NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 251
“W-Wait, is this really okay?”
After shaking off the rainwater on her body, Sua was still worried.
What if they notice because of the rainwater that dripped onto the floor? That’s why Ha Neul, Sua, and Sohee had come to the hospital wearing long raincoats and holding umbrellas. Thanks to that, aside from her shoes being a bit wet, there was no water dripping from their bodies.
They left their raincoats at the entrance of the hospital and changed into slippers that they had brought along.
Visiting hours at the hospital are fixed. Given that it’s a psychiatric hospital, it’s natural that the priority is to protect the patients’ mental health. Especially if a patient needs to be hospitalized, it’s better for them to rest in their room. There are cases where patients can be aggressive or anxious around others, so visiting hours are usually decided based on the doctor’s judgment.
Well, that “doctor” was actually not a real doctor, but a police officer.
If things were normal, other medical staff would have left by now, but they were probably still at the hospital guarding Sara.
Actually, it would be more accurate to say they were waiting to capture Choi Na-kyung. To be precise, Sara was bait.
“When I went to Yang Hye-in’s room, there was nobody there. They must definitely be waiting for Choi Na-kyung here.”
Ha Neul replied to Sua’s comment.
“But what if the door is locked—”
Sua’s worries turned out to be unfounded.
When Sohee pushed the hospital door, it opened without any fuss.
“…….”
Left without words, Sua decided to just follow Ha Neul and Sohee.
*
The hospital was eerily quiet. Actually, despite being a psychiatric hospital, it wasn’t that different in appearance from other hospitals. The building itself was clean and well-managed, and especially now, with no patients in the waiting area, it genuinely felt like a “deserted hospital.”
But it was strange.
Nurses who should have been there were nowhere to be seen, and the hallway lights were almost all off. There should be medical staff to manage the patients.
It was hard to tell if there were patients in the rooms.
It should have been sleepy time, plus the rooms were said to be soundproof. There was a window on the room doors that could be opened from the outside, but in this atmosphere, nobody felt like exploring the other patients’ rooms. It was also rude to open them.
“Maybe they just stepped out for a bit.”
Ha Neul suggested. Perhaps she felt that she had to say something because the hallway was too quiet. It was a risky move that could expose their presence, but at least for now, no one was around.
“The hallway lights are out, though?”
“If someone says ‘I went out for money,’ it’d make sense, right?”
Ha Neul responded again to Sohee’s question.
Indeed, to create an ‘unseen scenario’, that would be the best approach. Saying they couldn’t see because they were gone at a specific time was better than lying about it.
While it was framed as getting money, in reality, the hospital was already on Sara’s side. They shared the information only with the upper management of the hospital to quietly transfer funds, trying to keep things under wraps. More than anything, because the police were already involved, it became ambiguous for the hospital to accept separate payments from Choi Na-kyung.
Even if it weren’t the absolute top level of the police, even a little below that, they’re still police. For now, the surveillance was authorized, so it had legitimacy.
“Everything really revolves around money, huh….”
“Yeah, it’s abnormal.”
Ha Neul nodded at Sohee’s lament.
“Still… this is the last time.”
At Sua’s words from the back, everyone nodded.
While it wasn’t certain yet, with the lights off like this, it seemed like something was about to happen. The fact that Sara was to be hospitalized should have seemed like a ‘plan by Choi Na-kyung’, and it seemed to have fit perfectly.
“By the way….”
Suddenly, Sua spoke as if she realized something.
“The reason the hospital staff stepped out, that may be it, but where are the people from Choi Na-kyung’s side…?”
“…….”
No one among them had the information to answer that.
As they carefully walked for a while in silence,
“GAAAHHHHH!”
A loud scream echoed from far away.
It was a sound that shouldn’t have reached them from soundproof hospital rooms. All three felt chills run down their spines at that scream.
“What was that,”
Before Ha Neul could mutter about what it was,
“Let’s go.”
Sohee took off running first, with Ha Neul and Sua scrambling to follow behind her.
*
“…….”
Choi Na-kyung had been staring at me for quite a while in response to my question.
“…Is it something you can’t talk about?”
“No.”
In response to my question, Choi Na-kyung shook her head.
“I’ll tell you.”
And she took a step toward me.
I had nowhere to back up anymore. Behind me was the window.
Even though it was a summer night, the window felt quite cold against my back.
“I loved your mother a long time ago.”
“…….”
“I wanted to follow her even if it meant giving up everything I had. I doubted I could love anyone more than I loved her.”
Choi Na-kyung stepped closer again. It was like she wanted to see me from a closer distance.
The faint light coming through the window illuminated Choi Na-kyung’s face.
The flush of her face wasn’t just because of the streetlight streaming in from outside.
“So, when that person got married, I really wanted to give it all up. I thought she would never come back to me. They looked like they really loved each other. I saw no opportunity to intervene.”
“…If you had the chance to intervene.”
“I probably would have.”
She smiled slightly.
“But, at the same time, I didn’t want her to be unhappy.”
“…But your mother has passed away.”
“But you’re still here.”
Choi Na-kyung took a step closer to me again. Now, there were less than three steps between us. If either one of us decided, they could rush forward and definitely close the distance.
“…I look like my mom, don’t I?”
“…I won’t deny that.”
Choi Na-kyung paused for a moment before replying.
“But the fact that you look like her is just one part of the reason. I wanted ‘her’, not you.”
So that was it.
Choi Na-kyung never loved ‘me’ from the start.
She loved my mother, who gave birth to me and looked just like me.
Therefore, because of that…
She probably just didn’t want anyone else to take me away from her.
My “dear mother,” whom I once loved so much, was seeing me merely as a toy not to be taken away by others.
“H-Haha….”
“But, it’s not over yet. Even though I’ve found you again like this.”
But Choi Na-kyung’s words didn’t end there.
“…You haven’t become ‘her’ yet.”
“…What?”
“Someone I know only, someone I have known, and someone I alone know, her.”
“…So, you locked me up in a mental hospital?”
“I only did that because the opportunity arose. Sara.”
Choi Na-kyung slowly opened her arms.
“Come here. Let’s stay together from now on. And—”
“No.”
I cut her off mid-sentence.
My vision was becoming somewhat blurred. Something was flowing from my eyes. It was probably tears.
Mixed with anger and regret.
And mixed with pity.
Pity for my younger self who had loved a completely twisted person.
How pathetic.
And how unfair.
I was madly unjustifiably angry.
That it was because of some being who wanted to completely deny my existence that I spent such hellish time.
I wish she had just said that she loved me. I wish she had only been a person who loved my mother…
I felt like my legs were going to give out. Ah, this couldn’t be happening.
If this keeps up, when Choi Na-kyung charges at me—
Just as I was about to collapse to the floor, weakened.
A flash, and lightning struck outside the window.
For a moment, the inside of the room lit up brightly. From every angle that light could enter through the window, a glaring light illuminated every corner of the room like a camera flash.
And then, in the corner of my vision, in the far corner of the room—
I caught sight of a figure of a woman standing there.
With eyes wide open, staring at me like she wanted to kill me.
Because of the bright light from the lightning, that woman’s skin looked as if not a single drop of blood was flowing through it, making her seem completely pale.
A psychiatric hospital, night, a moment of crisis, a rainy day, and lightning.
All those conditions combined to make that fleeting scene look terrifyingly surreal.
Thanks to that, when thunder rumbled a bit later,
“GAAAHHHHH!”
…In sheer shock, I instinctively forgot all the pent-up rage in my mind and let out a pure, terrified scream.
Thinking back, she seemed to have been wearing a maid outfit at that moment too.