episode_0197

The officetel was very clean.

Except for the fact that it hadn’t been maintained for nearly half a year, it was easy enough to move in and live there.

I was worried because there was a lot of damaged debris and blood stains on the nearby road, but it seemed like I was unfounded.

“Hey, it’s been a long time.”

As I slowly entered the officetel, I saw a slightly damaged hallway.

Other places were a bit clean, but the hallway where I lived was not.

That’s it, whatever. When I ran away, I didn’t even think about cleaning up after myself.

Thanks to this, I had to go through some trouble cleaning up the plants that had grown on the officetel floor.

I couldn’t ignore it because it was a type of vine. If you don’t clean it up, you won’t be able to drag the carrier.

“… Ugh.”

As expected, it was clear that he had not properly remembered what had happened over the past two weeks.

When I entered the officetel, my head started pounding every time I looked around.

Fortunately, it wasn’t anything serious.

It was more like a tingly feeling, as if I had drunk the wrong drink.

I wanted to get rid of the other bodies in the officetel, but I couldn’t.

Since it was no longer possible to tell whether it was dirt or bone, it seemed right to just leave it alone.

Instead, after a moment of silence about the people, I went to my room.

What can I say about the room… It was the same as when I came out.

There was a little bit of dust, but there was no problem in distinguishing it.

“… Should I at least bring some clothes.”

Although it was left unattended for a long time, it wasn’t a good idea to throw it away.

It’s not easy to find clothes that fit my body perfectly.

Since I would need it many times, I thought it would be right to bring something like underwear now.

So I slowly started taking clothes out of the closet and crumpling them into the carrier.

There weren’t many clothes to pack.

First of all, I had to leave all my long clothes behind.

Even if I brought it with me anyway, it wasn’t like I could wear it.

I’m sure they’ll just leave it somewhere and throw it away later.

I packed only the shortest clothes, and lastly I packed in the socks and underwear as well.

Although I was concerned about hygiene, I thought it would be okay if I washed it once.

Why, there is a saying that the lifespan of clothes is 4 years.

So, I felt like if I used it well, anything would work out.

After putting all the clothes in the suitcase, I suddenly had nothing to do.

I felt like I wanted to find something more since it had been a while since I came, but I was scared.

There was a reason why my head hurt every time I tried to remember something.

I was afraid that I was opening Pandora’s box.

This is a brief memory of the past two weeks, well.

Since the situation was just that, I was forced to shake it off and focus on the fight…

No one knows whether they will be able to shake it off like that this time too.

“A, C.”

I scratched my head.

Then, I took down the headset I might have been using and opened the carrier again.

Perhaps because the suitcase that Changseong Jeong gave him was very large, there was still plenty of space.

I felt like I could at least take a few more memories with me.

“I don’t know either! Well, I guess I can drink and read it later.”

I knew what I had to take.

From the flashing light that passed by at that time, clearly.

“This is it.”

When I took out a few books that were packed tightly on the bookshelf, I saw a simple box hidden inside.

That simple box contained diaries written by Yeji Lee.

I knew that I had been writing it since my first year of middle school until the incident occurred.

Perhaps for its value, a simple box was hidden in every compartment of the bookshelf.

I took out all the books and put the plain box in the suitcase.

After putting everything into the carrier, it finally felt a little heavier.

“You should keep it hidden.”

I couldn’t hide it from Noh Chang-hoon, but if I could, I wanted to hide it.

This had something to do with me. It was something very relevant to me, who calls myself Yeji Lee.

I can’t say I deserved to read it, but it was clear that no one else should read it.

Since work is urgent now, I was thinking of hiding it under the bed.

And when you come back from work, you can read it then.

If you drink a lot of alcohol and are drunk, you can read it and treat it as black history.

After gathering my thoughts, I picked up an unused piece of clothing.

Then I headed to the bathroom and looked at the mirror.

The mirror was, of course, very dirty. The dust was so thick that it was impossible to see.

I slowly wiped the dust off the mirror. Perhaps because I pressed it hard and wiped it, it cleaned fairly well even without adding water.

Once I was able to see at least my face, I slowly looked at the mirror.

“After… Did you say that?”

Yeah, probably. I would have been denying reality here.

Did you take off your headset while complaining about the author? Or did you write it?

I couldn’t remember that in detail.

It seemed like he had probably taken it off. The cat ear headset that I gave to Yeji Lee now.

And it seemed like he was criticizing his body.

“After talking about the sick pretty girl, you said she looked weak.”

Of course, now that some time has passed, my body is quite different from then.

At that time, my wrists and ankles were so thin that they felt like they would break if I applied real force, but now they are quite thick.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been working hard all this time, but it’s safe to say that I’m in good health.

I compared my past self to my current self and laughed.

“I also did something called growth.”

In the meantime, there were a lot of things I didn’t deserve, but now I’ve earned the respect of other people.

Of course, I still don’t know if I’m the one who deserves it…

Still, it was good that things had changed enough that there were people who saw it that way.

If things continue to change like this in the future, later.

“You’ll be able to live properly even if you go to reality, right?”

There was no problem now.

The person I am now has definitely changed.

Receive people’s trust and respect.

I made close friends who were willing to do things for me, and I also gained colleagues who I could trust and rely on.

So, I could say that in this world I am getting closer to my ideal self.

… But this was because his life was in danger.

If you don’t move, you die. I really hate dying.

So the logic was that there was no choice but to move.

I somehow ended up growing like this.

In other words, it was okay for me to say that humans do not move until their lives are in danger.

The height of laziness, of starting something late only after a knife has been put to one’s throat.

There is no such thing as a zombie virus in the real world.

And unless he took out private loans, there was no way his life would be in danger.

My parents said that it was their duty as parents and that they would take responsibility for me until the end, and if I slowly deteriorated in such a comfortable environment.

“… I hate it just thinking about it.”

I sighed and came out of the bathroom.

Then, I picked up my suitcase, closed the front door, and came out of the officetel.

Anyway, that was in the distant future. Now, it was unclear whether I could properly resolve Jinju City’s affairs.

So, like I usually do, it would be better to put off annoying things until later.

I thought it would be resolved later by consulting with Kang Si-woo or Noh Chang-hoon.

If it doesn’t work out, it’s something to think about later.

Because we’ll be able to solve it someday.

After gathering my thoughts up to that point, I put my headset on.

Looking at the watch on my wrist, it seemed like there was about an hour and a half left.

Considering the travel time, I thought it would be better to go there and wait.

So I got on the bike and pedaled, being careful not to lose the carrier.

To be honest, I wondered what would happen if I fell in the middle, but that didn’t happen.

Maybe it was because I was so used to riding my bike with one hand, but it was a normal ride.

When we arrived at Jangyu Middle School, there were a lot of people gathered there, unlike a few hours before.

The atmosphere was more diverse than expected.

There were people who liked it, and there were people who were sad.

Some people were anxious, and some were afraid.

Some people were looking forward to it, while others held hands with their families, saying that we would overcome it together.

The emotions and atmosphere were all different, but one thing was certain.

Everyone was looking forward to life in Busan.

Forgetting all the hardships and the past, and looking toward the future was truly a survivor in this situation.

I looked at the survivors for a moment, then quickly ran away before they caught my attention.

I felt like someone recognized me a while ago, and it seemed like it was probably the person I had saved back then.

I didn’t want to be bothered again, so I had no choice.

When I went to the principal’s office, I saw Jeong Chang-seong holding a bundle with both hands.

It seemed like the principal’s office door had already been locked. And when you see fire shutters down all over the school…

“Looks like you’re planning on coming back, teacher.”

“I have so many years of memories, there is no way I can leave easily.”

“Aha… ”

“More than anything, it is also my alma mater.”

“Alma mater… ?”

“Boasting a history of over 70 years… It is a middle school that can truly be said to be a symbol of Jangyu.”

“Aha, I see… ”

I avoided Jeong Chang-seong’s questioning gaze.

Since I was from Seoul, of course I had no way of knowing what Jangyu Middle School was.

The moment I thought that if I did something wrong, I could arouse unnecessary suspicion.

“I heard that middle school students these days are assigned differently depending on their aspirations, so I think you’ve only heard the name.”

“That’s right. Choose somewhere else… ”

“I think I need to make final preparations soon. Would you like to come with me?”

I nodded.

I didn’t think I would be bored for the rest of the time if I followed along.