No Debt Here
The advice from Celesty had worked in most situations. A gift code was special—it instantly turned into a usable product you could redeem online or even order straight from home with it. Just a messenger app like Cocoatalk with that built-in feature? I felt like I’d won the lottery. I could eat all those meals without stepping outside. With just today’s haul, I could stretch them for months if I played my cards right.
But my relief lasted only a moment.
“Ah, I see I can’t use gift codes in the computer version of Cocoatalk.”
“Really? I never even tried the computer one, so I didn’t know. Can’t be used. Wait a sec—does that mean you still can’t use your gift codes either, Noel? Your phone’s broken.”
“…Yes.”
“Oh dear. Then no one can even verify if the codes people sent you are real or fake.”
She always spoke the truth.
Still, I refused to believe the codes people sent me were fake.
Or maybe I just wanted to believe it.
Still, people had already posted their verifications in the community.
No one would waste their time spreading a quick lie that could be spotted immediately.
If that was the case, they might as well have just deleted their accounts.
I felt a twinge of guilt for even thinking that, but given my current situation, it almost seemed amusing.
Anyway, I scraped every code from the people watching the community, pasted them all into my notebook, and let my mind wander.
To use any of them, I’d need to fix my phone.
But my money was nowhere near enough for that.
Hamburgers, chicken, pizza—were they really worth it?
Of course I wanted to eat them.
I wasn’t the type who enjoyed eating nothing but ramen every single day.
Sometimes the floury taste made me want to throw up, and when it got too spicy or salty, I just drowned it in water.
But when I thought about the cost, it felt like I’d be throwing money away.
If I simply threw away the codes I’d received, there was zero gain and zero loss for me.
It would be a shame to waste something I’d been given, but since everything was free, zero won was zero won.
Still, using them all would require fixing my phone.
I could guess the LCD repair would cost a small fortune.
The phone my mother had bought me when I started university had been new at the time.
She’d said I’d worked hard studying, and to do my best from now on, or something like that—she’d been trying to sound supportive.
…Just for a second I felt a bad thought cross my mind, but anyway.
I looked it up in case there was free repair service, but of course it came back with tens of thousands of won in repair costs.
So using them would mean paying tens of thousands of won.
The math didn’t add up.
Then what was I supposed to do…?
Logically I knew the answer—simply stop eating.
But to a girl who’d been eating only ramen for a whole month, those rich foods were an overwhelming temptation.
If only I could just register the codes, I could walk straight into the store and order myself.
If only the phone hadn’t broken on the bus…
After thinking it over for a long time, I decided to hold off and stood up.
The woman who followed me rose too, her voice gentle with concern.
“Oh? Did you have a good idea?”
“Not really. I just wanted to send some meat to the downstairs neighbor as thanks. The auntie’s phone should be fine.”
“Ah, that’s true. Even if one phone broke, neither husband nor wife would have both. Ah, but Noel, why don’t you just ask the downstairs neighbor to order chicken or pizza for you instead?”
“…I hadn’t thought of that, but it felt like a burden. And if I did that, I’d have to eat it together too.”
“Ha ha, Noel’s a greedy one? You wanted to eat everything alone?”
I kept hearing that line.
Of course the woman’s lips curled up slightly, so it was clearly just a joke.
I didn’t want to get that misunderstanding even as a joke, so I answered firmly.
“I just wanted to eat alone, but that’s not what you mean. I feel uncomfortable eating with someone. If I asked the downstairs neighbor to order delivery, of course they’d have to divide it there. I couldn’t just hand them half and come back up.”
“Hmm, that makes sense. Oh, but when I’m watching you eat, would that be too much trouble for you?”
“…No, it’s fine.”
“Ha ha ha. That’s good. Then I’ll head downstairs first, bring some meat gift code back, and think some more. Oh, I have somewhere to be soon. Do you want me to tell them everything?”
“Yes, please. Take care.”
Fortunately, the woman didn’t seem to think I was being weird about turning people down.
…It was probably just because I looked like that.
Right now, anyone who saw me would probably think I was hiding at home.
I didn’t care what people thought.
It just stung a little—very little—in my chest that a woman saw me that way.
But that didn’t mean I could change.
If anything, a person like me deserved to be left alone.
All I wanted was a kind woman who simply treated me nicely.
I memorized the codes but wrote them down on paper just in case, then left the house with the woman.
I’d lost my cane, so stepping outside felt uncomfortable.
But enduring a little inconvenience by hopping without it was better than the weight the downstairs neighbor had left in my chest.
The woman who came out with me simply watched me without doing anything.
Because of that, I had to open the door and press the elevator button myself.
It didn’t bother me at all.
She had her own place to be.
It would be best if she got to the elevator quickly.
By waiting for me like that and smiling so gently every time I moved, she was quietly cheering me on.
After the short wait, we boarded the elevator and went down one floor.
When I stepped out, I glanced back at the woman. She raised her clenched fist in a small wave.
This time, she was genuinely cheering.
I braced my hand on the wall, nodded once to her, and headed toward the downstairs neighbor.
I’d never been given the exact address, but it was the downstairs neighbor anyway.
The floor was different, but the unit number would be the same; there was no risk of getting lost.
There were only two units per floor.
I hopped along the wall to the door and rang the bell.
The apartment felt especially poorly soundproofed—footsteps sounded soft and quick just on the other side.
[Who is it? Ah, the student from upstairs. What’s the matter?]
“I-I’m sorry for always eating your kindness. I have something to give you. Could you come out for a moment if you have your phone?”
[Oh, I’ll be right out. Wait just a second.]
From what I’d seen recently, the downstairs neighbor was a full-time housewife.
Just like me, she only left the house when she had something to do.
But when she opened the door, she looked completely put-together.
No makeup, but her hair was neatly styled and her clothes were flawless.
…Her hair was messy and her clothes were wrinkled when I came back, in total contrast to her.
For a second I felt ashamed of myself.
But today was the day I came to repay her.
I didn’t need to feel down.
When the auntie saw me, she flinched.
Maybe my appearance was that pitiful.
“Um… student. I hope you don’t mind. Do you not use a crutch or wheelchair? I came because we’re neighbors.”
“Ah. I was using a cane, but it broke, so I stopped.”
“A cane…? Not a crutch, a cane?”
“Cane is expensive. A crutch isn’t. Just some branch lying on the ground, so I can pick one up and use it.”
“A branch?”
I had no idea what point made her react that way.
After all, seeing someone without a foot wasn’t a common sight.
I understood, but I didn’t like the way she looked.
I just held out my hand. The auntie, looking slightly dazed, unlocked my phone with my password and handed it back.
“I received a Cocoatalk gift code. I thought the two of you would like it.”
“Ah, you’re eating it? Oh, that’s fine. The student should eat it. We already have plenty.”
“Still, I feel bad for only receiving all the time.”
“Um… okay then. Thank you. I’ll eat it well.”
“Yes.”
With that, the debt was gone.
Well, if the auntie kept coming upstairs to give me food, that was different.
A meat gift code worth tens of thousands of won—maybe I could ignore it for a while.
I could clearly see she was hesitating, as if she had something to say.
I ignored her expression and bowed slightly, then headed back home.
Now, what to do with the remaining gift codes.
…But these had already become fully mine the moment I received them.
So whatever I did with them was my choice.
I decided to sell them to someone else.
I quickly posted an ad in the League of Champions community.
[Cheap sale of received gift codes] – NoelNongeur
Phone broke, can’t register them.
Appreciated the kind words, but since I can’t eat them, the gift codes are worthless.
I’ll buy a lot of ramen with the money, so please don’t feel sorry.