Though he wasn’t particularly concerned about money, for a ring left with such effort, it was strange that it didn’t have a single jewel. The carefully prepared meal contradicted any suggestion of haste. Moreover, it wasn’t just any ring but a birthday gift ring.

Throughout their economic activities, they had never once been stingy with each other.

A ring to be shared between them. A birthday gift, but a relatively inexpensive ring. Myung-hwon tried to read Ju-eon’s thoughts. He couldn’t think there was no meaning to it.

“Ha.”

Myung-hwon let out a hollow laugh at the conclusion drawn from adding up the thoughts one by one. Running his hand through his hair, he took out the larger ring that fit his finger and slipped it onto his fourth finger.

The meaning of asking him to put on the ring. It meant he would return, asking him to wait until then.

But at the same time, it included the meaning that he didn’t trust him. A ring of such little value that it wouldn’t matter if lost.

Inside the ring was a small engraved sentence.

Remember 0515

His stopped heart slowly began to beat.

‘When I return… then… tell me again then, Myung-hwon.’

The last time they met, before Myung-hwon lost consciousness, Ju-eon had clearly said it. That he would return. To his side. Ju-eon knew that meeting would be their last.

Myung-hwon’s eyelashes cast dark shadows as he looked down at the ring. Ju-eon had disappeared of his own will. He couldn’t think of it any other way. He needed to hear directly why he couldn’t say it directly.

“I’m the one who made you unable to trust me.”

He bit the inside of his mouth so hard that a metallic taste lingered.

Even though he couldn’t trust him, Ju-eon had decided to return. He had no choice but to believe. Myung-hwon was at his limit. Not believing meant death, nothing less.

Myung-hwon slowly picked up his spoon. When had he prepared this?

In what state were we, what feelings did you have when you made this?

He tried to gauge the time between receiving the gift and before Ju-eon disappeared. It seemed there would have been only reasons to resent him during that time.

His eyes burned hot, then his insides felt like they were burning up, repeatedly. His emotions swung between extremes. His body heated up and his heart beat rapidly. It was a precursor to going berserk.

Myung-hwon dumped the medicine beside the table into his mouth. His tongue tasted bitter each time he ground the medicine with his teeth. Myung-hwon briefly put down his spoon and wiped away the cold sweat beading on his forehead.

Though eating felt like an ordeal, Myung-hwon gripped the spoon again.

Clink. Only the quiet sound of utensils hitting dishes echoed.

The cold rice felt gritty in his mouth. Still, Myung-hwon kept moving his spoon diligently without stopping. It felt like it was sitting undigested in his stomach. He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d eaten a proper meal.

“I’ll just have to prove it.”

Myung-hwon briefly kissed the finger wearing the ring. That’s when it happened.

Thud. Myung-hwon stood up at the unfamiliar presence felt behind him. Before the other could react, a gun was gripped in Myung-hwon’s hand.

Whoosh.

“So you were home. Oh? Why are you holding a gun?”

“Han-ol.”

Myung-hwon ground out Han-ol’s name between his lips. Though there was now a possibility Ju-eon was alive, it remained unchanged that Han-ol’s unnecessary actions had led Ju-eon to recklessly come to the department store.

Han-ol casually raised both hands in the air while grumbling.

“A subordinate said they saw you running around in the snow wearing just a shirt, so I came to check…”

“Han-ol.”

“I came thinking you’d finally broken down but… maybe I came for nothing.”

“…What do you want?”

Myung-hwon watched Han-ol warily as he clicked his tongue, saying it was disappointing that he seemed more normal than expected.

“Well, you don’t seem completely normal though.”

Usually, Myung-hwon would have noticed immediately that Han-ol had entered the house. Myung-hwon’s face crumpled as he aimed the gun precisely at Han-ol’s forehead.

“I asked what you want.”

“Do we need a reason to see each other? Aren’t brothers supposed to visit sometimes without reason?”

Myung-hwon issued an order to leave to Han-ol who seemed to have no intention of conversation.

“Get out.”

“You’re so cold to your brother who came out of concern.”

“……”

Han-ol briefly held his breath and chose his words. Like at the department store then and now, Han-ol’s purpose was always one thing.

Bringing Myung-hwon to AGT.

Though he had failed to gauge the right timing each time, this time it seemed he might succeed. Though his abilities seemed lower than before, they needed him not just for his exceptional skills. To most severely get back at Yeo Ji-woong, they needed Yeo Myung-hwon.

“Are you going to stay there forever?”

“……”

Though he hadn’t explained in detail where ‘there’ was, he understood immediately. Han-ol extended one hand.

“You have no reason to stay at the agency anymore.”

Myung-hwon looked at Han-ol’s outstretched palm.

“Come to us.”

Han-ol proposed to Myung-hwon with a voice full of confidence.

**

Clinical trial side effects sometimes appear gradually from the beginning, and sometimes appear suddenly at the end. In Woo Ju-eon’s case, it was the former.

It started from very small things. Like squeezing out toothpaste and forgetting about it, or forgetting and leaving behind a dessert he had set aside briefly.

“You forgot this.”

Yun-jae handed Ju-eon his dessert that was placed in front of himself, as Ju-eon got up after finishing his meal first.

“What’s this?”

“Your dessert.”

Momentary bewilderment crossed Ju-eon’s face.

He couldn’t let his mood drop over something so trivial. Ju-eon forced his chin up and smiled.

“Ah. I must have forgotten.”

“……”

At Yun-jae’s silence, Ju-eon asked in an awkward voice.

“Why am I forgetting so many things lately?”

He had to tell Yun-jae immediately if there was anything he didn’t know. Even the smallest thing. He needed to clearly identify whether not knowing something was due to lost memories or if it was something he originally didn’t know.

“Because it’s a side effect.”

“Did you explain this to me before too?”

“Yes.”

“Am I forgetting more and more things?”

“…Yeah.”

Ju-eon was even forgetting the sensation of forgetting things.

“…Sorry.”

How many times had they had this conversation already? He couldn’t tell. Ju-eon, looking dejected, quietly apologized.

“No need to be sorry. I can explain it again as many times as needed.”

At Yun-jae’s words, Ju-eon bit his lower lip.

“It’s much better than other bad side effects.”

The advantage of side effects appearing early is that you can immediately stop the experiment or adjust the dosage to minimize side effects.

“I guess so?”

If it had been other side effects, it could have escalated to serious issues requiring immediate cessation due to life-threatening concerns. But Ju-eon was beyond the point where he could stop the trial due to side effects and had no choice but to continue.

Though Ju-eon had feared losing his memories more than death, now he had forgotten even that fact. Though his insides were thoroughly damaged requiring artificial organs, other than memory loss, there were no major side effects and positive results were showing. That’s why Kang Yun-jae didn’t stop the clinical trial.

Ju-eon, who had more memory gaps each morning when he woke up, decided to keep a diary. Though they said not to bring anything proving his identity, writing a diary inside the lab wasn’t prohibited.

“Woo Ju-eon…”

His name.

“Yeo Myung-hwon…?”

I must have written it down because I needed to remember it.

Ju-eon shook his head. Just recalling the name made his heart ache. Fortunately, the name he tried to suppress came back quickly. Ju-eon let out a sigh of relief. His eyes stung.

Right. How could I forget you? My daily life. My other half. My everything.

When every moment of my life is marked by you. When I forgot you and remembered again, it felt distant. Because you seemed like my identity itself, and that made me smile broadly just because I liked it so much.

Ju-eon repeated Myung-hwon’s name over and over. It had become a daily morning ritual lately. Kang Yun-jae watched Ju-eon’s behavior through the CCTV.

The next day, the diary disappeared. Ju-eon couldn’t remember losing the diary. Though he was aware he was forgetting something, he didn’t know what he had forgotten. Ju-eon blankly stared at the scarf tied to the bedpost.

“Why did I tie a scarf to the bed?”

Ju-eon untied the scarf and placed it on his knee, examining it while tilting his head. Why was there a scarf in the underground lab where seasons were meaningless? Winter had long passed. But why had he tied this scarf so tightly?

Click.

The door opened and Yun-jae entered. Yun-jae visited Ju-eon’s room several times a day to check his condition.

“Ju-eon.”

“…Yun-jae.”

Ju-eon greeted Yun-jae with a bright smile. After entering the lab, Ju-eon had come to rely on Yun-jae the most. It was the natural progression.

“Why are you holding a scarf when you won’t be going outside and it’s not winter?”

“Right? Do you know anything about it?”

“I think you said you were going to put it away. Want me to throw it out for you?”

Yun-jae smiled kindly.

Something he thought he could never have from the beginning. So he hadn’t even allowed himself to desire it. But in that gradually erasing space, the greed to occupy it himself began to take root.

‘So that’s why Yeo Myung-hwon disliked me.’

He clicked his tongue at Yeo Myung-hwon’s b*ast-like intuition. It seems Yeo Myung-hwon had seen through the emotions he had suppressed enough to deceive even himself.