Tears filled Yoo-hwaâs eyes.
But all of that was over. As if they had reached the end of the play. As long as Woo-hyun, who had gotten off his role, stood in his original appearance, she felt that no matter what she did, they could not go back to the past.
âI thought youâd be the last person to do this to me.â
ââ¦â
Yoo-hwa said, with all her might. So that she wouldnât turn around and let what she hadnât said remain lingering in her heart.
âYou did it because you were lonelyâ¦â
Woo-hyun recited in a low voice.
âThen I guess it didnât matter who it was. As long as they didnât let you be lonely.â
ââ¦â
Woo-hyun asked in a low voice, like an angry person.
No. It was because it was him.
It was possible because it was Woo-hyun, it was alright because it was Woo-hyun. Even so, Yoo-hwa didnât answer that. Woo-hyun had already taken off his mask, revealing a twisted face.
The sister of the man who caused his younger sister to die.
There were no words that could have crossed that wall. Even if there were, there was no way Woo-hyun would accept them.
Yoo-hwaâs dry lips moved slightly. Her eyes wandered through the darkness and then carefully reached Woo-hyun.
âWhat happened to your sister⦠Reallyâ¦â
Yoo-hwa tried to comfort him somehow. She wanted to say anything for the victim, who reminded her of her mother and was as pitiful as she was.
âShut your mouth.â
However, cold words fell from Woo-hyunâs lips. Yoo-hwa flinched. Woo-hyun, who straightened his solid shoulders, had a completely different atmosphere. He had an unaffected face, looking down from above. Only then did Yoo-hwa realize how well Woo-hyun had been acting. And how much disgust he had to put up with.
âIâm sorry, I donât deserve to tell you anything.â
Woo-hyun, who kept as calm as possible, had a face full of wounds that could not be hidden. Woo-hyun looked at her as if he was pushing his way through that.
âKim Yi-woon abandoned my sister, who was carrying a baby. My sister had a miscarriage and committed suicide. Do you understand? This is not something you can comfort easily.â
ââ¦â
âAs you said, I came here to catch Kim Yi-woon. Because that bastard knew how to hide since he worked at a private detective agency, and it was difficult to catch him. I approached you because it seemed like he liked you.â
Woo-hyun brought up the things that Yoo-hwa couldnât ask, as if he were talking about someone elseâs matters. Without even blinking, Woo-hyun looked at Yoo-hwa, who was horribly falling apart yet still managing to endure it, as if he were waiting.
Yoo-hwa wanted to say, âLetâs stop, please letâs just stop here.â, but she couldnât move. It was overwhelming just to watch the feelings she preciously carried being shattered to pieces.
She just held back, hoping this terrible moment would end quickly.
âDeceiving you was easier than I thought.â
ââ¦â
âIt was boring and uninteresting.â
ââ¦â
âStill, Iâm surprised that you knew I approached you. Thatâs why I feel worse. If you knew so well why I came here, you should have acted accordingly. Then I wouldnât have wasted my time like this.â
ââ¦â
âOr was it fun? Did you think we were in some kind of relationship?â
Woo-hyunâs lips were crooked. She couldnât bring herself to deny it. Even though she thought it was fake, she wondered if it was genuine at least once.
âIn that case, your expectations were wrong. Thatâs not going to happen.â
ââ¦â
âAt least for you and me.â
Woo-hyun turned around, withdrawing his insensitive eyes. Looking at Woo-hyun walking down the same path he had come, Yoo-hwa couldnât keep watching until the end and turned her head.
She knew. He was never hers. She swallowed it even though she knew it, and was now overwhelmed by the feelings that she couldnât digest.
Yoo-hwa slowly closed her eyes and then opened them. The tears that she had been holding back flowed down her frozen cheeks.
***
A black car drove fast on the dark road. The atmosphere inside the car was so heavy that it was hard to breathe. At least it was fortunate that the car drove fast as it entered an unobstructed road.
Jun-kyung, who breathed more shallowly than usual, glanced at Woo-hyun through the rearview mirror. Woo-hyun gazed out the car window with an expressionless face as if nothing had happened, which made it hard to understand.
However, he had no focus, as if he was lost in thought. He was just looking. He didnât even notice that Jun-kyung was looking at him, which was something he usually noticed.
Joon-kyung recalled what had just happened. When Jun-kyung and Woo-hyun arrived at the hospital morgue at the news of Yi-woonâs death, the entrance was blocked by two vehicles. Two men who got out of the cars because of the accident started quarreling and grabbed each other by the collar.
Before Joon-kyung even got off to solve it, the passenger door closed with a bang and a cold breeze came in. Before he knew it, Woo-hyun, who had passed the cars, was heading inside. He told the driver to take care of the situation and come up, but a police officer who arrived after the report started asking him if he had witnessed the accident.
âI didnât see it.â
Ignoring the policeâs persistent attempt to keep him there, he quickly ran after Woo-hyun. Not long after climbing the low incline, he saw a woman standing face to face with someone with a familiar profile. He couldnât hear their conversation, but their faces were speaking.