Chapter 1
Chapter 1
My little sister died the day before school started.
She jumped from the sixteenth floor of our apartment building.
Her head twisted to one side, not much blood. Her small body curled up in a pool of red.
The strangest thing was her expression–she was smiling.
When people noticed her face, they collectively gasped.
Her childlike features bore a smile that was unnaturally sinister for someone her age.
It gave everyone goosebumps.
Mom collapsed in tears. Dad, who had stood tall his entire life, seemed to crumble, silently chain–smoking one cigarette after another.
The police offered condolences while following procedure: “If there’s a suicide note, we can close the case as suicide.”
So we all searched my little sister’s room, trying to find a note.
Grandma found it first.
The note contained just one sentence.
She held the paper, her face frozen in shock.
Then she broke down crying, “My sweet girl…”
Her reaction left us bewildered. Dad stepped forward, urging, “Mom, what did she say in her note?”
Grandma gave us one long, final look, then decisively threw down the paper.
Before anyone could react, she opened the window and jumped.
Blood bloomed on the pavement as Grandma’s body came to rest beside my little sister’s.
And strangely, Grandma’s expression–her lips were slightly curved upward too.
After Grandma’s death, Dad picked up my little sister’s note with trembling hands.
After reading it, his face instantly turned ashen.
He tucked the paper into his pocket and refused to show it to anyone.
No matter how much the police pressed him, Dad maintained his silence.
Chapter 1
After the funerals for my little sister and Grandma, we returned home exhausted.
Mom, with swollen eyes, asked through tears.
“What did our daughter’s note say? Why did your mother kill herself after reading it?”
Chapter 2
