Translator: Elisia
Editor/Proofreader: Wojo
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“That’s why… yes, that’s why, I couldn’t just leave you alone, Miss.”
Yang Hye-in said that.
“After seeing you smile, and thinking everything was fine, I couldn’t just leave you alone.”
So, she must have thought she had to give some kind of help that Sara could understand.
‘…….’
Sara didn’t say anything after hearing that.
Well, I also couldn’t think of anything to say.
I was just silently listening to the conversation.
The one Yang Hye-in had ignored wasn’t me but Sara, and how this situation would end or not depended on how Sara took it.
Sara may have distanced herself and sorted out her emotions, but Yang Hye-in would probably still carry her guilt.
Of course, Sara had no reason to worry about Yang Hye-in.
Forgiving a mistake isn’t something a third party witnessing the situation can do, but only the one who suffered from the wrong or unjust act.
“So, is that why you didn’t want to take a vacation?”
“…No, that’s not it.”
Well, Yang Hye-in only realized her mistake after I woke up in Sara’s body.
If that’s why she didn’t want to leave my side, it wouldn’t explain why she didn’t come to her hometown before then.
“I just didn’t like it here.”
Hmm.
There could be many reasons, but honestly, since I had lived in the city from the start, I couldn’t accurately guess what Yang Hye-in thought, having spent her whole childhood here.
People from the city avoid living in the countryside because they can’t forget the conveniences of the city, and there are countless reasons to leave the countryside.
My parents, on the other hand, wanted to leave the complicated city and return to live in the countryside, so it was even harder for me to predict the reasons.
“Can I ask why?”
It seemed like Yang Hye-in nodded.
“…Because when I’m here, I’m reminded of my parents.”
And the reason was much simpler than I had expected.
“Did they pass away when you were young?”
“Yes, they did.”
Yang Hye-in said that and paused for a moment.
“It was because of a wildfire.”
“Oh….”
I couldn’t say anything more.
“My mother, while carrying me out in her arms, and my father, while trying to get my grandmother out… and also trying to save what little we had in our poor household.”
“…….”
“That’s why I didn’t like it here. The house has been rebuilt, but the place remains the same.”
……Hmm.
That was certainly a memory that could leave a trauma.
“…….”
Internally, I held my head in my hands.
I really shouldn’t have come!
Ah, well, of course, it’s a good thing that Yang Hye-in and her grandmother could reunite after a long time.
Her grandmother was also a good person.
The problem was that I, without knowing anything, had enthusiastically triggered someone else’s trauma.
“…….”
“…….”
It was an awkward silence.
…Ah, I shouldn’t have asked.
*
Thanks to that, I couldn’t sleep properly all night.
I kicked the blanket with my feet and tossed and turned for a long time before I finally fell asleep, and in that sleep, Sara came to me.
“Well, don’t worry too much. Even embarrassing moments like this will be forgotten over time.”
She patted me on the shoulder, and I woke up again.
‘…….’
Hmm, for some reason, I felt like I could pull Sara out right now.
‘Don’t even dream of it.’
…It seems even Sara didn’t want things to become more uncomfortable.
“Sara, are you okay…?”
The next morning, I got up with bloodshot eyes, and Ha-nuel asked me that, seeing how tired I looked.
“Oh dear, what should we do? It seems the change in sleeping arrangements made you uncomfortable.”
Hye-in’s grandmother looked genuinely sympathetic, which made me feel even more uncomfortable.
Thinking that the only reason I had come to the house of someone with such a tragic story was purely due to my recklessness made me feel guilty.
“…….”
Yang Hye-in still said nothing.
Well… in any case, I wasn’t completely restless, so it wasn’t like I couldn’t fall back asleep for a few more hours.
Grandma set the breakfast table with so much food that it seemed like the legs of the table would break.
There were all kinds of vegetables and meat side dishes.
Honestly, some of them seemed like she made them just for us.
“It’s delicious!”
“Really….”
So-hee and Soo-ah reacted that way after tasting Grandma’s cooking.
It really was delicious.
Ever since we came here, we had mostly been eating steak and bread every day.
It’s not like I hadn’t eaten any Korean food, but for some reason, the meals in the mansion were mostly those kinds of dishes.
It felt good to have this kind of home-cooked meal for a change.
The breakfast with lightly seasoned dishes was quite tasty.
…Wait a minute.
And then, while I was eating, I suddenly remembered an important fact I had forgotten until now.
Come to think of it, I had fired all the staff at the mansion, didn’t I?
The only thing we outsourced to an external company was security for the mansion.
Naturally, there were no staff to make meals.
“…….”
I glanced at Yang Hye-in, who was sitting a little away from me, quietly using her chopsticks.
Our eyes didn’t meet.
…Could it be that ever since then, Yang Hye-in had been handling all the cooking at the mansion by herself?
If she really wanted to, it’s not like there was so much food to cook that she couldn’t manage it.
Especially since we eat lunch at school.
But still, it wouldn’t be easy.
Cooking wasn’t Yang Hye-in’s original job, and she’d have to handle all the trash from cooking, clean all the dishes by herself, and clean the kitchen all on her own.
“Sara?”
As I sat there blankly with my mouth slightly open, Ha-neul called me.
“Uh, yeah?”
“What are you thinking so hard about? …Do you have something on your mind?”
She looked around and then asked quietly.
Something on my mind… something had just come up.
And it was a huge problem.
…Right, Yang Hye-in had firmly refused to take a vacation.
Even though we argued for various reasons, the real reason was probably this.
Because I had fired all the other staff.
If Yang Hye-in also left, the mansion really wouldn’t be able to function properly.
Of course, it’s not like we’d starve if she wasn’t there to prepare meals.
We could get by with instant food, cook ramen, or something.
It’s not like we didn’t have the money to eat.
But… perhaps Yang Hye-in didn’t want that.
Maybe she didn’t want me to eat those kinds of meals.
Maybe she thought I wouldn’t want my dining habits to change.
Or maybe, she just felt guilty.
And thought she should serve me, even if it was in this way.
“…….”
I looked at Yang Hye-in again.
She was still picking at her food.
We still didn’t make eye contact, but for some reason, I got the feeling that she was deliberately avoiding meeting my gaze.
*
“So-hee, can I talk to you for a second?”
“Huh?”
In the afternoon, when Hye-in’s grandmother was briefly out, I called So-hee aside.
When the others tried to follow, I stopped them and took So-hee alone, and she seemed a bit nervous.
…Well, we had been sticking together as a group of four all this time.
“What is it? What’s going on?”
“Well….”
I hesitated for a moment before asking.
“Does Yang Hye-in do most of the cooking for our breakfast and dinner?”
“Uh….”
At my question, So-hee hesitated awkwardly for a moment before nodding.
“Yeah, mostly. I help a little, but she does most of it.”
I rubbed my forehead.
“Ah, sorry….”
Seeing So-hee lower her head, I waved my hand.
“No, it’s just that we didn’t have enough staff.”
It’s a huge mansion, and it was crazy to think we could get by with just two staff members.
No, actually, it’s more accurate to say I wasn’t thinking at all.
“Senior told me not to tell you….”
“…….”
I kept my hand on my forehead and rubbed my face.
“…Should we move?”
But even moving was a problem.
There weren’t many mansions available for sale, and it wasn’t something that could be arranged easily.
I probably had a house in my name, but even if we moved, I wasn’t sure if it was a place where we would need staff.
While So-hee, Soo-ah, and Ha-neul had come just to visit, I didn’t get the sense that Yang Hye-in had come to “visit” and enjoy her time.
But if I fired Yang Hye-in too…
Hmm, how should I put it?
I felt like something unpleasant would happen.
I had no basis for it, but my instincts told me so.
Even if I left things as they were, I felt like something would go wrong.
Yang Hye-in had looked a bit more stable yesterday, but judging from the facts, she wasn’t completely okay.
With an anxious So-hee in front of me, I also couldn’t stop feeling restless.
Really, should I consider myself lucky?
It was fortunate that I became aware of Yang Hye-in’s condition, but at the same time, I was regretting coming here…
It would be so much easier to deal with someone who was simply bad through and through.