GBAS 65

The misfortune probably began from there.

Unlike Jooin’s mother, who was born into a brilliant, elite family where it was hard to find someone who wasn’t a professional, Jooin’s father was a dragon born once in a century from a small fishing village that could barely even be called a humble stream.

The couple had the same profession. It was said that the two, who met during their internship at a university hospital, recognized each other from their very first meeting. Even though both families vehemently opposed it, they married, and ten years later, they had a child.

The couple, who had been living without any particular trouble, began to grow apart around the time Jooin was born.

It was because Jooin’s mother, Seok Youngwan, made a major discovery in a project she had been researching for a long time, one that would turn the medical world upside down. The discovery of a microRNA that reverses cell aging. As this research began to garner worldwide attention as a core technology of future medicine, Youngwan became incredibly busy.

The child, who hadn’t even been weaned, was naturally left in the care of his father, Jaehak.

From the beginning, Jaehak considered this to be very unfair. The fact that he had lived his entire life within a patriarchal family system couldn’t be ignored, but more than anything, it was because he also had a project he was working on. However, to question the irrationality of it all, his accomplishments were far too insignificant compared to his wife’s.

It became young Jooin’s lot to be responsible for Jaehak’s growing inferiority complex and stress.

Jaehak, who became solely responsible for Jooin’s education in place of Youngwan who was often abroad, was constantly on edge, fearing that if his son acted even slightly out of line, Youngwan and her family might blame his genes. From the day the child first brought home a report card, he began to act as if the numbers written on it were proof of his own existence’s value.

Now, having placed his son at a crossroads in life, there was every reason for Jaehak to be on edge right before receiving the final report card.

[The door opens.]

Passing through the heavily guarded apartment complex and getting on the elevator, Jooin’s shoulders trembled uncontrollably. It was because his father’s voice on the phone, which he had reluctantly answered on his way up, had sounded unusual.

It must be because I didn’t come straight home from the academy. I’ll apologize as soon as I get inside.

Though startled, Jooin was used to this kind of situation. Pondering how he could soothe his father’s mood before opening the front door, Jooin entered the password on the door lock with a trembling hand and opened the door.

After taking off his shoes and changing into slippers, Jooin took a step toward the hallway.

Whenever his father was in a bad mood, he would live with all the lights in the house turned off. It was clear that something was wrong today as well. Because only the auxiliary light above the switchless kitchen island was on, the surroundings grew darker the further he went into the house.

Jooin’s steps, which had been heading toward the living room, gradually slowed and eventually came to a halt.

Soon, Jooin’s face turned deathly pale.

“…”

His carelessness had brought disaster. It seemed his father had discovered what he had carelessly left on his desk.

What had been sheet music until this morning now covered the living room floor, torn to shreds. The shredded pieces of paper fluttered here and there, carried by the wind coming through the open window.

A faint smell of alcohol hung in the air. Just as Jooin, anticipating the pain to follow, squeezed his eyes shut.

“Baek Jooin.”

His father, who had turned around at the sign of his presence, got up from the sofa and walked over with slow steps. In his hand, as he staggered from being drunk, was a glass sloshing with dark red wine, and…

‘Damn it.’

It was Jooin’s precious guitar, which he had hidden in the wardrobe.

‘No. Not that, absolutely not that.’

The moment he saw the guitar, Jooin, who was completely stunned, dropped to his knees without a moment’s delay. He could feel the cold of the floor right where his bones met it.

Jaehak, who had come to stand with his feet apart in front of the now-trembling Jooin, took a sip of wine and spoke.

“What the hell has a student preparing for his exams been doing.”

“I’m sorry, Father.”

Jaehak looked down at his son, who bowed his head deeply as soon as his words ended, with contemptuous eyes and shouted in a scornful tone.

“You motherless brat. I raised my one and only son so well, and this is how you stab me in the back?”

Jooin, with his hands clasped at Jaehak’s feet, bowed his head so low it nearly touched the ground and begged.

“I’m sorry. I was wrong. I’ll quit right away. The exam will be fine. I only got one wrong on the mock exam, and also-.”

“Shut up!”

The sharp voice echoed loudly through the space.

“How, how can you disrespect me like this. I’m already going crazy just because of that Seok Youngwan. And now you’re disrespecting me, me, too? Baek Jooin, have you forgotten what’s most important right now? Are you trying to ruin my life?!”

“No. I’m not trying to ruin it, Father.”

With each word he spat out, his voice grew louder. The guitar, which was touching the floor, trembled violently, as if his hands were shaking.

Jaehak, who was catching his breath that had grown ragged with agitation, suddenly burst into laughter and said.

“Ah, right.”

“…”

“My son has always hated me. Right, son. Answer me. Did Seok Youngwan put you up to this? Did she tell you to get revenge on me? Did Seok Youngwan tell you to drag me into the mud along with your life?”

“No, that’s not it.”

Just as Jooin was about to raise his gaze and meet his father’s eyes, Jaehak, who had downed the rest of his alcohol, threw the glass in his hand against the wall.

“Answer me!”

Crash-!

Small shards of glass grazed his cheek.

“Ah, Father.”

Startled, Jooin clutched his cheek. Blood oozed from the scratch, and the spot he touched stung. Jaehak looked down at Jooin, then swept his stiffly styled hair back once more.

“Because of you, I, I! Even after achieving all this, I’m treated like a defective product by those bastards.”

Jaehak, gripping the guitar neck with both hands, raised his arms.

“Ah, no.”

Then he smashed the guitar he had raised high onto the floor.

Bang!

“Your origin!”

A crack appeared in the smooth marble, and the guitar, hitting the floor, twisted and broke.

Bang!

“Is defective!”

Splinters of wood broke off from the body and flew in all directions, and metal parts rolled across the floor. The tightly fixed metal strings snapped and vibrated in a ridiculous fashion.

“If you become a mess by wasting your time on things like this, what on earth am I supposed to explain to your mother?”

Jaehak, who had tossed aside the guitar that was half-destroyed in just two blows, let out a deep sigh and dusted off his hands. Then, Jaehak, after once again smoothing back his still-neat hair, plopped down into a squat in front of Jooin, who was streaming tears.

His face was a mixture of anger and fatigue.

Jaehak began to speak, saying, “Son.”

“I’m only doing this because I’m worried. In case Seok Youngwan, your mother, finds any fault with you. In case her family treats you like a nuisance. I’m doing this because I’m worried about that. You understand what I’m saying, right?”

His head was spinning.

“…”

While desperate to be recognized for the flawlessness of his own background, he simultaneously bolsters his self-esteem by trampling on his son, who carries the blood of his more successful wife. All to soothe his rotten insides, decayed by a tiresome victim complex and self-pity.

This was violence disguised as concern.

The salt-tinged wound stung.

As he stared blankly at the guitar strewn across the floor, he was suddenly struck by the thought of how sick he was of it all.

“…”

Jaehak was endlessly defending his own actions, and the cold wind blowing through the wide-open window made his wet face feel even colder.

In that moment, the tears stopped abruptly. Everything felt like a play. It was a situation where he should be sobbing his heart out, but strangely, he felt like he was about to burst into laughter. The sight of the all-snapped guitar strings springing about chaotically like a jack-in-the-box was just so funny.

Jooin, who barely held back from laughing out loud, finally opened his mouth after a long moment.

“From now on, don’t explain anything.”

Jooin pointed to the cracked, dented, and ruined floor and said.

“That.”

Then he slowly turned his head to meet Jaehak’s eyes and continued.

“And this.”

Just as Jaehak’s expression crumpled horribly upon belatedly understanding Jooin’s meaning, Jooin shot to his feet and pushed Jaehak back. Then he looked down at Jaehak, who had stumbled and sat down hard on top of the torn sheet music, broken glass, and shattered guitar, and said.

“You won’t have to worry about anything from now on.”

With those as his final words, Jooin left the house without a second thought.

The first place Jooin stopped was an ATM downtown. Although the money was his, he thought the account might be blocked soon, so he went around to all the nearby ATMs and withdrew cash, maxing out the daily withdrawal limit.

The workbooks and textbooks that had filled his bag were torn to shreds and thrown into a trash can, and in their place, he stuffed wads of cash.

Screech-

“…Haa.”

A smile bloomed on its own, born from a sense of liberation he had never dared to imagine.

The band practice room, dark and deserted. Jooin, lying sideways on an old sofa, took a deep breath. The musty smell of dust and the old, settled scent of mold filled his lungs. This was the only place, the only place. For him, this was his one and only sanctuary.

In the blue darkness, Jooin’s shoulders trembled slightly.