Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: Gahyeon-dong Hero
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Oh my God.
What the hell had I done?
“Are you okay?”
I hurried over to the cop groaning on the marble floor.
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to…”
“I-it’s fine.”
“Here, grab my hand and stand up.”
My mind was a whirlwind as the young man gripped my hand and got to his feet.
What was this?
It made no sense.
My body had moved on its own, slamming a total stranger to the ground.
He looked just as stunned, but so was I.
The takedown I’d pulled off was straight out of the movie I’d just seen on TV.
“Hello.”
We moved to the hospital cafe, where he introduced himself.
“I’m from Eunpyeong Police Station. I’m the investigator handling this case.”
“Yes, hello.”
His short sports cut, tanned skin, and rugged features gave him a classic detective vibe.
His business card read “Traffic Investigation Officer Jang Kyung-il.”
“Uh, more importantly, are you hurt anywhere?”
“I’m fine.”
Jang Kyung-il flashed a cool grin.
“Don’t let the looks fool you—I was on the judo team back in the day. This is nothing, owowow…!”
“Are you okay?”
“Oof… that’s what I was saying.”
He was clearly in a lot of pain, but I let it slide.
“That was one hell of a takedown. Not something you pick up overnight—must’ve been muscle memory from your player days?”
“Uh, yeah…”
“Well, that explains it.”
It was a lie, but I couldn’t exactly say, “I accidentally copied a move from a movie, haha.”
He soon pulled out a notepad and started asking questions.
I answered faithfully.
After the brief Q&A, I voiced the question nagging at me.
“Was it drunk driving? The car was swerving all over the place.”
“No drunk driving. Turns out he’s an epilepsy patient. He said he was dropping his daughter off at the exam center when he had a seizure.”
“Can epilepsy patients even get a driver’s license?”
“They can.”
The cop nodded.
“It’s complicated to explain here, but legally, there was no issue with his license acquisition.”
“…I see.”
It left a bitter taste knowing a fellow examinee’s family had cost me my CSAT.
“So what happens now?”
“We’ll have to file charges. Nearly killed two people, after all.”
I really could’ve died.
Jumping in front of a speeding car—how reckless was that? It was only hitting me now.
If it happened again, could I do the same?
Honestly, I couldn’t say for sure.
My life mattered too, but there was one person in this world who lived for me alone.
“Did you contact his family?”
“He’s got a grandmother in Gunsan. Tried calling, but her phone’s off. Probably still at the temple praying for the CSAT.”
“Oh…”
The young cop made a face that words couldn’t capture, then awkwardly changed the subject.
“Not that I should say this, but what you did was truly admirable.”
“Yes, thank you.”
How many times had I heard that today?
Around 26th time, give or take.
But this cop said something different.
“You must feel wronged and frustrated right now. Life doesn’t come free, though. What you give comes back.”
“Huh?”
“It won’t be so bad for a while.”
I asked the man smiling as he pocketed his notepad.
“What do you mean?”
“Know what hospitals and police stations have in common?”
“No idea.”
“Rumors spread like wildfire.”
I shook his outstretched hand.
Rumors spreading—what did that mean?
I was puzzling over the cryptic words as we left the hospital cafe.
That’s when I got it.
“Hey, there he is.”
A crowd surrounded me.
All sorts—men, women, different outfits. Took me a second.
Then I spotted the camera on someone’s shoulder and knew.
Someone handed me a business card.
“Hello, Seon Wooju-ssi. I’m KTN reporter No Yong-gi. Got a minute?”
I blinked blankly before it clicked.
That’s what he meant.
Word had spread through hospital and police staff, no doubt.
Hell, even I could see it was a good story.
-Student heading to CSAT dives to save old man pulling a cart.
I smiled at the business cards thrust my way.
“Sure. I’ve got time.”
I’d seen this proverb in an English textbook while studying for the CSAT.
When God gives you lemons, make lemonade.
Turn crisis into opportunity.
Yeah. Might as well enjoy it.
I was ready to whip up some lemonade.
* * *
KTN Evening News.
A neatly combed middle-aged anchor filled the TV screen.
[2014 College Entrance Exam CSAT]
Against that backdrop, the anchor spoke.
-Welcome to Issue Toktok, where we dive into the buzz online. With anchor Hong A-ran.
-Yes.
A split screen showed her standing before a list of trending searches.
-Today, on CSAT day, we’ve got a heartbreaking yet heartwarming story.
-Yes, indeed.
Hong A-ran touched the screen, zooming in on the top search.
-Today’s Issue Toktok trending search is ‘Gahyeon-dong Hero,’ number one all morning. Shall we check the related video?
The grainy footage had a source label.
Black-box recording from a nearby parked car.
It opened with an old man struggling to pull his cart.
A young man in a yellow puffer jacket appeared, helping push the handle.
Cut to CCTV.
A sedan speeds up; the walking youth dashes and shoves the old man aside.
Thud!
No sound, but the cart shatters, scrap paper flying everywhere.
The car idles to a stop.
Back to the briefing room.
-This happened around 6 a.m. today outside a high school in Gahyeon-dong, Eunpyeong-gu. Police say the driver, who’s suffered epilepsy since last year, hit the accelerator during a seizure.
-Tragic. Any injuries?
-Yes, as you saw, 70-year-old Choi, pushing the cart, nearly met disaster but was saved by a passerby.
-The rescuer’s been the talk of the day.
-Indeed.
Hong A-ran touched the screen; a thumbnail popped up.
The youth in yellow puffer.
-The Gahyeon-dong Hero who saved the 70-year-old was a CSAT examinee. Here’s reporter No Yong-gi’s exclusive interview from earlier.
The youth in a cafe, yellow jacket off, black sweater on.
Tired but handsome face clear.
[Seon Wooju / Gahyeon-dong Hero]: Regret it?
He gave a wry smile.
[Seon Wooju / Gahyeon-dong Hero]: A little. But life comes first. Can’t compare it to a test you can retake next year.
[Reporter]: What went through your mind rushing to save him?
[Seon Wooju / Gahyeon-dong Hero]: Honestly? Nothing. Body moved before my brain kicked in.
A snippet of the interview, then back to the briefing room.
Hong A-ran looked straight at the camera.
-That was Gahyeon-dong Hero Seon’s interview. He only suffered a mild concussion from tumbling down the hill. Meanwhile, he’s revealed as a consistent top-grade scorer in mock exams, amplifying the regret.
-Heartwarming yet heartbreaking. What about the victim?
-Choi was taken to hospital—cracked rib aside, just minor bruises.
-A miracle.
-Yes.
-This has put the Road Traffic Authority’s lax licensing under fire.
I switched off the DMB screen there.
Portal site news had my name plastered everywhere.
-CSAT Day: Student Saves 70-Year-Old’s Life…
-‘Gahyeon-dong Hero’ Seon Wooju: ‘Overwhelming Attention for What I Did.’
-Seoul Metro Police Consider Award for Gahyeon-dong Hero.
I breathed the cold air, gazing at the night sky.
What a world.
As a trainee, I’d daydreamed about this daily.
Fame from the stage, everyone knowing my name—what would that feel like?
Ironically, here it was.
Sure.
I knew better than anyone it was fleeting.
But today, I was more famous than any trainee out there.
Plus, beyond the grand “hero” title, something else was buzzing online.
My interview capture circulating communities.
-Wow, total looker lololol
-But fr, babyface… thought he was in high school
-If I ran a cram school, I’d pay a year’s tuition to snag him now
Praise for my looks was endless, embarrassingly so.
I scrolled comments carefully.
Nice to be noticed, but weird feeling.
Two years of studying down the drain, after all.
“Whew…”
Wind-chilled sky glance, then to my smartphone.
Messenger alerts nonstop.
Tons.
Close friends, acquaintances, even faces I barely recalled.
My usually quiet phone was exploding.
Probably checking in after news or net—too much to reply now.
Something more pressing.
I eyed the baseball in my hand.
Empty field.
CSAT night—school lights all off.
No eyes on me, I gripped the ball.
Today’s events.
Needed to test it.
About to toss toward the stands for experiment, phone buzzed suddenly.
Name on screen made me flinch.
What? Why call now?
Hit accept anyway.
“Hello.”
-Took the call, huh?
His surprised tone made me pout.
“What’s that ‘took the call’ supposed to mean, hyung?”
-Hey, still calling me hyung. Haven’t forgotten me?
“Of course not.”
-My networking skills still legendary.
“Weird talk means you’re all healed up.”
Caller: Yoon Seok-hwan.
My manager from trainee days.
“Body okay now, hyung? Heard you quit soon after I left—herniated disc.”
-How’d you know?
“Taehyun told me.”
Han Tae-hyun, fellow TNT debut group trainee.
Kept in touch after quitting, but post-military, just TV updates.
“Feeling better?”
-All good. Started working again while you were in service.
“TJ Entertainment?”
-Tried going back, but spot filled. Big companies, am I right?
“Yeah, that place sucks.”
Trashing the company bonded us briefly.
“Anyway, what’s up?”
-We need a reason to talk?
“Yeah.”
-…
“You called for a reason. No hard feelings.”
-Got a proposal.
“Can’t do it over phone?”
-C’mon. Industry stuff—face-to-face is custom. Free tonight?
“No plans.”
-Then come out. Been ages—let’s meet. My treat.
Gulp.
Forgot dinner amid all the chaos.
Stomach growled; I cleared my throat.
“Not somewhere cheap.”
-Corporate card ready. Name it.
“Flower sirloin.”
-Flower sirloin?
“Yeah, not just flower—snow flower sirloin.”
-Weren’t you a pork guy?
True.
Still am, sorta.
But that last memory on the icy pre-dawn road stuck.
Sirloin for 3: 45,000 won.
Without it, I’d have said pork belly.
-Gotta love the freebie fiend. Know a killer beef joint—there? You in Eunpyeong-gu, right?
“How’d you know?”
-Pfft, your face everywhere online.
That bad?
-Sending address via text.
“Hyung, gonna take a bit.”
-How long?
Fiddling baseball, I replied.
“Got something to handle.”
-OK. Text when you head out.
Hung up, stood.
Brushed sand from butt one hand, searched MeTube other.
[MLB top plays]
Clips of MLB stars’ best moments.
Clicked; highlights with BGM.
Held breath, focused.
How long?
Ad after end, I knew.
Weird sensation.
Whole time, some indescribable sense tingling.
Like…
Sixth sense beyond five.
This experiment tested it.
After pros’ plays, set phone to record, propped toward stands.
Backed far, pitching stance.
Intent to throw—and body moved on own.
Like with cop morning.
Auto-pilot.
Whoosh—
Angle beyond flexibility stung briefly.
Right arm whipped arc.
Crack—!
Ball hit stand, bounced, rolled.
Grabbed phone instead.
Checked.
[First Video]
Pre-MLB comparison.
Started—cringed.
Awkward everything.
Trainee ‘robot’ nickname earned.
Choppy moves, awkward limbs.
Ting.
Weak toss.
More throws same—pointless.
Back out, next video.
[Second Video]
Seconds in, gasped.
That me?
Different.
Gaze handling first change.
Clumsy, but passable—“played ball?”
Five minutes apart.
Yet my eyes couldn’t believe the form gap.
One explanation.
I’d seen pros pitch.
Suspicion to conviction to certainty.
Copy motions after one look?
Why unknown.
Concussion rewired neurons? Heaven’s reward?
Two certainties.
“…Ow!”
Thigh throbbed.
Leg overstretched mimicking pro.
Rubbed sore thigh, grimaced.
Body can’t keep up.
No perfect freebies.
First fact.
Second…
New path opened for me.