No Longer The Same

"Ya! Kang Jinha!"

Kang Jinha was brought out of his reverie at the shout of his name and he whipped his head up to find Kong Narae sprinting toward him, still struggling to catch her breath. Her neat bun was halfway undone, with messy strands framing her small face and some sticking to her sweaty cheeks. 

Kang Jinha stood up before his mind could process, his mind a little confused at the girl's sudden appearance. "Narae…?" he asked, unsure, when Kong Narae stopped in front of him. "Why are you…"

"You still dare to ask after… haa… after running off like that?!" Kong Narae glared up at him, exasperated. Only God knows how alarmed she was when Kang Jinha suddenly bolted away without a word. Not to mention, he had even forgotten to take his belongings! By the time she chased after him out of the school, he had already vanished without a trace. Left with no other choice, she could only try to wait outside his house, only to receive shocking news from his neighbors… thus here she was. 

She still wanted to grumble and nag a little bit more, but upon seeing Kang Jinha's not-so-good complexion and his scatterbrained look, she eventually could not bring herself to say anything harsh. 

Swallowing, she asked in a tentative tone, "You… are you okay? I heard about your grandma… how is she doing now?"

Kang Jinha blinked, then gave a faint nod. "She's fine for now. You're here at such a late hour… in such weather just for… this?"

Kong Narae let out a dissatisfied harrumph as she rummaged through her backpack, "Geez, who told me to be such a worrywart…" 

She pulled out a small, black sling bag from within and tossed it over to Kang Jinha. "Here," she remarked curtly. "Your phone and wallet are inside. Don't just leave them behind so randomly, idiot. Didn't you promise to meet up with that sunbae? It's so late now. Aren't you going to contact him?" Her reluctance to bring up the last part was evident on her face, and she was not afraid to make it known.

Usually, Kang Jinha would give her a helpless look and ask her not to be so biased, that Chu Myungki sunbae was actually very kind and considerate… but she just could not bring herself to do that, okay?! She did not have a shred of good feelings toward that person!

Kong Narae's distaste was not without reason.

Kang Jinha was not aware of this, but the boys hanging out around Chu Myungki were not good people at all. She had once overheard them mocking Kang Jinha for being a sissy, lame, and so on, just because he was a ballet dancer. Those derogatory words were very uncomfortable to listen to and Kong Narae had to exert all her willpower not to rush up to them and teach them a lesson! 

Sissy? Lame? Ha! Says the uncultured swines who had no eyes to appreciate art! If only they had seen Kang Jinha's performance, then they would know that… some people are just born to dominate the stage.

But that's not the thing that enraged Kong Narae the most. What's worse was that guy Chu Myungki stood among them, listening and smiling without uttering a single word of defense!

Tell her, just how could such a man be a good person?! 

Everytime Kang Jinha talked about him with an obvious glimmer in his eyes, Kong Narae wanted nothing more than to shake his shoulders until he came back to his senses! 

Alas, she had never seen Kang Jinha so visibly happy before, so she could not bring herself to tell the truth until now…

If possible, Kong Narae did not want her friend to continue being entangled with Chu Myungki. Oh come on, Kang Jinha was so slow and stupid (in a very endearing way) she was truly afraid he would be swallowed up sooner or later!

Kong Narae couldn't resist the urge to say a few more words when she saw Kang Jinha taking out his phone, but she was surprised to see that he simply gave it a glance before slipping it into his pocket. 

Huh? Kong Narae was puzzled. Wasn't he going to contact that bastard? He had been so looking forward to today, so why… 

Noticing the girl's obvious confusion, Kang Jinha felt a wave of helplessness arising within him. At the same time, there was also warmth and a trace of imperceptible sadness. When he thought back about it, part of the reason why they had gradually drifted apart, aside from Kang Jinha's decision to abandon ballet, was because Kong Narae had never spoken a good word about Chu Myungki. Who could endure hearing the person they liked being criticized without a good reason, not only once but every single time? He had thought that Kong Narae was simply picking on the man irrationally, yet as it turned out, he was the one who was blind…

"Don't worry, I've come to terms with it," he said softly without offering any additional explanation, but Kong Narae's eyes instantly lit up like a child receiving her Christmas present. 

"Really?!" 

"Mn," Kang Jinha hummed with his gaze lowered, hiding the swirling emotions in them. "I was foolish. I won't get close to him again." 

Kong Narae was so excited that she nearly leaped to slap him on the shoulder. "That's the spirit!" Realizing that she had been too loud, she promptly let out an 'oops' and covered her mouth, giggling. "Oh, I'm so glad you finally realize how foolish you have been! But wait… he doesn't do anything to hurt you.. right?" her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Otherwise how could this lovesick friend of hers change his mind all of a sudden?

Kang Jinha had no idea whether to laugh or cry. He flicked her forehead gently, "What are you thinking about? I just realized some things, that's all." 

Kong Narae scrutinized him from head to toe because she still had a hunch that something seemed different about him. But Kang Jinha did not give her a chance to snoop around as he hooked an arm around her shoulder and led her outside. "Come on, do you even know how late it is? I'll call a cab for you. Don't make Uncle and Auntie worry." Despite being slender, Kang Jinha did not need too much strength to drag the slim Kong Narae outside, all the while ignoring the girl's huffing and puffing.

When it came the time for her to leave, Kang Jinha suddenly called out, "Narae-ya."

"What? What is it again?" Kong Narae rolled her eyes in annoyance but still turned to face him nonetheless. 

Kang Jinha stood on the steps on the hospital entrance with the light on his back, casting deep shadows over his delicate features. What remained crystal clear was a pair of limpid blue eyes that seemed to glimmer with a watery sheen. The rain fell pitter-patter around him, like a hazy illusion that blurred the edges of his silhouette. 

"...Thank you," he whispered. 

"Hmph, idiot." Kong Narae mistakenly thought he was saying thanks for bringing his stuff all the way here, but he did not elaborate further. Not that he ever could. After all, the concept of rebirth was simply too far-fetched and absurd. He would likely be taken as a lunatic instead! 

As he watched her enter the cab, he couldn't help but add, "You too. If… if you have any difficulties, don't hesitate to tell me, okay? I'll do anything I can to help."

Kong Narae did not sense anything odd and joked good-naturedly, "Then be prepared for me to talk your ears off! That's a promise!"

Looking at the girl's lively and mischievous look, a faint smile crossed Kang Jinha's eyes. "Mn," he replied, feeling his throat slightly choked up. 

There were still five years left until Kong Narae was supposed to jump off the building for reasons unknown. This time, Kang Jinha would make sure to keep a vigilant eye out and be alert of any abnormal changes around her. Things would not be the same this time around. 

He would never let the same tragic ending befall her!

***

Kang Jinha curled up on the hospital bench and managed to catch up on some restless sleep. 

Messy images kept popping up behind his eyelids one after another, making him feel doubly exhausted by the time the rain finally let up in the morning. However, he had gotten used to such a life in prison during the last five years of his life, hence he quickly lifted his spirit and splashed cold water on his face before heading out. 

Catching on the earliest bus, Kang Jinha made his way home to change his clothes, packed a few of grandma's belongings into a duffel bag, and grabbed their account book. They still had a couple million won in savings which he reckoned would be enough for grandma's hospitalization fee. 

But what about the service fee of an A-Class Guide? Surely, it would be as expensive as hell… right? 

Oh well, if it's not enough, he could always find a part-time job elsewhere. 

Kang Jinha gave his head a little shake and quickly threw the complicated matters to the graveyard of his mind. He then cooked a pot of plain vegetable porridge and carefully packed it into a thermal termos for Grandma to drink. 

After everything was done, he returned to the hospital and headed to the administration department first thing to settle the fee, only to be informed by the staff that the bill, even the future expenses, had already been covered. 

Kang Jinha stood rooted in place for a few seconds, stunned. All… paid? Who could have done this? The total hospitalization fee could easily exceed hundreds of thousands won or even a million… not a small amount at all! 

Alas, before he could open his mouth to ask, a passing nurse caught sight of him and called out, "Kang Jinha-ssi? You're Kang Jinha-ssi, right? Your grandma regained consciousness a few hours ago. Her vitals are stable, so she has been moved out of the ICU. You can find her in the VIP ward on the eighth floor."

No sooner had the joy sank in than it was replaced by utter speechlessness. Being bombarded by one shocking piece of information after another, Kang Jinha's mind was soon unable to cope and he could only stare at the nurse blankly, question marks flying in circles above his head. VIP ward? Was it because… the source of her grandma's illness was caused by an S-Class dungeon thus the need for isolation? But was it really necessary to provide her with a VIP room??

However, Kang Jinha soon received his answers.

He stood outside the door, his hand poised to knock only to halt when his knuckles were mere centimetres away from the door. Faint voices from inside drifted to his ears, and he… he could not be more familiar with them. 

They were here — his aunt's family.

In his previous lifetime, if there were people whom he was most indebted to, then it could only be them. After all, he was the one who had caused the whole family's demise, repaying kindness with evil.