Chapter 98 – Episode 98

They both washed their feet, sat barefoot on a chair in the motel room, and started drinking soju. After hearing somewhere that it is best not to use motel or hotel cups, I drank soju using a paper cup that I had prepared in advance.

Because I drink soju from a paper cup, it looks very shapeless, but maybe it’s because I tilted it together with Hanaebom. It didn’t feel bad or bitter. I guess there’s something about drinking with a pretty girl.

‘If I drank it alone, I would have spent a lot of money.’

If I were alone in the first place, I wouldn’t have drunk soju.

Five bottles of soju for the two of us was a lot, but I thought we would never run out. It’s more alcoholic than you think.

This is already my 3rd bottle.

There wasn’t much to talk about while drinking soju.

Things like what happened while working at a study café, or the truth about convenience stores that I still encounter regularly. Also, it seems like Yoon Su-ah’s cooking skills are improving day by day. Your complexion is much better than when you first saw it, etc.

“I’ve already emptied three bottles.”

“I guess so.”

I barely had any snacks, but before I knew it, I was opening the fourth bottle of soju.

A child glances at me, and then she taps the back of her soju with her elbow, then closes her eyes and lowers her body.

“Mr. Aebom?”

“Huh…”

It’s so cute I’m dying.

“I tried to copy what Hana did before because it looked cooler than I thought?”

An Aebom nodded her head, her ears slightly blushing.

“Take it slow, take it slow.”

“Yes.”

Do you have any thoughts of giving up? When the electricity flowing from her elbow subsides, she taps it again and shakes the soju bottle excitedly.
She is a little disappointed because the bottle of soju she shakes doesn’t create a nice swirl.

“Why can’t I? “Ohana, the whirlpool was swirling really hard.”

“Ohana’s technique is good, right?”

“Hmm.”

「Talk!」

Although she was disappointed, Aebom opened the lid and persevered, even pushing the top of her bottle between her index and middle fingers. After that, she asked as she poured her soju into my glass.

“What about Hyunwoo?”

“Yes.”

“… Well, do you have any concerns?”

I wondered what kind of rice cake this was.

In fact, as she looked at Abom’s feet, she repeated the idea of ​​’weakness’ dozens of times in her head, aiming for that moment. I was given that opportunity.

I had already decided to show my weakness, so I decided to make sure of it.

“I have a lot to worry about.”

However, I had no intention of lying or acting. Han Ae-bom is a woman with a keen eye. I planned to compete with all my sincerity.

“I don’t know if I can tell you. After. “I thought it would be so embarrassing.”

“If you don’t want to talk, you don’t have to force it. “There are some worries you don’t want to tell others, right?”

“I think it would have been like that if it had been Ohana. “I want to tell Aebom.”

At my words, Han Ae-bom’s feet, which had been quietly on the floor just a moment ago, lifted slightly and began to wiggle.

The way she moves up and down and closes her feet is just like a baby.

“Did you see it today? “Her friend is very considerate of me.”

“Well, if it’s consideration, it can be seen as consideration. “I could also see it as making Hyunwoo feel uncomfortable.”

“If another kid had done that, I would have thought about it on purpose. He’s not that kind of kid. I was like that even when I was in college, when things were relatively equal. “She pays attention to what other people think a lot.”

“That’s what it says. I talked to him up close, and he seemed like a good person. Seonhwa Lee did have a bit of an ironic side.”

I nodded and chuckled.

“But actually, if I were a person so outstanding that I didn’t mind those words, I wouldn’t have been shaken by those words at all. In the first place, a popular friend wouldn’t have looked back at me like that.”

“Hyeonwoo, you’ve tried hard enough right now…”

“It’s hard work, I’ve done it before.”

“…”

“Well, I didn’t try as hard as I did now. Still, I did it to some extent because I was scared of becoming unemployed or a failure of society. Me too.”

But in the end, my friends worked harder than me and succeeded in getting a job.

I became unemployed because I didn’t work harder than them.

“It’s still the same in some ways. You can’t just work part-time at a convenience store forever. Some people say that you can live your whole life just by working part-time. “How many people really look at things like that?”

“…”

Han Aebom nodded her head and nodded her head calmly. She was a person who knew how to listen to others. Really…
She is a good woman.

“Uncertain future. Based on other people’s standards… No, the current situation seems a little pathetic to me.”

“…”

“It’s scary even though I’m trying really hard to somehow escape from that. I wish I was a positive girl like Ohana. Rather, I was more concerned about the negative side.”

“Humans are like that.”

“… What if I was a person destined to fail from the beginning?”

“… !”

“Aren’t you actually already a failure? Life is long. Take a long look. They say they don’t know what will happen… ! If you look at it right now, the distance between you and your friends is already growing.”

Her shoulders, which had risen as she quietly closed her lips, slightly lowered.
I continued speaking.

“To be honest today, I didn’t even know what a chief was.”

“…”

“I searched on the Internet and found out. After the employee, there is a rank called foreman. Let’s go watch a company drama somewhere. Employee, assistant manager, manager, manager, team leader… Well, I picked up this rank. In fact, I still don’t know whether the team leader or the assistant manager is higher.”

“…”

“It’s a world where I don’t know if I can get into a full-time job no matter how hard I try. I ended up working as a contract worker out of luck, but I couldn’t convert to a regular worker and got kicked out. I was lucky enough to get a full-time contract, but my friends might be preparing for promotions by the time I join.”

It was my innermost feelings that I could not reveal to anyone. Words that were really pressed deep inside.

At the year-end party, I smiled brightly in front of my friends and joked that I had submitted my resume to a mid-sized company or large company, but in fact I just pretended that it was nothing.

Even if I say something weak to my parents, I just feel sorry… Even if I told it to someone, it seemed like an ugly self-deprecating remark, and it wasn’t like I could really get any direct help.

As I say it, I can’t tell if this is a weak or ugly look. I couldn’t quit now.

Did the alcohol kick in late?

Or is it that once the water is opened, we can no longer stop it ourselves?

“I’m going crazy with anxiety. Even during this time, kids younger than me are preparing harder and coming forward. Would the company really hire someone like me?”

“The company… What a company is…”

A baby, who was about to say something, took a deep breath, then opened her mouth, fiddling with her paper cup.

“To be honest. I don’t think there’s any need to put your neck in someone else’s company like that. But, good job… In order to receive a high salary by other people’s standards, you have to do that much. “Because that’s how the company made it in the first place.”

“…”

“Hyeonwoo, there are definitely some parts of the company that are like idiots. Ultimately, it is a collective whose purpose is to obtain maximum profits. To achieve this, one of the most important things is discovering and recruiting talent. “This is one of the biggest reasons why many large companies bother to provide education even though they are suffering huge losses.”

Han Ae-bom said.

“QL Academy project, overseas talent smart home project, new technology AI project, etc… Do you know how many people in the world run away to other companies, believing the sweet lie that they will pay more and treat them better after spending a lot of money on a large-scale education project and teaching them to their heart’s content?”

It was something I had never heard of. A story that was far from mine. But suddenly, I feel like those stories have become closer.

“Nevertheless, sometimes an unexpected genius or talent can bring huge profits to the company. Or, because that person continues to bring pride and the ability to maintain value as a large company, large companies do not spare money in this direction. “How many pathetic companies are there in this country alone that collapse after spending too much money on things like this?”

Han Ae-bom, who was snickering almost like a sneer, looked at me and said, “Oops!”

“… The editorial was long. Even if it is for profit, the company ultimately looks for talent. What if you’re a little older? If you can prove your ability, they will eventually select you. Comparing yourself to others? Great. Then, isn’t it all about having better specifications than the people you are comparing yourself to?”

“These days, they say they don’t hire new employees at all if they don’t have experience. Will there be a chance to prove that ability? Everyone is an experiential intern or something…”

“We should show off Hyunwoo’s unique weapon that can ignore even that. “Unless Hyunwoo also talks about his experience as an experiential intern.”

Han Ae-bom looked at me and said.

“I will definitely guarantee this one thing.”

“…”

“People with truly unique abilities eventually succeed somehow. “There is an old idiom related to this, do you know what it is?”

“… “Nangjungjichu?”

“Speak confidently. Because that’s right. However, if the awl is too sharp… “He used to hurt himself.”

As Bom said that, she had the saddest and most regretful expression she had ever shown. She probably has something to do with her hidden secrets.
And, I later remembered that I wanted to hear the inside story. Shit. I think I was just whining too pathetically. It will spin.

“Thank you for listening to my concerns. And even words of encouragement.”

“No. Rather, I feel like I learned something else. In the end, each person has different concerns. It may be a trivial worry to me, but for someone else, it may be a worry that determines their life. I almost forgot again. Again.”

Was it terrible?

… While thinking about this, I asked, feeling like I was grasping at straws.

“Mr. Aebom… “Are you worried about anything?”

“Me? What am I…”

Han Ae-bom, who was trying to pretend nothing was wrong, stopped. Her fingers curled cutely as she stared at the paper cup filled with soju.

“… Actually, I have concerns.”

For a moment, I almost shouted “Eureka”.

“Because Hyunwoo shared his concerns first. I should be honest about this too. No, I don’t know if I want to confess it.”

I quietly looked at Han Ae-bom, asking her to talk. At this, Aebom Han opened her mouth with a bitter smile.

“Actually, I ran away from home after boasting that I would succeed with my novel.”

Huh? A novel?

“And not long ago, I was so elated that I was eliminated from a contest that I had submitted to with such elation.”

It seems like it’s not as serious a concern as I thought…

“Cow… I guess.”

“Yes.”

“From what you’re saying, it seems like you suddenly made that decision. The reason is… Is there any?”

At my question, Han Ae-bom’s body instantly stopped. To be exact, I wasn’t even breathing.

Then quietly her mouth opened.

“A childish rebellion… Or maybe she’s trying to fulfill her dead brother’s wish. “If not that too.”

A bloodier voice than ever came out of her mouth.

“It might be revenged on the family that killed my brother.”

At that moment, lightning suddenly thundered outside. Soon a strong shower began to pour down.