Memorize - Episode 21
21 A Brief Parting
Dark clouds filled the sky visible through the window. Though not thick enough to be hazy, a faint mist lingered in the air, and a light drizzle fell intermittently. Watching the raindrops tap against the window, Kim Han-byeol felt her mood settling into calmness.
While it couldn't be called cozy, she still felt comfortable. Even if it was an inappropriately sentimental feeling for the current situation, it was much better compared to when they were in the forest or being chased by strange things after leaving the forest.
'Come to think of it... I used to love rainy days when I was young.'
Kim Han-byeol had liked rainy days since childhood. Walking down rainy streets with an umbrella while listening to music was a small happiness that could be felt in the midst of a mundane daily life. Suddenly, she desperately craved a cup of coffee. If only she had a hot, delicious cup of coffee to warm her insides, she felt she could forget everything surrounding her, even if just for a moment.
Kim Han-byeol gazed at the world reflected through the window with a melancholic face. Seeing the gray shadows cast over everything, it seemed evening had arrived. After experiencing so many events throughout the day, she felt both physical and mental fatigue. Rubbing her sleepy eyes, she turned her head. She saw a large room of about 20 pyeong (about 66 square meters). It had everything they needed. Food, water, bedding, a bathroom, and even shower facilities.
They had entered the city in a panic while fleeing, but when they entered, Kim Han-byeol could feel a strange sense of discomfort. The city was too quiet, as if no one lived there. At first, she almost mistook it for being dead. Amidst all this, they discovered a medium-sized building. This building, with its roof painted black, particularly caught the group's attention. Whether by luck or not, they were drawn to enter it, and found it equipped with almost everything they needed.
Although her body and mind demanded sleep, the situation was still too delicate for Kim Han-byeol to fall asleep. Ahn Sol was still in a dazed state, unable to regain her senses, and Ahn Hyun was busy taking care of her. And Lee Yoo-jung...
Kim Han-byeol easily found Lee Yoo-jung as she traced her whereabouts. She had picked up the sword that Kim Han-byeol had neatly placed beside the front door. Having a rough idea of why she was doing this, Han-byeol let out a light sigh and spoke.
"Unni."
"Yeah."
"Put the sword down."
"No."
Lee Yoo-jung unlocked the front door, ignoring Han-byeol. As a loud click sounded from the door, Ahn Hyun, startled, burst out of the room. He immediately frowned upon seeing the sword in Lee Yoo-jung's hand.
"It's futile. Put the sword down and wait quietly."
Hearing Kim Han-byeol's voice, Lee Yoo-jung glared at her with an indignant face.
"Why?"
"..."
"I'm going to bring Su-hyun oppa back, so you all just wait here."
'Oppa. Su-hyun oppa.'
She silently repeated his name in her mind. Thoughts of him surfaced in Kim Han-byeol's head. From the first time she saw him, Kim Han-byeol had thought of Kim Su-hyun as someone similar to herself. She had felt something different about him since seeing him in the clearing. His always calm face, confident voice, and composed eyes. Perhaps that's why she had been drawn to his judgment when talking with him on the hill. Kim Han-byeol stared at Lee Yoo-jung for a moment before continuing.
"Unni, you're not the only one worried about oppa. Even if you go, there's nothing you can do. Just waiting quietly is the best way to help."
"He might still be waiting there. I'll say it again, if you're not going, stay out of it. If you won't go, I'll go alone and bring him back."
"Yoo-jung. Han-byeol is right. Put the sword down for now."
Hearing Ahn Hyun's stern voice, Lee Yoo-jung immediately turned her head. After looking at both Ahn Hyun and Kim Han-byeol for a moment and snorting, she continued in a sarcastic tone.
"You're all too much. Oppa might be wandering around looking for us right now. Huh?"
"You're all too much." This single phrase carried numerous implications. Hearing these words, everyone felt a sting in a corner of their hearts. However, while Ahn Hyun kept his mouth shut, Kim Han-byeol did not. She glanced briefly at Ahn Sol, still collapsed in the next room, before speaking.
"We had no choice. Those things were coming at us, and we were in danger too. If it wasn't for that child, all of us here might be dead now."
"Who doesn't know that? That's why we escaped and brought Sol here. So we're here now, and that's it? We're safe now, so it's over? Su-hyun oppa will find his way here on his own?"
Seeing Lee Yoo-jung mock her with rhetorical questions, Kim Han-byeol felt uncomfortable. From the start, her shouting and speaking informally had been irritating. Without realizing it, Kim Han-byeol slightly raised the corner of her mouth in a sneering expression and responded coldly.
"Then go out. Go out and search all you want. I won't care whether you live or die."
She regretted it as soon as she said it, but it was already spilled milk. Hearing this, Ahn Hyun looked at Kim Han-byeol with a surprised face. Lee Yoo-jung's face showed shock for a moment before she let out a dejected laugh, "Ha."
"You... You really are a tactless kid. Oppa sacrificed himself to save someone like you? I'm so disappointed. I guess your worried act earlier telling us not to go was all fake."
"I clearly told him not to go. But it was oppa who insisted on going. Why are you blaming me for that?"
"You... Sigh, never mind. There's no point in talking to trash like you anymore. Just shut your mouth. You cold-hearted bitch with no blood or tears."
Kim Han-byeol was a bit surprised by Lee Yoo-jung's unexpected response, having thought she would charge at her screaming again. And being called trash and dismissed hurt her pride severely. She wasn't aware of it, but Kim Han-byeol's breathing had become rougher than before. Her next words carried a hint of resentment.
"Your words are harsh. Is there something wrong with what I said?"
"I don't know. I don't care about that. But at least I don't want to live hypocritically like you."
"Are you done talking?"
"You little brat, looking at me straight in the eye. What are you going to do? Should we pull each other's hair? Get lost. If you don't want scratches on that white, fair face of yours, just shut that pretty mouth."
"Everyone, stop it!"
Unable to bear their escalating argument any longer, Ahn Hyun sharply rebuked them both in an angry voice. Startled by his intensity, Lee Yoo-jung and Kim Han-byeol unconsciously stopped talking. Ahn Hyun glared at them both for a moment with sunken eyes before extending his hand towards Lee Yoo-jung.
"Hand it over."
"...No."
Seeing Lee Yoo-jung clutching the sword tightly, Ahn Hyun sighed deeply again before continuing in a somewhat deflated voice.
"I'll go look for hyung. Thinking about it, you might be right."
"...Really? Then let's go together."
Seeing Ahn Hyun suddenly change his attitude, Lee Yoo-jung's face brightened, though still somewhat reluctantly. Ahn Hyun shook his head weakly in response to her words.
"No. It's easier to go alone. Those things might still be out there. You and Han-byeol, please take care of Sol."
"With her? No way. I can't trust her anymore."
Watching Lee Yoo-jung continue to denounce her, Kim Han-byeol felt something welling up inside her. What she had been holding back finally exploded. However, she was a relatively level-headed person. When angry, instead of raising her voice and getting heated like Lee Yoo-jung, she became the opposite - her voice turned cold and cynical. She spoke to Ahn Hyun in an unprecedented chilly voice.
"Don't go. If you go, you'll surely meet the same fate as oppa."
"Won't you shut up?"
"You're the one who should shut up."
"What? 'You'? Say that again."
As Lee Yoo-jung glared and stepped forward as if to strike her, Ahn Hyun quickly snatched the sword from her. However, Kim Han-byeol seemed determined, and once her floodgates opened, words poured out like a burst dam.
"Stop meddling when you don't know anything. Without her earlier, what do you think would have happened to all of us? Didn't you see that neither swords nor fists worked? It's obvious you'll die if you go, so why are you so insistent on going?"
"You little bitch, really..."
"You resort to swearing because you have nothing else to say, right? Where do you think oppa is that you can bring him back? Use your head and think about it."
"What a nice excuse? Now you're showing your true colors, huh? Don't you remember we're here now thanks to oppa? You're full of hypocrisy, only thinking about taking advantage of others. I can see right through you. You're even more despicable than that bastard, aren't you?"
Being compared to, no, being put even lower than the troublemaker, Kim Han-byeol's face contorted for the first time. As anger surged, Kim Han-byeol spoke in a trembling voice, raising her tone.
"A dead person is dead! What's wrong with a living person trying to survive?!"
This statement seemed to be the trigger. Lee Yoo-jung violently pushed Ahn Hyun aside and lunged forward. Kim Han-byeol also gritted her teeth and was about to raise her hand, intending to slap her hard.
Slam.
"What's going on? Why is it so noisy in here?"
The unlocked front door opened, and a young man stepped inside. A calm face, confident voice, and composed eyes. Lastly, a crossbow attached to his left arm. Everyone in the room stopped breathing simultaneously upon seeing him. The atmosphere in the room, which had escalated to the peak of conflict, seemed to vanish like a lie.
"I'm glad everyone is safe."
He smiled gently, unfastened the crossbow from his left arm, and raised his right hand to greet everyone.
It was Kim Su-hyun.