Come Back

At the mention of the hospital bill being a waste of money, Representative Lim and Yongjae looked at each other. Saying that money was a waste was something that was hard for Yoon Hye-an to say.

“There’s nothing wrong, so the doctor said I can be discharged. He said I should be able to receive outpatient treatment.”

Choi Hong-seo, who was taking out Yoon Hye-an’s belongings from the drawer and laying them out on the bed, suddenly stopped. Then he looked across at Representative Lim and Yong-jae, who were standing blankly across the bed.

“Oh, now that you mention it.”

“Huh? Huh… Why?”

“I ended up getting a single room, so the hospital bill was really high. Why would someone get a single room when they’re just lying around unconscious?”

This time, Representative Lim and Yongjae’s faces froze. They looked like they were shocked and speechless.

However, it was Representative Lim who spoke first.

“But still, Yoon Hye-an has some dignity. I deliberately made it a single room for your dignity, Inma.”

The hospitalization fee was completely taken out of Yoon Hye-an’s bank account, but CEO Lim spoke as if he was upset, as if he had paid the hospital bill with his own money. Then, belatedly, he raised both hands as if he had made a mistake and corrected his words.

“Oh, right. Not Hyean, but Hongseo. Hongseo.”

“No. You don’t have to. Now I know that I’m Yoon Hye-an. I have eyes too.”

“Huh? Really? Did your memories come back?”

Representative Lim smiled brightly and walked around the bed, grabbing Choi Hong-seo’s shoulder. It was a nimble movement compared to his heavy body. Choi Hong-seo shook his head.

“I still don’t have any memories of Yun Hye-an.”

Representative Lim, who had been biting his lip bitterly, scratched the back of his head with the hand that had been holding Choi Hong-seo’s shoulder.

“Yes, that could be possible. You already heard from the doctor, right? He said it’s not that rare. He said that if you don’t stress and go back to your previous life, your memories will come back.”

“Yes, it will happen gradually.”

Am I really Yoon Hye-an and have I gone crazy? Or am I Choi Hong-seo and something happened that no one can believe?

In order to clarify the situation, Choi Hong-seo changed his mind and decided that he had to leave this hospital room and go out into the world. It wasn’t something that could be done by appealing to anyone. Who would believe such a story?

Choi Hong-seo, who was trying to put the few belongings he had spread out on the bed into his bag, straightened his back as if he remembered something and looked back at Representative Lim.

“And I will get started.”

“… … ”

Representative Lim just blinked. Yoon Hye-an, who was busy rejecting people who were given work, saying things like, “I don’t like this for this reason,” “I don’t like that for that reason,” and “It’s not up to my level,” was going to do the work herself. And she did it with such a firm expression, as if she had made up her mind.

“No, but still… wouldn’t it be better to rest for a while?”

Choi Hong-seo, who appeared to be Yoon Hye-an, answered firmly while throwing the cell phone she was holding into her bag.

“There’s an audition I really want to see.”

The cicadas’ chirping pierced my hearing through the open window for ventilation. It was an unrealistic sound that made it seem like the dizzying heat of summer was starting from there.

@

Yoon Hye-an lived in an officetel in Gangnam. It was a building like a commercial-residential complex built by a large construction company. Yoon Hye-an’s house had a floor space of about 85 square meters, and while it was not as spacious as a palace, it was the largest unit in the building.

Officetel of a large corporation located in the heart of Gangnam, close to the subway station and along the main street.

The idol group ‘Titan’ that Yoon Hye-an was a part of was definitely successful at one point. However, it was probably just barely able to repay the company’s investment and start generating profits. ‘Titan’, like ‘Layered’ that Choi Hong-seo was a part of, had a long period of obscurity, and the investment that had to be recovered must have been considerable.

Moreover, just as the team was starting to rise, Yoon Hye-an suddenly announced her withdrawal, saying she wanted to focus on her acting career.

She did not leave ENA, her agency, because of that. All the members of ‘Titan’ attended the press conference for her withdrawal and cheered on Yoon Hye-an’s future, giving the impression that her withdrawal was successful.

However, Yoon Hye-an’s acting career did not go as well as expected.

As Choi Hong-seo remembers, Yoon Hye-an was cast as the lead in a public broadcasting miniseries right after her departure. There was controversy over her qualifications for casting her as the lead, as she had only had a few supporting roles and minor roles, but the broadcasting station went ahead with the plan.

In the end, the drama had to end with the worst viewer ratings, along with controversy over the acting skills of lead actress Yoon Hye-an.

A few months later, Yoon Hye-an took on a lead role again in another production. She had put a lot of effort into practicing acting and had an interview in which she expressed her determination to show a changed side of herself.

However, after the work was broadcast, the public’s response was cold. Contrary to what was said, there was no sign of development whatsoever.

Because of this, there have been many articles criticizing the culture in which some idol-turned-actors with no acting skills at all take on lead roles regardless of their skills.

Due to lower viewership ratings than previous works, the work had to be aired early.

That was the last entertainment activity that Choi Hong-seo remembers Yoon Hye-an doing.

It was unlikely that Yoon Hye-an would have had enough financial power to live in such a luxury officetel.

Entering the living room with an unfamiliar structure that he had no recollection of, Choi Hong-seo slowly looked around.

“Is this a monthly rental?”

“… … ”

Yongjae, who had been following her and putting down his luggage on the table, stopped and looked back. It seemed as if he wanted to say, “Do you really not remember anything?”

“Yes, please.”

“Did the company keep giving you that?”

“At first, Mr. Cho gave it to me… but then he used it as a down payment. He said it had to be this house. My brother.”

“Mr. Cho?”

“… … ”

Yongjae suddenly shut his mouth tightly. His face looked like he had made a slip of the tongue.

“It’s all old news, old news. You used to pay the rent here in advance for about a year, but after the accident, the hospital bills and rent were probably deducted from your account.”

Yongjae quickly changed the subject and started to busily walk around the kitchen, which didn’t have much to clean. He muttered something about having to go grocery shopping since there was nothing to eat in the fridge.

After observing him for a few days, ENA’s CEO Lim seemed like an ordinary person. He was neither a bad boss nor a kind-hearted philanthropist. He was not a fundamentally cruel person, but he was not someone who would sacrifice his own life for others… Just an ordinary person.

I can’t ignore the life of a person who is still breathing, but I’m not the type of person who would pay the hospital bills and rent out of my own pocket and wait for a patient who may or may not wake up…

But in the entertainment industry, someone like that was considered quite respectable.

Or maybe I was just so unlucky that I only dealt with people who were hell-bent on taking my place? Choi Hong-seo thought bitterly as he walked towards the window.

Yoon Hye-an’s house, located on the corner of the building, had windows on both sides of the living room. Looking down at the Nonhyeon-dong area from the south-facing window, Choi Hong-seo savored the feeling of the sunlight warming his exposed skin, the feeling of being alive.

“How much is my mic?”

“yes?”

Choi Hong-seo looked back at Yong-jae who was asking questions and changed his expression and spoke again.

“It’s money that the company paid for.”

“Oh, yes. As for how much it would be… I’ll contact the finance team right now and find out.”

Yongjae crouched down and searched for his cell phone, as if he would be scolded if he didn’t answer right away.

“You don’t have to do that right away. Do you have any idea how much it would be?”

“Maybe… at least 5~6 thousand…”

Choi Hong-seo knew plenty of idols and actors who insisted that their homes must be in Gangnam, or in branded apartments or officetels, even though they lacked the ability to do so. Those who had even once been treated like stars were even more stubborn. They couldn’t forget the taste because they had already tried it.

Before debuting, during the days of the host bar, celebrities whose names and faces were known would sometimes show up at the store as players. They were the so-called ‘retired’ celebrities who had once been successful and ended up there because they couldn’t pay their debts to the company. However, they all treated the other players like bugs, saying, “I’m different from you guys who live at the bottom.”

Even though they were dedicated VIP customers, most customers would only call them once or twice out of curiosity. In fact, they would often complain to customers because they couldn’t suppress their pride and end up being kicked out without even receiving a settlement.

They all believed, without exception, that they would soon return to their prime. Where would they be and what would they be doing then?

If one more year passes like this, Yoon Hye-an will eventually end up holding the business card of a host bar madam.

The bitterly smiling face of Choi Hong-seo, no, Yoon Hye-an, was dimly reflected on the glass window.

“Mr. Yongjae, were you and I… close?”

Yongjae’s face, which he had turned around to look at, was filled with suspicion. He seemed to be on guard and afraid, wondering if someone was trying to trick him by pretending not to remember.

“Rather than saying we were close, I guess I just knew my brother better.”