Chapter 454
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 454
Whirring—.
The sound of a cassette tape rewinding played repeatedly, then—blink.
Between his opening and closing eyelids, a letter written by his mother appeared.
Meeting someone means an eventual parting is only natural.
To think these were the first words she would leave her son.
It was just like his mother, yet at the same time, it was incredibly cold.
Nineteen-year-old Kang Yi-chae, having read that far, couldn't find the courage to read the next sentence. He let out a small sigh, folded the stationery neatly, and tucked it into his coat.
In the end, no miracle occurred.
His mother, who had fought illness for nearly ten years, passed away before he even turned twenty.
After the funeral, he began handling the matters he had postponed through a lawyer. He liquidated his assets during the process. He did so because he believed he would never have a reason to return to Korea, a place where he didn't know a single soul.
As he spent his days in such a busy blur, leaving only a single house behind, Yi-chae suddenly realized something.
‘Wow, there really is no one left by my side.’
He was truly alone.
He had no one to open up to and have fun with, and dealing with relatives who didn't even treat him like family was a worthless endeavor.
The moment that thought struck him, Yi-chae had to bolt from his seat and head outside. He needed to move his body somehow to scatter his intrusive thoughts.
He wandered aimlessly, drifting wherever his feet led him. When he finally snapped out of it, he found himself at a playground in an old apartment complex near the hospital where his mother had stayed for a long time.
Yi-chae slowly approached the swings. He could feel the weight of time etched into them.
He sat down and tilted his head back to look at the sky.
Squeak—.
Squeeeak—.
The meeting with the brothers he had befriended here as a child had lasted quite a while.
At first, it was just a few words exchanged with the older brother, but before he knew it, the younger brother had joined in, and they were all hanging out together.
Through that, Yi-chae gradually learned things about them—random bits of information like how the older brother’s dream was to be a broadcasting station PD, how their parents were surprisingly distant with each other, and how the older brother was a popular figure in the neighborhood.
More than anything, he learned they were the kind of people who knew how to speak kindly to a child who looked depressed, even if that child was a stranger.
“Something good will happen tomorrow. Look forward to it.”
However, once his mother was discharged, the connection with them naturally severed, and as Yi-chae returned to the United States, those memories gradually faded.
* * *
That was certainly how it was supposed to be.
So why was Kang Yi-chae lingering around a broadcasting station now?
‘…What am I even doing here?’
He couldn't understand his own actions, yet he didn't feel like turning back.
By chance, at an old favorite convenience store, he had learned that the older brother was working at QBS. A quick search on his phone revealed he was part of the variety department.
Since then, Yi-chae had been camping out in a nearby cafe, eventually gathering information that the man frequently appeared around the editing rooms and the station's smoking areas.
‘…Should I just go back?’
He scanned the smoking area located on the back path of the station's rear entrance—a place that, while off-limits to outsiders, seemed easy enough to access. He crossed his arms, unable to comprehend his own behavior.
‘What do I even say if we run into each other?’
If he told him he was that kid from back then, would the older brother welcome him like he did in those days?
For a moment, he recalled the day his mother’s health improved and she was discharged from the hospital.
He had been so happy and excited that he completely forgot he had been meeting the brothers at the same time and place every day. Even though it was so late that he assumed no one would be there, he had rushed to the playground anyway. There, Seo Ho-yun was leaning against the road fence, yawning as he waited for him.
When their eyes finally met, Ho-yun seemed to grasp the situation just by the look on Yi-chae's face, and his eyes crinkled into a smile.
As if to say, I'm glad things worked out.
‘There’s no way he’d recognize me, but…’
Still, just in case.
As he stood there hesitating, the sound of conversation grew closer.
“—Oh, by the way, Senior, I heard Seo Ho-yun is getting a new program as the main PD in the latter half of next year.”
“What?! I haven't even gotten one yet?!”
Startled, Yi-chae looked left and right before quickly squeezing himself next to a vending machine in the corner. He wasn't completely hidden, but he figured he could more or less conceal himself in the shadows.
Fortunately, the two men standing in the smoking area didn't notice him and continued their conversation nonchalantly.
“Ha, seriously… that guy really is something else. He’s always been so relentless, and he finally pulled it off.”
“He’s a real piece of work. I’m his colleague from the same year, and even back when we first started, he’d crawl back home every single day without fail, yet he still managed to get everything done.”
This guy was certainly famous.
To think Yi-chae could hear stories about him just by lingering near the station.
“Ah, right. Because he did that so much, there was even a rumor that he had a kid, even though he wasn't married.”
“Oh, that…”
As the man addressed as "Senior" chuckled, the other person looked around and lowered his voice.
“…It wasn't a kid; it was his younger brother.”
“His brother?”
“Look, this is top secret… I only found out recently, but according to a junior I know, Seo Ho-yun’s parents passed away in a car accident when he was around twenty.”
“What?”
Yi-chae, who was eavesdropping, flinched slightly.
“Apparently, Seo Ho-yun was in the car too… After that, he supposedly had such bad trauma that he couldn't even breathe properly and had to go to the hospital for quite a while.”
“Oh, I had no idea…”
“Anyway, isn't Seo Ho-yun amazing? His brother goes to a prestigious university, and he himself even got promoted…”
Just as Yi-chae’s expression was contorting at the way they were casually gossiping about such deeply personal matters—
“Of course. It’s not like it was that difficult.”
A calm, mid-to-low voice from his distant memories pierced his ears.
Yi-chae carefully turned his head.
The man walking along the back path of the station had a face full of irritation.
It was him.
Yi-chae’s heart began to pound. As the men who had been chatting stood there gaping in surprise, Ho-yun pointed to his phone and curled the corner of his lip.
“Don’t worry. I’ve already finished casting another guest for the vacant slot.”
To any observer, it looked like he was simply responding to a phone call, but the annoyance etched into his face and the suspicious smile on his lips made it clear he had heard the entire conversation.
The men who had been chattering loudly quickly crushed their cigarettes and scurried toward the rear entrance.
“…Good work today.”
“Yes, good work.”
Ho-yun’s cold gaze followed them tenaciously.
Only after they had completely vanished did he let out a low sigh and focus back on his call.
“What else can I do… I’ll have to edit out everything that’s been filmed so far.”
Yi-chae studied him closely.
It was undoubtedly the man from his memories, yet he felt like a different person.
A dry, sensitive, and sharp aura swirled around him.
While Yi-chae’s mind wandered between the past and the present, Ho-yun hung up the phone and reached into his back pocket for a cigarette. His hand paused when he spotted Yi-chae.
“…Excuse me.”
Being addressed by him made Yi-chae’s heart drop as if it were broken.
But that turbulence quickly subsided.
“You can’t be here if you’re not staff.”
It had been over ten years; it was only natural he wouldn't recognize him.
“…That…”
Even though he had loitered around the station and stayed rooted in every single nearby cafe just to meet him.
No sound would come out of his mouth.
‘What would I even say?’
Ask if he’s been well? Ask how his brother is doing?
Tell him it’s amazing that he achieved his dream?
That he dug into his background and came all the way here just to say a few trivial words?
Watching Ho-yun twitch an eyebrow, Yi-chae managed a small smile.
“…I’m sorry, I took a wrong turn. I’ll leave right away.”
As he slowly began to walk away, Yi-chae thought to himself.
‘Still, in his own way… he seems to be doing well.’
He wished he had only heard good news about Seo Ho-yun.
Unfortunately, life continues even after bad circumstances. Everyone experienced such misfortunes.
It was the same for Yi-chae.
‘I’ll have to do well on my own from now on.’
He still didn't know why he had come to see him so recklessly, but Yi-chae decided to be satisfied with having seen his face once.
He was no longer the innocent child of those days, and Seo Ho-yun was no longer a hopeful high school student. It was time for them to go their separate ways.
Upon reaching the main gate of the station, Yi-chae wiped his face with his palm and sat down on a bench.
Then, after steadying his breathing, he pulled out his mother’s letter from his coat once more.
Meeting someone means an eventual parting is only natural.
His chest still felt hollow, but the words came to him more easily than when he first saw the letter. However, as Yi-chae’s gaze moved heavily to the next line, he found content that was quite unexpected.
—Everyone says that, but what do I care?
“…What?”
He raised an eyebrow crookedly and read the same phrase several times, but it was exactly as he had read it.
You’ll only be nineteen when you see this, so it’s okay to lean on those around you a little more.
Yi-chae let out a faint laugh at the playful tone and turned the page.
Don’t take this parting as a final goodbye.
I will always live on inside your heart.
Yi-chae’s eyes slowly scanned the words.
You can’t do everything alone.
You’re a strong child, but you get lonely easily, so you’ll need someone by your side.
The next page.
Even if today is hard, don’t give in; endure it by showing kindness to those around you.
Time is equal for everyone.
Even in the face of hardships where it feels like you can no longer move forward, if you persevere and face them, time will flow, and a kind tomorrow will welcome you.
Before he knew it, the letter trembled along with Yi-chae’s shaking hands.
I hope you spend that tomorrow with the people you love.
I love you, Yi-chae.
More than anything in the world.
Waiting for the day we meet again, Mom.
After staring at the final sentence for a long time, Yi-chae slowly looked up at the sky. The sight of a few white clouds drifting leisurely through the blue expanse reminded him of his childhood.
As he blinked slowly, the sunlight touching his cheeks vanished, and a shadow fell over his face.
“Hey, I saw you earlier.”
In truth, Yi-chae knew well enough.
“Why do you look so familiar?”
That you can’t easily have what you want, and you often lose even the things you desperately wished for.
Life and death, meetings and partings, beginnings and ends…
That similar happiness and misfortune happen to everyone, and that since this is the natural order of things, one must accept it.
“Have we met somewhere before?”
But Yi-chae couldn't easily accept such a "natural order."
‘That’s probably why I came all the way here.’
Using his memories as a stepping stone, leaning on someone’s kindness.
Because he wanted to be with him.
“…Hyung.”
Yi-chae smiled brightly, blocking the sun that had lingered over him for so long.
“…Want to see each other tomorrow, too?”
.
.
.
Whirring—.
That was the end.
Whirring—.
Even though his reminiscence had concluded, the sound of the cassette tape rewinding didn't stop.
“—is that kid—.”
The voices of Seo Ho-yun and himself leaked out, cutting in and out repeatedly.
Screeeech—.
Then came the sound of tires skidding—
“Kang Yi-chae.”
And it felt like someone had approached him while he was in despair.
“—just—give—.”
“…You fearless bastard…”
As he blinked his eyelids sluggishly at the jumbled memories, the figure who had shielded him and fallen over him grabbed his shoulders firmly. Their gazes locked clearly.
“—Get a grip.”
The moment his reason fully returned—
Ding!
Ding!
Ding!
Di…
D—
* * *
—…….
[……78%]
[83%……]
He saw sheet music fluttering in all directions.
A piano that had narrowly grazed Seo Ho-yun’s shoulder smashed into the wall and shattered. Seo Ho-yun, his face pale, cursed under his breath as he looked down at him.
‘Funny.’
To think that at this moment, when everything seemed to have gone wrong, he was certain that the person right in front of him was the older brother he used to meet.
‘Our fate is truly persistent.’
They had gone in circles only to end up desperately intertwined once again.
As Yi-chae covered his mouth and slightly turned his face away, Seo Ho-yun, seeing him, muttered as if he couldn't believe it.
“You almost died; what’s there to smile about, you crazy bastard…”
[……97%….]
[100% Achieved! Congratulations!]
[The Main Scenario has been fully completed!]
Simultaneously, a large system window popped up, and his vision swayed violently.
[Kang Yi-chae, The Dawn Rapper]
[Note: To the past player ‘Seo Ho-yun’—….]
Then, as if his role was finished, the blue light flickered with static and gradually began to fade.
Now, Kang Yi-chae truly had no means left to hold onto Seo Ho-yun. He couldn't bring down or ruin The Dawn just to keep him.
As the final sheet of music touched the floor, the trembling ground fell silent.
[Would you like to return to—…?]
The characters forming on the dim system window flickered for a long time before eventually scattering and evaporating.
The heavy air clinging damply to his skin, the dust motes shimmering as they floated in the wavering light, the clock that didn't move as if time had been stretched—…
—Tick.
As the second hand moved, the dawn broke beyond the collapsed building in the distance, dyeing the sky red.
Seo Ho-yun, who had been staring into the void as if watching the sunset or perhaps something that had vanished from him, slowly turned his head and reached out to Yi-chae. Yi-chae looked at him for a moment before taking his hand.
Then, Seo Ho-yun pulled him up with strength and whispered softly.
“Kang Yi-chae.”
But Yi-chae didn't regret it.
“Let’s go home.”
Seo Ho-yun would eventually come looking for him again.