excuse, but never once really looked at how my family felt.
But now there was no need for that worry anymore. In my pocket was a lottery ticket—a piece of paper worth tens of billions of won.
I smiled at Seohee and said,
“I’ll handle that too. Just trust your brother.”
“...?”
“Seriously, don’t worry about anything. I really mean it. I’ll solve everything.”
Seohee stared at me blankly. Then she looked away a little, muttering shyly,
“...What are you saying? Why are you acting all cool all of a sudden?”
And so I led Seohee down into the semi-basement. Even though it was winter, a faint dampness drifted out from the front door, and dark mold had crept up the walls. Under ordinary circumstances, it would have been a suffocating sight.
But today was different.
I slipped my hand deep into my pocket. The thin paper beneath my fingertips.
That single slip of paper would wipe away this miserable stench and scenery of poverty.
Tomorrow I’ll go to school and tell them my CSAT estimated score... then on Saturday, I’ll check the lottery results, and on Monday I’ll go collect the prize.
Tomorrow, and the day after, and every day after that—I was looking forward to them.
For the first time in my life.
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