episode_0007

*

Drrr, drrr.

At the unfamiliar sound of wheels, the girl reading a picture book looked away and glanced around.

The waiting room, dimly lit to accommodate the boy and girl, still had dark corridors on either side. Mysterious sounds were slowly emanating from beyond.

What could it be?

Without changing her expression, the girl stared intently at the source of the sound.

Though she wanted to rush over and eliminate the suspicious presence immediately, she knew well that her body wouldn’t move as she wished. She had to be cautious.

She couldn’t walk properly due to a lack of balance.

She couldn’t grasp things properly due to a lack of perspective.

She couldn’t read properly due to poor comprehension.

She couldn’t think properly due to a lack of memory.

She feared the darkness, dreaded enclosed spaces, and was afraid of hot flames.

Quite literally, she was a defective product filled with flaws.

“······.”

The fundamental reasons didn’t matter. The path connecting the past and present had long burned out in the girl’s mind, leaving nothing behind.

However, such uncertainties about herself seemed like a blessing. What mattered was that the boy was being held captive by a liar. If necessary, she would have to bring the boy back from the liar.

One reason she had followed to this unwelcoming hospital was for that purpose. But if she ended up falling into the hands of an unidentified villain, that would be a different story altogether.

Hence, the girl held her breath even more, waiting for something to emerge from the darkness. After a moment, something finally revealed itself slowly from the darkness. However, upon confirming the figure, the girl involuntarily loosened her grip on the picture book she held in her right hand.

“······?”

The source of the sound was a wheelchair commonly seen in hospitals.

This mental health wheelchair was made of lightweight metal material with securing belts on the arms and legs. Sitting atop it was a young girl with braided hair cascading over her right shoulder, covered up to her neck with a blanket, sitting with a vacant expression.

She didn’t let her guard down just because the girl appeared younger than her.

Disparities in height, age, and gender posed no hindrance when it came to leading someone to their demise. The girl knew this fact all too well. Yet, the sight before her was enough to momentarily delay her wariness.

The girl knew what a wheelchair was.

It wasn’t something one could sit quietly in without moving a muscle.

The girl pondered for a moment. She pondered a bit about the phenomenon she couldn’t comprehend. And then she tried to get up from her seat.

Any reason would do.

After all, she had to clear the way to protect the boy she loved.

Her unsteady footsteps, clattering against the chair, blatantly revealed the chaotic conclusion.

“···Who’s there? Who’s there?”

Simultaneously, a sharp voice of a mischievous child rang out.

The girl, instead of getting up, carefully examined the wheelchair illuminated by the light. Soon, another shadow behind the wheelchair entered her sight.

Instinctively, like she did with the dog yesterday, the girl considered the priority of targets.

One doesn’t move. Is she sleeping? Her eyes are open though. The other one moves. Should I go for that first? Or not? Like blood flowing from a wounded animal, the bright red pupils fiercely displayed animosity.

In the meantime, the shadow of courtesy stopped the wheelchair and stepped forward.

It was a young child. Much smaller and younger-looking than children of the same age group. With tufts of fur sticking out here and there like dog hair, and a rugged face, one might mistake her for a girl, but her demeanor was too fierce to confirm, leaving a strange sense of unease.

The girl and the boy stared at each other intently for a moment.

Their expressions were as stiff as marble statues, and no words escaped their lips. There was no need to resort to such cumbersome means. The animosity towards each other was already simmering as if ready to explode at any moment.

The girl trusted no one except the boy.

Initially, she would pretend to be friendly, but those who would bare their fangs without hesitation to fill their bellies at the slightest provocation were not to be trusted, relied upon, or believed in. They were trash. Now, it had become a firm belief, a mindset that was unwavering. It made no difference even if it was a child she was seeing for the first time. She kept herself on edge unnecessarily, guarding against this potential threat.

“Min… ah?”

“Ugh…”

That was the moment.

When the girl sitting in the wheelchair muttered what seemed to be another child’s name, the boy quickly dropped his hostility towards the girl and returned to his wheelchair, his face so relaxed and exposed all the way to his back as if he were a fool.

“Yeah, it’s me. Is your stomach hurting again?”

“…Stomach? No, where… where am I?”

“Huh? Well, you see… This is… Oh, it’s a castle!”

“A castle…?”

“Yes, a magnificent castle built for us.”

“I see… It’s all so white. Beautiful.”

“Right? I wanted On to show it to you. Isn’t it amazing?”

“I see… Is that so…?”

This is just a hospital.

The girl almost blurted out at the absurd lies the boy was spinning, but instead, she slowly sat back down.

She didn’t harbor any suspicions. She didn’t let go of her animosity. But somehow, she just didn’t want to look at the two of them anymore. She didn’t even want to hear what they were talking about.

Clunk, clunk. The boy pushed the wheelchair larger than himself laboriously towards the girl, constantly throwing various words at the girl.

To the confused girl, it was nonsensical gibberish that didn’t make sense. Yet, the girl seemed satisfied with the fact that the boy was making up stories for her, smiling vaguely with unfocused eyes and nodding along.

“…Strange.”

Strange. That’s definitely strange.

Alone again, the girl muttered quietly to herself.

The boy, knowing that the girl finds the situation strange, was desperately trying to appease her.

Whether the girl was awake or dreaming, she seemed oblivious to the fact that the girl was there, only paying attention to what the boy was saying.

Trying to manipulate a broken person into compliance.

Such behavior couldn’t be called love, nor could it be considered a proper human relationship. If anything, it was simply caretaking. It felt like watching someone struggle to raise a wild pet properly from a children’s book. That’s why the girl gave up thinking about the two children. Instinctively blocking reason with emotion, she turned away from the truth.

“Ah.”

That moment. Finally, the sound of the door that had been closed was heard.

Not the suspicious wheelchair, but the sound the girl had eagerly awaited.

“…Are you happy now?”

“…”

Finally, the boy, the liar, revealed himself, keeping his mouth tightly shut in response to the question.

His bangs covering one eye to hide the eyes blinded by fire. A beige hooded coat covering him from head to toe. The gruesome burn marks peeking through the gaps. Seeing that nothing had changed from before coming here, the liar didn’t seem to be playing any tricks. The girl felt relieved at this fact and, like a well-trained dog, got up from her seat and staggered towards the boy.

“Is it over?”

“Okay, it’s over.”

“Well then, let’s go.”

The boy seemed like he still had something to say, but the girl didn’t care and held his hand as they started to walk outside.

She no longer had any doubts about the boy and girl she had seen a while ago or any awareness of her own state.

She was just happy to be with him. Meeting the person she wanted to protect again, hearing his voice, made her feel content.

“So, where should we go today?”

“We’re going to the park with the old house.”

“The old house…? Oh, you mean Hwadojin. What should we do there, play hide and seek?”

“I don’t like that. Because I can’t see you.”

“Hmm… Then what about ‘The Mugunghwa Flower Blooms,’ Fox, Fox, what are you doing?’”

“No, you can’t do that.”

“But other than that, there’s not much else to do. There’s no swing there either.”

“It doesn’t matter. Even without those things.”

As they stepped out of the hospital’s main entrance, the morning sun, chasing away the darkness, faintly shimmered beyond the fog.

But the girl didn’t care. As long as she could see the boy, that was enough for her.

The village, deserted due to a fire and heavy rain, was eerily quiet as usual.

But the girl paid no mind. She could hear the boy’s voice better.

There was no one left to welcome them, obstruct them, or threaten them.

But the girl wasn’t worried. It was just her and the boy here now.

Thinking this way, the girl’s heart swelled uncontrollably, and she put on the brightest smile she could muster.

And as if to counter the unspoken question of the liar who couldn’t answer, she declared with a conviction stronger than anyone else’s—

“Just being with you makes me happier than anyone else in this world.”

—She smiled and proclaimed to the boy she loved more than anyone in the world.