OL Ch 34

Chapter 34

Thud!

“…..!”

Hayun, who had dozed off, opened his eyes at the feeling of being kicked. And the moment he opened his eyes, he fell out of bed. Fortunately, he reflexively rolled his body and avoided a fall. He raised his head with a dazed look, and a frosty voice responded.

“Why are you here?”

“…Huh?“

His mind went blank. Hayun couldn’t say anything and just gaped. He had planned to leave the house before Mookyeong woke up. But because Mookyeong wouldn’t let go of him, he couldn’t move.

He waited for his strength to wane, but he fell asleep. Moreover, it was quite late, as it was dark outside. Not only had he missed his academy, but he was also late getting home. And the biggest problem was Mookyeong in front of him.

“Why are you here?”

Mookyeong’s voice was hoarse, as if he hadn’t fully woken up yet.

“That’s, well… You weren’t. Answering my calls. Yeah. That’s why.”

“What does me not answering your calls have to do with you sleeping here?”

“No, no, listen first.”

Hayun got up. His back was sore, perhaps because he was startled by being kicked in the waist unexpectedly.

“You weren’t answering my calls, so I thought something might have happened. So I came here, and I heard something falling. But you didn’t answer. So I thought something really had happened.”

“So, you broke in?”

At Mookyeong’s question, Hayun quickly nodded.

“How did you know the passcode?”

“The passcode you use is obvious.”

“…..”

“That’s not important, anyway, when I came in, some of the furniture in the living room was floating and some had fallen, it was a total mess. And you were floating in the air. I thought you might get seriously hurt if I left you like that, so I brought you to the bedroom.”

Hayun paused and checked Mookyeong’s reaction. The lights were off, so he couldn’t see Mookyeong’s face.

‘I can tell it’s not good, at least.’

“It’s not like I’ve known you for just a year or two. I know how to handle this, so I couldn’t just do nothing.”

Mookyeong nodded as if to tell him to continue.

“So I put you on the bed, but I had to keep you from floating up, right? But I thought you might float up again when I got up. Even if it’s a bed, you could break your neck if you fall wrong. So I thought I should watch the situation. I was going to call for help if it got worse. But then… I guess I fell asleep.”

Instead of answering, Mookyeong sighed and wiped his face.

“Don’t concern yourself with my business anymore. Leave me alone, whether I die or not.”

“How can I do that?”

“Who are you to do that?”

“…Your friend.”

At Hayun’s answer, Mookyeong scoffed. Then he got up and walked up to Hayun. Mookyeong pushed Hayun’s forehead with his index finger and said.

“Who’s your friend?”

The moment he saw Mookyeong’s eyes, Hayun’s head went numb. He had been with him since the moment he was born, but this was the first time he had seen him like this. It wasn’t like this in the hospital when he had forgotten him, nor when he saw him at the research center.

He didn’t know what to call his look. But one thing was clear: it was mixed with contempt. Hayun lowered his head in shame. But he couldn’t back down like this.

“…We agreed to be friends.”

Hayun reminded Mookyeong of his promise. Didn’t he say that he would tell him the memories he had lost, and if those memories were true, they would be friends?

“I can’t trust your words.”

“Why can’t you trust me?”

“Because you’re not Kim Heewon.”

Hayun clenched his fist. Mookyeong’s fierce aura made his skin prickle, but he wasn’t the type to give in. In fact, he had never lost. Absolutely not in his relationship with Baek Mookyeong.

“If you don’t trust me, why do you trust Kim Heewon?”

“…..”

“It’s a name I told you, so you should doubt and not trust that too.”

“Even though I forgot for a while, I would have remembered even if you hadn’t told me. Even if I forgot everything, I would have known him.”

Lies. What do you know? What do you know? Needle-like sharp words waited to be fired from his throat.

Mookyeong roughly wiped his face. His breath trembled as if he was barely suppressing his anger. He must have realized the contradiction too. Because Hayun was the only person who told Mookyeong about Heewon’s existence, and Hayun was the only person who could tell him about the lost memories.

It was obvious.

The Kim Heewon he told Mookyeong about had nothing to do with the real Kim Heewon’s life, it was a being created by Kim Hayun’s lies. No matter how much Mookyeong tried to recall his memories with him, there was nothing to recall.

Because there was nothing.

“Get out.”

“…..”

“I said get out now.”

Hayun looked at Mookyeong without a word. Mookyeong didn’t meet Hayun’s eyes. His face was expressionless, but Hayun could tell he was in pain. His already tightly clenched fist trembled.

When Hayun didn’t move, Mookyeong reached out to Hayun.

“I don’t need you anymore. I’ll take care of myself, so please just get out of my sight!”

Hayun twisted his body to avoid Mookyeong’s hand, but he was already cornered against the wall. Mookyeong approached him in one step, grabbed Hayun by the collar, and pulled him roughly. He was pulled helplessly from an awkward position, unable to stand up properly.

“Let go of me!”

Hayun tried to shake off Mookyeong’s hand. But the only thing that happened was the loud sound of clothes ripping, and he couldn’t shake off Mookyeong’s hand. Hayun resisted, not wanting to be dragged out like this. But even though he put all his strength into his toes and fingertips, it was useless.

Mookyeong seemed determined, and he interfered every time Hayun resisted. When Hayun tried to get up and lean back to resist, he made him lose his balance, and when he grabbed the door frame with his hand to resist, he pushed him back and made him fall.

When Hayun fell, he grabbed his clothes, whether it was the front or the back, and pulled him.

Even so, Hayun didn’t stop resisting. He grabbed or hooked onto anything he could reach with his hands or feet, and by the time he entered the hallway leading to the front door, all kinds of furniture were out of place. Regardless, Hayun put his weight on the hand that was holding Mookyeong’s hand.

The moment Mookyeong turned around, annoyed, Hayun quickly turned his body and kicked the back of Mookyeong’s knees. Mookyeong lost his balance, let go of Hayun’s hand, and leaned against the hallway wall.

“…..”

“…..”

Hayun breathed heavily. He had used so much effort that he was flushed with heat. Hayun wiped his face in dismay, just as Mookyeong had done.

“…You said you were sorry. Why are you going this far?”

“Why are you holding on this far? It’s not wrong for me to ask you to leave my house.”

Mookyeong was right. He should have just left when Mookyeong told him to. There was no need to resist and be dragged out like this. But Hayun had something to say for himself. He was too angry to just leave as he was told.

He wanted to scream at Mookyeong. Who do you think you are? Who do you think you are to treat me, whom Baek Mookyeong raised preciously, like this?

Do you know how upset he would be if he knew?

But he didn’t have the energy to scream like that. He was so excited from trying so hard, and he was so exhausted that his anger and resentment subsided. The words that were boiling and couldn’t be poured out hardened in his stomach.

Then he felt a vague regret that he should have just left when he was told to, without provoking him. His clothes were a mess, and his body was a mess.

After organizing his thoughts for a moment, Hayun looked up at Mookyeong.

“Don’t look at me. It pisses me off every time you look at me like that.”

“Then you’re really not going to be friends?”

“Are you crazy? Are you not getting the situation?”

Mookyeong let out a hollow laugh, finding it absurd. Hayun shook his head. He knew that the best thing to do was to just shut up and leave. But he felt like if he left like this, his relationship with Mookyeong would really be over, as he said. Of course, they don’t have much of a relationship now.

“This is the last time. Leave when I’m talking nicely. Before I throw you out the window.”

Mookyeong pointed to the door with his hand. Hayun hesitated for a moment. Mookyeong could throw Hayun out the window by any means, whether it was force or telekinesis. If he threw him by force, he might get away with fractures if he was lucky, but if he used telekinesis, his neck would be broken.

But he probably wouldn’t kill him. If he wanted to, he would have used his ability already. Also, he wouldn’t have needed to hold back his anger like this.

Hayun immediately realized the reason. There was a glimmer of room left.

“If you can’t trust my words, and if you don’t need me because others can tell you too, then I just need to tell you something only I know, right?”

“You still haven’t come to your senses.”

Instead of answering, Hayun picked up the bag he had thrown on the hallway floor. And he took out a notebook from it and handed it to Mookyeong. He wanted to throw it, but his remaining rationality stopped him. But Mookyeong didn’t take the notebook.

“Even though I lost my ability, I didn’t forget everything I learned from the teacher. I can find the place where we met the teacher that day. No, I’ve almost found it.”

It was a lie. Because that was why he came here.

“We might not be able to find the teacher, but we might be able to find the last trace she left. Of course, the trace might be damaged because time has passed, but shouldn’t we try to find it before it’s too late?”

“If you hadn’t forgotten, you should have found it already. I know you’re just spouting nonsense to buy time.”

“If you don’t want to believe it, don’t. Just like you’ve always done. But, if it’s true, you have to keep your promise.”

Mookyeong didn’t answer. Hayun turned around and slowly inhaled. Taking advantage of the fact that Mookyeong wasn’t stopping him, he looked for the places where the doors were in his memory. He found traces from very small markings to traces in the picture that was set up for interior decoration, and made a note of them.

In the meantime, Mookyeong went into his room and closed the door. The door didn’t make a loud noise, but his heart sank for no reason. Hayun tried not to think deeply. He calmed his breathing, and when he emptied his mind, he was finally able to move.

When he left Mookyeong’s house and got on the elevator, his reflection appeared in the mirror inside. His clothes were all torn, and there were places where he had been scratched by his fingernails and had blood on them. And bruises were slowly appearing here and there where Mookyeong had grabbed him.

Hayun looked at his reflection in the mirror, then raised his head and met his own eyes in the mirror. The moment he met his own sullen eyes, it felt unbearably terrible. As soon as the elevator door opened, Hayun ran out as if he were running away.

And only then did he feel like he could breathe.