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Yuna looked at the old woman, but just as the latter was about to enter her room, Yuna saw something that made her heart stop. There was no one beside the old woman. No son, no relative, no friend. She was completely alone.
Yuna called her in a faint voice: "Ma'am... dear ma'am... can I talk to you for a little while?"
The old woman was startled for a moment, then a faint smile appeared on her face: "Of course, little one."
Yuna sat on the cold chair beside the old woman's bed. She looked at her hands for a moment, then at the sky through the long hallway window.
She began in a calm, deep voice:
"The truth is... I don't know where to begin. But... I have no one in this world. You have a son, but I... I am just a wanderer."
She paused for a moment, then continued:
"Do you know, ma'am? Loneliness isn't difficult in itself. But the danger that threatens you when you have no one... that's what truly makes a person realize that their solitary life was never a good thing."
Her voice dropped further:
"I learned that. I tried to run away. But I couldn't. It was destined for me to live as someone walking toward an unknown end."
The old woman looked at Yuna with piercing eyes, then said in a voice full of wisdom:
"You are young, yet you speak words beyond your years. Although I don't fully understand what you mean, and I don't know your past... but are you truly alone?"
Yuna looked at the old woman in surprise.
And suddenly... the old woman smiled. A mysterious smile, full of knowledge.
From behind Yuna, Han Si-eul suddenly appeared. She was shocked, her eyes blazing with astonishment. Behind her was Si-eun, nervous and panting from running to catch up with his sister.
When Han Si-eul saw Yuna, she suddenly started crying. Tears poured down like rain. And she screamed in a different voice:
"Yuna! I... I just heard about this! I'm sorry I left you!"
Yuna looked at Han Si-eul. Even though she knew Han Si-eul was her friend, she didn't expect her to cry just from hearing that she had broken her arm.
Yuna said with indifference: "But why are you crying? It's not worth all this."
Han Si-eul answered while wiping her tears: "What are you saying? You're my only friend!"
Yuna smiled slightly. But her eyes were dead as if drowning in a deep sea. She knew deep inside that Han Si-eul had never loved her. She loved the original Yuna. She loved her sincerely. But she never loved Yoonji.
And now, Yoonji is living Yuna's life. So she has to accept it. That's the price.
Yuna suddenly stood up and said: "Goodbye, ma'am."
The old woman smiled and waved her hand weakly.
A few minutes after Yuna, Han Si-eul, and Si-eun left, Ji-hoon entered the old woman's room. He was carrying a bag of fruit, his face tired but he smiled when he saw her.
He said in his warm voice: "Mom! Are you okay?"
The old woman replied with a smile: "Yes, my dear. I'm fine. Look, I brought you some fruit!"
She laughed a little and added: "Let's try the banana first."
Ji-hoon said: "Okay."
She started eating slowly, but suddenly her eyes looked sad. She looked at her son and asked:
"Ji-hoon... have you found a girl who loves you?"
Ji-hoon was a little flustered, then said: "No."
The old woman paused for a moment, then said in a faint voice: "Ji-hoon... you know very well that I'm going to die soon. So..."
Ji-hoon suddenly interrupted her. He was angry, his eyes filled with tears. He shouted in a hoarse voice:
"Stop! Please, Mom! Stop saying that!"
His tears broke, and he continued in a trembling voice:
"I... I just want you to live! So don't be afraid. I'll take care of all treatment and food expenses. And if you need anything else, I'll bring it to you. You are here now, and you are the most important thing in my life. Just stay with me no matter what happens. I don't need anyone but you!"
The old woman looked at him sadly: "But if I die... will you be left alone?"
Ji-hoon's eyes widened. He began to see their empty home in his imagination. The empty rooms, the empty chair, the kitchen with its memories and the oppressive silence. He started crying heavily, put his hand over his face and said in a broken voice:
"Please, Mom... you are alive now. So please stop. I don't need this talk."
He looked at her with a pain-filled face:
"Just stop talking about this. I'll think about the rest later. Please, Mom... just don't talk about this matter."
The old woman replied in a calm voice: "Okay."
Then suddenly, she smiled a smile full of feigned joy, and said in a cheerful spirit:
"If you don't get a girl, I'll find one for you myself!"
Ji-hoon laughed despite his tears and said: "Mom!"
The old woman laughed and said: "Okay, okay."
Meanwhile, Si-eun and Han Si-eul were with Yuna in the hospital room.
Han Si-eul turned to Yuna and asked with concern:
"What happened?"
Si-eun said before Yuna could answer: "If you had seen my brother after he heard the news, he almost fainted."
Yuna asked in surprise: "But who told you about this?"
Han Si-eul said: "It was Ji-hoon Oppa."
Yuna was even more surprised: "But how did you manage to communicate?"
Han Si-eul explained: "I tried to call you, but Ji-hoon answered and told me everything that happened."
Han Si-eul looked at Yuna with suddenly harsh eyes and asked seriously:
"But... who attacked you?"
Before Yuna could answer, two police officers entered the room. One was a detective and the other a regular policewoman. The detective said in a formal voice:
"Are you Miss Yuna Kim?"
Yuna replied indifferently: "Yes."
The policewoman next to the detective said: "We need you for questioning."
Yuna agreed: "Alright."
Yuna entered the temporary interrogation room in the hospital. The female detective had short green hair and wore glasses, and it was clear she had a sharp temperament. She looked at Yuna with a scrutinizing gaze and began the questions:
"Tell me exactly what happened."
Yuna honestly recounted everything. From leaving the shop, to the masked person, to the beating, to losing consciousness.
The detective looked at her suspiciously and asked: "Are you telling me that a stranger you don't know attacked you?"
Yuna answered: "Yes."
The detective asked: "Do you have any grudges against anyone or anything like that?"
Yuna replied coldly: "No."
At that moment, outside the room, Han Si-eul and Si-eun stood anxiously. Suddenly, Ji-hoon appeared at the end of the hallway. Han Si-eul was surprised and said:
"Ji-hoon Oppa, you're here?"
Ji-hoon was also surprised: "Did you come this quickly?"
Han Si-eul said: "That's because my father's company is near here. And I come there for training. For this short trip... when Yuna was eating... if I had known what would happen, I would never have left her."
She looked at Ji-hoon and asked curiously: "But Ji-hoon Oppa, did you come to visit Yuna?"
Ji-hoon was a little flustered, then said: "Yes... I came to visit her."
Inside the interrogation room, things took a different turn. The detective began to lose her composure and said in a sharp voice:
"Are you trying to mess with us?"
The policewoman looked at Yuna with contempt and added:
"Are you trying to sabotage the investigation? Just tell us what really happened. Otherwise, I will personally do things you may not be aware of. We police have a lot of authority."
Yuna was fully aware of this tactic. It was classic intimidation. In her first life, she had dealt with many such people. She knew how to handle them.
Yuna looked at the detective with cold eyes and said in a calm but deadly voice:
"So... are you now trying to threaten a minor and force her to say something she didn't do?"
She paused for a moment, then added with extreme coldness:
"I tell you: if you continue threatening me, you will be the one behind bars. Do you think my father will leave you alone if you do this?"
The detective was startled. She stepped back and said with confusion:
"Who... who exactly is your family?"
Inside the detective, an inner voice screamed: "This girl's style... it's like a criminal gang's style. For a moment I thought she was going to kill me."
The detective next to her trembled as he searched through the papers. Suddenly, his eyes widened in terror. He looked at Yuna, then at the female detective, and said loudly:
"She... she is Mr. Kim's daughter!"
The female detective was shocked: "What? You're saying she's that person's daughter?"
A terrifying silence prevailed for a moment. Then the detective quickly retreated and said:
"Goodbye! We're sorry! It was just a misunderstanding!"
The two police officers quickly withdrew, leaving Yuna alone in the room.
Yuna left the room to find Han Si-eul, Si-eun, and Ji-hoon waiting for her anxiously. She looked at them for a moment and felt something strange. Perhaps... perhaps she wasn't completely alone.
Perhaps.
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