The Love That Remains - Chapter 71

The two starts to date. Fang Aisa works hard every day to make him fall in love with her. She has no idea that he already loves her. He doesn’t show it either because he likes that she is trying so hard to make him like her. Things do not go as they went in Older Sung Jun’s life. Fang Aisa cannot see the ghost in this life. Things are too different in this life.

It’s only the younger Sung Jun who is that he belongs to a shaman family and he can see the dead. It’s a slow and sweet life with small memories. Her laugh. Her expressions. Her funny way of warding off the females and the males. Her attempts at cooking and flirting with him. This Fang Aisa is pure and young. She is untainted by the future tragedies. When she smiles, nothing is holding her back. When she looks at his younger self, there is no hate or resentment. She is as bright as the sun. She is the girl who is in love and unhurt.

This is supposed to be their lives. That’s what the older Sung Jun wanted. A life of memories like these with her heart open to him.

On the night of graduation, everything unfolds to him. He sees the class president mixing the aphrodisiac in his drink when Fang Aisa is gone. She finds him in time though. The older Sung Jun can’t stay in the bedroom for long. He leaves after the younger Sung Jun kisses Fang Aisa. Even it’s his other him, he doesn’t have it easy.

While he waits outside the room, he remembers something crucial. Did she lie to him? He is the one she slept within her past life. Then, the unborn child must be his.

Why did she lie to him? Who killed her and his unborn child? Why was he not there to protect her?

The younger Sung Jun suddenly leaves the hotel room. Older Sung Jun goes inside and finds her on the bed, completely covered by the blanket. He frowns when he finds the note. When he is about to leave, he senses another presence in the room. The silvery threads appear and take away the note.

A god did this.

He leaves in a hurry to find the younger Sung Jun. Suddenly, memory changes again. He finds himself in his father’s office. He finds out why he left Fang Aisa that day.

The younger Sung Jun goes to train as a shaman, but the older Sung Jun stays there to listen to his father’s conservation. He sees Fang Aisa come every day to his house. His father and Butler Kim never tell this to the younger Sung Jun. After Butler Kim lies to her, she collapses in the taxi. In the hospital, the child is taken away under his father’s instruction.

Now, he knows why she lied to him. She didn’t want him to blame himself. That god was right. He is the reason behind her pain.

That doesn’t end there. Fang Aisa changes after that day. She is cold and emotionless. She becomes a workaholic to bring Fang Corporation back to life. She cleans away her competitors and cleans the path for her stepbrother. Sometimes, he sees his younger self visit the city and watch her from the afar in secret. The younger Sung Jun is waiting until he becomes the president to come back to her.

On the night, the older Sung Jun watches her cry silently. Sometimes, she would curse him. On other times, she whispers his name in the air like it is the only thing that belongs to her in the world. The older Sung Jun sits next to her and tries to hold her hand, but his hand passes through her. This is just a memory. This already happened to her in the past. He is the one who caused her this much pain.

On the day he becomes the president, Fang Aisa dies in the accident. But the older Sung Jun has seen the truth. His father is the one who killed her. He never feels more helpless when he sees her dying in the car crash. In her last moments, she smiles in his direction and calls his name. He falls on his knees beside her.

“Aisa, I am sorry.”

But it doesn’t end. As much as he wants it to end, the memories do not stop. He soon finds out the fact that the god of fate is controlling his life for her gains. She controlled his father’s actions in indirect ways and also, she is indirectly the cause behind Fang Aisa’s death. The younger Sung Jun looks for Fang Aisa’s ghost-like a vagabond. But he never sees her again. He never finds the truth behind her death either.

“I will perform the ghost marriage for you,” the god of marriage said to him. “Do you have the ability to pay me?”

The other Sung Jun places a rare gem on the table. His expression doesn’t change when he gives away the rare gem like it’s garbage.

“S-grade healing stone for a ghost marriage?” The god of the marriage pushes the purple stone away from him. “I don’t want it. This is over-payment for a small task. Why do you want to marry a ghost? You are still young and full of vitality. You can never be happy with a ghost.”

“I want to see her again…even if it is for once.” He looks out of the window. “Even if she hates me, I just want to see her again.”

“A fool in love.” The god clicks his tongue. “Alright, I will do it. But, I will tell you this. You might not be able to see her again. The ghost might have gone to the afterlife. If you perform a ghost marriage, you can never touch another woman ever.”

“Fine.”

“In all of your next lives, you have to marry her.” The god raises his white brows.

“That’s good.”

The god of marriage do not ask any more questions. He writes down the names and stamps the certificate, officially marrying a ghost to a human.

“I hope that you do not regret it.”

“Never,” Both Sung Jun replies at the same time. The god of marriage smiles at the one who is sitting in front of him.

When he wakes up with the memories of his other life, he is not the same person anymore. He has seen things that he could never forget. He has to accept that his father killed her and his unborn child because of him. In the original lifetime, he never found out what happened. His father and Butler Kim died with this secret. His mother had no idea.

In this lifetime, they have not done it yet. If he punishes them, they won’t even know why. How did Fang Aisa live with these memories for the last eight years? How will he live knowing this now? Will she forgive him?

“You are awake?” Ms. Sung is standing on the door. “Do you remember your past life?”

“Yes.” Sung Jun stares at her. He barely composes himself. “I have to go to the council.”

“Do you want to be the president?” She observes him. Sung Jun seems like a different person. How bad were those memories? She wants to ask, but she knows that he won’t tell her.

“Yes,” Sung Jun replies with a sad smile. “Mother, why did you marry father?”

Ms. Sung takes a seat next to him and holds his hands. “I know that you do not like your father. He wasn’t always this kind of person. There was a time when he was honest and upright. He wanted to help people. The council changed him into something else. I don’t know when he started to abuse his powers. If I had noticed it before, I could stop him before he changed into this person that he is now.”

Sung Jun squeezes his eyes. “Mother, forgive me.”

“Why are you asking for forgiveness?” She looks into his eyes, searching for him. “Is something wrong, Jun?”

“I will stop him now,” He tells her quietly.

Though she doesn’t know why he changed his mind this soon, she understands that it must be due to his past life memories. She nods her head. “I will support you.”