episode_0116

Just then, I exposed a weakness in Siwoo that he had been hiding at the swimming pool.

“I heard a lot of stories through your maid. Before coming here, I even asked if you were afraid of water.”

Just like my past life, the me from three years ago was very meticulous.

“But I never heard the story of you almost drowning in the river. If I had known, Kanghwi would have told me. It was for your safety.”

The performance continued, but Siwoo’s gaze was now on me.

I abandoned the serious theatrical tone I had adopted. He was genuinely worried about me and was asking for the truth.

“So, after the performance, will you tell me the truth?”

That was an event three years in the future, something that should never come to pass.

In my heart, I was convinced that talking honestly with Siwoo and facing it together would be okay.

I almost let it slip, almost revealed the truth before the performance ended, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

Siwoo’s death three years later was like a prophecy to him. And all tragedies begin the moment the prophecy is heard.

It’s like a self-fulfilling prophecy. The theory that when a group adopts a certain proposition as the basis for their actions, they are bound to become that way.

Why did Ragnarok happen? There may be countless reasons, but the primary cause was imprisoning Loki’s children in a place where Odin saw the destruction of the world in his dreams and tried to prevent it.

The tragedy of Oedipus is similar. He heard a prophecy and, in trying to avoid it, walked into tragedy himself.

Is Siwoo any different?

From the moment he heard that he would die in three years, how could he go about his daily life as if nothing had happened?

It’s normal to shiver at the thought of the approaching day of death, no matter where you go or what you do. You would be afraid of when and where death might strike.

That’s why I couldn’t speak. I shouldn’t speak. This secret is a ‘once happened’ event in the other worldline that only I should know about.

If you want to create a convincing lie, build it on top of the truth.

So, I only revealed half of the truth to Siwoo, leaving out the part about three years later.

“In truth, I came from a parallel world. It’s exactly the same as this one, but slightly different.”

Siwoo’s performance wavered for a moment at my words, but that was all.

After turning that momentary hesitation into an emotion, Siwoo continued his performance.

“A parallel world. That’s nonsense.”

“It does sound nonsensical. These days, the media talks about the metaverse when they’re bored.”

“True, but…”

As the music reached its climax, I emphasized with an accented voice that there was no lie in what I said.

“Really. And the me from the parallel world almost drowned in a river accident last year. That’s why I’m afraid of deep water.”

“…”

He may want to doubt, but he won’t be able to.

Siwoo believes that he harbors a similar self, so he won’t doubt.

So he will believe. He will accept my absurd and endless stories as the truth.

Please believe. I’m begging you, Jung Siwoo.

“Well, I won’t… pry any further. It must be a bad memory for you.”

“Thank you.”

“No, I’m sorry for trying to dig it up forcibly. But thank you for answering.”

“Do you believe me?”

“Of course.”

Siwoo could only convey his sincerity through the piano. He mentioned the dying Schubert as he spoke.

“Like a teacher. Because there are more people who can’t speak sincerely and express themselves like this. So, I’m grateful for you just telling me the truth.”

The heightened emotions of the performance suddenly subside like someone facing imminent death.

And with the fleeting and tender conversation of the two people who come, the piece comes to an end.

After finishing the performance, Siwoo remained in front of the piano for a while, his hands lightly resting on the keys as he lost himself in thought.

I quietly stood by his side, waiting for him to accept my mischievous lie.

#

Somewhere along the way, I vaguely felt it.

Although Min Chaewon claimed that her identity was overlaid with Jung Siwoo’s personality.

But it seemed like she knew too much about Siwoo.

“If he’s a bad person, why do you keep meeting him?”

“It’s just a small revenge. Don’t worry about it.”

She was seeking revenge on a senior named Yoon Jiyu, whom she didn’t even know.

“Starting next week, I’ll be the one tutoring Cheongha.”

“Suddenly?”

She offered to take over Baek Cheongha’s private lessons, who had never missed a lesson.

“Don’t you think this will definitely be on the test?”

“Why would they give this? Why?”

Every problem she thought would be on the test didn’t actually appear on the real test.

“No. In the river. I almost drowned once.”

“Really? When?”

“Not too long ago… quite recently.”

She tried to deceive Siwoo with a clumsy lie.

If it was a recent incident, then there’s no way Kang Hwi wouldn’t remember. She is as sincere about taking care of Min Chaewon as she is about anything else.

Jung Siwoo, who rarely believed in fictional stories, would perceive it differently if it was about Chaewon and himself.

“In fact, I came from a parallel world. It’s exactly the same as here, but slightly different.”

The statement that he came from a parallel world must be true.

However, if that’s really the case, many unresolved questions arise.

How did the Siwoo from the parallel world end up in this world?

It could be passed off as a crash landing on Min Chaewon’s body. But why did he leave the world where he originally lived and come here?

Could it be… death?

Did the Siwoo from the parallel world face death and accidentally land on Chaewon in this world?

“A parallel world. What nonsense.”

“It does sound nonsensical. Nowadays, they talk about the metaverse in the media when they’re bored.”

“That’s true, but….”

A parallel world.

But what if the time frames were different?

It would make it possible to have lectures that seemed like they were peering into the professor’s mind. And all of Min Chaewon’s strange behaviors that she carried out were logically arranged.

“I really did. And in the parallel world, I almost drowned in a river accident last year. That’s why I’m afraid of deep water.”

“….”

If the future version of her is trying to avoid all the misfortunes she experienced, and is currently solving various problems around Siwoo.

If those problems involved Baek Cheongha, Yoon Jiyu, and even though she said last year, it was actually a death that came in the future.

Everything fits together so perfectly.

It becomes a clean signpost pointing to one fact.

“Did you really… come from the future?”

Siwoo looked at Chaewon inquisitively, but she avoided his gaze, pretending to focus on her performance.

In other words, it meant that it wasn’t the right time yet.

“Well, I won’t… pry any further. It might be a bad memory for you.”

And with that, Siwoo took a step back. There was no point in pushing further if it wasn’t a story that could be drawn out.

Who in the world would believe such a story? That she died once in the future, came back to life, and somehow ended up in the body of her first love.

No matter how open-hearted Siwoo was, Chaewon would never reveal her true feelings, even if she said she was ready to listen to all the stories.

Because it was a story that even one would find difficult to tell themselves.

‘She’ll tell me someday…’

Although I couldn’t know what had happened. If it was not alone but together, they could handle whatever came their way. Somehow, I felt a certainty about that.

After finishing the performance, with her hands still on the piano keys.

Siwoo prayed, hoping Chaewon would someday tell him the truth, and prayed again.

On a rainy night, a perfect and beautiful charcoal spent together in a dreamy piano room.

Their shoulders leaned against each other, revealing parts of themselves were more precious than any words.

There were still untold stories. But unforgettable memories remained with the two of them for a lifetime.

…And.

“Was the bed here always like this?”

“I told you. I thought you’d miss home.”

As if waiting for the two of them, a canopy bed fit for royalty greeted them.

“Then I’ll sleep on the sofa, you can sleep on the bed.”

To Chaewon, who still thought of him as a patient with a broken rib, Siwoo said the words he wanted to say like a man.

“Let’s sleep together on the bed.”

As Siwoo looked at Chaewon with a puzzled expression, her face slowly brightened.

Raising her hand to hide her soon-to-be blushing face, Chaewon muttered.

“W-what are you saying. We haven’t even, right? Is that…?”

Judging by her broken vocabulary, she seemed quite shocked, but she didn’t want to cross the line with her proposal.

Siwoo smiled reassuringly, saying it’s okay.

“I just want to sleep. I won’t do anything, really.”

“H-how can I believe that?!”

“Do you not trust me?”

“……….”

If he had wanted to, Siwoo could have devoured Chaewon at any moment.

But he didn’t. Because he respected Min Chaewon’s ego and the other self that coexisted with him.

In fact, up to this day, there were countless times when Min Chaewon’s body slammed into him, but he didn’t retaliate. Although there was a crisis because of the swimsuit earlier, they managed to overcome it somehow. It was a moment of realizing that reason is stronger than instinct. Siwoo had the right to say, ‘Trust me.’

In the end, Min Chaewon had no choice but to accept the proposal with a pout. It was a choice they could make because they knew each other so well.

“If you touch me in a serious place, I’ll turn you into a ghost right away.”

It was threatening. But could she, who cherished Jungsioo more than anyone else, really harm him? It was an absurd thought.

Siwoo wrapped his arms around Chaewon, who cowered like a frightened hamster.

“Shall we go brush our teeth?”

Startled and flustered, Chaewon pushed Siwoo away with her shoulder and shouted.

“I’ll brush my teeth alone?!”