The Second Childhood Friend Came Looking for Me

It happened after breakfast, while I was picking at strawberries for dessert.

"Halmeoni, do you happen to remember a girl named Yoon Bom?"

"Of course. Did you meet Bom yesterday?"

"Yes, at the cafe."

"Ah, so you went to Bom's cafe. I enjoy a matcha latte there myself, you know."

From her reaction, she and Yoon Bom seemed to be quite close.

So why was I the only one who couldn't remember any of it?

"Bom waited a long time for you, dear. Even after you went back to the city, she'd come by to ask after you."

"Were we really that close?"

"Of course~ You weren't just *some* friends. Bom and Yeoreum practically lived at our house, remember?"

"Yeoreum?"

It was a name I was hearing for the first time, right after Yoon Bom's.

There's another one called Yeoreum...?

When my face registered the shock, Halmeoni only looked puzzled and asked back.

"Hm? You really don't remember? The village chief's granddaughter, dear. The three of you were practically inseparable."

Another childhood friend who didn't exist in my memory.

"Bom and Yeoreum used to bicker so ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠badly over who'd get the seat next to you. Why, your grandfather and I even made a little wager over which one you'd end up marrying."

Under normal circumstances, I would have demanded to know what kind of grandparents bet on their own grandson's marriage.

But right now, my mind was too occupied by the existence of a second childhood friend I'd never known about.

"Dohyun-ah, you really can't recall anything that happened here? Could Wolho have been playing tricks on you...?"

"Wolho?"

"It's an old story that's been passed down in Haewol Village."

Meeting Halmeoni's worried eyes, I felt an inexplicable weight settle in my chest.

"Ah... I suppose I was just too young."

It was an excuse even I couldn't quite believe, but I couldn't bring myself to worry her.

Just then, Halmeoni glanced past the open front gate.

"Well, good timing. Looks like Yeoreum's come to visit."

Wait, already...?

"Coming throoough!"

A girl in a training outfit came sprinting into the yard.

Her sun-orange hair, the color of sunlight itself, was pulled up into a high ponytail.

With every stride, that long ponytail swung wildly from side to side.

Worse still, the moment she spotted me, she picked up speed.

"Um, hold on—"

She charged at me like she was about to ram straight into me, and I instinctively stumbled backward.

The girl covered the distance to the wooden veranda in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one breathless dash, then came to a dead stop right in front of me.

"Hah—! Hah—!"

Even gasping for air, her eyes never left my face. As she looked me up and down, those sky-blue pupils wavered ever so slightly.

"Lee Dohyun...!"

"Don't tell me—you're Han Yeoreum?"

At my question, her eyes narrowed to slits. Then she strode forward and seized both my cheeks in her hands.

"You rotten little punk!"

"Wh-what are you doooing!"

She yanked my cheeks left and right without mercy.

"Where did you disappear to all this time?"

"W-wait! Let go of me first, then we'll talk!"

"What was that?! You never even called once!"

Nothing I said was getting through. I grabbed her wrists and tried to pry her off, but she was stronger than she looked.

When I leaned back to escape her grip, I lost my balance and toppled against the veranda.

Han Yeoreum, still clutching my collar, came tumbling right along with me and ended up straddling me.

"Yeoreum-ah."

Halmeoni, who'd been watching, finally spoke up.

I thought, *finally*, someone's taking my side.

"Our Dohyun says he can't remember, so pull harder, dear."

"Yes ma'am! Don't you worry!"

I stared at Halmeoni, betrayed, but she just covered her mouth with her palm, laughing, and retreated into the kitchen.

Is there a single person in this village on my side?

Only after a long while did Han Yeoreum release my cheeks—yet she showed no sign of getting off me.

"I heard everything from Bom. How could you forget us? Can you really not remember me either?"

She must have pulled hard, because my cheeks felt stretched to twice their size.

"Yeah."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"And that's supposed to fly? After telling me every single day you wanted to marry me?"

My heart lurched.

Was the girl from my dream Han Yeoreum?

No. No way.

The atmosphere in that dream was nothing like the girl in front of me now.

Besides, the corners of her mouth were slowly creeping upward—the face of someone desperately fighting back laughter.

"Don't lie to me."

"...Huh? What... that doesn't work either? Come on, be honest with me. The amnesia thing is a lie too, isn't it?"

One thing was certain.

Unlike Yoon Bom, Han Yeoreum was an extremely exhausting person to deal with.

"I'm telling the truth, and you're heavy, so get off."

I pushed Han Yeoreum off of me.

She rolled aside, laughing heartily, and jabbed me in the side with her palm.

"*Heavy*?! To a girl?! Dohyun, you don't understand women's hearts at all—like, *at all*!"

"Says the girl who charged over here like a raging bull a second ago."

She'd been too busy getting up to hear me, apparently. And if she had, she'd have just lunged at me again, brainlessly.

At some point, Han Yeoreum had gotten a grip on my wrist again.

"Let's go."

"Where?"

"That thing—what's it called? A nostalgia tour?"

"No."

Caught off guard by my answer, she blinked several times.

"Jinx. You owe me."

"Why are you being so childish?"

"Hmph! Jinxing a jinx is a forbidden move."

There was something so kid-like about her that I genuinely doubted we were the same age.

But this time, I couldn't play along with the joke.

"Sorry, but I have no intention of getting close to anyone here."

I slid my wrist free of her grip.

"It's not because I dislike you. It's just better if you don't get tangled up with me."

At that, Han Yeoreum made a strange noise and grabbed my cheeks again.

"Oh, for goodness' sake! You've been spouting nonsense this whole time, you dummy?"

Unlike Yoon Bom, Han Yeoreum didn't seem to have the slightest intention of actually listening to me.

"If you get close to me, you'll get dragged into trouble. I'm telling you—"

"Say what?!"

She let out an exasperated sigh. Then she rolled up her sleeves.

"Fine. Then I've got no choice."

She drew one foot back and lowered her hips into a crouch.

Then she stared straight at me.

An image flashed through my mind: a bull about to charge.

"You're insane—!"

"Here I come!"

Han Yeoreum barreled into me.

With no room to dodge, she threw both arms around me and wrapped her whole body tightly around mine so I couldn't escape.

The soft sensation pressing against my arms whited out my brain for a moment.

I had spent my whole life desperately keeping my distance so that women could never get close to me.

To someone like me, Han Yeoreum was a type I had never once encountered before.

"What are you doing? Get off!"

"We're hugging like this and nothing's happening, right? So that means it's fine, doesn't it?"

No accident had occurred.

Which meant that, at least right now, Han Yeoreum didn't like me romantically.

But that didn't mean I could let my guard down completely.

Every accident so far had struck the moment the other person confessed their feelings to me.

So then—what would happen if *I* fell for someone first?

I'd never tested it.

I'd always kept my distance from people precisely so I'd never develop feelings like that in the first place.

For all I knew, the curse could trigger the very moment I became aware of my own heart.

Either way, getting close to Han Yeoreum was dangerous.

"I said get off!"

"Nope~!"

Just then, Halmeoni, watching the whole spectacle, broke into a knowing smile.

"Aren't they sweet."

"Halmeoni, stop spectating and help me."

"Yeoreum-ah, could you take this for a moment, dear?"

Halmeoni completely ignored me and held out a paper bag to Yeoreum.

"Share it with Dohyun. I put in strawberries too—your favorite."

"Yes~ Thank you!"

The moment Han Yeoreum accepted the bag, my pinned arm was finally released.

What is with the strength of these girls? My arm still aches.

"Halmeoni, I never said I was going anywhere."

"It's rude to keep a friend waiting. Off you go, dear."

Right. There was no one in this village on my side.

And so I was dragged out the front gate, wrist firmly in Han Yeoreum's grip.

"So where exactly are we going?"

"The places we used to play. Who knows—maybe seeing them will bring your memory back."

She clearly had no intention of giving up, so it seemed like humoring her for a bit and then sending her home would be the fastest way to end this.

"Fine. Let's go."

The first place Han Yeoreum took me was a small brook deeper in the village.

Clear water drifted slowly between the stones. She hopped down to the water's edge and picked up a flat stone.

"Remember this place? We used to bet on stuff here all the time."

I looked around slowly. A low stone bridge, grass growing along the bank, and beyond the stream, an old willow tree standing watch.

The scenery was beautiful—but this, too, was somewhere I'd never seen before.

"Hard to say. It's pretty, though."

"Hmmm~ That bad, huh."

Han Yeoreum traced the stone with a wistful look.

"We used to have skipping-stone contests here all the time..."

We bet on skipping stones...?

In the city, I'd played handheld games and kicked around a soccer ball...

A faint doubt crept in—was I truly the Dohyun these girls remembered?

Maybe reading the turmoil on my face, Han Yeoreum waved the paper bag in front of my eyes.

"Okay, let's make it a bet."

"A bet?"

"Whoever skips more stones gets first pick of whatever they want from this bag."

"Fine. And drinks are on the line too."

The reason I accepted was simple.

I didn't like that smug look on her face.

"One throw each. That's it."

Han Yeoreum gripped her stone with total confidence.

She squared her stance and swung her arm with everything she had.

Plop-plop-plop-plop!

Four skips in total.

"Ah...! I thought I'd get at least five."

Needless to say, I had no memory of ever skipping stones.

I scanned the bank and picked out a stone with a smooth, flat surface. Something about it told me it would fly well.

I lowered my knee and tilted my torso sideways, twisting my wrist so the stone would release as parallel to the water as possible.

Tap-tap-tap—!

The stone danced across the surface, skipping further and further away.

One, two, three...

It didn't sink until it had kissed the water an eighth time.

Han Yeoreum slowly turned her head toward me, utterly dumbfounded.

"Do you *actually* have amnesia? Or did you just spend your whole city life skipping stones?"

"What's that supposed to mean."

"Ugh, you...!"

She examined my face from every angle, suspicion written all over it.

"I feel completely played."

I didn't show it, but I was rattled too.

Because from the moment the stone touched my hand, my body had known before my mind did—how to stand, which angle to throw from, everything.

Wearing a grudging expression, she held the paper bag out to me.

"You won, so pick first."

Inside the bag were strawberries and oranges.

Without a moment's hesitation, I plucked out a strawberry.

Yeoreum's face crumpled in wounded injustice.

"My strawberry...!"

"If you're mad, win next time."

"Rematch! Now!"

"Nope. You're terrible at this."

"I said rematch!"

And so Han Yeoreum spent a good long while glaring at me, face scarlet.

Seriously—why do you have to be like this?

Our next stop was an old stationery shop.

She ducked inside and came back out clutching a snack bag shaped like something she knew all too well.

Apparently eating all the fruit Halmeoni had packed still wasn't enough for her.

"Remember this? Your favorite snack."

The bag showed a mushroom covered in chocolate.

Choco Paeng-i.

Not something I'd bother seeking out these days.

"I don't really eat it anymore."

"Whoa... even your taste buds betrayed me?"

"Unlike you, I actually grew up."

"Tch... I still love them, though..."

Muttering wistfully, she gripped the top of the bag.

And just as she pulled hard to tear it open—

BANG—!

The bag burst open with more force than expected, sending snacks flying in every direction.

"Ah...!"

Most of them scattered across the floor, but thankfully a few remained inside the bag.

For an instant I wondered if my curse was behind it—but it felt far too trivial for that.

Besides, far from being flustered, Han Yeoreum peeked into the bag and broke into a huge grin.

"No way! It's a Golden Song-i?! They say there's only one in a hundred bags!"

She picked out one of the mushroom snacks and held it up to my lips.

"Say ahh~!"

In a daze, I opened my mouth, and Han Yeoreum popped the snack right in.

Maybe because it had been so long, the Choco Paeng-i tasted far sweeter than I remembered.

"There we go~ That's my good boy, Dohyun."

"What's wrong with you?"

"Hm? You used to love it when I fed you like this."

What on earth kind of kid was I back then?

Han Yeoreum kept grinning ear to ear as if something wonderful had happened.

Was eating one snack really worth ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠that much joy?

Casually, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, she took hold of my wrist again.

"On to the next place, then."

The place she took me this time was an old warehouse on the edge of the village.

It had clearly been abandoned for years—the wooden walls were bleached pale by the sun, and dried vines tangled along the edge of the roof.

"What is this place?"

"Our secret base."

When Han Yeoreum pulled aside a weathered wooden plank beside the warehouse, a narrow gap appeared—just barely big enough for one child to squeeze through.

She bent down and slipped inside first.

"Hurry up and come in."

Is it really safe to go in there?

I hesitated, but her urging kept drifting out from within. In the end, I let out a sigh and wedged myself through the narrow opening.

Inside, the warehouse was more spacious than I'd expected. A faded straw mat lay across the floor, and crooked handwriting was scrawled across the wall.

I traced my own name on the wall with a fingertip.

The letters were far clumsier and more crooked than the way I wrote now—but it was unmistakably my handwriting.

A past version of me, one I couldn't remember, had been here.

Yet nothing surfaced in my mind. A tight, hollow pressure settled in one corner of my chest.

"Look at this too."

Han Yeoreum pulled out a small tin box from the corner.

She dusted it off and lifted the lid. Inside were marbles, old game chips, a faded hair tie, and a single photograph.

Three young children stood side by side in the picture.

In the middle stood me—much younger than I was now.

On the left, Yoon Bom clung to my arm. On the right, Han Yeoreum had an arm slung around my shoulder, laughing.

And there I was, smiling between the two of them.

"It's real."

Only now did it truly sink in that I had genuinely been close with these girls.

"Of course it is. Why would I lie about it?"

She held the photo out to me.

"You keep it. Maybe holding onto it will bring something back."

There was no reason to refuse. I took the photo, studied it for a while, and then carefully slipped it into my wallet.

Han Yeoreum nodded, satisfied, and headed out of the warehouse ahead of me.

"Next time let's come with Bom!"

I followed her out through the narrow gap.

That was when the wooden plank under her foot split apart with a sinister crack.

"Huh?"

Instinctively, I reached out, grabbed her arm, and pulled her toward me.

"Yeoreum-ah, careful!"

Her body tumbled straight into my arms.

Close enough to feel her breath, our eyes met.

Those sky-blue eyes wavered wide with surprise.

I belatedly realized the situation and hastily let her go.

"You okay?"

"......"

"Han Yeoreum?"

She didn't answer. Instead, she wrapped her other hand around the arm I'd just been holding and looked up at me.

"Say that again."

"Say what?"

"My name."

"Han Yeoreum."

"Not that—the way you said it before."

I remembered what I'd said a moment ago.

"Yeoreum-ah?"

The instant the word left my mouth, a smile spread slowly across her face.

"Yeah, Dohyun-ah. You used to call me that too."

It was nothing more than a way of saying her name, and yet she was overjoyed.

Watching her, I felt something strange stir inside me.

I clearly had no memory of Han Yeoreum.

And yet, the moment she was in danger, her name had come out of me as naturally as breathing.

It was the same as when I'd skipped stones at the brook.

My mind forgot—but is some trace of the past still living somewhere in my body?

"Say it again~"

Even on the walk back to the village, Han Yeoreum kept chattering at my side.

"Come on, just once more?"

"No."

"Say it~ It's my name, you know."

"..."

"Say it! Say it!"

If I didn't, she clearly wasn't going to quiet down.

"Yeoreum-ah."

"Yes! Dohyun-ah."

Was that one word really worth that much to her?

I quickened my pace, staring straight ahead for no particular reason.

"Let's head home now."

"What are you talking about? There's still one more place."

"Again?"

"Yep. The most important one."

She pointed at the low mountain behind the village. Through the trees, a gentle hillside sloped into view.

My heart slammed hard against my ribs.

"It's the best spot to watch the fireworks when the festival comes around, you see~"

No way. Is that the hill from my dream?