TGMC 01

chapter 01

When I got home from work, I found a piece of mail waiting for me.

〈General Health Examination Results〉

It was the result of the medical checkup I’d taken about two weeks earlier.

After stepping into my studio apartment, I tore open the envelope.

As expected, my stomach wasn’t in great shape.

Atrophic gastritis. Reflux esophagitis.

Quite a few upper gastrointestinal issues.

My stress level was also pretty high.

I checked online and saw that atrophic gastritis was one of the most common conditions among office workers.

“Don’t eat burnt food or salty food, no late-night meals, and no carbonated drinks?”

Everything I liked turned out to be bad for my body.

“Ugh.”

I let out a sigh and picked up my phone.

I dialed a number right away.

The call connected quickly.

“Hey, Mom. It’s me.”

[Oh, my son. You just got off work?]

“Yeah. I just got home. You told me to let you know when the checkup results came out, so I’m calling about that.”

[The results are out? How are they? Nothing serious, right?]

“I do have gastritis, but they say half of all office workers have it. I don’t think it’s something to worry about too much.”

But my mom clearly didn’t agree.

She warned me that if I neglected it, it could become chronic gastritis, which could then lead to ulcers or even stomach cancer. She told me again and again to be careful.

“There you go again, nagging. I get it. I’ll take care of it for a while.”

[Good. Oh, and how are things with Jihyun? Are they going well?]

“Yeah. We’re both busy tomorrow, so we can’t meet, but we’re going on a date the day after.”

[That’s nice. You’re meeting on Sunday, right? Treat her to something good, okay?]

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it. More importantly, you’re not sick anywhere, right?”

[I’m perfectly healthy. The air here is so clean. And eating meals made with vegetables I grow myself—it’s amazing.]

“Yeah. Man, I really want to eat rice mixed with your side dishes. Your big-bowl bibimbap is the best.”

Just thinking about it made my mouth water.

[If you want to eat it, come down anytime. You can bring Jihyun with you.]

“Huh?”

[Didn’t she say she likes the countryside? There’s a room upstairs for you two. Stay the night. I’ll cook you a proper home-style meal.]

“Ah… yeah. When we’re both not busy, we’ll definitely come down.”

[You know you said that last month too, right? Come to think of it, I haven’t seen Jihyun in quite a while.]

“I’ll bring her soon. Mom, it’s late. I have work tomorrow too, so I’ll hang up now. Good night.”

[Okay, my son. Sleep well and have sweet dreams.]

I hung up in a hurry.

I felt awkward lying to my mom.

I checked the message Jihyun had sent me again yesterday.

Kim Jihyun:
I’m sorry, oppa. Meeting your mother still feels a bit burdensome to me. Going down to the countryside is uncomfortable too. Let’s go another time when there’s a chance.

My mom lived alone in my hometown after my father passed away.

She thought Jihyun liked the countryside, but in reality, my girlfriend—the woman I was considering marriage with—felt uncomfortable about my mom.

Should I call her even now?

I hesitated, then put my phone down.

If I called again and she still responded negatively… what would I do then?

I hadn’t thought that far ahead yet.

We’re meeting on Sunday, so I’ll just ask her then.

We’d been dating for over two years.

I’d met Jihyun’s parents, and she’d met my mom once when Mom happened to come up to Seoul.

Both families were already talking about marriage, so I thought she’d gladly agree if I suggested visiting my mom. But maybe we weren’t as close as I thought.

What would she think if she knew my dream was to return to farming?

Even now, I still wanted to move back to the countryside.

I was tired of the big city, where I had to endure stress, work overtime every day, and even go in on weekends. I wanted to live quietly, growing vegetables and living close to nature.

To do that, I’d need at least a billion won, right?

But even if I worked my whole life, could I really earn that much?

Unless I won first prize in the lottery.

“Let’s wash up and sleep.”

I had to go to work early again tomorrow.

After a quick shower, I crawled into bed.

That night, I dreamed.

I had won first prize in the lottery and boldly handed in my resignation to my team leader.

* * *

The subway was quieter than usual.

The reason was simple.

It was Saturday.

A weekend workday.

At least we got special overtime pay, so that was something.

Sitting down, I checked my phone.

Jihyun still hadn’t sent a message.

In the end, I messaged her first.

Did you get to work?

A moment later, a reply came.

I’m working now. What about you, oppa?
Me too. What time should we meet tomorrow?
There’s an exhibition in the morning. How about going there?

As I got off the subway, I replied.

Lunch after the exhibition?
Yeah. That’s the plan. You can come pick me up in the morning, right?
Yeah. Let’s meet around 10 a.m.
Okay! Have a good day at work today. Fighting! 😊

I couldn’t bring myself to ask whether she wanted to visit my mom.

I already knew what the answer would be.

As I walked along the main road, checking messages, I spotted a lottery shop that was already open early in the morning.

Maybe it was because I’d dreamed about winning first prize last night.

Since I was already here, I figured I’d buy just 5,000 won worth.

Jingle.

I opened the door and went inside.

The rules were simple.

Choose six numbers from 1 to 45.

I took an OMR card from the table, picked up a marker, and randomly filled in six numbers each on lines A through D.

Just as I was about to fill in line E, I thought of Jihyun.

Jihyun, are you busy?
Huh? Not yet. Why? What’s up?
I’m buying lottery tickets. Pick six numbers for me.
What lottery? That’ll never win. Just pick any numbers.
Come on, you pick them. It might work.

There was a brief pause.

Then her reply came.

2, 22, 7, 28, 19, 39. That okay?
Yeah. Thanks.

I filled in the numbers she’d chosen.

February 22—my birthday.

July 28—Jihyun’s birthday.

What about 19 and 39?

She probably just picked them randomly.

After filling out the card, I handed it to the shop owner with 5,000 won.

“Good luck.”

He handed me the ticket with a kind wish.

I stuffed it into my pants pocket and left the shop.

The chances of winning first prize were slim.

But since around ten winners came out every week,

I couldn’t help hoping—just a little—that I might be one of them.

* * *

“Yaaawn.”

I stretched lazily.

One precious day of the weekend had vanished in an instant.

Today was Sunday.

The day I had a date with Jihyun.

After showering thoroughly, I picked out clean clothes and put them on.

With a coat over them, I looked pretty decent.

I got into my domestic compact sedan parked in the lot.

It was a used car I’d bought for around ten million won—a pretty old model—but I was fond of it.

I’d driven it all over the country.

Jihyun, I’m leaving now.

After sending the message, I started the engine.

The car rattled as it came to life.

I pulled out of the parking lot and headed to Jihyun’s place.

I arrived about thirty minutes later.

Unlike me, who lived alone, Jihyun lived with her parents and younger brother.

I turned off the engine and fiddled with my phone while waiting for her.

While browsing websites and chuckling at funny GIFs, one popular post title caught my eye.

〈This Week’s Lottery First-Prize Numbers Just Announced〉

Right—yesterday had been the lottery draw.

I’d completely forgotten to check before going to bed.

I barely ever bought lottery tickets anyway.

I didn’t expect to win.

Should I check?

I tapped the post.

The winning numbers appeared on the screen.

〈2, 7, 19, 22, 28, 39 + 5〉

The first six numbers were the first-prize numbers.

The last number, 5, was the bonus for second prize.

Below that were the total prize amount, the number of winning tickets, and the payout per ticket.

“Huh?”

Wait a second.

Was something wrong with my eyes?

The numbers looked… familiar.

“2 and 22, 7 and 28, and 19 and 39…”

Oh my god.

They matched exactly the numbers Jihyun had sent me last night.

I hurriedly searched my pockets.

But of course, I wasn’t wearing the pants with the ticket right now.

Those were in the laundry basket.

Wait—did I mark the numbers correctly with the marker? What if my mom suddenly came up and did the laundry?

All kinds of thoughts rushed in, and my heart started pounding.

I wanted to rush home immediately and check the ticket.

I needed to see it with my own eyes.

If this is really first prize… how much money is it?

I searched online.

After taxes, this week’s first-prize winnings came out to about 1.8 billion won.

“Haha… hahahaha.”

I couldn’t even speak properly, like someone who’d lost their mind.

My head was spinning.

I couldn’t tell if this was a dream or reality.

Then—

Knock, knock.

Someone tapped on the window.

I turned my head.

It was Jihyun.

“Oppa! The door’s locked!”

I hurriedly unlocked it.

She got in, pouting.

“Why was the door locked? I kept calling you, but you didn’t answer.”

“Huh? Ah—uh, well…”

I couldn’t get the words out.

I stammered, trying to organize my thoughts.

Should I tell her I won the lottery?

Honestly, I owed this win to Jihyun.

The numbers she picked had won first prize.

And we were a couple planning to get married.

There was no reason not to tell her.

I made up my mind and opened my mouth.

“Jihyun, I have some good news to tell you—”

“I actually have something to say to you too.”

Huh?

The timing couldn’t have been worse.

We both started speaking at the same time.

“Uh?”

“Huh?”

After a brief moment of confusion, I spoke first.

“You go first. I’ll talk after.”

“Ah… okay.”

Even so, Jihyun hesitated, unable to speak easily.

I tilted my head, watching her.

What was she taking so long to say?

I had a bad feeling.

The longer the silence dragged on, the more uneasy I felt.

Then, as if she’d made up her mind, she bit her lip.

Sitting in the passenger seat, she looked straight at me and finally spoke.

With a sigh, she said,

“Oppa… I’m sorry, but let’s break up.”

What?

After hesitating for so long, the words she carefully delivered to me—

were that she wanted to break up.