CH 72

That scent and the cast-away train rails gave me a strange sense of déjà vu. I took a few steps forward. My heart pounded wildly with a strange sense of anxiety. What was going on? Looking around with more attention, I realized this room wasn’t a simple playroom.

The walls were plastered with animal stickers, and in the corner was a stack of pancakes, jam cookies, and such, all without plates. As the spotlight flashed by, I saw baby mobiles hanging from the ceiling. I also saw a broken, ruined Lego tower and castle… A tiny limp knight wore a dragon-shaped helmet, and a small princess’ face was destroyed. All of these were familiar to me.

A shudder ran down my spine. “This is…”

My house.

This was my living room on the day that my mom stabbed herself in the neck and killed herself. There was no mistake about it.

I felt myself swaying backward.

“Haeseo?” Woorim ran next to me and supported my body. I clenched my teeth and tried to put strength into my legs. My head spun in vertigo, and I could feel my muscles around my eyes spasm in shock.

Could it be a coincidence? No way. The shirt that we saw upstairs was the same one the Child was wearing. Too many coincidences couldn’t be simply a coincidence. Somebody must have arranged it on purpose because they knew I would come. I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again.

“Let’s get out of this room,” I said. ‘Hurry.’

Woorim grabbed by hand and headed to the door. The toy train tracks and lego pieces made crunching sounds with each step. It sounded horrible like the sound of teeth grinding. I knew that wasn’t the case, but the back of my neck felt clammy because I felt like a bleeding person was standing behind me.

She had never appeared after my grandmother passed away. I wondered if my dead grandmother met my mother. What did she hear from my mother? I barely managed to swallow back my feverish breath.

Did my grandmother and mother still resent me…?

At the same time, the door of this hellish room opened. Outside was as dark as the room left behind.

* * *

“Are you okay?” Woorim asked. I sat, leaning against the wall. I rubbed my face with my hands. Once seeing a room like that, I didn’t feel brave enough to explore the rest of the rooms on this floor.

“A bit. I’m a bit tired,” I replied quietly. Woorim sat down next to me. He told me to rest. As I sat curled up, Woorim’s arms bumped into mine. While the warmth of another person made me feel relieved, on the other side, I felt despair. My heart was still pounding.

Once again… the walls of the building creaked horribly from being hit by the strong ocean gust.

How old was this building? I could feel the maliciousness of the old mansion.

“…I have something to ask you.” After the creaking ceased, Woorim asked quietly. Sitting helped my dizziness ebb away to the point I could tolerate it. I obliged and looked at Woorim, who was looking at the wall instead of me. “The urban legend about the mansion. Who do you want to meet by spreading it?”

It seemed like he managed to ask after hesitating countless times after hearing that story, but unfortunately, my answer was extremely short and simple. “I’ll tell you when we become very close.”

Woorim laughed out loud. He seemed amused, hearing what he said to me in the past. Or maybe it was because I was the one who said that.

“There’s a lot to do after we get closer,” he replied then looked away.

After the lighthearted chat ended, there was a heavy silence. He asked again, his voice low and deep as the silence, “…When I become as close to you as Yeonseon was?”

“That’s right.” I nodded and looked at the wall. Now, Woorim turned to look at me. I felt his gaze on my cheek, ear, and neck. His gaze burned my skin.

Not only did our arms touch, but his fingers touched my hand on the ground. At first, he brushed against the nails of my fourth and middle fingers, then he wrapped his fingers around some of mine. I merely sat there, contemplating whether this contact was necessary or not.

“Were you and Yeonseon Ham lovers?” However, I stopped debating when I heard Woorim. After Hyehyun misspoke, nobody here would believe that there was nothing between Yeonseon and me. Hyehyun Ham, that f*cking b*stard. Everyone there could catch on that I lusted after Yeonseon Ham.

“No,” I said after taking my time. “We weren’t.”

“Why not?”