He ran his finger along the contours of her face gently with a smile ghosting over his lips, as though he was an artist sketching the perfect Mona Lisa on his canvas. Her lips stretched into a sweet grin, his favorite kind of smile, before chuckling softly as she pushed his hand away.

"Stop it Min, it tickles and I'm trying to sleep here." She laughed with her eyes closed as she turned away from him. Her laughter induced goosebumps on his skin. His favorite kind of laughter from her.

Unconsciously to him, his lips puckered up into a childish pout as he scouted nearer to her, satisfying the urge to be near her. He wrapped his arms around her petite waist as he snuggled his nose into her hair, taking in deep breaths of the familiar lemongrass smell that inundated him. He loved it. He loved the way his bed felt perfect just for the two of them to cuddle in. He loved the way his pillow smells just like her, the calm and warm lemongrass scent. He loved the way her body would rise and fall rhythmically as she breathed calmly. He loved the way her body would sporadically snuggle closer to his body. He loved her.

Just as he expected, she turned her body around as she pressed her face on his chest, enjoying the warmth that he was eluding. "Go to sleep, Min." She slurred almost incoherently as she snuggled closer to him.

The smile on his face widened as he chuckled softly at her cuteness, sending vibrations down her body. Using his hand to raise her face up slightly, he bent lower and pressed his lips on hers softly. He felt her slight response as she replied to his kiss sleepily. He pulled away and stifled down his chuckle as he pulled her into his embrace again. Gently, he rested his chin on her head as he closed his eyes with an unceasing smile.

"Goodnight, my love." He whispered softly. Slowly, he allowed himself to fall into a pit of unknown darkness.

 

~

 

His eyelids felt heavy but he didn't know why. His fingers twitched under the thin linen and he felt a strange sensation of soreness surge up from his muscles.

"What's going on?" He groaned mentally as he willed for his eyelids to open. A bright light entered his eyes and he narrowed down his eyes immediately as he struggled to sit up from his bed. His body felt unusually heavy and sore and he sensed an impending headache.  He let out a tired groan as he rested his limp torso on the headrest of the bed.

"What the hell happened here?" He whispered as his eyes widened. His room was in a mess as though a gush of tornado had swept through it. Clothes were flung everywhere, photo frames were on the floor, broken into pieces and his furniture was overturned and partially destroyed. Confused, he ran his fingers through his oily hair that stayed slump down on his head.

He couldn't recall anything. Was it a robbery? His eyes immediately darted towards his table and saw that his wallet, watches and phone still remained. His eyebrows arched in confusion as his eyes dropped towards his bed. His bed that felt too empty. His bed that felt too... cold.

Something jolted up in his head and he flung his blanket across his body as he stumbled up from bed. He instinctively held onto the table top to regain his balance as he shook his head slightly to get rid of the dizzy spell.

"Haera?!" He shouted with his coarse voice as he staggered towards the door wobbly. But he heard no response. He frowned deeper as he faltered down the steps of the stairs while scanning around his house. A house that seemed weirdly quiet. A house that seemed so familiar yet so foreign at the same time.

"Song Haera?! Where are you?!" He shouted again as he jogged towards the different rooms, opening and slamming the door shut when her presence was not found.

"Where the hell is she?" He cursed softly under his breath as he ran up to his room to grab his phone. A tingly sensation started to bubble up in his system. Worry and panic. His fingers pressed down on the familiar numbers like a natural habit before placing the gadget against his ear.

"The number you have dialed is unregistered. Please check the numb-..."

He removed the phone from his ear and stared at it in surprise. Was it the wrong number? He erased the number and pressed it again. He could already feel his heart beat speeding up under the unusual situation he was placed in.

"Please let this be a joke from her." He prayed silently in his head as his feet tapped against the carpeted floor worriedly.  

"The number you have dialed is unregistered. Please check..." His breath hitched.

"What the hell?" He cursed as he threw his phone onto his bed before messing up his hair with his two hands. Feeling increasingly restless, he turned around and ran out of the house, in hopes that he could find her roaming around the nearby streets.

"Haera... Haera.... Haera..." He chanted incessantly as he ran around the streets. His hands were clenched into tight fists but he couldn't feel the pain from his nails digging into his skin.

Just as he turned around in a corner, his eyes caught a fleeting glimpse of a familiar silhouette across the street. Without giving it a thought, he immediately ran after her.

"Song Haera!" He shouted at the top of his lungs but she didn't turn back.

If he had paid more attention, he would have noticed that the silhouette was taller than Haera. If he had paid more attention, he would have noticed that the silhouette was fatter than Haera. If he had paid more attention, he would have noticed the truck that was driving towards his direction at high speed. Maybe then, he would have been able to escape the pit of unknown darkness that engulfed him.

 

~

 

"...seok! Kim Minseok!" He heard a familiar voice rung through his head. He felt hands gripping onto his shoulders, jerking and shaking them harshly.

"Let go of me..." He groaned internally, trying to find the strength to push the annoying hands away.

"Kim Minseok! Wake up!" The voice shouted again. Why does the voice sound so familiar? it sounded like... Haera. Song Haera.

With that, he immediately jolted up from his supine position, his eyes wide open. He was in his room, in his bed, with Haera right beside him. There was nothing out of the ordinary. The clothes were neatly placed in piles in his closet, his photo frames were hung up neatly and his furniture was organized.

"Oh my god! Kim Minseok, you scared the hell out of me!" Haera groaned as she slapped his forearm harshly, earning a wince from the said man.

"Haera?" He whispered almost inaudibly as he stared at her, as though he couldn't believe his eyes. Was that a dream?

"Yes, Kim Minseok?" She rolled her eyes as she slumped back down onto bed.

He heaved a sigh of relief as he instantly wrapped his arms around her petite waist again, snuggling into her scent that persuaded him to calm down.

"What's wrong, Min?" She asked, her face frowning in worry as she squirmed around in his hold to have a better look at his face.

"You were screaming and shouting my name. You were even starting to break out in cold sweat." She said as she raised her hand to wipe away the sweat that appeared on his face.

He calmed down his palpitating heart as he relished in her warm touches against his cold skin. He pulled her nearer to him such that he could feel her heart beat against his skin. Sighing worriedly, Haera gently ran her hands up and down his back as a form of comfort, in hopes that he would calm down.

"I had a dream, which is more like a nightmare, really." He chuckled dryly as he breathed in the scent of lemongrass again. "I dreamt that I woke up in this same room. But everything was a wreck, literally. It was as though a hurricane blew through my room. Even my photo frames were shattered on the floor." He mumbled against her skin.

He felt her body shiver slightly against his. Not knowing if it was due to the cold or his words, he tugged onto the blanket and wrapped it around the two of them just to be sure. She hummed softly as she urged him to carry on.

"I dreamt that you were gone too. Even your phone number was no longer available. I ran out to the streets to find you and when I went around the corner, I thought I saw someone like you. So I immediately gave chase. But a truck hit me instead and everything went black." He recalled, his heart once again feeling the fear of losing her.

He felt her body tense up against his as she tightened her grip around his body.

"What's wrong, Haera?" He asked confusedly as he allowed her to pull him closer. They stayed silent for a moment as they found comfort in each other's warmth while he waited for her to speak.

She let out a silent sigh as she buried her face in his chest. "Why are you so careless, Min?" She whispered despite the lump in as she desperately tried to swallow back the sob that was threatening to escape.

He laughed softly as he nuzzled her nape. "It was just a dream, Haera. Why are you so worried?" He asked as he rubbed her back gently.

"Please promise me that you will take care of yourself." She demanded softly with her shaky voice as she prodded his ribs with her finger.

"I will, my princess, I will." He promised with a smile on his lips.

Still unsatisfied with his verbal promise, she pushed him off slightly to break the hug and brought up her pinky finger in the air. She arched her eyebrow as she waited for him expectantly without a word. Laughing at her childish act, he complied as he raised his hand and intertwined their pinky fingers.

"It's a promise, Kim Minseok." She said sternly. "Please make sure you take care of yourself." She reiterated, her voice dropping an octave lower as she cupped his chubby face with her hands. He stared straight into her delirious coal black eyes and watched as her eyes mirrored his face. He liked it. He liked the way her eyes would only see him as her world, just like how he would only see her as his world. It was mutual. And he wanted it to remain it that way.

"Let's go back to sleep." He said as he pressed their lips together gently before pulling her back into his embrace. She gave him one last look before humming and snuggling closer to him. Closing his eyes again, he allowed the darkness to take over.

 

~

 

All he could hear was the periodic beeping from somewhere near him. He breathed in the unfamiliar scent of antiseptics and disinfectants. He wanted to move his limbs but they were too heavy. Is this another weird dream? His heart quickened slightly at the thought of losing Haera again. As his heart rate increased, the periodic beeping started to speed up too.

"Doctor! Doctor!" A familiar male voice shouted.

"Doctor? Who is shouting for a doctor?" He asked himself mentally. He groaned internally as he failed to move his limbs. Giving up on his limbs, he willed for his eyes to open instead. Before he could open his eyes, he felt hands touching his face and something cold against his chest.

"Patient is fine. His vital signs are still within the normal range but if I am not wrong, he will be waking up very soon." An unknown voice sounded before the physical contacts disappeared.

Growling softly, he finally opened his eyes, allowing them to slowly adjust to the bright room he is in. White ceiling and white walls? Where was he?

"Minseok!" A female shouted at him, surprising him greatly.

"Who- Mom?" He asked with his widened eyes as he stared at the figure beside his bed. His bed? Why does it feel so differently? He lowered his eyes and stared at the white linen around his body. And his eyes finally landed on the white cast around his right arm. Hospital. Why is he in a hospital?

"What happened?" He asked, seemingly tired from being confused constantly.

"You got into a road accident, son." His father walked over from the side of the room to stand beside the bed.

"Accident?" He asked, once again confused. Wait a minute. Accident?

"Did I get hit by a truck?" Minseok asked his father. With a solemn expression, his father nodded. Minseok immediately dropped his gaze back to the cast around his arm. Is this a continuation of the nightmare? Does this mean that Haera is not here? He clenched his fists, allowing his sharp nails to dig into his skin. He felt the pain, surprisingly. He attempted to stretch his limbs and felt the stinging pain from his bandaged arm. What the hell is going on right now? Why can't he seem to escape from this nightmare even after he woke up?

"Min?" His mother called out, making him snap out of his thoughts.

"Y-yeah?" He replied, stuttering slightly from his dry throat.

"What were you doing? How did you end up like this?" She asked as her eyes darted between his face and the cast consistently with worry.

Frustrated, he raked his hair with his good hand before dropping it back down. "This is just a dream, right?" He asked unsurely. Everything felt too real to be surreal. Weird.

"What do you mean this is a dream, honey? This is reality and everything is real." She said with a frown. "Are you feeling okay, honey?" She asked again as she stretched out her hand to place it on his forehead.

"I'm fine, mom." He said as he shook his head slightly for her to remove her hand. "I woke up and saw that everything in my room was a mess. And then I realize Haera wasn't with me so I went out to find her. Then I thought I saw her across the street so I chased after her. And that was when I got hit by a truck." He explained again.

He watched as his mother's face changed into a more serious and solemn expression. The way her eyes seemed to turn sharper as she stared hard at his face.

"What's wrong, mom?" He asked as he reached out to hold onto her hand that was lying lifelessly beside her body.

"I am fine." She said as she patted his hand gently before pushing it away as subtly as possible but it didn't escape from his eyes. He frowned at it internally, questioning his mother's weird actions before pushing it aside.

"Go to sleep, honey. You should really rest more." She said as she pushed him onto the bed gently, reclining the bed so that he could sleep more comfortably.

"But I am not ti-" He refused but stopped midway. "Maybe I am tired." He agreed after a moment of thinking before closing his eyes again. Maybe by sleeping, he could escape from the nightmare again. So he allowed darkness to engulf him, missing the last look his mother gave him before she left the room.

 

~

 

Under his closed eyelids, he stretched out his arm towards the right side of the bed where he expected a warm body to be resting on. But his arm was met with empty air as it flopped back onto the linen lifelessly. Empty. Feeling that the warm body was missing, his eyes sprung open as he jolted up from his bed.

"Haera?!" He shouted as he stumbled out of bed, falling onto the floor ungraciously as his blanket tangled around his feet. He wasn't in a hospital anymore but back in his usual bedroom. He could feel the fear bubbling up in his system again. Is she gone again? Is this another nightmare? He pushed himself off the floor and wringed the blankets off his legs forcefully as he ran out of the door.

"Song Haera?!" He screamed again as he faltered down the stairs frantically, missing the last step as his legs tangled together and falling face front onto the wooden floor.

"Oompf! Ouch..." He winced as he rubbed his flattened nose unceremoniously while pushing himself off the floor. He didn't feel the pain as he continued his craze search around the house.

"Minseok?! Kim Minseok?!" It was the voice that he yearned to hear. His ears perked up at her voice and his brightened eyes scanned around the house frantically.

"Haera?! Where are you?!" He shouted as he directed himself around the house aimlessly, trying to find her presence.

"Minseok?!" She ran till her eyes fell upon him. "What the hell, Kim Minseok?! You scared the hell out of me!" She screamed as she raised her hand to slap his forearm harshly while trying to calm her heart down.

"Oh my god, Song Haera. You scared the out of me." He mumbled as he pulled her hand harshly, allowing her to crash into his arms. He tightened his grip around her body as he rested his chin on her head.

With a tired sigh, she rested her face on his chest as she ran her hand along his back. She could audibly hear the fast and heavy beating of his poor core against his ribs. She could also feel the irregular heaving of his chest as his breathing failed to calm down.

"What's wrong, Min?" She asked softly as she raised her head to press her lips on his chin softly.

"I thought this was a nightmare again." He replied, giving her a chaste kiss on her forehead, allowing his lips to linger on her skin for a moment before pulling away.

"Min, my bacon is still on the pan." She whispered as she tried to pull away from his embrace. Finally relaxed, he let out a soft chuckle as he released her, taking in the view of her with her auburn hair tied up in a messy bun, clad in her pink strawberry shortcake apron and holding onto a metal spatula in her hand.

"Come on, let's go. I'll help you with breakfast." He said as he wrapped his arm around her waist while pulling her towards the kitchen.

"Min, are you alright?" She asked, worry dripping off her voice as she placed her palm on his chubby cheek.

He chuckled softly before raising his index finger and pressing it on her furrowed eyebrows, easing them out gently. "I am now, as long as you are here." He mumbled with a cheeky grin as he snuggled his face against her palm, relishing in her touch.

She raised her fingers and flicked his forehead playfully before heading over to the stove to continue cooking (after throwing away the burnt bacons). Not wanting to be away from her, Minseok merely wrapped his arms around her petite waist and rested his chin on her shoulder while she continued cooking, ignoring the fact that he was impeding on her movements. She elbowed him gently in the guts, earning a grimace from him but he didn't budge from his position. She rolled her eyes at him playfully before continuing her work, ignoring the extra burden (that she loves) on her shoulders.

"Min, are you okay?" She asked as she watched the said male play around with his food on the plate.

"I'm fine, just that I am not hungry today." He replied with a smile as he transferred all of his food onto her plate instead.

"Are you sure? Bacons are your favorite though..." She asked with a slight frown, watching him set his plate aside on the table. Hearing her words, he shrugged indifferently as he rested his elbows on the table, using his palms to support his chin while staring at her as she ate her breakfast.

"Stop staring at me, Min." She mumbled as she placed her palm over his eyes, seemingly bashful under his affectionate gaze. But honestly, she loved the way he looked at her every time. It feels as though he could only see her in his world, just like how she could only see him in her world. Reaching both of her hands out, she pinched his chubby cheeks together, watching in delight as he squirmed around in her hold. He let out a series of soft chuckles as he gently wrapped his hand over hers, bringing it down to the table so that he could play with her fingers while she ate.

A blissful grin appeared on her lips as she chewed her bacon while staring at the male in front of her. She liked this. A comfortable silence whereby both of them are in their own thoughts but still knowing that each other is there. She stared at his face that seemed to have lost some of his chubbiness as his lips puckered up slightly to form a slight pout while playing with her fingers. She stifled down her giggles as she watched the half-50 aged male play with her hands like a childish little kid. After a moment of comfortable silence, she caught the slight wince on his face that disappeared the next second.

"Min, are you okay?" She asked for the umpteenth time today. She was worried, seeing how out of character he was today.

"Yeah, just a slight headache hitting up." He waved it away, still playing around with her fingers, intertwining them together with his before brushing his thumb over her knuckles gently.

"Go take a painkiller and have some rest later on. You barely had enough rest with all your nightmares." She replied, untangling their hands as she stood up to put away their used plates. He hummed in response as he stood up to do the dishes with her.

"Here." She said as she placed 2 white pills in his palm and held a glass of water before him.

"Thank you." He replied, pressing his lips against hers before popping the pills into his mouth and downing it with the glass of lukewarm water.

"Come on, you should rest." She reminded as she tugged onto his arm, pulling him towards the living room before plopping down onto the couch comfortably. Switching on the television, she patted her lap and gestured for him to come over. Grinning stupidly, he made his way over and rested his head on her lap, stretching his body on the couch as he watched the movie with her in silence. Her fingers absentmindedly ran through his hair continuously at a periodic pace, luring him to sleep like a perfect lullaby. Soon enough, darkness took over his conscious.

 

~

 

He felt something cold pressing against his chest in his sleep. It was uncomfortable but a second later, the cold object was gone.

"Patient is fine. He is just tired after the accident so is resting for a longer time." An unfamiliar voice said.

Patient? Is he the patient? He twitched his fingers and felt that the soreness was gone. He felt better, not knowing why. After hearing a series of footsteps, he felt a warm hand enveloping his cold hand, causing goosebumps to appear on his skin.

"Min-ah, please take care of yourself..." A familiar voice said. It was his mother. Is this a dream again? He really didn't know. It was as if this was a never ending nightmare and it scared him till no ends. It was a nightmare where Haera no longer existed and he didn't know why, or he couldn't remember why.

Meekly, he opened his eyes, narrowing them slightly as the bright light stung his eyes.

"M-mom?" He asked, his throat dry and voice coarse. His mother's eyes widened in surprise before she immediately let go of his hand, rushing over to the side to get a cup of water before bringing to his lips. He showed her an appreciative smile as he gulped down the water greedily, soothing his dry throat immediately.

"How are you feeling, Min?" She asked as she set the empty cup aside, sitting on the chair placed beside his bed.

"I don't know, mom, I don't know." He shook his head in frustration. "Is this a dream, mom? I can't tell if this is a dream or reality anymore, mom." He said bitterly.

"This is reality, Min. This was never a dream." His mother said with a visible frown on her face as she reached out to run her fingers through her son's hair.

"If this is reality, where is Haera, mom?" He asked with the same frown on his face. His mother stared right into his eyes, watching as his brown orbs expressed emotions of frustration, confusion and just... lost.

"Min..." She started off hesitantly, not knowing if she should continue with her words. She disliked the way her son looked right now. So lost, so confused, so... hurt. His eyes seemed to have lost their sparkling glimmers and they no longer looked as beautiful as before. His face looked so distraught and forlorn, with his stubble growing out, showing his lack of care for his own appearance. Was this really her son?

"Where is Haera, mom?" He asked again, seemingly impatient. He didn't know why was he so impatient, always in a rush. Was he running against time? Was he running out of time? He didn't know. He couldn't even recall what happened. He felt like he was stranded out in the open, exposed to the dangers of the wild and yet protected by the beliefs of God. Everything felt so familiar yet so foreign. Just what the hell is going on?

"She died, Min. She died." His mother whispered, her voice dropping an octave lower and definitely much softer. But his ears caught it. But his heart didn't.

"What do you mean she died, mom? How can Haera die?" He scoffed, refusing to believe the absurd and ludicrous words that his mother just spouted.

"She died, Minseok. She died months ago." She reiterated more sternly this time, wanting to get her words through his stubborn head.

"No way." He rolled his eyes in disbelief as he shot a glare to his mother. His biological mother. "Don't lie to me, mom. I knew you never approved of us but lying to this extent is just way overboard." He snarled, his tone dangerous and menacing but he didn't care. Not when her words were of such nonsensical truth.

"Min, listen to me..." She said as she stood up to envelope his cold hands in hers. But he merely refused, wringing his hands out of her grip.

"Kim Minseok! You snap out this bull right now!" She shouted as she forcefully pinned his hands down. Her chest heaved heavily as she snapped at her own son. She couldn't bear to watch him like this, living his life in absolute denial. She glared stoically at him as she waited for him to finally listen to her words.

"She is gone, Minseok. She is gone... You need to accept that." She said, her voice softer than before as she loosened her grip on his wrists.

His heart stopped and his breath hitched. Why does his mother sound so certain? He knew from her tone that she wasn't lying. Heck, who the hell would lie about someone dying? But he didn't believe it. Not when he had no recollections about it."But that's impossible..." He muttered under his breath as his eyes lost their focus and darted around the room in distraught.

But was it really impossible? He didn't want to believe it. But his heart wavered as he thought about her absence. "That's impossible..." He mumbled again as he desperately push back the tears that threatened to fall.

"That's impossible, right mom? Right mom? Please say it is impossible..." He cried as he tugged onto her wrists harshly, desperately wanting to hear the desired words from .

"It is true, Min. It is true..." She whispered as she fought back her own tears. Her heart broke at the sight of her son, as much as she didn't approve of their relationship.

"But... but..." He dropped back onto his bed in confusion, rubbing his face and messing up his hair frantically. Where is Haera? He couldn't remember when was the last time they spoke to each other. he couldn't remember when was the last time he saw her. He couldn't remember when was the last time he held her hands and kissed her lips. Why couldn't he remember anything? Frustrated and annoyed, he clenched up his fists and started hitting his own head with them.

"Stupid brain, stupid brain, why can't you remember anything?" He chided himself as he mercilessly brought his fists onto his head again and again.

"Min, stop it. Stop it!" His mother shouted as she grabbed onto his wrists forcefully but he unsnarled them harshly.

"Don't lie to me! Haera isn't dead! She can't be dead!" He screamed, seemingly have lost his sanity as he mumbled incoherent words under his breath. His heart was palpitating hard against his chest, as though it was going to go on an overdrive. His breath shortened as he tried to focus his mind.

"Haera... I've got to find Haera." He declared as he flung the linen over his body and pushed his body off the bed.

"No Min! Listen to me, Min!" His mother shouted as she tried to stop him from getting off the bed but he merely pushed her aside as he thoughtlessly pulled the little needles and tubes off his skin, wincing slightly at the pain.

"Doctor! Doctor!" His mother shouted frantically as her son stood up from his bed, stumbling slightly when a wave of dizzy spell hit him. He saw the door open and a bunch of people clothed in white ran in.

"Sedate him." The male at the front said as he gestured towards Minseok. Not knowing what was happening, he watched as the two nurses made their way to him. They grabbed his arm by force and skillfully injected a needle into his body. He felt a strange cooling sensation entering his body and before he knew it, his body went limp and he plunged into darkness again.

 

~

 

"seok... Minseok?!" He heard her voice again. It was Haera's voice, he knew it. He felt her hands on his face, squishing his cheeks again and again before shaking his shoulders again to wake him up. It brought him to ease to know that she was with him.

"H-Haera?" He called out, his voice still coarse and stale. He opened his eyes slightly and was immediately met with the view of her face closed up, her eyes staring right into his.

"Oh my god, Minseok. How many times are you going to scare me in a day?" She huffed as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Her breathing was irregular as she pressed herself closer to him.

"What happened?" He asked as he wrapped his arms around her waist naturally, inhaling her natural scent again and again till he could feel his heart beat slowing down back to its normal pace.

"You were shouting my name again. You even started crying." She whispered as she nudged his neck with her nose. "I was so scared, Min. You looked so in pain, I couldn't handle it." She muttered as she tightened her grip around his neck, as though she was afraid that he would leave her.

"It was a nightmare. Again, for the umpteenth time." He said bitterly, reminiscing the dreams that scared him till no ends. He didn't understand why he had such dreams continuously. It was as if life was playing a joke on him, to the extent in which he couldn't differentiate between what was real and was what hallucination. He felt like he was stuck in the state between hallucination and reality.

"What happened?" She asked, feeling her breath hitching up as fear rose up in her system. She was somehow afraid of everything.

"It was a continuation of the previous nightmare. Funny how I couldn't escape it..." He let out a series of bitter chuckles that pained her heart greatly. "This time, my mother told me that you died. It was impossible, wasn't it? I mean, I couldn't even remember how you died in my dream but my mother kept insisting that you died. It was impossible but she said it so... certainly that I felt scared. I felt so lost, so confused and so frustrated that I started crying and everything. I was about to run out to find you but the nurses sedated me instead." He recalled, his heart beat picking up slightly before he tightened his grip around the figure. She was here with him, he knew. He could feel her heart beat, hear her breathing and smell her scent.

"You won't leave me, right Haera?" He asked as he pulled away to stare into her eyes. He wanted her reassurance. He wanted her to never leave him. It was an unspoken promise that they had.

"Min..." She whispered as she cupped his cheek with her palm.

"Please answer me, Haera..." He begged, closing his eyes as he leaned in into her touch to relish in it.

"I have already left you, Min..." She whispered, her hand dropping down lifelessly as her head hung low.

 His eyes snapped open as he stared frozen at the female in front of him. "What do you mean you already left me, Haera?" He asked, his voice suppressed as he held back the wave of emotions that threatened to take over him. Anger, confusion, frustration, confusion, pain and... sadness.

"You know what I am talking about, Min..." She whispered as she raised her head to once again meet his eyes. He noticed her eyes changed. Her eyes spoke so much pain and forlorn that he just wanted to forget whatever she said and pull her into his arms again, assuring her that everything is alright and he doesn't care.

"I don't know what you are talking about, Haera. I really don't..." He whispered as he reached out to hold onto her hands. Her hands were cold, he noticed. Were they always this cold?

"You mixed up reality and dream, Min. This was never reality."

 

There are things in life which we do not wish for to happen but we have to accept it when it does. There are people in life that we are unable to live without but when they are gone, we just have to let go and move on. But things are always easier said than done. People always say that time heals a broken hearted. But to him, time doesn't heal anything. It doesn't heal anything when he refuses to accept anything. He didn't want to accept the fact that she was gone. He didn't want to accept the fact that a mere truck could take her life away so mercilessly and effortlessly. People reached out to pull him out of his drowning world but he merely slapped and pushed their hands away, not wanting to accept any of their help. He was so far into the stage of denial that he started believing in his dreams rather than reality. He was drowning but somehow, it didn't matter to him. His dreams were nothing but illusions and delusions, a trick of his own mind to bring about a facade of hallucination. But to him, it was where heaven existed. It was where everything was still right and perfect, unlike the broken reality that he was drowning in. He relished in her touches, her scent, her sight and her voice. Her presence was the core that kept his heart beating. He had become too reliant on her to survive. Without her, he was just a lost and confused soul lingering and roaming around earth. Maybe that's why he was constantly stuck between the state of reality and dreams.

 

It was a place close to heaven, where everything was perfect and just right.

It was a place close to hell, where everything was broken and nothing was right.

 

He simply chose the one where he could still smile in. 

 

 

---