Hope for Salvation - Chapter 6

“Who’s coming in?”

Sejun, lying on the bed enjoying the therapist’s languid touch, abruptly turned over. Grabbing the mobile phone the staff member had been holding by his ear, Sejun gestured for several therapists to leave.

—I’m sorry. We haven’t had any contact with them for four years, so the kids downstairs may have been a bit curious.

“Damn it, are you kidding me? I told you to watch them properly! You’re just going to mess things up like this while pocketing the money?”

Sejun muttered in succession as he rummaged through the pockets of his robe, unable to find his cigarettes.

—What should I do?

“What can you do? You’ll have to figure something out! Keep an eye on things for now. We’ll discuss it on our end and get in touch.”

Sejun, tossing his mobile phone casually, shook his still damp hair shortly after finishing his spa treatment.

“I should have killed him then, too.”

“Do you think parents who have lost their child would just sit idly by? Once it starts spreading on the media and social media, it’s not just about catching one person. It’s better this way. Do as I say.”

After the demise of the formidable Tae seok Jung and the downfall of Tae Kang Hyun, who was the heir to the group, Sejun managed to secure his position as the head of subsidiary companies thanks to the mutual destruction of the two.

Having avoided divorce and wielding money and power for four years, Sejun lived with the world at his feet.

But now, with news that the dormant time bomb had been activated, Sejun’s mood plummeted instantly.

Seated on the bed, covered in aromatic oil, Sejun dialed a familiar number and illuminated the recording button with a click on his phone.

“It’s me.”

—What’s going on?

“I got a message from the guy we’ve been keeping an eye on.”

—…What kind of trouble had you caused this time?

“When have I ever caused trouble again? Thanks to me, you’ve managed to secure a good position.”

Sejun chuckled casually and tapped the sole of his foot that had slipped under the bed.

It all started with the argument with his oblivious girlfriend who couldn’t grasp the subject.

Jian sat quietly on the sofa, as if she were attending her second interview, waiting patiently for her boss to appear.

Restlessly tapping her legs as time dragged on, Jian suddenly perked up at the sound of the doorknob turning.

“Hello, I am Seo Jian!”

As the cheerful greeting echoed through the quiet house, Kang Hyun furrowed his brows in annoyance.

“Ms. Seo Jian.”

“…Yes.”

Seo Jian, straightening her previously folded waist, faced Kang Hyun head-on.

Her prominent nose, starting from the forehead, first caught attention.

Below her thick eyebrows and straight-lined eyes, her pupils lacked any vitality.

Her broad chest hardly seemed to rise and fall with breaths.

Like a black rose withered from lack of water.

Since Seoyoon left, Kang Hyun had forgotten how to smile. He hardened his lips and silently scrutinized Jian.

“Where have you been hiding all this time? Seoyoon had been dying to see you.”

“Who’s Seoyoon… I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

“Did you not hear the word ‘twins’?”

Jian felt perplexed. She hadn’t heard anything about it, yet the other person seemed annoyed as if she should have known all along.

“I-I’m not a twin.”

“Or maybe…”

Kang hyun, who had returned to the bedroom to save time, extended a photo towards her.

“What’s this? Surely it’s not me?”

“What would you say when even you, the person herself, can’t tell the difference?”

With a murmured sigh, Jian’s long legs moved again.

Unable to stay rooted in place any longer, Kang hyun wrapped his aching forehead with his hand and lowered his head.

“Still, is it necessary to resemble each other to this extent? It’s upsetting for the person enduring it.”

Despite knowing it beforehand, confirming the similarity of their faces twisted Jian’s insides.

Even the faintly brown hair, the white skin, and even the mole on their eyelashes were in the same place.

As Kang Hyun disappeared somewhere, Jian returned to the sofa and slumped down with a deep sigh.

How could you possibly explain the same face!

No, more importantly, why are you so calm when you see someone who looks exactly like you?

I’m getting goosebumps all over.

It’s only been four years since I started accumulating new memories, but the situation in front of me was too confusing.

The person in the photo Kang hyun showed me was so similar to me that if they weren’t a twin or a doppelgänger, I couldn’t explain it.

No, wait.

“Yeah, with 7 billion people on Earth, there could be at least one person like that.”

Jian quickly took out her phone and opened a search engine.

“A person who looks exactly like me.”

There were quite a few posts listing possibilities.

Passing by hopeful posts suggesting that facial features and contours might be very similar, Jian encountered rumors that meeting a doppelgänger would lead to death, and she quickly turned off the screen.

What would happen if they were really twins?

There’s no way loving parents would abandon one of them.

I can’t possibly not be their biological daughter…

As her thoughts deepened, Jian tapped her forehead and shook her head vigorously.

“Come sit down before the meal.”

Appearing without any indication of having washed up, Kang hyun, as always, silently popped a cold grain of rice into his mouth.

“No, I’ve already eaten.”

Even though she refused, Jian, feeling the need for conversation, cautiously opened her mouth as she settled into her seat opposite him.

“Shall I warm it up for you?”

“No, it’s okay.”

Having always been accustomed to homemade meals with freshly cooked rice and steaming soup, Kanghyun’s meal felt too cold.

The once glossy japchae seemed to have stiffened. The beef ribs seemed to have exuded oil as if waiting, and the seaweed soup emitted a chilly aura.

How do you even eat this?

With a somber gaze, Jian raised her chopsticks. The man, mechanically moving his jaw, chewed.

Ah…

It’s not about the taste, is it?

Jian raised her hand to her chest. Once again, a sharp pain surged near her sternum.

The sight of Tae Kanghyun casually doing stretching exercises flashed through her mind, and suddenly, it felt like her whole body was collapsing downwards.

Could this be a lingering effect of the accident?

It felt like something foreign had seeped into her heart, which had been functioning energetically until now, causing it to squeak uncomfortably.

“Are you having a hard time? Um, I mean…….”

As if her heart wasn’t the problem, her mouth spoke out of turn.

Startled by the sudden question, Jian hastily added an excuse to cover up.

“I heard you’re still not feeling well.”

“No.”

His eyes, resembling deep abysses, turned towards Jian.

“The slow passage of time can be tedious, that’s all.”

Due to Jian’s intense gaze on Kang hyun, their eyes tangled.

His parched pupils flickered ever so slightly. It was like a small ripple caused by a stone thrown into a calm lake.

Facing the same face brings a flood of longing, like a tidal wave.

It’s been too long since I saw Seoyoon alive. That must be it.

If it really was you, how wonderful would it be to sit face to face with you again?

If I could just touch you once.

I regret that day every day after losing Sooyoon, but tears still don’t come.

If I was someone who could shed tears from the start, you would still be by my side.

In the end, it was me who couldn’t fully understand your long-standing loneliness and despair that killed you.

Still, I insisted it wasn’t an eternal parting.

I’ve lived for four years, hoping to return to your side, even if I don’t know if I’ll ever be forgiven.

“Could it be that I got the job because I’m her twin? I’ll say it again, I’m definitely not a twin.”

“Without knowing the important facts, I don’t understand why you were sent here, Seo Jian. If you’re not a twin, then it’s regrettable, but look elsewhere.”

“…Today is my first day at work, you know? I even quit my part-time job and signed a contract! Look at this, I thought it might be a scam. The conditions were too good.”

Shocked by the statement that made her forget about the word “twin,” Jian felt the collapsing sky on her shoulders and blushed.

Her feelings of sympathy towards Kanghyun also collapsed along with everything else.

“I’ve never even seen the contract.”

“You weren’t hired by the president?”

“No.”

“Goodness, I boasted about it everywhere!”

The lifeline she had barely managed to grasp in the midst of severe job scarcity was suddenly severed.

She had thought she would be able to lighten her parents’ burden. She felt like crying uncontrollably.

Watching Jian’s various expressions change several times with each word, Kanghyun abruptly got up from his seat.

“I’m sorry, I was too noisy while you were eating…”

Hurriedly blocking his mouth, Kanghyun dashed straight into the bathroom.

After a few dry heaves, the food he had forced into his stomach came pouring out.

He retched as if spitting out blood, emptying his stomach, and turned on the tap in front of the sink.

His eyes reddened as if bloodshot from vomiting, heated with frustration.

Jian’s face, looking happy even in her strange tantrum and unnecessary whining, felt like thousands of needles piercing his body.

The happiness he stole from Seoyoon.

When was the last time Seoyoon, who had experienced so much joy and sorrow, smiled?

“Seoyoon.”

When did you start fading away?

What did I do to you?

Jian, who had been hesitating, followed the pale-faced Kanghyun with a distraught expression.

He said he doesn’t even touch a dog when he’s eating. Why did he speak to me?

As Kanghyun, who was briskly heading towards the study, suddenly stopped and turned around without warning.

“Hup!”

Jian, who held her breath, barely managed to pull herself up from almost falling backward.

It was a great relief that her head didn’t hit his chest.

“The commute time is flexible.”

“What?”

“Come and go as you please. I mainly use the study, so feel free to do whatever you want in the living room. You can use anything except the bedroom. Oh, and about work?”

“I’ll let you know when it’s needed. But I have a favor to ask.”

I hope it’s what you wanted.

I hope you’re happy, seeing the other you smiling, and resenting the me who made you unhappy.

If this is the last year of punishment I have left, I’ll gladly accept it and go.

Please wait for me there.