Chapter 3
Chapter 3
In the blink of an eye, the sun changed as she was wrestling with the kids who didn’t listen to their teachers at a small tutoring academy.
Jaeha tried and tried, but like a bird slowly sinking into a swamp, she could hardly escape from her miserable and poor life.
After building her career by working hard for a year at the tutoring academy with poor conditions, she moved to another academy—an academy run by a female director in her late fifties.
It was unusual from the words the director with a strict impression uttered during the interview.
“I am a person who values talent as well as personality. Even when new people come in, I want to maintain the current family atmosphere.”
Director Yeo took it as natural that she arrived 30 minutes early and left the office thirty minutes late from the stated working hours. Was that all?
“Of course, you should do 1-2 hours of supplementary classes on weekends during the children’s exam period.”
“Well, then, how is the supplementary class time reflected in my salary?”
“Teacher Yoon. If the grades are good because of the supplementary classes for the kids, isn’t it good for the kids, the teacher, and me as well? At the most, you only have 1-2 hours of classes on the weekends… Even now, I think that I am giving it well for Teacher Yoon’s age and career.”
A 1-2 hour class at most…? Does she have to teach differently for each grade and school?
As the exam period for middle and high school students approached, they had to conduct free supplementary classes for more than eight hours on weekends, as if volunteering. Besides, because she was teaching Korean, Jaeha had to take care of all the writing assignments for the director’s middle school daughter.
Due to the severe exploitation of labor outside of working hours, daily life and work were not separated at all.
In the end, after one semester, she quit the academy and looked for a new academy.
The third academy she found was run by a male director in his late 30s. It was about twice the size of the academy where she first worked, although the salary increased slightly and the working hours decreased slightly.
Since it was a well-established place, so it won’t be run like a fist-fighting place with a family-like atmosphere.
Even thinking that she was lucky to be able to find a better place for a while, Jaeha suffered from the stalking of the director.
She thought it was an illusion at first. However, useless contacts continued, and the director continued to ask for a meeting outside of working hours, saying that he would treat her to a meal.
Even though Jaeha thought it was dangerous, but since he showed restraint in front of other teachers, she let her guard down that it would be all right if she didn’t give him a chance.
It was a mistake.
In mid-October, after middle school and high school students’ midterm exams, a group dinner was held. The grades of the students generally improved, so it was a place for the director to treat Korean beef.
Jaeha tried to refrain from drinking, but she had no choice but to drink a glass a few times because her fellow teachers, including the director, consistently recommended it.
‘It’s been a while since I drank. I don’t think I drank much, but I’m getting drunk quickly…’
Jaeha, thinking that she could not enter the house on her own feet, greeted the director and teachers and got up from the dinner party.
Then, the director followed immediately.
“Teacher Yoon, you seem to be very drunk.”
“It’s okay, it’s okay. I can get there quickly by taking the subway.”
“Don’t do that, take a taxi. I will take you.”
Normally, she would have refused like a knife. But now, Jaeha’s condition was not very good. Her head was dizzy, and her legs were like jelly.
After she hesitated for a moment, she nodded her head and the director quickly caught a taxi. In the taxi, she fell asleep without realizing it.
“Teacher Yoon, you have to get off.”
It seemed like someone was saying something, though it didn’t really touch her confused mind.
Someone helped Jaeha to get out of the taxi. Relying on someone else, Jaeha took a few steps while staggering and was moved somewhere and laid down on the blanket. The moment her remaining consciousness was about to be consumed by drowsiness, she felt a cool snake crawling through her skin.
As Jaeha forced her heavy eyelids up, her eyes met the director who was groping her.
“Kyaaaak!”
Jaeha’s scream didn’t last long. Because the director’s large hand quickly kept her mouth shut. The director covered her mouth with one hand and rummaged through his pockets with the other.
He seemed to be looking for something like a handkerchief. The woman he thought would never wake up, came to her senses, and he looked quite bewildered.
If not now, she won’t be able to run away from the man in front of her. Her body was powerless as she could not completely shake off the drunkenness.
However, Jaeha gathered her strength with the determination that she would die or she would collapse.
Her struggling feet luckily hit the director’s crotch.
“Ugh, sh*t!”
The director, who could not overcome the pain, bent over without realizing it and opened a gap.
The jacket and shoes didn’t catch her eye. Jaeha, dressed in disheveled clothes, hurried out of the motel room like a rabbit whose tail was on fire.
The director was quite meticulous. This was an unmanned motel. So, even after she came down to the first-floor lobby, she was not relieved. She then went out into the street with only her socks on.
Dirty and cold floors were no problem since the most important thing was to get out of the motel, no, the director’s view.
‘Where the hell is this place?’
Jaeha, who had been navigating the remote alley, where only the streetlights were sparsely lined, like a crazy woman, felt pain in her feet and stopped. There was a piece of shattered glass in the place where she stepped.
The blood from her wounds began to stain her socks red.
In addition to her feet, did the cold wind that blew across hurt her eyes, too? Her eyes were tingling. Her vision kept getting blurry because of the tears that were soaring.
“You have to come to your senses…”
Biting her lip, she wiped her tears with her sleeve and moved her steps again. Perhaps, the God of misfortune, who had been hovering around her, had flipped for a while, and with the help of a middle-aged couple, she was able to catch a taxi and get home.
Locking the front door, and Jaeha piled up heavy items such as chairs and fire extinguishers in front of the door. She knew it’s meaningless. Still, if she doesn’t do this, it’s difficult to shake the anxiety a little bit.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she sat down on a chair that stood out among the clutter. An unbearable pain crept through her injured foot.
“Huuu, huuuh… Damn, why are you doing this to me? What did I do wrong?”
She hated the director so much that she wanted to kill him.
It was unfair. This world was disappointing.
‘But, Miss Jaeha has a lot of yin, but it’s too much. It’s amazing that you’re still alive. Whether it’s positive or negative, if it’s more than the right amount, it’s bound to cause problems. In particular, the yin energy continues to collide with the surrounding energy and eats up the luck that is there and the luck that is flocking to it.’
Suddenly, the words of the fortuneteller came to mind.
Jaeha said as she swallowed the tears that had trickled down her lips.
“Even if that’s true, I wasn’t born because I wanted to be born that way!”
Eventually, she finally calmed down until her eyes swelled up. As the alcohol flowing through her veins was diluted, her head became clearer.
Checking the lock on the front door once more, she washed her body and came out of the bathroom. The places where the director allegedly groped were washed several times with plenty of body wash.
The wound on the sole of her feet, which had barely stopped bleeding, burst again, oozing out of blood.
Luckily she was not seriously injured, thanks to the socks. Jaeha treated it with an ointment and band, and as soon as the sun came up, she decided to go to the police station and report her director.
But things turned a little weird.
The director she met at the police station was brazen as if he had dozens of iron plates on his face.
“What did you mean to rape you? I just took you to the motel to get some rest because Teacher Yoon was so drunk that she couldn’t even walk properly. However, teacher Yoon suddenly woke up and ran out of the room with a surprised face, without even having time to explain what she was doing.”
“What, what? How could you tell such a blatant lie…!”
She thought she had to respond as calmly as possible, but the surprised Jaeha had no choice but to raise her voice.
“You kept my mouth shut and groped me! Besides, you took me to the motel to get some rest? Is this a motel in an unfamiliar area, not a motel near the restaurant where we dine-in, or a motel near my house? Do you think this makes sense?”
“The motel is cheap compared to the others. It’s good to help the teacher from the point of view of someone running the academy, but isn’t it natural to think about expenses?”
The more the director poured out, the more she was shocked and her lips trembled.
The police officer in charge showed a neutral, no ruthless reaction. The CCTV collected from the unmanned motel showed the director leading to the room with the drunken Jaeha, and she exited the building in surprise. Even so, the police in charge said the situation was ambiguous.
She had no idea that things would turn out like this, and she was greatly perplexed.
Jaeha tried to gather the testimonies of the academy teachers, including those who attended the dinner that day, nevertheless, it was not easy. She was prepared that they might not be willing to help easily, as it was a problem with work.
But, it was not good to give false testimony.
“Hmm, it’s hard to bring this up, but… Teacher Yoon’s usual behavior was a bit like that. Because the director was single, she approached him secretly.”
The science professor, who claimed to be the director’s right arm, stated that Jaeha had approached the director privately. Mathematics, English, and social studies teachers who attended the dinner that day answered that they did not know whether Jaeha was drunk or not.
At first glance, it seemed like an answer that was not on anyone’s side, though obviously, it was actually on the director’s side.
So, in the end, the police officer in charge said there was not enough evidence that she would be acquitted. However, since that day, she felt tremendous fear, and Jaeha, who even felt betrayed by the academy teachers, could not back down even if that was unfair.
Meanwhile, the director sued her for a false accusation. Because of that, Jaeha used the money she had, hired a lawyer, and went out to prepare for her trial.
Before the trial, the English teacher, whom she had been best friends with in the academy, secretly asked Jaeha to meet.
What other nonsense is he trying to do? Jaeha agreed to meet with the intention of recording the conversation. Perhaps, the other party had that in mind, their meeting place was decided to be a noisy cafe.
If this was the case, the recording would not work properly.
“I want to recommend an agreement even for Miss Jaeha.”
“Did the director make you say that?”
“…The director said that if Miss Jaeha agrees, he will also drop the lawsuit.”
“I have no intention of agreeing, so please let him know he can do as he pleases.”
The teacher, who looked at the stinging Jaeha with a strange gaze, pulled closer and whispered a small whisper in her ear. In a voice that will never be recorded on the recorder she was hiding.
“Miss Jaeha, do you remember when we just started talking to each other and joked when you just joined the academy?”
“….”
“The director pretended to be easygoing, but when we saw the car and accessories were all luxurious, we said that he seemed like a child of a family and had a wide network of people. That said, it’s true. As Miss Jaeha had guessed, the principal kept the teachers silent. It seems that the lawyer is also a person who was a former military officer. Maybe he even reached out to the judges.”
“….”
“Miss Jaeha, I know that there is nothing wrong with it and it is unfair. But, Miss Jaeha is an adult who knows everything. This is a hard fight to win. To be honest, the director recommended that I meet you, but personally, I came because I wanted to stop Miss Jaeha.”
She was even more saddened by the whispered words that seemed to understand her feelings.
Jaeha bit her lips tightly.
“You’re lucky. Think of it as you stepping on dirty sh*t. Miss Jaeha is still young and talented, so she can find other jobs.”
“Do you think that’s really lucky?”
“Miss Jaeha…”
“You don’t know how I felt that day. Have you ever run away from the streets like a crazy woman without even wearing shoes?”
The teacher let out a heavy sigh.
The two separated without much result.
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
In the blink of an eye, the sun changed as she was wrestling with the kids who didn’t listen to their teachers at a small tutoring academy.
Jaeha tried and tried, but like a bird slowly sinking into a swamp, she could hardly escape from her miserable and poor life.
After building her career by working hard for a year at the tutoring academy with poor conditions, she moved to another academy—an academy run by a female director in her late fifties.
It was unusual from the words the director with a strict impression uttered during the interview.
“I am a person who values talent as well as personality. Even when new people come in, I want to maintain the current family atmosphere.”
Director Yeo took it as natural that she arrived 30 minutes early and left the office thirty minutes late from the stated working hours. Was that all?
“Of course, you should do 1-2 hours of supplementary classes on weekends during the children’s exam period.”
“Well, then, how is the supplementary class time reflected in my salary?”
“Teacher Yoon. If the grades are good because of the supplementary classes for the kids, isn’t it good for the kids, the teacher, and me as well? At the most, you only have 1-2 hours of classes on the weekends… Even now, I think that I am giving it well for Teacher Yoon’s age and career.”
A 1-2 hour class at most…? Does she have to teach differently for each grade and school?
As the exam period for middle and high school students approached, they had to conduct free supplementary classes for more than eight hours on weekends, as if volunteering. Besides, because she was teaching Korean, Jaeha had to take care of all the writing assignments for the director’s middle school daughter.
Due to the severe exploitation of labor outside of working hours, daily life and work were not separated at all.
In the end, after one semester, she quit the academy and looked for a new academy.
The third academy she found was run by a male director in his late 30s. It was about twice the size of the academy where she first worked, although the salary increased slightly and the working hours decreased slightly.
Since it was a well-established place, so it won’t be run like a fist-fighting place with a family-like atmosphere.
Even thinking that she was lucky to be able to find a better place for a while, Jaeha suffered from the stalking of the director.
She thought it was an illusion at first. However, useless contacts continued, and the director continued to ask for a meeting outside of working hours, saying that he would treat her to a meal.
Even though Jaeha thought it was dangerous, but since he showed restraint in front of other teachers, she let her guard down that it would be all right if she didn’t give him a chance.
It was a mistake.
In mid-October, after middle school and high school students’ midterm exams, a group dinner was held. The grades of the students generally improved, so it was a place for the director to treat Korean beef.
Jaeha tried to refrain from drinking, but she had no choice but to drink a glass a few times because her fellow teachers, including the director, consistently recommended it.
‘It’s been a while since I drank. I don’t think I drank much, but I’m getting drunk quickly…’
Jaeha, thinking that she could not enter the house on her own feet, greeted the director and teachers and got up from the dinner party.
Then, the director followed immediately.
“Teacher Yoon, you seem to be very drunk.”
“It’s okay, it’s okay. I can get there quickly by taking the subway.”
“Don’t do that, take a taxi. I will take you.”
Normally, she would have refused like a knife. But now, Jaeha’s condition was not very good. Her head was dizzy, and her legs were like jelly.
After she hesitated for a moment, she nodded her head and the director quickly caught a taxi. In the taxi, she fell asleep without realizing it.
“Teacher Yoon, you have to get off.”
It seemed like someone was saying something, though it didn’t really touch her confused mind.
Someone helped Jaeha to get out of the taxi. Relying on someone else, Jaeha took a few steps while staggering and was moved somewhere and laid down on the blanket. The moment her remaining consciousness was about to be consumed by drowsiness, she felt a cool snake crawling through her skin.
As Jaeha forced her heavy eyelids up, her eyes met the director who was groping her.
“Kyaaaak!”
Jaeha’s scream didn’t last long. Because the director’s large hand quickly kept her mouth shut. The director covered her mouth with one hand and rummaged through his pockets with the other.
He seemed to be looking for something like a handkerchief. The woman he thought would never wake up, came to her senses, and he looked quite bewildered.
If not now, she won’t be able to run away from the man in front of her. Her body was powerless as she could not completely shake off the drunkenness.
However, Jaeha gathered her strength with the determination that she would die or she would collapse.
Her struggling feet luckily hit the director’s crotch.
“Ugh, sh*t!”
The director, who could not overcome the pain, bent over without realizing it and opened a gap.
The jacket and shoes didn’t catch her eye. Jaeha, dressed in disheveled clothes, hurried out of the motel room like a rabbit whose tail was on fire.
The director was quite meticulous. This was an unmanned motel. So, even after she came down to the first-floor lobby, she was not relieved. She then went out into the street with only her socks on.
Dirty and cold floors were no problem since the most important thing was to get out of the motel, no, the director’s view.
‘Where the hell is this place?’
Jaeha, who had been navigating the remote alley, where only the streetlights were sparsely lined, like a crazy woman, felt pain in her feet and stopped. There was a piece of shattered glass in the place where she stepped.
The blood from her wounds began to stain her socks red.
In addition to her feet, did the cold wind that blew across hurt her eyes, too? Her eyes were tingling. Her vision kept getting blurry because of the tears that were soaring.
“You have to come to your senses…”
Biting her lip, she wiped her tears with her sleeve and moved her steps again. Perhaps, the God of misfortune, who had been hovering around her, had flipped for a while, and with the help of a middle-aged couple, she was able to catch a taxi and get home.
Locking the front door, and Jaeha piled up heavy items such as chairs and fire extinguishers in front of the door. She knew it’s meaningless. Still, if she doesn’t do this, it’s difficult to shake the anxiety a little bit.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she sat down on a chair that stood out among the clutter. An unbearable pain crept through her injured foot.
“Huuu, huuuh… Damn, why are you doing this to me? What did I do wrong?”
She hated the director so much that she wanted to kill him.
It was unfair. This world was disappointing.
‘But, Miss Jaeha has a lot of yin, but it’s too much. It’s amazing that you’re still alive. Whether it’s positive or negative, if it’s more than the right amount, it’s bound to cause problems. In particular, the yin energy continues to collide with the surrounding energy and eats up the luck that is there and the luck that is flocking to it.’
Suddenly, the words of the fortuneteller came to mind.
Jaeha said as she swallowed the tears that had trickled down her lips.
“Even if that’s true, I wasn’t born because I wanted to be born that way!”
Eventually, she finally calmed down until her eyes swelled up. As the alcohol flowing through her veins was diluted, her head became clearer.
Checking the lock on the front door once more, she washed her body and came out of the bathroom. The places where the director allegedly groped were washed several times with plenty of body wash.
The wound on the sole of her feet, which had barely stopped bleeding, burst again, oozing out of blood.
Luckily she was not seriously injured, thanks to the socks. Jaeha treated it with an ointment and band, and as soon as the sun came up, she decided to go to the police station and report her director.
But things turned a little weird.
The director she met at the police station was brazen as if he had dozens of iron plates on his face.
“What did you mean to rape you? I just took you to the motel to get some rest because Teacher Yoon was so drunk that she couldn’t even walk properly. However, teacher Yoon suddenly woke up and ran out of the room with a surprised face, without even having time to explain what she was doing.”
“What, what? How could you tell such a blatant lie…!”
She thought she had to respond as calmly as possible, but the surprised Jaeha had no choice but to raise her voice.
“You kept my mouth shut and groped me! Besides, you took me to the motel to get some rest? Is this a motel in an unfamiliar area, not a motel near the restaurant where we dine-in, or a motel near my house? Do you think this makes sense?”
“The motel is cheap compared to the others. It’s good to help the teacher from the point of view of someone running the academy, but isn’t it natural to think about expenses?”
The more the director poured out, the more she was shocked and her lips trembled.
The police officer in charge showed a neutral, no ruthless reaction. The CCTV collected from the unmanned motel showed the director leading to the room with the drunken Jaeha, and she exited the building in surprise. Even so, the police in charge said the situation was ambiguous.
She had no idea that things would turn out like this, and she was greatly perplexed.
Jaeha tried to gather the testimonies of the academy teachers, including those who attended the dinner that day, nevertheless, it was not easy. She was prepared that they might not be willing to help easily, as it was a problem with work.
But, it was not good to give false testimony.
“Hmm, it’s hard to bring this up, but… Teacher Yoon’s usual behavior was a bit like that. Because the director was single, she approached him secretly.”
The science professor, who claimed to be the director’s right arm, stated that Jaeha had approached the director privately. Mathematics, English, and social studies teachers who attended the dinner that day answered that they did not know whether Jaeha was drunk or not.
At first glance, it seemed like an answer that was not on anyone’s side, though obviously, it was actually on the director’s side.
So, in the end, the police officer in charge said there was not enough evidence that she would be acquitted. However, since that day, she felt tremendous fear, and Jaeha, who even felt betrayed by the academy teachers, could not back down even if that was unfair.
Meanwhile, the director sued her for a false accusation. Because of that, Jaeha used the money she had, hired a lawyer, and went out to prepare for her trial.
Before the trial, the English teacher, whom she had been best friends with in the academy, secretly asked Jaeha to meet.
What other nonsense is he trying to do? Jaeha agreed to meet with the intention of recording the conversation. Perhaps, the other party had that in mind, their meeting place was decided to be a noisy cafe.
If this was the case, the recording would not work properly.
“I want to recommend an agreement even for Miss Jaeha.”
“Did the director make you say that?”
“…The director said that if Miss Jaeha agrees, he will also drop the lawsuit.”
“I have no intention of agreeing, so please let him know he can do as he pleases.”
The teacher, who looked at the stinging Jaeha with a strange gaze, pulled closer and whispered a small whisper in her ear. In a voice that will never be recorded on the recorder she was hiding.
“Miss Jaeha, do you remember when we just started talking to each other and joked when you just joined the academy?”
“….”
“The director pretended to be easygoing, but when we saw the car and accessories were all luxurious, we said that he seemed like a child of a family and had a wide network of people. That said, it’s true. As Miss Jaeha had guessed, the principal kept the teachers silent. It seems that the lawyer is also a person who was a former military officer. Maybe he even reached out to the judges.”
“….”
“Miss Jaeha, I know that there is nothing wrong with it and it is unfair. But, Miss Jaeha is an adult who knows everything. This is a hard fight to win. To be honest, the director recommended that I meet you, but personally, I came because I wanted to stop Miss Jaeha.”
She was even more saddened by the whispered words that seemed to understand her feelings.
Jaeha bit her lips tightly.
“You’re lucky. Think of it as you stepping on dirty sh*t. Miss Jaeha is still young and talented, so she can find other jobs.”
“Do you think that’s really lucky?”
“Miss Jaeha…”
“You don’t know how I felt that day. Have you ever run away from the streets like a crazy woman without even wearing shoes?”
The teacher let out a heavy sigh.
The two separated without much result.
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