Existence Itself Is an Error Ch 03

 

Chapter 03

He turned his back and pressed down on the password. He covered the keypad with his other hand, worried I might memorize his home password. It was absurd.

‘I already know the password and everything.’

I didn’t say it out loud, thinking of Seo Hee-jun who would be shocked if he heard it.

Seo Hee-jun opened the front door and stepped aside, as if to tell me to go in first. Without hesitation, I stepped inside.

The distinctive woody scent, unique to Seo Hee-jun’s home, wafted in, a familiar scent. As I took a deep breath and took off my shoes, a questioning voice came from behind me.

“You know, senior, are you a runaway ?”

“…….”

I just ignored it without even a laugh.

To be considered a runaway, you had to have a family and a home. Even if you were affiliated with a childcare center, you could still call yourself a runaway.

All of these stories were not applicable to me.

Seo Hee-jun, who had taken off his shoes late, followed behind me and blurted out a question that seemed impossible.

“Senior, don’t you have a homen? Are you homeless or something ?”

“Yeah. I don’t have a home.”

“…Are you kidding me this time? Where are the homeless students ?”

“Yeah, it’s nice to have a home.”

I have a home, and other things, and above all, you’re my husband. Seo Hee-jun will probably never be able to imagine the terrible and lonely experience I’m going through.

Even though my response was sarcastic, Seo Hee-jun didn’t seem particularly impressed. I sighed blandly and took off my school jacket.

I hung my jacket on the armrest of the sofa and started walking. Finding the bathroom without a second thought, I turned on the light without hesitation.

Seo Hee-jun, who had been watching me the whole time, opened his mouth.

“It’s so natural.”

“Huh ?”

“It looks familiar. Like someone who’s lived in this house for at least a few months.”

I stood there, still, catching Seo Hee-jun’s gaze without any particular reaction. Even after he glanced at me closely, he didn’t hide the look of confusion on his face.

He seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then asked with a serious attitude, even his gentle expression gone.

“Senior, what is your true identity ?”

I was expecting that it was time to slowly take a stand and ask.

“I think I’ve already been caught, so I’ll tell you the truth.”

Seo Hee-jun’s already-large eyes widened even more, his body stiffening. I’d thrown the bait half-jokingly, half-seriously, but he seemed surprised when I snatched it up.

As expected, Seo Hee-jun was an innocent person with no flaws.

“I am….”

Seo Hee-jun seemed to swallow dryly. Without further ado, he continued.

“Your sister sent me.”

Seo Hee-jun opened his mouth and closed his mouth, unable to answer, as it was a completely unexpected answer.

“…Yes ?”

“My brother said he was worried about whether I would eat well and sleep well while I was away on business.”

It wasn’t a lie. Seo Hee-jun’s older sister might be worried about my younger brother, but at least the part about her being on a business trip to another region was true.

“That’s why you asked me to take care of you.”

“Ah….”

Seo Hee-jun let out a final sigh. He was so flustered, helpless, that he awkwardly raised the corners of his mouth.

“Oh, I see.”

I could easily figure out what Seo Hee-jun had been thinking just now and why he was so surprised to hear my answer.

He was probably just creating a fantasy filled with aliens and other fantasy elements. He was once questioned if he was an alien who crash-landed on Earth, so he’s confident.

It was a childish fantasy, the kind a young, green-eyed high school sophomore might have. That’s why, even back then, I offered Seo Hee-jun a logical explanation for why I wasn’t an alien.

“…Wait a minute.”

Seo Hee-jun, who had been busy calming himself down for a while, suddenly raised his head.

“So, you’re saying that my older sister sent my senior to me ?”

“Huh.”

“Are you worried about me ?”

“That can’t be,” he added, muttering under his breath.

“If you really don’t believe me, call your older sister and ask her.”

“…Am I really going to contact my older sister ?”

“Okay, call me.”

Seo Hee-jun took out his phone and began tapping and fidgeting with the screen. I quickly turned my attention away from him and went into the bathroom.

Even though he said that, Seo Hee-jun never contacted his older sister to ask about me or to confirm the truth.

Seo Hee-jun, who was always kind and gentle to everyone, became unusually depressed when it came to his older sister. He often showed excessive concern in the name of consideration.

So, given Seo Hee-jun’s personality, there was no way he would contact his older sister over such a trivial matter. He didn’t want to be a burden to his sister, who had moved far away to raise her only sibling and was working day and night.

In fact, Seo Hee-jun had never contacted my older sister to probe my improvisations before. He’d already done so over ten times, so it seemed unlikely there would be any change now.

Even though other incidents and events may change slightly, Seo Hee-jun’s choices based on his nature have always been consistent.

Standing in front of the sink, I stared intently into the mirror.

His hair was pitch-black, and his eyes looked perfectly clear, without a hint of cloudiness. His nose and mouth were also perfectly undisturbed.

It was thanks to being in the same space as the male protagonist, Seo Hee-jun.

“Senior.”

Seo Hee-jun pried open the bathroom door and peeked his face out.

“Hey, can you tell me what my sister’s name is ?”

I looked back at him and smiled faintly.

“It’s Seo Hee-young.”

It was a problem I had solved many times before, and this time I got the answer right.

_______________

In the past fifteen ‘months’, Seo Hee-jun was sick exactly three times.

Once, while running, I fell and broke my ankle. Seo Hee-jun, trying to reassure me, kept repeating that I was fine, but when I dragged him to the hospital, he told me I needed a cast. Because of this, Seo Hee-jun, who was having trouble moving, refused Jung Da-won’s request to come under the cherry blossom tree, preventing her from hearing his confession.

Another time was when he ate something spoiled and suffered food poisoning, ending up in the emergency room. Because it had happened the day before, April 2nd, Seo Hee-jun, who was asleep while receiving IV fluids, couldn’t keep his promise to go out under the cherry tree and hear another confession.

The last time was when he was involved in a car accident, as the male lead was a minor. Fortunately, his injuries weren’t life-threatening. The wounds weren’t severe, and the surgery was successful. As long as he ate well and rested, he was told he’d quickly recover and be back out and about.

But there was a problem. Seo Hee-jun hadn’t recovered enough to move even on April 2nd.

Perhaps the female protagonist could visit the male protagonist in his hospital room, confess, and have him accept her, and perhaps the story could find its conclusion. So, I didn’t give up, and contacted the female protagonist dozens of times, asking her to visit him in the hospital.

But the female protagonist never visited the male protagonist’s hospital room, that meant one thing.

The two of them had to be under the cherry blossom tree on April 2nd, no matter what. The female lead had to confess there, and the male lead had to receive a confession there.

After that brutal experience, I made a firm resolution.

Seo Hee-jun must not get sick or injured.

He must prevent such a situation, even if it means sacrificing his life. The noble Seo Hee-jun must go under the cherry tree to hear the female protagonist’s confession.

That was also the reason why I was thoroughly checking Seo Hee-jun’s house even at this hour when everyone else was asleep.

“Senior ?”

As I was organizing the power strip in the corner of the living room, where several appliances were connected, I turned my head at the sound of someone calling me. Seo Hee-jun, who had gone to wash up to get ready for bed, had stopped coming out of the bathroom and was standing there, looking at me, dazed.

“Huh ?”

“…What are you doing there ?”

I pointed to the various wires neatly arranged.

“It can’t be helped if there’s a fire.”

Just a few hours ago, Seo Hee-jun had been listening to my ramblings and pretending to agree, but not anymore. He approached me, his expression ambiguous, without even the slightest intention of hiding it.

“You were checking the expiration dates of each ingredient earlier, but now it’s the wire ?”