Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 141

“If that’s how it turns out, I won’t have any regrets. Hey, Kim Il-soo, let’s stick together until the end.”

“Okay. No giving up halfway.”

The two locked eyes, determination burning in their gazes.

Hyeon-seong, watching them, smiled and added,

“Just remember one thing, you two.”

“What is it?”

“Don’t let your dreams turn into resentment.”

“Resentment?”

Lee Jung-woo asked, puzzled, and Hyeon-seong clarified,

“Just enjoy the process.”

“Ah…….”

Lee Jung-woo nodded enthusiastically, as if understanding perfectly. Kim Il-soo, standing beside him, mirrored the gesture.

Hyeon-seong continued,

“In that case, how about a cheer to fire us up?”

“Sounds good!”

“Me too.”

With both agreeing, Hyeon-seong extended his hand towards the center.

Lee Jung-woo, understanding the gesture, placed his hand on Hyeon-seong’s. Kim Il-soo, watching, added his hand on top of Lee Jung-woo’s.

“One, two, three.”

“Fighting!” [A Korean phrase similar to ‘Let’s go!’ or ‘Good luck!’]

The spirited cry of ‘Fighting!’ burst from their lips simultaneously.

As if taking a solemn oath of brotherhood, their expressions were more serious than ever before.

Thus, the night deepened for the three friends.

***

A few days later.

It was after lunch break.

Someone called out, looking in Hyeon-seong’s direction.

“Hyeon-seong, you have a visitor.”

“Who is it?”

“Looks like your sister…….”

At the mention of ‘sister,’ Hyeon-seong quickly rose from his seat.

‘What’s going on?’ he wondered.

His sister wouldn’t usually visit him at this time. Everything seemed normal when he left for school this morning. If something had been amiss, it would have been mentioned then.

Stepping into the hallway, he found Kim Ji-yeon waiting for him, looking distressed.

“What’s wrong?”

“In-hye…….”

Kim Ji-yeon struggled to finish her sentence.

Hyeon-seong asked urgently,

“What are you talking about? What about In-hye?”

“In-hye didn’t come to school today.”

Hyeon-seong could hardly believe his ears. The words he least expected to hear came from Kim Ji-yeon’s mouth.

Didn’t come to school?

“Tell me everything.”

“I thought she was just late when she didn’t show up this morning. But she still wasn’t here after the first class. I kept waiting, hoping she’d arrive. But she didn’t come even after the fourth class, so I called home a little while ago, and they said she left for school this morning.”

“She left this morning, so where could she have gone if she didn’t come to school?”

“That’s what I’m trying to figure out…….”

His sister, Kim Ji-yeon, was on the verge of tears.

Watching her, Hyeon-seong felt a surge of panic. He had never experienced anything like this before.

In his past life, he had no connection with Seo In-hye, so he didn’t even know if something like this had ever happened. As it was a completely new situation, Hyeon-seong was unsure of what to do.

Hyeon-seong looked at Kim Ji-yeon again and asked,

“Has this ever happened before?”

“No, it’s the first time.”

At the word ‘first,’ Hyeon-seong’s surprise deepened. If this had been a recurring issue, he might have considered it a pattern, but since it was unprecedented, the situation felt even more unsettling.

There were two immediate possibilities that sprang to mind.

One was a simple runaway, and the other was kidnapping.

As those thoughts took hold, Hyeon-seong’s words became hurried.

“First, go back to class. I’ll go to In-hye’s house and talk to her mother.”

“What about school?”

“Is school the priority right now? Don’t worry about that, just go back to class.”

Hyeon-seong finished speaking and dashed towards Seo In-hye’s house. He believed it was crucial to get information from Seo In-hye’s mother as soon as possible.

Shortly after.

Hyeon-seong arrived at Seo In-hye’s house and called out to her mother, Lee Se-hee.

“Auntie!”

“Oh? Aren’t you Ji-yeon’s brother who came by last time?”

It was their second meeting. He had walked Seo In-hye home once and greeted her mother then.

“Yes, that’s right. I just heard about In-hye from my sister. What happened?”

“I don’t know either. I naturally assumed she went to school since she left home this morning. But Ji-yeon called a little while ago saying she didn’t show up.”

“Did something happen to In-hye?”

“Actually…….”

Lee Se-hee began to explain.

She recounted the events of the previous night.

Out of the blue, Seo In-hye had expressed her desire to attend high school in Chuncheon [a city about an hour away]. Due to the family’s financial constraints, they couldn’t afford it, and she had been forced to refuse.

Seo In-hye had then cried throughout the night. And this morning, she skipped breakfast, grabbed her bag, and left home around 8 o’clock.

As Lee Se-hee finished her explanation, Hyeon-seong nodded.

Having grasped the situation, Hyeon-seong looked at Lee Se-hee and asked,

“Has anyone called from anywhere?”

“No calls, why?”

“No, just wondering.”

“Why? Are you worried she might have been taken by some bad people?”

“Just in case.”

In truth, his biggest fear while running here was that she had been kidnapped.

But after hearing the story, that seemed less likely. If she had been kidnapped, they would have contacted the family.

So, it was a runaway then…….

Hyeon-seong’s mind raced.

Where could she have gone?

She definitely wouldn’t be in Seo Myeon [the local area], so where…….

The most likely possibilities were Wonju or Hongcheon [nearby cities].

Hyeon-seong, leaving Seo In-hye’s house, headed to the bus terminal.

Scanning the bus schedule, his eyes landed on the departure time for Hongcheon.

A bus had left at 8:30 AM.

If Seo In-hye had come straight to the terminal instead of school after leaving home, it would have taken her a little over 20 minutes to get here.

The only bus she could have caught upon arrival would have been the 8:30 bus to Hongcheon.

The next bus was the one departing for Wonju 20 minutes later at 8:50 AM.

Presumably, Seo In-hye arrived at the terminal around 8:25 AM, and unless she had a specific reason to go to Wonju, she wouldn’t have waited 20 minutes for that bus.

Therefore, the conclusion was that Seo In-hye had gone to Hongcheon.

Hyeon-seong bought a ticket to Hongcheon and headed to the public telephone booth.

He needed to call his homeroom teacher.

After finishing the call, Hyeon-seong boarded the bus to Hongcheon.

How long had it been?

The bus finally arrived at the terminal.

As soon as he disembarked, Hyeon-seong made his way to the comic book store located on the second floor across from the terminal.

In the past, Hyeon-seong used to visit this place with his friends whenever they came to Hongcheon.

Squeak.

As Hyeon-seong opened the door and entered, the comic book store owner greeted him.

“Welcome.”

“Excuse me, did a female student come in here this morning? She’s about this tall, has a pretty face, and looks like a middle schooler…….”

“…… Perhaps with short hair?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

It was confirmed: Seo In-hye had indeed been here.

If he hadn’t found her here, he would have been truly lost, but now he felt a wave of relief.

Hyeon-seong asked again,

“About what time did she leave?”

“She left a little after 12 o’clock, she was here for about two hours. But why are you asking?”

“Ah, she’s my sister, and she just…….”

The comic book store owner nodded, understanding the situation.

“She’s at that age, so don’t scold her too much. Just comfort her and take her home.”

“Yes, I will. Thank you.”

Hyeon-seong expressed his gratitude and left the comic book store.

Huff.

Only now could Hyeon-seong breathe a sigh of relief.

When he first received the call from his sister, he had been completely panicked. His initial fear was that she had been kidnapped.

If that had been the case, it would have been a major crisis.

Fortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case, and he felt a sense of relief wash over him.

Hyeon-seong left the comic book store and walked towards the downtown area. He was heading to a place he had visited a few times with his friends.

A place they would occasionally visit when they came to downtown Hongcheon: the arcade.

Gallaga [a classic arcade game], the best game of that era.

It was a game that could make you lose all track of time, so engrossed that an entire day would pass by in a flash.

Smirk.

Hyeon-seong smiled involuntarily.

It was because of the person diligently playing the game at the end of the row. That person was none other than Seo In-hye, whom Hyeon-seong had been searching for.

“Found her.”

Step.

Hyeon-seong quietly approached Seo In-hye from behind.

After watching her engrossed in the game for a few moments, Hyeon-seong finally made his move.

Swoosh.

Hyeon-seong stepped to Seo In-hye’s side.

“Shall we play a game together?”

“Oppa!” [Korean term for older brother or male friend]

Seo In-hye, startled by Hyeon-seong’s presence, looked at him with wide eyes, as if she had seen a ghost.

“What are you doing? I said, let’s play a game together.”

“Oppa!”

Tears welled up in Seo In-hye’s eyes.

Feeling overwhelmed, she had impulsively gone to the terminal instead of school. Seeing a bus to Hongcheon, she had boarded it without thinking.

She just wanted to escape as far away from home as possible.

She hated being poor, hated her home life, and even felt resentment towards her mother.

But when she actually arrived in Hongcheon, she had nowhere to go. So, she first went to the comic book store across from the terminal.

That wasn’t a place she could stay for long.

She couldn’t bear the stares from the men there for more than two hours, so she left.

And the next place she came to was this arcade.

She had hoped that getting away from home would make her feel better. But as time passed, it wasn’t fun, and her worries only grew.

Most of all, she was worried about her mother and her friends.

And there was someone she wanted to see.

In this lonely and difficult time, she felt that this person would understand her feelings.

Kim Hyeon-seong, that was the person.

Seo In-hye looked at Hyeon-seong standing beside her.

“How did you get here, Oppa…….”

“I came to find you, In-hye.”

“How did you know I would be here?”

“I thought about where you might go. You left home around 8 o’clock, right? When I went to the terminal, there was a bus to Hongcheon at 8:30. I figured you would have taken that, so I followed you and ended up here.”

“Really?”

Hyeon-seong nodded.

Then, Seo In-hye jumped up from her seat and hugged Hyeon-seong tightly.

“Hey, hey, what are you doing in a public place?”

“It doesn’t matter. I was so scared. I didn’t go to school and ran away from home, but I had nowhere to go.”

“Okay, let’s go somewhere else and talk.”

“Okay, Oppa.”

The two left the arcade and walked down the street.

Before she knew it, Seo In-hye’s hand was linked with Hyeon-seong’s arm.

They walked in comfortable silence for a while.

Grumble.

Hyeon-seong looked at Seo In-hye.