Chapter 2 Part 8

“Shit, haa… Fuck. This is really crazy. Haha…”

Behind me, the woman was banging on the bathroom door with such frenzy that it seemed like it might break any second. Everyone was watching me warily, their eyes filled with unease. All I could do was laugh. At this point, I genuinely didn’t know what else to try.

…Will I turn into a zombie like that woman? The thought made me feel amused. Unconsciously, I imagined myself losing my mind and biting everyone before laughing out loud. On one hand, it seemed easier to just become a zombie. Unfortunately, that wouldn’t happen. As always, I would die before turning into a zombie and reset again. Having reached this conclusion, I slowly got up from the cafe and left. After walking leisurely, I arrived at the real estate office. I needed to meet Yoo Min-ho.

Yoo Min-ho was the only one who might realize that this hellish situation was repeating itself. Just before opening the door, I looked at my forearm and saw all the skin gradually turning black. I instantly became anxious.

The warm indoor air tickled my nose as soon as I opened the back door of the real estate office. Unlike the cool corridor, the interior of the office seemed to be filled with warmth from a fully operating heater. In the middle of the narrow real estate office, three people were sitting down and conducting a contract as usual. There was Do Ji-hyuk dressed impeccably in his suit, the real estate agent wearing a warm-looking two-piece outfit, and Yoo Min-ho with a blue jacket over a white t-shirt. It was now a familiar sight for me.

At this moment, my heart felt painful as I met the gaze of Yoo Min-ho, who was watching the back door. With great difficulty, I walked inside the real estate office and slumped against the glass wall. At the same time, Yoo Min-ho sprang up and approached me. For some reason, my heart became sad.

“…Fuck, what are you doing here, Lee Chae-eun?! How did you know that I was here?!”

His fierce words only made me laugh in despair. Hot tears streamed down from both of my eyes. Was it because he didn’t recognize me? No, there was more despair than hurt. I just wanted to give up everything. There was no way to escape this crazy situation. Rather, I wanted to die. After dying, I never wanted to open my eyes again. This was truly too cruel. Something like…

“Do you know him?”

“Know him? Hell no, I don’t want to call this stalker who keeps chasing me someone I know.”

“I see, you’re indeed a top star. You even have a male stalker.”

“…Huh? Uh… right. Hey, Lee Chae-eun. Don’t interfere with the contract and go… You… Are you crying?”

My condition rapidly deteriorated. Cold sweat kept flowing, and my heart felt like it would burst out of my mouth. In addition, my tears wouldn’t stop falling. It was as if I had lost the ability to control my emotions. Do Ji-hyuk discovered the wound on my arm and became flustered.

“Look at this person’s arm. It’s severely injured… The skin seems to be necrotizing… It’s black and emitting a foul odor…”

…How much time was left? Five minutes? Ten minutes? It was hard to estimate. I had seen people die from being torn apart but surviving with such nail wounds was unprecedented.

The real estate office became busy after my appearance. Yoo Min-ho tried to call for an ambulance but was dismayed when his phone didn’t work. Do Ji-hyuk wanted to go outside before confirming that the shutters were down. He then disappeared through the back door, stating he would head to the manager’s office. The real estate agent applied disinfectant and ointment on me, seemingly worried about his son, before leaving to visit the convenience store briefly.

In the end, only Yoo Min-ho and I remained in the real estate office. The empty office was strangely quiet. There were always zombies beyond the glass walls of this commercial building, as if they wanted to devour us. Hasn’t anyone opened the cafe bathroom door yet? It would be good if they did. I just want some peace before dying. Now, I’m tired of screams and the gurgling sounds of zombies.

Yoo Min-ho stood right in front of me with his arms crossed, looking down at me. His face seemed extremely displeased.

“How can you get hurt so badly?”

“…..”

“…Why are you crying all the time? It’s making people feel strange.”

“…..”

“…..”

“…Does it hurt much?”

Despite his cold tone, Yoo Min-ho’s expression showed anxiety. Was he worried about me? Maybe so. He seemed to care greatly for my life when facing death moments ago. My stomach kept churning uneasily. I feared I might end up vomiting like that woman with rotten blood.

“Hey, answer me… Why are you sweating so much… Huh? And why is your body this cold?”

“What’s… your name again?”

“Huh? Did you hit your head? Why are you suddenly asking for my name?”

“…Haa. Your name…”

“Cha Min-jae. My name’s Cha Min-jae. Are you really not thinking straight?”

Ahh. As expected. I wasn’t the only one who fell into this shitty world. Since the name ‘Yoo Min-ho’ was imprinted in my mind, there was a high probability that we knew each other in real life…

…What relationship did he have with me? Were we close enough to risk our lives for each other? If I had someone so important, why did I commit suicide? The nausea became increasingly worse as I continued thinking.

“…L-Listen well. Your name is Yoo Min-ho. Yoo, Min, Ho. I am… not Lee Chae-eun but Seo Ki-hyeon.”

“…Why do you keep making people uneasy with nonsense? Are you not properly awake?”

“Yoo Min-ho. If… If at 19:21, by any chance, you remember my name… please come to the cafe and help me. Please… please.”

“…Damn it, why are the shutters closed at a time like this?! And why the hell is the phone dead?!”

“You… if you attack and weaken her… I think I can tie her up with my belt. Then… maybe we can get out of this hell?”

“S-Stop talking. Lee Chae-eun.”

“Haa… I tried attacking her with the fire extinguisher… but… I’m not as good as you. But let’s not use the fire extinguisher anymore… It… It splatters too much blood…” 

My consciousness continued to flicker. It alternated between feeling unbearably cold, as if the chill penetrated down to my bones, and incredibly hot, as if all the blood in my body was boiling. At one point, a rotten sensation started vibrating inside my throat. This must be how zombies vomited.

However, perhaps due to the small size of the wound, the changes progressed slower than expected. As I felt the shadow of death tightening around my neck, it was hard to shake off the fear despite this not being my first time dying.

“…Yoo Min-ho. I’m scared… Hold my hand, please.”

As I spoke, he wrapped his hands around my blackened fingers. I expected warmth but surprisingly, I couldn’t feel anything at all.

“Why do you keep talking like you’re going to die? Wake up! Hey, Lee Chae-eun…”

I didn’t respond and stared at him through my blurry vision. My brain felt unbearably hot, causing confusion to set in. Suddenly, his face seemed incredibly familiar. Where had I seen him before? It was undoubtedly… undoubtedly a face that I’ve remembered for a long time…

At that moment, I started hearing the sound of rain from somewhere. It was strange since it never rained despite countless repetitions of this time period. Feeling puzzled, I looked beyond the shutter. However, like my misconception, there wasn’t a single drop of rain on the dark street outside. 

When I turned back to Yoo Min-ho again, his face strangely appeared wet. His hair had become darker due to the rain and stuck messily to his small face. Of course, we were indoors at the real estate office, so it was impossible for Yoo Min-ho to get wet. The sound of pouring rain became increasingly fierce…

…and finally, I realized this was a fragment of my lost memories.

***