32) Chapter 7. No, It’s Not Even That Different? (1)

Auntie Yujin, Soi, and even Uncle Dohyun.

They all treat me so well—so well that it feels almost strange.

To be honest, I’m not their child.

Of course, that statement can be easily countered.

Not everyone in the world abuses or discriminates against adopted children. In fact, if you think about it logically, far more people raise adopted children with sincerity, without comparing them to their biological kids.

So really, these thoughts probably come from my own shortcomings.

Because I don’t think I could have done the same.

Even if I got married someday, I doubt I would have ever considered adopting someone else’s child. And even if I somehow did, I’m not confident I wouldn’t compare them to my own biological child.

It just means I’m not a very broad‑hearted person to begin with.

Because I’m like that, all I can feel toward Soi’s family—who treats me with such devotion—is guilt.

“……”

When I open my eyes in the morning, I’m in the same bed as Soi.

Her bed isn’t so small that it’s cramped, but it’s not spacious enough for the two of us to lie comfortably side by side either.

So when we first lie down, we hold hands and press our shoulders together, but by the time we wake up, our positions have shifted from tossing and turning.

Even so, Soi never lets go of my hand. Maybe she wakes up in her sleep and grabs it again, or maybe it’s become an instinct—her mind automatically searching for my hand.

She holds it tightly, like she’s afraid I’ll run away.

…Could this be a trauma too? The fear that her closest friend, who’s been with her since childhood, might suddenly disappear from her side.

Lying face‑to‑face holding hands might sound romantic, but…

Isn’t it a bit embarrassing?

We’re not pressed right up against each other, but we’re not exactly far apart either.

This happened often even before, but it feels like it’s gotten worse these past few days.

Considering what we went through.

I fidgeted for a long time, wondering how to pull my hand free, and eventually Soi—who seemed to be in a deep sleep—opened her eyes.

“You’re awake?”

“Y‑yeah.”

I was flustered and ended up repeating myself.

Normally, this is the time we’d already be up.

Not just up—we’d be at school by now.

Even on weekends or holidays, we usually woke up early, so honestly, even on a day off we should’ve been awake long ago.

…School is closed.

After what happened, it was impossible to resume classes the next day.

The building was damaged, and considering the condition of the students…

“……”

No, stop thinking about it.

If I keep thinking about it, my mood sinks again.

Especially because of my naturally negative mindset.

I thought that in this life, since I was born pretty and had pretty friends, my personality would naturally brighten.

But maybe my gloomy past‑life mindset carried over.

“Let’s eat.”

Soi sat up abruptly, still holding my hand. My mouth felt dry and fuzzy from just waking up, but she was already thinking about breakfast.

Well, we’re at that age where we’re always hungry.

Me too.

When we stepped out of the room, the first thing we saw was pink hair.

Slightly longer than in elementary school, silky and swaying once as its owner turned toward us.

“Rua. Soi.”

Chae‑yi, sitting politely on the sofa, smiled brightly and waved.

“Hi.”

“…Hi.”

Soi’s eyes narrowed immediately.

They’ve been like this lately. I’d noticed it before, but it’s gotten worse these past few days.

“When did you get here?”

“This morning. Around nine?”

“So you’re just going to come to our house instead of going to school?”

“It’s not like we’re going to school anyway. I woke up early and got bored…”

Chae‑yi hesitated, then glanced at me.

“Rua, is it okay?”

This happens every morning now.

Chae‑yi always asks me for permission, not Soi.

And every time, I feel awkward. Because… well…

I can’t exactly say, “This isn’t my house,” but even if it is… it feels like I shouldn’t say that.

“If Rua says it’s fine, then it’s fine. Mom and Dad already said yes.”

Since I couldn’t answer and just fumbled, Soi accepted it neatly.

Then she pulled me toward the kitchen.

Chae‑yi jumped up and grabbed my other hand.

For some reason, at some point, my right hand became Soi’s and my left hand became Chae‑yi’s. I never agreed to it, but the two of them acted like they had some silent agreement.

Of course, we had to let go when preparing breakfast.

“……”

We didn’t prepare anything fancy. We split the tasks—Chae‑yi toasted bread, Soi cooked eggs and sausages.

I, feeling like I should do something, took out plates and cups… and that was about it.

Maybe poured milk into the cups.

Once everything was ready, we sat together and ate.

After eating, we moved to the living room sofa and sat together again.

But something was missing—something we usually heard every morning.

The TV.

We always had it on during breakfast. Usually the news.

We didn’t use our phones either. Our game homework had been piling up for days, but all we did was charge our phones—we never opened them.

The reason was simple.

Whenever the TV or phone was on, I shrank.

The news covered the incident nonstop. They talked about the city hall terror attack and the deaths elsewhere. Injuries or deaths caused by villains were always major news.

But just as much, they covered what happened at our school—even though no one died.

No one died, but there were serious injuries.

A teacher nearly died.

If not for the two esper students and Auntie Yujin—who flew there immediately after finishing the other incident—it would’ve been a massacre.

…No, there was something even more important.

Only one villain went there.

And not just any villain—someone strong enough that most heroes couldn’t handle them.

Children’s lives are precious, but from a terrorist’s perspective, after already attacking major national facilities, why bother sending someone to a school? If they had attacked the school first, people might’ve thought it was a diversion, but instead they attacked it after.

As if the major facility attack was the diversion, and the school was the real target.

And the villain who came wasn’t even there to commit terror.

They came to take one child.

…It’s still under investigation, and experts say that’s not the case.

But the place with the most eyewitnesses was the school.

Rumors spread online faster than anything.

My name was all over the news.

Not my real name—they used “Kim ○○,” “Song ○○,” and even the photos were blurred group shots.

But anyone could tell my real information was spreading online.

Auntie Yujin told me not to watch TV.

Not to use my phone if possible, and to avoid going outside.

Reporters were waiting, and even if they weren’t reporters, someone might take a picture or post a sighting online.

Until the Association and the government responded properly, I had to stay home.

I understood. It wasn’t just about me—Soi could get dragged into trouble too.

But there was one thing I couldn’t let go.

“…Can I go see the man who protected me?”

The man who collapsed in the schoolyard, covered in blood.

I didn’t know his name, and I only saw his face from afar. But he seemed like a good person.

“Hmm… that’s…”

Auntie Yujin thought seriously, then shook her head.

“How about writing him a letter instead? I’ll deliver it properly. He also thinks meeting in person would be difficult.”

Considering how traumatized I was—flinching at any touch except hand‑holding—

Maybe she thought meeting another “victim” of the incident would traumatize me further.

I felt like that wasn’t quite right, but I was also scared I might panic in front of him.

So I could only nod.

Anyway, that’s how things ended up.

Soi stayed glued to me at home, like she was afraid I’d do something wrong.

Chae‑yi came every morning.

And they stuck to me for hours like this.

“……”

Even though they were the ones who suffered because they were near me.

I still don’t know exactly how the original Rua broke and twisted, or how she dragged the two of them down with her.

But I think I understand how it started.

Will it happen in this world too? Will being close to me ruin them like in the original?

Even while worrying…

Their warmth slowly calmed my heart.

And I felt pathetic for that.

*

School closure lasted nearly two weeks.

I recovered. Soi recovered. Chae‑yi recovered.

I didn’t know how the other students were doing—

“Hi!”

We arrived at school a little later than usual. We’d gotten used to waking up late and almost ended up tardy.

And, like always—

Like two weeks ago—

Soi entered the classroom cheerfully.

“Ah, hi.”

“Oh, you’re here.”

The kids responded, but their mood was more subdued than usual.

Then their eyes shifted to me, following behind her.

“Ah… hi.”

“……”

I think I greeted them the same way I always did.

But the response wasn’t the same.

They didn’t openly reject me. They knew what I meant to Soi.

But none of them met my eyes.

They glanced away, looked out the window, or focused only on Soi.

Not pretending they didn’t see me—more like accidentally missing me, accidentally not hearing me.

I lowered the hand I’d lifted slightly.

My gaze dropped too.

I thought I was prepared. I thought I understood.

But apparently, I wasn’t.

A/N:

Thank you for reading today!

I have plans this evening, so only one chapter today ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

I’ll be back with two chapters tomorrow…!

Thanks to all of you, I was able to get Novelpia Exclusive Plus! Thank you so much!

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Pub: 25 Mar 2026 08:45 UTC

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