She raked a hand through her hair before shoving both her hands in her pockets. Agitatedly speaking in a hushed voice, she couldn't meet his eyes. She was looking around her for every five seconds. She couldn't stand still, couldn't stand upright. Even with a mask covering the lower half of her face, I could recognize her anywhere. She scanned her surroundings again, and when her eyes met mine for a second, she froze.

"Jihyuk, what are you doing here?" I asked, approaching warily.

She was talking to a resident doctor by the patients' ward. It was obvious Jihyuk wasn't expecting to see me after she heaved a sigh and looked away. The doctor, on the otherhand, flashed a brief smile towards my direction and laid a hand on my shoulder before walking away. "Hey," I greeted, wounding an arm around her waist and pulling her closer. It was a miracle to see her after just two days. "What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for you," she replied, the hems of her shirt. Her voice was almost muffled because of the mask.

I reached for her hand. "Why do you look angry?"

"No, that...that doctor..." she exhaled. "I asked him where you were and I guess he was bad at directions."

I glance at her face and slip the mask off of her, expecting to a see a smile on her lips or a twinkle in her eyes but found none. Instead, there was another bruise, now on the corner of , the corner that twists like Mona Lisa's secretive smile. "Who did this to you?" I asked loudly, earning shocked looks from passersby.

Jihyuk shakily covered my mouth and shushed me before I could make a scene. I grabbed her hand and pulled her to the lounging area. "Who did this?" I asked, furious and almost insane. Yanking her arms harshly, I pulled her sleeves up her shoulders to look closely. "Don't they know how I take care of you? Don't they know how I make sure you're fine? Why did you let anyone hurt you? Why did--" A sudden realization washed over me. In a dull, full-to-bursting voice, I asked, "Did Donghwa do this to you?" slowly preparing myself for the onslaught.

He had crossed the line. This wasn't the Donghwa who had made paper boats with me to play with on rain puddles back when we were little. It didn't matter to me that he was the only family I have left because I had disowned him that first time he had changed into the man I swore I would never be. Wasn't it enough that he had already hurt her with merely his words? Did he have any idea how much he had changed her? He could have taken out his anger on me -- freeze my bank accounts, kick me out of my apartment, even ask me to leave my job. It didn't have to be this way. He didn't have to hurt her, didn't even have to touch her, much less look at her, but he did. He did, and what had pained me most was that Jihyuk kept shut. Maybe she thought I looked up to Donghwa that much never to think of him like that. Maybe she thought I would never believe her that Donghwa was capable of doing that.

"It's not your brother," Jihyuk muttered, as if reading my thoughts.

"Then who did?" I nearly shouted in frustration. She just stared at me. "Tell me, I'm begging you." I almost shook her by the shoulders. "Answer me," I pleaded. "I'm going insane here."

With a trembling hand, she reached out to cover my mouth. "I tripped and fell," she said faintly. Then the facade broke down and a tear trickled down her cheek. "Just believe me on this, okay?"

And I was left to watch her helplessly. In the end, I pulled her into my embrace and held her tightly. Kissing the top of her head, "I'm sorry it's been hard on you."

She pulls away and tries to smile at me. "I'm a crybaby, aren't I?" Jihyuk rubbed at her eyes using her fists, even using the collar of her shirt to try her cheeks. In the middle of her actions, she peeked through her hands and saw me looking at her, causing a faint blush across her cheeks. There she was sitting beside me, so vulnerable, embarrassed, and weak. She was human.

She glanced at the watch on her wrist where a bruise was just beginning to fade. "I have to go." And she stood up.

"Will I see you again soon?"

Jihyuk paused for a moment, then shrugged.

Though disheartened, "Okay," I muttered. "I'll miss you," I said, kissing her forehead. Without saying anything, she pulled away from my grasp and walked away without looking back.