.

* * *

The next day, when I got out of bed and scratched my head feeling empty, my phone began to ring in the corner. How did I get back home? As if I passed out after getting drunk, nothing came up in my mind that I just sat still, racking my brains. Soon, memories of yesterday came to the surface one after another.

‘So, that’s what happened,’ I murmured, taking my both hands off my disheveled hair.

I joined the courage test and fell into a weird world with Jooin… then the faceless man, feeling of guilt…

“I promise that I won’t let you be alone in that world.”

His voice hit my head like raindrops.

For a moment, I was smiling quietly without looking anywhere, then I opened my flip phone. The first thing that came into my sight was Eun Jiho’s message.

Sent by: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

You collapsed, huh?

It was enough to grasp the overall situation. Thankfully, I managed to pass out in front of the kids after holding back my urge to faint in the other universe. ‘Um, yeah, good job,’ I nodded my head.

Since I wasn’t the main character in thriller or horror movies, how amazing it was to endure the fear after confronting the faceless man and return to this world? There was no reason for me to think, ‘How can I faint when I’m not a female protagonist like Ban Yeo Ryung?’ as well as to rack with guilt.

The kids didn’t seem to bring me to the hospital or so when I passed out. Perhaps, Jooin explained well to the kids of my collapse… such as I saw something horrifying.

Rambling those thoughts in mind, I flipped through the texts one after another but soon paused when Yoon Jung In’s message came into sight.

Sent by: Yoon Jung In

BAHAHAHA Dude, how did you do that? Girls in Class 1-1 told me that you suddenly appeared from nowhere lol They said you ** scared them. I don’t think they’ll annoy you anymore, so isn’t it a happy ending?

Sent by: Kim Hye Hill

Yoon Jung In is so excited EWWW

Sent by: Kim Hye Woo

Agreed.

They were indeed twins that I giggled at their conversations going through the texts. I closed my phone but soon opened to see Yoo Chun Young’s number.

Being hesitant for a second, I pressed the call button, drew up my knees, and pulled my comforter over them. Embracing my legs wrapped with a comforter, I waited for the beeping sound to end while tilting my head backward to look up at the ceiling.

’11 in the night… is it too late for a call?’ with that thought in mind, soon I heard a voice coming over the phone.

Ham Donnie?

“Yoo Chun Young,” I answered with a sudden giggle.

Yoo Chun Young might be standing blankly over the phone, wondering why I was laughing. Imagining him with that look, I let out a giggle again.

I could hardly stop laughing that I kept heaving my shoulders, which made Yoo Chun Young fling a question to me at last.

Are you sick?

“Um… no! No, no! I can laugh whenever I want, can’t I?”

Quickly answering back in a loud voice, I couldn’t help laughing again. Somehow the transparent sunlight in the summer, pouring through the window, felt friendly and warm. Yoo Chun Young’s voice in the morning was also pleasant to hear.

Yoo Chun Young then said nonchalantly.

I heard that you passed out yesterday.

“Yup.”

I thought Ban Yeo Ryung would faint.

“Yeah, I thought the same too.”

Before you collapsed yesterday, I heard that you said some silly things. You saw me wearing a middle school uniform and… um… what was it…

“Oh, you mean those…?”

When he brought up the topic that I was aware of, I elevated my voice in delight.

‘Right! That was why I called him,’ with that thought, I tossed a question in a bright tone.

“Did you dream of me yesterday?”

Nope.

It was a far more succinct answer than I expected.

As it fell flat, I shook my head. ‘Well, this is more like Yoo Chun Young though…’ He then flung another question.

What did I do in your dream?

“Huh?”

What did I do?

Hmm… looking at the ceiling, I counted the things that happened to me on my fingers. My words came out slowly in pieces as I tried to reminisce about the memory.

“Um… so you appeared… Do you remember the classroom in middle school? There were white window blinds on the windows… oh, that’s the same as now. All the windows were open; the sun went down through them. Now that I think of it, it’s quite strange as we were seldom left in the classroom until the sunset. Hmm, and… you were sitting alone in the classroom, listening to music. Thus, I went next to you and took off your earphone to put it in my ear…”

Uh-huh.

“However, you looked at me like you’ve never seen me before, so I asked, ‘Why?’ and you said that…”

…

“You waited for me.”

After saying those words, I furrowed my brows in a surprise of what just came out of my mouth.

It didn’t sound special at that time; however, when I delivered that remark back to Yoo Chun Young now, it sounded like a special expression used between a couple. It embarrassed me somehow. Thus, I cleared my throat to hide my feelings. In the meantime, Yoo Chun Young asked back.

So?

“…”

What did I say afterward?

“Um, so… what you said after was… Don’t you remember? You told me that you waited for me on a snowy day, but I didn’t show up. Um… uh… you didn’t say anything bad but seemed to be holding against me… I mean, what did you say… um… Hold on for a second.”

My cheeks turned red that I began to gibberish.

I had no idea what I was babbling right now; however, I could hardly stop. If I didn’t keep on, the awkward silence that had taken place earlier or the stillness recalling our relationship seemed to hang between us. Thus, I didn’t want to feel ill at ease. That was when I desperately talked further against the quietness.

Yoo Chun Young’s serene but frigid voice made my mouth shut.

Hey.

“Yeah…”

Did you do something wrong to me?

At that moment, I felt as if the tension, straining within my body, was going away in an instant like a pinned balloon.

‘Ha… ha…’ Holding my phone, I burst out broken laughter in emptiness. Before he was about to respond, I just closed my phone.

“Ugh,” I fetched a short sigh and threw my phone timidly on the bed.

The phone bounced off my waterbed-like mattress a few times, then stopped on the comforter, of course, with no cracks at all. As I stared at it with tears in my eyes, I muttered in my mouth.

“There wouldn’t be any particular meaning to it. Yoo Chun Young wouldn’t dream of me too.”

‘But why did I bring them up, silly…’ furrowing my brows with that thought, I soon pulled the comforter over my head.

‘I should’ve not said that! Geez!’ I couldn’t help myself but kick my comforter. Unlike before, the sunlight pouring through the window didn’t feel sweet at all.

Article 18. How Can Chaebol Heirs Be So Common? (Part 1)

In my dream, I became a slave to the Joseon Dynasty. My stay was in a shabby, cobwebbed cottage, which seemed to have been built forty years ago, outside the traditional government complexes; besides, Ban Yeo Ryung appeared, surprisingly, as a district magistrate.

From the fact that Ban Yeo Ryung always took important roles in my dreams, I could tell how significantly my subconscious was valuing her. She indeed wore gat with colorfully beaded strings as well as the official blue uniform.

With bleary eyes, I stared at the direction where Ban Yeo Ryung walked across from; however, when someone, who opened the threshold and stepped out of it, came into my sight, I almost threw up.

Wearing a pair of traditional flower shoes, the lady walked toward Ban Yeo Ryung with soft steps and sat down next to her. She was… I mean, he was, none other than, Eun Jiho!!

Holy Christ, why is he cross-dressed as a woman? Why? For what’s sake?!!