Dad's Envy and the Cannes School Banner
"So envious, Sora~ Da-som!" Dad was sprawled out on the sofa.
I wished Dad could come with us... Unfortunately, he couldn't because of work. He could probably swing a day or two off somehow, but this trip was quite long. And in this era, company culture was still heavily communalist. You know, the kind where taking vacation days made people give you side-eye. Plus, taking several days off in a row? Dad's position might just vanish. It had only been a few years since the five-day workweek was introduced, after all.
Of course, even in my original time, small and medium enterprises stuck to six-day weeks as standard. Only big corporations, civil servants, or public company employees got five days. Even over twenty years after the five-day week was implemented, six-day weeks were still rampant—so why wouldn't they be now? If anything, it was probably worse.
"Dad, why don't you just quit and come have fun?"
"No way, Sora~ How could I quit a job I finally landed!"
Once Parasite opens and starts raking in the cash... Dad wouldn't have to work this hard anymore. Of course, I couldn't be 100% sure it'd be a total hit. That's why I hadn't told Dad to quit his job.
Instead, Dad smiled and said, "Sora, have a great time with Mom. Just bring back a gift for Dad, and I'll be happy."
"Dad..."
I made a mental note to buy some snacks he likes. Mom looked a little regretful too that Dad couldn't go.
"Honey, I wish you could come too..."
"We can go later~ We've got plenty of time~"
Watching Dad's nonchalant attitude, I could feel the weight of being the breadwinner. He wanted to go more than anyone, but he was upholding his role as the family head. I ran into his arms. All I could offer was this physical affection. Sounds a bit off, but that's all I had—this body of mine.
Dad loved it when I stayed in his embrace like this. Even now, he hugged me tight and said, "Aigoo, my Sora! Who'd you get this cuteness from?"
"Waaah!"
But I wasn't prepared for his beard attack. Trapped in his arms, I fell victim to the scratchy assault. Mom, seeing this, delivered a solid smack to his back.
Dad let out a weird yelp and released me. I finally broke free.
"Hee hee hee hee!"
But I loved this everyday routine. It was so much better than our single-room days, at least. I could sense Dad coming back to life. His health had deteriorated from the day labor, but now he was recovering. Working night and day, six or seven days a week—his body couldn't stay healthy through that.
Kim Mi-jeong, the homeroom teacher for Class 1-1 at Byeolbit Elementary School, couldn't help but be flustered. It was all because of one of her students.
"Uh... uh-uh...!"
The kid holding something out and asking for a signature was none other than Sora. She was probably the most unique child in her class. They'd spent quite some time together, but Mi-jeong still didn't fully understand her. Sora seemed to get along with classmates sometimes, but other times she was alone—like a solitary wolf.
But today! Sora approached her with something in hand. Mi-jeong looked at her with trembling eyes.
"S-Sora, what's this?"
"Please sign, Teacher."
"Huuuh?!"
Mi-jeong couldn't help but be shocked by the paper Sora handed her. It was the form she'd given out for field trip experiences—meant for excused absences with attendance verification.
But the content was anything but ordinary. Sora said flatly, almost mechanically,
"I've been invited to the Cannes Film Festival. I won't be able to attend classes due to the event, so could this count as field trip attendance verification or an excused absence?"
"S-Sora! Cannes Film Festival...!"
Mi-jeong forced an awkward smile. Sure, elementary kids missed school for all sorts of reasons. But in Korea—no, anywhere in the world—a first-grader skipping class for a Cannes invitation? This had to be a world first. A feat only Sora could achieve.
Mi-jeong skimmed the document. It was genuine—an official invite from Cannes to Sora. Just to be safe, in case it was a prank, she even called the parents. It was the first she'd heard of it. But Sora's mom confirmed it was all true—no lies.
Cannes was a perfectly legitimate excuse to miss school. The school would probably encourage it—it raised the institution's prestige. Most principals dreamed of their students achieving great things.
"S-Sora! Congratulations."
"What's there to congratulate?"
Sora's response was utterly curt. People in the film industry dreamed and prayed for a Cannes invite, but to Sora, it was just one way to take a trip to France. Nothing more.
Thud!
The stamp came down. Of course, skipping too much like this might mean no perfect attendance award. But to Sora, that was just a meaningless certificate. As a kid, I'd done all sorts of crazy things for one... but as an adult, it was worthless. Probably just a ploy to encourage steady attendance.
And in the 2020s, getting one was seen as weird. They called recipients "attendance losers" or something. Sora had been shocked to hear that. Perfect attendance just proved you showed up consistently. To kids, it made you look like a loser who couldn't even travel abroad with your parents.
Sora could only shake her head at the thought. Anyway, she now had legal permission to skip school.
Soon after, a massive banner went up at the main gate of Byeolbit Elementary School, where Sora attended.
[Domestic First! Congratulations to Sora on Her Cannes Film Festival Invitation!]
Adults getting invites was common, but an elementary student? Unheard of.
"Huaaaah..."
I woke up in bed. Mom was already bustling about. Today was the day we headed to France. I pulled the blanket over my head. For some reason, I just didn't want to leave its warmth.
But Mom put a stop to that.
"Sora~! Time to get up~"
"Muuung..."
"Hey!"
"Okay..."
I scratched my messy hair and got out of bed. I washed up, and Mom blow-dried my hair. The suitcase was already packed. We never had one at home before. Made sense—we were drowning in debt; travel wasn't an option. Who'd have luggage for trips in that situation?
But things were different now. Our finances had improved, and we could actually afford a vacation.
"Hee hee!"
Thankfully, I wasn't dressed in Mom's taste. I wore what I wanted. Mom knew when to compromise. My reflection in the mirror was perfection. I could head straight to the festival like this. Well, Cannes had a dress code—crisp suits were mandatory. Not sure if it applied to kids, but probably.
"Honey! Princess Sora~ Time to go! We'll miss the flight!"
Dad was playing chauffeur for the day, driving us all the way. He'd drop us off and head straight to work.
"Yes!"
I took Mom's hand and got in Dad's car. The rattling engine and the visible wear and tear everywhere on this old junker. If we had money, Dad's car would be first on the upgrade list. Even if he didn't care much about cars, this was too much. Though, to be fair, we never had the cash before.
It wasn't frugality; we simply couldn't afford one. Cars are expensive, and they depreciate the moment you buy them. Gold holds or gains value over time, but cars? The joke was that just turning the key drops the price by 20%. No idea why anyone bought those brands.