Chapter Eleven:

(Heechul)

I opened my eyes and slowly sat up. It took me a while to notice where I was. I was lying down on a bed in a small room. I was wearing mismatched pajamas that were too big for me.

I got up from the futon that I was lying on and opened the door. I took a peek outside and slowly walked the narrow hallway. I smelled something good cooking and realized that I was hungry when I started to drool.

There was a small table in a small room. A man was sitting on the floor with a sketchpad in one hand and a pencil in the other. He was focused on drawing that he didn’t notice me walking towards the table.

“Omo! You’re awake.” A small woman said entering the room with a casserole.

I looked at her then at the casserole that she was carrying. The man looked up from his sketchpad and looked at me. He looked at me from top to bottom then at the small woman. He started to talk to her in a language that I did not understand. The woman placed the casserole on the table and answered whatever the man was asking her.

“Baba… Mama… why are you two… Heechul! You’re awake!”

A guy wearing a black sweat shirt and grey sweat pants entered the room carrying in his hands plates and chopsticks. He placed the things that he was carrying down and went towards me. He then enveloped me in a hug and patted my back.

“Are you okay? You’ve got me worried when…” The guy started to say with a weird accent but stopped when I raised my hand.

“Excuse me but…Where the hell am I?” I asked him.

He took a step away from me and took a deep breath.

“I took you home because it was raining and you were in the middle of…” The guy started to explain but I stopped him again.

“All I remember was… I was… what was I doing before I got here? Where am I?... More importantly… Who am I?”

The three of them looked at me with surprised expressions. For a brief moment there was silence then they started talking in a language that I did not understand.

I placed a hand on my temples and winced when I felt a sudden pain on my head.

“Ahhh…” I shouted when the pain started to get stronger.

I closed my eyes and felt warm arms around my body before everything was dark again.

_________________________________________

(Han Kyung)

It had been a week since I found Heechul in the middle of the street with rain falling on him in buckets.

I was on my way home from a part time job when I saw a familiar figure kneeling down in the middle of the street. I walked towards the figure and saw Heechul drenched in the rain. His shirt had blood on them and for a moment I thought he had been hurt. I ran like hell when he fainted and ran towards the nearest clinic.

In the clinic I was told that he wasn’t hurt but he was just exhausted. I apologized to the doctor for my panicking and he only laughed at me before showing me to where Heechul was. He was asleep for an hour when I called up his parents telling them he was with me.

I was surprised by their reaction, most especially his mother. She was so angry and she even cursed him. I didn’t know what happened or why their family was this way, but for a mother to curse her own son? That was something I could not imagine.

Whenever I turned up at the Kim’s Mansion for Heechul’s lessons, Mrs. Kim would be so polite and would speak highly of her son but that was not what I had just heard. She hung-up on me and left me confused and worried. I worried for Heechul. His shirt was stained with blood and so were his hands. Something must have happened to him, it must have been something bad.

It was two days after I took him home when Heechul finally woke up. He was disoriented and managed to walk to the dining room. He started to ask where he was and said that he didn’t remember anything. At first I ignored his memory loss. I thought it was normal because he slept for two days and woke up in a stranger’s house.

But when it continued for a week, I began to worry. I contacted his parents again, telling them of Heechul’s condition. His father told me to meet him in his office. I had never been in Kim Heejun’ s office, heck I’ve never even met the guy. I have been Heechul’s tutor for almost two years and I have never even seen the man’s shadow. So if you ask me if I’m nervous, I would answer “Hell yes.”

As soon as I entered Mr. Kim’s office I knew our meeting would not end well. I told him about Heehchul’s condition without waiting for him to ask. His secretary was with him and he handed me a small envelope. I opened it and it was filled with money.

“I don’t understand why…” I asked confused.

“Heechul. I want you to take care of him.” Mr. Kim told me.

“What?” I asked not sure if what I heard was right.

Mr. Kim shifted in his seat before speaking again.

“I ran a background check on you Mr. Han. I know your family is in debt and I also know you need that money in your hands for you to continue going to school. I am willing to sponsor you in return, Heechul will be staying at your residence under your family’s care.” Mr. Kim said to me.

“Are you serious? Aren’t you concerned that he doesn’t remember anything? He could be sick or…” I started to say.

“Mr. Han I don’t have time to explain all the details to you. I’ve already talked with your parents and they had agreed.” Mr. Kim said.

Cold. He was so cold. There was no emotion behind his words. How can he be so calm in sending his son away, most especially in his condition?

“I don’t understand Mr. Kim. I may offend you by saying this but aren’t you cruel to Heechul? He’s sick and I don’t know what’s wrong with him but you don’t seem to care about that. Heechul may have been hard to deal with but he’s your son and letting him be taken care of by strangers is wrong. He should be with his family…”

“Heechul is no son of mine. He made that clear when Jaehee died.” Mr. Kim sai