By Zephyria Lee Yoon-san, who had turned 9, still had chubby cheeks and eyes that had become slits due to the pressure of those cheeks. And he still hadn’t managed to escape the diagnosis of childhood obesity.
So, the child’s nickname was still pig or oinker, but Lee Yoon-san had come to show an attitude that was either resigned or indifferent to the teasing. It was all thanks to Hwang Hae-kyung’s group, whom he met every vacation.
“Let me down!”
“You told me to put you up there a minute ago!”
At the campsite they had visited for winter vacation, Lee Yoon-san’s screams echoed out once again. Lee Yoon-san was currently up in a large tree with a thick trunk, and it was a disaster that had occurred after he had tried to imitate Hwang Hae-kyung, who was climbing trees and playing with his same-age friends.
Of course, there had been an incident before that. It had started when Lee Yoon-san, who had arrived at the campsite first, threw a snowball at Hwang Hae-kyung, who was making a snowman and playing with his same-age friends.
But Lee Yoon-san was just annoyed that Hwang Hae-kyung didn’t even make eye contact with him and played with his same-age friends even after he had arrived, and it just so happened that there was a lot of snow, so he thought of having a snowball fight. So, he playfully threw a snowball at Hwang Hae-kyung, but unfortunately, the snowball hit the head of the snowman that Hwang Hae-kyung had built.
Hwang Hae-kyung was in the middle of a competition with his friends to see who could make the tallest snowman, so he was greatly angered by Lee Yoon-san’s destruction of the snowman. However, Hwang Hae-kyung’s mother had been watching the whole scene, so Hwang Hae-kyung couldn’t get angry at Lee Yoon-san.
He had been brainwashed with the words to take care of and protect his ‘younger sibling’ as a ‘responsible Hyung’ right up until he arrived at this campsite. No matter how wild a 10-year-old was, the database that had been built up over the years made Hwang Hae-kyung realize that the repercussions could come back on him if he got angry or yelled at Lee Yoon-san.
With that resentment built up, Lee Yoon-san happened to see Hwang Hae-kyung and his friends playing around the tree and asked them to put him up there too. Hwang Hae-kyung’s friends all deliberately made noises like, ‘Heeek?’, saying that they couldn’t put Lee Yoon-san up there because he was a pig, but Hwang Hae-kyung ignored those friends’ words. And he even knelt down at Lee Yoon-san’s feet, saying that he would.
He even willingly told Lee Yoon-san to step on his back and climb up. Lee Yoon-san felt a little bewildered by Hwang Hae-kyung’s attitude. Wasn’t he angry a minute ago? Was it okay that I threw the snowball? Is he really going to act like a Hyung now? Such thoughts passed through the back of Lee Yoon-san’s round, buzz-cut head.
And with a little hesitation, he put his foot on Hwang Hae-kyung’s back. At first, he put his foot on with his shoes on, but he quickly took off his shoes and put his foot on again.
He was a little embarrassed by his plump foot on his skinny back. What if Hae-kyung’s back breaks? He even thought that for a moment.
Still, Hwang Hae-kyung endured Lee Yoon-san’s weight without even groaning. He lifted Lee Yoon-san up to a tree branch about 50cm off the ground and stood up. His face was red to his neck from enduring the weight, which was much heavier than his own.
Lee Yoon-san quietly looked down at Hwang Hae-kyung and felt a little excited. It was because he felt like he was playing with Hwang Hae-kyung. Of course, 9-year-old Lee Yoon-san still hated 10-year-old Hwang Hae-kyung very much, but he was a little satisfied and proud of the fact that he had legitimately joined the group of one-year-older Hyungs.
So, he grabbed a branch and climbed up a little higher. Perhaps because the tree trunk was thick, the thick branch that held Lee Yoon-san’s plump body also seemed sturdy enough.
And when he had climbed to a height of about 1m above the ground, Lee Yoon-san suddenly looked down and was terrified. It was because he realized that he had climbed to a higher place than he had thought.
So, Lee Yoon-san asked Hwang Hae-kyung, who was looking up at him, to let him down, but Hwang Hae-kyung didn’t listen. Hwang Hae-kyung’s friends were far away, just teasing and laughing at him. No one was helping Lee Yoon-san.
“You’re so mean…”
“It’s not that high up there?”
“I’m scared, let me down…!”
“No, you idiot.”
“I’m not an idiot!!”
“Yeah, you’re a fatty!”
The last shout was a taunt from Hwang Hae-kyung’s friends far away. Hwang Hae-kyung turned his head once towards his friends, who were watching them with great interest from afar, and then looked at Lee Yoon-san again. And he said with a sulky expression.
“Say Hyung.”
“No!”
“Then you’re even meaner.”
“I’m not mean, they said I’m nice!”
“Who?”
“Auntie and Uncle, and my moms, and my teacher…!”
“They’re all just saying that!”
“No!”
The argument went on for a long time. Until Lee Yoon-san and Hwang Hae-kyung’s mouths turned blue in the winter wind. But even then, Lee Yoon-san didn’t give in to Hwang Hae-kyung, and eventually Hwang Hae-kyung turned his back on Lee Yoon-san. It was getting dark, as the days were short in the cold winter.
Lee Yoon-san looked shocked as he saw Hwang Hae-kyung turning his back on him. Lee Yoon-san was growing up in an environment where no one hated him that much.
He had a plump body and features that were buried, so he couldn’t be called pretty even as a compliment, but the adults around him always told Lee Yoon-san that he was pretty, cute, and like a Prince, and the teachers also liked the gentle Lee Yoon-san.
And that was the same for Lee Yoon-san’s parents. They always told him that they loved him, and they never turned their backs on Lee Yoon-san before Lee Yoon-san when they took him to school.
So, Lee Yoon-san was not familiar with or convinced by Hwang Hae-kyung’s turning his back on him and his sharp attitude.
“Hngaaaaah~!!”
So, Lee Yoon-san cried as if he was wailing from the shock. His fingertips and the backs of his hands, which were barely holding onto the tree, had long been rough from the cold wind. Still, Hwang Hae-kyung didn’t look back at Lee Yoon-san. Even though he was crying loudly as if to show off, he didn’t come back and say he would let him down.
So, Lee Yoon-san’s crying could only become even more sorrowful.
In the end, Lee Yoon-san caught a terrible cold that day. Lee Yoon-san was only rescued by Hwang Hae-kyung’s father an hour after Hwang Hae-kyung had left, and Hwang Hae-kyung had already hidden behind Lee Yoon-san’s mother.
Even when he was scolded for what he had done to his younger sibling, Hwang Hae-kyung glared at his dad, saying, ‘He won’t call me Hyung!’ Lee Yoon-san’s mothers tried to soothe Hwang Hae-kyung and talk to him nicely, but they were surprised. It was because Hwang Hae-kyung’s cheeks, which they had put their hands on to soothe him, were burning hot as if they were on fire. It seemed that Hwang Hae-kyung had also caught a cold from running around outside.
In the end, the two children lay sick in each other’s tents that day. Hwang Hae-kyung had first refused to go to his own tent, saying that he hated his dad, and Lee Yoon-san, who had become more spoiled because he was sick, was also clinging to Hwang Hae-kyung’s father.
The two children lay in each other’s tents, groaning and crying with feverish bodies. They seemed to be very upset by what they had each experienced. The children’s parents were only able to go to see their respective children after some time had passed.
“…Dad’s sorry, Hae-kyung.”
“Why does Dad always, always only like that fatty…”
“Yoon-san is cute and pretty. I thought he was like Hae-kyung’s younger sibling. I thought it would be great if Hae-kyung became a more wonderful Hyung by taking good care of Yoon-san like his younger sibling.”
“I don’t need a younger sibling…”
“Okay. Dad was wrong. I’m sorry for getting angry.”
Hwang Hae-kyung’s father hugged his son, who was crying as if he was upset, and apologized all night. He knew very well that his son was the type to argue back at him, but he would never cry, so it was a painful sight. Perhaps it was because his son was that type that he liked Lee Yoon-san, who was someone else’s child, even more.
Lee Yoon-san was truly a gentle soul himself.
Lee Yoon-san was a child who ate well whatever the adults gave him, greeted people well, and spoke softly, although he was shy. He had a different charm from his son, whom he saw every day, so he couldn’t help but like him separately from his son.
Of course, even so, his son was his priority. No matter how pretty Lee Yoon-san was, he was someone else’s child, so he could like him more comfortably.
“I’m so, so sorry if our son was upset because of Dad.”
“I was really pissed off, earlier…”
“Pissed off… you should say angry, Hae-kyung. Where did you learn such words?”
“Everyone uses those words. What does Dad know.”
“……”
Anyway, that was that.
Meanwhile, in Hwang Hae-kyung’s tent, where Lee Yoon-san was lying sick, there was also a tearful reunion between mother and son. Lee Yoon-san’s parents, who had not been able to see their son because Hwang Hae-kyung would not let go of them, had come to visit.
In fact, Lee Yoon-san’s parents felt a little sorry for Hwang Hae-kyung. The fact that the small, pretty, and skinny Hwang Hae-kyung seemed weaker than Lee Yoon-san also played a part, and the sight of Hwang Hae-kyung having conflicts with his father was also heartbreaking. So, they couldn’t help but pay more attention to him.
They felt sorry that Hwang Hae-kyung, who was an only child, seemed to be growing up with the stress of being the eldest because of their son, and they always ended up taking care of the small child more.
And in the meantime, Lee Yoon-san seemed to have felt a sense of neglect without realizing it.
“Why did you come to play with Hae-kyung…”
Lee Yoon-san said with a hoarse voice, sniffling. The Alpha mother almost burst out laughing at the expression and content that were full of resentment, but the nasal voice and the way his cheeks were full and squished were just cute.
“Go be Hae-kyung’s mom…”
“But I want to be our Baby Potato’s mom?”
“Don’t call me Baby Potato…”
“Why, did someone tease our Baby Potato?”
“They called me a pig potato… Hae-kyung’s friends…”
“Cough.”
“I hate potatoes…!”
The parents had to grit their teeth urgently because their son, who was sniffling and complaining as if he was upset, was too cute. The parents were well aware that their son was plump and had not escaped childhood obesity.
However, they had never been negative about their son’s appearance. That’s because their son had handsome features, even though they were buried in his chubby cheeks. So, they always made it a habit to tell their son that he was handsome and pretty. That was actually the case, and they also had a vague idea that the fat he had now would all go to his height.
Even if that didn’t happen, they didn’t want to give their son unnecessary stress as long as there were no health problems. Therefore, they didn’t talk about his appearance, and even if they did, it was only compliments.
Fortunately, thanks to their brainwashing-like education, Lee Yoon-san was growing up without thinking much about his appearance. No matter how much his peers or Hwang Hae-kyung teased him by calling him a pig or a fatty, he would only get angry at that moment and not hold it in his heart.
Therefore, Lee Yoon-san had never been shy or acted passively because of his shy personality, but he had never shown a discouraged appearance due to his low self-esteem because of his appearance. Things might change when he reached puberty, but that was the case for now.
The two couples soothed their respective sons and barely fell asleep. The children were on vacation, but the adults didn’t have a vacation, so it wasn’t good to have a reversed day and night life. They had to commute to work directly from the long-term camping site when the vacation period was over.
They liked camping, but if they took turns matching each other’s vacation schedules, there would be one person who could take care of the children while they commuted to work from the long-term camping site. Anyway, the children were busy running around in nature with each other, and the adult who remained at the campsite only had to take good care of their meals.
The thought that it was a much better environment than seeing the kids glued to computers or game consoles in their rooms all vacation long also played a part. Of course, the fact that all the children from the gathering families were only children was also a big reason. Rather than leaving them lonely at home, the judgment was that it would be good for the children’s social skills if they could get along with peers like friends or siblings, even in this way.
Anyway, the adults fell asleep. The children also took a nap, and the fever quickly subsided the next day. This was because the antipyretic worked well, and the children who had grown up running around the mountains, fields, and seas every vacation period were basically healthy and strong.
As soon as Lee Yoon-san recovered his health, he decided to take bloody revenge. So he headed to where Hwang Hae-kyung’s friends were gathered and playing. Hwang Hae-kyung himself was still not fully recovered from his cold and was said to be sleeping in a nearby caravan.
Lee Yoon-san wasn’t particularly surprised by the news. The pretty, skinny kid always seemed weak, unlike his temper, and always took all the attention of his parents.
“Hey!”
As soon as Lee Yoon-san saw the familiar group of children, he shouted. They were the kids who had watched him hanging from the tree the day before, shouting for them to bring him down, and had instead mocked him as a fatty.
In fact, Lee Yoon-san disliked Hwang Hae-kyung’s sycophantic friends even more than Hwang Hae-kyung. If Hwang Hae-kyung said one thing, those kids would add two or three words each, sneering or teasing. None of the four or so children besides Hwang Hae-kyung felt sorry for Lee Yoon-san.
And frustratingly, they were all just barely older than Lee Yoon-san.
“What is it, pig?”
So, before eliminating Hwang Hae-kyung, the boss of the villains, he decided to punish those annoying kids first.
The children reacted as if they were annoyed when Lee Yoon-san came to them with a huffing face. They were originally planning to have a snowball fight today, but Hwang Hae-kyung’s illness had made the numbers uneven. So, the children were sitting around an outdoor table, wondering what to play, and decided to have an arm wrestling match. In that situation, Hwang Hae-kyung’s annoying little tagalong had suddenly come to find them.
“I want to do that too!”
“What?”
“Arm wrestling!”
Lee Yoon-san declared as if scolding, sticking out his chubby belly and putting strength in his eyes. Then, the expressions of the children, who had been watching the scene in disbelief, crumpled.
It was already disappointing that Hwang Hae-kyung, who was fun to play with, was sick and absent, but the fact that an annoying little kid was joining in when the Hyungs were going to play together was very irritating. Most of the children were only children or the youngest, in line with the current times, so they had no experience of having a younger sibling.
Moreover, they were not at an age where they wanted a younger sibling, so there was no consideration or tolerance for Lee Yoon-san, who was a year younger. This was like a momentary feeling of the children of that age, regardless of individual personality. They didn’t need an annoying, bothersome younger sibling who was bigger than them.
“Ah, no, go away!”
Therefore, the children naturally rejected Lee Yoon-san. But Lee Yoon-san did not give in. He was used to being treated like this by Hwang Hae-kyung and his group every vacation. It wasn’t that he wasn’t hurt, but his resentment was greater.
Moreover, Lee Yoon-san was in a situation where he had come to take revenge, so he couldn’t back down easily.
“I’m going to tell my uncle.”
“Ah, damn…”
Lee Yoon-san pulled out his secret weapon, the ‘uncle card’. It seemed to take effect immediately. The expressions of the children, who had been looking like they would never let Lee Yoon-san join them, began to show signs of trouble.
In fact, Hwang Hae-kyung’s father, whom Lee Yoon-san called uncle, was a notorious figure among the children. He often scolded his son Hwang Hae-kyung, who acted as the leader of the group, and the children knew that most of the reason was Lee Yoon-san. The children were also well aware that Hwang Hae-kyung’s father tried to take care of Lee Yoon-san more than his own son.
Of course, Hwang Hae-kyung’s father’s large physique, the stern expressions unique to adult men, and the cold attitude when disciplining Hwang Hae-kyung were also factors that enhanced his notoriety.
As a result, the children had no choice but to succumb to Lee Yoon-san’s ‘uncle card’.
“But if you lose even once, it’s over! Then we won’t let you join!”
One of the children declared in a sulky tone. But Lee Yoon-san was not discouraged and stomped towards the table where the children were gathered.
A little later, all the children at the table had lost to Lee Yoon-san in arm wrestling. The unreasonable children complained that their arms were numb, some were frustrated that they had lost to the young Lee Yoon-san in arm wrestling, and some mischievous children ran away, calling Lee Yoon-san a monster pig. Anyway, it was Lee Yoon-san’s victory.
“If you mess with me again, you’re all dead!”
Lee Yoon-san shouted to Hwang Hae-kyung’s friends with a triumphant expression. Lee Yoon-san’s shoulders and arms also ached from the continuous arm wrestling, but he was able to hide his expression as if it didn’t hurt. The thrill of victory was that exhilarating. Seeing the children, who usually acted cocky as Hyungs, being frustrated after losing to him in arm wrestling was so refreshing and satisfying.
In fact, Lee Yoon-san had won first place in arm wrestling in his class before the vacation. Lee Yoon-san was as strong as his large and chubby physique, and the physique that had been a source of ridicule only during kindergarten birthdays was often regarded as a boast since entering elementary school.
He realized that his tall height and the fact that he was strong enough to lift desks easily were his strengths.
In fact, around that time, interest in children’s height had surged among parents, so it was the right time.
“Hey.”
As Lee Yoon-san was immersed in the joy of victory for a long time, a familiar yet unfamiliar voice was heard from behind him. It was Hwang Hae-kyung, with a hoarse voice and a frowning expression, as if he had a sore throat. Lee Yoon-san stared at Hwang Hae-kyung and felt slightly worried. It was because Hwang Hae-kyung really looked like he was in a lot of pain.
“Hae-kyung, are you sick?”
“No.”
So, when he asked with a worried face, Hwang Hae-kyung immediately gave a negative answer. It was the will of a 10-year-old who didn’t want to look weak in front of his younger brother.
On the other hand, Lee Yoon-san couldn’t understand Hwang Hae-kyung’s answer. Hwang Hae-kyung looked sick to anyone. The disheveled hair, the swollen face, the eyes that couldn’t even open properly because of it, and the voice that sounded like a villain in an animation rather than Hwang Hae-kyung were the evidence.
But he lies that he’s not sick. Lying is bad. Lee Yoon-san thought so and strode towards Hwang Hae-kyung. And he was surprised.
“Huh?”
“Wh, what, you!”
Hwang Hae-kyung’s height, which he saw when he got closer, was shorter than his. It wasn’t really surprising. Lee Yoon-san, who was big, was 152cm, about 10cm taller than the average 9-year-old.
On the other hand, Hwang Hae-kyung’s height was exactly the average for a 10-year-old, 147cm. Hwang Hae-kyung himself was so pretty and petite that he often looked even smaller, but they had never stood so close together that they could really feel the height difference, so he was only now realizing the height difference.
“Hae-kyung is small.”
“You pig!”
It was natural that Hwang Hae-kyung was furious at Lee Yoon-san’s words, which he threw out carelessly as if he was amazed.
Hwang Hae-kyung had also teased Lee Yoon-san as a pig, but he didn’t think he would be taller than him. To Hwang Hae-kyung, Lee Yoon-san was his younger brother, and his parents had always told Hwang Hae-kyung to take care of and protect his younger brother, Lee Yoon-san.
So, without separately calculating and thinking about height, Hwang Hae-kyung had a belief that Lee Yoon-san was shorter than him.
But the reality was not. He hadn’t realized the height difference because he was running around the mountains and rivers on uneven terrain, but now the height was being compared right in front of his nose. Anyone could see that Lee Yoon-san was taller than Hwang Hae-kyung, and Hwang Hae-kyung was looking up at Lee Yoon-san. Hwang Hae-kyung, the Hyung, was looking up at Lee Yoon-san, the younger brother.
That was very damaging to Hwang Hae-kyung’s pride.
“It’s because the ground here is low!”
“No? We’re standing together.”
“No! This is lower ground!”
While Hwang Hae-kyung was shouting with a voice that wasn’t coming out properly, Lee Yoon-san stared blankly at Hwang Hae-kyung’s head. He was amazed that he could see the head of the Hyung who always followed him around.
Hwang Hae-kyung, who always teased him, scared him with bugs and insects that he was afraid of, and ran ahead with rough pranks, and whom he had vaguely thought was stronger and taller than him, was actually smaller than him, which was so amazing to Lee Yoon-san.
Even though Hwang Hae-kyung was glaring and stomping on the ground under his feet, Lee Yoon-san didn’t care.
“What did you do with the kids?”
Hwang Hae-kyung glared at Lee Yoon-san, who was just looking at his actions as if they were amazing, and asked. Even though he was lying in the caravan, he could hear the sound of his friends being indignant, so it was noisy outside. And all those friends rushed to the caravan where Hwang Hae-kyung was, making a fuss about pigs and superhuman strength.
Hwang Hae-kyung was so heavy and his throat hurt that he was annoyed by those friends, but he got up. Perhaps because of his parents’ brainwashing, he felt like he had to go out once he heard Lee Yoon-san’s name from the children’s mouths.
“I arm wrestled! I won them all!”
That’s how he came out. But not only did he confirm that Lee Yoon-san’s height had become taller than him, but he also heard the bad news that all his friends had lost to Lee Yoon-san in arm wrestling.
Moreover, Lee Yoon-san’s expression and voice, who was saying that directly, were bright. He said it as if it wasn’t a difficult duel.
Hwang Hae-kyung glanced back at the distance. There were his friends running around and playing on the site boundary made by burying tires.
‘Idiots, you all lost to a 9-year-old in arm wrestling, and what’s so fun about playing like that?’
Hwang Hae-kyung thought so in his heart and turned his gaze back to Lee Yoon-san.
“Do it with me too.”
It was a duel request that he took out because he felt unfair. He was also angry that his friends had been completely defeated by the 9-year-old in front of him and had come to him, and he was so angry that his height was smaller than the 9-year-old Lee Yoon-san.
And the 9-year-old Lee Yoon-san, who made him angry, was looking down at him as if nothing was wrong. Hwang Hae-kyung was annoyed by this too.
Everything was annoying, that he was a younger brother but bigger than him, that he was big and strong. The weak, slow, and annoying kid that adults always told him to protect seemed to be better than him, and that point was very frustrating and frustrating.
“Arm wrestling? Okay!”
“……”
“But Hae-kyung, aren’t you sick? I’ll go easy on you!”
“Don’t be ridiculous!”
Hwang Hae-kyung shouted sharply at Lee Yoon-san’s kindness, who had offered it with a face that was red as if he had a fever. It was a clear rejection of kindness. Lee Yoon-san tilted his head at Hwang Hae-kyung. Why is he angry? Lee Yoon-san couldn’t understand Hwang Hae-kyung, who suddenly got angry and was huffing and puffing right in front of him.
He was sick the day before, and Hwang Hae-kyung still looked very sick now. His swollen face, his red and blue complexion, his hot, snorting nose, and above all, his voice was really bad.
So, he was worried and offered kindness like when he arm wrestled with his classmates, but Hwang Hae-kyung got even more angry at that. He even glared at Lee Yoon-san with his eyes turned red and went to the table first, making a thumping sound.
“Do it properly! If you go easy on me, you’re dead!”
Then he took a stance first and said that. Lee Yoon-san was a little worried about Hwang Hae-kyung, who looked more sick and weak after realizing the height difference, but that was it.
Anyway, Hwang Hae-kyung wanted to arm wrestle, and wasn’t Lee Yoon-san originally going to arm wrestle to get revenge on Hwang Hae-kyung and his group? Besides, when he remembered that Hwang Hae-kyung and his group had put him on a tree the day before and made him scared, his sympathy for Hwang Hae-kyung in front of him disappeared.
“I won’t go easy on you.”
And he confidently walked to the opposite side of Hwang Hae-kyung and sat down. He took a stance, grabbed Hwang Hae-kyung’s hand, and immediately gave strength to knock it over, and Hwang Hae-kyung’s back of his hand fell onto the wooden table with a bang.
It happened in just one second after the arm wrestling started, and Hwang Hae-kyung’s back of his hand was almost slammed onto the table. It was Hwang Hae-kyung’s complete defeat. Hwang Hae-kyung’s back of his hand and wrist were bruised, so it was also the moment when Lee Yoon-san’s revenge was successful.
“Hey!”
Immediately after the defeat, Hwang Hae-kyung’s angry shout burst out. The back of his hand and wrist, which had been slammed into the rough wooden table, were too painful, and it was humiliating that he had lost so easily to Lee Yoon-san, who was younger than him. He didn’t know for sure, but he thought that his friends were watching this scene from over there, so his anger soared even more.
“Don’t mess with me from now on either!”
Lee Yoon-san also stood up to Hwang Hae-kyung’s anger and threatened him. He didn’t know that Hwang Hae-kyung’s hand, which he had grabbed for a moment, was too slender and hot, and that his eyes were filled with anger and tears, but this was a clear revenge.
So, who told you to bully and ostracize me usually? Lee Yoon-san tried to think so and ignored Hwang Hae-kyung’s anger and emotions.
He thought that Hwang Hae-kyung might be hurt, but he turned away. Hwang Hae-kyung had proposed this arm wrestling first, and Hwang Hae-kyung had angrily told him not to go easy on him, so it was Hwang Hae-kyung’s fault.
“Don’t ever show up in front of me again and get lost!”
From that day on, the relationship between the two became even worse.
It was one winter vacation when Hwang Hae-kyung was 10 years old and Lee Yoon-san was 9 years old.