CH 25

Kid laughed. When he was kind enough to save her, Seniel’s wife seemed to think he’d poisoned her. Kid decided to correct Vivi’s delusion because it was funny.

“It’s not poison. It’s medicine.”

“Don’t lie, please…”

Vivi, distracted by the pain and medicinal side effects, immediately uttered the words in her head. When Kid stared at her in bewilderment, Vivi moved and grabbed his hand.

Vivi’s hand kept losing strength as she tried to hold his hand from a distance. Even so, she held on to his fingers as if she would not let go.

Kid looked down at Vivi’s hand that held him fearlessly. Desperate for the killer’s hand? Kid raised his eyebrows at this first-time occurrence.

Not wanting to care for the vial anymore, Kid tried to let go relentlessly. However, seeing Vivi eagerly holding on to him as if he were a savior was funny, so he felt the urge to stay.

Vivi’s hand began to shake as if it was tired. It felt like her hand would fall helplessly at the slightest touch. Kid, looking at the hand with interest, decided to follow his urge. When he let go of her hand to get on the bed, Vivi began to cry again.

After a short breath, he even soothed her.

“Don’t cry and stay still. I’m not leaving.”

Kid sat on the bed like yesterday. Vivi stopped crying at the warmth she felt next to her. She seemed to have calmed down and closed her eyes.

The medicine hadn’t worked yet, so Vivi gasped for breath in pain. She closed her eyes for a long time and waited for her death.

However, far from dying, she opened her eyes and looked up at Kid with difficulty in her physical condition that was not getting worse. She didn’t hesitate to say her thoughts.

“When will I die…?”

“You won’t die.”

“Ah… I see. So when will I die?”

Kid didn’t answer. Should I really kill you?

She seemed completely out of her mind. Vivi looked up blankly at the Kid, who hadn’t answered. She looked at him not because she was looking for an answer from him but because she was scared of dying alone.

Vivi, who was very feverish, moved her gaze to Kid’s hand without realizing it. The hands with pinkish joints and long fingers were so pretty that they didn’t look like a murderer’s. And she recalled it was very cool when she’d touched it earlier. Vivi coveted the coolness of those hands.

If she wanted it, she could ask for it. She had nothing to hesitate about.

“By the way… your hands were really cool earlier. Give me your hands again.”

Now, she confidently requested Kid. Even though Kid was dumbfounded, he was interested in what he was experiencing for the first time. Thinking about how far this woman would go, Kid offered his hand.

Vivi pressed his hand to her hot forehead. Kid’s hand had an average body temperature similar to that of others, but to Vivi, it felt extremely cool.

Seemingly a little dissatisfied with only her forehead being cool, she also put his hand on her cheek. But when Vivi’s heat had warmed his hand, she threw it away and proudly asked for his other hand. “Give me the other hand…”

Kid smiled and obediently held out his other hand. “Do you know whose hands you’re saying cool right now?” It was funny to see her clinging to the hands he had never cared for before unless for killing someone. He was looking forward to how she would react after she came to her senses.

Vivi grabbed Kid’s hand without answering and then treated it like a pillow. Kid felt a soft touch on his hand and a small exhaling breath.

Gradually, the medicinal effect began to circulate through Vivi’s body. Vivi half-closed her eyes with Kid’s hand under her cheek. The pain seemed to subside little by little, and her vision became blurred.

Along with the medicinal effects, hallucinations also began to work together. While blinking, she suddenly began to think that the hand she was lying on was her mother’s.

Her reason, which was still left, suspected that this hand could not be her mother’s.

‘Mom can’t be here… so whose hand is this?’

Is there anyone who could lend a hand to me aside from Mom?

Vivi struggled to look up at the owner of the hand. Tears welled up in her eyes. Her mother’s face, which she had only seen in her dreams, was there.

“Mom…?”

Vivi held Kid’s hand tightly. The shape of her mother’s hand remained undisturbed.

“It’s really you, Mom… So am I dead? I guess I’m dead…”

“What are you talking about this time?” Kid looked at Vivi strangely as she clung to him more and more. What’s this? I gave her medicine to live, but she kept saying she was dead.

Vivi pondered deeply and concluded that whatever it was,  it was a relief that it was less painful than expected. She couldn’t think properly because she was sick, and there was a side effect of the meds.

Vivi pulled Kid’s hand, and Kid didn’t even budge. Vivi tugged a few more times, then cried and said with childish stubbornness, “Lie down, too, Mom. It’s been a while since I saw you. Why are you just sitting around?”

Hurry up, all right? Vivi whined. Kid sighed and sighed. When he was unlikely to lie down, Vivi pressed her chest against Kid’s hand and kept pulling. But her mother didn’t get close, and only her head hurt more.

She began to cry as her mother wouldn’t get close, no matter how hard she tried. “Why aren’t you lying down?”

Kid was bewildered as Vivi began to whine like a child. He tried to determine what was wrong with the medicine, but it was not easy to focus because of the sound of the woman gasping for breath.

Seeing that, Kid somehow felt like he had to comply with Vivi’s request. He could ignore it, but he didn’t want to. Kid decided to follow his strange urge.

As soon as he lay down next to her, Vivi stopped crying. Hee hee, she laughed and hugged Kid tightly.

Vivi’s cheek pressed against Kid’s chest. Kid was rarely taken aback.

“What are you doing now?”

“Mom…”

Kid tried to get Vivi off, but Vivi struggled, never letting go of her “mother”, who was barely caught in her arms. Eventually, Kid gave up. Not because he lost to Vivi’s power but because the woman would cry as if she would lose her breath if they separated.

Vivi burrowed into Kid’s arms.

“Mom, I was having a hard time, so why did you come now? I also had a strange dream… I had a hard time there, too… But since you’re here, I must have died in my dream after all.”

“You’re not dead.”

“No… I’m dead… Mom, by the way, before I died, Uncle kept bothering me. But it’s okay. It’s all right now… It’s good to see you.”

It’s okay.

“Pat me on the back for my hard work. Hurry up, all right?”

So Kid patted Vivi on the back without saying a word because he just wanted to put this troublesome person to sleep quickly and go.

Of course, he could’ve just shaken her off. But since earlier, his body hadn’t been listening to himself properly and acting on strange impulses. He just wanted to finish it quickly and go.

Kid didn’t know how much power he would have to adjust for something he’d never done before. Vivi didn’t whine anymore and closed her eyes as if she liked his patting. Feeling better, she unconsciously rubbed her cheek in Kid’s arms.

“You must’ve worked out, Mom. You seem like you’re in great shape…”

What nonsense. Seeing Vivi bury her face in his chest, Kid smiled again.

As he patted her on the back to go to sleep, the whining gradually subsided, and Vivi soon fell asleep with a satisfied smile.

“…”

The noisy room became quiet again. Vivi didn’t move her body and headed for dreamland.

Kid didn’t stop patting even when he noticed Vivi was asleep. Something like an unknown satisfaction enveloped his whole body.

***

I woke up in the cold.

‘Wait. I slept?’

I was definitely dead. I had a touching reunion with my mom yesterday. It wasn’t a dream. Look, I was still hugging my mom even now…

“This, what, how…”

I opened my eyes happily, thinking I was in my mom’s arms, but the sight before me left me speechless. I was so confused that I couldn’t even move, and I just blinked stupidly.

“Why is Seniel here…”

After a while, as Seniel was about to wake up, I tried to remove the arm above my body, but I couldn’t because it was so heavy.

‘Didn’t I die and return to my mom’s arms?’

I should’ve died after drinking the poison that Kid gave and then had a tearful reunion with my mom and enjoyed the afterlife.

It was old-fashioned, but I tried to grasp reality by pinching my cheek. Feeling the tingling pain in my cheek, I acknowledged it wasn’t a dream. In my confused mind, my half-asleep reason awoke.

‘I slept hugging my mother, and when I woke up, Seniel was there…’

I wouldn’t have slept hugging Seniel. Unless…

‘Could it be…? Nah, it couldn’t be.’

[C-Can’t you stay with me until I die…? I’m scared…]

[It’s not poison. It’s medicine.]

[Don’t lie, please…]

As the memory of the night before came back little by little, goosebumps ran through my body.

No, don’t remember. I grabbed my head, but my spirit, stronger than yesterday, recalled those memories.

By the way… your hands were really cool earlier. Give me your hands again.]

I must be crazy.

[Pat me on the back for my hard work. Hurry up, all right?]

Wow. I heard there are many ways to die these days. I’m about to be included in the strangest case of death.

The last remaining hope raised my head as I was overcome with shock so strong that I forgot my illness.

‘There’s no way Kid could have quietly put me to bed. Could it be a dream?’

Judging rationally, all my memories were bound to be dreams. In the short time I was happy with that excellent conclusion, the reason in my head raised a counterargument.

‘Then why is Seniel here? With untied hair, too?’

I stiffened, and my mouth opened wide. Why is his hair down?