I got my license when I was 19. There wasn’t any special reason for it. I didn’t particularly want to drive or had the desire to buy a car.
I just thought it might be necessary someday. It would be better to get it early, and after the college entrance exam at nineteen, I naturally found myself with some free time and figured I might as well get my license.
I passed the written test and the practical skills test on the first try, and I believe I passed the road test on the second attempt or something like that.
The reason I took the road test twice was not because I couldn’t drive but simply because I couldn’t memorize the route. I was supposed to go one block further and make a U-turn, but all the roads looked so similar that I ended up making an illegal U-turn and got disqualified.
I wasn’t familiar with the area where I took the driving test either. There weren’t any suitable places around my home, so I went to the closest one, which was also unfamiliar to me. I struggled a bit trying to memorize the four different driving courses.
Still, I passed the second test without any issues. In fact, I passed with quite respectable skills. The instructor sitting next to me even said I was good enough to get on the road right away—so it seemed.
In short, I was not bad at driving despite my difficulty with memorizing the routes. I had even shown my driving on a broadcast before. It was something I did impulsively while under the influence, but my driving skills were real.
A brief, accident-free history from my past supported that.
Because of this, I had become complacent.
I thought to myself that I could easily pass the test. With my experience, a driving test should be no problem. Perhaps anyone would think the same.
“Failed. If you want to retake the test, please inquire at the window.”
The instructor said this in a somewhat businesslike tone.
Yes, I had failed. Not just the road test, but the skills test as well.
Perhaps he noticed my glum expression, as the instructor added:
“I can see you’re lacking some leg strength. You need to press the clutch or the accelerator harder than you would in a regular car, but that isn’t happening.”
He pinpointed the issue accurately. This hadn’t been a problem for me before; what had caused this change?
The problem lay with my altered body. It wasn’t an issue of having a lower viewpoint or that it took more strength to turn the steering wheel.
The issue was with the pedals. The vehicles used in driving tests are already old and stiff. Some require considerable pressure to even register a response, and the truck I had this time was exactly that.
My body, which lacked strength, was a worst-case scenario in that regard.
“Do you really need to get a Class 1 license? Nowadays, Class 2 is okay for women too. There’s really no reason for a woman to go for Class 1… Oh, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t say that nowadays. My apologies, just pretend you didn’t hear that.”
“That’s okay.”
The older instructor awkwardly apologized. Considering the notorious reputation of many driving school instructors that circulate on the internet, he was quite gentlemanly.
There was some truth in the instructor’s words. In fact, there wasn’t much reason to get a Class 1 license. I wouldn’t be driving trucks; at most, I would be driving a car.
My goal in getting the license was to be able to drive my own car. I felt that going out had increased lately, and I thought it would be convenient to have something to drive around in. Relying on Si-young’s car or taking a taxi was becoming tedious. Plus, taxi fares had also increased significantly recently. Given that I had enough money, I thought I might as well just get a car.
The reason I wanted a Class 1 license was simple. I had gotten one in my past life. It didn’t seem that hard to obtain.
However, when comparing it to the Class 2 license, did I feel a significant difference in daily life? Not really… Unless one was in a profession that required a Class 1 regular license, there wasn’t much occasion to use it.
There were people who believed that Class 1 was superior to Class 2 and that a true driver should get a Class 1 license without fail. This was called Class 1 pride. However, I wasn’t part of that group either.
Wait, thinking about it this way, there really wasn’t any reason for me to get a Class 1 license. I nodded my head in agreement with the instructor’s words, who seemed pleased that I took his comments seriously.
I limped to the front desk to re-register for the exam. From Class 1 license to Class 2.
There was no need to retake the written test, and I would just start over from the failed skills test. Luckily, there was an immediate slot available, and I took it right then.
The result was a pass. A satisfying outcome.
However, the next day, during the road test, I got disqualified in a ghostly manner.
“Points deduction, disqualified.”
“What? Why?”
I asked the new instructor with a tone of indignation. I was genuinely upset. He casually continued.
“You didn’t put the gear in neutral at a red light, didn’t turn on the left turn signal when starting, and didn’t turn on the right turn signal when arriving. Those three reasons are the only ones, but since you never put the gear in neutral, that led to a significant point deduction.”
I could only blink at him, unable to respond. It was truly an unexpected reason. Who actually stops and puts the gear in neutral every time? You just press the brake. That habit completely showed itself during this test.
“You drive really well, and among your peers, your driving was the most impressive… If it were up to me, I’d want to pass you, but rules are rules.”
I couldn’t argue with that. It was my fault for not properly understanding the regulations.
“That’s unfortunate. I hope you pass next time.”
“Yeah…”
So I had to register for the second road test, which I thought I wouldn’t have to experience again.
*
“So you took the test twice?”
“Yeah, the driving schedule was fully booked until two days later, so I had to take it after three days.”
Ji-yeon turned her head to the side, watching her sister drive while talking to her.
– “I got a new car; I’ll come pick you up.”
Ji-eun appeared out of the blue with such unexpected news. She said she had gotten a new car and came to school to give Ji-yeon a ride home. After getting in the passenger seat, Ji-yeon hurried to explain how she ended up getting her license.
Ji-yeon didn’t know the details of her sister’s journey to getting a license. As a minor, it was too early a topic for her to be concerned about, and she was so busy studying that she didn’t have the energy to focus on anything else.
Nevertheless, her sister’s story was intriguing enough to pique her interest. Even though it wasn’t a particularly exciting topic, it captivated her. Ji-yeon understood this well now. It wasn’t just anyone’s story; it was her sister’s story.
At that moment—
Suddenly, Ji-eun gently swept the steering wheel with her left arm while maintaining speed. The other hand firmly grasped Ji-yeon’s hand, despite the car moving at a fair pace.
With the smooth motion of Ji-eun’s hands, the car’s body began to rotate, seamlessly entering the alley.
Even from Ji-yeon’s untrained perspective on cars and driving, her sister appeared remarkably at ease behind the wheel. It didn’t look like someone who had just gotten their license recently.
Recently, her sister had shown many sides that Ji-yeon had not known, and this was another aspect of her sister she had been unaware of. Did she have an interest in this? Perhaps. Even family doesn’t share everything. They hadn’t spent significant time apart lately.
As Ji-yeon pondered this, she found herself tilting her head, wondering if this was really her sister, who had always been too timid to enjoy amusement park rides.
At that moment—
Bang-!
“Ahhh!”
Suddenly, her body lurched forward, and Ji-eun’s hand squeezed her own tightly.
“d*mn it. What kind of driving is that?”
Ji-eun let out a not-so-subtle curse. This was also an unfamiliar sight; Ji-eun had never used such harsh language in front of her sister. Let alone look this angry.
After glaring at the car that had cut in front of her, Ji-eun quickly turned to ask:
“Are you okay?”
“Uh, yeah…”
“Thank goodness. That was quite a scare, right?”
The gaze directed at the sudden interruption was very different from the kind look she had just shown Ji-yeon. In front of those warm eyes, Ji-yeon involuntarily shivered as she answered.
Ji-eun lightly brushed her sister’s cheek before returning her attention to the road.
“Seriously, there are so many people who drive weirdly…”
From the way she spoke, Ji-yeon thought she sounded like someone who had been driving for years. Considering that she had just gotten her license and hadn’t had much time behind the wheel herself.
However, Ji-yeon secretly thought there was something nice about seeing her sister like this. No, it was good. Just genuinely good.
What did it matter what form that took?
Touching her slightly flushed cheeks, Ji-yeon stared intently at her sister, the driver in the passenger seat.
