Chapter 3
When I reached the bathroom, I slammed the door shut.
That wasn’t enough. I locked it too.
Then I turned to the sink, nearly stumbling, and stared into the mirror.
Half of my face was stained red, like someone had slathered thick, dark paint across it. From my cheek down to the nape of my neck—near my collarbone.
I twisted the faucet handle hard, letting the cold water rush out, and scrubbed at my skin.
Fuck.
The blood had already started to dry. Instead of washing away, it smeared—turning my collar a deeper shade of red.
“That crazy… that insane little shit,” I muttered through clenched teeth.
Eventually, my skin turned raw from the scrubbing. It was bright red and was stinging.
Jin Eun-sol is insane. He’s absolutely insane.
I finally stopped, panting, palms pressed against the cold sink. My face was clean now. No more blood. But I was still trembling.
And then, like it always does, my mind wandered back—to that memory.
The one from before Jin Eun-sol became this twisted version of himself.
Back then, he was still a little softer. Still a little… human.
It was raining that day. I was napping beside his cot, exhausted from taking care of him. The air smelled like antiseptic and medicine, and his groans made my head throb.
Then suddenly, in the early morning, he had another seizure.
I jolted awake, panicked, and started to rush out to find a nurse. He wasn’t responding, wasn’t saying anything, and I was scared.
But just as I reached the door, he grabbed my wrist.
He was trembling.
“I want to die. I want to die because it hurts so much.”
Those words…
How could a child say something like that?
It was shocking.
How much pain must you be in that you want to die?
I couldn’t even understand his pain.
He was young, yes—but so was I. Just two years older. What could I possibly say to comfort him?
“Don’t die”?
Would that have helped?
Then he looked at me. His voice was small, broken.
“Let’s die together, noona. I’m really hurting.”
Let’s die together.
My whole body froze.
It felt like he had a leash wrapped around my throat, yanking me down with him.
Maybe I should’ve said, “Okay.” Maybe I should’ve told him I’d die too. Maybe that’s what he needed to hear.
But I didn’t.
I couldn’t say anything.
And he saw it. He saw it on my face.
He let go of me—and I bolted away from his room.
Behind me, I heard his voice crack again.
“Noona!”
What kind of face did he make when he called for me like that? What did he feel?
I didn’t know.
Because I wasn’t thinking about him—I just wanted to get away from him. Away from the hand that was gripping my wrist. From the invisible noose around my neck.
I went back to him not even five minutes later—with a nurse by my side.
I hesitated in the doorway, afraid of what I’d see.
But there he was—lying in bed.
Calm. Quiet.
That child who just moments ago seemed like he was ready to die looked up at us with an emotionless face.
As if nothing had happened.
I’d expected betrayal, maybe anger.
But there was none of that.
Had he sold his soul to the devil?
“It doesn’t hurt anymore,” he said, with a blank expression.
There was no more pain on his pretty face. Not even a trace.
After that day, Jin Eun-sol changed.
No—he transformed.
He became someone else entirely.
And then he started tormenting me.
Because I ran away.
Because I wouldn’t die with him.
Because I didn’t let him take me down, too.
* * *
I’d originally wanted to escape from his grip—but Jin Eun-sol held onto me tightly.
The hand that had once merely restrained me was now gripping the back of my neck like a threat.
As if he’d snap it the moment I tried to run.
It was always like this.
He’d rather die than let me leave this house. He’d probably kill me first.
I shut my eyes tightly and exhaled slowly, gathering myself. Then I inhaled deeply and opened them again.
No. I refuse.
Even if I’m living off Jin Eun-sol’s family, this—this isn’t right.
It’s insane to skip a grade just to go to the same high school as him.
He’s being reckless. He should be in a hospital.
I should talk to Kim Eun-ah privately and explain everything.
But then again… Jin Eun-sol always listens to his mother. Always.
Right.
That’s it.
“It doesn’t make any sense,” I muttered to myself with a nod, like I was convincing the last shred of the reasoning in my brain.
And then—I opened the bathroom door.
Someone immediately wrapped their arms around me.
The body was small and delicate.
“Hyunji!”
That voice—
It was Kim Eun-ah.
I blinked, stunned. She looked up at me with bright, sparkling eyes—eyes that looked exactly like Jin Eun-sol’s.
“I heard that you are going to be Eun-sol’s tutor?” she beamed, holding my hand tightly.
My jaw went slack.
She was radiant—smiling like she was seeing spring for the first time.
I had no words.
“…Yes,” I said automatically.
“Oh my god, I’m so happy! What should I do?” She bounced on her toes like a schoolgirl. “If you teach him, I just know Eunsol’s grades will skyrock! I’ve been so worried because he’s never taken school seriously, but the moment he told me, ‘Hyunji want to tutor me,’ I was suddenly so happy—”
She gasped, as if overwhelmed by joy.
I blinked, trying to stay calm.
You manipulative little brat.
I glanced past Kim Eun-ah’s shoulder. Sure enough, there he was—Jin Eun-sol—watching me with that smug little expression.
“It’s nothing, really…”
“I owe you so much, Hyunji,” Kim Eun-ah interrupted, full of genuine warmth.
“Really. What would we have done without you?”
Then she hugged me again.
No one—not even my mom—had ever hugged me like this.
For a moment, I let myself relax. My muscles loosened. I buried my nose into her shoulder and inhaled.
She smelled good.
So this is… a mother’s embrace?
I blinked slowly.
My forehead tingled in a strange way—like something soft was brushing it.
“Well—this isn’t the time to get all emotional,” Kim Eun-ah said cheerfully, patting my back before turning towards Jin Eun-sol. I followed her into the living room.
He was still dabbing at his wound with the towel that Kim Eun-ah had given him.
As soon as I stepped in, his gaze snapped to me.
He tilted his chin and smiled lazily, clearly having heard everything in the hallway.
Smug bastard.
I walked towards him silently.
“Are you okay?” I asked flatly.
“I’m fine,” he replied, his voice full of fake sweetness.
“You’ll always be by my side anyway, won’t you, noona?”
This little bastard.
He was acting sweet again—putting on a show for Kim Eun-ah.
His smile was crafted perfectly to make others lower their guard.
My eyes turned away from him, disgusted. I couldn’t bear to look at that smug face.
Fine, I told myself.
I’ll play along. I’ll stay here and save these clueless people from him.
Two years of this, huh?
At least I’ll get to spend more time with Kim Eun-ah.
That’s how I forced myself to see the bright side.
But still—underneath it all—I was seething with humiliation.
That sense of defeat, of being outmaneuvered by Jin Eun-sol, gnawed at me.
Why do I have to bend to his will?
Why does he always win?
“…Fine,” I said under my breath.
I answered Jin Eun-sol’s words with a trembling voice.
An ambulance pulled up shortly after.
Kim Eun-ah hurried to hand me a shopping bag of fresh clothes—Jin Eun-sol’s were drenched in blood.
She said she wanted to go with him to the hospital, but he was the one who declined. Of course he would.
In the end, it became my job to look after him.
He climbed into the ambulance parked in front of the mansion.
But instead of lying down or settling in, he turned to look back at me.
He was too big for me to squeeze past him into the vehicle, and he just stood there, blocking the way.
It was so irritating I almost cursed out loud.
Why the hell was he dragging this out?
He was still bleeding.
“…Move,” I finally said.
“So I can get in.”
He stood still at the back of the ambulance for a moment, then finally opened his mouth.
“Come here, noona.”
“…Huh?”
Did I hear that right?
I blinked, staring at him dumbly.
I glanced at the writing on the ambulance.
The hospital name jumped out at me.
It wasn’t the general hospital near our neighborhood—it was a university hospital, way across the city.
A place he frequented.
To get there, I’d need to take two bus transfers.
Of course.
I turned to the EMTs for help, but their focus had already shifted away from me.
Right.
This was his hospital.
His name probably paid half their salaries.
I was out of breath.
“Why… why?” I asked, unable to hide my confusion. “Why are you doing this?”
Jin Eun-sol tilted his head and flashed that infuriating smile.
“Just because.”
That was it.
“Here—take this, Eunsol!” I thrust the shopping bag toward him.
“You hate dirty clothes, right?”
But he didn’t move to take it.
“You’ll have to bring it, noona. That’s the only way you’ll come.”
Then, without warning, he slammed the ambulance door shut.
“Hey! Eunsol!”
I ran up to the door and pounded on it, but it was locked tight.
Through the small window, he looked down at me with those cold, glittering eyes.
His lips moved slowly, deliberately, mouthing something:
Come fast.
Before I could even fully register it, the ambulance pulled away—taking Jin Eun-sol with it.
* * *
