[YOO JAY’S POV]
Ever since my hyung was hit by a car, the cigarettes I had almost habitually smoked didn’t even cross my mind. Normally, the urge would have kicked in long ago, but strangely, it didn’t. I think it was because my mind was fully alert.
With my nerves frayed, I could clearly feel the stress building up.
My senses had become so hypersensitive that the touch of my clothes against my skin felt prickly. Every little sound—the movement of the members in the living room, the ticking of the clock—seemed to pierce straight into my ears.
But it didn’t matter if my senses were unusually heightened.
Even from a distance, I could hear the sound of my hyung’s breathing in and out.
“…….”
While his body was recovering, my hyung didn’t move a single finger, like a corpse, so the only thing that reassured me he was alive was the sound of his breathing. I could have checked his pulse now that his heart had started beating again, but I was afraid that even the slightest wrong touch might make that window disappear. So, all I could do was curl up a little distance away and endure what felt like an eternity.
Just a little while ago, I was truly happy. Being with my hyung and the members, I could genuinely laugh. But now, those memories felt like a cruel illusion.
[Restoration is progressing according to criticality … 92%]
I stared blankly at the number, now nearly at 100%, and quietly muttered.
“93 … 93 … 93 …….”
It was almost done.
Soon the number would reach 100%, and my hyung would wake up.
‘…Ah, I should be calling him Han Seungbeom. When did I start calling him hyung? I don’t remember.’
Then, this anxiety gnawing at my brain would melt away like snow, and I would return to normal. After that, I would continue the party with the members, sharing the stories I hadn’t yet told.
As I was thinking this, I heard something moving in the living room.
As soon as I heard it, I reflexively jumped out of my seat and headed to the living room.
Then, I immediately noticed Chise-hyung standing by the entrance, dressed in his coat and holding his phone. Watching him, clearly about to head outside, I quietly spoke.
“Where are you going?”
The moment I said those words, Chise-hyung’s expression hardened.
And the rest of the group turned to look at me with open contempt, as if they were looking at a madman.
I had tied up perfectly healthy people for hours, preventing them from leaving the studio.
It was only fitting that they were looking at me that way.
“…Jay-ya.”
The voice was much warmer than I expected. The tone didn’t match his face at all, and just as I inwardly muttered, ‘
Huh?
‘, a ringing sensation filled my head, and my vision blurred. When I rubbed my eyes and opened them again, his face was full of worry, with no sign of the irritation or contempt I’d seen moments before.
I stood there, dazed, like something had broken. I wondered if I had finally lost my mind. My hyungs would never look at me like that. Was I now trying to paint even innocent people as villains?
“Since Seungbeom’s condition seems to have stabilized, I’m thinking of quickly stopping by Inchan’s place. I think he’s misunderstanding our situation because he doesn’t know what’s going on.”
“No. Don’t go.”
He spoke gently, trying to persuade me, but I unconsciously snapped back in a sharp voice. I felt like I had no control over anything—my voice, my expression, or even the situation itself.
“…You know just as well that we can’t stay like this forever. The driver has already fled. The people outside are just ordinary drivers on the road, and the same kind of accident won’t happen again.”
What came back was a calm, rational argument. Anyone with a normal way of thinking would probably see it that way. I knew that. But right now, my mind was filled with thoughts no one else could understand, and I felt like I was on the verge of madness.
“How can you be sure of that, hyung? What if that guy comes back for more?”
“Yoo Jay.”
“…It wasn’t just a random accident. It was a deliberate attempt to kill him.”
“…What?”
Yihwon-hyung probably didn’t know exactly what had happened since the accident unfolded right in front of him in an instant. And Chise-hyung and Cha Woon-hyung, who followed a little later after I rushed out, were a bit further away, so they probably didn’t get a clear view either.
In the end, I was the only one who fully remembered the exact moment the accident happened. The moment my hyung ran after Yihwon-hyung, I had followed right behind him. So when I brought up the possibility of a planned crime, the members all froze in place, looking like they were in shock.
I lowered my head and started talking rapidly, as if I were being hunted.
“…The alley was narrow and had a lot of corners, so it must have been very tricky to drive, but there wasn’t even a single scratch on the car until right before the accident happened. That means it wasn’t a case of drowsy driving or drunk driving. The car came from a long straight section after a corner, and Yihwon-hyung and Seungbeom-hyung were standing there talking, so there’s no way he didn’t see them. But despite that, he drove at such a high speed and hit someone. Doesn’t that mean it was intentional from the start?”
As I recalled the moment of the accident, I could feel my eyes darting wildly, so wide open that the full curve of my black irises was exposed. Not wanting my hyungs to see such an ugly sight, I lowered my head and clutched my face with both hands.
“What’s more, as he pushed Yihwon-hyung, his position shifted slightly, but the driver turned the wheel in that direction. Doesn’t that seem strange to you? Usually, you’d instinctively steer away from people. He didn’t even honk once before hitting him, didn’t call an ambulance, didn’t check his condition. The driver just ran away immediately. This wasn’t just an accident. He was targeting Hyung from the start. So, how can you be sure that bastard won’t come after us again!”
I spilled out every tangled thought in my head so fast that I was almost out of breath. I knew the hyungs’ faces were filled with bewilderment, but once I started talking, I couldn’t stop.
“How on earth did that bastard even know Hyung was at the studio? Yihwon-hyung clearly showed up unannounced at a remote filming site and took him straight from there. It wasn’t a publicly disclosed schedule, and no one except authorized staff should have been able to get near the set. Saying he followed him from the filming site doesn’t make sense. It was an open space, he’d have been spotted. After all these years of dealing with sasaengs, there’s no way Yihwon-hyung wouldn’t have noticed someone tailing him. That means someone gave him information and led him here. This was a planned crime.”
“I didn’t tell anyone else that we were meeting in the studio today. The only ones who knew were us and Lee Danbi, who doesn’t even know where the studio is. So where on earth could the leak have come from?!”
“Are you sure we’re the only ones who know?”
“…What do you mean?” Cha Woon-hyung frowned, perhaps not understanding what I was trying to say.
I continued, offering a further explanation.
“The person you invited, there was one more person.”
At my words, Cha Woon-hyung’s eyes widened for a moment before returning to normal. Then, he responded with an answer that showed he had grasped my intent exactly.
“…Are you suggesting the information might have leaked from Inchan?”
“Whether Inchan-hyung gave them the information willingly or not, if it’s true that the information leaked from him, then there’s a high chance that the person who tried to kill Yutae-hyung is connected to him.”
When I nodded in affirmation, Chise-hyung muttered as if coming to a realization, “So that’s why you reacted so sensitively when I said I was going to see Inchan”. But then he said something completely different from what I was expecting.
“If Inchan is connected to that bastard, then all the more reason we can’t leave him alone right now.”
I tried so desperately to convince them, but why?
With a feeling of futility, I stared blankly at my hyungs’ faces. Then, a calm reply came.
“Inchan is also a part of Prism. Isn’t he?”
“…….”
“If our fence is inside this studio right now, then Inchan should be in here too.”
I was at a loss for words.
My brain, which had been working perfectly fine just a moment ago, seemed to have completely shut down. I just couldn’t bring myself to say anything, because the way my hyungs talked about Inchan-hyung somehow reminded me of Yutae-hyung.
“Nothing’s going to happen. If possible, I’ll bring Inchan back with me. Then, tell us about your ‘
Hyung
‘. It seems like there are still many things we don’t know. Okay?”
With those final words, Chise-hyung patted my head gently, then opened the door and left.
In the end, I was unable to stop him.
After the door closed, I stood there blankly for a moment, then a wave of anxiety hit me. I rushed to the room where my hyung was, and compulsively checked the letters within the window in front of his body.
[The restoration of the body is complete …… 100%]
It was truly a relief.
I was so relieved that at least my hyung, whom I had been waiting for so desperately, was finally about to open his eyes.
That’s what I thought…….
‘…Why isn’t he opening his eyes?’
Clang!
The loud sound of the lamp on the nightstand shattering echoed through the room.
It had been knocked over by my arm and fallen to the floor. But I had no time to care about such things. In a daze, I hurried forward and slowly climbed onto the bed. Then, kneeling down and leaning over, I quietly looked at my hyung’s face.
In the silence, the ticking of the second hand echoed repeatedly, as if testing my patience. By the time so much time had passed that I could no longer keep count, I finally opened my mouth.
“…Wake up.”
No answer came.
There was silence again.
I waited again.
Just like before, even after a considerable amount of time had passed, my hyung still hadn’t opened his eyes. I gazed at him in a daze, then lifted my head and let out a shaky breath.
“Why won’t you open your eyes?! I thought you were supposed to be okay now!”
“Yoo Jay, calm down!”
The other hyungs, who had rushed into the room at the sound of the noise, shouted. But I, desperate to wake my hyung, continued shaking his shoulder roughly as I yelled. Seeing the half-lifted body sway dangerously, the hyungs panicked and tried to pull me away.
“Wake up, Seo Yutae! Wake up!”
My hyung didn’t regain consciousness.
And for me, who had been waiting for my hyung to wake up, it was a devastating reality.
[END OF YOO JAY’S POV]
*
*
*
“…….”
It sounded like someone was calling me.
Was it Jay?
My ears were muffled, making it hard to hear.
It must be because of the accident.
‘Of all times, why does this have to happen while I’m in Han Seungbeom’s body?’
Whether I meant for it to happen or not, how could I have such a serious accident in a borrowed body?
I didn’t know how to explain this to Han Seungbeom or his aunt.
I was also bothered by the fact that the accident happened in front of the members. Jay, in particular, knowing my true identity, must have taken it much harder than simply a ‘
junior he knows
’ having an accident.
‘Quick, I need to wake up and reassure him…….’
But in contrast to my mind, my body felt heavy as a stone.
It felt like trying to move a puppet with all its strings cut.
In the end, only after desperately straining my muscles with all my might was I finally able to move my upper body.
Through my blurry vision, I could see an unfamiliar ceiling.
It wasn’t the studio, and it definitely wasn’t the members’ houses or dorms. It didn’t look like a hospital either.
‘…What is this?’
The sight, completely different from what I had expected, was somewhat disconcerting.
I swallowed hard and quickly tried to figure out where I was.
‘…A room?’
It was a room that didn’t look like a place where people lived. It felt similar to the house where Choi Jeokhyeon lived in.
Looking at the digital clock on the table, I realized that I had been unconscious for an entire day since the accident.
‘Where are the members?’
The moment I turned my head with that thought, long, jet-black hair cascaded over my chest.
The familiar, yet unfamiliar sensation sent chills down my spine, and I hurriedly looked down at my body.
Then, a body much larger and thicker than Han Seungbeom’s, with well-defined muscles and a solid frame, came into view.
‘…This, what in the world…….’
This … this was
my
body.
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Translator’s Corner:
Today’s theme song is
Red Velvet – Will I Ever See You Again
: D
our maknae is so smart … I guess both Prism and Pantheion have smart youngest
anyway OMG WHY NO ONE BELIEVED ME ??? I told you, you guys will love this chapter, right !!!!