Here's Chapter 8: Switching Shadows (approx. 1000 words), written with a slow-burn, emotional pace and growing suspense:
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Chapter 8: Switching Shadows
In the luxurious silence of the Seo family estate, Hara stood before her vanity mirror, eyes narrowed. Her reflection stared back—perfectly styled, composed, cold. Yet inside, a storm brewed.
She tossed the phone onto the bed, the screen still glowing with the article she'd just read:
Lee Corporation CEO seen with mysterious woman resembling heiress Hara Seo.
Hena.
How dare she.
Hara paced the room in stilettos that clicked with fury. That girl had gone quiet for years. Forgotten. Erased. Yet now, she had returned like a ghost clawing its way out of the grave.
"She's ruining everything," Hara hissed under her breath.
She pulled up a number on her burner phone, one not registered to her name.
"When you find her," Hara said as the line connected, "scare her. Nothing too loud—but enough to make her disappear again."
A male voice replied, "Understood. What does she look like?"
"She looks like me," Hara snapped. "Just... less polished."
---
At the flower shop, Hena was arranging peonies when a sudden chill crept through her. The shop bell chimed.
A man in a leather jacket stepped inside, his gaze heavy.
"We're closing soon," she said politely.
He didn't move. Just stared. Then, slowly, he placed a small white envelope on the counter and walked out without a word.
Heart pounding, Hena opened it.
Inside: a photo of her walking near Damian's building, a red circle drawn around her head.
And scrawled across it in messy ink:
"Leave before it's too late."
Her breath caught.
"Claire!" she called, voice shaking.
Claire rushed from the back room. "What happened?"
Hena showed her the envelope. Claire's eyes widened.
"This is a threat," Claire whispered.
Hena swallowed hard. "I think someone wants me gone."
Claire wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "You're not alone anymore, Hena. We'll figure this out."
---
That night, back in her tiny room, Hena couldn't sleep. Her hand brushed the old wooden box she'd taken from Halmeoni's closet last week—the one she'd never dared to fully open.
Now, with trembling fingers, she lifted the lid.
Inside, tucked beneath yellowing letters, was an old newspaper clipping. Its edges were worn, the ink faded, but the headline was still visible:
"Tragedy at Seoul General: One Twin Stillborn to Prominent Family"
April 9, 2005.
The article described a Seo family birth—identities withheld for privacy—but mentioned "a surviving daughter, healthy," and "an unconfirmed report of a second child, declared stillborn."
Hena's blood ran cold.
April 9. That was her birthday. It had always felt like something more than hers.
She reread the article again. And again.
A twin.
She was supposed to have a sister.
But what if… what if she was that second child?
Her fingers hovered over the word "stillborn."
Had someone lied?
---
Elsewhere in the city, Damian sat in his private study, his computer screen filled with hospital records from two decades ago.
Eric's voice came through the speaker. "There's no birth certificate for a Hena Seo from any major hospital. But there is a registered birth for a single female child to the Seo family—delivered by C-section on April 9. However..."
Damian leaned forward. "However?"
"There's a notation. 'Twin delivery. Second fetus declared DOA. No postmortem conducted. Mother sedated during delivery.'"
Damian's eyes narrowed. "So there was no confirmation."
"No. And get this—the attending nurse on duty? Disappeared six months later. No resignation. No trace."
Damian sat back, the pieces slowly shifting into place.
Someone had erased Hena.
Someone had hidden her existence entirely.
But why?
---
The next morning, Hena walked along the Han River, needing air, needing space. Her fingers clutched the newspaper clipping tightly.
Was her whole life a lie?
Did her grandmother know?
The bracelet. The article. The warning. The cold stare of Madam Seo.
She remembered the way the woman looked at her at the party—not with shock, but recognition. Fear. Like she was a secret that should've stayed buried.
A twin.
A stolen place.
And now... a stolen future?
She turned as someone called her name.
it was Damian who had called her.