~~ • ~~
Afterward, we got to work.
The first day wasn’t too grueling yet.
Most of it was just unloading and prepping the equipnt.
Massive crates were unloaded from the trucks.
Steel trusses.
Stage lights.
Giant speakers.
Spools of cable that must have been hundreds of ters long.
The sound of forklifts echoed constantly.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
People hurried back and forth.
So shouted for tools.
So counted inventory.
So checked off clipboards.
I carried a few steel trusses along with another team.
Sumr was no joke.
Even the breeze felt warm.
A few tis, I lifted the hem of my shirt slightly to wipe my face.
Until finally—
"Lunch break!"
Soone’s voice echoed from a distance.
Like a power switch being flipped.
Everyone stopped dead in their tracks.
"Ah... finally..."
Soone groaned, collapsing onto the grass.
"It’s only the first day and I already feel like dying."
"Shut up," another shot back. "We’ve still got a week to go."
A few scattered chuckles followed.
I grabbed my lunchbox and sat by the edge of the pitch.
Bardy walked over, carrying so cold drinks.
"Here."
He tossed a bottle to .
I caught it.
"Thanks."
I twisted the cap off.
It was cold.
Condensation clung to the plastic.
A simple thing.
But it felt like a luxury.
We ate while looking out at the unfinished work on the field.
The sun began to shift.
The heat was no longer as unbearable.
And not long after—
"Alright! Back to it!"
"Break is over."
We got back to work.
The massive fras were pieced together.
The stage began to take shape.
Steel was connected.
Nuts and bolts were tightened.
Cables were pulled from one side of the stadium to the other.
Lights were mounted high up on the towers.
Giant speakers were hoisted using cranes.
Little by little—
The form of the stage began to erge.
Afternoon bled into evening.
Evening faded into night.
The work lights were switched on.
The pitch, which had grown dark, was bathed in light once more.
The hours ticked by.
Until finally, soone checked their watch.
"It’s already eight!"
The others imdiately started groaning.
"Sigh..."
"My back..."
"My legs... I can’t feel them..."
Soft chuckles echoed once more.
Around nine o’clock.
Work was finally halted.
We ate dinner together.
Afterward, most of us started setting up makeshift beds.
Temporary tents had been pitched along the edge of the stadium.
They weren’t very big.
Just enough to fit a few people.
I crawled inside.
Took off my shoes.
And lay down.
My body felt heavy.
Incredibly heavy.
Even when I closed my eyes, it still felt like I was lifting equipnt.
Outside, the hum of people chatting drifted in.
So were laughing.
So were complaining.
So were still eating.
And slowly—
I drifted off to sleep.
...
The next morning.
I opened my eyes.
Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the tent.
The sounds of the crew could already be heard.
"Let’s go, wake up!"
"Get up!"
"Breakfast!"
I sat up slowly.
My hair was a ss.
My body was still aching.
I stepped out of the tent.
The morning air felt far more pleasant.
We washed up as best we could.
Ate breakfast.
And got back to work.
The following day was the exact sa.
Wake up.
Eat.
Work.
Nightfall.
Sleep.
Wake up again.
The days blurred together like that.
Until finally—
Day three.
I stood there, looking straight ahead.
The pitch that had once been empty...
Was now completely transford.
A massive stage stood proudly in the center of the stadium.
Large LED screens had been mounted.
Lighting towers reached into the sky.
Huge black speakers hung off the sides.
The cables were all neatly arranged.
Everything was almost finished.
"Hm..."
I gave a small nod.
Not bad.
From behind, Bardy approached carrying coffee.
"Here."
I took it.
"Look."
I turned to him.
Bardy pointed toward the stadium entrance.
Several vehicles were starting to roll in.
Black vans.
Minibuses.
Production cars.
People began pouring out.
Carrying bags.
Carrying equipnt.
Carrying clipboards.
The artists and the event team were starting to arrive.
They walked in, taking in the sight of the stage.
And not long after—
They began to rehearse.
The first notes of music echoed through the speakers.
A soundcheck.
"Check."
"One."
"Two."
"Three."
"Check."
_
The overhead lights began to co on, one by one.
So were too dim.
So were too bright.
Then they were adjusted again.
Down below, the staff hurried back and forth.
The artists were starting to check their positions.
So were practicing their choreography.
So were testing their microphones.
Others simply sat and read over their materials.
I stood at the edge of the stands.
A warm cup of coffee in my hand.
My eyes lingered on the massive stage.
Three days.
It had only been three days.
But it felt so much longer.
Maybe because ever since arriving here, there had barely been a mont to rest.
Wake up.
Work.
Eat.
Sleep.
And repeat.
_
A gentle sumr breeze blew past.
For so reason, my mind began to wander.
To a certain place.
My parents’ ho.
The wooden porch.
The rice fields.
The hum of the diesel engine out in the fields.
And—
Yuna.
Right. Yuna was still there.
I pulled my phone out of my pocket.
I stared at the screen for a few seconds.
How was Yuna doing over there?
Was she still following my mother out to the fields?
Was she helping out with the cooking?
Or maybe she was just playing with my younger brother.
_
I opened my contacts.
Dad.
Just as I was about to press the call button—
My phone vibrated.
I looked down.
[ Dad ]
"Hm?"
I answered it right away.
"Hello?"
A few seconds of silence.
Then—
"Papa!!"
Her voice burst through the speaker.
Incredibly loud.
I pulled the phone slightly away from my ear.
"Yuna..."
Unconsciously, a faint smile ford on my lips.
"Why are you yelling...?"
"How are you, Papa?!"
"Are you okay?!"
"Have you been eating right?!"
"Are you getting enough sleep?!"
The questions fired off in rapid succession.
It left speechless for a few seconds.
"Hm..."
"Let answer them one by one."
I could picture her face right now.
She was probably sitting up straight, holding the phone seriously with both hands.
"I’m doing fine."
"I’m eating regularly."
"I’m getting enough sleep."
"Now, what about you?"
"I’m good!"
She answered quickly.
Very quickly.
"You know what, Papa..."
"I went out to the fields with Grandma again yesterday."
"Oh?"
"I helped with the harvest again."
"And then I played with Uncle, and he caught a rhinoceros beetle! Its horn was huge!"
"And then I saw Uncle get chased by a chicken! Good thing it wasn’t chasing ."
I simply stayed quiet and listened.
Yuna kept talking.
About the little things.
The smallest of things.
But for so reason, I listened to every single word.
About how my younger brother lost at playing cards.
About the chicken that chased soone.
About the waterlon that turned out to be unripe.
About the neighbor’s cat sleeping on the porch.
Things that were, in truth, completely ordinary.
But right now—
It felt rather nice to hear.
"..."
Suddenly, her voice stopped.
A few seconds of silence followed.
Her tone dropped.
It beca much softer, almost a whisper.
"Papa?"
"Hm?"
"I miss you..."
...
A gentle breeze blew past.
The sounds of the people in the stadium seed to fade away for a mont.
I looked down at the pitch.
A few people were still working.
The stage lights shone brightly.
"..."
I slowly rubbed the back of my neck.
And then, I answered.
"Just wait a few more days."
"I’ll be ho soon."
A brief silence.
Then—
"Okay... Papa..."
Her voice sounded small.
But this ti—
I could hear the smile in it.
I could picture it perfectly.
_
The following days went by in a blur.
So fast that it beca hard to tell day from night.
The stage at the stadium was finally completed.
The lights ca on.
Massive LED screens displayed animations.
The sound of music filled the entire venue.
People began to arrive.
The audience filled the seats.
Cheers.
Shouts.
Flashing lights.
Everything ca to life.
I stood backstage with Bardy.
My arms crossed over my chest.
Taking in the results of the last few days’ work.
Bardy walked over, carrying a folder.
"Itsuki."
"Hm?"
"Ti to head to the next location."
I let out a soft sigh.
"...Another job? Already?"
"Haha."
"No ti to rest. Let’s go."
_
The next venue was right by the beach.
The mont we stepped out of the truck, the ocean breeze greeted us.
The salty air.
The sound of the waves.
And the sumr sun, which felt far more scorching than it did in the city.
The stage this ti was smaller than the one at the stadium.
And the event was only for one night.
But the work was exactly the sa.
Unloading equipnt.
Lifting trusses.
Pulling cables.
Mounting lights.
Day.
Night.
Wake up.
Back to work.
As soon as the event ended—
There was no ti to relax.
We imdiately tore everything down again.
Lights ca down.
Trusses were dismantled.
Cables were rolled up.
Into the trucks.
Done.
Two days passed.
Then we returned to the stadium.
The place that had been filled with music just a few days ago.
Now—
It was quiet.
The spectator seats were empty.
Small pieces of trash were still scattered about.
Paper.
Drink bottles.
And that massive stage stood in silence.
Like the skeleton of so abandoned giant.
We got back to work.
Tearing everything down.
One by one.
Lights ca down.
Speakers ca down.
Trusses were dismantled.
Into the trucks.
Days passed once more.
Two days.
Two more days.
And before I realized it—
It had been quite a while.
I hadn’t seen Yuna.
_
I lifted the last crate into the truck.
And pulled the door shut.
Done.
"Good work!"
"Good work!"
"See you next ti!"
"Yeah!"
Voices echoed around .
I just gave a small wave.
My body felt completely broken.
Absolutely broken.
My shoulders ached.
My lower back throbbed.
My arms were heavy.
And my eyes—
Felt dead.
Even keeping my eyelids open felt like a chore.
I headed back to the apartnt.
To drop off my gear.
And the mont the apartnt door opened—
My eyes imdiately locked onto one thing.
The futon.
"..."
I walked in slowly.
The bag on my shoulder...
Slipped right off.
Then—
Thump.
My body collapsed straight onto the futon.
Soft.
Warm.
Comfortable.
So comfortable.
It felt like my body was sinking into it.
Hah...
Ho...
My mind began to blur.
My eyes slowly drifted shut.
I didn’t know how much ti had passed.
Knock.
Knock.
Knock.
The sound of soone knocking on the door.
...
Knock.
Knock.
I slowly opened my eyes.
My head felt heavy.
I sat up slowly.
Walked toward the door.
My hand turned the knob.
Click.
The door opened.
"..."
I froze.
There, in front of the door—
Yuna was standing there.
Wearing a backpack.
Her hair a little ssy from the wind.
She stared at for a few seconds.
Then—
A small smile appeared on her face.
"Papa."
"I’m ho..."
~ • ~
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