Jaeho's hands were still shaking as he walked home from the laundromat, he had given Yura his number as well.
A beautiful, wealthy, recently divorced woman in her thirties had asked for his contact information, and he had just... given it to her.
What was he supposed to do with that? What did she even want from someone like him? Jaeho wondered what service he could provide her that she couldn't already get from a more qualified individual. Then again, he had nothing to lose.
Jaeho watched her finish up, and leave as he was done with his shift shortly after.
Mrs. Kim understood he was a student and was lenient with his working hours.
Alec's mind raced with possibilities, anxiety coiling in his chest but beneath the nervousness was something else, hope.
Maybe this could open doors, maybe knowing someone like her could lead to opportunities. Better jobs, connections, or anything along those lines.
With his debts cleared, he could finally reduce his workload. He didn't need to juggle three jobs anymore just to stay afloat. He could breathe and focus on school, maybe even have time to actually live for once.
But he still needed more money for Jia and Serin's future, their education, and everything his father had wanted to give them.
And if the system was real, if he could somehow trigger it again somehow.
Jaeho shook his head before muttering under his breath.
"One step at a time."
Right now, he had twenty minutes with his sisters before his next shift at the convenience store. That was all that mattered.
He climbed the stairs to their small apartment, unlocked the door, and barely had time to step inside before he was ambushed by his sisters.
"OPPA!" Two small bodies crashed into him at full speed.
Jaeho laughed, dropping his bag and scooping both girls up, one on each arm. Jia squealed with delight, wrapping her arms around his neck while Serin buried her face in his shoulder, giggling softly.
"You're getting heavy," Jaeho grunted, pretending to struggle with their weight.
"What has Granny been feeding you? Rocks?" Jaeho joked and the twins laughed.
"No, silly!" Jia kicked her legs playfully.
"We had tteokbokki!" She exclaimed with delight.
"And kimchi," Serin added quietly.
"Tteokbokki and kimchi?" Jaeho gasped dramatically.
"No wonder you're so strong now!" Jaeho praised them.
He carried them into the room where Granny Yang sat on the small worn out couch, knitting needles in her hands. She looked up and smiled, a warm, wrinkled smile that reminded Jaeho of his mother.
"Jaeho-yah," she said, putting down her knitting.
"You're right on time," she added.
"Thank you so much for watching them, Granny," Jaeho said, setting the twins down gently. He bowed deeply to show his gratitude.
"I don't know what I'd do without you," Jaeho confessed.
"Aish, stop with all that bowing," Granny Yang waved him off, standing up with a slight groan as she placed her hand on her hip.
"You'll make me feel older than I already am," Granny Yang added.
"But I mean it…!" Jaeho was cut off abruptly.
"I know you do, dear." She patted his cheek.
"But these two keep me company. My grandchildren are in Canada with my daughter, and this old apartment gets too quiet without little voices running around," Granny Yang confessed.
"Still, please let me pay you…!" Jaeho was cut off once again.
"Absolutely not," Her tone was firm but kind.
"A boy your age juggling school and work and raising two children? You need every won you can get. Besides, these angels are payment enough," Granny Yang informed him. Jia tugged on Granny Yang's sleeve.
"Granny, can you teach me the cat's cradle again tomorrow?" Jia requested with a smile.
"Of course, sweet pea." Granny Yang ruffled her hair.
"And Serin, we'll finish our drawing, yes?" Granny Yang made sure she wasn't left out.
"Yes, Granny," Serin nodded shyly.
Granny Yang gathered her things, her knitting bag, her thermos, her reading glasses and headed toward the door. Jaeho walked her out, bowing once more despite her protests.
"You're a good boy, Jaeho," she said softly, her aging eyes filled with warmth.
"Your father would be very proud," She added.
"Thank you, Granny," Jaeho said, these words brought him a strange sense of comfort coming from her.
She left, and Jaeho closed the door behind her, leaning against it for a moment before turning back to his sisters after catching himself.
Jia and Serin were already pulling out their coloring books, spreading crayons across the low table in the room.
"Oppa, come sit with us!" Jia demanded, patting the floor next to her.
"I only have a few minutes," Jaeho said, checking his phone. Eighteen minutes until his shift. "But I'm all yours until then," Jaeho made sure he made time to be present in his sisters' lives,
He sat down between them, and Serin immediately handed him a purple crayon.
"Color the butterfly," she instructed.
"Purple butterfly? That's a bold choice," Jaeho responded.
"It's a magic butterfly," Serin said seriously.
"Ah, I see. My mistake," Jaeho conceded without much of a fight.
Jaeho started coloring, and Jia leaned against his shoulder, humming softly as she worked on her own page, a drawn messy house with a giant sun and three stick figures holding hands.
"Oppa, look!" She held up her drawing proudly.
"It's us!" She was so excited with her work and Jaeho could tell right away.
Jaeho studied it, the tallest figure had messy hair and stick arms that reached down to hold the two smaller figures on either side.
"It's perfect," he said quietly.
"You're in the middle because you're the strongest," Jia explained.
"You protect us from everything!" Jia added.
Serin nodded in agreement, not looking up from her coloring.
"Like a superhero," she said under her breath, focused solely on her drawing.
"I'm not a superhero. Just your oppa," Jaeho swallowed hard, forcing a smile.
"Same thing," Jia wasn't backing down.
For a few minutes, they sat in comfortable silence, just the sound of crayons and Jia's soft humming. Jaeho felt the tension in his shoulders ease, the weight of the day lifted just slightly.
"Oppa?" Serin's quiet voice broke the silence.
"Yeah?" Jaeho responded.
"Are you okay?" Serin asked.
"Of course. Why do you ask?" Jaeho responded right away, blinking in confusion.
Serin finally looked up at him, her eyes were serious.
"You looked sad when you came home. But now you look... different," Serin said and Jaeho forgot for a second how smart his sisters were.
"Different how?" Jaeho questioned, wanting to know the scope of her deciphering ability.
"Like... less tired," Serin said.
Jaeho stared at her. She was only five, but sometimes she saw things no one else did.
He reached over and ruffled her hair playfully.
"I'm okay, Seri. Better than okay, actually," Jaeho said and this wasn't a lie, his life had taken a drastic turn a couple of hours ago.
"Because of the magic butterfly?" Jia asked, pointing at his half-finished drawing to which Jaeho laughed.
"Yeah. Because of the magic butterfly," Jaeho said, feeding into her innocence.
His phone buzzed shortly after, there were ten minutes left. He stood up, brushing crayon shavings off his pants.
"I have to go to work now, but I'll be back before bedtime. Be good for Granny tomorrow, okay?" Jaeho informed them.
"We're always good!" Jia protested.
"Mostly good," Serin corrected.
Jaeho grinned, grabbing his work bag from the hook by the door. Before leaving, he crouched down and kissed each of them on the forehead.
"Love you both," Jaeho always made sure to let them know.
"We love you too, oppa!" They both said in unison.
He stepped out into the evening air, the door shutting behind him but made sure to lock the reinforced iron barricade, they had a key inside with them but Jaeho knew he could leave them alone to a certain degree, he had to. He couldn't ask granny to watch over them forever.
As he walked toward the convenience store, his mind drifted back to the cyan screen. The system, the ₩100,000 sitting in his account, the lottery reward that had erased over half a billion won in debt.
If he could trigger it again, if he could figure out the conditions…
Maybe, just maybe, he could give Jia and Serin the life they deserved.