The first thing I needed to do was, of course, visit the hospital.
My last memory was taking the medicine and lying down in bed.
And perhaps, that person’s first memory was waking up in the bed.
I heard from Yang Hye-in about what happened immediately after that.
“We took you to the hospital as you screamed and struggled. The hospital said that aside from the bruises covering your back, there were no other issues.”
Yang Hye-in responded politely.
“Bruises on my back…?”
Why would I have bruises on my back?
“Did I fall off the bed while struggling?”
“No, you were still on the bed.”
Yang Hye-in replied firmly.
Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I could believe her one hundred percent.
It’s not just that I don’t trust her as a person, but I don’t really know how smart or rational Yang Hye-in is.
Sure, from what I’ve seen, she seemed like the type.
She handled her tasks thoroughly, without unnecessary emotions, and never interfered with her master.
That was the image of Yang Hye-in that I remembered.
From that alone, she seemed to have a sharp and cold personality.
It’s not like my stepmother would place just anyone by my side.
But I don’t have any memories of having personal interactions with Yang Hye-in.
There were a few times I tried to talk to her.
No matter how used I was to being alone, there were moments when I wanted to talk to someone.
Although I never shared anything personal, I did make a few trivial requests.
Requests so minor that I can’t even remember them now.
Each time, Yang Hye-in fulfilled my requests neatly and then returned to her work.
So, there was never any personal conversation between us.
I didn’t really know this person.
Even though we had been together for three years, I didn’t know what she liked, where she came from, how many family members she had, or what she did in her spare time.
I knew nothing.
Therefore, I couldn’t believe that she remembered every detail from such an urgent situation.
At most, I could assume that maybe she did.
… But even if I had fallen off the bed, it wouldn’t be enough to explain bruises all over my back.
Unless I had slammed into the floor on purpose.
I didn’t know what kind of entity had been inhabiting my body.
Logically, it made sense to assume it was the ‘me’ who had lost her memory.
Although the personality and actions were vastly different from mine.
That’s why I couldn’t know why that person struggled so much that they ended up with bruises all over their back.
It’d be better to ask them directly.
… Or, I could ‘remember’ it myself.
I wasn’t sure how to explain it, but if I had to choose, I hoped it would be the former.
“The police came?”
“Yes, the doctor thought the bruises on your back were due to domestic violence and reported it…”
Domestic violence.
Does emotional abuse toward a child count as domestic violence?
At the very least, it falls under child abuse.
Even if the injuries weren’t from someone else, once the police are involved, things become extremely complicated.
“You sent them away, right?”
“…Yes, we did.”
Yang Hye-in hesitated briefly before answering my question.
That was a surprising reaction.
She had never shown that kind of hesitation in front of ‘me’ before.
“I’m sorry.”
Yang Hye-in bowed her head deeply and apologized.
For what?
I considered asking but decided against it.
Even if I asked, I wouldn’t get a proper answer.
How could she answer?
Was she apologizing for sending the police away?
For allowing child abuse to go on for the past three years?
For working for the person committing that abuse and getting paid for it?
… If we go back far enough, it would eventually drag my stepmother into it as well.
Perhaps because the personality of the person who had been in my body had blended with mine, or maybe it was the remnants of that faint memory, but I found myself interacting with people much more naturally than I used to.
Before, I could barely speak above a whisper or had to write things down on paper to be heard.
Otherwise, my voice would come out in a strange, awkward tone.
… I have too many debts.
As thoughts piled on top of each other, I shook my head to clear them away.
For now, I needed to find that person again.
Just like how I had found them before.
Only then could I understand why they did what they did and figure out what I should do next.
“So, one last thing to confirm.”
After listening to everything and organizing my thoughts, I asked.
“Do you still have the medicine?”
Yang Hye-in’s eyes widened slightly at my words.
After a brief silence, she answered in a faintly trembling voice.
“…Yes, I do.”
“Good. Please keep holding on to it.”
“…Yes.”
Shin So-hee, who was standing beside Yang Hye-in, her ‘successor’, trembled slightly.
She’s the person I hired with my own money, right?
I remember it being a few hundred million… something like that.
I didn’t have the sense to judge whether that was a lot or a little.
Well, it was probably enough to have someone care for me around the clock.
… Could this also be something that person set up for me?
A maid who would sincerely care for me, so I wouldn’t think strange thoughts.
I’ll have to meet them and ask directly.
*
Even though I came to the hospital, it wasn’t possible to meet the doctor who treated me right away.
Technically, we were intruding.
The place I visited that day was the emergency room of a university hospital, and the doctor worked there.
Thankfully, the doctor hadn’t transferred or anything, but they said the emergency room is always understaffed.
Unless it was something critical, it would be best to talk to them after they finished their shift.
It would have been rude to wait in front of the emergency room, so we left the hospital.
Luckily, it was almost April, so even though it was past 6 PM, the sun hadn’t set yet.
It wasn’t too cold either.
I looked up and saw the hospital’s name was “Hwayoung University Hospital”.
… They said I was pulled out under the guise of a donation.
Now I had an idea of how that was possible.
“You don’t have the contact information for the police who came that day, do you?”
“…No, I don’t.”
Well, I figured.
They must have been let off the hook due to connections.
“Are you going to wait here?”
“….”
Was that look on Yang Hye-in’s face one of concern?
Even though her attitude had changed, she still wasn’t someone with expressive emotions.
Could she smile?
Then again, I don’t really know how to smile either.
Was that person someone who smiled often?
I could ask the three kids who followed me, but I wanted to hear it from the person themselves.
I still didn’t trust people.
The lonely voice in the corner of my heart kept whispering.
If you don’t trust, you won’t be betrayed.
… Maybe that’s why I was still searching for the person who had sacrificed themselves for me.
The first person in my life who had ever sacrificed for me.
I didn’t know if most people had someone like that, but I had no way to find out.
At least I could trust the person in my mind.
Some might call me crazy for thinking that.
“Do you really not remember anything after you met us?”
Shin So-hee asked.
She had been the one clinging to me most closely after confirming I was okay.
She must have been deeply hurt.
But the others didn’t know I had ‘no memory’.
I didn’t tell them about the ‘other person’.
Only Yoo Ha-neul knew that my personality had changed.
If they found out, there was nothing I could do, but I had no intention of telling them.
… If they knew, this life might crumble.
Yes, this too was because I didn’t trust them.
If I believed they wouldn’t change after knowing the truth, I would’ve told them everything.
Just like the person who trusted Yoo Ha-neul and handed over their body.
The more I thought about it, the more mysterious that person seemed.
Shin So-hee looked at me with a slightly anxious expression, and Lee Soo-ah looked as if she was about to cry.
Those expressions, too, were likely because of their connection to that person.
… Feeling like I had become an intruder, my chest ached.
“Should we at least get a medical certificate first?”
“…No.”
I shook my head.
This wasn’t a normal situation.
Could it even be explained medically?
Even the results of the examination that day showed that everything was normal, except for the bruises on my body.
If there had been anything unusual, they wouldn’t have released me from the hospital without further tests.
There’s no way they would risk the life of a VVIP’s child after letting them go.
… Maybe the fact that I was already dead meant it wasn’t a problem.
I shuddered.
“Are you cold? Should we go inside?”
It wasn’t the cold that made me tremble.
It was the realization that I might have truly died.
… I had no right to say that, having chosen death myself, but the thought that I could’ve faced another possibility terrified me.
It had only been a week since I opened my eyes again.
In that week, the events were so similar to what I had once desperately wished for,
Despite doubting and not believing everything, I still wanted to keep living through that week.
Yet here I was, denying that this was my life, how contradictory.
But I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was missing.
Maybe it was because someone had been here.
Even though I couldn’t remember, perhaps that person had always been by my side.
“There’s a cafeteria inside the hospital. Would you like to wait there?”
I turned my gaze to the children around me.
They were all quietly watching me, waiting for me to say something.
Their faces were filled with concern.
I couldn’t leave them all standing out here.
I nodded and answered.
“Yes, let’s do that.”
It wasn’t that cold, but I decided to go inside.
Perhaps for the first time, I had made a choice for someone other than my stepmother.