With droopy eyes, Suzy struggled to sit up from the sofa in the living room. Her head was throbbing in dizziness and sharp pain. Suddenly, her eyes widened upon a realization.

“Brian,” she mumbled beneath her breath and her eyes quickly scanned the room but found no one.

But then, she heard noises coming out from the kitchen. With difficulty, she stood up and with silent and careful steps, she walked towards the source. Her hand was pressed against the wall as she tried to keep herself in balance. When she had entered the kitchen, she found it empty again and despite the heavy feeling, she could feel the anxiety slowly building in her chest.

“Are you alright?”

The deep voice that came from behind her made her jump in shock but as soon as she turned and found her brother, she sighed in utmost relief.

“You’re home,” she mumbled before losing her balance and falling onto Jaebum’s arms. Feeling her brother’s strong limbs around her, she found comfort and security. There was an assurance that she was protected.

“What happened to you?” he asked worriedly as he guided her back to the sofa. “When I came home, I just saw you sprawled on the floor. Are you drunk?”

“No, no,” she shook her head.

Was I drugged? She asked herself.

“Then what happened?”

I can’t tell him about Brian, the thought crossed her mind. I need to meet Brian again. I need to meet him in order to save Mark.

“Sleeping pills,” she lied as she forced a smile. “I guess I took too much.”

“Are you sure?” Jaebum squinted.

Suzy gulped as she knew that her brother had a hint that she was lying. They have been living together their whole life, and lying was too difficult when Jaebum knew her like the back of his hand. However, she knew too, that as long as she remained consistent, Jaebum wouldn’t be able to elicit any substantial information from her—not even the truth.

“Yeah,” she nodded. “You should just stop overthinking.”

With a smile, the lie smoothly escaped her lips, “I’m perfectly fine.”

When Suzy entered the room, she found Mark sleeping peacefully on his bed, and the calm and peace etched on his angelic face made it hard for her to believe that it was the same man who had drugged her the night before. She quietly sat beside him, and her hands found themselves tangled on his locks, gently brushing his hair. Her gaze once more traced his features, but then it quickly found its way towards his lips—the lips she believes she had kissed.

That’s your morality failing to contain your feelings, his voice rung to her ears.

She quickly withdrew her hand from his head, as guilt started surfacing in her mind. She shut her eyes tight as she thought hard. She knew that it was not just her getting carried away by the situation because there was a high probability that it was her unconscious self, surfacing and acting on its own will. It was wrong of her to desire her patient and she was afraid that her feelings would drive her to abuse his fear for her advantage.

I should get a grip of myself, she thought.

As she sighed and diverted her gaze elsewhere, her eyes caught sight of the pink lines on Mark’s wrists. With a creased forehead, she raised his hand and her fingers traced the pained lines. They were shallow cuts.

These could be signs of suicidal tendencies, she bit her lower lip at the thought.

But then her actions had cause the male to flutter his eyes open. As soon as her gaze met his, she tried to hide her curiosity with a smile, but then, it was Mark’s eyes that were full of emotion. He instantly sat up and as his eyes took in her image, they became full of worry. Suzy could only stare back in question, but even before she could ask, the male had brought her into his arms.

She was caught off-guard and as she was reminded of the actions made by the man who carried the same face as him, it was natural for her to be filled with anxiety. His limbs around her reminded her of his forcefulness with their kiss. She was about to push him away, but in a short span of time, she learned to differentiate.  This was not the forceful Brian she had encountered recently because she knew that the embrace showed nothing but tender and care. It was the Mark she knew—the one who would never bring her harm.

Her lips then curved into a smile as she gave back the hug. She tried to lighten the atmosphere by asking, “Did you miss me that much?”

He then released her from the hug and answered her with the same charming smile. But then, he got the paper and crayons that he now kept behind his pillows.

                I’m glad that you are alright.

Trying to hide her nervousness from last night, she said with confidence, “And what made you think that I wouldn’t be?”

She watched again as the crayons formed straight lines and then words that he could not say in his present form.

                I know that he’s back.

She gulped as only one name had crossed her mind but then, she asked, “Who is?”

                Brian.

“How did you know?” she retorted, failing to keep her emotions transcending onto her voice. However, instead of answering her question, he wrote,

                I’m scared.

She examined his stoned facial expression. By the way he stared at the paper with a soft and worried gaze, she knew that he was not lying. She reached his hand and gently squeezed it, as if trying to pass some strength to the male.

“You don’t need to be scared,” she tried to convince him. “I promised to keep you safe, didn’t I?”

Mark stared right into her eyes for a few seconds before his gaze travelled back to the notebook. It was quite some time that he just stared blankly but he drummed crayon onto the surface of the paper. But then, what struck Suzy the most were his next writings,

                But who’s going to keep you safe?

When