유실

On a scorching summer day so hot it made you want to die, Jung Woojin was shining under the intense sunlight.

“Sunbae, I’ll buy you lunch.”

“What?”

“Something expensive.”

That day, following our school’s idol Jung Woojin—someone I wasn’t close to and hadn’t even had a proper conversation with—was the biggest mistake of my life.

—

Why am I living with Jung Woojin?

As time passed, Jung Woojin was slowly dying. I longed for the days when we played in the dirt, for the days we laughed and talked together after he lost his memories. The image of Jung Woojin smiling as he called my name appeared before my eyes like a hallucination. His voice calling me echoed in my ears like an auditory illusion. His hands reached out to me, gently telling me he loved me, touching me, embracing me, and whispering in my ear, making my vision blur.

“We can’t go back to that time.”

“It doesn’t matter. I don’t care what it is, let’s start over. You don’t have to do anything, and I won’t ask for anything. Just stay here with me.”