Ahyun noona had a close relationship with my mom.
No, it wasn’t just a simple acquaintance; it was much closer.
Mom was always grateful to her because noona would look after me whenever she had to work late.
This doesn’t mean Mom and I were particularly close to the people living upstairs.
Noona’s parents weren’t the type to engage in friendly conversations or greet people they bumped into.
While we never had any major conflicts, they didn’t go out of their way to talk to us either.
Did they know noona would come to our house whenever they fought?
Even if they did, it seemed they didn’t particularly care.
Our family wasn’t well-off.
If anything, noona’s family was probably better off than ours.
While neither of our homes could be considered luxurious, it was obvious that a house above ground would cost more than a semi-basement like ours.
With more family members and potentially both her parents working, their situation was likely better than ours.
– Although, judging by how often they fought, that wasn’t always the impression.
Despite not being well-off, Mom, who always felt indebted to noona, made sure to feed her whenever she came over.
It was usually just a simple meal, but noona happily accepted the invitation.
Over time, these meals became more frequent, and the bond between Mom and noona grew stronger.
By the time I was about to graduate high school, noona was almost like part of our family.
Back then, noona had already started living on her own.
Although she attended a university in Seoul, she chose to live separately, likely because of her parents.
Even while living on her own, noona often visited our house, though she rarely went back to her own.
It was around that time that Mom met Yuri noona.
Considering noona’s friendly and approachable nature, it seemed odd to think she wouldn’t make friends at university.
She wasn’t the type to gather a huge crowd, but she had a knack for forming deep connections with people she truly clicked with.
Yuri noona, whom I met one day when visiting noona’s university, was completely different from anyone else I’d ever known.
Unlike noona, who dressed modestly, Yuri noona was always dressed in stylish and glamorous outfits.
In summer, she wore clothes that revealed her skin, and in winter, she wrapped herself in expensive-looking coats and jackets.
Her smartphone was always the latest model, and her accessories, like bags, were likely all high-end luxury brands.
She even had a car, despite only being a first-year university student.
There was no need to explain further how wealthy she was.
I didn’t know how Yuri noona and my noona became friends, and neither did they seem able to explain it properly.
Like most friendships, it started with a few casual words exchanged while sitting nearby, eventually evolving into a close bond.
“You’re Shihyun, right? Ahyun’s told me a lot about you.”
Yuri noona scanned me with a smile, narrowing her eyes.
“You’re supposed to be really nice, aren’t you?”
“Huh?”
“Yeah, our Shihyun is definitely kind,” Ahyun noona chimed in from the side, making me flush bright red.
Although I didn’t meet Yuri noona as often as I did Ahyun noona, I still saw her quite a bit.
Of course, Ahyun noona was always with me when I did.
“Seriously, how can someone without a boyfriend even survive in this world?” Yuri noona exclaimed in a café after we’d met about seven times.
Naturally, both Ahyun noona and I waved our hands, denying any such relationship, but Yuri noona didn’t seem convinced.
Not long after, Yuri noona introduced us to her boyfriend, Park Sanghyun.
– Honestly, I couldn’t figure out where she’d met someone like that.
Given that Yuri noona couldn’t explain it well herself, it was likely another instance of “it just happened,” much like how she’d become friends with Ahyun noona.
Yuri noona had always been spontaneous like that.
Although she didn’t always bring her boyfriend along, I do remember times when the four of us hung out like we were on a double date.
One time, Yuri noona came to our neighborhood and ended up meeting my mom.
I’m not sure if Ahyun noona had introduced Yuri noona to her own parents, but it seemed like she had talked about my mom.
Perhaps she had even shown her a photo of the three of us together.
“Hello!”
Yuri noona recognized my mom right away and greeted her energetically, in a lively but respectful manner.
Of course, seeing Yuri noona for the first time, Mom looked at me and Ahyun noona with wide eyes.
“She’s my friend. A university friend,” Ahyun noona explained, quickly easing Mom into a smile as she returned the greeting.
We had met Mom at a local mart.
It seemed she had finished work early and was grocery shopping, while we had stopped by to grab some drinks.
Although Yuri noona had been eager to see where we lived, neither Ahyun noona nor I intended to show her.
While Yuri noona might not have fully realized it, we often felt the stark difference between her life and ours.
It wasn’t just about not being able to eat what we wanted or buy what we desired.
Someone who could drive around for fun and go on long trips wouldn’t understand the mindset of someone who calculated every penny of their commute and ran to finish errands within a 30-minute transfer window.
I know Yuri noona isn’t a bad person.
It’s just a kind of misunderstanding that happens when two people from completely different worlds cross paths.
Even if poverty isn’t something to be ashamed of, nobody wants to be seen with pity in a friend’s eyes.
Honestly, I didn’t care much about it.
But thinking about Ahyun noona’s house, where arguments could still be heard now and then, I could completely understand why someone wouldn’t want to reveal too much.
“I’ve heard a lot about you from Ahyun. She said you’ve always looked after her since she was young…”
“Oh, really?”
That’s why we watched anxiously as Mom and Yuri noona talked.
With Yuri noona’s personality, it wasn’t like learning about our situation would make her cut ties.
But that didn’t mean it wouldn’t be awkward.
Once she saw it, it wouldn’t be easy to forget, and it might even change how she treated Ahyun noona.
“Oh, I see.”
After a brief conversation with Yuri noona, Mom took out her wallet from her pocket.
She opened it, hesitated for a moment, then pulled out three ten-thousand-won bills and one five-thousand-won bill, handing them to Ahyun noona.
“Since you’re here, go treat yourselves to something nice.”
“Oh, no, it’s fine!”
Yuri noona seemed flustered at the sudden gesture.
Mom probably didn’t know how wealthy Yuri noona was.
She might have assumed that, as a university student like Ahyun noona, she didn’t have much money and handed it over so they could get a simple meal.
…Or maybe she didn’t know the brands or prices of Yuri noona’s clothes but could tell they were far better than the ones we’d been wearing for years.
At the time, the clothes Ahyun noona was wearing were from when she was in high school.
Normally, Ahyun noona would’ve refused.
She often felt a bit guilty accepting things from Mom.
But that day, she took the money.
“Thank you…”
She still seemed hesitant, though.
At the time, I wasn’t so young anymore.
In a year, I’d be an adult, and while I couldn’t say I knew everything, I was starting to grasp the nuances of human relationships.
I had a vague idea why Ahyun noona accepted the money, even though it wasn’t like her.
“Well, have fun.”
“Oh, yes. Thank you…”
Yuri noona seemed a bit flustered by Mom’s reaction.
Until the conversation ended, Mom didn’t invite Yuri noona to our house or mention where we lived.
That day, we used the thirty-five thousand won to eat budae-jjigae.