Chapter 04
. Maybe
A month later.
“Is it true that I just need to endure it?”
Gyeonhee asked again to be sure.
“Yes. All you have to do is sit and watch quietly.”
Dr. Cho, the psychotherapist, glanced briefly at the table.
“Hm.”
With a shallow sigh, Gyeonhee shifted her gaze to the mess of jigsaw puzzle pieces scattered across the table.
Her expressionless face gradually stiffened, and as time passed, her fingertips twitched with unease.
She wanted desperately to reach out and fit the pieces together, but clenched her fists tight as though trying to resist. Soon, unable to endure it any longer, she snatched up the puzzle pieces and began frantically assembling them.
The puzzle was completed in no time.
A brief sense of relief flashed across Gyeonhee’s face.
“Haah.”
But soon, a hollow sigh slipped from her lips.
“Your obsessive-compulsive symptoms are quite severe. The compulsion toward ordering and hoarding behaviors is especially strong.”
Dr. Cho, who had been observing, subtly shifted two interlocking wooden star pieces out of alignment as he spoke.
“Is pursuing perfection really such a bad thing?”
Gyeonhee retorted while simultaneously adjusting the wooden star back into perfect symmetry.
“Of course, not all compulsions are bad. But if the root cause isn’t treated, it could trigger much greater psychological issues. Obsessive-compulsive tendencies often begin with anxiety, you see.”
“…So you’re saying I have a problem?”
“Not so much that—you just need to focus more on the underlying cause. Let’s talk about your childhood. What kind of people were your parents?”
Gyeonhee flinched for a moment but soon returned to her usual stoic expression.
“My father passed away when I was young, and my mother is the vice chairwoman of LaSeong Group.”
“Mhm. And aside from her position, what kind of person is she?”
“…She’s a good person.”
With that, Gyeonhee checked the time.
“I have a meeting. Let’s end it here for today.”
Without waiting for a response, Gyeonhee rose from her seat and walked out of the counseling room.
***
With a scowl, Gyeonhee climbed into the car.
“Oh? You came out early,” Secretary Kwon, waiting in the car, said.
“Switch therapists. Actually, scratch the therapy schedule altogether.”
Her brow furrowed in irritation.
“Why? What did they say?”
“You don’t need to know.”
“Come on, wouldn’t it be better to keep trying? They said you could fix it.”
“And how would you know that?”
“Look at your hair.”
“My hair?”
Gyeonhee checked her hairstyle in the rearview mirror.
“You can’t stand it unless things are perfectly symmetrical, right? But the fact that your part isn’t perfectly even now—that means you can get better.”
“…Want me to fix your fingers into symmetry too?”
“A-ah, no.”
Glaring at him, Gyeonhee’s eyes narrowed, but then something seemed to occur to her. She turned back to look at Secretary Kwon.
“Have you found Cheonseon yet?”
“What? Ah… not yet.”
At the question, Secretary Kwon’s shoulders slumped.
“Just carry a recorder with you. Wouldn’t that save me from repeating myself all the time?”
“S-sorry…”
“Haa.”
Letting out a displeased sigh, Gyeonhee gazed at the sky.
It had already been a month since she disappeared. He’d tried looking for her afterward, but it was as if she had never existed—no trace could be found.
“…Turn the car around.”
“Huh? Where to…?”
“Where do you think? Since you can’t do your job right, I’ll handle it myself.”
Realizing at last where Gyeonhee intended to go, Secretary Kwon gripped the wheel and steered.
***
“I’m sorry, but I don’t know.”
Eunyoung’s voice was tense, and it was because of the man sitting across from her.
“You saying you don’t know doesn’t make any sense.”
The cold, low voice belonged to none other than Gyeonhee. He had scoured every place in search of Seon, yet hadn’t caught so much as her shadow.
Frustrated beyond measure, he had come directly to her workplace.
“Her phone’s off, so I can’t reach her either.”
“Then where is she?”
“I told you—I don’t know. How many times must I say it?”
Eunyoung sighed deeply in exasperation. Her response only stoked Gyeonhee’s displeasure. He was forced to speak more words than usual, wasting time unnecessarily.
All because of Cheonseon.
That frustration soon turned into anger directed at her.
“…Fine.”
He nodded and suddenly stood up. Startled by his abrupt change in demeanor, Eunyoung stared at him nervously.
“I’ll help jog your memory.”
Taking out his phone, Gyeonhee made a call.
“Hey, Secretary Kwon. You know that company, Kids Fan?”
—Kids Fan? Oh, the one that just started supplying to us recently?
“How much did they deliver?”
As he spoke, he kept his gaze fixed firmly on Eunyoung.
—Not sure about the exact amount. Why? Want me to check?
“No, that’s not necessary. Return the entire shipment.”
—What?
“Clear it out. All of it.”
After giving the order, he hung up and looked back at Eunyoung.
“M-Mr. Woo…”
Realizing his intent, Eunyoung bit her lower lip.
“Would this help jog your memory?”
He smiled faintly as he spoke.
“There’s a signed contract—do you really think you can just cancel it like that? If we take legal action…”
“I’d love that. I’ve got lawyers sitting around collecting billions while doing nothing. They’d be delighted.”
Knowing his words were no exaggeration, Eunyoung’s expression hardened.
“So, your choice: talk, or go bankrupt.”
He asked the question as though offering her a favor.
“P-President…”
Aria, who had been watching from the side, looked at Eunyoung with frightened eyes.
The Conscensio retail entry was a project they had staked everything on.
They were supplying to a few small shops, but the volume was nothing compared to this. If the entry was canceled, the blow might collapse the company altogether.
“You probably can’t answer right now, out of shallow loyalty. Think it over. Talk it through with Cheonseon, if you must. Just remember—”
Rising from his seat, he finished:
“I’m not a patient man.”
With that, he strode out of the office.
Click. The sound of the door shutting left Aria trembling as she rushed to Eunyoung’s side.
“…What do we do now? Are we finished?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll… find a way.”
Eunyoung tried to reassure her, but she herself knew better than anyone that there was no real way out.
***
A detached house with a wide garden.
Back home, Gyeonhee put on gloves and patted a menacing-looking pit bull terrier.
He had raised the dog for about four years, and named it Terry, after its breed.
“Where the hell are you?”
His brows furrowed as he muttered to himself.
He had had plenty of experience with women, so he could read Seon’s emotions at a glance.
Whenever he raised his voice, he could see her feelings reflected in her eyes.
Don’t leave me. I was wrong…
From her gaze, he’d always confirmed that she couldn’t live without him. That was why he couldn’t understand this.
At first, he thought she wouldn’t last a week.
He had been certain she’d come crawling back in tears, begging forgiveness, as she always had.
But it had already been a month. Her phone was off, she’d even moved—he had no idea where she was.
“Whine, whimper…”
The dog whined restlessly, tugging at its leash as if it wanted to run.
Gyeonhee deliberately loosened the leash. Instantly, Terry bounded happily across the garden.
After watching for a moment, Gyeonhee turned and walked the other way.
At once, the dog dragged its leash back toward him, pressing its muzzle against his legs as if pleading.
Seon should be like this too. She had always been this way.
“Why the hell aren’t you coming back?”
His voice broke in an irritated groan.
“She didn’t… die or something, right?”
It never crossed his mind that she simply wouldn’t return. Which was why the thought of an accident filled him with unease.
“Woof! Woof!”
The dog suddenly barked furiously, sensing someone’s presence.
It was Secretary Kwon.
“Terry, quiet.”
Though pit bulls had been bred for fighting, at Gyeonhee’s command, its tail instantly lowered.
“God, no matter how many times I see that dog, I can’t get used to it.”
Keeping his distance, Secretary Kwon spoke nervously.
“What did you find?”
Seeing him, Gyeonhee’s expression turned tense.
“W-well, she entered France and then went on to Spain. But after that…”
“Spain? Nothing happened, right? No accident?”
He asked incredulously.
“Accident? What do you mean?”
“Never mind. Tch.”
He sighed heavily, trying to rein in his anger.
He felt foolish for worrying she’d been in an accident, and his fury toward Seon only intensified.
“Find her. Now.”
“I-I’m trying, but…”
“I said find her. Whatever it costs, whatever it takes, bring her to me. Got it?”
“Uh…”
Normally prickly, his mood was sharper than ever. Secretary Kwon reluctantly agreed.
“And keep tabs on that woman Eunyoung. If she comes back, she’ll go to her first.”
“Okay.”
Jotting down the instruction in his notebook, Secretary Kwon nodded.
“What are you waiting for? Get moving—ugh!”
Suddenly, a spasm of pain doubled Gyeonhee over.
“H-hey, what’s wrong? Are you sick?”
Seeing his pale complexion, Secretary Kwon asked in alarm.
“I’m fine. Just leave it… Just go…”
But the pain that had started in the morning had spread from his stomach to his lower back.
And now, dizziness struck on top of it.
“…Urgh.”
Beads of cold sweat trickled down his forehead.
***
Los Arcos, France.
It had already been a month since Seon left Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port in southern France.
For other pilgrims, it was only a few days’ journey, but for her it had taken an entire month. She thought walking would be easy, but her tangled emotions made even a single step unbearably heavy.
She had come on this journey to forget him, but the more she tried, the more vividly his face appeared.
The irony was cruel.
“Phew.”
On top of it all, she was suffering menstrual cramps. With a weary expression, she lifted her gaze.
Before her towered an octagonal spire, lofty and dignified.
“So this is Santa Maria Church.”
The guidebook had recommended it as a place where one could witness the transition from Romanesque to Baroque architecture.
But to Seon, Romanesque meant arch-shaped windows, and Baroque meant symmetry—that was all she remembered. She felt little awe.
She had come here for a different reason.
“That must be the entrance.”
She stepped through the dark brown wooden doors into the church.
Inside, the venerable architecture greeted her, but Seon sought only the stairs to the tower.
Fortunately, following a few other pilgrims, she soon found the stone staircase.
“Haa.”
Step by step, she climbed with difficulty.
Nothing matters anymore.
I can’t live without him.
What’s the point of a world without him in it?
Her inner voice screamed relentlessly. She wanted to run back to him this very instant. To fall into his arms and beg forgiveness.
Her steps faltered. Like a wound-up doll whose spring had run out, she stood frozen in place.
“…I thought I’d get better.”
How many times had she repeated this already? The unbearable loneliness weighed down on her shoulders.
Quiet. Be quiet.
I can do this. I can overcome this.
She tried to silence the voice with endless mantras, but it was no use.
Suddenly, tears gushed forth.
“Are you ok?”
A stranger’s voice reached her from the other side.
Startled, Seon quickly turned away to hide her tears.
“Oh? Are you Korean?”
The man descending the stairs spoke kindly.
Surprised by the familiar language, Seon lifted her head.
He had clean-cut features and a gentle smile that suited him well.
“Are you alright?”
His voice was soft, his gaze warm. Though she had never met him before, Seon would remember his first impression that way.
