Chapter 3
Hahyun looked at my face like he was about to burst into tears, his eyes darting around anxiously. Hajin, who’d finally come to his senses, spoke with resignation in his voice.
“It’s no use.”
“You need to explain what’s going on so I can understand. This person isn’t Juwon hyung. Hyung might glare at me, but he’d never turn his head away like some shy schoolgirl.”
“Shit, if that’s not Yoon Juwon, then who the hell is it? I had him tied to the bed all day—are you seriously saying someone swapped out the real Yoon Juwon with a fake?”
I gasped at Hajin’s words about a fake Yoon Juwon. But Hahyun, missing the point entirely, seemed more upset about something else.
“Just because something’s wrong with Yoon Juwon doesn’t erase what you did.”
“What did I do wrong?”
“You were supposed to take him to the basement, but you never came back out! When I said I’d tie him up, you insisted you could do it better!”
I stared at Hahyun in disbelief. The person he supposedly liked had amnesia, and he still wanted to lock him in the basement… Hahyun glared at Hajin, refusing to back down.
“Is that really what’s important right now? Yoon Juwon has lost his memory!”
At least Hajin seemed somewhat reasonable. He spoke through gritted teeth while Hahyun stood his ground.
“That’s why I’m asking for an explanation that actually makes sense.”
“He has amnesia. He doesn’t even know who he is.”
“Come on, even with amnesia, he’d remember us! Even if he doesn’t remember himself, he should remember us.”
“He doesn’t remember you or me.”
“Then that’s not amnesia—that’s coming back from the dead.”
Tired of going in circles, Hajin snapped irritably.
“Even if he came back from the dead, he’d still have his memories! Can’t you see he doesn’t remember us at all? I’m telling you, his memories are completely gone!”
If I had amnesia, wouldn’t forgetting you two be perfectly normal? Why do you think that’s weird?
It was absurd, but I was just starting to feel relieved that my amnesia act seemed to be working when Hahyun circled back to the original issue.
“But why is he still lying there? We need to get him up and tie him down. What does amnesia have to do with taking him to the basement?”
And there it was—my worst fear coming true. I’d thought that by playing amnesiac, I could at least live above ground and see daylight, but Hahyun was far crazier than I’d imagined.
“Ah! Is it because we don’t have a wheelchair? You should’ve said so earlier. I’ll go get one.”
“I don’t think the basement is a good idea…”
Hahyun’s expression turned dark and sinister. His madness made my skin crawl. Thankfully, Hajin objected, but Hahyun ignored him and continued down his own twisted train of thought.
“Oh, right! Before I get the wheelchair, I should untie him first, give him a massage, and then take him down. He shouldn’t be uncomfortable. Our Juwon hyung…”
Suddenly, tears started streaming down Hahyun’s face. I was dumbfounded. Who should be crying right now? Why was he the one in tears?
Faced with the immediate threat of being locked in a basement, I was too shocked to move. Hahyun was already turning toward the door, ready to fetch that wheelchair.
Hajin grabbed his wrist firmly.
“Seo Hahyun. Stop. The situation has changed.”
“What’s changed? Everyone in the world might change, but Yoon Juwon doesn’t. After everything he’s put us through, do you still trust him?”
Hahyun pointed his finger at me. I flinched and held my breath.
“Just shut up for a second. I’m thinking.”
“I think you thought enough yesterday.”
In this urgent moment, my mind raced.
What do I do? What if Hajin can’t stop him? I’m as good as dead.
I need to survive. I need to live. Whatever happens later, I should at least be able to see sunlight while I’m alive.
But how?
I couldn’t reason with these lunatics, and I couldn’t find a way to escape. Crying and begging might shake them a little, but it wouldn’t be a real solution.
My first priority was to say something—anything—to stop these two from spiraling.
“Excuse me, you two.”
They both looked at me at once. My next move was to ask for something small.
In the original story, Hahyun had despaired when he realized he was useless to Juwon. Maybe if I showed him he was needed, his thinking might shift.
“I’m sorry, but my throat is killing me. Could I please have some water? Since I can’t move, I’d really appreciate it if you could help me drink it.”
Despite my brave attempt, the brothers showed no reaction. Was this not enough to move these psychos?
Just as despair was setting in, they both asked simultaneously:
“What kind of water? Hot? Cold?”
“Hyuuung… should I bring Evian or Samdasu?”
So the bottled water brands are the same in this world. Hearing Hahyun mention those brands reminded me of the BL “psycho top” handbook that Hyunju had given me as background reading for her novel.
Wasn’t Evian supposed to be the signature drink of psycho tops?
I asked for Evian, hoping these psycho tops would feel some sort of kinship. Then something amazing happened. The people who’d just been debating whether to lock me in a basement completely changed their tune over a simple request for water.
“I’ll go get it.”
“Why are you going? He asked me.”
Hajin’s eyes narrowed dangerously as he looked at Hahyun. It was a look that said he wouldn’t show mercy, brother or not. Hahyun raised his eyebrows right back, refusing to yield.
They glared at each other for what felt like forever over who would bring the water. Hajin broke the silence first.
“Let’s do it this way. I’ll bring the water…”
“I said no!”
“Damn it, let me finish!”
“What?”
“I’ll bring it, and you can feed him. Deal?”
Even to me, that seemed like the best compromise. But Hahyun, still dissatisfied, jutted out his lower lip and kept glaring at Hajin as he left the room.
After confirming Hajin was completely gone, Hahyun turned to look at me. Despite his round, innocent-looking eyes, there was madness lurking in their depths. A creepy feeling made me tremble.
He walked toward me slowly. The closer he got, the more my body instinctively shrank back.
Don’t be scared. He’s just a bit… off.
After that mental pep talk, I spoke first.
“Excuse me…”
“Not ‘excuse me.’ It’s Hahyun.”
“Ah… since I still don’t have my memories back—is my name Yoon Juwon?”
“Yes. Your name is as pretty as your face.”
Normally, if someone said this to me, I would’ve beaten the hell out of them for such creepy talk. But right now, whether I’d get to go outside and see the sun or spend the rest of my life locked in a basement hung in the balance. I could endure any amount of cringe.
“I see. Um, I really don’t remember anything. What exactly happened…”
Hahyun suddenly pressed his finger to my lips and lowered his voice.
“Shhh… be quiet. Didn’t you see how pissed Hajin hyung got because you don’t remember him? Your voice could carry outside. But you know what? That level of anger is nothing. When he gets really angry, even I can’t stop him, so be careful.”
I nodded at Hahyun’s ominous warning. Given this advice, I wondered if Hajin might actually be the crazier one, contrary to my initial assessment.
Hahyun’s cheeks flushed red as he said:
“Hyung, you haven’t forgotten me, have you? It’s okay, just be honest. You only forgot Hajin hyung, right? You just felt too bad to tell him, so you pretended to forget me too—isn’t that it?”
“…”
Caught off guard by the unexpected question, I stared at Hahyun, who continued with a knowing smile:
“I’ll pretend I don’t know, so just tell me quietly. Between us, who know everything about each other… why hide something like this? Hmm?”
In the original story, Hahyun always interpreted Juwon’s true feelings however he pleased. Of course, the real Juwon never gave him the answers he wanted.
What should I do? Should I say I remember? Or tell him the truth—that I’m a transmigrator?
As I hesitated, Hahyun’s expression gradually hardened.
“What’s this? Have you decided not to talk to me? Even though you talked to Hajin hyung?”
Right—there was the variable called Seo Hajin to consider.
I put out the immediate fire first.
“I’m trying my best to remember.”
“That’s more like it. Our Juwon hyung couldn’t possibly have forgotten me.”
If I claimed to remember only one of them, the enraged Seo Hajin might throw that potted plant at me this time instead of away from me.
And if I said I was a transmigrator? The brothers might join forces to kill me for erasing their beloved Yoon Juwon.
So I decided to become Yoon Juwon who’d lost all his memories.
I looked at Hahyun. Even now, he was licking his lips, his cheeks still flushed.
“I really don’t know, but… did you two tie me up here? Or did you come to rescue me after someone else tied me up?”
Hahyun blinked his large eyes a few times. He went still for a moment, like a toy with dead batteries. It was an unexpected reaction from someone who’d just been insisting I should say I remembered him. After a beat, he spoke.
“Hyung, why are you changing the subject? Don’t tell me you really forgot me and that’s why you’re dodging the question?”
Hahyun’s delayed response was his way of processing the fact that I’d actually forgotten him. I could only marvel at his truly insane level of obsession.
Hahyun seemed to have a much stronger fixation than Hajin—not just on his object of desire, but on what he believed in and his own convictions. Only then did I understand why Hajin had said Hahyun would die if Juwon died.
“Um… our hyung isn’t answering. I’m so sad…”
Hahyun’s expression suddenly shifted from playful boy to young man who’d received a terminal diagnosis. His pitiful look almost swayed me for a moment, but I quickly snapped out of it. The person with a death sentence right now wasn’t him—it was me.
