Chapter 1: I’m Back

“Mmph! Mmph!”

Chief Park ripped the duct tape off my mouth.

He looked down at me with cold, indifferent eyes as I gasped for breath.

“Anything to say?”

“Why, why are you doing this? You’ve already taken everything!”

Cheon Tae-san, the big shot of My-dong.

After my grandmother who raised me passed away, he showed up at my door—my grandfather I never even knew existed.

After that I lived the life my grandfather wanted.

But then grandfather passed away, and my two greedy uncles—my mother’s older brothers—took everything.

Everything, through a partnership with the Cheongpung Group.

“Haha, I’m just following orders. What would a servant like me know?”

“Ch-Chief Park, no, Seong-gi, please spare me—”

“I’m sorry, but I’ll at least make it painless.”

Chief Park twisted his lips, ignoring my trembling voice filled with regret and fear.

He placed a rock on the accelerator and closed the door.

“Farewell.”

The car with me tied up inside began to move slowly down the slope.

“No! Hey! Chief Park!”

I desperately called out to Chief Park, bound inside the car.

But my voice reached nowhere in the deserted reservoir.

Soon the car started to pick up speed.

The darkness of the reservoir swallowed my screams.

Splash!

Water gushed into the car like a torrent.

In no time my vision was completely submerged, suddenly a rush of water flooded my nose and mouth.

In my fading consciousness only the face of my grandmother who raised me came to mind.

‘Grandma… I’ll be there soon. Wait for me.’

That was my last memory.

* * *

“Ugh, what the—?”

I opened my eyes, startled by a sudden strong impact from behind.

I turned my head to see a familiar brat grinning while holding two fingers to his mouth.

“Hey! Mu-hyeok! Want a smoke?”

I was confused. I quickly scanned my surroundings.

A familiar space surrounded by cement walls.

Noisy chatter and boys in school uniforms.

‘Dongseong Technical High School?’

My mind started racing.

‘What’s going on? I definitely sank into the reservoir with the car…’

“Hey! Mu-hyeok, you coming or not?”

“Oh, sorry, I’m still half asleep. Go on without me.”

“What’s with the fancy Seoul talk? Weirdo.”

The guy grumbled and left the classroom alone.

I stared blankly at his retreating back.

Slowly, my sense of reality returned.

The book on the desk, serving as a pillow, read ‘1st Year Korean’.

Looking down at my uniform, I saw a white name tag.

‘Wait… First year at Dongseong Tech? That was 1990, right? What’s today’s date?’

I tapped the shoulder of the boy sitting in front of me.

He turned around, startled.

“What’s today’s date?”

“Huh?”

“Today’s date.”

“Oh… hold on, it’s September 21st.”

I nodded, and the guy eyed me nervously before turning back around.

It seemed to be early in the second semester.

‘Wait a second… September 21st?’

I jumped up from my seat.

“Grandma!”

September 21st.

The day my grandmother who raised me died suddenly from a heart attack.

I bolted out of school while running like a madman until I reached the tiny, rundown home we had lived.

Opening the door I saw my grandmother collapsed on the floor.

“Grandma!”

I knelt down and shook her.

But there was no response from her at all.

“Is anyone there? Please help!”

In this rundown single room in the slums, I used to hate how poorly soundproofed it was when I was young.

But now I was grateful for the lack of soundproofing.

I shouted at the top of my lungs while performing CPR.

Just then, a man opened the door and came in.

“What’s all this racket about? What happened?”

“Mister, please call 119! Please!”

“What? Mu-hyeok, what’s going on?”

“Please…”

Seeing the situation, the man ran out surprised.

I continued CPR with a desperate heart.

“Grandma, please… Grandma… Don’t die. I can’t lose you again like this… No, Grandma! Grandma!”

How much time had passed?

“Huk! Cough… cough…”

Grandma made a harsh breathing sound and slowly frowned.

I quickly put my finger to her nose.

Faint but definitely, I could feel her breath.

“Grandma… please don’t die.”

I held her hands tightly and waited.

About 15 minutes passed.

The man who had left with the paramedics returned.

I staggered back, watching the rescue team check on my grandmother’s condition.

“Mu-hyeok, what happened here?”

“Thank you, sir. I came home and found my grandmother collapsed…”

“And now?”

“I’ve confirmed she’s breathing, but…”

“Guardian?”

I quickly approached at the paramedic’s call.

“Did you perform CPR?”

“Yes.”

“Your grandmother’s alive thanks to you. We’ll take her to the hospital now.”

“Thank you, thank you so much…”

After about 10 minutes in the ambulance, we arrived at Dongseong University Hospital.

Seeing the doctors swarm around my grandmother, I felt all the strength leave my body.

Just then, a nurse approached me.

“Guardian? Please go to the administration office to register.”

“What?”

Seeing that I didn’t understand, the nurse explained again.

“You need to go to the administration office to register and make a payment.”

“Oh… okay.”

“Please register quickly.”

The nurse said this and immediately returned to the patients.

I understood what she meant, but I just stood there feeling helpless.

‘I don’t have any money.’

My desperately poor childhood.

I really hated poverty. I hated my grandmother too, and our home.

So I hung out with friends and caused trouble. Each time, my grandmother would come to the police station or school, begging on her hands and knees.

I hated that grandmother. No, I resented her.

It wasn’t until after my grandmother suddenly passed away that I realized.

That I truly, truly loved my grandmother.

And the magnitude of the unconditional love my grandmother had given me… I only came to understand after entering society.

I couldn’t just stand there, so I headed to the administration office to register.

“You’re a medical aid beneficiary. You only need to pay 10,400 won.”

“…I came in such a hurry that I didn’t bring anything. Could I maybe borrow some coins?”

“Ah…”

Looking at me pitifully, she handed me a few coins.

Standing in front of the public payphone outside the hospital, I pondered who to call.

‘Who should I ask for help?’

No one came to mind.

After some thought, I searched the phone book and called Dongseong Technical High School’s staff room.

“This is Park Seok-min from Dongseong Technical High School.”

“Teacher, it’s Mu-hyeok.”

“What? Mu-hyeok?”

“Yes, teacher.”

“Where are you? I heard you suddenly disappeared?”

I explained to him how I ended up at the hospital.

“Is that so? Is your grandmother okay?”

“Yes, thanks to you. Could you please tell Myeong-su to bring some money to the hospital? I came to the hospital in such a hurry that I didn’t bring anything…”

“Myeong-su? Alright, how much do you need?”

“About 20,000 won? Myeong-su should have money. If he says he doesn’t, could you please lend it to him? I’m begging you.”

“Hah~ Okay, I’ll send him right away.”

After ending the call, I sat on a bench.

Thinking about my grandmother, I had come all the way here in a daze, without time to process what had happened to me.

I calmly tried to assess the situation.

‘I definitely died… Chief Park sank me in the reservoir with the car, but I’ve come back to 1990? Is this even possible?’

The butterfly dream.

A confusion enveloped me, unable to tell if this was reality or a dream.

But in my mind, there were clear memories of 30 years. That was telling me this situation was definitely not a dream.

“Hey! Mu-hyeok!”

A familiar voice brought me back to reality.

Myeong-su, who had come running while shouting, asked while catching his breath.

“Haa… What happened?”

“Oh… well…”

After hearing the situation, Myeong-su handed me 20,000 won.

“Phew… Is your grandmother safe?”

“Yeah, they say she’s safe for now.”

“Okay, go pay first. I’ll wait.”

I went back to the administration office and made the payment.

“Thank you.”

After returning the coins I had received from the administration staff and thanking them, I went outside.

Myeong-su was waiting for me on a bench.

“Did you pay?”

“Yeah.”

“Let’s go to the emergency room first. I want to see your grandmother before I leave.”

“Okay.”

Entering the emergency room with Myeong-su, I saw my grandmother lying on a bed in one corner.

I stood there silently, holding my grandmother’s hand.

Myeong-su gently gripped my shoulder from behind.

A moment later, a doctor came in, pulling back the curtain.

“Student.”

“Yes?”

“Your grandmother will be fine. She’ll probably wake up soon.”

At those words, I nearly collapsed as all my strength left me.

“But she needs to be admitted to the hospital for proper tests. As a medical aid beneficiary, the costs won’t be too high. Still, with admission and tests, it’ll probably cost a few hundred thousand won, so prepare for that in advance. There’s absolutely no danger to her life, though.”

“Thank you, thank you so much.”

“I didn’t do anything. You did it all.”

I bowed 90 degrees to the doctor as he left with a smile.

Myeong-su, who had been standing silently, suddenly asked.

“Mu-hyeok.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you have money?”

“…Money?”

“You’ll need quite a bit for the hospital admission and tests.”

“I’ll figure something out.”

“I’ll lend you some.”

I silently shook my head.

“It’s fine. I’ll handle it.”

“Hey! Mu-hyeok, aren’t we friends? I’ll explain to my dad and borrow it for you. Just wait.”

“It’s fine, I said.”

As I talked with Myeong-su, the dialect I had forgotten living in Seoul started coming out of my mouth without realizing.

Myeong-su chuckled.

“That’s right, you’re the Mu-hyeok I know. Damn, I thought some other guy came and was pretending to be you. Anyway, you can pay me back later. Just wait.”

With just those words, Myeong-su left the emergency room, and I couldn’t stop him.

It was true that I had no money.

At this point, I didn’t even know that I had a maternal grandfather, so I couldn’t just call him out of the blue.

“Ugh…”

Suddenly hearing a groan, I turned to see my grandmother slightly frowning and then slowly opening her eyes.

I immediately opened the curtain and shouted.

“Doctor! My grandmother’s awake!”

Watching the doctor and nurse rush over, I tightly held my grandmother’s hand again.

“Grandma…”

The doctor checked my grandmother’s pupils while constantly talking to her.

“Ma’am! Can you hear me?”

My grandmother, who had been groaning, moved her lips slightly.

“Where am I…”

“You’re in the hospital. Do you know where you are?”

“Grandma!”

At my voice, my grandmother slowly turned her head to the side.

“Mu-hyeok… my child.”

“Grandma, do you recognize me?”

“…Of course I recognize my own child.”

“Grandma…”

Tears flowed from my grandmother’s eyes. Seeing that, my eyes were also wet before I knew it.

“Ma’am, your grandson saved your life.”

“What?”

“You had a heart attack and collapsed, but your grandson saved you with CPR. You need to be admitted to the hospital for tests and rest for a while.”

“No…”

My grandmother weakly shook her head at the doctor’s words.

Holding my grandmother’s hand tightly, I said,

“Grandma! Please get admitted.”

“But…”

“If it’s about the money, I’ll take care of it. Please, I’m begging you.”

“Mu-hyeok…”

My chest felt heavy, so I squeezed my grandmother’s hand.

My grandmother stroked the back of my hand with her other hand.

“Hahaha, what a wonderful grandson you have. We’ll move her to a ward soon. It’s an 8-bed room, and as a medical aid beneficiary, an 8-bed room is almost free, but rooms with 6 beds or fewer are expensive. Is an 8-bed room okay?”

“Yes.”

The doctor explained the admission process and tests for a long time, but I couldn’t really focus on what he was saying.

After the doctor and nurse left, I silently met my grandmother’s eyes.

“Mu-hyeok.”

“Yes? What is it, Grandma?”

“What about school? Have you eaten?”

“Grandma! Is this the time to worry about me?”

“But you need to eat…”

“I ate, don’t worry. I’m not a little kid anymore. I can feed myself. Don’t worry about me, worry about yourself.”

“…”

Just then, Myeong-su came in, opening the curtain.

“Oh? Grandma, you’re awake?”

“Is that Myeong-su? What about school?”

“Hahaha, Grandma, you start talking about school as soon as you see me? Are you okay?”

“You shouldn’t skip school… Why did you come all the way here?”

I waved my hand to stop my grandmother from trying to get up.

“I’ll take care of it. I called Myeong-su here. I came to the hospital with Grandma in such a hurry that I didn’t have any money or anything. So I borrowed some from Myeong-su.”

“Oh my… Myeong-su, I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t worry, Grandma. I’ll stick close to Mu-hyeok, eat with him, and go to school with him. You just focus on getting better.”

Every word Myeong-su said was incredibly grateful.

When I stared at Myeong-su silently, he cleared his throat and turned his head away.

“Mu-hyeok, let’s step outside for a moment.”

“Grandma, I’ll be right back after I see Myeong-su off.”

“Okay, okay.”

We sat side by side on a bench outside the hospital.

“I talked to my dad. I’ll lend you 500,000 won. Use it for your grandmother’s hospital bills and buy her some herbal medicine too.”

I was so grateful and sorry that I couldn’t speak.

Seeing my expression, Myeong-su slapped my back unnecessarily hard.

“Damn it, Mu-hyeok! Are you embarrassed to borrow money from me? You’re going to pay it back, aren’t you?”

“No…”

“Listen! If it weren’t for you, I would’ve been killed by those thugs in middle school. Remember? No one messes with me because of you. You know I’m in this technical high school because of you, right? Don’t make that face.”

“…”

“Alright, I’ll bring the money tomorrow. Use it or throw it away, do whatever you want. I’m leaving. See you tomorrow.”

I watched Myeong-su’s retreating back for a long time as he left the hospital after saying what he needed to say.

Lee Myeong-su, one of my closest friends.

He grew up wealthy because his father ran a big bar in Nampo-dong, Jung-gu, Busan, but due to his introverted personality, he was constantly extorted for money by thugs after entering middle school. After I fought those guys because I couldn’t stand seeing it anymore, Myeong-su and I became close friends.

But…

After my grandmother passed away, I had turned my back on Myeong-su.