I spent the whole afternoon staring at the guarantee form.

A close older friend asked me to guarantee a loan. I have work right in front of me, but I keep thinking about one line on the form.

After a close older friend asks him to guarantee a loan, Taehun keeps turning over the wording on the form at work. When he meets Haewol, he falls silent in front of a page titled “What I Could Lose.”

One afternoon, a close older friend’s request to guarantee a loan arrives on Taehun’s phone. He puts off replying and tries to get back to work, but the wording on the form keeps coming to mind, and his hand stops. The friend says it’s no big deal. Unsure what responsibility lies behind those words, Taehun visits the counseling room. Haewol suggests writing down what he could lose if he guarantees the loan. Taehun looks at the page, starts to speak, then stops. He hasn’t chosen either way, and the weight of that afternoon remains.

When someone asks you to guarantee a loan

The size of the favor and the responsibility you can take on may be different.

After you were asked to guarantee a loan, what came to mind first?

That afternoon, with the wording on the guarantee form stuck in your mind after a close older friend’s request, doesn’t pass easily. Writing down what you could lose, one thing at a time, makes it clear that answering the request and carrying the responsibility are two different weights. If you’ve ever swallowed your words in response to a similar request, tell me about that moment.

Scenes

01 · The afternoon the request came The afternoon the request came — At one in the afternoon, a message arrives on Taehun’s phone from a close older friend asking him to guarantee a loan. The words “Could you guarantee this for me?” appear on the screen.
02 · The moment his hand stopped The moment his hand stopped — He leaves the message unanswered and opens his work papers, but the words “joint liability” on the guarantee form come back to him. The tip of his pen stops over a blank space.
03 · His friend’s words His friend’s words — Mingyu brings up the request to guarantee the loan again on the phone and says it’s no big deal. Taehun stands leaning against his desk, still holding his pen. Mingyu: We’re close. What’s the big deal about guaranteeing one loan? Taehun: He says it’s no big deal, but I can’t see what comes after that.
04 · The blank space on the page The blank space on the page — In the counseling room, Haewol suggests writing down what Taehun could lose if he guarantees the loan. Taehun looks at the blank space beneath “What I could lose,” then falls silent. Haewol: Taehun, how much of what you could lose if you guarantee the loan comes to mind? Taehun: I thought I only had to write down the money…

I spent the whole afternoon staring at the guarantee form.

Scenes

Stories by Haewol