#93

Staring blankly at my tear-stained fingers in disbelief at this incomprehensible reality, a handkerchief suddenly entered my field of vision. Wondering what it was, I looked up to see President Go Woonjae nervously offering me his handkerchief.

“I was wrong. I thought it would be okay since it’s already been five years. But I was mistaken. Of course, it’s not something that can be easily forgotten. Even though it ended that way, you two loved each other very much……”

Love? Did he just say love? That Goo Won in the game loved someone? And it ended badly? I began organizing this sudden influx of information in my head. Meanwhile, tears continued to stream endlessly down my face.

Seriously, this is so frustrating. No matter how hard I tried to stop, the tears flowed like a faucet left running. I roughly wiped them away, deeply annoyed by the emotions I was clearly being swept up in—emotions that obviously weren’t mine, but Goo Won’s from the game.

Right. It’s his body, isn’t it? So this is how I’m being reminded that I’m in someone else’s body. What a lovely way to ruin my mood.

“The handkerchief isn’t necessary.”

“But……”

“It’s fine.”

As annoying as it was that my body was reacting on its own, more than that, I wanted to hear more about the person President Go Woonjae had referred to as ‘that child’ and the one Goo Won in the game supposedly loved. Who in the world was she, that just hearing about her could make my chest ache and my eyes tear up like this? Who could she possibly be?

“……She was a good person.”

Testing the waters to coax more out of President Go Woonjae, I gently led into the topic, and the president responded with a soft smile.

“Yes. A very good student. Sharp, polite, warm-hearted…… truly a kind child, the kind you don’t come across often. You two went well together. Of course, since it was a secret relationship, hardly anyone at the university would’ve known.”

Alright. So I’ve confirmed that the person and Goo Won in the game were campus sweethearts. And that it was a secret relationship. Quietly pleased by these new details, I opened my mouth again.

“If only my father hadn’t done what he did back then……”

Recalling how President Go Woonjae had said Goo Won experienced something similar but forgave his father, I tested a second lead-in, and thankfully, the reaction was just as I’d hoped.

“Parents shouldn’t meddle in their children’s marriage choices, but neither your father nor I understood that. We thought our selfish desires were our children’s happiness and tried to control them as we pleased. We didn’t even realize that our interference was killing not only our children but also the ones they loved.”

It seemed that Goo Won in the game had tried to marry someone, but his father here must’ve opposed it. Did he really give in to that opposition? Did he lose to his father and break up with the person he loved? That’s strange. That’s not the kind of person I am……

No matter how you looked at it, the essence of Goo Won in this world was still the same as mine. He and I were born to the same parents, raised in the same environment, and had similar experiences growing up. At least until the age of 20, when our paths drastically diverged. So it was only natural that his personality and tendencies were similar to mine.

I’m the type of person who, once I decide to do something, pushes through like a bulldozer no matter what anyone says. If it were someone I truly loved, I wouldn’t have flinched at my father’s opposition—I would’ve done whatever I wanted. But he didn’t? He gave up the person he loved just because his father disapproved? If it were me, I never would’ve done that.

“If only that accident hadn’t happened that day, you and Seohyun would’ve definitely lived happily together. You two surely would have. No matter how much your father opposed it, in the end, you and Seohyun would’ve won.”

Yeah, exactly. There’s no way I would’ve just obeyed my father in a situation like that. I slowly nodded in agreement with Goo Won’s behavior in the game, which felt in line with how I would’ve acted—until President Go Woonjae’s next words made me freeze.

“That child, too…… how could she just leave so suddenly like that. How could she leave you behind and go so soon……”

Left too soon. Went away.

There was only one thing those words from President Go Woonjae could mean. The death of the person named Seohyun.

Wait…… the love ended because the other person died? Goo Won in the game had that kind of past? Staggered by the realization, I barely had time to react before my vision suddenly shifted.

In the blink of an eye, I was no longer in the president’s office but somewhere strange. I saw shattered glass, a car dashboard, a deployed airbag, and a bloodstained steering wheel. Thick black smoke was pouring from the hood.

This was…… a car crash? Dizzy and struggling to stay conscious, I tried to take in the scene of the accident. Then, a small voice came from beside me.

“……Won……”

It was a voice I had never heard before, yet it made my chest ache and my breath catch. She called me. I had to look at her—right now. A powerful urge surged through my mind.

I forced my body to move, though I barely had the strength. Just turning my head was unbelievably difficult in my current state. Somehow, with immense effort, I managed to turn my head to the side and saw a woman in the passenger seat, bleeding from her head.

With blurry eyes, she slowly reached out toward me. Light caught the ring on the fourth finger of her left hand, making it sparkle. I had to take that hand. That thought burned in my mind as I tried to lift mine toward hers—

And suddenly, I was back in reality.

“President!”

“Gasp……!”

When I came to, Secretary Sung Yoojun was looking down at me with a panicked expression. I gasped for air, quickly glancing around. The wrecked car, the woman reaching out to me—they were gone. All I saw was the familiar interior of the president’s office.

“Slowly, breathe slowly, sir. Inhale deeply…… and exhale slowly. Yes. That’s it. You’re doing well.”

Before I even had time to process what had just happened, I simply followed Secretary Sung Yoojun’s instructions and continued taking deep breaths. Once, twice, three times, four…… As I kept breathing deeply, my ragged breathing and trembling body gradually began to calm down.

Only after a long moment passed did I finally regain enough clarity to assess the situation.

“……What happened?”

I asked in a dull, subdued voice, and Secretary Sung Yoojun answered with a dark expression.

“You suddenly collapsed. At least, that’s what President Go Woonjae said.”

Collapsed? Me?

With arms still trembling—though less than before—I pushed myself up off the floor. Only then did I realize that I had been lying on the sofa.

“Careful.”

“How long was I unconscious?”

“About 10 minutes. If you hadn’t woken up soon, we were going to take you to the hospital.”

My unsteady body, on the verge of collapsing again, was supported by Sung Yoojun’s arm. Leaning against him, I looked around. President Go Woonjae was nowhere to be seen in the president’s office. Instead, behind Sung Yoojun, I saw Nam Yisol and Lee Daon standing there, their faces pale with shock as they looked at me.

Why are they here? The question popped into my head, and just as quickly, Sung Yoojun, ever perceptive, provided the answer.

“I was in the recording studio when I got the call from Secretary Jung.”

Ah, they must have come with him after hearing that I collapsed. I covered my face with one hand, trying to hide my discomfort. I really didn’t want to show this kind of side of me…… But there was no taking back what had already happened.

Quickly composing myself, I lowered my hand and called out to Nam Yisol and Lee Daon, who were looking at me with a mix of fear and concern.

“Yisol-ssi. Daon-ssi.”

With a gentle voice, I gestured for them to come closer. Hesitantly, they took slow steps toward me.

“……Are you alright?”

Nam Yisol asked in a trembling voice, his eyes scanning me repeatedly. I gently patted his head, sensing how startled he must have been.

“I’m okay.”

“What happened all of a sudden? Was it the cold? Did your condition suddenly worsen because of it?”

As soon as I responded, Lee Daon fired off his question with urgency. I gave him a conflicted look and shook my head.

“To be honest, I don’t know. We were just talking…… and then suddenly everything went hazy……”

I trailed off, dazed. What on earth was that? A hallucination? No. It wasn’t something like that. Not just a hallucination—it was probably……

“A memory……”

It must’ve been a memory from Goo Won’s past in the game. Most likely, a memory related to the ‘accident’ that President Go Woonjae had mentioned. The woman in the passenger seat must’ve been the one called Seohyun. I had no proof, but for some reason, I was certain.

“A memory? What kind of memory?”

Snapped out of my thoughts by Lee Daon’s question, I looked at the three of them watching me with worried eyes and offered some words of comfort.

“Just an old memory. Not a very good one, but it suddenly came back to me…… Anyway, where’s President Go Woonjae? He’s not here?”