The medal swung lightly against her chest with each step, catching the fading light of the harbor sunset. Every now and then she reached up to touch it, just to make sure it was real. The black and gold scholarship envelope was still warm from being in her jacket pocket all afternoon.
She had replayed the moment at least a dozen times on the walk home the referee lifting her arm, the crowd cheering, the Iron Tiger head coach placing the medal around her neck. For once, she hadn't felt like the girl who tripped over ropes and dropped fish crates.
For once, she felt like she belonged in the ring.
---
The narrow street leading to Haebada Bunsik was alive with evening smells — grilled squid from a street cart, sweet hotteok pancakes sizzling in oil, and the ever-present salty tang of the sea.
Through the restaurant's front window, she spotted her stepmother weaving between tables with a notepad in one hand, her black hair tied up in a perfect bun. Her father sat in the far corner, jacket still smelling faintly of saltwater, chatting with Mr. Nam, one of the old fishermen who spent more time gossiping than fishing.
She stood outside for a second, medal clutched in one hand, the envelope in the other. She wanted to burst in and yell the news, but part of her worried her stepmother's first reaction wouldn't be the one she wanted.
Still… this was too big to keep to herself.
---
The bell above the door jingled as she stepped inside.
"You're late," her stepmother called without looking up from her order pad. "Your dinner's probably cold."
Soon Hae grinned despite herself. "I have a good excuse this time."
Her father looked up from his bowl, eyes twinkling. "What did you do? Accidentally join the Navy?"
Instead of answering, she strode over to their table and let the medal drop onto the wood with a satisfying clink.
Mr. Nam blinked. "What's that? Did she steal it from the market?"
"It's mine," she said quickly, almost laughing. "I won it."
Her stepmother, still skeptical, picked it up and turned it over in her hand. The gold surface caught the overhead light. "Won it where?"
"Harbor Youth Boxing Challenge," Soon Hae said, trying to sound casual but feeling her voice tremble with excitement. She pulled the envelope from her pocket and slides it across the table toward her dad. "And… I got this too."
Her father frowned slightly, curious, and opened the flap. His eyes scanned the neat black print.
When he looked up again, his expression had completely changed. "They're offering you training?"
She nodded. "A scholarship. Full membership at the Iron Tiger Boxing Academy. I start Monday."
---
The laugh that burst out of him was loud enough to make the couple at the next table turn their heads. He stood, wrapping an arm around her shoulders in a hug that smelled like the sea.
"That's my girl!" he said proudly. "Just like your mother."
The words hit her square in the chest, filling her with warmth and a sharp ache at the same time. Her mother's gloves hung in her room, untouched for years. She had wanted to follow in her footsteps since she was little, but saying it out loud had always felt like a fantasy.
Now it wasn't.
Across the table, her stepmother's expression stayed guarded. She set the medal back down with deliberate care.
"Boxing," she said slowly. "You want to fight for a living?"
"It's not just fighting," Soon Hae replied quickly, leaning forward. "It's skill. Discipline. A chance to… be something more than the clumsy market girl everyone teases."
Her stepmother's gaze didn't waver. "It's dangerous."
"I know."
"And it will be hard. Very hard."
"I know that too."
There was a long pause. The restaurant noises clinking chopsticks, murmured conversations, the sizzling grill seemed suddenly loud.
Finally, her stepmother exhaled through her nose and picked up the medal again, weighing it in her palm. "If you're going to do this… you'll do it properly."
"I will," Soon Hae said instantly.
"No skipping work here. No letting the laundry shop pile up. No coming home crying because it's harder than you thought."
Her grin came back in full force. "Deal."
---
Dinner that night tasted better than usual, maybe because she didn't have to sneak bites from her father's bowl for once. He kept sneaking glances at her medal, smiling like a man who had just found a pearl in an oyster.
When the restaurant finally emptied out and the chairs were flipped onto tables, she lingered in the kitchen, wiping down counters.
Her father came in, drying his hands on a towel. "You know," he said quietly, "your mother would've been so proud of you today. She fought hard in the ring and even harder outside of it."
"I hope I can be like her," Soon Hae said softly.
He chuckled. "You're already stubborn enough to be her daughter. The rest will come."
---
Later, in her room, she set the medal on her desk and propped the scholarship letter against the wall. Her mother's gloves hung from the bedpost, the leather worn but still smelling faintly of salt and sweat.
She took them down, running her fingers over the creases.
"Guess I'm gonna need you," she whispered.
The thought of Monday sent a nervous flutter through her stomach. She could already imagine the Famous Five watching her fumble through drills, Joon seok smirking from across the gym, the coach barking orders loud enough to rattle her teeth.
But the nerves didn't outweigh the excitement.
For the first time, the dream didn't feel so far away.
---
She slipped into bed, medal still within arm's reach on the desk. The hum of the harbor outside was steady and comforting gulls settling in for the night, distant waves brushing the shore.
In just two days, she would walk into Iron Tiger as a rookie.
And whether she stumbled through the door or marched in with her chin high, she belong there.
For now, that was enough.
---