After spending an entire Monday with her parents, Jihyo’s jaw was aching from all the smiling she was forcing.

She loves them, she truly does, but they talk to her like she might fall apart any moment. Her mother is too bubbly and her father hovers around her like she’s a toddler learning to walk. It’s like college years all over again; after she graduated and she pursued her path as an actress, they spent the first few years anxiously watching over her. 

Jihyo knows they mean well, yet she craves for the normalcy before she went missing. Even as her past memories start to return, she doesn’t want to be treated like a broken doll. She wants to be the daughter they were always harsh on because they knew she could do better.

Seongmoon is out again; apparently he has a job working freelance. It’s like he doesn’t want to be home either, when their parents start fussing over her. She used to be so worried that he would set out on an aimless path for the rest of his life, but maybe she thought wrong of him. 

Perhaps she did.

“Seong Im ah, do you want to eat anything for lunch? Omma will cook it for you.” Her mother appears through the door, eyeing her with enthusiasm.

“I’m fine with anything.” 

“Takeout? I’ll ask your father—“

“No, omma.” Jihyo quickly cuts her off. “I’m not very hungry.”

“We must have lunch, look at you! You’re too skinny!” Mrs Cheon fusses even more, patting her daughter’s cheek worriedly. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Jihyo smiles weakly, keeping up with the exhausting charade of appearing happy. “I’m just tired.”

“It must be jetlag.” Mrs Cheon says vaguely. She hasn’t been asking the hard hitting questions that Jihyo would have expected from her. 

In fact, no one has asked her why she even went to LA or why she ran away. Her parents pretend like they are completely fine with her reappearance, never mind that they assumed she was dead just days ago. It’s frustrating that everyone in this house appears to be walking on broken glass, as if one wrong move could make her hysterical.

“Omma.”

“Yes?”

“I...” Jihyo trails off, watching as her mother lights up in a way she never did when they were kids. She’s been mourning for the last four years, she can’t shatter the perfect illusion her mother has now that she’s back. “Never mind.”

Too late, Mrs Cheon’s eyes widen, panic setting in. “You can tell omma anything. Are you hurting anywhere? Maybe you’re not feeling well?” She touches Jihyo’s forehead anxiously. “Should I call your father—“

“Omma.” Jihyo repeats, holding onto her poor mother’s wrist. “I’m fine. Really, you don’t have to treat me like I might break any moment.” 

Mrs Cheon stares at her carefully, the worry never leaving her eyes. “I don’t want to lose you again, Seong Im ah.” She admits, tearing. “Sometimes I still feel like I’m dreaming. It’s my fault, isn’t it? I was worried your career would fade out and I was too harsh on you!”

“Omma! That’s not true, nothing is your fault.” Jihyo denies obediently, taking her mother’s hand. 

“Then why did you run away?” Mrs Cheon sniffs. “Your brother told me the truth, you silly girl.”

Jihyo freezes; that is the one thing Seongmoon has refused to tell her. He still has her phone too, and she’s wondering if she’ll ever get it back. It seems like her younger brother is controlling the content in her life again. “The truth?”

“You told him not to tell us that you were alive.” Mrs Cheon replies, unaware of her confusion. “He said you had planned the whole thing to run away and go missing, but he found out and tried to stop you. That’s when you hit your head by the Han River and he decided to follow through with your wishes. Omo, do you not remember?”

“No.” Jihyo pauses, thinking hard yet drawing nothing but blanks. That is not the story Seongmoon told the members. “But why can’t I remember?”

“Oh, then I’ve said too much.” Mrs Cheon squeezes her hand warmly, trying to give her comfort. “Seongmoon said not to tell you or else it would bring you distress! I shouldn’t have told you. Don’t worry, Seong Im ah. It is all in the past and you are here now.”

“Is that what Seongmoon said?” Jihyo presses, unwilling to stop. Not when all his stories don’t add up.

“He respected your plans, and so I had to be understanding.” Her mother gives her a wobbly smile, trying not to cry, and her heart breaks. It is not her intention in anyway to make her parents upset, but it seems like Seongmoon’s been telling different stories to everyone. He has many versions of his story, lies for different people. 

“Omma, I would never want to run away from you or appa.” Jihyo promises. “Being in the public eye was difficult, but I would never go missing on purpose. I swear.”

“I didn’t want to believe him, but...” Mrs Cheon blinks away her tears, looking distraught. “You were upset with me a week before. We argued about something unimportant and you stormed out. I always thought maybe it was my fault you disappeared...”

“... You should think about your brother. He’s at the proper age to get a job and work but instead he’s talking all this nonsense about wanting to be an actor!” Her mother scolds. 

Suddenly, it’s 2016 again and Jihyo’s going head to head with the hottest temper in the Cheon household. Apparently Seongmoon’s been fighting with her parents and acting rude, so naturally her mother would want to pin the blame on her.

Jihyo rolls her eyes, groaning. “How is that my fault again?” 

“Because you’re in the business yourself.” Her mother clicks her tongue in disapproval. “I’m grateful for all your success and everything, but you know how Seongmoon wants to follow in your footsteps. You could at least help him, otherwise you need to tell him to ditch this career.” 

“I can’t just call up every director I know and beg them to give Seongmoon a role.” She shoots back. “I worked hard to get here.”

“If you call doing a film and then getting lucky with Running Man ‘hard work’. Honestly, Seong Im, you’re not doing so well these days either. That show of yours is going nowhere since Gary left!”

Jihyo counts to ten slowly in her head, exhaling deeply. Her mother knew just how to push her buttons, and today she hit them all. 

“Seong Im—“

“Forget it, omma.” She cuts her off, throwing her handbag over her shoulder and snatching her phone off the dining table. “I’m going out. Don’t bother waiting because I’m not coming back.”

Jihyo stills as the memory fades out as quickly as it appeared. That was a week before the accident. She remembers because that was the day she drove to Kwangsoo’s tiny apartment and the younger man let her rant about her strict mother and her controlling ways. It was a stupid argument; something about Seongmoon acting out, and she returned to her home the next day to promise her mother she’d keep an eye out for him anyway.  

“Oh, omma.” She whispers softly, feeling like a young child again. “I was just annoyed that day. I didn’t mean any of that.”

“You got your temper from me, did you know that?” Her mother chuckles, wiping a tear. “I got a call from you right before you went missing, but I didn’t pick up. I regretted it for months... I’m sorry, Seong Im. I should have paid more attention to your feelings.”

“Wait. I called you?” 

“Yes.”

Jihyo thinks hard, grasping onto whatever she can remember, though her thoughts are dull and she can’t quite—

“—I’m filming, Seongmoon. You can’t be alone right now, I’ll call omma—“

Her phone is hit out of her hands as she watches it crack on the pavement, the cover doing nothing to protect it as Seongmoon kicks it away.

“Why the hell did you do that for?” She gasps, glaring at him.

Her younger brother stares back, eyes blazing. “They wouldn’t care.” 

She blinks and it’s gone, her head hurting in the aftermath of the strange flashback. Her memory is not up to its job, and whatever conversation she was having on the day at the Han River disappears. 

“It doesn’t matter, Seong Im.” Mrs Cheon pulls her eldest child into an embrace, clutching her tightly. “We’re lucky Seongmoon was there when you hit your head then. He must have been distraught, but I can’t argue with you, my dear. It’s just a shame you suffered from amnesia, otherwise you might have voiced out.”

“Yeah.” Jihyo replies, unfocused. Is that how it was?

“We want you to get better, your appa and I. He’s out meeting some doctors now, but we’ll make sure you get the best treatment.”

“Treatment?”

“Seongmoon suggested it.” Her mother says casually, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. “He said bringing you back to Pohang won’t help with your amnesia. You need to seek proper help and maybe one day you’ll remember everything again.”

Jihyo says nothing, glancing over at her mother carefully. She completely believes it – Seongmoon got to her parents even before she had the chance to talk to them. 

“I’ll cook some dishes for lunch, you can take another nap if you’re tired.” Her mother gives her a genuine smile, oblivious to her reaction. “Rest well, Seong Im.” Then she’s gone, the elder leaving Jihyo alone in her room again.

Something tells her Seongmoon is not giving her phone back after that flashback. Her brother claimed that he had to bring the phone to the shop because it couldn’t be charged. Oh, why didn’t she ask her parents for a charger? The way he smacked her phone away in her memories, how it fell carelessly to the ground…

She will be uncontactable even if Jongkook calls. She was hoping he would contact her, but so far it’s been silence. He really meant it as a goodbye.

He would have known what to do. Jihyo would have to rely on her spotty memory for now and pray that she’ll remember what happened on that fateful day eventually.

Kwangsoo taps his foot impatiently against the pavement, looking up from his phone for the umpteenth time.

As promised by Seongmoon, he was going to see Jihyo. The younger Cheon sibling was pretty reluctant, but Kwangsoo eventually wore him down after lying to him about “tearing Jongkook to shreds” and confronting him. Not entirely a lie because it was somewhat true, but if Jongkook’s guess was right, then Jihyo might not know what’s to come. 

“Hyung!”

“Seongmoon, you took forever.” Kwangsoo turns around, restless.

“Sorry, hyung. I had to do something else.” Seongmoon replies as they enter the apartment lobby. “Did you really yell at Jongkook hyung?”

“Of course.” Kwangsoo nods, acting frustrated. “He claimed that he didn’t know what to do when he found her but I’m just mad at him for lying. How is your family with the news?”

“My mother is elated. He really didn’t say anything else?” Seongmoon isn’t interested in anything else but Jongkook’s reaction.

“No, I was too mad to listen.” Kwangsoo improvises on the spot. “Why?”

“Noona hasn’t seemed to remember, but she’s not acting herself.” Seongmoon explains. “Please don’t be alarmed if she doesn’t recognize you.”

“She doesn’t remember?” Kwangsoo questions, surprised. That is not what Jongkook said. But why on earth would Seongmoon lie to him about this if he was about to see Jihyo herself? 

“No.” The younger Cheon brother shakes his head. “The same as before, noona said it herself.”

“I’m sure I’ll be able to introduce myself.” Kwangsoo pretends to be unbothered, although he’s starting to find this whole visit very strange. She wasn’t answering the phone Jongkook gave her and Somin was starting to get worried, but he didn’t think she would lie to Seongmoon. Whatever the case, he needed to see Jihyo with his own two eyes to make sure she was fine. 

They reach the front door of the apartment, and Seongmoon opens the door with his key. “Come in.” He gestures, helping Kwangsoo take his coat.

“Seongmoon, are you eating lunch with us— Omo, Kwangsoo! It’s been a while.” Mrs Cheon greets, and Kwangsoo bends low to let the elder hug him. 

“It’s nice to see you again, eommonim. Have you been well?”

“I’m a lot better now.” Seongmoon wasn’t lying when he said his mother was overjoyed by Jihyo’s return, because Mrs Cheon lights up so brightly, he’s starting to feel bad. “I better call her. Seong Im! Look who’s here!”

Kwangsoo nearly doubles over in shock and relief when he spots his noona down the hallway, looking impossibly mong as the day she went missing. It’s like seeing a ghost, except she’s real and very much alive in front of him. Nothing could have prepared him for the joy he’s feeling seeing her again. Without thinking, he runs up to meet her, completely forgetting about what Seongmoon told him on the way up.

“Noona!”

Jihyo’s eyes widen as she sees their guest, but she spies Seongmoon watching her by the corner and immediately pauses. Her brother still thinks she doesn’t remember anyone. Was this a test? 

Kwangsoo looks the same as before, she realizes as she tries not to cry. The younger dongsaeng always held a special spot in her heart and seeing him after so long was making her tear up. Instead, she composes herself quickly, pretending to be confused. After this morning, she can’t be too trusting – her memories are trying to tell her something.

“Noona! How have you been? I couldn’t believe hyung when he said—"

“I’m sorry, who are you?”

Kwangsoo halts, looking over to Seongmoon. So it’s true what he said. This made no sense; Jongkook would not be this devastated if she hadn’t remembered. Somin, Sechan and Ha Ha were witnesses too and they knew the truth. His friends are not crazy enough to make up stories, even if his hyung was lovesick. 

Jihyo may have been an actress, but he is also an actor. If she’s pretending not to remember, then he better follow suit – he’s here to find out what’s going on, and something tells him Jihyo might be hiding things from Seongmoon too.

“Seong Im, he’s your col