Killing the Possessor - Chapter 141

My hand paused as I tore open the burger wrapper. After letting the air out, I put the burger back into the microwave, then spoke carefully.

“I think… you really like Sohee.”

“….”

Contrary to my expectation of an immediate reply, Bori seemed to think for a moment. With an expression close to blank, she spoke calmly.

“I’m slow at a lot of things.”

“….”

“I don’t pick up rules quickly, and I make mistakes all the time. When I try to learn something new, I have to put in ten times more effort than everyone else.”

Starting with herself, Bori continued,

“Sohee puts up with me. She always has.”

That was her answer to whether she liked her—she puts up with me, instead of a simple yes or no.

Bori knew, at least on some level, that the way Sohee treated her wasn’t ideal. Or at least, she knew it well enough to frame affection as endurance.

I decided not to criticize Sohee here. They’d known each other since childhood, after all. Even if the way she treated her friend was wrong, as Bori said, Sohee was someone who stayed by her side—perhaps the only one.

And I had no right to judge that bond.

“What about Sojun? Is he the same?”

I glanced at the calendar hanging on the convenience store wall and realized Bori was already a third-year student, meaning this was after things had started with Yoon Sojun.

I didn’t know how far that bastard had fallen by now, but at least in this version of the past, I hoped Bori hadn’t suffered anything unjust.

“Sojun is…”

Bori trailed off, and the answer she gave was completely unexpected.

“He’s handsome.”

“…Huh?”

“Sojun is handsome.”

“….”

It felt like someone had smacked the back of my head with a frying pan. At the same time, I realized how narrow my own thinking had been.

Right, there were plenty of girls who liked bad guys. There was nothing strange about Bori being one of them.

“He can be scary sometimes. But he’s handsome, so I want to listen to him. And he’s Sohee’s brother.”

“….”

It clearly wasn’t a healthy relationship. And even if Bori didn’t truly love Sojun, it didn’t seem like something she could easily walk away from on her own.

So what was the best thing I could do here?

“Bori.”

I knew how reckless it was to try to take responsibility for someone else’s life. If you couldn’t see it through to the end, you had no business stepping in halfway.

My role was always going to be limited. I couldn’t take responsibility for Han Bori for the rest of her life.

So instead of playing at being some cheap hero, I chose to be her support.

“If you ever find yourself needing help someday, come find me.”

“….”

“I think what Sojun is doing to you is wrong. And if you need it, I’ll tell everything I’ve seen and heard, and I’ll stand on your side.”

I hoped that these words would reach the future version of her. With that feeling in my heart, I handed her the burger and gently took her hand.

“Remember what I said. You’re not alone.”

When Han Bori was caught by the dorm supervisor outside Sojun’s room, Sojun was questioned too naturally.

But shamelessly, he claimed it was all Bori’s one-sided crush and insisted he knew nothing about it. His roommate, his friends, and even Yoon Sohee all backed up his story.

Rumors had circulated for a long time, but students who weren’t directly close to Bori didn’t step forward. Yoon Sohee’s mother was a powerful figure in the business world, and no one wanted to make an enemy of that family for the sake of a bullied student who was considered disposable.

In that sense, I was one of them too, someone who stayed silent out of cowardice, trapped by petty interests.

Even if I could go back, it would still be a difficult choice. Back then, entrance exams were everything.

But the words I’d just said to Bori were sincere. I’d learned that even if your intentions are genuine, if they end in silence, nothing ever changes.

Leaving Bori behind at the convenience store, still looking confused, I hurried outside. There was something I needed to do before break ended.

“Hey, Yoon Sojun.”

I went to the first-year classroom and called him out. He was chatting with his friends, but when he saw me, his eyes widened.

“Why are you here, noona…?”

That reaction made sense. Our parents were close, but we weren’t. If anything, I was closer to Sohee, Sojun and I barely exchanged greetings in passing.

Regardless, I went straight to the point.

“Don’t call Bori to your room.”

“What? What are you talking about all of a sudden—”