NT - PROLOGUE

“Why….”

Her heels fumbled backward toward the worn-out, shabby threshold.  

Everything swayed before her eyes as if she were being sucked into a whirlpool. The once familiar space, now loosened by her unraveling emotions, began to crumble pitifully.  

Thunk.  

The moment her heel caught on the doorframe, blocking her retreat, Hae-soo spun around as if struck by lightning. She yanked the rusted doorknob, its color faded like mold, and bolted out, her feet pounding the wooden floor like bullets. The sound of rain, which had only moments ago seemed to pass lightly, now felt like deafening gunshots hammering at her heart.  

From where?  

No, from when?  

Or perhaps it was like this from the very beginning?  

Her bare feet, still unshod, trudged through the soggy, muddy ground one step after another. From behind, someone urgently calling her name and the barking of a dog tangled together in her ears, but even those sounds were drowned out by the clamorous downpour.  

Hae-soo flung open the gate, its blue paint peeling off in patches.  

The drizzle that had been scattering in all directions had grown heavier by now. Sharp, stinging raindrops, piercing like spears and bitter as poison, battered her limbs mercilessly. Her hair was already plastered to her pale, lifeless cheeks, and her face was a mess.  

“Hah, hah…”  

She ran mindlessly. Sour breath burst from her lungs in rapid succession, and a bitter taste, as if powdered medicine had been forced down her throat, filled her constricted windpipe. Sprinting down the steep slope, Hae-soo wiped her face with her hands. The moisture pooled in her palms dripped down heavily, but her face was instantly soaked again, futilely drenched.  

Whooooosh. The wind whipped through the pale rainstorm, lashing at her ears.  

There was no thought of where she was heading, or where she could possibly go. Her vision blurred messily, as if her mind had been completely stolen away.  

“Huuh…”  

Her ragged breathing was swallowed by sobs. Her frantic pace slowed little by little, until finally, it came to a stop. As her speed dwindled, Hae-soo covered her face with both hands. Her frail body, unprotected by an umbrella, swayed precariously, as though it might collapse under the weight of even a single raindrop.  

“Ugh, uhhhh…”  

It felt as though God were playing a cruel joke on her. Just as she had lamented sunny days, it seemed He intended to snatch away even this gloomy weather, deeming it too much for her.  

Otherwise, how could this be…?  

“Urk!”  

Hae-soo, dragging her weary steps, failed to clear a protruding stone and tumbled forward.  

Her body flipped over, and before she could react, momentum took hold. Soaked like a drowned rat, she rolled down the slope, tumbling head over heels. The unpaved path felt like a thorny field, sharp and jagged, tearing at her clothes and skin indiscriminately.  

Her rolling body eventually slowed and then came to a stop. But Hae-soo remained sprawled on the ground, curled up as if she had forgotten how to rise. Her narrow field of vision was overwhelmed by the pouring rain. Relentless, needle-like droplets continued to scrape her cheeks.  

“Ahh…”  

Hae-soo raised a hand, limp from lying on the ground, and groped around her chest. Clenching her fist tightly, she began tapping rhythmically, sharply against her sternum. It felt as though a dense knot had formed in the center of her chest, suffocating her. Something was tightly blocked, refusing to let her breathe freely.  

Thump, thump.  

Even pounding hard enough to make a dull, violent sound did nothing to help. Her previously steady breathing grew erratic, and she choked, gasping for air. Then, at some point, even that became too much, and her thin arms went limp, falling to her sides.  

Her eyeballs, aching as if they might pop out, rolled back.  

A gray world loomed before her. Moments later, a new wave rippled through her sunken pupils.  

A deep indigo sea unfolded before her, spreading like the only answer capable of unraveling the tangled knot within her…