episode_0098

Seol Joo-hee ran away to her room and quickly hid herself under a thick blanket.

‘… Well, something… , something is wrong… .’

Her hands were filled with a strong compulsion as she fluttered and turned over the blanket like a child.

She hid herself so that no one could see her, then crouched down and took a defensive stance.

‘… My, I… . I hate Do Ji-hyuk… ? Oh, that doesn’t make sense… . That can’t be… !’

The hints that had been encroaching on her mind for a long time were naturally resolved over time.

The memories of the past did not disappear together.

‘My, how much I love Jihyuk… !’

Unfortunately, Seol Joo-hee remembered every single thing she had done so far.

Doubting the person I loved so much over a mere video.

Instead of trusting him, he concluded that he was a dirty traitor and used abusive language.

Not only was it not enough to despise him by treating him as worse than an insect, he even had memories of being cut off from the relationship after showing his ugly side in the end.

He clearly remembered everything he had done to Do Ji-hyuk.

‘… Oh no… . no… ! It can’t be… !’

Of all those memories, the one that pains her the most is… .

Do Ji-hyuk’s eyes were looking right at her.

His gaze, which had been indifferently filled with disappointment, became a sharp dagger and tore her heart to pieces.

‘Oh, no…’ .’

Seol Joo-hee grabbed her hair, feeling as if she was about to lose her mind.

If I could, I felt like tearing my brain and head apart.

If only I could erase this terrible time… .

I really felt like I could do anything.

‘… This is all a dream… . okay… . It’s all a dream… !’

She couldn’t bear to accept the current reality.

The moment she accepted her past of hating and despising Do Ji-hyuk, she also had to accept the fact that he was fed up with her.

So she desperately denied reality.

‘… Wow, I’m waking up from a dream… . This fucking dream, all you have to do is wake up… !’

Seol Ju-hee was tearing out her hair and praying that she would wake up from her dream as quickly as possible.

I wanted to quickly wake up from my dream and spend time with Do Ji-hyuk like always.

but.

“… … .”

Of course this wasn’t a dream.

It was a heartless reality that could not be undone no matter what one did.

“… Hmm… .”

In the end, she faced the wall of reality and thought as she shed tears.

No matter how terrible the insinuation was, what he did was beyond the point of being forgivable.

How can you say love and apologize after doing something like that to the person you love?

“Black… .”

What is even more heartbreaking is that there have been several opportunities to undo the mistakes made so far.

Despite experiencing such humiliation, Do Ji-hyuk did not abandon Queens.

If I really didn’t have feelings for you, I would have avoided contact at all or not even paid any attention to you.

However, Seol Joo-hee completely eradicated Do Ji-hyuk’s lingering regrets.

Not only did he directly kick the last opportunity, but he also brought a huge disappointment.

“… .”

Seol Joo-hee, who was shedding sad tears, could recognize that her spirit was gradually becoming broken.

If you wake up right now and take the medicine, you’ll probably feel a little better.

however… .

She couldn’t muster up the courage to run away with medicine again.

The effect of the drug is temporary.

Even if you take medicine now, someday it will lose its effectiveness.

Then reality will come again, and you will have to struggle with sadness and face the cold reality… .

Seol Joo-hee couldn’t bring herself to feel the same emotions again.

“… … .”

Maybe it’s good.

What should I do?

Should I get down on my knees and beg and apologize right now?

If I earnestly pray that the hint has been resolved and that I really had no choice because of the hint, wouldn’t they accept it?

… And what if they don’t accept it?

Do Ji-hyuk is cool-headed.

Once I have feelings for someone, I don’t even give them a brief glance.

I’m already very disappointed because I tried drugs.

What if my apology is not accepted?

What if I mistakenly thought it was my last chance and ended up disappointing myself even more?

“… Hee hee… .”

Seol Joo-hee, who was in extreme fear, curled up in a ball and fell even further.

Wouldn’t this be what it feels like to walk through a minefield?

The fear of dying no matter what you choose.

The dilemma of death began to gnaw at her mind again.

“… I’m sorry… . Well, I was wrong… . never… . I won’t do that again… . sorry… .”

Seol Joo-hee constantly muttered apologies and asked for forgiveness.

Because this was the only action she could do as she stood at the edge of the abyss.

But of course, there was no one who would listen to the apology.

She fell into an endless abyss, repeatedly apologizing and convulsing until she lost consciousness.

*

The after-party did not stop until the day changed.

Normally, it would have already been time to break up and stay, but perhaps thanks to the sense of freedom that the season was over, everyone showed no signs of ending… .

“Ugh! Do Ji-hyuk, this bastard drinks water instead of alcohol!”

“Ahh… ! Puroduseonyim… ! Drinking water or something like that is not good for your body… !”

“That’s right! Here, drink this instead of water!”

“Come on, come on, get your cup.”

Kim Jun-hyung, who is so determined to kill me that he doesn’t give me a chance to rest, and Bang Han-na, whose tongue is completely entangled.

And even Kim Na-rae, who subtly pours a full glass of vodka, and Han Gyu-ri, who holds out a overflowing glass.

The sight of them bursting into laughter just at the sight of rolling glasses made me feel like I could smell the scent of alcohol just by looking at them from afar.

“These crazy people… . I’m going to drink water!”

“Uh huh!? Run away!”

“Catch it… !”

Until recently, I thought I shouldn’t get close to my teammates.

The reason was that, as someone who had to give instructions, getting too close to team members could make them uncomfortable.

So, I have always maintained an appropriate distance from my team members, and have managed the team by narrowing the distance a little more to only those members who need emotional interaction.

however… .

The longer I spent here, the more my values began to change.

Team Seoul City Hall is a truly rare team.

Starting with Kim Jun-hyung, who was given the job because he was young.

Gyu-ri Han was pushed to change departments as if she were being demoted.

Bang Han-na came to Seoul alone to become a hunter with abilities that no one recognized.

Na-rae Kim worked part-time as an insignificant D-class hunter.

Jin Seo-won lost her only protector and almost became a cruel murderer.

and… .

I was abandoned by the team I had been with for 10 years and was lost in alcoholism.

We all gathered at Seoul City Hall with our own stories, and as we formed a team and had a successful season, my rigid values began to change.

When I think back… .

I think things started to change from the moment I received Kim Jun-hyung’s phone call.

“… Oppa.”

“Uh, Seowon. I couldn’t see you for a moment… . Where have you been?”

“… huh. Restroom.”

“Were you in the bathroom the whole time? Didn’t you drink too much… ?”

I inadvertently reacted with concern to the late appearance of Jin Seo-won.

“… No.”

Then she indifferently shook her head and insisted that she was fine… .

Kuuk─

Out of nowhere, she grabbed my collar, pointed to the inside of the empty lounge, and quietly asked for my companionship.

“… brother. Wait a minute there.”

“Huh? Suddenly?”

At that time, I was momentarily puzzled by her unexpected behavior.

“Oh, it’s a vow!”

Hannah Bang quietly joined in, sipping a newly made cocktail.

“… Unni, go and play with Narae unnie.”

“Ugh… ? Why don’t you deal with me… ?”

Jin Seo-won stares at Bang Han-na with a strangely dissatisfied look in his eyes.

It felt like something I had planned had gone awry and I was displeased.

“Play with me too… !”

“… I hate it.”

“Why… !”

“… Go away.”

‘cute.’

I sipped the cool water while silently admiring the two people who seemed like real sisters.

The crazy night in which everyone got drunk barely came to an end when the sun was almost up.

So time passes again… .

A day to go to work like any other day.

“Good morning.”

“You’re here!”

I showed up at the office, saying hello to Gyu-ri Han who came to work first.

“What about Junhyung?”

“Ah. Mr. Junhyung went to the HR team for a moment to run some business.”

lately. After a crazy after-party.

After enjoying our own one-day reward vacation, we began working in earnest to welcome the new season.

“Have you received any offers?”

“There was one each for Hanna and Seowon, and two for Narae.”

As the transfer period arrived, interest in our team began to creep in.

Perhaps because the Sejin guild was holding strong, there was no movement of any kind except for prodding.

‘by the way… . Narae is very popular.’

Kim Na-rae is currently receiving the most attention on our team.

Kim Na-rae, who can perform a variety of missions, was receiving much more attention than Jin Seo-won or Bang Han-na, who were strategically limited.

“Reject all offers… , When Junhyung comes, we will start with a reorganization meeting.”

“Okay!”

While waiting for Kim Jun-hyung to return, I was busy with work for a while.

Tat tat tat tat ──

Suddenly, there was a sound of rushing in the hallway… .

Suddenly—!

“Do, Do Ji-hyuk is here!?”

Someone suddenly burst into the office and looked for me.

‘huh?’

It was Kim Jun-hyung who went to the HR team to run errands.

“Why are you looking for me so quickly?”

I stopped what I was doing for a moment, stood up, and quietly spoke to him through the partition.

OK… .

“… Jihyuk… .”

Kim Jun-hyung looked very serious and told me one piece of news.

This morning.

Seol Joo-hee attempted suicide.