#122

“Excuse me……”

As we were smiling at each other in quiet comfort, the taxi driver, who had been silently focused on driving, cautiously opened his mouth. I shifted my gaze from Cheon and met the driver’s eyes through the rearview mirror.

“You’re Chairman Goo Won of Haje Group……, right?”

“Ah…… yes, that’s me.”

Was that what he kept sneaking glances at me for? I nodded, wondering if that had been the reason, and the taxi driver gasped in surprise. Perhaps he lost focus, because the car suddenly swerved sharply.

Instinctively, I wrapped my arm around Cheon’s shoulder and grabbed the handle on the door with my other hand. While holding steady to keep us from being shaken, the car fortunately returned to its normal course.

“Oh no, I’m terribly sorry. I was just so startled……!”

“It’s fine. It’s understandable. But please try to drive a bit more carefully.”

As someone who had narrowly avoided a car accident just a few hours earlier, I was in no mood for another one. With that sentiment, I earnestly made my request, and the taxi driver quickly nodded.

“Don’t worry. I may not look it, but I’ve been driving for 30 accident-free years.”

“Haha, I think our driver here must’ve been really shocked to see our president!”

Jung Minjae, ever good-natured, chimed in in a cheerful tone at the driver’s comment. The taxi driver glanced at him, then answered with a face that looked a little more relaxed.

“I mean, of course I was shocked—seeing someone who was just reported dead in the news suddenly get in my cab~.”

Huh? Wait, what? Who died? My eyes widened in shock at the words that came out of the driver’s mouth.

“Must’ve been a false report. I did think it was a little strange.”

“Excuse me, sir. Are you saying that there was a news report claiming our president had passed away?”

“Huh? Yes.”

“When was that? When did that news come out?”

At Secretary Jung Minjae’s question, the taxi driver tilted his head with a puzzled look, then slowly replied.

“Hmm, maybe…… two hours ago? It said Chairman Goo Won died in a car crash. Didn’t you hear?”

“……No. We weren’t able to check due to some circumstances.”

“Oh dear. No wonder there hasn’t been a correction notice yet.”

With a voice full of pity, the taxi driver’s words made Secretary Jung Minjae slowly turn around to face me.

What do we do?

Even in the dim car, Jung Minjae’s face had turned so pale it was clearly visible. That look alone said everything. I could feel my head beginning to throb from the growing complications, and I finally opened my mouth.

“Sir. I’m really sorry, but may I ask a favor?”

“Oh, yes. Of course. Go ahead.”

“I need to contact someone, but I don’t have my phone with me. Would you mind letting me borrow yours for just a moment?”

With a cautious request, the taxi driver readily handed over the smartphone that was mounted on the dashboard. Secretary Jung Minjae took it and passed it over to me. I received it with a polite word of thanks and dialed Secretary Sung Yoojun.

But no matter how many times I tried, his line kept saying it was busy. It seemed that, because of the news report that I had died, his phone was being flooded with calls. I let out a weary sigh and tried calling Jung Hosu instead.

“They’re not picking up.”

The call was connecting, but no one on the other end was answering. Glancing at the taxi driver—the owner of the smartphone—I started dialing the other members as well. But no one answered my calls.

“They’re not answering?”

“No. No one is.”

“That’s not good. These kinds of things are best corrected as soon as possible…… Not to mention, people must be really worried right now.”

At Secretary Jung Minjae’s gloomy words, I slowly nodded. A few hours’ delay in issuing a correction wouldn’t be the end of the world, but the people who believed I’d actually died…… what about them?

Letting out a long sigh from deep in my gut, I handed the smartphone back to the driver.

“You can keep using it until someone answers.”

“No, thank you. It seems like no one’s really in the right state of mind to pick up right now.”

“Still……”

“I left missed calls, so someone will call back once they see them.”

Honestly, I wanted to cling to that phone and keep dialing until someone picked up. But it wasn’t mine—not even someone I knew’s so continuing to use it felt awkward. Besides, with how consistently no one was answering, it didn’t seem likely anyone would anytime soon.

“Sir, how much longer until we arrive?”

“About…… 30 minutes, give or take. I’ll get you there as fast as I can.”

“Thank you. I’d appreciate that.”

Grateful for the driver’s kindness, I bowed my head deeply. Then I sat quietly in the back seat, hands tightly clasped together. I felt extremely anxious. I couldn’t even begin to imagine how worried everyone must be…… especially the Tartarus kids and Secretary Sung Yoojun.

Trying to suppress my shaking leg with a firm grip on my thigh, I bit down on the inside of my cheek. Even so, my full attention stayed fixed on the taxi driver’s smartphone, just in case—just in case someone who saw the missed calls decided to call back.

But until we arrived at the house, the driver’s phone never rang.

***

The taxi carrying us arrived home much faster than I expected. I couldn’t wait for Secretary Jung Minjae to finish paying and got out of the car first. Almost running, I hurried toward the front gate and stopped just before entering. I turned to look back.

“Cheon, hurry up.”

Unlike me, who was in a rush, Cheon was strolling at a leisurely pace, though she shook her head and began walking faster. I made sure that Jung Minjae had gotten out of the taxi and was heading toward us before I turned back around and continued on.

“Slow down, will you?”

“I can’t. This is urgent.”

I gave a half-hearted reply to Cheon’s voice behind me and cut across the garden. The front door felt farther away than usual today—just my imagination, surely. Frowning deeply, I reached the front door and flung it open.

And as soon as the door opened, the sound of someone crying made me gasp and freeze in place.

“What? Why’d you stop?”

Cheon, annoyed, nudged my back as I stood blocking the door. But once she heard the sobbing coming from inside the house, she clamped her mouth shut.

After a moment of serious deliberation, Cheon took a step back, clearly indicating she wanted no part in what was going on. I looked back at her with a sorrowful expression, then slowly slipped off my shoes and stepped inside the house.

The closer I got, the louder the sniffling became. I licked my dry lips and walked into the living room. And when I saw the Tartarus members gathered there, shrouded in a grim atmosphere, I quietly brought a hand to my forehead.

“Everyone……”

My voice came out weak, like a groan, as I called out instinctively. The Tartarus members all turned their heads toward me in unison. They didn’t move their bodies—only their heads—and the way they did it was eerie enough to make my shoulders twitch. But when I saw their tear-filled eyes and damp cheeks, guilt settled in instead.

“Uh…… um…… I’m home?”

I couldn’t figure out what to say, so I hesitated for a long while before cautiously letting out a single word. But no response came. They simply stared at me blankly, faces completely dazed.

Right. A man who was reported dead in the news suddenly shows up alive—it’s only natural to be shocked. I understood Tartarus’s reaction and moved my legs to step closer to them.

“A g-ghost……?”

……and stopped. I turned toward Yoo Euiseo, who had called me a ghost, feeling something indescribable twist inside me. He pointed a trembling finger at me, face pale as a sheet.

“Are you…… a ghost……?”

He said something so absurd with such sincerity that I honestly didn’t know how to respond.

As I paused to choose my words, a giggle came from behind me. Of course, it was Cheon.

Hearing a woman laugh out of nowhere, Yoo Euiseo’s face, already pale, drained completely of color. I watched his eyes dart around wildly in panic, and turned around to speak quietly.

“Cheon, could you come inside? Euiseo-ssi seems a little scared. Secretary Jung, you too. It’s cold out.”

At my gentle words, Cheon muttered something under her breath and stepped inside. She came to stand beside me, right at the threshold between the entrance and the living room. Secretary Jung Minjae followed behind her, quietly stepping into the living room and moving to the side.

As soon as Tartarus saw Cheon and me standing side by side—anyone could tell we were related—their eyes began to shake wildly. They kept shifting their gaze between the two of us before finally locking their eyes back onto me. Though, to be fair, some of them had been staring at me the whole time.

In any case, I figured now was the best time to explain everything, so I opened my mouth.

“You were all really shocked because of the news, right? It was a misreport……”

Please don’t worry about it.

That’s what I wanted to say. But I couldn’t finish, because Lee Daon suddenly came rushing at me.