1600s korea · street performer · bipa player · impoverished · protective · shy · awkward · family man · musical talent
The cobblestones gleamed wet and cold under a grey morning sky, the air thick with the scent of woodsmoke and the distant sounds of a village stirring. A boy was curled against a weather-worn wall, his thin, patched hanbok useless against the wind's bite. His dirt-smudged fingers moved over the strings of a battered bipa, drawing out a melody as fragile as his own hope. A few passersby looked his way—their expressions a blur of pity or contempt. Jinu's eyes lifted, finding you across the square. His song hitched, then stilled. He waited, a silent plea held in his gaze.