Chapter 02: Saehee

I became restless for the first three days, debating whether or not I should tell Yugyeom about Kim Hyo Sung. I couldn't help but stare at the two during biology class as they would silently crack jokes and solve problems together when we were assigned homework. Often times the older male would come home with us to help Yugyeom with math and English. My mom was an observer and caught onto me as she watched me stare at Yugyeom in worry. She talked to me but I refused to tell her the truth and guilt rushed through me every time I saw the hurt look in her eyes when I lied.

On the fifth day of school, I grew impatient and told Hyo Sung to stay away from Yugyeom, telling him obvious lies like how he was a bad influence. He never believed me and continued sticking to my brother like glue but that didn't stop me. I threatened him and tried to blackmail him and by the eighth day, he stayed away from my brother completely. Yugyeom was upset, blaming himself for being a bad friend but in reality, I was being a bad sister by breaking the close bond. I comforted him and told him to forget about Hyo Sung but every time we walked into Biology class, the older male would look at us and then look away again as my brother approached him. He switched seats on purpose and I couldn't shrug off the culpability that haunted me.

Eventually, my brother gave up trying to mend the friendship that I broke and tried for new people. On the tenth day, I saw him hang out with a group of popular kids that were mainly a year or two older than him. He looked genuinely happy but his eyes held separate emotions that bore through me. The group was called GOT7 (or Lucky 7) and as I mentioned before, the group was insanely popular. The group consisted of handsome men who all had at least one thing in common: Sports. Their leader, JB and the oldest member, Mark were the captain and co-captain of the Basketball team while Youngjae and Jr. were members of the soccer team. Jackson was the school's gold medal champion fencer and the second youngest, Bam Bam was co-captain of the swim team while my brother did both swimming and basketball. I barely saw him anymore but it was probably for the best.

Unfortunately, the twelfth day slowly came and I woke up with red eyes. Instead of changing, I entered Yugyeom's room and sighed when I found his bed empty. He must have left for swim practice. My mom greeted me with a grin while my dad was sipping his coffee at the dining table. 

"Eat up," my mom placed a large bowl of kimchi noodle soup in front of me, "Oh And Saehee, be a dear and bring Yugyeom his lunch. He was rushing to practice that he forgot his lunch."

I nodded and stood up, bowing to my parents before slipping on my red high top Converse shoes. "I'll be leaving now." I grabbed my brother's lunch along with my bag and left the house. 

As usual, I was looked upon by society as I waited for the bus. The girls who swooned over my brother looked at me weirdly as if I came from Mars. I heard them whisper words that were unrelated such '' and '' but in all honesty, I wanted to tell them how hypocritical and stereotypical they were being. I got on the bus without a word and waited for the day to be over with, my heart clenching with Kim Hyo Sung on my mind. 

When I stepped onto school property, I noticed Hyo Sung playing basketball with the some of the basketball team members. When he scored a point, his team would cheer and howl while pumping up the crowd that gathered to watch the tournament. I stayed near the back and as if he knew I was there, he turned and faced me, making eye contact. 

00:04:05:22. 

He has four hours before an unfortunate event would end his life.

I walked away and rushed to my social studies class, even though I was fifteen minutes early. I wondered if my brother found out yet and I started to constantly check my phone, feeling giddy and restless. Throughout the class, I worried and blocked out Mr. Lee's lecture. The clock ticked ever so slowly as if time was being slowed down. I wanted to keep it that way but karma came to me and lunch suddenly smacked me in the face. With sweaty hands and feet, I left the room and went to my locker to change my books. The halls were quiet and I knew why.

The students were whispering about it while some wept and spoke inaudible words.

"I heard it was suicide," one student whispered and her group of friends gasped.

"No way," another cried, "he was so bright and cheerful this morning! I watched him play basketball with his teammates!" 

I pretend not to know anything as my feet carried me to the rooftop where the sky wept for another loss of an important being. I stood underneath the shed's roof and watched the rain pour until I heard a loud click. I ended up on the floor with my right cheek throbbing in pain. 

"You knew," he muttered, voice baritone low with tension. I hesitated to look up but I could see that he was shaking and it wasn't because of rain. "You knew he would die this week."

"You knew too," my whisper was barely audible but he had heard it and punched me once again, not caring about whether or not I was his sister.

"I found out five minutes before he died but you..." Yugyeom strained his voice and leaned closer, "you knew for a week, maybe longer than that yet you could not tell me." I felt pain sear through my head as I was slammed against the cement floor. As he spoke, spit and rain landed on my face but I was too stunned to wipe it away. He gave me one last punch before walking away, the metal door creaking as it closed. 

The words were stuck in my head as his angry face was etched into my heart. 

"I hate you. I hope the next person who dies is you."

The metallic liquid was being washed off by the rain as I laid there, wondering how much time had passed after that last punch. As a sister, it was natural for me to go and comfort my younger brother but as I stood up and walked towards the door, my body collapsed. All I remembered seeing was a male with blonde hair, picking me up and carrying me down the stairs.