Chapter 127
Although Seo-jung couldn’t stop thinking about Cha Yoon, when he appeared unexpectedly, Seo-jung found it difficult to react. In the end, it was Cha Yoon who moved first. He stretched out his long legs and quickly approached Seo-jung’s side.
“I told you not to look elsewhere when using a knife.”
Cha Yoon’s low, soft voice crossed the space and reached Seo-jung.
“Give it to me, I’ll do it.”
Naturally rolling up his sleeves, Cha Yoon took the knife from Seo-jung’s hand. He began cutting the ingredients with skillful hands. As Cha Yoon moved his arm, neatly cut tomatoes piled up next to the knife. It was a completely different shape from the varying thicknesses of tomato pieces that Seo-jung had carefully cut just moments ago.
But there was no way he could focus on such trivial things. Seo-jung felt his fists clenching tightly. It was all because of Cha Yoon’s scent that wafted over when he reached out his arm. And Cha Yoon, being perceptive, seemed to notice Seo-jung’s reaction and spoke again.
“I wanted to come earlier, but I was delayed because I had to stop by the X House.”
“…”
“I couldn’t give up on my perfume, if nothing else.”
“You know I can’t sleep alone without it.” At those words, Seo-jung suddenly remembered how Cha Yoon had left his perfume bottle in the most visible place in the room just before going out on their date the previous morning.
So that’s what he went to get. As he realized this, the tips of his fingers digging into his palms turned even whiter. It was because he understood what Cha Yoon’s words meant.
Even if others didn’t, Seo-jung knew. He knew that now, all the memories were no longer his alone. Cha Yoon was telling him that all his memories had returned.
So your memories really have returned. It wasn’t my imagination. As Seo-jung stood next to Cha Yoon, unable to say anything in the face of this unbelievable fact, the sound of the door lock being released was heard again, and the door opened. Seo-jung reflexively raised his head. The footsteps grew closer, and soon the owner of the name Seo-jung had called appeared. With a phone in hand and Woo-jun by her side.
“Seo-jung, have you finished cutting the ingredients? I took too long… Oh? What’s this? Cha Yoon, when did you arrive?”
Da-bin’s eyes widened in surprise when she found Cha Yoon standing next to Seo-jung, whom she had expected to be alone. Cha Yoon made a casual reply to Da-bin’s surprised voice.
“Just now. It’s been a while.”
It was a somewhat strange thing to say for people who had been on a date just the day before. But no one pointed this out. Especially Woo-jun, who put down the basket he was holding and approached Cha Yoon.
“How are you feeling? Are you okay? What did the doctor say?”
“I’m fine. They ran all possible tests and said there’s nothing wrong.”
Woo-jun asked with a worried expression. Cha Yoon immediately answered as if he had been waiting for this question.
“You don’t need to worry anymore. There’s nothing wrong with me at all.”
At these additional words, Seo-jung felt relieved despite his surprise. So the test results came back fine. Thank goodness. Only then could he finally put down one of the burdens he had been carrying in his heart.
Meanwhile, Woo-jun seemed to be about to say something, then finally spoke.
“…Cha Yoon, I’m sorry. I should have been more careful while driving. I was so shocked when you collapsed like that.”
Although no one had blamed Woo-jun, his voice was lower and slightly trembling than usual, as if he had been feeling quite guilty on his own. Cha Yoon looked at Woo-jun’s gloomy expression, seemed to think for a moment, then shook his head.
“What are you sorry for? The motorcycle suddenly cut in while making a U-turn.”
“Still, if I had been a little more attentive to the road ahead, you might not have collapsed.”
“Woo-jun-ssi, it was an unavoidable accident.”
Cha Yoon cut off Woo-jun’s words as he continued to try to find fault with himself. Woo-jun closed his mouth at Cha Yoon’s firm response.
“We’re both just victims, aren’t we?”
“…”
“Even if something had happened to me, there’s no reason for you to feel sorry.”
“…”
So stop blaming yourself. After Cha Yoon’s final words, there was a moment of silence. The other three people couldn’t easily open their mouths for different reasons.
While Da-bin and Woo-jun were surprised that Cha Yoon could say such considerate and logical things, thinking, “I didn’t know Cha Yoon could say things like that. Did the writer give him a script?”, Seo-jung’s expression hardened instantly. It was because Cha Yoon’s words to Woo-jun sounded as if they were directed at him.
After the accident with Cha Yoon, every night when darkness fell, Seo-jung searched for his own faults. Would things have been different if he had been behind the wheel instead of Cha Yoon? If he had insisted on staying at the beach a little longer, if he hadn’t folded the corner of the travel magazine suggesting they go there in the first place… Repeating regret and self-blame every night, Seo-jung had made himself into a complete perpetrator.
How could he dream of happiness after doing that to his loved one, thinking that such a desire was fitting for a perpetrator. That’s how Seo-jung pushed himself into misery.
But as if reading Seo-jung’s mind, Cha Yoon spoke simply and plainly. That we’re all just victims. That it’s not your fault. As if he knew how Seo-jung had been living during the time he had lost his memories.
The firmly established false belief began to shake at Cha Yoon’s few words. The deeper the thoughts went, the greater the confusion grew.
As Seo-jung froze, Da-bin, sensing something was off, addressed him.
“Ki Seo-jung, what’s wrong? Is there a problem?”
A voice tinged with curiosity and a bit of worry was heard, but as Seo-jung found it difficult to speak and was about to move his lips:
“It’s because I said one word about him not being able to cut well.”
It was none other than Cha Yoon who broke the silence and responded to her words. He casually told this lie and then completely blocked Da-bin’s gaze by shielding Seo-jung with his body.
“Cha Yoon, why are you crushing the kid’s spirit?”
“That’s why you shouldn’t entrust this kind of thing to someone who can’t cut well. You should have asked me instead.”
“Hey, we would if you were around.”
Cha Yoon didn’t seem to mind being scolded for something he didn’t do and expressed what he wanted with an indifferent expression. Da-bin shook her head as if she couldn’t believe Cha Yoon’s words and showed the basket.
“Seo-jung, just wash these herbs and then go rest.”
“Okay.”
Seo-jung, barely composing his expression, headed towards the sink, ignoring Cha Yoon’s gaze that was following his face.
***
He couldn’t tell how time had passed. After washing the herbs and coming out to the living room to sit absentmindedly, the shopping team also returned to the accommodation. Seo-jung habitually lifted the corners of his mouth to greet the cast members.
Pizza, tteokbokki, sashimi, and other dishes they had talked about were endlessly spread out on the table.
“Wow, this looks really delicious.”
“Right? We asked for the biggest and freshest for the sashimi. Ah, I’m hungry. Let’s all sit down and eat quickly.”
At Min-wook’s words, Seo-jung sat down as if pushed. And the empty seat next to Seo-jung was quickly filled. It was Cha Yoon who naturally took that seat. Seo-jung, who had unconsciously been looking at Cha Yoon, only turned his eyes away when Cha Yoon moved his head in his direction, as if he hadn’t been looking all along.
The people seated at the table filled their glasses according to their preferences.
“Since Yoon-hyung has also arrived safely, shall we have a toast after a long time?”
No one objected to Soo-ho’s words. Everyone seated around the table raised their glasses high, wishing for Cha Yoon’s health. Seo-jung clinked his glass with the most sincerity.
Nothing unusual happened during the meal. Cha Yoon didn’t try to attack him by picking strange faults as he did before realizing his feelings, nor did he take care of him attentively as if to show all his emotions after acknowledging them.
He just poured water instead of alcohol into empty glasses, and slightly pushed the foods Seo-jung used to eat well closer so that his chopsticks could reach them more easily. He watched over Seo-jung with just the right temperature, neither cold enough to make Seo-jung step back, nor too hot.
As they ate amidst Cha Yoon’s subtle care, one by one, cast members began to put down their chopsticks. Seo-jung was the same. He had no appetite at all.
When Seo-jung put down his chopsticks, Cha Yoon’s gaze seemed to linger on him, but that was it. There were no particular words asking him to eat more or why he stopped eating. A little more time passed, and as the meal was wrapping up, Joo-ah gestured.
“We’ve all finished eating, shall we clean up a bit and have some drinks?”
“I’m good with that too.”
“I agree.”
Cast members who agreed with Joo-ah’s suggestion waved their hands. Under the majority’s agreement, movements for a second round of drinks began. Just as the cast members quickly cleared the table and took out alcohol from the refrigerator, at that moment, vibrations and ringtones sounded from all the cast members’ bodies.
“Oh, I got some vibration.”
“I just heard a sound too. It seems like a notification from the My Ex app?”
At the mention of the My Ex application notification, a slight tension and excitement spread across the cast members’ faces. With voices urging to check quickly, everyone checked their phones.
“I wonder what the first notification is since coming to Jeju Island.”
All cast members are requested to gather in the living room right now.
Unlike the notifications that had arrived so far, it was an excessively simple sentence. The cast members who read the notification looked at each other’s faces and tilted their heads.
“What is this?”
“Yeah. I thought it was a mission notification, but there are too few hints.”
“Well, it said to gather now, so let’s go to the living room.”
We’ll find out when we get there. Following Ji-yoon’s words, the cast members who went to the living room took their seats on the sofa.
Amidst the murmuring voices in the still incomprehensible situation, only Seo-jung couldn’t empathize with the cast members’ emotions. The reason was because of Cha Yoon, who naturally took the seat next to him again. As he was trying not to pay attention to Cha Yoon sitting next to him, pretending not to notice:
With a ‘tak’ sound, all the lights illuminating the space went out at once.
“What’s this?”
“Did the circuit breaker trip?”
“Wait a moment, let me at least use my phone light…”
As the confused cast members were in chaos, with a whirring sound of machinery operating, a large screen appeared.
As people’s gazes turned to the screen, words appeared in the center of the screen that had been covered in white.
From now on, all cast members’ Xs will be revealed.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
