@thusvitaest님, 진료실로 이동하실게요.
“what’s in a name? that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”
the words juliet so desperately uttered in her monologue circa 1590 aren’t completely wrong, per se. calling the rose a frog wouldn’t necessarily alter the very essence of the beautiful flower by any means. to jihye, however, having been an individual that worked towards mastering the chinese language for many years and one who continues to delve deeper into the study of hanja, names have become more than something that could be so easily replaced. names held meanings, names had stories, and names were wishes.
typically in korean culture, a child’s given name has both a hangul and hanja writing. of course, the hangul version will be of primary use during the individual’s lifetime, but the hanja is able convey whatever meaning the parents and/or guardians put careful thought into with the mere combination of 2-4 characters. in the past, jihye’s father would always remind his daughter of her own: 智 (ji) "intelligence” and 惠 (hye) “grace.” it was a name they had meticulously chosen in hopes that their daughter would grow to become the embodiment of such characteristics.
since then, jihye acquired the tendency to pay close attention to the names of those around her. such would explain the unnecessary interest she now possesses in regards to her housemate’s name, one of which was newly discovered on jihye’s part. for the time they started off as near-enemies until their rather slow development into close friendship, she knew him under one name: fukui akio (or kiyo, endearingly). but an unintentional venture into his room one evening, followed by the discovery of a tattered photograph lying around his bed indicated that he had another.
the picture captured the smiling visage of an elegant woman -- presumably his mother -- and undoubtedly, young akio by her side. jihye’s affinity for children made it even more difficult for her to tear her gaze away, although aware that this was possibly a violation of his privacy. he looked the same, yet so different at the same time. his features were close to identical, but there was a certain softness to the child, paired with carefree glee that she’s never witnessed on him before. not to the same extent, at least. unknowingly, the corners of her lips tugged into a smile, almost mirroring the child’s wide one, before she’s able to decipher the faded writing right below it: 1998年6月8日 -- 宋旻晙.
宋 (song), a surname. 旻 (min) “sky” and 晙 (jun) “bright.”
there was no way the name belonged to the woman, and so she assumed it had to be his. in terms of how rare the name itself was... well, it wasn’t. minjun was a rather popular name among families with newborn sons and reasonably so; she’s almost certain she had a friend named minjun at some point in her life. but it was the particular combination of hanja and their meaning that caught her attention. the characters that meant “jade stone” or “benignity” were used most often for min, yet they had chosen “sky” for him. vast, clear, and vibrant. a bright sky. song minjun. and somehow, he fit it perfectly in her eyes.
it was a beautiful name, too. she couldn’t help but wonder why he insisted on being referred to as fukui akio, especially in a country where song minjun would be much more convenient for everyone. and the more she thought about it, the more she realized that there was still quite a bit under wraps about him, despite the fact that they acted much closer than before. it was always as though he held back around everyone, which unfortunately included her as well. could it be that he still couldn’t trust her? or that he isn't as interested as he pretends to be in nurturing a real friendship between them?
unable to suppress her curiosity and allow her thoughts to wander any further, she decides to ask him about his name. contrary to her intentions, however, she ends up blurting it out in a perplexed tone, making it sound neither like a coherent question nor a call of any sort. “minjun-- minjun oppa?” there’s a pause, proceeded by a quick glance at his features. “your name... is song minjun, is it not?”
