I Became a Genius International Student
Episode 1
Hyunsoo was an ordinary person.
He knew how to stand up for his rights in moderation, and he didn’t mind sacrificing himself for others.
In other words, he was an ordinary person with selfishness.
He wanted to study hard and take care of his family when he could afford it, and he thought that charity and Noblesse Oblige were just expensive plexes for rich people.
But then a young black kid, maybe 7 or 8 years old, was walking down the street with a basketball rolling by.
“Hey, why don’t you stop?!”
And then I saw a car speeding by on the other side…… and I jumped in without really thinking.
“No, what did I do?
He was able to push the black kid out of the way safely, and Hyunsoo was diagnosed with paralysis at the age of just 17.
Every day since Hyunsoo has thought about that moment and regretted it.
If I could turn back time.
I wouldn’t have done that.
Why did I do it?
* * *
[Korean Immigrant High School Student Becomes a Local Hero!]
[Inspiring story of a man who gave up his body to save a life].
[BLM expresses deep gratitude].
Hyunsoo’s life changed overnight.
Despite receiving tons of media attention and support from organizations…… it was all for nothing.
“Why did I do it?
Paralysis was a harsh fate for Hyunsoo, who had come to the U.S. to study and pursue her artistic talents.
Someone had to feed her and clean up her feces.
He had to be turned in bed now and then, and he had to be massaged everywhere.
I couldn’t do anything without help.
At first, he was covered by insurance and had sponsorship money, so he was helped by a professional nurse, but after two or three years, even that became difficult.
Eventually, Hyunsoo’s mom took care of him around the clock, and his dad worked late to pay for his medical expenses.
They always smiled and said.
-It’s okay, everything will be fine. You have no idea how grateful we are that you’re alive.
-Your mom and dad are so proud of you.
-We are so happy that you are our son.
But Hyunsoo never forgot his parents’ sobs in the late morning, when he was sure he was asleep.
Hyunsoo made a decision.
“I can’t live like this.
* * *
To be honest, I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about suicide.
But I couldn’t repay my parents for what I’d already done to them in the big accident with the even bigger sin of suicide.
Given their disposition, it was likely to remain a burden on my mind forever.
“I have to fix my body somehow.
Hyunsoo ate his heart out.
For his own sake, and the sake of his parents, he vowed to fix his body somehow.
“Ah. Ah. Mom, I’m hungry.”
Fortunately, his body recovered a bit, and he was able to speak, albeit slurred, and eat soft food on his own.
He still couldn’t move his limbs, but for that alone, his parents said a prayer of thanksgiving, calling it a miracle.
‘This is just the beginning.
When Hyunsoo woke up, he began to study in earnest.
He had time to spare.
He had always been a gifted student in school.
He broadened his studies across the board, and once his understanding of biology was solidified, he focused on cases of generalized paralysis.
“What is this?
The more he studied, the more disappointed he became.
The progress we’ve made in medicine is phenomenal compared to where we started, but there are still so many unknowns.
There are so many diseases whose causes are unknown, and so many that have remained untreated for hundreds of years.
We’re still a baby when it comes to organ transplants and nerve repair. We haven’t even touched the brain and spinal cord, which are at the core of paralysis.
How far does medical science have to advance before you can fix your own body?
Hyunsoo had to admit.
“I can’t accomplish anything by myself.
His goal wasn’t to plow fields and sow seeds, paving the way for future generations to see the fruits of his labor.
He wanted to do it now. He had to see results in his lifetime.
“Let’s build a company.
I don’t know how. But he had to do it anyway.
For Hyunsoo, this was his purpose in life.
* * * *
It wasn’t easy.
He was smart and had a clear vision, but no investor believed in him because he didn’t have any specs or connections.
He struggled for a few years, but opportunities came from unexpected places.
We had a chance to interview a famous YouTuber, and it went well, so we crowdfunded.
[“Our physical limitations do not define us, and we will not stop until we eliminate all disabilities in humanity.”]
The idea of curing all disabilities that people experience, not just paralysis, touched too many people.
Hyunsoo has since been using various social media platforms, including YouTube, to report on his progress and gather followers.
“A large number of followers is more influential than a small number of connections.
That alone attracted investors and talent. The company started with talented engineers donating their time.
First, they built their database with research on the most basic prosthetics, such as prosthetic hands and prosthetic legs.
Whenever there was a research presentation, Hyunsoo would give a presentation himself, and it was well received.
He quickly became a leader in the field of artificial human systems and eventually received hundreds of billions of dollars in investment from the Gates Foundation.
With that capital, he gradually grew in scale by merging and acquiring companies with different source technologies.
2040.
Hyunsoo’s company became the world’s leading bionic body maker and succeeded in commercializing many products, including artificial organs.
2050.
The company’s technology has advanced to the point where it can regenerate natural skin tissue and even repair nerve tissue.
Curing paralysis is no longer the domain of the gods.
-I owe today’s Super Bowl MVP award to Hyunsoo Lee. He gave me a new knee, and I’m able to live my dream.
-I was a refugee, and on my way to regain my freedom, I encountered pirates, had one of my kidneys stolen and the other damaged, and was on the verge of death. If it wasn’t for Mr. Hyunsoo Lee, I don’t know if I would be alive today. Five percent of the profits our company makes will support Mr. Lee in perpetuity.
-Thank you. My daughter…….
While countless people have already been given a new lease on life thanks to Hyunsoo’s company, he hasn’t been able to enjoy the same benefits.
“I don’t have much time left.
He’s been a workaholic for 30 years while still paralyzed.
Sadly, his nerve tissue became severely necrotic and he was facing death.
[Bionic pioneer Hyunsoo Lee is in critical condition due to complications].
[10 million followers pray for Hyunsoo’s health].
[Lee Hyun-Soo wins Nobel Prize in Medicine after dying].
Although he had been nominated several times, the award came unusually quickly at the Nobel Assembly…… due to his near-death experience.
His acceptance speech, delivered via video, was short but powerful.
-I’m embarrassed that I’m being portrayed as too good of a person. Everything I did was just for me, I just wanted to walk on my own feet, I wanted to play light sports, you never know. If my body had grown up, I could have been a great artist, I could have learned an instrument quickly, I could have been in a band, and it would have been a great memory. Why wasn’t I given that opportunity? I just wanted to somehow take the sadness out of my parents’ hearts. Please don’t glorify me too much. I’m just a selfish, very ordinary person.
It was featured in various media and became one of the most talked about acceptance speeches in the world.
……Hyunsoo died the following spring, at his urging, spending his final days alone.
* * *
The moment of death.
“……Hmm?
I closed my eyes and saw the faces of many people.
Upon closer inspection, he realized they were people who had overcome obstacles through his company.
They were glowing, looking down at him warmly.
“Why are you all still alive and well, but why are you visiting me when I’m dying like I’m a ghost?
He laughed, but his eyes were red for some reason.
Their gratitude was palpable.
“At least our lives were not in vain.
A moment later, they turned into golden dust and were sucked into Hyunsoo’s body.
“……!”
It was strange. Every nerve in his body that had been dead for half a lifetime was revived, and his entire body was full of energy.
It was unbelievable. At the very moment of death, I felt the most alive.
Hyunsoo died with a faint smile on his face.
No, he thought he did.
When Hyunsoo opened his eyes again, it was in a completely different ‘time zone’.
“Um, what is it?”
He was very confused.
He closed his eyes in his hospital bed, and when he opened them, he was outside.
The wind tickled his hair. The warm sun. And two feet that were still standing!
“……!”
Hyunsoo stared at his hands in disbelief. He tried to move his fingers at will.
“Is my body okay?
He couldn’t come to his senses easily.
……He wasn’t even given a chance.
“What? What about him?!”
A very familiar black kid walks by right in front of me.
He even dribbles a basketball on the sidewalk and accidentally loses it.
“Oops, my ball!”
Hyunsoo gritted his teeth.
It was him.
He regretted this moment for the rest of his life, so much so that he could still see the black kid’s face clearly and remember everything that happened next.
“I was stupid. I was stupid to run out into the street.
Hyunsoo promised himself a thousand times in his life that if he could go back in time, he would never follow the black kid onto the road.
And he kept his promise.
Hyunsoo remained still as a car sped toward him from the opposite direction.
“Uh-oh.”
Instead, he picked up a good-sized rock and threw it as hard as he could.
It was probably a memento of his past life.
“Ouch!”
The rock hit the child squarely in the back.
The child fell to the ground in pain, fortunately out of the reach of the car.
Bam!
The car drove past, nervously honking its horn, but everyone was safe.
Not the black kid, not Hyunsoo himself.
“Don’t jaywalk, asshole!”
Hyunsoo shot the kid a look and continued on his way.
I couldn’t believe my luck.
“Huh?”
He looked up to see a black man, a few weight classes above him, approaching him with a fierce look on his face.
“What the fuck, did you throw a rock at my son?!”
“…….”
Hyunsoo thought very briefly.
He remembered that this man, who looked much younger than he remembered, was the father of the downed black kid and a very talented amateur boxer.
“Well, I don’t want to say it out loud, but I’m the hero who saved your son’s life twice…… I don’t know why I’m re-living the past, but anyway, if I explain that the first time I saved him, you were on your knees in front of me, tearfully thanking me for saving his life and saying you were sorry, and that you swore you’d do anything for me, would you understand?
A glance around revealed that the dangerous car, which was supposed to be ‘evidence one’, was already gone without a trace, and the child, which was supposed to be ‘evidence two’, was lying in a less dangerous spot.
To top it all off, the man was approaching with the momentum of a man about to kill a man.
On top of all that, the man was approaching with such momentum that it looked like he was going to kill him.
Hyunsoo made the obvious choice.
“Why don’t you stop?”
“I wouldn’t stand if I were you.
He ran with all his might. At first, he ran because he wanted to live, but later, he ran because he was having so much fun.
Hyunsoo was so excited that he was even laughing out loud.
He didn’t care if others thought he was crazy.
“I can run.
He ran for a long time, even when he couldn’t see his black father anymore.
I can’t remember the last time I ran so hard that I broke a sweat.
Do people realize what a blessing it is to be able to move freely?
“But was I that fast?
Hyunsoo didn’t care.
If this is a dream, may it never wake up…….
