"Were they your aunt and uncle, whom your family never mentions in front of you?" Nina asked still driving Luna to home.
"Hmm." Luna nodded, looking out of the window.
"What are you thinking?" Nina asked.
Luna didn't respond, but simply closed her eyes, pretending to sleep, though her mind was occupied with thoughts about what her family had done to them that caused the relationship to be lost.
"Brother..." Soojin called out to her brother with love.
Mr. Lee just nodded helplessly. He loved his sister so much that he arranged for her to marry his best friend and even named his son after him.
Both families were extremely close, living under the same roof and running a business together, all under the careful guidance of Elder Lee.
Everyone had once envied their family, but despite the whispers and jealousy, the family always stood united. They never sought advice from outsiders and always had each other's backs. It was this close-knit bond that led to them becoming in-laws after Luna's birth.
In fact, Luna and Jae's betrothal had been arranged when they were still children. Mrs. Kim always treated her nephew Jae better than her own daughter. Though they lived as neighbors, their families were tightly bonded, sharing moments of happiness—until the tragic accident that shattered everything.
While the rest of the family came to terms with the situation, Eunha Lee, a mother mourning the loss of her child, couldn't accept the harsh reality. Her grief transformed into a deep hatred for Luna, the one she blamed for her son's death. From that moment on, she made it her mission to upend the Kim family's world.
Luna's parents felt they were in a deep debt they could never recover from or repay. Although Mr. Lee wanted to convince his wife, she never listened to his requests. Instead, she pushed the Kim family into a corner, making their lives increasingly difficult. With no other options, Mr. and Mrs. Kim were forced to fight back to survive.
That was when Mr. Kim started a training center, DrawWithin, for upcoming artists and began selling their pieces. The company experienced good growth and had sold many of Luna's pieces and other unknown artists in the past. But today was the first time Luna ever attended an auction.
Even Ms. Eunha came today to see Luna upon hearing that she was here. She didn't come to confront her about the past, but simply to torment them.
****
"You look quite worn out. You didn't sleep last night, did you? You were thinking about them right." Nina asked, her voice gentle they sat in the comfortable coffee shop next day.
Luna rubbed her temples, her face weary. "No... my head's a complete wreck. It's pounding like nothing else, and I feel like my body's falling apart. It's like everything inside me is breaking."
Nina's brow furrowed with concern. "It's been almost 12 years, LuLu. Why are you still having those nightmares? Isn't therapy helping? Maybe you should consult a different doctor. Seeing you like this, day after day—it's frustrating."
Luna let out a hollow laugh, but it carried more pain than humor. She clutched her trembling hands together, her gaze distant and unfocused.
"It's strange..."
"What is?"
"I mean... I don't even remember who I was before that day," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"It's as if everything before the accident just vanished. I don't know what I loved, what I hated, or what made me happy. All I'm left with is that moment—the rain, the sound of some girl crying... and the darkness that followed."
Her lips trembled as she drew in a shaky breath, her hollow laugh dissolving into silence.
"Funny, isn't it?" she murmured bitterly. "How one moment can erase everything else—leaving you with nothing but the weight of what you've lost. And on top of that, I don't even know what I've lost."
She glanced down at her hands, as if searching for answers, but they trembled in response—empty, cold, and offering nothing.
"Although I don't know why, I can easily tell that you're trying to hold on to that accident. You should let it go. I think that's why you're still having those nightmares."
Luna just laughed, deflecting the conversation.
"Yay!! Come on, you should meet some guys so you can be normal. Should I introduce you to some of my friends?" Nina said, trying to cheer up her friend.
Since Jae's death, Luna hadn't been herself. She had nightmares almost every night and often sleepwalked. She would wake up in the middle of the night and do strange things, but she never remembered them. Luna suffered from frequent blackouts and was always unaware of what she had done during those episodes.
***
Ten years ago, when Luna woke up on the day after the accident.
The sterile white of the hospital room felt suffocating, its coldness pressing down on her like a weight she couldn't lift. Her eyes fluttered open, unfocused, the soft hum of machines and muffled voices filling the air—familiar yet strangely distant.
"Luna," a woman's trembling voice called out, tinged with desperate hope. Luna turned her head slowly, wincing as a sharp pain rippled through her body. The woman, her face streaked with tears, leaned closer, her hands trembling as they reached for Luna's.
"Who... who are you?" Luna's voice was hoarse and fragile, the words cutting through the room like a dagger. The woman froze, her tearful smile faltering, her breath catching as if the world had stopped.
"Luna, it's me... your mother," she whispered, her voice breaking with sorrow.
Luna's expression was clouded with confusion and fear.
"Luna?.. Mother?" she repeated, her lips trembling as the word felt foreign and heavy on her tongue. Her eyes shifted to the man standing beside the woman, his face a mix of worry and heartbreak.
"LuLu, it's me, your father. Don't you remember me?" he said, his voice steady but strained, as if clinging to hope.
Luna stared at both of them, her eyes shifting between their tearful faces. She clutched her head, struggling against the pain as she tried desperately to remember, but all she could hear was the sound of raindrops, car horns, and the rumble of thunder.
No matter how hard she tried, there was nothing—no recognition, no flicker of familiarity. Just an empty void where her memories should have been.
Her mother began to sob seeing her daughter suffering, her shoulders shaking, while her father's hand rested gently on Luna's shoulder, though his grip trembled.
Even after Luna was discharged, she endured many sleepless nights, tormented by the sounds in her head. They took her to numerous hospitals and tried to get her on medication, but after a while, she refused to take any of it, as it wasn't helping.
Sometimes, whenever it rained, she would cry nonstop, as if she had lost her soul. Other times, she stayed silent, pretending to be okay for the sake of her parents, whom she had eventually come to accept as family after some time adjusting.
Since then, her family decided to keep her past a secret, and even to this day, she remains unaware of her past and her relationship with the Lee family. She didn't even know there was a boy she wanted to remember for the rest of her life—the one she had spent half of her life with.
It was as if she wanted to rid herself of the bad memories from her life. But little did she know that some things—and some people—wouldn't let us go just because we wanted to.
***
"LuLu, do me a favor," Nina gently nudged Luna, her voice soft as she tried to pull her back to reality.
"My brother is coming back from Japan this weekend. Will you come with me to the airport to pick him up?" She paused, hoping the simple request would help Luna snap out of her thoughts, expecting nothing less than a yes.
Luna raised an eyebrow, her tone laced with sarcasm. "Why do you need to pick him up? Isn't he a grown man who knows the address of your home?"
Nina sighed dramatically, leaning forward. "Come on, my parents aren't in the country, you know that. Someone has to welcome him after 10 years. I can't wait to see him," she said, her voice soft with longing.
Luna leaned back in her chair, a smirk tugging at the corners of her lips. "Sure, I'm curious, too. I wonder what that rude and ruthless boy has turned into now that he's grown up."
Nina's eyes widened, a playful pout forming on her lips as she shot a glare at Luna.
"You're so mean. He's my brother! How can you talk about him like that in front of me? You shouldn't judge someone so harshly without getting to know them."
Luna chuckled softly, shaking her head as she sipped her coffee. "You get so defensive whenever I say something about him, like I'm making it all up. I'm just telling you what I saw. He was always the bad boy—fighting, acting like a rebel. He even smoked at that age."
Nina's expression hardened for a moment, her voice firm.
"It's a misunderstanding, LuLu. You guys always seemed to get caught up in the wrong situations. My brother isn't like that, and he doesn't smoke. You don't know him like I do."
Luna rolled her eyes, her tone playful but teasing. "Okay, okay! I misunderstood him. Happy now?"
Nina just smiled, grabbing her purse as she got up from the table and walked briskly toward the door.
"Aren't you waiting for me? Yaa!!" Luna called out, hurrying to catch up with her friend.