Chapter 28
Inside the car that had started moving again, we were looking at the photos taken by the cheerful married couple.
They had been so enthusiastic about it that if it weren’t for Yoon-jae’s polite but firm farewell, they might still be taking pictures even now.
Anyway, as she stared at the traces of the café still left clearly in her phone, she couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of wonder.
All the photos looked similar—except for one.
The very first picture they had taken.
[Why, isn’t this the one?]
Click.
It was taken in that brief instant when their startled gazes met.
Oddly enough, there wasn’t any awkwardness in the photo. In fact, they almost looked close.
‘No, no way. What am I thinking?’
This must be what people mean when they talk about deceptive pictures.
Shaking her head at the fleeting moment that photo had captured, she glanced sideways.
Sneakily.
“……”
In the driver’s seat, Yoon-jae was silently focused on driving. The moment when his hand had tightly held hers flashed through her mind, and she quickly flipped the phone over.
Thump, thump.
‘It’s just because this is unfamiliar. That’s all.’
When she was young, there had been no one to take pictures for her, and as an adult, there was neither anyone to take them with, nor time to spare. The few photos she had were mostly from school yearbooks or formal events.
So it was only natural that taking a photo together with someone like this felt unfamiliar.
Yes—that had to be the only reason her heart was racing.
Also, she hadn’t expected to take a photo with this face.
‘My face.’
Was it really something she could even call mine? The reflection in the window filled her with a tangled mix of emotions.
‘This is… bad, in a different way.’
How much more accustomed would she become? It almost felt as if “Go Woori” was fading away, replaced by this face that no longer felt strange.
She couldn’t tell whether it was adaptation—or if her soul was slowly being swallowed by this body.
If only there were a signpost of some kind. But wishing for that was probably too much to ask.
“…Phew.”
Letting out a faint sigh, she relaxed her shoulders and looked out the speeding window.
The car didn’t stop, heading steadily toward its destination.
After driving a little longer, the car finally halted, and they took in the sight of an unfamiliar place.
Across the road stood a columbarium—a white, solemn building so vast that it couldn’t be taken in at a single glance.
It was the weekend, so there were plenty of visitors, yet the atmosphere remained astonishingly quiet.
Except for one corner.
“Over here, we’ve got lots of kinds!”
“Come this way, please!”
The florists’ eager calls somehow left her both dazed and sharply alert at once.
“Pretty lady, over here!”
Even the contradiction of her being here in this situation faded briefly at that.
“Shall we go over there?”
“……”
It definitely wasn’t because they’d called her pretty.
Ignoring Yoon-jae’s glance, she followed him into one of the flower shops.
‘What am I even doing?’
She had a feeling that this kind of emotion would never end as long as she kept thinking.
Taking a quiet breath, she looked at the colorful flowers and asked,
“What do you think of Go Woori?”
Her tone was calm and plain.
“You still don’t have any thoughts about her?”
Though her voice was softer than usual, considering where they were, it was understandable.
Yoon-jae tilted his head slightly.
“Do I need to?”
It was the indifferent response she’d expected. She shook her head faintly, letting her gaze drift away as she murmured, almost to herself,
“No, you don’t. It’s just… all of this feels strange. Normally, you’d be living your life, I’d be living mine, and Go Woori would probably be in America by now, living well.”
She no longer questioned how such an impossible situation had come to be.
Still, she couldn’t avoid a faint bitterness.
But Yoon-jae looked puzzled at the precise mention of a place.
“I thought she was going to Hawaii.”
Oh no.
Only she and her secretary knew that Hawaii had merely been a stopover before heading to the mainland United States.
Feigning nonchalance, she shrugged.
“Hawaii’s part of the U.S., isn’t it? Anyway, that’s not the point. What I actually wanted to ask was—”
Quickly steering the conversation elsewhere, she continued,
“I felt sorry for her. What about you?”
“……”
“Did you ever feel even a little sorry for her?”
It was something she had been curious about ever since she’d learned the truth behind the diary’s words of affection.
Of course, it wasn’t the kind of question that had a clear answer. But if she didn’t ask it today—what might be her last chance—she might never be able to again.
Yet the reply was as emotionless as ever.
“Not really.”
The same careless tone as before, as if it truly didn’t matter.
[Why should I?]
Just like that time—utterly detached from anything related to “Go Woori.”
A dull ache pulsed in her chest.
‘What is this?’
Her heart clenched suddenly, making her bite her lip. It had been happening now and then—her heartbeat tightening or trembling wildly for no clear reason.
‘Do I have some kind of condition?’
While she was absently rubbing her chest, Yoon-jae picked up a bouquet accented with bright red roses.
“I don’t think she’d want to be thought of that way.”
Coincidentally, they were both fond of the color red.
But regardless of preference, emotion surged in her unexpectedly. Even if his words were logical, they struck a nerve.
“Having money doesn’t make you everything.”
“I didn’t mean money.”
“Then what?”
Her voice came out sharper than intended. In response, he simply extended the flowers toward her.
“Conviction.”
“……”
“Something unshakable.”
Caught off guard, she took the bouquet. It was beautiful—small, but lush and vivid.
She had received flowers meant for her. Somehow, that made a lot of thoughts stir.
‘Go Woori.’
Only now, standing here, did Yoon-jae really think of her again.
From their first meeting to their last, her confidence and bright eyes had been unmistakable—qualities that had, ironically, led to their broken engagement.
What he had wanted was a doll that would simply follow his will.
And the “doll” he had found was the woman standing before him. Until recently, she had been the perfect image of what he desired.
But now…
“So that’s what you thought.”
Could those shining eyes on that pale face really belong to a doll?
At some point, he had started finding his gaze drawn to her again and again.
Unaware of his lingering stare, she looked down at the bouquet and swallowed a bitter smile.
Perhaps Yoon-jae did know her better than she realized.
She was someone who had always kept moving forward—never letting loneliness drag her down.
She had never lost confidence. Whatever the situation, she always lived doing her best for herself.
‘Because I’m me.’
The words of comfort she had once heard at that event came back to her now, bringing a second wave of solace. She lifted her head and looked at him.
“I’m glad.”
In that moment, even while inside Ae-jung’s body, she was completely Go Woori.
And that must have caused some kind of dissonance—Yoon-jae’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“Do you… know something about Go Woori?”
Her heart gave a hot, startled thud.
“……Why?”
“You just seem like you do.”
Where had he picked that up from? His intuition was almost too sharp.
Normally, Go Woori would’ve made a fuss or brushed it off dramatically—but today, she didn’t feel like doing that.
She pressed her dry lips together a few times, then finally spoke.
“I just… feel sorry for her.”
Neither a denial nor an admission—an ambiguous answer.
After paying, she stepped ahead, leaving Yoon-jae to follow behind. A cool breeze brushed past, carrying away her next quiet words.
“She just… went too soon, that’s all.”
Her faint self-talk was laden with meaning and drifted away with the wind.
“……”
It wasn’t the first time, but again, she spoke as if about someone else.
Too often to dismiss as mere slip-ups, but Yoon-jae said nothing.
“Let’s go.”
For now, following her—fragile as a candle flickering in the wind—was what mattered.
Having already found where “Go Woori” was laid to rest, the two moved without hesitation.
Step by step, as they approached reality itself, she felt a strange sense of calm settle inside her.
‘Maybe… I can finally let go.’
A vague but comforting thought.
For the “Go Woori” she herself hadn’t been able to let go of, she kept walking.
And just as she was about to turn the corner behind Yoon-jae—
Thud.
“Ouch.”
Looking down at the bouquet, she hadn’t noticed he’d stopped, and bumped her head into his back.
It didn’t hurt much—just startled her.
Rubbing her forehead, she asked,
“What’s wrong?”
But Yoon-jae didn’t move.
‘What’s with him?’
Curious at his sudden stillness, she stepped to the side—and froze as well.
Her face went pale, all color draining away.
Her pupils trembled as if the ground had just shifted beneath her.
And before she knew it, a voice escaped from somewhere deep inside—not from her mind, but her very soul.
“…Father?”
She didn’t even notice Yoon-jae’s bewildered gaze turning toward her.
