Chapter 453
Drururuk—
The cassette tape whirred as it rewound. Seven-year-old Kang Ichae lifted his head at the sound, watching a few fluffy clouds drift lazily across the wide blue sky—and for some reason, he suddenly felt a prick of irritation.
‘The sky’s so blue....’
He snorted softly and kicked his feet again. His view shifted. Off to the left, his violin case lay half-buried under sand; it had been that way for a while now.
‘When will Mom come home?’
For as long as Kang Ichae could remember, his mother had always been sick.
Maybe that was why—this time, too—she’d been hospitalized in Korea for reasons he didn’t really understand.
Whenever she smiled at him, she was the same loving mom as always, but once he stepped into the hospital room, everything about her felt strange. Her gaze, which used to shine with affection, her delicate smile—they hadn’t changed, yet her pale skin and slightly furrowed brows made it feel like she was pushing him away.
That must be why she kept leaving him with other adults.
‘I hate it....’
All those people pretending to be kind, whispering behind his back about how his mother had a child out of wedlock, about how their family would probably abandon them now.
‘Why does a dad even matter?’