..."If I could turn back time, I would have held my father’s hand tighter that morning. Maybe, just maybe, he wouldn’t have left me forever."...

...Inhwa’s voice trembled as she began to tell her story. Her words, heavy with sorrow, carried the weight of a past that never left her....

..."I was just five years old that day, and it started as one of the happiest mornings of my life."...

...Her father, with his warm and gentle smile, was brushing her tiny hair. He always made perfect braids, ensuring no strand was out of place. As he bathed her, he hummed a soft tune, one that always made her giggle. After breakfast, he lovingly lifted her in his arms, placing her on the backseat of his car. Together with her mother, they drove to her grandmother’s house....

..."I didn’t know then that this would be the last time I’d ever sit in his car, the last time I’d see his smile."...

...By evening, the happy memories of the morning were shattered. An ambulance pulled up outside her grandmother’s house. Inhwa stood by the doorway, her tiny fingers gripping the frame as she saw her father being carried out on a stretcher....

..."Everyone around me cried, screamed, and broke down. But I stood there... too young to understand the pain that was swallowing my world whole."...

...Her narration paused, the weight of her memories choking her....

...---...

...As the days turned into weeks, Inhwa began to notice changes. Her father’s absence became an unspoken void. People no longer smiled at her the way they used to. Her uncles—her father’s brother and brother-in-law—started taunting her....

..."‘Such a burden,’ they would say. They thought I didn’t understand their words, but I did. I understood every word."...

...Inhwa’s days were spent crying alone on the cold stairs of her grandmother’s house. She longed for her father’s warm embrace, but instead, she found loneliness. School offered no solace either....

..."At school, I was weak—both in studies and in sports. My classmates would laugh at me, calling me useless. But I never told my mother about any of it. She was already fighting her own battles."...

...The guilt ate her alive....

..."I believed it was my fault. That my father died because of me. That my very existence brought pain to everyone around me."...

...Years passed. Her mother eventually remarried, and her stepfather adopted her, moving the small family to the city....

...---...

...Inhwa’s new life brought change. Her stepfather enrolled her in a prestigious school where, to her surprise, the other students treated her kindly. Yet, the fear of being bullied lingered....

..."I was terrified of making friends. What if they saw the burden I carried? What if they hated me too?"...

...Inhwa buried herself in her studies, taking extra classes to catch up. It was there, in the small classroom filled with strangers, that her life would take another unexpected turn....

...---...

...The extra class was buzzing with chatter when Inhwa shyly walked in. Her eyes darted nervously across the room as she clutched her bag tightly....

...“Ah, you must be the new student,” the teacher said warmly. “Take a seat next to Yun Hyung.”...

...Inhwa hesitated, her steps faltering as she approached the empty chair. She sat down quietly, avoiding any eye contact. Her heart raced....

...Yun Hyung, a boy with sharp features and a warm smile, turned to her. “Why are you so worried? Are you about to cry?” he asked softly, his tone laced with curiosity....

...Inhwa lowered her gaze, her lips trembling, but she said nothing. The fear of saying something wrong and being mistreated kept her silent....

...Yun Hyung watched her for a moment, sensing her unease. He leaned slightly closer and said with a gentle smile, “You know, sometimes, it’s okay to let someone help you carry the weight. You don’t have to do it all alone.”...

...The words lingered in the air, wrapping around Inhwa like a fragile promise....