Scene 1: A Restless Night in the Mansion
[Location: Jin's Mansion Living Room. Night.]
The slow drive in the car didn't lessen the distance between Jin and So Hye; instead, it made the silence even more uncomfortable. As they reached the mansion, Jin headed straight for his liquor cabinet.
So Hye took off her jacket and placed it on the sofa. She watched Jin sit down in his chair, swirling the whiskey glass in his fingers. This was his habit when he was gripped by deep depression or anxiety.
SO HYE'S INTERNAL MONOLOGUE: (He made me cry, he yelled at me, and now he's drinking. Why do I always try to avoid him? Because I know when he's vulnerable, he makes me vulnerable too.)
She looked at Jin. His eyes, which were earlier full of remorse, now gleamed with a strange certainty—as if he had made a decision from which there was no turning back.
SO HYE: (With fear and worry in her voice) Jin, stop drinking. What is happening?
Jin slowly put the glass down. He turned directly towards So Hye. His voice wasn't harsh, but it held an unyielding determination.
JIN: I cannot keep you away. I saw you with Hyun Soo, and I realized how foolish I've been with my plan.
SO HYE: Plan?
JIN: (With a desperate smile) Yes. I thought distance would work. I thought I would scare you, you would be angry, and you would run away. But you didn't run. You only came closer... closer to someone else.
He got up from his chair and took So Hye's hand. This time, it wasn't anger or possessiveness; it was a plea steeped in desperation.
JIN: I won't let you go now. No more distance. Now, we will do what we always used to do.
SO HYE: (Frightened) What do you mean?
Scene 2: The Night, Years Later
[Location: Jin's Bedroom.]
Before So Hye could protest, Jin gently pulled her towards his bedroom. This room had always been a forbidden territory for her, a place of his privacy and grief.
JIN: (Closing the door) Tonight, we break the distance. Just like we did when... when everything was fine.
The room was cold, but there was a strange warmth on Jin's face. Innumerable moments from their childhood flashed in So Hye's mind.
The moment So Hye was afraid of the dark...
The moment she had terrible nightmares at night...
The moment Jin, no matter how tired he was, always opened his arms for her.
SO HYE'S INTERNAL MONOLOGUE: (Why is he doing this? He knows he's weakening me by using these memories. But is he truly as sad as I am?)
Jin lay down on his large, expansive bed. He extended one arm towards So Hye.
JIN: Do you remember when you were just ten years old and your mother scolded you? You used to cry all night.
SO HYE: (Tears welling up) Yes. I remember.
JIN: And where did you sleep?
SO HYE: (In a slow, broken voice) Next to you.
JIN: (With a tragic smile) And what did you do?
SO HYE: I... I would hug you and sleep.
Jin looked at her with his sad, aching eyes. It was a mixture of love and possession that always troubled So Hye.
JIN: (Pleading) Yes. You would hug me and sleep the whole night. My arms were your pillow. All your sadness would disappear in my arms. Do the same tonight, So Hye. I need you close. All my sadness will only fade with your warmth.
So Hye felt that all of Jin's control had broken. He was a broken child who just wanted comfort. She remembered the warmth of security in Jin's arms.
She remembered the beautiful moments she shared with Hyun Soo that afternoon, then looked at the immense pain on Jin's face, and immediately felt bad for treating Jin this way because of Hyun Soo. She couldn't inflict more pain on the one man who had given her everything, even if it meant risking herself.
She silently lay down beside Jin on the bed. She gently rested her head on Jin's chest. Jin immediately tightened his arms around her, just as they used to do ten years ago. So Hye felt Jin's heart beating rapidly.
JIN: (Whispering softly, rubbing his cheek against her hair) I missed you so much. Forgive me for being so bad.
So Hye tightly held Jin with her arms, and she truly began to cry—not in anger, but in confusion and emotional pain.
SO HYE'S INTERNAL MONOLOGUE: (Is this love? Or just habit? I want Hyun Soo, but I can't leave this man either. This warmth of childhood is what is trapping me.)
Jin gently kissed So Hye's head. He immediately felt calm. Now, the whole night, he would hug her and sleep the same way she did in childhood, convincing himself that as long as they were physically together, he couldn't lose her. This was his desperate measure—to bind So Hye to him using old memories and physical intimacy.