Kwon Yool, who had hastily swallowed some digestive pills, exited the pharmacy.

In his hand was a small bag containing several digestive and headache pills.

After every uncomfortable meal, he would typically need to take a digestive pill. If not, he would feel suffocated throughout the week.

Not that he despised Seok Gu. He just wanted to distance himself from his overbearing affection and love.

But he couldn’t escape.

Because Yeon Hee, who was caught in the middle, would suffer more.

As he began to excel in his studies, Seok Gu’s attitude towards Yeon Hee softened somewhat.

Although it was under the pretext of looking after him, Kwon Yool considered it a blessing. It lessened the silent tears of his mother.

Kwon Yool, who had gotten in his car, turned off the hazard lights and switched on the turn signal.

Clickclick.

His veins surfaced and disappeared on the back of his hand as he turned the steering wheel.

“There are no hostages.”

Kwon Yool murmured to himself with a cold laugh.

Never had he been envious of the rumor about the genius who placed second, nor did he ever dislike studying. Not even once.

He was rather completely absorbed in the joy of learning new things and could not put the book down. The world within the books was too enchanting.

Whether the content was light or heavy, there were days when he felt like he could live just by sitting in the library and reading all day.

He was so happy with the smell of ink that wafted every time he flipped a page that he lived as a bookworm.

Then began the elite course that his grandfather, Seok Gu, talked about.

The grades everyone was envious of, the unwanted fame, the number of certificates he received from various competitions were enough to cover the living room and still left some.

Unbeatable scores from various mock exams, perfect scores on the college entrance exam, entering the top Korean university as the valedictorian. It was truly a time when he had no choice but to run nonstop.

He thought that once he entered university, he would have a breather, a chance to come up for air. But that was a naive misperception.

‘Yool, a position everyone looks up to. You should be at that peak.’

The new journey started again.

For that journey, he accumulated various specifications. The one year at university, which wouldn’t come back, disappeared without a trace.

The vacancy from the civil service exam. He became a civil servant after passing the administrative service exam, the only way to get a senior position. If he became a director… would it be good?

If he became the Prime Minister, as his grandfather said, or if he was lucky… would he really be happy?

Could achieving his father’s failed dream, the result of a tender love, and easing his grandfather’s regret, be the ultimate goal in life?

Could life at the very top… really be satisfactory?

That’s when it started.

It began to be burdensome to run only straight ahead like a racehorse with blinders.

For whom. Toward what. Why should I go this far? As if I, as a person, did not exist at all.

An animal caught in the relentless trap with no room to breathe, that was Kwon Yool.

“……I miss her.”
Then, Seo Yeon suddenly came to mind. Kwon Yool, who had been watching the front, stealthily checked the time.

A fleeting connection that had passed in the past.

The gathering I attended at Hyun Woo’s words to meet for his military discharge, an unexpected reunion. Emotions that had been shaken as if swept by a massive wave.

Everything was a first.

It was about becoming fond of her in that short time.

Was it because of her first impression, which was so intense? Or was it the moment we held hands with a handkerchief in between?

If someone asked why it was Seo Yeon, I wouldn’t have an answer… Probably. How can I explain when my emotions already started to move on their own?

“Seo Yeon…”
The shining name that had been spinning in his mouth flowed out through Kwon Yool’s teeth.

Then, in an instant, his mind was consumed by Seo Yeon.

He was lost in his painful obsession, then he called her magical name and chuckled.

“Ha. I miss her.”
Then, he remembered the day he first escorted her.

She probably wouldn’t know, right? How much he wanted to get her number that day.

Kwon Yool, waiting for Seo Yeon, who said she would escort her friend home, practiced so much.

‘Um, would you like to walk around the Han River?’
‘Although it’s late, how about coffee?’
‘Can we meet again next time?’
‘Just wondering, how old is too old for you… Ha.’

That day, Kwon Yool wanted to spend more time alone with Seo Yeon, he wanted to delay the time by any means.

He didn’t mean to see it on purpose, but he was curious if the wound he had received before was healed. If it’s still difficult, he wanted to listen to everything. He wanted to lay everything out honestly.

But he couldn’t.

“Haah……”
As the memory of that day surfaced, a deep sigh cut through the void.

Being 22 years old, a university student who had achieved nothing.