TCE 02

Chapter 2

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed against the marble floor.

Shoes, moving at almost two steps for every single stride, rushed toward a tall, grand door and pushed it open.

“Oh my.”

Startled, an employee quickly headed toward the sofa in the middle of the waiting room.

They’d seen many, many situations before, but this was the first time they’d ever found a bride sleeping so soundly with so little concern—on her own wedding day, no less.

The employee hurried to wake the sleeping woman.

“The ceremony is about to begin.”

No matter how deep her sleep, she had to be woken up.

“Bride.”

You couldn’t just let the bride nap away right before her wedding.

“Bride, the ceremony is about to—”

“Aaaah!”

“Kyaah!”

Even though the employee had tried to wake her as gently as possible, it was pointless.

Their screams collided, though fortunately, the bride’s scream didn’t carry past the door.

The first to regain composure was the wedding hall employee.

“B-Bride?”

“Just now, just now… some man, he—he grabbed my throat.”

Flailing her arms in the air and speaking incoherently, she looked exactly like someone who had just been jolted awake.

The deep-seated gloom and quiet sadness the employee had sensed when they first saw her were nowhere to be found.

“He tried… to kill me. He came to my place and… and—!”

“Bride! It was a dream!”

Clap!

In the end, the employee raised their voice and clapped loudly.

The sharp sound filled the room, and the bride, who had been floundering about, finally stopped.

“……”

Her dazed eyes stared up at the glittering lights on the waiting room ceiling.

Maybe the lights were too bright—her eyes hurt. Her head was spinning, and her stomach churned.

“A dream?”

“Yes, a dream. I don’t know what kind of dream you had, but you’re not in danger. You’re safe.”

Sometimes brides struggled under the pressure of marriage. Having comforted many before, the employee calmly soothed her.

“Please relax.”

The gentle voice slowly eased her confusion. Catching her breath, she began to think.

Was it a dream?

Had everything that happened until now been a dream?

She thought hard, trying to recall memories she couldn’t quite grasp.

“Bride.”

“Yes, bride.”

“…Wedding?”

“Yes, bride.”

Smiling warmly, the employee sighed and helped the bride sit up properly from where she had been sprawled on the sofa.

“You seem quite nervous, so I’ll have someone escort you shortly. And… even if they’re uncomfortable, you should put in your contact lenses now.”

“…Who?”

Still dazed, the bride received another patient smile from the employee.

“Why, only one person, of course.”

Click, thunk.

The employee left, closing the door behind them. The bride was alone again.

“…My wedding? Me? Why? I was on a plane to Hawaii.”

“What the hell… what is going on?”

Her head hurt unbearably. Her vision was still blurry.

“Wait, wait…”

Muttering to herself, she clutched the unrealistic wedding dress she was wearing and placed her hand on the nearest surface.

“Haa…”

Taking a deep breath, she lifted her head—only to find herself standing before a mirror.

Her reflection was blurry, but there was no mistaking it—she was wearing a wedding dress.

What was this? What the hell was happening? Why her?

I can’t see.

It was as if someone had put swimming goggles full of water over her eyes.

Groping instinctively, her fingers brushed against something in front of the mirror. She immediately recognized it.

Glasses.

No way. That couldn’t be right.

Her vision had always been perfect—2.0 in both eyes—and she had never once worn lenses.

Yet, without thinking, she picked them up and slid them onto her nose. She didn’t understand any of this, but she did it anyway.

“……”

She looked into the mirror again…

Gone.

Gone was the healthy tanned skin she’d had since her twenties from enjoying tanning—her skin was pale.

Gone was the toned, athletic body she had built from regular workouts.

“What is this…”

Gone.

“What… is this?”

Gone was the face that had always belonged to Go Woo-ri.

“Ah…!”

With both hands crushing her delicately made-up cheeks, she was about to scream from deep in her gut—

Click.

The door opened, and in stepped a face she could never forget after seeing it once.

Instead of screaming, another word burst from her throat.

“Ha Yoon-jae?”

Through the glasses, she saw his familiar face—

Features so polished they were almost too much, broad shoulders filling out a tuxedo perfectly. A man who was breathtaking to look at was now hurrying toward her.

“I heard you weren’t feeling well—are you okay?”

His gentlemanly manners and concerned tone made her vision swim.

“Why—why are you here?”

Then she suddenly realized—

She turned to look at the mirror again.

What she had been too shocked to notice earlier came into view. The face in the reflection was…

“You look pale. Tell me where it hurts. We can delay the wedding a little and go to the hospital if we have to.”

As Ha Yoon-jae gently placed his hands on her shoulders—

Life is going to get a little more interesting.

The words, spoken like a curse just hours ago, came flooding back. And Yoon-jae kindly reminded her of her reality.

“Joo Ae-jung.”

“No!”

Her denial burst out like lightning, and she pushed him away.

Joo Ae-jung? Me? Why?

She spun in place, frantically rejecting this absurd reality.

“This is ridiculous. This—this can’t be real. Is this a dream? No… have I gone insane?”

“What are you talking about?”

He took a step closer. She wiped her face with trembling hands and looked at him.

Wedding. Joo Ae-jung. Ha Yoon-jae.

Seeing the same shock in his eyes, she realized what she had to do—right now.

Panicking could come later. She caught her breath and spoke.

“Listen to me. You won’t believe me, you’ll think it’s impossible. You might even be shocked—and I agree, this makes no sense—but…”

“……”

“I… I’m not your wife.”

She understood his silence but pressed on.

“I’m not the Joo Ae-jung you love. I’m Go Woo—”

“It’s too late for regrets.”

The sudden chill in his voice fell over her like ice water.

“…What?”

It didn’t sound like something you’d say to the woman you love. That cold tone reached his fingertips.

“Joo Ae-jung.”

Calling her by a name she would never get used to, he gripped her pale shoulders.

“Ugh.”

The pain from his crushing hold made her wince.

“Listen carefully.”

Moving closer, his icy gaze locked onto her as he whispered.

“You must have forgotten, but I’ve already paid for everything, and you accepted it. I made the offer, but you made the choice. Denying reality won’t help. Understand?”

After a pause, he twisted one corner of his mouth.

“We’re getting married, and that won’t change.”

She couldn’t understand it, yet somehow she did—and so she couldn’t move at all.

“Move, Joo Ae-jung.”

At the same time, a voice rang in her head—

[I love you, Yoon-jae.]

The soft voice whispered,

What the hell did she see in this guy?

Boom!

Thunder cracked outside, as if telling her to snap out of it. Even in this well-soundproofed room, the sudden, unforecasted thunder was loud enough to rattle the building.

Knock, knock.

Along with the fading rumble, someone knocked on the firmly closed door.

Yoon-jae released her shoulders and opened it himself.

“Excuse me, sir.”

The unfamiliar man who entered glanced at her before handing Yoon-jae a phone.

Boom!

Thunder rolled again as Yoon-jae frowned and turned up the phone’s volume.

Then, she heard a voice she hadn’t noticed before—

“…At 1:55 p.m., a Korean Air flight bound for Honolulu experienced an incident, resulting in the temporary suspension of all flights scheduled at the same time.
The incident occurred in the first-class section of the flight.
The suspect, a businessman in his twenties with a mental illness, was arrested on the spot.
In the indiscriminate attack, two crew members were injured, and one passenger died.
The deceased was a woman in her late twenties seated next to the suspect…”

“Go Woo-ri is dead?”

Thanks to that single sentence summing up the whole report, she couldn’t think of anything else.

Who’s dead?

Her head creaked toward the mirror, stiff like an unoiled machine.

Then… who am I here?

In the reflection, the face of “Joo Ae-jung” stared back—wearing Go Woo-ri’s emotions.

Her breath quickened, her mind went blank, and finally, she laughed.

“Crazy.”

And with that last word, her eyelids rolled back.

“Joo Ae-jung!”