witness
The rumor that arrived first
Roommates for nine years
Why did you come to me
Friendship rejection
Going around and around
It was you from the beginning
horror movie
We are minus 2
Seeing with the heart
The snail I know
back
abnormal weather phenomena
I'm going to you

Commentary on the work
Author's Note

The 21st Four Seasons Literary Award Grand Prize Winner
The beginning of a relationship that illuminates the light that has faded from memory.

We all get into debt at least once in our lives.
Not only material debt, but also debt in human relationships that are easily forgotten.
It's like quietly handing over an umbrella when it's pouring rain, and giving a faint smile to someone who's alone in the same space.
These tender moments, which would not have occurred without the small but subtle attention, are often forgotten as we are distracted by other pressing issues.
The protagonist of this work also forgets that precious relationship.
Eighteen-year-old Miju, who lives in a large, bustling family, wishes to be alone.
Of course, only at home.
It's not something I wanted even at school.
However, Miju, who is awkward at forming relationships, tries to get close to the kids at school and ends up going down a path that is different from her true self.
In an attempt to win their hearts, he deceives them by claiming that his parents' old Chinese restaurant, 'Mijuhong', is a high-end restaurant, and he happily swipes his mother's card.
In the end, everything is revealed and Miju ends up in huge debt, leaving her with nothing but a loss in both money and relationships.
After working part-time at Mijuhong peeling onions for nearly a year to pay off all her credit card bills and clear her stubborn debts, Miju is suddenly hit with an unexpected debt of 500 won.
She even borrowed it from her classmate, Se-ah, who, like her, had become a "spirit" after living a life of insignificance! She couldn't remember at all. When on earth did Mi-ju borrow this much money?

The story, which begins with a five hundred won coin and an unexpected connection between two children, is made even more captivating by the consistently bold and honest character of Miju.
Author Jeon An, who created a character who is 'at first glance hypocritical but becomes harder to hate as the story progresses,' uses her captivating writing style to keep readers nodding along as they follow the extraordinary events that happen to Mi-ju.
Even in front of Se-ah, who suddenly became a ghost, Mi-ju acts slyly, saying, “I’m already an outcast, and it would be bad if rumors spread that I’m possessed by a ghost on top of that,” and admires rock music and non-mainstream cultures like Leslie Cheung, and stubbornly shows her own tastes, such as My Chew rather than sweet and sour.
His appearance is like Anne of Green Gables, who is not discouraged and goes through the path given to her in her own way.
The power that makes us applaud this seemingly cheerful character comes from the fact that 'his inner self is filled with loneliness and there is no good alternative to solve the situation.'
As if to comfort Mi-ju, who is suffering alone, Se-ah comes to visit with a debt of 500 won.

Small attention that fills the tiny gaps within us
Sincerity towards the countless negative things that exist in the world

America chose to isolate itself.
That was how Miju survived by erasing herself from school.
To him, Se-ah pours out words she never said before, even when she was alive.
Try to recall the time you borrowed money. If you can't remember, meet my twin sister Sejeong, and I'll consider it paid back.
Miju is bewildered by Se-ah's story, which was always quiet while she was alive.
When minus meets minus, it's just minus, so why on earth does Sea come closer?

“But Miju, when you have to cry, you have to cry.
When you want to fight, fight.
It's so lonely fighting with yourself while laughing.
“That’s what happens when you die.”
You were lonely because you were laughing? I was taken aback by the unexpected words.
The more we talked, the more I felt like I didn't know Sea very well.
(Page 83)

After closing her eyes, Se-ah confesses the stories she couldn't tell Mi-ju, or rather, the stories she couldn't tell anyone else.
When Sea says that she has been hiding her feelings while smiling, Miju realizes that she too has been hiding herself behind the dishonest weapon of lies.
Miju, who went into the cave on her own and couldn't muster the courage to come out, knew how to pay back money, but she didn't know how to repair the relationship.
To ensure that Mi-ju doesn't get buried alone and can continue a new relationship, Se-ah arranges a meeting with another Minus Se-jeong.
A world where two people are better than one, and three people are better than two, will change the daily life that was suffocating us like debt into a light.
Today's youth, who face new challenges every day—school life that doesn't go as planned, a home environment where they have no decision-making power, and the constant question of what career path to choose—are prone to being swayed by subtle and minute flaws before they can truly find their true self.
"We're Minus 2" presents a straightforward minus sign to readers who are enduring their time alone in different places.
Sometimes, negatives can come together and join hands to form a single line.
By filling in each other's tiny gaps little by little and erasing the darkness in our hearts one by one.

“Being together might reduce loneliness and sadness.”
The relationship between minuses, met through debt and woven with light

Sejeong is an object of avoidance by school children, no less than Miju.
Mi-ju, who was hanging around Se-jeong at Se-ah's request, discovers something unexpected about Se-jeong.
Sejeong is rumored to have caused Se-ah to have an accident, but the Sejeong that Mi-ju meets is different from the rumors and her rough appearance. She is a child who deeply misses Se-ah in every word she speaks.
On a hot day, he stares into a puddle for a long time, showing his enthusiasm to meet Se-ah. He also talks about Se-ah's dream during a career class. He is a child who spares no time or money for the fake YouTuber Teru-hyung if only he could meet Se-ah.
As Mi-ju watches Se-jeong struggle to meet Se-ah, who is so vivid in front of her eyes, she gradually begins to want to continue this meeting a little longer.

I thought of the person the teacher had told me about and told Kim Se-jeong.
“Can you lend me your back?”
Kim Se-jeong turned her back without saying a word.
We stood back to back, taking deep breaths and exhaling.
I felt a slightly different breath than before.
Two lamps, longing for Sea, slowly rose and fell.
(Page 163)

Mi-ju, who used to scoff at her grandmother's words that people are saved by people, listens to Se-ah and Se-jeong's voices and becomes determined to change her own daily life, as well as Se-jeong's, which has been at a standstill.
Miju tries to get Se-jeong, who blindly trusts YouTuber Teru-hyung, out of a trick, but instead of the red string of fate, she gets caught up in the red string of deception and 'becomes gradually entangled with the thread of friendship.' And Miju, who thought of herself as a minus, recalls her memories with Se-ah one by one as she meets other minuses.
As the memory of the day she owed him comes back to her, Miju realizes how much of a debt and light the moments she spent with Se-ah were.
The miraculous moment when our hearts touch each other is what moves people forward.
This book says that the power to build strong human relationships comes from not forgetting and remembering the value of the moments we owe and repay throughout our lives.
The process of Mi-ju, who had been immersed in the moment after failing to form a relationship, expanding the radius of her memories will remind young readers of the light of affectionate times they had briefly forgotten.

With someone for whom this season was everything
A pledge to live together through the next season

Sea comes back as if it were a lie and then disappears again.
Miju thinks of Sea's tomorrows, which disappeared before they could even begin.
The resolve to live another day sometimes blossoms fresh from those who have left us.
Miju wants to write down the inexplicable feelings that have been pouring out of her head into poetry, and she wants to remember Se-ah, who has been treated as a shadow forever, along with Se-jeong, who has already been forgotten by others.
And, remembering the warmth that Sea gave me, I want to move forward and repay the value of a relationship with someone else.
So Miju moves with all her might to muster up the courage to hand over a five hundred won debt to someone new.
"We are Minus 2" deeply encourages young people, who have many more todays to live, to continue to think about the things they "want to do" rather than the things they "wanted to do."
At the same time, I hope that I can sometimes share my pain with someone, that I can see, feel, hear, and understand the world around me with my heart. Miju, Se-ah, and Se-jeong send this in a delicate and detailed 500 won.