Come Back

“I was with you the whole time, then I stepped out for a quick smoke and got some coffee.” In the meantime, you woke up.

After placing the coffee on the dresser, Yongjae took out two tissues and wiped Choi Hongseo’s face.

“Are you okay?” “Why are you sweating so much?”

“It’s okay.” Thank you, Yongjae. I’ll… I’ll clean it myself.

The lips and face of Choi Hong-seo, who said he was fine, were pale and devoid of color. Somehow, it seemed like his complexion was worse than when he was asleep, so Yongjae asked with concern.

“You were sleeping well earlier.” Did you have a nightmare or something?

It seems like I had a very long dream. It was a very long dream, as if I had lived my life once more. Choi Hong-seo, who had been wiping away sweat, dropped his hand onto his knee and tightly clenched the tissue in his hand.

I met him, and we walked together on Namsan. I received a business card not as the Vice President of ARA, but as Lee Hae-sung, and we watched “Love Story,” “City of Angels,” and “Eternal Sunshine” together. I became his VVIP, loved by his touch and lips, and felt all of him. I knew what it was like to fall asleep in his arms.

Nightmare…

Choi Hong-seo shook his head.

“No…” I had a really good dream.

Yongjae frowned as if he didn’t understand. It was a look that seemed to say, “I had a good dream, so why do you look like that?” However, since Choi Hong-seo looked too exhausted, I didn’t think of asking in detail.

Choi Hong-seo, who had been sitting blankly staring into space like a person possessed, suddenly turned to Yong-jae and grabbed his arm. Suddenly, life returned to his eyes.

“Yongjae! I had an audition… How did the audition go? I got the role of Hwang Ji-woo, right? It’s confirmed, right?

“Wow, I’m surprised.” Of course, you were cast after beating a competition rate of 1,000 to 1!

“Sigh…” Thank goodness…

Choi Hong-seo was finally able to completely relax. Fortunately, the time after waking up as Yoon Hye-an seemed to be completely unchanged.

However, Yongjae cautiously observed Choi Hongseo’s expression with a deeply worried face.

“It’s a relief that the doctor said there’s nothing particularly wrong, but… If there’s nothing wrong, then why did you collapse in the first place…

There is nothing wrong, yet I lose my memory, and there is nothing wrong, yet I collapse and lose consciousness. Surprisingly, such occurrences were not uncommon in the hospital. A patient with a clear diagnosis, cause, and treatment is considered quite lucky. In such cases, the doctor’s words were pretty much the same. There’s nothing particularly wrong, it could be due to overwork or stress, make sure to get plenty of rest, avoid alcohol and cigarettes, and be careful not to get stressed…

However, Choi Hong-seo seemed to have a vague understanding.

It didn’t seem like the reason for his collapse was some vague, general explanation. If I recall the sensations before I collapsed, it was an unfamiliar type of headache and nausea that I had never experienced before. The sensation of the organs inside pushing me out, making my body and soul twist together… If I had to explain it, it was something like that.

I wondered if it might be some sort of side effect caused by Yoon Hye-an’s body. Of course, for now, it was just his own speculation that he couldn’t be sure of…

“Still, you should get a check-up later.” Ah, should I go get the doctor now?

“Wait a moment, Yongjae!”

At Choi Hong-seo’s urgent voice, Yong-jae turned his body back, which he had half-turned.

“But how did I collapse?”

“That’s what I want to ask.” “Don’t tell me you still don’t remember anything?”

“No…” It’s not that, it’s just that I don’t remember how I collapsed.

Yongjae, with a serious expression, dragged a chair from around the bed and hesitantly took a seat.

“Did you go to the columbarium in Hanam?”

“Ah…” I remember that.

“Hyung, you collapsed over there.”

“……”

Columbarium. His ashes were kept in the VIP room. Drawings and letters from fans.

And the angry face of Lee Hae-seong, who had been looking at him hostilely…

“Just because they are a child who doesn’t exist in the world doesn’t mean people like you can use them as you please.” Do you understand?

Yeah, I definitely started feeling the headache and nausea around that time. I also remembered gripping the back of the sofa tightly to keep myself from collapsing in front of him. That’s right. Surely, I collapsed right in front of him.

Choi Hong-seo grabbed Yong-jae’s shoulder this time.

“Then, who brought me here?” Have you seen Yongjae? He’s really tall and dressed in a suit… He’s a really rare handsome guy. If anyone saw him, they would definitely remember. The reception desk or the nurses…

It felt like if I ran out of the hospital room now, I might see him, so I spoke faster than usual. To calm the excited and restless Choi Hong-seo, Yong-jae stood up from his chair and gently pressed down on both of Choi Hong-seo’s shoulders.

“Who brought you here?” You came here in an ambulance.

“Emergency…”Is it… necessary?

Choi Hong-seo twisted Yong-jae’s chest, which was pressing down on his shoulder, as if grabbing him by the collar.

“Someone reported it.” What a relief. Anyway, you came alone in an ambulance. I got the call from the hospital and rushed over, and then we moved him here from the emergency room.”

Like it was a lifeline, Choi Hong-seo’s hand, which had been tightly gripping Yong-jae’s T-shirt, slowly fell down.

Yeah, I guess so.

Why did he think he would bring me all the way here himself? To him, I am not Choi Hong-seo right now.

It was such a foolish misunderstanding that I couldn’t help but chuckle. I was so embarrassed that my face turned bright red.

“Hyung…” Are you okay? You didn’t see something like the Grim Reaper, did you?

With a face filled with fear, Yongjae cautiously asked. At Yongjae’s words, Choi Hongseok laughed even more. She shook her head repeatedly while wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

“No, Yongjae. I… I mistook it for a dream.

“Is it the good dream you had earlier?”

“Yes, it’s a good dream.” A very good dream.

There weren’t many good things in Choi Hong-seo’s life. After struggling in obscurity for several years, the brief fame gained from “Layered” was the only glory, but even then, he was still being manipulated by CEO Myung.

However, the short time spent with him. Even that time alone made the previous life worthwhile. Just that alone made the past life a good dream. Other crappy things couldn’t even dare to dull that light; it was a very good dream.

“But hyung, why did you go there?”

“Yes?”

“Columbarium.” Is there someone you know interred there? Do you remember some things from the past?

The face of Yongjae, filled with anticipation, drew closer. It seemed that Yongjae had no idea that Choi Hongseo from ‘Layered’ was laid to rest there.

The sensational initial report about Mr. X from the host bar being Choi Hong-seo was known by the entire nation. Even people who didn’t know who Choi Hong-seo was until then. However, after that, very few people were interested in the additional truths that were revealed.

In fact, even though it was revealed that Mr. X had been sexually assaulted by a powerful figure from a conglomerate and had been exploited by the initial perpetrator and the agency’s president under the pretext of blackmail, this truth existed only as a result of the trial, and most of the public still remembered Choi Hong-seo only by the initial report.

Even those who knew the final trial results sometimes shifted the blame from the perpetrators to the victims, saying that they deserved it for frequenting places like host bars.

Even though the entire nation knew about Choi Hong-seo as the “tough guy” who jumped from the 32nd floor, they showed little interest in why Choi Hong-seo had no choice but to make such a decision or in the background that was “tougher” than Choi Hong-seo himself. So, while people knew that Choi Hong-seo jumped from the 32nd floor in Bangkok, it was quite common not to know where he went afterward.

It wasn’t Yongjae’s fault, and I don’t feel disappointed in him either. Choi Hong-seo shook his head with a faint smile.

“No.” Just… I took on the role of Choi Hong-seo, so I went to check it out. I thought I’d at least say hello and express my determination to do my best in the project.

“Oh, was that the columbarium where Choi Hong-seo was buried?”

The columbarium wasn’t a place to bury people, but Choi Hong-seo just nodded.

“I knew he died in Bangkok, but I wonder how they managed to bring the body all the way to Korea.” The procedures must have been complicated.

Dead, corpse… Those direct expressions were a bit difficult, but I swallowed hard and endured.

“It’s true that you did a commendable thing, but you still need to think about your health.” It’s only been a short while since you woke up, so you’re still adjusting. What if something worse had happened?

In the news, he keeps a distance from thorough strangers and views them objectively, but he cherishes those close to him… Yongjae was just an ordinary, kind person.

“Here, bro.” It’s your favorite coffee. I thought you would wake up soon, so I brought one for you too. There wasn’t anything particularly wrong, so they said you could eat anything when you wake up. I’ll go and tell the front desk that you woke up. I’ll also call the boss. “Please take a rest.”

Choi Hong-seo unconsciously accepted the coffee that Yong-jae handed over. Yongjae, who had stepped halfway out the door, turned back and smiled at her.

“Still, I’m relieved.” I was worried that you wouldn’t be able to wake up for a long time again like last time and wouldn’t be able to attend the Monday meal.

Seeing Yongjae genuinely relieved, Choi Hongseo also tried his best to smile. Only after the door closed did he let out a long sigh. The lingering feeling of the dream still remained within me.

It felt like I had just been touching his sleeping face in his arms until a moment ago, so I sat there for a long time, looking down at my hands.