Chapter 84
“He… passed away?”
—Well, it was just discovered…
“Is everything in the news true? Our house caught fire?”
—Yes. We’re doing everything we can to put it out, but it’s difficult. Your mother is still missing.
“Why? Why did the fire start?”
The classroom fell silent. The other students must have seen the news, too. My voice trembled as I pressed Kim Guhyeon for answers.
—We don’t know yet. The cause hasn’t been determined. Our priority is rescue, so…
“No, why the hell—”
Suddenly, Han Jaemin’s face flashed through my mind. Could he really have done something like this? I shook my head, but combined with yesterday’s text, I couldn’t ignore it. I hung up with Kim Guhyeon and pulled out Han Jaemin’s phone from my bag, calling him. He didn’t answer.
After several attempts, Han Jaemin still didn’t pick up. I finally grabbed my bag and left the classroom. My legs kept giving out, and a security guard caught me before I could fall. It was an unimaginable situation. Why go this far? Why? Even as I ran toward home, my feet kept stumbling.
The moment I turned into the alley near our house, thick smoke blocked my vision. The area was already swarming with reporters.
“You can’t go in.”
“I’m family.”
“He’s Director Yu’s son.”
The police blocking my path finally stepped aside. I could barely see inside the barricade. The person lying on the stretcher, covered with a cloth—that was probably Father. My hands shook violently as I confirmed his face. Though severely disfigured, it was unmistakably him. A wave of nausea hit me, and I covered my mouth. Paramedics rushed over to check on me.
“Are you okay? Feeling dizzy?”
“I’m fine.”
I turned away from where Father’s body lay.
“……Can I go somewhere else?”
“Yes. We’ve reserved a nearby hotel, so wait there for now.”
Kim Guhyeon gave quick instructions to a subordinate, who then hurried over to me. I followed him out past the barricade.
“Are you Yu Gyuhwan’s son?”
“Is it confirmed that my father is dead?”
“How are you feeling?”
“Just one word!”
Reporters swarmed like bees, bombarding me with questions. Weakly, I stared at the ground, almost leaning on the security guard. The flashes blinded me.
“We’re going straight to the hotel. Stay in your room and don’t come out.”
I nodded. The car was silent. My mind still hadn’t processed anything. In an instant, I’d lost both parents. The house was gone. Everything I had—it was all an illusion, slipping through my fingers like sand.
“Haah…”
I sighed deeply. The driver glanced at me in the rearview mirror. Ridiculously, the last images of my parents—whom I’d resented so much—kept replaying in my mind.
***
“Once Hyunjae leaves, you need to pull yourself together.”
“Why? Was he my human shield?”
Father just looked at me silently after my sharp retort. His face seemed troubled.
“Is that really how you see it?”
“How else should I take it?”
“I said that because I know how hard it is to distance yourself from someone you were closest to.”
“Oh, really?”
I sneered.
“Then why did you tear apart a perfectly normal parent-child relationship?”
Father took off his reading glasses and rubbed his face.
“……I regret it deeply.”
His words shocked me into blinking.
“At the time, I thought it was for the best.”
……
“Now everyone’s telling me it wasn’t.”
……
“If only I could go back.”
“Go back? You’d like that?”
My surprise turned to frustration. I knew better than anyone the weight of “going back in time.”
“If you went back, knowing everything… could you really face Hyunjae’s father?”
……
“Even if time rewound, would your crimes stop haunting you?”
……
“Rewinding time doesn’t change you, Father. You wouldn’t be going back to the past—you’d just be living a second life.”
“Your words are full of emotion. As if you know something.”
“I do. That’s why I can say it.”
……
“You’re just a murderer, Father. That’s all.”
“……You’re right.”
……
“And I’m your son.”
Our eyes met in the air. I couldn’t even bear to look at his regret-filled expression. His remorse felt genuine, and that only made me angrier. I wanted him to take responsibility for every moment of Yu Hyunjae’s ruined life.
“At least you can rest easy now.”
“What?”
“You kept me from getting close to that eyesore of a family.”
“……Yu Chanhee!”
“I’m relieved, too. Now Hyunjae can finally get away from our trash family.”
With that, I stormed out. Mother was waiting silently in the hallway.
“Chanhee, I heard you fighting with your father…”
“We didn’t fight.”
“Your father’s having a hard time, too. Can’t you forgive him? I’m asking you, as your mother.”
“Mother.”
I stopped and looked down at her.
“What makes you think I’d listen to you? You’re just as guilty.”
“Chanhee, I—”
“If you knew what Father was doing, you should’ve reported him. Or at least divorced him. I’d rather have lived in a one-room basement than endure this hell, knowing I was related to him.”
“Chanhee…”
“What’s the point of growing up rich? I’ll just be the murderer’s son for the rest of my life.”
Tears welled in Mother’s eyes. My chest ached, but my mind grew colder.
“There’s only one reason I haven’t reported Father.”
……
“I don’t want to complicate things for Hyunjae until he’s strong enough. He should study comfortably with Father’s money.”
“Report? Chanhee, that was so long ago…”
“Mother.”
……
“At least let me keep the last shred of feeling that lets me call you Mother.”
She didn’t answer. I slowly walked past her, making sure our paths wouldn’t cross again. After that, I stayed on the second floor to avoid my parents entirely.
That was the last time I saw them.
***
At the hotel, I collapsed onto the bed, drained. I felt sick. I should sleep, but my racing heart made even lying still unbearable.
That’s when a phone started ringing in my bag. I immediately recognized it as Han Jaemin’s phone. I sat up and reached inside.
—Hey.
“Are you insane?”
—You ignored my calls for a whole month, holed up in your house.
“Are you crazy?! You psycho bastard!”
—Oh, so you answer when I burn down your house? Should I set the hotel on fire next time you ignore me?
“You fucking bastard! Who do you think you are? You think you can do this and get away with it?”
—Yeah. I will.
“The world isn’t yours! You can’t just do whatever you want!”
—Not yet, but it will be soon.
“Fuck you. You—”
—Fuck you, Chanhee.
……
—It’s all your fault.
……
—Your dad made Hyunjae an orphan? Your fault. Your dad fed you? Your fault. Yu Dohyun died? Your fault. Your parents dying?
……
—You broke the contract. This is just the price.
……
—That’s how the world works, Chanhee. You don’t get to do whatever you want. Got it?
I was speechless. Han Jaemin’s logic was full of leaps, but the conclusion wasn’t entirely wrong. It’s my fault they’re all dead. It wasn’t true, but it felt true.
—Now that you get it, shut up and do as I say.
