Chapter 107: Confinement-2
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 107: Confinement-2
The rattling of chains beats against my heart like a drum, striking a rapid, frantic rhythm.
No matter how I look at it, this is my house, my room, my bedroom.
This familiar space has been transformed into something alien by a single object.
It still feels like a dream.
I was definitely at the front door... and then did I faint? Yes, that seems right.
In the end, I failed to stop Garam from coming in.
The shackle around my ankle is the proof of that failure.
The chain attached to my ankle is quite long—long enough to let me move around the entire bedroom, at least.
I grab the chain and give it a useless tug.
The end of the taut chain is firmly anchored to the wall.
Hoping it might slip off, I point my toes and twist my foot every which way, but the shackle, cinched tight around my ankle, only rattles as if to tell me it’s hopeless.
Unless I cut my foot off with a saw like in Saw, getting this thing off seems impossible.
From the moment I woke up after being knocked out to the moment I regained my senses.
From the moment I realized the reality of my confinement.
It wasn't until I heard the sound of footsteps approaching from a distance that I finally forced the single sentiment rising from the depths of my gut out of my mouth.
"I'm fucked."
*
"Are you awake? You collapsed so suddenly, I was worried."
The door opens, and Garam walks in.
She’s holding a large glass filled with a brownish liquid.
"It's a supplement. For me."
Noticing my gaze lingering on the glass, she gives a small shrug.
Then, she gulps the supplement down.
Her clothes are drenched in sweat, and I can see bloodstains on her neck.
"I never gave you my address. How did you find out?"
I ask because I am genuinely, purely curious.
"Your phone."
"My phone?"
"When you go to get water in the middle of a workout, or when you go to the bathroom, you leave your phone behind."
She wipes her mouth with the back of her hand and explains slowly, as if speaking to a child.
"I opened your delivery app then. I saw the address on there."
So that was how she always knew exactly what I’d eaten.
"Even if you knew the address, the common entrance password... No, how did you know I’d be coming out of the house in the first place?"
She could have just followed someone else through the common entrance, but what would she have done if I hadn't ordered food today?
"Well, Dad always orders delivery around this time. Even if you didn't come out today, I could have just waited in the emergency stairs."
Her nonchalance leaves me speechless.
"There are about three things I want to ask."
"Yes, go ahead."
"Why did you tie me up like this?"
When I lift the chain, her eyes shift away.
She fidgets, seemingly aware that what she did wasn't exactly right.
"B-Because... Dad keeps avoiding me."
Pressing her index fingers together, she protests in a tiny voice.
"You hang up quickly when I call, you don't work out as often... You keep avoiding me. I had no choice."
"My ankle hurts."
"I'm sorry about that. But... I'm sorry. If I let you go, you'll just run away."
Even as she bows her head in apology, her resolve doesn't seem likely to waver.
"Fine. Next question. What’s that blood on your neck? And why are your clothes like that?"
"Ah... this is..."
She rubs her neck, trying to hide the bloodstains.
Her face turns bright red, as if she’s been caught exposing a shameful secret.
She probably thinks I don't know, so she feels she has to hide it. But I already know what she’s done.
"Who was it this time?"
"Pardon?"
"That blood. Whose is it? Who was it this time?"
"......."
"Did you think I wouldn't know?"
"But..."
"But! Those people were being mean to Dad. I just..."
"Did I ask you to hit them?"
"That's..."
"Did I say I wanted them to be hospitalized?"
"Who was it this time? Someone who bumped shoulders with me on the street? Or someone handing out flyers?"
Since things have already come to this, I confront her without holding anything back.
"...It was Hana."
"Who?"
"That bitch Hana, the one Dad is so obsessed with."
"Why would Hana suddenly... No, how?"
"She came to the center. She asked to see Dad. She said she was going to make some kind of deal with Dad before she sued him for sexual harassment over the messages he's been sending her."
"......"
"So I taught her a lesson. Is that wrong, too? Was I overreacting this time, too?"
"...Garam, that's..."
I try to say something, but the words won't come out.
The unexpected variable of Hana has thrown me off.
"It's not, right? Since you can't say anything, I must have done the right thing."
"I think Dad was always like that," Garam mutters, her head still lowered.
"You never say what's truly on your mind. You were thinking that Hana bitch was a nuisance and wished she would just disappear."
"But I don't hate that side of you, Dad. No, I actually like it."
Setting the glass down on the table, Garam slowly approaches me.
"You're just too shy to say it properly, right? You're afraid things will get awkward if you show your true feelings?"
Her hand rests on my shoulder.
"It's okay. I can do everything Dad tells me to. So please, tell me now."
She leads me toward the bed.
She presses down on my shoulders. Unable to even resist her strength, I sink onto the edge of the bed.
Clink. The chain rattles once more.
Garam bends her knees and rests her face against my thigh.
"Garam."
"Yes, Dad."
"I'm sorry, but I've never seen you in a romantic light. I only helped you because I wanted to support you."
"...Liar."
"It's not a lie."
"Then why were you so nice to me?"
"That's because I liked seeing how hard you worked. I wanted to cheer you on for giving it your all despite the difficult circumstances."
I try to calm her rampage with the truth.
Did my words reach her? She keeps her eyes closed, using my lap as a pillow, and remains silent.
Eventually, she stands back up and meets my eyes.
"I guess you're still very shy. We have plenty of time. Whenever you feel like it, just let me know."
"We have plenty of time."
Peck. She plants a kiss on my cheek and pulls away.
"Oh, right. I'll be keeping your phone."
With those words, she turns off the light and closes the door.
Thud.
I am left alone in the darkness of the spacious bedroom.