Why?

That was the first word that came to mind.

Why did this happen? No, where did that truck suddenly come from?

My mind knew I had to run away, but my body was frozen and couldn’t move. I froze in place right there.

“Lee Ju Eun!”

Then, I heard someone calling my name. I slowly turned my head towards that direction.

And then.

Bam!

My body was pushed.

Shoved by a tremendous force, I fell to the ground with a thud. I came to my senses belatedly.

‘What? What the hell just happened?’

A chill ran through my body as an eerie feeling swirled.

Forcibly turning my stiff neck, I looked at the spot where I had just been.

There……

“Huh?”

……Seon Woo Jin was lying there, bleeding.

‘What kind of situation is this?’

I needed to move quickly, but I couldn’t even lift a finger. My mind also refused to listen.

People who belatedly noticed the situation here approached. Sung Ji Chan asked in surprise,

“What’s this, Lee Ju Eun why are you here? No, is Seon Woo Jin okay?”

I blankly lowered my head and looked at Seon Woo Jin.

“Report, we need to report this.”

I belatedly took out my cell phone and called 119.

I finished the call without even knowing what I said. I heard people murmuring. Meanwhile, I just sat on the ground in a daze.

Why is he lying there bleeding?

I wracked my uncooperative brain to form coherent sentences. Right. The truck suddenly rushed in, and Seon Woo Jin was hit by the car instead of me.

But why did the truck appear?

Suddenly, the original work came to mind. In the final battle of the original, Seol Yu Hwa gets hit by a truck instead of Seol Yu Bin. The truck appeared without any reason then too. Because this is a novel.

A terrifying thought occurred to me.

‘Could it be that the truck also appeared because I said I would reenact the final battle?’

It’s an absurd hypothesis, but I had a gut feeling it was the right answer.

Then is this accident my fault?

“Hey, Lee Ju Eun. Snap out of it. What will we do if you’re like this too.”

“Huh?”

Sung Ji Chan grabbed my shoulders and shook me.

“I said snap out of it!”

I don’t remember well what happened after that. The ambulance came, Seon Woo Jin was taken away, and I went to the hospital with the others.

Someone spoke as if to comfort me.

“It’ll be okay. Don’t worry too much.”

But I instinctively knew.

That this matter would never end simply.

[This is the timeline separator]

Seon Woo Jin went into the operating room.

‘It’s so sudden I can’t even speak.’

All I could do was sit blankly in the hospital hallway.

I stared at the floor, lost in thought.

‘Why did it turn out like this?’

Is it a side effect of forcibly trying to recreate the original?

Even so, this sudden development is really absurd. It was so ridiculous I almost laughed.

No, actually it’s not funny at all.

I called the system.

“System.”

[Yes……?]

The system appeared small, as if reading the room.

“Seon Woo Jin, he’ll be okay, right?”

I wanted the system to reassure me by saying he would be fine.

However, the system didn’t answer.

“Say something. He’s okay, right? Right?”

The system still remained silent. That attitude made me feel fear for the first time.

“Can’t you just say he’s okay?”

[Ju Eun……]

I was frustrated with the system that ultimately didn’t tell me what I wanted to hear.

“No, forget it. Don’t say anything.”

Maybe it’s better not to hear it. Judging so, I dismissed the system again.

Then, someone spoke to me.

“What are you doing here?”

I slowly raised my head. It was Sung Ji Chan.

“Ah……”

When I didn’t answer properly, Sung Ji Chan sighed and sat next to me.

“What were you thinking so deeply about that you couldn’t hear me calling?”

“You called me?”

“I called you dozens of times.”

Really? I didn’t hear at all. I must have really been out of it.

“Is the surgery over? How is Seon Woo Jin doing?”

Sung Ji Chan shook his head.

“Not yet.”

“I see……”

I blankly stared at the floor again.

Honestly, it still didn’t feel real. I just wanted someone to tell me it was all a joke.

‘Things were clearly going well.’

Is it a problem that things were going too well? So the heavens are giving me an ordeal?

Thinking that the person who was talking to me just a few hours ago might die felt strange. I understood it in my head, but it didn’t feel real.

‘No, let’s not think like that. The surgery will go well.’

I forcibly cheered myself up and slapped my cheeks to try to get a grip. Of course, it didn’t improve my mood at all.

“By the way, why were you there earlier?”

I raised my head at Sung Ji Chan’s question.

“Huh?”

“You were at the place we were fighting. I heard Seon Woo Jin was next to you too.”

He must have heard my story from Seon Woo Jin when talking to Jin Hae-yul at the end.

“Just….. I was worried because you said you were fighting.”

I gave a vague answer since there was no need to tell the truth. Sung Ji Chan laughed.

“Now that I think about it, you’re always enthusiastic only about Seon Woo Jin.”

“It’s not like that.”

“Well, if you say so.”

……It really isn’t though.

It would be weird to fervently deny it in this situation, so I just kept my mouth shut. However Sung Ji Chan interpreted my silence, he patted my back as if to encourage me.

“I don’t really get why you’re pushing that guy away. But I still hope things work out between you two.”

I didn’t answer.

“Treat him well when he wakes up. He really likes you.”

Leaving those words behind, Sung Ji Chan stood up again.

“Then I’ll get going.”

Quietly watching Sung Ji Chan’s receding back, I became lost in thought. He must have deliberately come to comfort me. Sung Ji Chan’s heart must be uneasy too right now. He acts carefree but is surprisingly deep.

I thought of Seon Woo Jin.

‘Yeah, I should treat him well when he wakes up.’

I’ll really treat him well. So I won’t have any regrets.

But as Sung Ji Chan said, can Seon Woo Jin really wake up?

‘If it follows the original……’

I soon shook my head. No, let’s not think negatively. Everything will be fine.

Seon Woo Jin will return perfectly fine like always.

However, as always, the ominous feeling was not wrong.

And Seon Woo Jin, who finished surgery, fell into a coma.

Just like Seol Yu Hwa in the original.

[This is the timeline separator]

Seon Woo Jin was moved to the intensive care unit.

I returned to daily life. I went to school, and went home when it ended. Something was strange.

‘Why did it turn out like this.’

It was clearly all over. According to the plan, I should have already returned to my original world.

I repeated meaningless days. Not knowing in what state of mind I was spending my days, I just let time pass.

Another hectic day passed like that.

[Will you receive the reward?]

[Y/N]

Lying in bed, I blankly stared at the square window that popped up before my eyes.

Reward. It was what I got last time for forcibly completing the main quest.

‘It said I could return to the original world with this.’

To be exact, it was a ‘wish coupon’. The system had said it would grant any one wish of mine.

‘A wish……’

I caught myself before unconsciously drifting to other thoughts. What are you thinking. I have to go back.

I dismissed the reward window and closed my eyes.

‘What should I do when I return?’

Let’s see. Will I go back to the last moment I remember? Then do I have to go to work right after returning? Ugh, I don’t really want that.

I suddenly burst into laughter.

‘Right, I was an office worker.’

Giggling, I became immersed in my thoughts.

‘I think I used to complain about not wanting to go to work everyday back then.’

It’s only been a few months since I’ve been here, but it already felt like the distant past.

Come to think of it, a lot has really happened.

I recollected everything that happened since I first possessed this body until now. The day I first saw the handsome boy trio, the day I ran into them on the street and got caught by Yoo Hee Na and even kidnapped to Haeseong High, the day I got chased by Ban Ha Min’s fan club, etc……

It was painful then, but looking back, it’s all memories now. I never imagined the day would come when I’d recall it fondly like this.

A smile spread across my lips. The kids I met flashed through my mind one by one.

But as time passed, one face filled my head.

Seon Woo Jin.

‘I miss you.’

I’m not asking for much, so just one more time.

I just miss you so much.

Since when did I like Seon Woo Jin this much?

Tears flowed without me realizing it.

Actually, I wanted to cry all along. Ever since the very moment I found out Seon Woo Jin got hurt because of me.

If I hadn’t been greedy to quickly see the ending, would Seon Woo Jin not have gotten hit by the car instead of me?

Then I could have left this world without any lingering attachments.

……Really?

I knew the answer to that.

‘No.’

It felt like my head cleared in an instant. I felt like I knew what I had to do.

I wiped my tears and sat up.

“System. Come out for a second.”

Then the system appeared small.

[Yes, you called……?]

It looked somewhat cowed, but I had no time to pay attention to that. I urged,

“You said you’d grant my wish. Is that really possible for any wish?”

The system seemed to ponder without a word, then displayed a message again.

[If it’s something I can do, anything is possible!] [But only one!]

One.

I wavered for a moment at that word, but soon made up my mind.

‘Fine. That’s enough.’

I clenched my fists and repeated in my mind what I had to say, as if making a vow. Afraid that my resolve might weaken.

Finally having made up my mind, I asked point-blank.

“If I use my wish coupon, can you wake up Seon Woo Jin?”