NOVEL NEXT Chapter 10: What day is it today?
"It's a minor concussion. But..." The elderly man hesitates to say the words.
"I see." I recognize the voice.
"You don't look upset." The elderly man sounds worried.
"I am relieved to see her again."
My head is still throbbing. I find Kang Si An sitting across me, watching me with his green eyes. His hair is black. Beside him, Manager Jeong is standing to his right. She is frowning at me. There is a trace of worry in her eyes.
The elderly doctor smiles at me and asks, "Miss Kwon, how are you feeling now?"
"That depends." I return his smile. "What day is it today?"
He shares a look with Kang Si An. I can't tell whether I am back in my present time or I am still in the future. Kang Si An looks the same except for his clothes.
"Is it May or October?" I ask in a low voice.
"October?" The elderly looks into my eyes. "Miss Kwon, you had a minor concussion. Do you have a problem remembering?"
"Haha...No." I sit up. I have a bigger problem than that. None of your x-rays can help me. I have to get out of this place before this guy kills me. He is watching me pensively like I would disappear if he takes his eyes off me. Well, that might be the case.
It makes me nervous. What is he thinking? He must have known that I am from the past.
"I will come back later to check up on you." The elderly doctor nods at Kang Si An. They are leaving me alone with this evil creature.
"No...wait..." I jump on my feet. "I am not feeling well. It hurts a lot."
"Where?" Kang Si An grabs my hand. "Where does it hurt?"
I try to free my hand, but he doesn't let go. "Let go."
"She is fine," He tells the doctor. "She lies whenever she is in trouble."
"That's not true." I watch the doctor leave with Manager Jeong. "I am really hurt. I need to go to the hospital."
They close the door, leaving me alone with him. Kang Si An holds my hands. I think about the ways in which he can kill me. He won't do it here, right? He can't kill me. I won't die here. I have to go back and live for six months to get murdered later.
He pulls me into a hug. "I have missed you."
"What?"
"Did you have to go this far?" He chokes on his words. "I thought that I lost you."
"What?" I ask for the second time. Why is he pretending? "Kang Si An, don't act with me."
He hugs me, burying his face in my hair. The sound of his heartbeat is loud and clear. I realize that my heartbeat is irrationally fast too, synchronizing with his heartbeat. I don't understand this. He is playing a game.
"What are you playing?" I push him away. "Kang Si An, it's you who have -"
"Yes, it's me." He looks at me with tears in his eyes. "It's my fault. I should not have pushed you to tell me your secrets. I understand that you have your secrets. You left me and even faked your death to get away from me. Kwon Kyu Ri, you fooled the entire nation."
What is he talking about? It's going above my head.
"Dong Min called me that you were found. When I reached that place, I saw you like that..." His eyes wander on my body with deep fear in his eyes. He cups my face. "You are alright. You are in front of me. That's all that matters."
"Kang Si An, I don't understand." I frown at him. "You want to kill me."
"What are you saying?" He flicks my forehead and chuckles. "I know that I have said that a lot of times, but I never meant it. I can't imagine hurting you. Kyuri Ah, it is you who keeps hurting me like this."
"It doesn't make sense." Nothing makes sense to me anymore.
"Why are you are disappearing?" Kang Si An tries to grab on to my arm, but he hands pass through me.
***
"I heard that you are her close friend." The store owner greets Kang Si An happily. Kwon Kyuri's boyfriend is a star. His store is really famous now. His sales have gone up. How lucky he is!
Kang Si An puts his hands in his pocket. At this moment, he wants to go back home and sleep. Thanks to certain someone, he couldn't sleep last night. Now, he is looking for her here and there. He doesn't even know her name. It's not that he is interested to know her name.
"Did she come here?" Manager Jeong asks the store owner. "She isn't picking up her phone."
"No." The store owner picks up the lunchboxes and a phone. "She forgot these here. Take this with you. She must have gone back to the dorm."
"Oh." Manager Jeong shows her best smile. "Do you know where the dorm is?"
The scent of lemon pickles. Kang Si An scrunches his nose. He hates pickles. He puts the lunch boxes in the car. Manager Jeong looks exhausted. She has been on a call to release an article. Nothing is in his hands. He decides to snoop inside the store girl's phone. Maybe, he can find something that might help him.