𝐃𝐄𝐉𝐀 𝐕𝐔 .ᥫ᭡ inso's law

017. to call a friend (2)

A wave of despair crashed unto Ham Dan-i. She quickly faced Ham Haru, hoping she was merely feigning ignorance as a prank. Although, when she did, she was only met with a puzzled smile and an unnerving brown uniform that hung near the door.

It was the same uniform she had in her previous world.

Thump, thump, thump─

In this silent space, only her pounding heart seemed deafening.

She hauled her phone. 3:48 AM.

"What are you doing?" Ham Haru perked curiously, pretending to be oblivious about her sister's tumult.

Ham Dan-i didn't answer and contacted that one person she hoped to exist, a friend she cherished to the brink of breaking down if gone, a sun who brightened her days, and the none-existent moon in her darkest nights; the girl who changed her mundane life─Ban Yeoryeong.

[ The number you dialed is unknown. ]

Clinging to that shard of hope, it shattered.

Ham Dan-i dropped her hand to her side. The life in her eyes died.

It was happening again, this devastating reality. Mercilessly robbed of her own happiness and sanity, forced to swallow a harsh dose of its trickery.

Just how long was she going to endure this?

Suddenly, a pair of arms embraced her from behind, providing warmth Ham Dan-i didn't know she missed; comfort she never knew existed.

"I..." Ham Haru started. Her tone was gentle as the summer breeze. "...I don't know what you dreamt about, but don't worry. I'm here. You have someone by your side. You're not alone."

Ham Dan-i felt something well up inside her. A bottle she sealed for so long was being carved open.

"Don't worry."

"I'm here."

"You have someone by your side."

"You're not alone."

The words that sound so simple in her mediocre world filled her with longing. She used to cringe at dramas with scenes like this, laugh at something labeled as cliché, and get teary-eyed over soap opera fictions. But now she had a first-hand experience, Ham Dan-i slowly understood the depth of its value.

"Haru unnie..." Her voice was shaking, tears threatening to spill out. "does Ban Yeoryeong really not exist? What about Eunhyung? Eun Ji-ho? Ju-in? Or even Yoo Chunyoung?"

The names had yet become foreign to the ebony girl. In fact, her memories of them remained fresh. But still, she stood her ground. Resolutions, unwavering.

"...just like last time, you also came looking for them." Ham Haru sympathetically hugged her younger twin even more as if pained by Ham Dan-i's unknown strife. "Say, dear sister, could it be I had forgotten about them? Or do they simply not exist? You speak as though we were all fairly close."

A lump blocked Ham Dan-i's throat with hesitation at its finest. How could she tell her? Should she finally confide in Ham Haru? If it was her, she might believe her...even if it sounds crazy. After all, they wounded up in this webnovel-like world together, right? From the very beginning, it was always Ham Haru who encouraged her to push forward. Calming her worries, assuring her that she would always remain by Ham Dan-i's side no matter the cost─Ham Haru was one who can accept anything...even if it was absurd.

A perturbed face of Ham Haru flashed in her mind, pulling the reigns of coming clean, despair rekindled. But...what if she doesn't believe me? What if she'll just be like everyone else...? What if no one's really by my side? What if I'm really suffering alone?