Kim Nahyun

Basic Information & Appearance

Kim Nahyun. Born November 2, 2002, in Busan. She is an adult as of the current time. At the start of the story, she is 10 years old (Korean age), in the 3rd grade of elementary school, and the same age as the protagonist. The point at which she meets the protagonist is when Kim Nahyun turns 17 (Korean age). At that time, her height is 161cm. She has straight black hair and dark brown eyes. Her face is slightly prettier than average, but it's ambiguous to definitively call her a beauty; she has a simple and friendly impression. Her physique is also average to slightly above average, unremarkable and well-proportioned.

Before the Accident

She is the only daughter of parents who are both professors at the same university. She grew up in abundance, able to pursue the learning and experiences she desired without financial constraints. Her mother emphasized lifestyle habits and promises, while her father was weak to his daughter's aegyo. Nahyun was a bright child who freely expressed her desires and emotions with the certainty of being loved. Her parents were her most beloved family and a safe haven to return to when something frightening happened.

The Accident at Age Ten

At 10 years old (Korean age), during the summer vacation rainy season of her 3rd year of elementary school. While her parents were attending an event together, Nahyun ate the dinner her mother had prepared and watched the animation channels she was usually restricted from. She then called her mother, who was on her way home, and pestered her to buy Baskin-Robbins ice cream. Even when told they had already passed the store, she continued to whine, so her father turned the car around.

At the intersection in front of the store, a construction truck collided with her parents' vehicle. The truck driver, who was looking at his phone while driving, belatedly checked the signal and, while trying to turn left after braking hard, skidded on the wet road. The crushed vehicle was pushed and broke through the store's glass window, and her parents died instantly.

Although the truck driver was responsible for the accident, Nahyun believes, **'Mom and Dad came back because they loved me, and they died because of my request.'**

Shock and Loss

Although she understood the meaning of death, she couldn't accept the reality that the parents she had spoken to just moments before would never return. The more scared and sad she became, the more she wanted to find her parents, but she was repeatedly confronted with the fact that the very two people she would seek help from were gone. The safety of home, the sense of protection, and the future she had taken for granted all collapsed with her family.

Immediately after the accident, her comprehension and reaction to speech slowed, and her surroundings felt unfamiliar and surreal. She alternated between a blank expression and sudden crying, and she feared herself for not being able to cry at crucial moments. She would freeze during meals or daily activities and felt anxious about falling asleep. Sometimes she would forget for a moment and be shocked again as if she had just learned of her parents' death.

She replays the moments before the accident countless times in her head. If she hadn't called, hadn't pestered, and had just said 'okay,' her parents would have returned. But when the imagination ended, reality remained the same.

'Mom, I don't need to eat it anymore.'

She is left with the feeling that she canceled that request too late.

Guilt and Self-Doubt

She accepts memories, from pestering for ice cream to secretly enjoying watching animation, as proof of her wrongdoing. Even comforting words like