Transit Love After Revenge Chapter 3

Just like that, things with Seongjun were over.

 

Six years vanished in a heartbeat. Waves of resentment surged through her. She wanted nothing more than to march over to him and slap him across the face.

 

But right now, staying by her mother’s side mattered more. Time dragged and flew all at once.

 

The next time she saw the two of them again was on TV. On the giant screen in the hospital lobby, they were smiling, all bright and sunny.

 

<Friendship Romance 2>

 

What the hell is that?

 

There was no sound, but the subtitles at the bottom spelled it out clearly.

 

—Minji supported me. You know how it is when you’re acting, sometimes things get tight financially. Even when I didn’t say anything, she’d just quietly leave her card for me. Told me to use it sparingly since the limit wasn’t high. That’s when I thought, wow, I’ve really got myself a great friend.

 

‘Haha.’ Haeyeong laughed without sound.

 

Minji, huh? No. That wasn’t her. That was Haeyoung, she did all that. ‘You only ever bought stuff for Minji, remember? The things I gave you, the food my mom made, all of it.’

 

—There was a time this girl I was seeing started to kind of stalk me.

 

―Oh, that girl.

 

Minji smiled meaningfully.

 

—That time, Minji stepped right in front of me. She’s so small, but the charisma coming off her was intense. It was kind of cool.

 

—I am kind of cool.

 

Minji said shyly, smiling despite the compliment. Porcelain skin, a rosy blush blooming across her cheeks, and dimples that made her look adorably sweet.

 

The producer who was conducting the interview let out a small gasp. “Minji-nim, you’re too cute.”

 

“Thank you,” Minji replied, folding her hands together politely. It was the perfect cherry on top.

 

That was when Haeyeong finally understood why Seongjun had said he wanted to break up. Why he had been waiting for the right moment.

 

Haeyeong kept watching their show. Every day.

 

People, completely clueless about who they really were, cheered on their fake personas. The way they spoke, their facial expressions, their clothes and accessories, it all became a trend.

 

Even celebrities quoted their catchphrases and publicly rooted for their love story. The entire nation was obsessed with Seongjun and Minji.

 

The show ended on a high note, and shortly afterward, the two made their relationship official. The internet exploded with congratulations. Their couple photos graced the covers of magazines.

 

Minji landed a cosmetics endorsement deal—something only top stars got. Seongjun moved into a spacious, upscale apartment. No one remembered the small little studio Haeyeong used to pay rent for.

 

Meanwhile, Seongran’s life slowly withered away, day by day. Their star kept burning brighter, fueled by Haeyeong’s suffering.

 

Eventually, after months of grueling life support, Seongran passed away.

 

The funeral was held quietly. Seongjun didn’t show. But just outside the funeral hall, at the bus stop, his face was plastered across a massive ad.

 

[Want to travel together?]

 

He beamed down at her from the poster for some travel app advertisement, grinning like he had not a care in the world.

 

Haeyeong let out a hollow laugh. In that moment, the white hairpin she had not take out was carried away by the breeze.

 

* * *

 

―Next stop, ○○.

 

She opened her eyes wide. She looked around blankly for a moment. She was in the subway.

 

What is this?

 

‘Why am I here?’ 

 

Haeyoung, who had been looking around, looked down at the cell phone in her hand.

 

[Thank you, Seongjun. I’m sorry I got angry when I was asking for favors–]

 

A draft message glowed on the screen. She knew this one well.

 

How strange. That was the message she had sent Seongjun before her mother’s accident, asking him to take her to the hospital.

 

Why was she writing it again?

 

[202X.05.25 11:41 a.m.]

 

The time and date were strange.

 

“It was five months ago….”

 

She murmured the words just as the train came to a stop and the doors slid open. She sat there in a daze, watching people get on and off.

 

It was the station where she had that meeting.

 

For a moment, her head flashed as if she had been hit with a hammer.

 

She returned that day. The day Seongran would get into the accident.

 

As the subway doors started to close, Haeyeong ran outside.

 

Even if this was a dream, even if none of it was real, she didn’t care. If she could save Seongran, even just in a dream, that was enough.

 

She ran. Every breath that scraped her lungs, every pounding step, only made it clearer, this was real. The more certain she became, the faster her legs moved.

 

She didn’t know how this second chance had happened, but it didn’t matter.

 

She returned. To five months ago.

 

By the time she reached home, she was drenched in sweat. Her underwear clung to her skin.

 

Seongran was just coming out of the house. There was a long staircase in front of her. 

 

Seongran would stumble. She would fall. After barely surviving on a respirator for four months, she would eventually lose her life.

 

“Mom, don’t move! Stay still!”

 

Haeyeong yelled, sprinting toward her. At the sound of her name, Seongran turned and frowned.

 

“Haeyeong, what about work?”

 

Haeyeong waved frantically and ran like her life depended on it. Luckily, Seongran didn’t move.

 

‘Mom won’t get hurt. I can stop her.’

 

The second she had that thought, a car came out of nowhere, speeding toward her from the intersection.

 

SCREECH!

 

“Ugh.”

 

Haeyoung fell backwards, catching herself on her hands. Above her, the sky was painfully blue. Then her mother’s face appeared, blocking the sun.

 

“Haeyoung! Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

 

“Mom, are you okay?”

 

“What are you even saying? You’re the one who just got hit!”

 

Seongran scolded her, clearly shaken. Relief flooded through Haeyoung. She let herself collapse onto the ground. Her back throbbed, but it was a light collision.

 

It didn’t matter. If she could take her mother’s place, even just to soak up the bad luck, she would gladly do worse.

 

“What’s wrong, can’t you get up?”

 

She opened her eyes again at her mother’s question and looked up at the sky. A man’s face appeared beside Seongran’s, blocking the light.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

With the sun behind him, she couldn’t see his face clearly. He held out his hand, and when she took it, he pulled her up easily.

 

That’s when she recognized him.

 

A smooth forehead, thick eyebrows, sharp eyes, lips that looked like they were always annoyed, and a tall height that made her look way up.

 

She had seen him before. Who was he?

 

“You’re… Seo Haeyeong?”

 

“Ah.”

 

“You are.”

 

It clicked. He was the one who found Seongran collapsed on the street and took her to the emergency room.

 

The man who had given a quick update on her mom’s condition and disappeared. The man that contacted her several times after that to ask about Seongran’s condition.

 

So even back then, he had just happened to be walking by. If it weren’t for that,  her mother might have died right there on the sidewalk.

 

“Thank you.”

 

Now that she was back in the past, she didn’t stop to question how he already knew her name. She just bowed deeply, gratitude swelling in her chest.

 

He stared at her. His gaze lingered long enough to make her look away. His hand was still holding hers.

 

“Uh…”

 

Haeyoung twisted her hand away. A tickling sensation remained on her palm.

 

“I’m fine. I jumped out. You can just go.”

 

He was basically a lifesaver in her last life, she wasn’t about to charge him for damages or anything.

 

The man kept staring at Haeyoung. His gaze was oddly intense.

 

“Hmm. I don’t have a business card right now.”

 

“I told you, it’s fine.”

 

The man ruffled his hair and paused to think.

 

“Wait.”

 

“What are you—”

 

He walked to the front of his car, opened the driver’s door, and leaned inside. Something made a crunching sound.

 

When he came back, he pressed something into her hand.

 

He came back and forcefully put it in Haeyoung’s hand. It was the phone number that had been attached to the windshield.

 

[000-0000-0000]

 

What is this?

 

“I’m Han Yoonhyuk. Please file a claim.”

 

The man spoke slowly and deliberately. Was he weird or something?

 

Haeyoung hesitated for a moment and then put the phone number in her pocket. Of course, she had no intention of contacting him.

 

* * *

 

Three days passed. Seongjun, who hadn’t reached out once during her mother’s illness, suddenly texted asking to meet.

 

“Why didn’t you contact me?”

 

As soon as Seongjun, who had lost some weight, sat down, he asked. Like he had forgotten all about the promise to help take Haeyoung’s mother to the hospital.

 

Haeyoung looked at him quietly. She wanted to say she was done and walk out right then. But that wouldn’t leave even a scratch on him.

 

Instead, Haeyoung stirred some sugar into her tea. The powder dissolved instantly, disappearing without a trace. The sweetness on her tongue made her come to her senses.

 

“What? Why are you smiling like that?”

 

“I was busy.”

 

“Were you really busy? Were you eating properly? Haeyeong, you can’t lose any more weight. You’re too skinny already.”

 

Haeyoung looked at Seongjun for a moment.

 

‘Why are you being so affectionate? You don’t love me anymore. You’ve been thinking you’re sick of dating someone who doesn’t suit you for a long time.’

 

“I took care of myself.”

 

Her voice had gone cold. Seongjun blinked, sensing the shift.

 

“Why are you talking like that? Are you mad at me?”

 

“No. Did you do something to make me angry?”

 

“No, of course not. Oh, the other day, your mom’s hospital thing? I called her, but she said it was fine if I didn’t come. Is that what this is about? You’re mad over that?.”

 

“That, again….”

 

Always with the ‘that’. He was still trash even when she came back to the past.

 

“Ah, okay. I’m sorry, alright? My bad. Forgive me?”

 

Seongjun grinned, trying to smooth it over with a bit of charm.