episode_0012

The man came home today, looking exhausted as usual. I grabbed his bag and held his hand, leading him inside.

” You’ve worked hard today, sir~ Are you hungry? Dinner is ready, so go wash up and come out~”

Without a word, the man just nodded and handed me his coat before heading to the bathroom.

At first, there was some resistance when I tried to take his bag or coat forcibly, but now it seems like the man has gotten used to this routine, showing a dignified demeanor.

Every day may seem like a similar routine, but to me, it’s a truly meaningful time. I find myself smiling involuntarily.

“Why are you smiling like that?”

The man, with a spoonful of rice lifted, caught my gaze. Feeling a bit embarrassed, I piled some spinach on his spoon.

“Eat a balanced meal~”

The meal was nothing out of the ordinary, but it never felt boring. The longer I spend time with the man, the more reassured I feel.

Although mealtime passes quickly, I must say.

[Beep…]

As we finished our meal and the man sat in the living room, I tried to approach him when I heard a strange noise.

[Beep…]

A sound like something I’ve heard on TV or in videos… I turned my head towards the direction of the beeping noise, but I couldn’t locate the source of the chirping sound.

[Beep…]

“Sir, didn’t you hear that sound?”

“What sound?”

[Beep…]

“Look, you can still hear it. That strange beeping sound…”

The strange sound was clearly audible right next to me. However, the man looked at me with a puzzled expression, as if he couldn’t hear the sound.

[Because of this jerk… I can’t take it anymore… You go out and see who’s coming…]

This time, beyond the beeping sound, a middle-aged woman’s voice could be heard. It was faint, so I couldn’t make out what she was saying, but it was definitely an annoyed voice.

Suddenly, the man stood up and approached me. But why does his figure appear blurry?

“Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”

Slowly approaching me, the man grabbed my wrist and leaned in closer.

“Ugh…!”

As I tried to hold the man’s hand, my chest started pounding, and I felt my body losing strength. Gradually, a sense of emptiness crept in, as if my mind was hollow.

As I started to fall backward, the man held me, seemingly saying something, but his voice was inaudible.

– Thud!

Once again, with a thudding sound from my body, a strange sensation overtook me, making me feel like my body wasn’t my own, and my vision blurred.

*

“I don’t care if this brat dies… That’s why…”

As the middle-aged woman’s voice sounded nearby again, my vision slowly cleared. When I focused and blinked my eyes, a strange, white-painted ceiling came into view.

Unable to move my body, I noticed the breathing apparatus covering my mouth and nose, and as I looked around, I saw a man of similar age to the woman. I spotted the two of them.

‘A familiar face… But why do I see you two here…’

The people I had promised to meet someday… People I must never forget. But when I saw the two of them, instead of joy or longing, resentment rose within me.

Whether they knew my feelings or not, the man who was being pressured by the woman couldn’t seem to make up his mind, looking back and forth between me and the woman.

The woman who stubbornly pursued that man eventually drove him away after scolding me several times and glaring at me fiercely.

Sitting on the edge of the bed where I lay, the middle-aged woman looked down at me with an icy gaze and spoke up.

“Thanks to you, I was able to squeeze a lot out of that old man, but… ”

Bending down slowly, the woman brought her face close to mine and suddenly burst into laughter, placing her hand on the transparent breathing apparatus that covered my nose and mouth.

“Do we really have to cover your hospital bills? After all, you’re not even my own child. I’ve been taking care of you for over a decade, isn’t it time to stop?”

Not your own child… What is she talking about now…

“Still, I appreciate it. Thanks to you, I made quite a bit~ I ended up blowing it all on that human gambling debt, raising you as a newborn baby… Who would have thought we would get involved with that family again?”

Upon hearing those words, my eyes, which had been motionless, turned towards her. It seemed like she noticed me, as she suddenly began tapping the breathing apparatus and showing a chilling smile.

“Are you listening to me, my son? What I’m telling you now is important. You won’t hear it again.”

Whispering meaningful words in my ear, the woman slowly wrapped the breathing apparatus with her hands and gently caressed my cheek. Clearly, the word “crazy” was meant for moments like this.

“Thank you for all your hard work! Our son~ Thanks to your efforts, your brother was able to enter university safely, and thanks to you becoming like this, our family was able to buy a decent house under our name.”

This crazy woman… my mother, trembling, grabbed the breathing apparatus.

“But the hospital bills are not the only problem, right? We don’t have money to spend on you, you know that better than anyone. Honestly, I’ve always found your face so dreadful… So let’s stop this chilling family play now, okay?”

And at that moment, as the breathing apparatus that surrounded my mouth fell off, the sound of the medical device began to change strangely.

– Beep… Beep… Beep…

“Goodbye, whether it’s heaven or hell, let’s never see each other again. If you meet your real mother in the afterlife, please give her my regards?”

As she moved away from me, my mother, with a cold smile, gradually disappeared. Suddenly, my father’s voice, who had been driven away, echoed, and a man in a white gown and a woman who appeared to be a nurse appeared in front of me.

But gradually, my vision darkened, and eventually, I fell into a state where I couldn’t see or hear anything.

Strangely, it wasn’t painful. Perhaps because deep down, I realized that I wasn’t part of their family.

But what I wanted from them was not familial affection. I just wanted someone I could trust, whether they were family or not.

Someone who sincerely cared for me, sometimes scolded me for my mistakes, and never turned their back on me… a reliable person.

[ There’s someone like that, right? Very close by. ]

What are you talking about… Where is that person…

[ Now it’s time to go back. The old man is waiting. ]

The old man…?

[ If I go back first, will XX really disappear? So hurry back… I’m not Joo Eun-hye anymore. ]

Joo Eun-hye… Right… I was Joo Eun-hye…

[ Clueless… If you’re not there, the old man will be lonely, right? He’s still worrying like that… ]

As the voice echoed around me, I saw the man who had laid me down on the bed. He was holding my hand with his eyes closed.

…I want to go back.

[Yeah, have you made up your mind? Since there’s nowhere else to go now… I’ll keep watching over you from inside XX. So, don’t try to disappear like this again.]

Yes, I’ll go back.

Because I have a place to return to now.

But who are you to say these things to me…

He disappeared right in front of my eyes as he was about to say something to me.

But he didn’t just disappear. He simply returned to Joo Eun-hye’s body.

“I wanted this, but I was extremely shocked at first…”

I even worried that he might have lost his mind when he laughed like crazy in front of the mirror as Joo Eun-hye’s body. No, he might really have lost his mind.

He would bite his finger in protest at the mere mention of giving money, or he would enter the room and throw off all his clothes to check every nook and cranny, or he would tempt someone unknowingly by making contact with them, like when he said, “When Kang Sun-woo complimented me, I was really flustered. It’s embarrassing to use my body so casually…”

I’ve always been weak to compliments like ‘pretty’ or ‘cute.’ I never knew my face could flush even in such a state. I thought I was just giving my body, but to be mixed up like this… it’s embarrassing.

Because of the awkward mix, it was a shock to see many unforgivable acts…

“But I’ll forgive you. Because you worry about me even after becoming that body… you’re precious to me.”

Even though I exist within you like this, it doesn’t matter as long as you survive, which is what I wanted.

“Until we meet again, try your best as a decorative wife like now. But this time, I’ll hide some memories.”

I don’t want to see you suffer. You understand, right, XX?