episode_0193

The two walked down the trail together.

Even at midnight, the festival’s excitement showed no signs of abating.

Seoyeon, who saw the crowd growing larger, cautiously opened her mouth.

“I think I need something to properly cover my face… What do you think…? It’s not the same place as before… It’s a public space… ”

“Do as you wish.”

The man nodded absentmindedly.

Seoyeon, who was looking around, bought two identical fox masks from a street vendor and handed one to him. This time too, he accepted it without saying anything.

The two, wearing identical fox masks, then walked side by side down the main street.

‘Oh, what should I do…’

Seo-yeon had to work very hard not to show her pounding heart.

‘It’s a couple item… I bought it without thinking much about it… Howl… ’

Last night, I could barely fall asleep after taking sleeping pills. I fantasized about it hundreds, thousands of times in my dreams.

I can’t tell you how painful the emptiness that came over me every time I opened my eyes was.

Now I thought that this was something that could never happen in reality.

‘I definitely thought so…’

Seo-yeon was troubled by the delusions unfolding before her eyes. She wondered if she was still walking through a dream.

But judging by the vivid sensations I felt, it definitely didn’t seem like a dream.

She glanced up at the man with a pounding heart. Perhaps he was also accepting this moment happily like she was.

‘ah…’

But the moment she saw that emotion, so bland that it felt blunt, Seo-yeon fell limp like a wet piece of paper.

‘As expected… I guess I’m not very happy…’

At that moment, when she was about to lose her cool, she shook her head violently and quickly shook off her depression.

‘No, no…’

I’ve just barely managed to get back the opportunity I missed earlier. It’s too precious a time to waste on ruminating.

And this time, Seoyeon really didn’t want to let this time just pass by.

She looked at the man with determination and asked.

“Ugh… Don’t you want to go over there?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Seoyeon walked alongside the man, who nodded coolly.

Meanwhile.

She bumped shoulders with each other in the crowded crowd, losing her balance and staggering.

“Wow… !”

That’s just a matter of finding the balance again. Strictly speaking, there was no need to bump shoulders.

But even as the stone floor was approaching, Seoyeon was not taking any action.

It wasn’t a commotion that I made on purpose. I just instinctively trusted someone.

Someone who would guard your bedside all night long, and even fight monsters with his weak hands and feet.

And the moment I closed my eyes tightly.

The sensation she felt was not the pain of the cold stone floor, but the firm and warm touch of someone’s hand.

“Are you okay?”

Still a cold voice. But if the man was truly like that, he would not have acted like this in the first place.

“… Yeah.”

Seo-yeon, who had suddenly turned a bright blush, barely nodded her head. Even so, joy was welling up inside her heart.

‘As expected, Hyun-i… is Hyun…!’

She could be sure that she was right.

Even though two years have passed, even though you’ve changed so much, even though you’re still a little blunt.

He’s still the same boy I used to know.

“Oh, thank you… ”

Of course, the shame was hers to bear.

Seoyeon muttered in an embarrassed voice.

Then, he carefully straightened his posture and started to cry.

“There are definitely a lot of people… But it wasn’t this many last year… Maybe it’s because it overlaps with the National Foundation Day… ”

“… ”

“I think we need some kind of solution. That’s why I’m saying… ”

She, who had been groping, finally came up with her purpose.

“Yes, can I grab your sleeve a little bit…?”

I couldn’t bring myself to say that I wanted to hold her hand, because I was afraid that it would sound too obvious, and more than anything, I didn’t think I could bear it.

A brief silence follows.

The man who was listening to Seo-yeon nodded silently. Seo-yeon responded with a bright smile and immediately grabbed his sleeve.

“Then shall we go…?”

“… Yes.”

“Hehehe… ”

Seoyeon smiled shyly and lowered her head slightly. She couldn’t come to her senses due to the overwhelming sense of fulfillment.

There were still so many things I wanted to do with him in the future, like the stars in the sky.

And what unfolded before her now was a truly magical time of happiness.

***

The two of them were walking side by side. Seo-yeon, who had calmed down before she knew it, was able to naturally talk to him about various things.

“By the way, how are you feeling these days…?”

“… I’m okay thanks to your concern. And… ”

The man who had been answering Seo-yeon’s words hesitated and opened his mouth.

“Thank you.”

“Huh, huh?”

“I heard that you not only saved me, but also gave me a blood transfusion. I received a great grace…”

“Ah, no…! What is grace…!”

Seoyeon shook her head. However, she couldn’t hide her joy at seeing the new bird emerge.

It was something I had already done two years ago. I could have done that blood transfusion dozens of times for a man. Even if all the blood in my body was sucked out and I turned into a mummy.

I actually liked the idea that their blood was becoming one. It seemed to mean that they were becoming more and more inseparable.

Of course, whether that was true or not, the man’s thanks had a deep meaning in itself.

“… Ahem. That’s fortunate.”

She barely managed to control her emotions and spoke again.

“But there may still be aftereffects, so don’t overdo it… Okay… ?”

“… I will do that.”

The man nodded slightly again.

We arrived at the square before we knew it. Dozens of street stalls and demonstration areas were lined up in a long line, centered around colorful sculptures installed in the center.

Seo-yeon, who saw him, let out a gasp with her eyes shining.

“Wow… !”

The man looked at her and asked with a puzzled look.

“Isn’t this something you’ve already experienced last year?”

“… Yeah, no.”

Then Seoyeon shook her head.

“… This is my first time.”

I was so busy building up my power that I wasn’t really interested in it in the first place. I didn’t have time to worry about childish pranks.

But Seo-yeon has finally come to realize that it is not what you do that is important, but who you are with that is more important.

In that sense, right now could be said to be a perfect moment.

“Then, shall we start with that…? What do you think…?”

Seo-yeon pointed to the street stall and said. This time, the man followed her wishes without saying a word. And as time went by, their journey continued.

“Hey, look at that couple.”

“They’re both awesome… ”

‘Oh, couple…!’

The exclamations of admiration from passersby upon seeing them were truly spectacular. Seoyeon kept fanning herself with her hand to cool her burning face.

In fact, she didn’t particularly want wealth and honor. She wasn’t born into such a blessed life to begin with.

It is a life that has already been sentenced to death before the railroad is built. Particle hypersensitivity. An incurable disease that has never been reported as a complete cure, born when a fragile body cannot accept overflowing talent.

At the end, there was only one wish born.

Just to live this peaceful everyday life with the man forever.

This has not changed even now that I have overcome my illness.

Of course, I was also confident.

He said that he was able to endure particle hypersensitivity thanks to the power of love that blossomed between the two.

-Phuong! Bang!

“Oh my, over there!”

While she was lost in thought, the bell of the clock tower suddenly rings. Soon, the cheers of people watching the fireworks rise into the sky ring loudly in her ears.

“Wow… ”

Seoyeon also opened her lips slightly and let out an exclamation of admiration. It felt as if the colorful fireworks were blessing them.

Before she knew it, she was tightly wrapped around the man’s arm. He, too, was staring at the sky without moving an inch, lost in thought.

“Hee… ”

Seoyeon smiled slightly and clung to his arms even more. And then she thought again.

It was a truly magical, truly perfect moment.

***

-Phwang! Bang…

The fireworks display, which had been like a spectacle, soon came to an end. What remained at the end of the splendid festival was a slight sense of emptiness.

Seo-yeon deliberately spoke to the man more energetically to preserve this lingering feeling.

“Want to go there now? They say the closing performance is happening today… ”

“No.”

“Huh, huh?”

But the voice of refusal was heard firmly. Seo-yeon looked back at him in confusion. Then, suddenly, she remembered something and checked the hands of the clock tower.

11:50. The magical hour is disappearing like sand blowing in the wind. And all that’s left in her palm is a handful of sand.

“I think I should go now.”

“Sleep, wait a minute… !”

Seo-yeon urgently stopped him from turning around. Regret and greed were raising their heads inside her again.

I was worried that if I made too many demands, he might reject me. So I quickly gave in to his demands.

But now that I think about it, it was such a shame.

I should have tried a little harder, I thought.

“Oh, don’t do that. Let’s go a little later… Okay?”

Seoyeon appealed to the man in a desperate voice.

“It’s really just a moment… It only takes 10 minutes… ”

“Sorry, I have a prior engagement.”

But he shook his head sharply. A bad feeling was creeping up on Seoyeon.

She opened her trembling lips and spit out the words in a strangled voice.

“Are you… Min-ha?”

“… ”

The man remained silent. Of course, even that was enough of an answer.

I felt like all the strength was drained from my body. At the same time, the anger I had forgotten about began to boil over.

If the other person had been someone else, I could have let him go while swallowing my regrets. However, if there is anyone in the world for whom that is impossible, there is only one person.

The feeling I got every time I saw her was a mirror image of discomfort. The arrogance of a natural ruler, the wickedness that could be considered a character flaw.

That look that is exactly like her old self, or as if it is revealing her inner self.

A woman who is revealing all the emotions she doesn’t want to show.

I felt sorry for him, too.

“… That’s it.”

“What did you just say… ”

“You’re being deceived.”

A confusion of regret and anger. Of course, it was enough fuel to fan the flames of Seo-yeon’s long-standing disappointment.

I was so caught up in the impulse that I didn’t even have time to look back on myself.

Seoyeon finally opened her mouth.

“Min-ha isn’t the kind of good guy you think he is. In fact… ”

“Stop it.”

“What…?”

“I told you to stop.”

But the man stops Seo-yeon before she can finish speaking. His tone is still calm.

“It’s not nice to see someone badmouthing someone else. And… ”

And after hesitating for a moment, he added one more thing.

“I also know well what my senior said.”

“What did you say…?”

It was even more shocking.

What this meant was that the man also knew that Yeonmin-ha was not a very good child.

“Ah, you know that, but you still protect Min-ha…? Why on earth…?”

“That’s not something you should be meddling in.”

She stammered. But this time again, the man cut her off firmly.

Now, even my eyes were red. I couldn’t express how upset I was that the man who had always taken my side was now openly defending another woman.

‘Then, what have I been doing all this time…?’

My throat is choked with resentment. I killed my natural arrogance and acted innocent. I changed everything, from my long hair, the clothes I wore, the food I ate, to even the words I uttered.

Unlike Yeonmin-ha, who still acts out evil as she pleases.

‘The effort I made for you… to become someone you really liked…!’

Moreover, she is part of those who ruined their lives. A communist group that should disappear just like Paechun.

Why would a man fight a woman like that? There was only one reason that came to mind. A good and innocent man who fell for the tricks of a wicked woman.

“Their family… What did the Reds do…! If you find out about it…!”

“I told you to stop.”

Now the man did not listen to her complaints. Unlike before. He looked at the clock tower anxiously to check the time. Then he turned around and walked towards the main building.

“Just a minute… Let me say something… ”

“The contract is over. I told you clearly that you had to go. Stop being so stubborn… ”

And just as he was about to turn around to say his final goodbyes.

The cries of those who shout out their evil and resentment resonate loudly through the alley.

“I told you to listen to me…! I told you Min-ha is not the kind of person you know…! More than the old me…!”

The choked echo disappeared with a hum. What followed was a heavy, heavy silence that settled over the alley.

The excitement of the festival had cooled down as if it had never existed in the first place.

“The old… me?”

And as the confused man mumbled, Seo-yeon ended up belatedly realizing the meaning of the words she had said.

“Ah, ah… ”

Seo-yeon was looking at the man’s back with her wide eyes. His pupils were shaking so much that it was impossible to see their shape.

Before I could finish speaking, I covered my mouth with both hands, but it was something I couldn’t take back.

“No, no… I, I… ”

Seoyeon stretched out her arms pitifully toward the man. He remained frozen, as if he had become one with the silence, and did not move.

“You… ”

The air was heavy, as if it was weighing down his body. Finally, only one word came out of the man’s trembling mouth.

“You knew… You knew… ?”