Regression
In Dojin's memory, Seungwan at this time was like a mother cat who had just given birth.
Just as a mother cat fiercely protects her kittens, she was incredibly protective of Dohee.
Even Dojin had once thought she was being overly meddlesome.
'Well, later on, I fully understood why Seungwan had to act that way.'
That was why, now when they hadn't built any trust yet, it was right to reassure her like this.
If he didn't, knowing Seungwan's personality, she would likely grab Dohee's hand and leave right then and there.
Perhaps Dojin's prediction was correct, because as he took a step back, the tension in Seungwan's eyes softened considerably.
"Seungwan, I'm fine. I was a bit startled, but nothing happened."
"Is that a joke? Of course nothing should have happened!"
"Ah, you're right. Pfft, that sounded a bit weird. Anyway, I'm fine. And besides, he's totally my type."
"Hey! Ugh, what am I going to do with this dummy?"
"Hehe!"
Listening to their banter, Dojin desperately controlled his facial muscles.
He was already well-accustomed to their comedy routine.
However, if they misunderstood and thought he was laughing at them, his already poor first impression might turn into the absolute worst.
"So, what business do you have with our Dohee? I heard you mention her name earlier. Have you two met before?"
"No way, I told you, he's my type! If I'd seen him before, there's no way I would've let him get away."
"Hey! Stop being so dramatic and step back for a second."
"Okay!"
Having shut Dohee up with a single word, Seungwan turned her gaze to Dojin.
Her posture practically demanded he speak if he had anything to say.
In response, Dojin brought up the explanation he had been organizing in his head.
"It's true that this is the first time we've met. I'm sorry for pulling your friend away like that. She is completely my type, and I didn't think I could talk to her calmly back there..."
"Then how did you know her name?"
"I overheard your conversation at the convenience store earlier. To be honest, I fell in love at first sight right then and followed you."
It wasn't a lie.
That was exactly what the past Dojin had done.
But Dohee must have liked the sound of that, because she began to run wild again.
"Oh my, since then? Gosh... a woman like me is truly a sinner. Captivating such a handsome guy without even trying."
"..."
"Okay, okay, I'll be quiet."
Subduing her friend with a glare, Seungwan looked at Dojin with a dissatisfied gaze.
Having known Seungwan for a long time, Dojin knew exactly what that look meant.
Why is he eavesdropping on other people's conversations? Is this guy some kind of creep?
The exact wording might differ slightly, but she was undoubtedly thinking something along those lines.
In a situation like this, there was only one thing Dojin could say.
"I know it looks suspicious, but I'm not a weird person. I can even show you my ID. I was just purely drawn to Dohee because she is so beautiful."
"Kyaa! He said beautiful! Seungwan, he just called me beautiful!"
"..."
"It's true. I'm not usually this bold, but the moment I saw Dohee, my body just moved on its own. It's the truth. Please believe me."
"Oh, it's fine. That can happen. I think a man needs to have that kind of courage."
"..."
As Dojin's explanations and Dohee's loud "mutterings" continued, Seungwan's expression grew increasingly rotten.
Of course, Dojin knew exactly what that expression meant too.
Seriously, they're both acting so ridiculous. They really are a match made in heaven.
She was probably thinking something like that.
Even in the past, whenever Dojin and Dohee were acting lovey-dovey, Seungwan would mutter to herself with that exact expression.
Back then, the couple would proudly puff out their chests in response...
I miss those days.
Memories of the past are always like faded photographs.
Even if recalling them brings happiness, returning to reality only makes one's heart ache again at the bleakness of the present.
But not anymore.
This situation might be an illusion or a dream, but at least right now, it was a reality more brilliant than anything else.
And so, Dojin mustered up even more courage than he had in the past.
"Dohee, I fell in love with you at first sight. Please go out with me!"
"..."
"Oh my! Oh my goodness! Really? You're confessing to me right now, right?"
"Yes! If you accept, I will make you happier than anyone else in the world!"
"Oh my, I'd love to... No, wait, is this too fast? Um... but I like it so much, what should I do?"
"...Sigh... Fuck."
Caught between Dojin's confession attack and her friend who was thoroughly enjoying it, Seungwan let out an annoyed curse.
"Ehehehe."
A goofy laugh escaped Dojin's lips as he checked the message.
Fortunately, he was alone in his room, so no one had to witness him looking like that.
"This is still a huge step forward compared to before, right?"
In the end, he hadn't heard her say yes to being his girlfriend yet.
She had probably thought it was too much to start dating the very first time they met.
Instead, they had set up a date.
They agreed to go on a few dates first before deciding whether to make it official.
Compared to the past, where they had spent six months in the "some" stage before finally dating, this was a massive leap forward.
"Whew, now all that's left is the plan for the future."
Dojin's expression, which had been goofy while looking at the chat, suddenly turned serious.
It was a relief to have returned to the past and met Dohee, but if things continued like this, he would only repeat his past failures.
"First, I have to do something about Dohee's family."
In the past, there had been no problems between Dojin and his wife.
The sole reason Dohee had demanded a divorce was because of her abnormal family.
An alcoholic father-in-law and a gambling-addicted mother-in-law.
On top of that, an eldest brother who was a half-baked gangster, and a second brother who was just a straight-up thug.
Every single family member was the type that would make anyone seriously reconsider marriage if even one of them existed.
It was a miracle how someone as bright and upright as Dohee could have come from such a family.
"Just keeping our distance won't work. Those leeches will try to stick a straw into us no matter what."
That was a method that had already failed in the past.
Following his wife's wishes—she shuddered at the mere mention of her family—he had avoided contact and made sure they never met.
But they were persistent.
They had even tracked him down to the factory where he worked, throwing a massive scene if he refused to meet them.
After hearing that the factory manager had eventually given them some money to chase them away, Dojin had no choice but to meet them.
Calling the police only worked temporarily.
"Hiring people... would probably be a bit much."
In his heart, he wanted to hire someone to break their limbs just to keep them away.
But that wasn't a real solution.
"There's no way a gambler and an alcoholic would let go of their cash cow just because of a few broken bones."
The same went for the two brothers.
Those pieces of trash knew all too well that the only source of money they could squeeze was Dojin and his wife.
"Should we just live far away? If we go overseas, they won't be able to follow us."
It was the most ideal method, but realistically impossible.
Since those leeches would follow them to the ends of the earth if they stayed in the country, fleeing abroad was the only way, but neither of them spoke foreign languages, nor did they have the wealth to emigrate.
"Convincing Dohee is also an issue. If I suggest emigrating just to avoid her family, she might feel too guilty and refuse to marry me."
Dohee was definitely the type to make that choice.
If she knew he was choosing an uncertain life abroad just for her sake, she would choose to break up with him for his own good.
"Still, for starters, I need to quit the factory. Knowing those people, they'll cause trouble at the factory one way or another."
Of course, not right this second.
They weren't even dating yet, let alone married.
But it was also true that he didn't have much time to spare.
Dojin planned to marry her again before this miraculous, uncertain time slipped away, and the moment they did, those leeches would immediately stick their noses in.
"...What about YouTube? Should I stop doing it like before?"
Dojin looked at the GoPro sitting lonely on one corner of his desk.
Originally, he had been running a YouTube channel around this time.
He hadn't been thinking of it as a grand side hustle.
He had simply started filming to keep a record of his life, which felt like it was just endlessly repeating between the factory and the dormitory.
If he had to classify it, he was closer to a vlogger than a YouTuber.
At first, he just filmed his light daily routine after work, but the scope gradually expanded.
A family of stray cats settled near the factory.
The occasional good restaurant he visited.
Even business trip videos filmed with the mindset of going on a vacation.
Just as Dojin was losing track of his channel's identity because it had become a complete hodgepodge, he received a blessing.
The blessing of being chosen by the algorithm.
Thanks to that, his channel—which had been like a messy stew—saw a rapid increase in subscribers, and the view counts on some videos even surpassed 100,000.
"Come to think of it, the reason I met Dohee was also because of YouTube."
As his subscriber count grew and viewer engagement increased, Dojin had started taking YouTube more seriously.
The only reason he, someone who usually avoided crowded places, had gone to see the cherry blossoms was to capture some new footage.
"Dohee really loved my videos..."
She especially liked the cat videos and the business trip videos disguised as travel vlogs.
"Should I keep doing YouTube for a while, if only to relive those memories? I already know the future trends, anyway."
Even though the revenue was small, if he quit the factory, every little bit would help support his livelihood.
As he was thinking this, a comment his wife had made in the past popped into Dojin's head.
"Let's try making content like this later."
She had said that while watching a video by a YouTuber named Sushiramen.
She had watched the video of the YouTuber who bought a closed school and rode an electric cart around to introduce the place dozens of times.
"A closed school... Should I try that too?"
Actually, he didn't necessarily need to buy a closed school.
Sushiramen had bought it because he needed a large plot of land for his experiments, but Dojin's channel didn't require such a vast space.
Yet, Dohee's words kept echoing in Dojin's ears.
"With the money I have now, I might actually be able to buy one."
People might think buying a closed school required an astronomical amount of money, but it actually didn't cost that much.
Thanks to decades of low birth rates, closed schools were constantly put up for sale, and if one looked closely at auction listings, there were quite a few closed schools that could be bought for less than the price of a studio apartment in Seoul.
Besides...
"If it's a closed school, I happen to know of a good one."
On a whim, Dojin searched for the school's name on his phone.
Tap, tap, tap.
Jeong-a Elementary School
The search results appeared quickly.
However, no matter how far down he scrolled, there was barely any information about Jeong-a Elementary School.
The only result that came up was a snippet from a local news section.
Even when he clicked on the news article, there wasn't much to read.
Although the title mentioned Jeong-a Elementary School, the actual article was just about low birth rates and how closed schools were increasing in other regions.
"...I already knew, but it's still bittersweet."
Jeong-a Elementary School.
The school, whose name meant "to grow into upright and beautiful children," was Dojin's alma mater, and it had already been closed for five years.
To Dojin, it felt like it had been closed for fifteen years, but whenever he thought of this place, he would sink into a deep nostalgia.
Even for an orphan like him, his elementary school days had been incredibly happy.
Clap!
Dojin clapped his hands together as he pondered over the school.
It was a habit of his whenever he made a firm decision.
"Alright, let's buy it."
It was a conclusion reached after a brief but deep contemplation.
Since he had been working at the factory since high school, he had saved up a decent amount of money.
Maintaining the facilities after buying the school would cost more money, but he figured he could manage that with his severance pay.
Above all, if he bought his alma mater, he had a way to make a significant amount of money.
"First, I need to look into the auction."
Dojin's fingers began to move faster across the screen as he searched the internet.