Chapter 18
“Hajin-ssi, Hahyun-ssi, listen carefully to what I’m about to say. Are you only going to live with me for a day or two and then stop?”
“No, why would we…”
“That’s absolutely not going to…”
“Stop! I understand. You’re saying you’ll live with me for a long time, right? Don’t answer, just nod.”
Since I could easily guess what they were about to say, I cut them off, and they both obediently nodded.
“If that’s the case, let’s live more comfortably. Just forget about the previous Yoon Juwon and look only at who I am now. The current me isn’t that sensitive, and I eat everything well. If you continue to be this sensitive about everything I say and do, even if I have a request, I won’t be able to speak up because it’s too burdensome.”
I’m not sure if the brothers understood, but my words contained several meanings. To sum it up, I was saying let’s stop overreacting and live calmly. After a moment, Hahyun spoke first.
“Hmm… That’s not possible. The reason is because we can’t forget the past Yoon Juwon. I can’t tell you everything, but to us, hyung is like our savior, and we’ve vowed never to forget you for as long as we live. They say a person who doesn’t acknowledge gratitude isn’t a real person.”
“Gratitude…?”
What kind of favor did Yoon Juwon do for them that made them treat him like an enemy rather than a benefactor?
“Hahyun is right about that. We can never forget the past Yoon Juwon.”
When even Hajin took that stance, I felt even more frustrated. It doesn’t make sense that Hajin would harbor such deep hatred if Yoon Juwon had done them some favor… I was curious, but what was important now was preventing their outbursts, so I decided to focus only on that.
“No, that’s not what I meant. I’m asking you to forget how sensitive I used to be. Running away, self-harm, violence, swearing… things like that.”
Hahyun blinked as if he didn’t understand.
“Why suddenly?”
I wondered how many times I needed to repeat the same thing for them to understand.
“Because you seem too fixated on me because of my past behavior. I told you, it’s burdensome.”
“What? Burdensome? We’re burdensome to you? How could you…”
Hahyun, fixated on a single word, blurted out whatever came to mind. Tired of arguing, I decided to stop at this point for today and kept my mouth shut. That’s when Hajin laughed softly.
“Juwon, I understand what you mean… Hahyun, look, don’t you get it? I don’t either.”
“I don’t understand what you’re saying, Hajin-ssi. If you understood what I meant, how can you say you don’t understand? What does that even mean?”
“I understand that too. What you know is that we’re crazy about Yoon Juwon and kidnapped and imprisoned him for no reason, right?”
Feeling that nodding would lead to something serious, I shook my head to indicate that wasn’t the case. Hajin smiled faintly and said:
“I know that’s what you’re thinking, so there’s no need to deny it.”
“…Yes. That’s actually true.”
“So it’s only natural. You don’t know the real reason why we took your phone and don’t let you go outside. It’s natural that you don’t understand our obsession.”
I refrained from saying, “Then just tell me the reason and it would be simple.” Hajin wasn’t stupid, and there must have been a reason for keeping it secret all this time. I was already beginning to fear the confusion that would come from opening Pandora’s box. Reading my hesitation, Hajin continued calmly:
“I understand what you meant about being uncomfortable with our sensitivity. I’m not sure if we can control it, but we’ll try. And…”
Hajin closed his mouth and stared into the distance. His eyes seemed to be searching for the most optimal words in the current situation. I expected Hahyun to interrupt, but he seemed to understand the seriousness of the situation and looked at Hajin’s lips with a tense expression.
“I’ve been thinking. Should I tell you? Or is it better for you to remain in the dark?…”
Secretly hoping he wouldn’t say anything, I casually asked:
“And the conclusion?”
“I think it’s better for you not to know, because if you find out, you might have to be tied up again…”
After hearing this much, without further thought, I quickly conveyed my opinion:
“I don’t want to know. If it drove me to madness, it must have been incredibly painful… I think I lost my memory probably because it was too hard to bear that incident? If so, there’s no point in knowing.”
Hajin nodded seriously.
“I think that’s for the best. Then you need to understand us too. It’s not that we refused to tell you the reason, but you rejected knowing it, so you must acknowledge that we have no choice but to be blindly obsessive, and understand us.”
Hajin was indeed a difficult person to deal with. He knew how to think rationally and framed each word with consideration for the other person, preemptively blocking any potential rebuttals.
However, there was clearly a contradiction in Hajin’s words. No reason could justify kidnapping and imprisonment. But since I couldn’t argue this point against Hajin, I simply had to nod.
“No need to make it difficult. Just live happily here with us. If there’s anything you want, just say so.”
The moment I heard Hajin’s words, three characters I had never thought of before popped into my mind.
‘Runway.’
I was startled. Not wanting to go to the film industry or have a screenwriting studio, but suddenly thinking of a runway…
In this incomprehensible flow of thoughts, I suppressed the urge to say those three characters aloud.
“As long as it’s not about meeting other people or standing on a runway again, we can give you anything you want. The same goes for Hahyun.”
As I nodded with an awkward smile, Hahyun followed suit and smiled.
“That’s right. Just ask for anything!”
***
After the brothers each stole a kiss from my lips for different reasons, a comfortable life followed. It was a daily routine made possible because they didn’t put their hands on my body. Of course, it still bothered me that we bathed together or slept in the same bed, but it wasn’t unbearable.
When I opened my eyes in the morning, I always woke to the sound of Hajin, who’d already gotten up, waking Hahyun. After eating the prepared meal, I spent my time watching DVDs they’d procured at my request or reading books. Having lived such a busy and hardworking life in my original world, I’d never rested like this before, so for the first few weeks, I could enjoy it, thinking I was on vacation. But that only lasts a day or two; after more than a month of the same routine, it became increasingly tedious.
If I could go for a walk in between or even visit a nearby mart, it would be fine, but the brothers insisted that while everything else was allowed, going outside was absolutely forbidden. Even though I wasn’t originally the type who enjoyed wandering around, the fact that it was absolutely forbidden made me feel an urge to go out even more.
“Hey, hyung… Why do you look like that? Is something uncomfortable? Are you in pain somewhere?”
Hahyun, who asked such questions despite having no intention of taking me to the hospital if I were sick, seemed cruel. One day, when I was too bored and tried to go to the hospital by claiming I was sick, they called a doctor to the house instead of taking me outside. Apparently, it was a personal physician who’d been looking after them since they were young. Just how much money did they have to command such an expensive doctor… Anyway, as my confinement extended, I fell into a state of lethargy, spending more and more time staring blankly out the window without doing anything.
Today, as I sat staring blankly out the window, Hahyun stuck close to me and started grumbling.
“Haa… Now you’re not even answering. I was happy when Juwon hyung lost his memory, but I guess your true nature hasn’t changed. It’s the repetition of the same thing again. I knew this would happen. I should have just done what I thought from the beginning instead of listening to Seo Hajin!”
Hahyun burst into tears like a child after saying those chilling words. Anxious about when he might have another outburst, I quickly turned toward him and gently embraced his shoulders.
“Hahyun-ssi, you’re misunderstanding. The reason I didn’t answer just now isn’t because I have any complaints.”
Wiping his tears with his fingertips, Hahyun asked:
“Th-then? Why aren’t you answering?”
“It’s because I feel stifled being confined to the house. Hahyun-ssi goes to school, and Hajin-ssi seems to be handling company work for a bit these days, but with only me staying still at home, it feels like both my body and mind are stiffening.”
Hahyun said firmly:
“What’s not allowed is not allowed. No matter how pitifully hyung acts, going outside is absolutely forbidden.”
“Why is it really not allowed? Are you afraid I might run away?”
I thought it would naturally be for that reason in this world of possession, just as it was in the original work. However, the brothers seemed to believe I wouldn’t run away, given that they occasionally went out without me. Then, why on earth were they trying to keep me confined to the house?
