❝ if you were to choose between two people-
would you choose the person you love or the
person who loves you? ❞
━ a poignant narrative that weaves through the tapestry of girlhood, boyhood, friendship, parenthood, love, and loss. It follows the li...
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FLASHBACK | Muak Festival May 16, 1997
MIN YOONGI HAD NO energy to leave the house. Outside, the world buzzed with life and ebullience; yet, within the walls of his old bedroom, the twenty-two-year-old third-year medical student languished in bed, as if ensnared by lethargy's grip.
The room, which had been his sanctuary for two years, remained frozen in time, mirroring the state it had been left in since last February. Hoseok understood well that Min Yoongi harboured a deep aversion to anyone tampering with or rearranging his possessions, thus everything remained the same. The darkness of the sheets draped over the bed, untouched by sunlight, echoed the somber mood that permeated the space. The heavy curtains, perpetually drawn shut, shielded the room from the outside world, casting shadows that danced in silent communion with Yoongi's solitude.
Upon graduating from high school, Min Yoongi made a solemn vow to himself that he would never lean on his parents for financial support again. Thus, when he arrived in Seoul, he took on multiple part-time jobs to shoulder the burden of his daily expenses and his looming student loan debt.
At twenty years old, after a year of working and studying in Seoul, Min Yoongi met Jung Hoseok. It was a rainy summer night in 1995, three days after the famous Sampoong Department Store collapsed due to structural failure. Yoongi, immersed in the mundane routine of his job as a server at a restaurant nestled in Yeonnam-dong, recalled the haunting images flickering on the television screen, recounting the devastation wrought by the collapse. It was against this backdrop of tragedy that fate led him to the alley behind the restaurant, where he stumbled upon Jung Hoseok, a figure enveloped in the shadows, besieged by the torment of his past.
Hoseok, a recent high-school graduate, was denied entry to the university of his dreams due to his poor CSAT results. With a gentle push from his older sister, Hoseok mustered the courage to give it another shot. So, while gearing up for the next Suneung in November, he hustled at a local retail store to make ends meet. However, just when he thought he'd shaken off his high school bullies for good, fate had other plans. Lo and behold, the four troublemakers from his past turned up again, now enrolled at Hankuk University. Since their unexpected reunion a month ago, they've been relentless in their pursuit to make Hoseok's life miserable. They've been like a persistent thorn in his side, ensuring he wouldn't forget the pain of his past by constantly taunting him and pilfering his hard-earned cash.
Min Yoongi's instincts kicked in just in time as he sensed trouble brewing. With a quick glance, he noticed the young boy trapped within the grasp of the four bullies. Without hesitation, he made his way over, determination etched across his features.
