CHEOLYONG

As Cheolyong’s conscience slowly began to wake, his dreamland started to fade away like a foggy memory. A part of his subconscious tried to hold on to the fantasy world he was dreaming about, where he was in such a happy place where nothing could get to him. It was somewhere with green hills and luscious trees, a bright blue sky with white, fluffy clouds floating by lazily and casting dancing shadows onto the ground below as they crossed the bright sun. It was somewhere nice, by the sea where he could smell the salty air and hear gulls singing for each other as they flew together. But it was only a dream, the world his subconscious had created to show that there was somewhere out there where happiness could be found, and thus, consciousness was regained.

His eyes fluttered tiredly and a small groan escaped his lips. Senses set in and Cheolyong quickly realized that something was not right. A soft, dainty lavender scent filled his nose as he breathed, much different from the mildew and mold smell that he was used to waking up to. His body felt warm and comfortable, rather than cold and aching from sleeping so close to the floor; there was something thick covering him and something fluffy beneath his head. It was so unfamiliar, fear instantly overtook Cheolyong and he quickly snapped his eyes open to see where the heck he was, because this definitely was not his room in the basement.

As his eyes quickly adjusted to the dim lighting of the room, Cheolyong sat up in the bed he was in, full sized it looked like, and much nicer than his flimsy mattress. He slowly checked out the surrounding area, a decent size bedroom with various posters on the wall. There was a desk on the opposite wall full of books and papers that were neatly organized, and next to him was a nightstand that contained a lit lamp and a picture frame of a woman and a boy, a boy who Cheolyong instantly recognized as Changsun.

His heart skipped a beat anxiously as he tried to remember how he got to Changsun’s house, but everything was foggy and unclear. Nervously wringing his hands together, worried that he was going to be in trouble, it was then that Cheolyong noticed that his injured hand was securely wrapped up with a bandage, no ache or pain at all. Before his mind could question anything, the bedroom door creaked open and he snapped his attention over to see Cha