28: Jeongri's Mind

   It was close to midnight when the fighting finally stopped. The Outskirts was dark except for the raging, living hell formerly known as the district of Hallowmire. The flames glowed white, high into the night sky with no signs of slowing down. In the silent solitude that was the countryside, the sound of sirens could be faintly heard, piercing the air with their shrill alarms. 

   Jeongri and Kyungsoo stood side by side on a small cliff that overlooked the Capital; a heavy regret set deep in their hearts.

   “It doesn’t even look real…” she said, unable believe the sight before her.

   Kyungsoo didn’t say anything for a moment. Instead, he wrapped an arm around her small frame and sighed heavily. He couldn’t tear his gaze away either.

   “Then, how come it is?” came his solemn reply.

   She shivered in response, the truth of his words ringing in her ears.

   They had stopped in a small clearing in the wooded forest, just off the fringes of the Outskirts. Chanyeol had stoked a small campfire and was lying down on the ground beside it, jacket covering his head. Jeongri was meant to help clear the area, but she had been drawn to the sight of Hallowmire, unable to stop the ravaging feeling of guilt that was eating away inside her. None of this would have happened if she hadn’t stayed there.

   It hadn’t been easy to get out of Hallowmire even with Minseok’s help. Every corner they turned, they were met with stragglers from both the demon army and the HLV that they had to fight. It was Chanyeol’s idea to steal a car just so they could move faster. God knows how many traffic laws they broke, but none of it mattered in retrospect, all that mattered was surviving. They didn’t have a plan, but Jeongri remembered that she had Luhan’s address. She gave his business card to Baekhyun so that he could work out the best route to Greyfleur. It seemed like the only place that they could go. The car they stole wasn’t that powerful, it struggled with driving up the hilly terrain. It was then when Baekhyun suggested that they should just stop and rest while the night provided them cover. 

   Jeongri’s hands were clasped tightly around a small leather and metal object. She turned it habitually in her hands before running her fingertips across the smooth engraving on the surface. She had only picked it up the day before since the pet store had to send away items for unique name engravings. No words could describe how happy she’d felt when the shop assistant handed it to her for the first time. It was just perfect.

   In beautiful swirled lettering, the engraving read ‘Haengbogi ♥’. 

   Every fibre in her being was telling her to cry, but she didn’t have the energy left anymore. After all that had happened today, everything felt so numb. Again, Jeongri sighed, her eyes scanning over the area in Hallowmire where Kyungsoo’s house had been. The entire area was set alight, glowing brightly against the dark inky sky.

   “Do you think he made it out?” Jeongri asked quietly.

   “I think he did,” said Kyungsoo. 

   His voice was unusually shaky and low.

   “I bet he made it out,” she said, “Haengbogi is from the Inner Ring. If he can survive that, he can survive anything, right?”

   Kyungsoo gave a light but sad chuckle, squeezing her gently on the arm. 

   “I guess you’re right.”

   “Of course, I’m right. I bet he’s managed to scamper off into Grandfell or any of the other neighbouring districts. Any family would be lucky to have him. I bet someone’s already found him and they’re taking care of him right now. Haengbogi’s probably trotting around with his bowl in his mouth like he always did… I know he’s somewhere warm… and somewhere homey…”

   Jeongri found her voice trailing off and she pursed her lips tightly, fighting back another wave of emotion. She dipped her head down so that Kyungsoo wouldn’t see her face, but it was too late. He had already pulled her into a deep hug, wrapping his arms tightly around her. Jeongri buried her face into the crook of his neck and scrunched her eyes, refusing to let the tears fall.

   “I know it…” she sobbed, “I just know it…”

   “I believe you…” said Kyungsoo.

   For a brief moment earlier, she had hated Baekhyun so much for his decision to not go back and find Haengbogi. She wanted to hurt him, but it was only now that she knew he had made the right decision. In the heat of the moment, Baekhyun had been the only one to keep his cool and think rationally.

   Still held in Kyungsoo’s embrace, Jeongri turned her head to see Baekhyun sat in the front passenger seat of the car, pouring over a small leather-bound notebook and his phone. He had taken off his weighted jacket and weapons strap, leaving him dressed in only plain black clothes. His hair sat dishevelled on his forehead to which he’d occasionally brush back with his long, dusty fingers. Luhan’s business card was slipped neatly at the top of the notebook.

   If Jeongri had followed her heart to find Haengbogi, they probably would have all lost their lives. A flicker of surprise mixed with appreciation ran through her mind as she thought about how different Baekhyun had been since he came into her world again. From that ceremony day to today, he had such a strong, commanding presence, a no-nonsense attitude that seemed so different from the boy she remembered. The faint memory of that HLV woman calling him ‘Sir’ lingered in her mind.

   The fourteen-year-old Baekhyun of her memories was never a leader, that was Luhan’s role. Baekhyun was a silly person, someone who never took anything too seriously and did everything in his power to annoy her. Every time she thought she was done with his , he’d do something that would always win back her heart. Though he acted the idiot, Jeongri knew that Baekhyun was actually a thoughtful person, always smiling and thinking of others. He was her best friend, and he was her light. She paused for a moment and smiled. No, he was everyone’s light. Curiosity ate away at Jeongri. She wanted nothing more than to talk to him, to apologise and to find out how he’d been living his life.

   But the man who sat in the car now hadn’t even smiled once since they met again. In fact, Baekhyun hadn’t said more than a couple of words to her since they stopped here in the woods. If Jeongri was honest, she felt like he was avoiding her. With their last meeting ending so violently, she could understand why.

   Just as her thoughts of him grew, Baekhyun looked up and caught her gaze. They stared at each other silently for what seemed like an eternity. Jeongri wanted to say something, but the words were caught in . It was Baekhyun who looked away first, breaking his gaze with a strange expression on his face. She watched as he frowned deeply at what he was reading before glancing up again at her ever so briefly. Feeling flustered, Jeongri turned back around and settled her gaze on Hallowmire once again, letting those thoughts of Baekhyun fade away. Maybe the old friend she knew was still there, or perhaps he had grown up and forgotten those memories. After all, ten years was a long time.

   Jeongri pulled away from Kyungsoo and turned Haengbogi’s name tag around in her fingers, she didn’t want to take it far away from Hallowmire. Crouching down with much difficulty, she dug out a small hole in the earth and dropped the tag inside. With her soil-covered hands, she buried the tag and patted it tightly, so that it was firmly in the ground. 

   “What are you doing?” asked Kyungsoo. 

   He bent down so that he was crouching beside her.

   “I don’t want to keep it,” Jeongri replied quietly, “If I keep it, it’ll become a memento. I’ll feel like he’s really gone.”

   “But if you bury it, doesn’t it make it feel worse?”

   “No,” she said as she shook her head, “Because this way, I’ll come back for it one day. I won’t run away from the Capital forever. One day, I will face my father and do what’s right for everyone in Hallowmire.”

   Jeongri knew her goals sounded stupid, but it calmed her heart. After everything that happened, she needed a way to feel in control and this way her way. They stood back up, and she found herself leaning into Kyungsoo, slipping her fingers around his.

   “We’ll definitely come back,” murmured Kyungsoo, “I’m just glad we made it so far.”

   Her heart yearned loudly at his words. 

   “I’m glad we made it too,” she said.

   Before she could stop herself, Jeongri tiptoed up and kissed Kyungsoo on the lips. It surprised him, his eyes opening wide before returning her kiss. She had even surprised herself. In their strange relationship, she had never been the one to initiate, but in this moment it seemed appropriate. Kyungsoo wrapped his around her waist, and she felt his soothing magic pulse through her body. It took away the ache in her ribs and willed her cells to repair themselves. 

   “Do you feel better now?” he asked, whispering softly into her ear.

   “Yes,” she replied, wrapping her arms around his neck, “Thank you, Kyungsoo, for everything you do.”

   “Anything for you,” he said fondly. 

   As Jeongri rested her head on his shoulders, she was surprised to find Baekhyun watching them again with the same strange expression. As her gaze met with him, he quickly turned away once again.

   “Shall we join the others now?” Kyungsoo whispered, pulling away from her.

   Jeongri nodded with reluctance. The atmosphere had been awkward for a while. Neither Baekhyun nor Chanyeol had made a move to talk to her ever since they left Hallowmire. 

   Together, Kyungsoo and Jeongri walked back over to the car. Chanyeol lifted his jacket at the sound of incoming footsteps, his gaze flickering briefly across them both before turning away. In the car, Baekhyun hadn’t looked up. It was as though he couldn’t hear them, or he was just ignoring them. Jeongri felt still standing here. It was like being with strangers.

   “Any luck?” asked Kyungsoo, breaking the silence and grabbing Baekhyun’s attention.

   Baekhyun looked up for the briefest of moments before setting his sight back on his notebook.

   “Yeah,” he said. With his slender finger, he trailed a route on the map on his phone, “If we go this way, we can avoid all the major settlements. It would take us two, maybe three hours tops.”

   Kyungsoo walked over so that he could see what Baekhyun was pointing at, leaving Jeongri alone by the fire. She sat herself down next to Chanyeol, the latter who made no moves to greet her or join in with the conversation. Her eyes looked across his body, remembering every spot each bullet had hit, and she wondered how did he survive. Chanyeol was only human. As if in response to her thoughts, Chanyeol groaned a little, and raised a hand to massage his right shoulder. She froze, not really knowing how to respond.

   “Are you-” she stuttered, “I- Is your shoulder okay?”

   “It’s fine,” came his short and blunt reply.

   An awkward silence fell across the pair. Chanyeol made no motions to remove the jacket that covered his face or even to continue the conversation, and Jeongri couldn’t help but feel a sense of hostility from him.

   “Okay…” she said, voice trailing away.

   Feeling out of place, Jeongri glanced up to Baekhyun and Kyungsoo, who were still deep in conversation, before looking back at Chanyeol. She thought it would b