PAID

The reason I ran to the mountains wasn’t that grand.

It was simply because of comparisons with my cousins and friends around me.

The pressure from academics that followed.

It wasn’t exactly ordinary, but neither were the stories particularly rare.

The young Sanya wasn’t pure. Rather, there were things I had learned by observing others.

There’s a saying, right? People always wear masks.

Sanya just learned that when I was young.

Before I ran to the mountains, I had been wearing a mask regularly. Even when I met my teacher.

"...So, what exactly are you trying to say?"

"Just that... maybe it’s time to let go."

The angel glared at me and asked, but I had no answer to give.

I wanted to tell her to stop clinging to the dead.@@novelbin@@

Of course, I still held onto the memories of Sanya, but I am now Lee Ha-Eun.

A completely different person from the deceased Sanya.

"Let’s end the story of the already dead. Let me tell you what I’ve gone through."

"Useless..."

"Oh, come on. Useless, why? This is also a kind of painting."

Right. Let’s go all the way back to a very distant past.

Let’s start from when I was four. How about that?

At my question, the angel stared at me for a moment. Then, she turned her gaze to the horizon. The sunset was still there.

"Painting..."

She murmured, pausing for a moment before speaking.