Back Then, Back Then, Back Then, Part 2
Cha Sang-hui woke up to a burning sensation in her stomach.
Her bloodshot eyes took in her surroundings, confirming she was in Lee Ga-rang's bedroom.
Instead of the chaotic, market-like club, she was in the room of her closest childhood friend.
The fact that she had been acting out in a club soaked in alcohol and cigarette smoke...
...had been exposed once again.
She couldn't remember how she had ended up at Ga-rang's house,
but the realization that she had shown her pathetic side yet again...
...made Sang-hui bury her face in her hands.
Click.
The bedroom door clicked open.
It wasn't Lee Ga-rang. It was Gong Na-rin.
She crept in, carrying a saucer with a glass filled to the brim with honey water, her eyes fixed on her friend.
The soft, brown-haired girl thrust the glass of honey water right in front of the disheveled, platinum-blonde girl's doll-like face.
"Drink up. Ga-rang made this honey water herself. You have to drink every last drop, okay?"
Mortified that another close childhood friend had witnessed her delinquency, Sang-hui avoided her gaze and simply gulped down the honey water.
Na-rin just watched her friend's embarrassment with a pleased, beaming smile.
Sang-hui finished the drink and spoke to Na-rin, trying to sound steady.
"I didn't... do anything stupid, did I?"
"Well, the club staff realized late that you were a minor and begged you to leave, but you got drunk and started hitting them. They said it was quite a beautiful sight."
"What...?! I caused a scene...?"
"I wish you did, but unfortunately, you just stumbled over to Ga-rang's place slightly tipsy. So, her parents said they're going to scold you later!"
"Scold... *cough!* Ugh..."
Hearing that her shameful behavior had been exposed to the adults, Sang-hui choked on her own spit.
Na-rin stepped forward and patted Sang-hui's back to help her stop coughing—or rather, she practically slapped it.
Smack!
"Ow! You crazy bitch... Gong Na-rin! Ah, shit..."
Sang-hui, her back stinging, tried to pounce on Na-rin, but the lingering hangover forced her to just clutch her throbbing head.
Na-rin took a step back and spoke again.
"Fun, isn't it?"
"You little... Fun? Yeah, it's hilarious. Damn it..."
"The old you would've never done bad things and would've been so sweet... but a Cha Sang-hui reeking of cigarettes... is kind of... fun too."
But the emotion behind Na-rin's words was so profoundly lonely.
Sang-hui could only pretend not to notice...
...how Na-rin truly felt about what she had become.
"I'm so glad you're entertained. But where is Ga-rang, and why are you here?"
"Ga-rang called me to watch over you and then went grocery shopping. Her parents went to a therapy session."
"...Therapy? Out of nowhere?"
"They started this week. Since they're out, your scolding has unfortunately been postponed. What a shame."
Sang-hui scoffed at Na-rin's teasing and tried to get up. Na-rin walked over, took her hand to pull her up, and then—
—let go.
Thud!
"Gong Na-rin, you fucking bitch..."
Sang-hui, thrown back onto the bed, glared murderously at Na-rin, who was already giggling and fleeing toward the living room.
The moment Sang-hui got back up and stepped into the living room, the front door opened, and Lee Ga-rang walked in.
"I'm back. Sang-hui, are you feeling okay? But why does your face look so... scary?"
"That little brat... Ugh, I need to control myself."
Since the host had returned, Sang-hui held back, while Na-rin sat on the sofa, snickering.
"Na-rin, I asked you to take care of Sang-hui... Did you tease her again?"
"It wasn't just teasing, she hit me. Do you really think she's capable of nursing anyone?"
Ga-rang shook her head at the two of them and put the groceries in the fridge. Soon, all three of them were sitting on the sofa.
Ga-rang looked at Sang-hui, her voice laced with worry.
"Sang-hui, why do you keep doing this? You're not even an adult. How did you even get into a club? And the drinking and smoking... please stop."
"It's just drinking and smoking... There's nothing to worry about..."
"Seriously... know when to stop!"
"Stop what? Everyone already thinks I'm... No, let's just drop it."
Sang-hui and Ga-rang cut the conversation short to avoid a bigger argument.
Na-rin's bright smile faded, as if she was all too familiar with this tension.
Na-rin reached for her old music box sitting on the living room table.
She wound the key, but...
...no music played.
She couldn't remember who, but someone had gifted it to her a long time ago...
Na-rin kept winding the key, but...
...it remained silent.
"That's strange... No sound at all..."
Na-rin stared at the music box, cradling it in both hands with a look of distress.
Ga-rang stroked Na-rin's hair to comfort her.
Sang-hui suddenly felt a strong urge to smoke.
"Ever since the boy who liked fish... left our side... it's been broken like this..."
Na-rin had spoken without thinking...
...mentioning the one person they shouldn't name.
Ga-rang's hand froze mid-stroke.
Sang-hui recalled last night...
...how he had just walked past, even when she threw a cigarette butt at him...
...how he hadn't held her close...
The three of them felt as if they were drowning,
unable to utter a single word.
The music box remained silent.
Last night.
At the police station, a formal complaint was filed after I showed them the video sent by Yu Min-su's parents.
After giving my statement for over three hours,
Yu Min-su was sent to a relative's house under protective custody.
I comforted Min-su, telling him not to worry and that nothing bad would happen to him anymore.
Min-su showed his trust in me, promising he wouldn't sway like a reed anymore.
On my way home, I called my father.
I sent him the video of Min-su's parents,
and relayed everything I had uncovered so far.
"The Baekyeom Sect... Those lunatics... are still active?"
"Yes. I don't know their scale, but... I'm certain they targeted me and are playing with me."
"*Sigh...*"
"I'm sorry, Hae-in. The trap they set was so seamless... To think a prosecutor like me fell for it..."
"I was hurt, but... even if I were in your shoes, I would have fallen for it too..."
"No matter what... I will make sure those bastards never rise again, staking the honor of my father—your grandfather. So don't worry anymore."
"Why would I worry? I know Chief Prosecutor Oh Hae-su is going to show them what he's made of."
"Yes, I must. Those cowards couldn't handle the risk of targeting an active prosecutor like me, so they went after you, a child... I will save you from all of this. Every single bit of it."
"Tomorrow... people will be visiting Grandfather's grave, so you'll be busy."
"It's always like this around this time of year... I wish they'd stop visiting. Traveling down there every time... you know how it is, right?"
"Right. Grandfather is buried deep in the mountains with our ancestors, so traveling back and forth is incredibly... exhausting."
"Relocating the graves takes too much time and money... Our ancestors chose a spot with excellent feng shui, but that very location makes it so difficult now."
"I'll be greeting visitors with your mother... Let's make some time next week for all of us to spend together. It's been a while."
"Okay... We definitely should."
The misunderstanding with my father was finally clearing up. We had shattered the residue of distrust and returned to how we used to be.
The graves of my grandparents and ancestors were rooted deep in a rugged, steep mountain in the countryside. Visiting them, let alone exhuming and relocating them, was a daunting task.
Even when visiting in a group, dangerous situations would occasionally arise.
Just like that, the forced misunderstanding between my father and me came to an end.
As I hung up, the apartment building where I lived welcomed me.
For a long time, I could only stumble around, unable to even look my own home in the eye.
But now, I could stand tall, knowing the warm embrace of my family would return.
The incident that everyone believed was a scheme cooked up by my own twisted mind...
...the truth that it was orchestrated by the lingering, persistent remnants of the Baekyeom Sect...
...the day the world would learn the truth was drawing near.
I stepped inside my home, bathed in the morning sunlight.
Even the school of Bipha fish, which I used to hate looking at because of their ugly appearance, looked lovely today.
I stood before the aquarium, watching the fish swim leisurely as if they were the most beautiful creatures in the world. After spending some time there, I went to my room and fell into a deep, belated sleep.
It was incredibly peaceful, allowing me to rest properly for the first time in a long while.
My exhausted body felt fully restored. After showering and changing, the clock pointed to lunchtime.
I decided to celebrate the impending clearance of my name. I would head to the downtown district, treat myself to a fine meal, and finish with some nice dessert. With that plan in mind, I took the subway to the downtown area.
As I walked toward my destination, weaving through the bustling crowd...
"Hae-in, it's been a long time."
Huh...?
Lee Ga-rang's mother and father... were walking toward me, calling my name.
And they were doing so with warm, affectionate expressions.
My name hasn't even been cleared yet...?
"We're so glad to see you again... Shall we go grab lunch together?"
Their baffling reaction left me completely stunned, and before I knew it, Ga-rang's parents had ushered me into a nearby restaurant.
"We have so much to tell you. Let's catch up over a meal."
And they were speaking to me formally?
Even the way Ga-rang's parents spoke felt bizarre.
I wondered if they were planning to stab me for exposing their secret... but both of them looked perfectly neat and composed.
Bewildered, I ended up sitting down at a table with them.
Reunited once again.