Chapter 55

* * *Maru’s mom couldn’t say anything even after looking at what was inside the paper bag.“You don’t like it?”“No, of course I do. Where did you get the money, though?”“I work, remember?”“You should’ve used that money for yourself.”“Bah, just take it. I know how few clothes you have in the closet. Just try it on during winter. It’s not that expensive, but you can even show it off if you want to. Also, this is for dad.”Maru’s mom felt her heart tighten a little. Since when did her son become this mature? She wouldn’t feel worried even if she ended up letting him go right now. He looked like he would be able to take care of himself. On the other hand, she was a little sad. To think her son wouldn’t need her help anymore… Her nose started to tingle a little bit. Tears threatened to stream down her face at any moment.“You should rest.”Maru stood up and left the room. He knew exactly what was going through her mind. Maru’s mom started wiping off her tears just as the door closed. After a few more seconds, she fumbled around to find her phone, and began calling a friend of hers.“Oh, hey, Yoonji’s mom? Yeah, it’s me. No, it’s nothing serious. But my son recently bought me this coat. Yeah, with his money. It’s amazing. I tell him I don’t need stuff like this, but he keeps giving me more. First he gets third place in his class, and now this… hohoho.”Maru’s mom continued calling all of her friends after this. The beginning of the phone call was always the same.“You see, my son...”

* * *“I worked pretty hard,” Maru said, looking at a calendar on his table. He had three days left until school began. He stopped working two days ago, and his manager ended up tacking on 200 won more on his hourly wage for his last paycheck.[You worked hard.]The manager was a rare person to see. From a manager’s perspective, it was difficult for them to care so much about a part-timer. They should know better than anyone how scary an extra hundred or two hundred won on an hourly wage could be.[We should eat together some time.]Perhaps that was why one of the most commonly used lies in Korea didn’t sound so light this time. Maru took out the white envelope he put in his drawer.“400,000 won left, huh.”He should probably be fine until winter break, as long as he didn’t waste too much money. He wasn’t going to get a job during the summer, but he changed his mind after watching his mom hurt her hand. Having some money was better than having none, after all.After previewing some of the material he would be learning in the second semester of school, Maru laid down on the floor. He had texts from a few of his friends asking to play games, but they were ignored. He decided not to play anything outside of a set time. As he was scrolling through the pages of a book in his hand, his phone began to ring loudly.[Instructor Miso]He stared for a few seconds before turning the phone down to silent mode. He got back to reading a book. “To further one’s greed, and to return to propriety.”He hadn’t thought about that phrase in a long while. It was a sentence derived from Confucius. Back in his past, he spent considerable amount of time thinking about what humanity was because of it. Especially back when he worked as a road manager.“Do not watch what is improper; do not listen to what is improper; do not speak improperly, and do not act improperly.”After speaking what sounded like a chant, Maru smiled. “I still remember it, huh.”He ended up memorizing the words at some point. It was a quote from Confucius, to ignore all that was improper. Those words spoke to him quite deeply back in his road managing days. But…“To further one’s greed, and to return to propriety.”Those words didn’t resonate with him so deeply this time around. Was it because of the times, or was it because he fundamentally changed as a person? Maybe it was because he realized that reality wasn’t kind enough to let people chase after ideals. As he thought, he turned another page of his book.Right then, his phone started vibrating. It was Daemyung. Looking at his clock, it was already past 9pm.‘Why’s he calling now?’He put his phone next to his face as he thought this. At the same time, - Oh, so you’re willing to ignore MY call?!! Miso’s screams hit him straight in the ears.