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Chapter 5
It was on the way down to the funeral hall, taking advantage of the moment Taeuk had stepped away to handle the discharge paperwork.
In the dead of night, when everyone else was asleep, she walked the darkened corridor toward the memorial room that should have been empty.
Perhaps by now it had already become someone else’s resting place, a space where another family prepared to say goodbye to a loved one.
Even so, she wanted to see it one last time.
She wanted to hold onto the final traces of Han Yeoreum—the sister she could never see again—just one more time.
The slippers, too large for her feet, dragged noisily against the silent hallway.
Shuffle, shuffle.
As she trudged through the empty corridor, the funeral room appeared in the distance.
Moonlight poured in through the windows, illuminating the space. The memorial room remained dark, apparently not yet occupied by another mourner’s family.
She stopped for a moment and stared at it.
That was when she noticed someone peering into the darkened room.
Hidden behind the wall to avoid the moonlight, the person’s face was difficult to make out, but she could tell it was a woman.
A small frame. Long straight hair reaching her waist. A black baseball cap.
As if sensing Winter’s presence, the woman glanced toward her.
Caught staring, the woman seemed startled and hurriedly tugged the cap lower over her face.
Biting at her nails anxiously, she hesitated for a moment before finally making up her mind and walking toward Winter.
Almost running.
Winter’s gaze naturally followed her.
As the woman passed by, she lowered her head even further, gripping the brim of her hat tightly.
That was when Winter saw it—
A pale white patch on the woman’s left wrist.
And then, as the woman brushed past her like someone fleeing the scene, a familiar scent drifted through the air.
The exact same perfume her sister used to wear.
“Wait…!”
The woman definitely heard her call.
She faltered for an instant in surprise, and something slipped from her pocket.
Winter’s eyes darted toward the fallen object, and in that brief moment the woman disappeared around the corner, apparently unaware she had dropped anything.
It was a lipstick.
An oddly designed case embossed with a logo she had never seen before.
Winter bent to pick it up and inspect it—
Then froze at the voice behind her.
“Excuse me.”
A familiar voice.
Her heart dropped violently.
Clutching the lipstick tightly in her hand, she slowly turned around.
“You’re Han Gyeoul, right?”
Her ex-boyfriend.
The man she had dated for less than four seasons.
“Hello. We met once in front of the prosecutor’s office with Yeoreum before.”
“……”
“I’m Prosecutor Kim Won, Criminal Division 2, Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office.”
He stood right in front of her.
Who was that man?
The moment Taeuk stepped away briefly to process the discharge papers, Gyeoul had vanished from the hospital room.
Where could she possibly have gone in her condition?
Before his mind even caught up, his body had already started moving.
Had she collapsed somewhere again?
Or worse—
Had she decided to follow her dead sister into death?
He searched every corner of the hospital, but Gyeoul was nowhere to be found.
“Should we contact hospital security?”
Sangwoo asked between ragged breaths.
Taeuk slowly shook his head.
“Let’s look one more time before we do.”
“Yes, sir.”
After a brief reply, Sangwoo sprinted back the way he came.
Running his hand irritably through his disheveled hair, Taeuk suddenly spotted a woman rushing out of the funeral hall.
Her appearance was strange for someone supposedly attending a wake.
A terrible feeling struck him.
Taeuk immediately ran into the funeral hall—
And saw Gyeoul standing there, held in another man’s arms.
The man awkwardly patted her back while Gyeoul clung to him, sobbing miserably.
Without saying a word, Taeuk turned around and left.
Was that man Gyeoul’s real lover?
If so…
Why had she asked him to marry her?
Sangwoo, spotting Taeuk leaving the funeral hall, hurried over.
“Sir! We searched everywhere except the main entrance where the reporters are gathered. The hospital interior and rooftop garden are all clear. Could Miss Han have been caught by the reporters—”
“Let’s go back.”
“…Pardon?”
“She’ll return to the room soon enough.”
Even if it was a marriage without love—
Even if it was nothing more than a marriage in name—
Gyeoul was still his wife.
Even if the promise they made before everyone—to spend their lives together—was ultimately meaningless…
At the very least, he had promised himself one thing:
That if she ever reached out to him for help, even once, he would take her hand.
I-I can do it!
I’ll live like a doll. I’ll become the perfect wife you want, Director.
But just once—just once, if I ever reach out because I need help… then please help me that one time.
And Taeuk had believed that moment was now.
Heavy silence filled the car.
Throughout the ride, Gyeoul only stared out the window.
Taeuk glanced at her briefly.
Of all the time he had known her, these days were when she felt the most unfamiliar.
He eventually turned his gaze toward the dark scenery outside as well.
The Han River, beneath the sleeping city at dawn, lay utterly still.
“You still need rest. I spoke to Dr. Min, so get examined every other day.”
“……”
“You’ll be coming home.”
While waiting for the elevator down to the underground parking garage, his voice carried over to her.
Cold.
Completely devoid of warmth.
She silently looked at him, but without another word he stepped into the elevator and held the door open.
With a faint sigh, she followed him inside.
Taking a keycard from his pocket, he held it against the panel.
The previously dark buttons glowed red.
He pressed the button for the penthouse at the very top of the apartment building and spoke in an icy tone.
“Get yourself together.”
“……”
“In this industry, rumors spread in an instant.”
His lips parted slightly, as though he had more to say, but he eventually closed his mouth again.
And despite hearing his blunt words in the elevator, only one thought repeated itself in her mind.
‘It appears Han Yeoreum was murdered and the accident was staged.’
Did that mean someone had tried to kill her?
Kim Won’s face surfaced in her memory—the way he carefully watched her reaction while delivering the news.
Ding.
The elevator doors opened.
She followed Taeuk out.
One month ago, she had visited this newlywed home with her sister.
Ironically, it was not her sister who had returned to it now—
But her.
“Oh my goodness. What in the world is this?”
Arin frowned as she looked at Yura, who had summoned her to the company on her day off.
Yura had acted as though it were some urgent matter, yet for over thirty minutes she had done nothing but scroll through articles released that morning.
“This is honestly tragic. At this point, isn’t her acting career basically over?”
“CEO.”
“Poor Director Joo must be having such a hard time, right? What horrible timing, just after getting married.”
Despite Arin repeatedly calling her, Yura kept her eyes on the tablet, her expression relaxed.
Arin glanced irritably at the clock on the wall before finally standing up.
“If you don’t actually have anything to say, then I’ll—”
“Sit down.”
The lowered tone of Yura’s voice echoed sharply through the office.
Arin frowned as Yura finally lifted her gaze from the tablet.
“CEO.”
“What are you doing? I said sit.”
An ominous chill crept down Arin’s spine at the colder voice.
She glanced briefly toward her manager, Jinsu, standing behind her before reluctantly sitting again.
“What did you do yesterday?”
“…What?”
“Did you really go to Prosecutor Han Yeoreum’s funeral?”
It wasn’t a question.
Yura already looked as though she knew everything.
Arin sighed.
Seeing that reaction, irritation crossed Yura’s face.
“I told you not to go there.”
“……”
“You just got into a huge fight with malicious commenters not that long ago.”
“……”
“So why would you go and make things worse? What if a reporter had seen you?”
Her voice rose in anger.
Arin stared expressionlessly at her folded hands before slowly lifting her head.
“I went after it was over.”
“What?”
“You were making such a fuss that I waited until everything ended. I couldn’t even pay my respects properly.”
“Kim Arin.”
“Do you know something?”
“……”
“Every time you act like this, I regret entering this industry.”
The sharp edge in Arin’s voice softened Yura’s expression slightly.
But Arin’s face remained rigid.
“It was the first time.”
“Arin…”
“When people said I didn’t have the face to be an actress, that God gave me acting talent and forgot about looks…”
“……”
“The very first person who ever told me my face was charming was Unni Gyeoul.”
“……”
“And now that same unni lost her sister in a sudden accident and nearly died herself.”
“……”
“She’s obviously suffering enough to want to die too!”
“Arin.”
“But I was too scared of people’s judgment to even visit during the funeral.”
The emotions she had suppressed finally burst through, making her voice tremble violently.
Yura looked away, guilt flickering across her face at the unfamiliar sight of Arin like this.
Still staring directly at her, Arin continued.
“So was it really that offensive to you that I went after everyone had left and offered a belated prayer for the deceased?”
“No, that’s not what I meant…”
Watching Yura fluster helplessly, Arin stood up.
“Don’t contact me for a while.”
“Kim Arin!”
“I need time to sort out my feelings too.”
Yura lowered her head and grabbed at her hair while meeting Arin’s unwavering gaze.
“One week.”
“……”
“After one week, you’re coming back to work. Filming, photoshoots, all of it.”
“Two weeks.”
“What?”
“I’ll contact you in two weeks.”
“Hey!”
Ignoring Yura’s shout, Arin walked toward the door.
Her footsteps felt lighter now.
Seeing her cheerful retreating figure, Yura finally realized she had been completely played.
“Seriously, why are you wasting your talent on things like this?!”
Yura hurled the cushion she was holding.
The soft cushion barely traveled before dropping pitifully onto the floor.
And the culprit who had turned her world upside down was already gone.
Yura clicked her tongue regretfully.
She had intended to use this incident as an excuse to discuss a new project.
《Twisted Fate》
The script she had never managed to hand to Arin lay abandoned on the table.
