From Past To Present, I Still Love You 130 Back to Presen

Sobbing in her chair, her hands were covering the sadness on her face. It was her first time revealing the truth to anybody. The sins she committed and the pain she had to go through to get there. Although the lines were faded, there was still traces of the cuts on her palms. Even the best ointment creams could not fix the damage to her skin.

Minhyun sat quietly with his eyes closed, deep in thought. After hearing about Jaeun's past, the only thing he could think of was of the damage Jaemin could cause if he took the wrong actions. Right now, they were trekking dangerous waters. Minhyun had underestimated the violent tendacies and manipulative powers of his opponent.

Jaemin, even when he was young, was able to condition Jaeun through verbal cues to murder her own sister. By trapping her into a situation where she believed she wasn't able to escape hell unless she killed someone, he was able to complete his goals. This itself was a a dangerous weapon.

Anyone could commit murder if they were pushed to the harshest circumstances. All that was needed was a good manipulator.

Jaemin was the scariest in that sense. He was able to plan a way to use Jaeun's emotions against her, crafting everyone including the other family members to believe that she was the only one that murdered Jihee.

Because in the end, he was a murderer as well. He played his cards well.

If that was the case, how safe would Yoona be with him? After all, she was someone who reminded both siblings of the deceased Jihee.

Cold sweat glazed across his skin as he glanced at the clock. He should start making his moves.

While Minhyun was in his train of thought, Ji-ho jumped out of his seat, moving closer towards the crying Jaeun. He still had some questions he wanted answered. "Interesting story but it doesn't clench all my curiosity."

Jaeun looked up, her mascara falling down her face. She looked like a wreck. "W-what more do you want to know?"

Ji-ho let out a innocent smile. His dimples accentuated. "Do you regret killing Jihee?"

There was no hesitation.

"No."

Ji-ho's smile slightly faltered. After such a terrible story, to suffer manipulation under her brother and to suffer the psychological aftermath, she did not feel regret. He wasn't sure if that was scary or normal. After all, what would he do in her situation? The circumstances were against her favor and he knew how intense the rich society could be behind closed doors.

If killing was his only chance of being happy would he follow through?

Was it truly the only solution?

In the end, one lived in the world to survive. This was engraved in our blood.

It was a tricky question to answer, digging into his humanity.

Ji-ho dug deeper into his heart, placing the same question in his situation. If the only way for him to get rid of his illness was to kill another human being, would he do it? Would he push someone off of a ledge and watch them fall without regret?

There was no need to think.

He would. In the end, what good was it for someone else to survive when he would die?

That was the scary thing about this whole situation.

Was he justifying Jaeun's actions? Of course not. Their situations were different. Jaeun didn't have the death factor in her own life and she had killed her very own sister. But he also didn't know how hellish her childhood truly was. If her life was truly a living hell then wouldn't she already been living in a situation worse than death?

Ji-ho heart hurt. Everything was confusing.

"Another question," he said, trying to focus his attention to something else. "How did Jihee influence you to ruin the lives of others? I have a general idea but I want it to be confirmed."

She pursed her lips. "Even though I k-killed her, that doesn't mean I hate her. She was my sister. It was my circumstances that drove me to make that decision... It's hard to explain my heart but I just didn't want people to be better than me. For her sake and for mine."

Although her answer was vague, Ji-ho got a general idea of what she meant. His deductions were right. Jaeun was trying to find redemption for her actions through living how Jihee would. She was trying to continue Jihee's legacy through any means.

And of course, on the more selfish note, she also didn't want the same situation to repeat.

Ji-ho giggled. This was all interesting. He was glad that he picked this project to work on. In the end, he was able to solve a great case and give some peace to the deceased Jihee through revenge.

"One last question!" He announced. "I heard that you and Yoona used to be best friends. Did you ever actually like her? Even a little bit?"

Jaeun avoided eye contact and looked at the ground. "I don't want to answer."

For the most part, Ji-ho and Jaeun's conversation did not interest Minhyun. However, when the girl chose not to answer Ji-ho's question, it couldn't help but spark his interest. After all, this involved the person he cared about.

His deep voice pierced the atmosphere. "Answer."

She could not deny him. The scary look in his eyes shot chills up her spine. Fuck. Why did she have to reveal the darkest secrets of her heart. It was painful. "I - I really don't know. Yoona r-reminded me too much of my sister. Sometimes it felt like Jihee was by my side. Do I hate her? Do I like her? I have no idea myself."

Minhyun narrowed his eyes before nodding. She was telling the truth. All her answers, were more or less worthy of their trust. Now that he had this confirmation, he felt more ease searching the airport.

Plus, he had recorded everything in secret. He needed back up in case she decided to betray them.

He just prayed that everything was fine. This was his only wish from god.

Chapter end