Translator: Elisia
Editor/Proofreader: Wojo
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“No, wait, let go of me for a second!”
Although ‘Sara’ was complaining, So-hee, who was holding ‘Sara’ tightly, did not let go of the hug.
“I didn’t even know your situation…! I just did what I wanted…”
But it seemed that So-hee didn’t hear those words.
Sara, who had been struggling hard, soon felt something dripping onto her face and stopped writhing.
“……”
‘Sara’ looked up.
Because they were so close, she couldn’t see So-hee’s face properly.
However, ‘Sara’ felt So-hee’s wet cheek pressing against her own.
So-hee was crying.
“…Are you crying?”
“……”
So-hee simply sobbed quietly.
Now that she thought about it, the hug felt a little different too.
So-hee had hugged ‘Sara’ several times before, but it was usually a short, tight embrace.
Like a mother squeezing her adorable daughter tightly and then letting go.
Sometimes the hug would last a bit longer, but it was never this tightly held.
But now, although So-hee was holding her tightly, it felt soft.
As if she really, truly wanted to do it.
As if she had to.
“……”
Ironically enough, something came to ‘Sara’ as she received that hug.
Her mother.
Of course, it was different from her usual hugs.
It was more like a memory from long ago,
A soft, smiling embrace from her ‘mom’, as if it were only natural for a mother to do so.
A hug she hadn’t experienced properly since she was nine years old.
“…Ah.”
Realizing this, ‘Sara’ snapped out of her thoughts.
“Wait, wait! Not yet! I can’t go back yet! If I go back now, I might have to prepare for something even more shocking next time!”
Quickly shaking off the memories that were pulling her back to the past, ‘Sara’ struggled again.
Of course, she wasn’t sure if these memories would bring out the ‘Sara’ sleeping within her.
After all, they weren’t that person’s memories.
But if Ha-neul’s actions so far had been like pulling her up from the depths of her subconscious, this was like softly pushing her into past memories.
And so, it was dangerous.
‘Sara’ instinctively judged it that way.
“Ugh, okay.”
As Sara struggled earnestly, So-hee, surprised, loosened her grip.
‘Sara’ quickly moved to the side and sat at the edge of the bed.
“You are banned from hugging me for the next three days.”
She declared.
“…Huh?”
An invisible rock seemed to crash down on So-hee’s head.
With tears still trailing down her cheeks, her expression looked incredibly pitiful.
…Was three days too harsh?
“…Okay, not three days, just today.”
‘Sara’ corrected herself.
“……”
Once again, silence filled the room.
It was a completely different atmosphere from the earlier conversation about life and death.
“So, was that hug enough to shift your consciousness?”
Haneul asked.
“I-I don’t know.”
‘Sara’ stammered, flustered.
“But it felt dangerous. At least, that hug from a moment ago was dangerous. My instincts are telling me that.”
It was a mess of an explanation.
But there was no one in the room who could carelessly dismiss her words.
After all, only ‘Sara’ herself could truly sense that.
…Actually, the real reason was that the hug from earlier reminded her too much of her mother’s embrace from long ago, but she was too embarrassed to say that.
Just moments ago, she had spoken as if she could give up on life without a care, controlling the mood of the room.
She had truly thought that she had given up everything.
So, she couldn’t understand why that hug brought back memories of such a distant past.
“…You said something about shifting consciousnesses, but what does that have to do with what just happened? Does it have to do with physical contact with others?”
Soo-ah asked.
For a moment, ‘Sara’ looked blankly before replying,
“N-no, that’s not it!”
She yelled, a bit irritated.
Ha-neul, who had been listening, blushed.
After all, the person who had been ‘physically in contact’ with her was Ha-neul.
“I’m not sure if there are other ways, but at least for now, the method we’ve found is to recall the most intense memory that the personality holds. And simply remembering it isn’t enough. You have to recreate the situation through an equally intense action with the person related to that memory. It’s like shock therapy.”
“Then how did it end up that your strongest memory is rubbing up against Haneul?”
So-hee asked.
Her voice was still slightly hoarse from crying, but at least she had wiped her tears.
Her eyes were a bit red, though ‘Sara’ pretended not to notice.
“…It’s because the strongest memory related to this side was when I climbed on top of her.”
“Ah.”
So-hee nodded as if she understood immediately.
That’s right. So-hee had seen ‘Sara’ climb on top of Ha-neul that day.
At the time, they had explained that it was to recover memories.
So, it wasn’t hard for So-hee to recall that moment.
“Then what about just now?”
“T-that, I don’t know.”
In truth, she had a hunch, but she didn’t want to say it just yet.
If she had to say it, she would rather discuss it with that person first.
So, ‘Sara’ mumbled vaguely again.
“…But.”
Feeling a little strange, ‘Sara’ looked at So-hee and asked,
“Why don’t you act any differently? I told you I’m not the Sara you know.”
“But you are still Sara.”
“…What?”
So-hee gave a soft smile to ‘Sara’.
“No matter who you are, you’re still Sara to me. Regardless of your past, what you plan to do in the future, or how you feel about me, the Sara next to me is always Sara. Sara is someone I care about, so no matter which Sara it is, she’s still someone I care about.”
So-hee scooted closer to ‘Sara’ on the bed.
Though ‘Sara’ shifted slightly away, this time, So-hee didn’t try to hug her.
Instead, she simply held ‘Sara’s’ hand.
“You said you know I like you, right?”
“No, I told you, you don’t like me!”
‘Sara’ replied, flustered, but So-hee just smiled.
“It doesn’t matter.”
Shaking her head slightly, So-hee said,
“Because the person I like is you, so I’ll just keep liking you.”
She smiled brightly as she spoke.
Her slightly tanned skin, darkened as if from tanning, her black hair gradually reclaiming her head from the roots due to neglected dye, the shirt buttons left undone except for when it was really necessary.
But despite all that, her smile was pure and serene enough to erase her usual image in an instant.
“…Uh, ah, haha,”
For a moment, ‘Sara’ was at a loss for words.
Of course, So-hee’s confession wouldn’t change the person ‘Sara’ liked.
It wouldn’t even reach the person sleeping deep within her consciousness.
But for some reason, hearing those words made her feel happy.
Why did her heart feel so ticklish, and why was her face growing warm?
…Ah, I think I understand.
Because she said she ‘likes me’.
She said she likes me as I am, someone who’s never had anyone like them.
She said she likes me, no matter what I look like.
Even though So-hee probably meant ‘more than a friend’ when she said she liked her, that also meant she cherished her as much as a friend.
So, ‘Sara’ realized again.
‘I’m not alone.’
“…I see.”
In the end, all ‘Sara’ could say was that.
“You don’t need to answer me right now. Actually, you don’t have to answer me at all. But please, don’t stop me from liking you.”
“……”
‘Sara’ nodded.
It was impossible to say anything mean to someone who was smiling while saying such things.
In her memories, she had been rougher and much simpler in her actions.
Ah, maybe that’s exactly why she could be so honest.
“No, you can’t.”
‘Sara’ slapped away the hand that was slowly creeping up to hug her again.
“Don’t think you can catch me off guard.”
So-hee sulkily lowered her hand, but her actions seemed a bit cute.
“……”
Wait, what were we talking about just before?