*When I was born, I couldn't breath very well. My eyes were shut tightly, and I was squirming. Suddenly, someone slapped me hard. It was painful, so I started crying as loudly as I could. I felt my eyelids open, but it was still dark. Where was the warm place I lived in? 

Suddenly, I felt myself cuddling into someone's arm. It was…warm and soft, but it was also weak. I cuddled deeper into the arms, which was filled with love and hope. I wanted to see the person who was carrying me, but all I saw was black. I cried not because that the pain still stung me, but because I would never be able to see the person and thank him or her for calming me down.

"Her name," someone said, "Her name…it's…going to be…Lee Ji Eun!"

"Lee Ji Eun…That sounds very nice, ma'am," another voice said, "Please rest. We know that you had just received upsetting news about your husband lost at sea."

"Be proud…of your name…Ji Eun-ah," the calming voice whispered, panting heavily. I reached to touch the voice's face with my small, little hands. I touched something soft, which seemed to be the cheek. The calm voice chuckled gently and wiped the streams of tears off my cheek. Then, the voice started singing me a lullaby. Her voice seemed to be weak and fragile, yet strong and powerful at the same time. I smiled a bit, as the arms started rocking me. 

In less than a couple of minutes, the voice died down. The arms grew cold and weak, as I started crying again.

"It's sad to know that this child is an orphan now," someone whispered, holding me into a different pair of arms. I cried even harder. It was different from how the calm voice's arms held me. 

"Yes, and it's even sadder to know that she's blind," another deep, manly voice said. I cried even harder. What am I supposed to do now?*

"UMMA!" 

IU woke up. She quickly sat up, wiping her sweat. She panted heavily as something furry climbed on her bed. She wiped her sweat and patted the furry animal.

"Oh, Bummie," IU whispered, patting the dog. Bummie barked happily and IU's cheek. IU giggled and thought, Oh good, it was just a dream. Suddenly, she curled herself into a ball. She hugged her knees sadly and sighed when she felt her eyelids open. Black. All she saw was black. Nothing else. She didn't even know how Bummie, her guide dog, even looked like. She disliked the dark world she lived in. She kept her distance away from everyone except her dog, Bummie. 

I wonder…If their are others who hate life and are too blind to see things like me, she thought.

"Aish…I'm not going!"

"Yes you are!"

"I said I'm not!"

"Jang Wooyoung, you are going to wear the uniform RIGHT NOW!"

"But I said I'm not!"

"It's for your own good in the future!"

"Who cares about life?"

"Wear the uniform NOW!"

Wooyoung frowned at his mother. He snatched his uniform away from his mother and stomped up the stairs. Right before he was about to storm into his room, he turned around.

"I HATE YOU UMMA!" he shouted, slamming the door close behind him. He groaned and tossed his school uniform on the bed. He annoyingly put his hands on his hips and glared at the uniform.

I hate Umma, he thought, I hate the school's uniform, and I hate going to school! I hate life!