Chapter 4

 

Chanyeol leans his head to Eunjin's lap while she keeps on caressing his hair, playing with his ear sometimes. There's still fifteen more minutes until the ship is cleared from the chaos. After the chaos is done, both of them are going out to the boat. Chanyeol glances at the watch before he speaks up after a long silence.

 

"Mom..."

 

"Yes?" Eunjin looks down to her son. She smiles at him sweetly when he turns his face and adjusting his position so that he'll face her on the lap.

 

"Will you keep your promises?"

 

She slowly nods, "Always."

 

"I love you, mom." Chanyeol says. Eunjin smiles and laughs a little. Chanyeol frowns, "Why are you laughing?"

 

Eunjin stops laughing and sighs softly, "Because... It's a bit weird. You're calling me mom when I'm still 18 while you're 23 years old. I haven't got married and haven't pushed you out of my ."

 

Chanyeol laughs, "Well... Not for long mom. We'll be together soon as real mother and son..."

 

Eunjin touched his cheek, "I love you too, Chanyeol."

 

A loud bang is heard right outside of the room. The lowest level is the store, where the crews kept their stuffs in here. Eunjin panics when Chanyeol quickly gets up and takes the rifle, "It's Hyunjoong."

 

Eunjin gasps, "What do we do now?"

 

"I'll kill him." Chanyeol says. Eunjin shakes her head, "What if you don't?"

 

Chanyeol grits his teeth, "He'll shoot you."

 

Bang!

 

"Mom!" Chanyeol shouts and shoots two bullets at Hyunjoong. Chanyeol kneels beside Eunjin when the captain falls on the ground. Eunjin groans in pain and she holds the side of her stomach.

 

"Mom... Stay awake... Look at me." Chanyeol says, his body is shaking. His watch suddenly glows in blue. Time's almost up.

 

Chanyeol cups his mother's face, "Mom we're almost out. We have to get back up before the soldiers come down here and see me."

 

Eunjin breathes heavily. When she almost shuts her eyes, Chanyeol shakes her shoulders and pats her cheeks for a few times, "No, no, no, no, no! Don't fall asleep. Keep your eyes open. Get up, mom! Please... Please don't do this to me."

 

Chanyeol is panicking; his breath becomes unsteady and he could feel his body is trembling. The tears are pooling in his eyes, waiting for the right time to fall down as the liquid reaches the maximum level in his eyes. After a few seconds, the tears finally fall, and it falls on Eunjin’s right cheek; mixed with her own tears that already fell due to the pain. Chanyeol shakes his head for a few times, hoping that he wouldn’t lose his mother ̶ once again. He already lost her once; he’s not going to let it happen again. Chanyeol breathes a sigh of relief when Eunjin finally speaks up even though it is just a whisper.

 

"Help... Me... Up..."

 

Chanyeol nods, "On three. One… Two… Three!"

 

She finally gets on her feet quickly with Chanyeol’s help. He lifts Eunjin's body, carrying her bridal style. He runs towards the elevator and enters it, together with Eunjin in his arms. Chanyeol looks down to her, only to see that she’s already staring at him with her tired eyes.

 

"Let me help you, mom... I don't want to lose you again. Please..." Chanyeol pleads and stares at his mother's wound. He could see the bullet stuck between Eunjin’s fleshes and even though it’s not too deep, she is running out of blood.

 

"Thank you, Chanyeol..." Eunjin smiles weakly. Eunjin stares at him, feeling a feeling that she has never felt before. It’s like a feeling of a woman when she has a child. It’s not pride but it’s still there. She does feel proud with herself. It’s an unexplainable feeling but it makes her very happy. She feels somehow alive and she feels like she has a reason to live ̶ and a commitment to take care of. She feels responsible and she’s excited of her commitment ̶ of being a mother. It’s every woman’s dream after all. She continues, "You are a great son..."

 

"We're almost there, mom." The elevator opens and he puts Eunjin down, holding her waist to prevent her from falling. Chanyeol stares at her and touches her right cheek, "This is it, mom... My time is up."

 

Eunjin stares at him, "What do you mean?" Chanyeol pulls her into a tight hug, "I love you, mom."

 

He pulls away and stares at her, "Remember our promises, mom." Eunjin nods vigorously, "Always, Chanyeol... Always."

 

"I could only help you until this part... Don't worry, mom. It's over. You're free." Chanyeol smiles sadly. His watch glows in blue again and he presses a button to make it stop glowing.

 

He plants a soft kiss on Eunjin's forehead, still holding her waist. Chanyeol gives her a bright smile, "Goodbye, mom."

 

Eunjin's tears keep on streaming down her face. It's solemn and heart breaking. She feels heavy to let go of him; just like every mother. Chanyeol continues, "Don't cry. Our goodbye is not for forever."

 

"I'll see you in the future, mom."

 

Chanyeol looks at his watch and stares at his mother with a smile. Eunjin frowns when he starts a countdown.

 

And Chanyeol pushes her harshly, with all his force until she hits someone's chest.

 

"Oh!"

 

"Woah!"

 

"Yah!"

 

"Eek!"

 

"Miss, are you alright?"

 

Eunjin froze to the familiar voice. She slowly looks up and gasps silently. She keeps on staring at the owner of the voice and the owner of the hands that are wrapped to her body. Her heart is beating fast and she couldn’t believe her eyes at first. She thought that her mind was only playing tricks with her but when he spoke again, she knew this is neither a mind trick nor a dream.

 

"Miss... Are you alright?" The soldier asks again, snapping Eunjin from her thoughts. She looks at his name tag on his military uniform.

 

PARK CHANSUNG

 

"I'm... Fine..." Eunjin whispers and groans when she tries to stand up straight. Chansung quickly holds her before she could fall. She turns her head to find Chanyeol, but he’s not there anymore. He’s gone…

 

"She's bleeding!" Another soldier says. "She's shot! Let's bring her to the helicopter now!"

 

"How about the boat?" A soldier beside Chansung asks. "Boat's full. Hurry!" Chansung says and carries Eunjin bridal style. She is tired but she'd decided to keep her eyes open by staring at the man who looks exactly like her son.

 

Park Chansung... The only thing that's different between Chansung and Chanyeol is; Chansung's hair is shiny black while Chanyeol's dyed in grey. Other than that, they look just the same. For a moment, the sadness in her heart is gone, as it faded slowly once she saw Chansung’s face. The brief longing she was feeling just now just disappeared. Funny when their few second goodbyes could make her already feel longing isn’t it?

 

"Alpha 1, check the first level of the ship. Alpha 2, check the second level and Alpha 3, check the third level. Bravo 1, we need help to check on the fourth level, so do Bravo 2 and 3 for the next levels." A soldier says.

 

Chansung puts Eunjin on a bed and pulls up the poles around it. He then attaches wires to every corner of the bed. Straps and belts are tied around her, and she couldn’t even move a muscle. Chansung looks at her, "Stay awake." He then looks up while talking in his radio, "Pull her up!"

 

Eunjin is pulled up by the helicopter, slowly and safely. She wants to close her eyes but she fights the urge to do so. When she reaches the helicopter, a female soldier pulls her in and presses Eunjin's wound.

 

She groans and the female soldier comforts her, "It's alright... It's going to be fine. Keep your eyes open while I'm taking this bullet out of you, okay?"

 

Eunjin nods weakly. Chansung climbs into the helicoptera few minutes later, quickly detaching his belt and approaches Eunjin. "How is she?" He asks the female soldier. She didn’t even glance at Chansung since she’s busy getting her surgical instruments ready. She pulls out the alcohol pads, bandages, forceps and many more.

 

Eunjin glances at the female's soldier name.

 

HWANG MIYOUNG

 

"I'm going to get the bullet out." She says. Chansung kneels beside her slowly, "What's your name?"

 

Eunjin wants to answer but her eyes are automatically closing. Chansung shakes his head, "No! Don't fall asleep, answer me. What's your name?"

 

"Eu... Eunjin." It comes out as a whisper and she passes out.

 

                                                                                                    

 

Eunjin opens her eyes and looks around her. She's definitely in a ward. She presses a button to call the nurses but the ones who enter is the same female soldier from the helicopter.

 

"You're finally awake. How are you feeling?" Miyoung asks. Eunjin sighs, "Like ."

 

Miyoung giggles. Eunjin asks, "How long have I been out?" Miyoung looks at her watch, "5 days."

 

"Where are we?"

 

Miyoung smiles to her, "On the marine ship. Currently at Dammam, Saudi Arabia. We're on our way home to Korea."

 

"How long does it take to reach Korea?"

 

"90 days." Miyoung answers. Eunjin sighs heavily. The knock on the door makes the two female stare at the door. Eunjin froze to see Chansung at the door.

 

"Hi." He greets. Eunjin gives him a simple nod. He walks towards her slowly and then smiles, "Do you need water?"

 

"Yes please." She says. Chansung hands her a glass of plain water and she drinks it, "Thanks Chanye-Chansung-ssi."

 

"How do you know my name?" He looks at her. She mentally groans to her second mistake. Her eyes linger to the walls, to Miyoung who’s apparently staring at her, to his face and then to his uniform. Fortunately for her, his nametag is placed on the uniform. "Your name tag." Chansung grins and looks down for a second as if he’s hiding his embarrassment, "Ah... Yeah. What's your name?"

 

"Lee Eunjin." She says. Miyoung gets out of the room, leaving the two of them alone. "Thank you..." She whispers. Chansung looks at her, "For what?"

 

Eunjin smiles weakly, "For saving us." Chansung nods, "It's our job."

 

"How old are you?" He asks. "I'm eighteen."

 

"What should I call you, sir?" Eunjin asks. Chansung laughs, "Chansung sounds good. What should I call you, miss?"

 

She smiles, "Just Eunjin."

 

"I want to know you more, Eunjin." He says, staring in her eyes. She stares back into the mesmerising eyes that are staring at her with a familiar look.

 

Chanyeol.

 

Except Chanyeol's stares are the stares of a son towards his beloved mother. Chansung's are different.

 

Eunjin asks, "What do you want to know?"

 

"Everything." He says and the door is knocked again. A man comes in with a smile, "There you are, Lieutenant!"

 

A tall soldier who has the perfect figure and a tan skin walks towards them. He fixes his own hair after pulling out his hat and hangs it to his belt. The soldier stares at Chansung for a moment before he changes his gaze towards Eunjin, who’s already looking at him. He flashes a charming straight white teeth grin to her, making Eunjin smiles at him. “You’re finally awake. How are you?” He speaks.

 

“Well… Alive.”

 

The soldier laughs but then stops when Chansung asks, “What do you need?” The soldier smiles and then nudges Chansung’s shoulder playfully, "Just checking up on you.”

 

Chansung pats the soldier's shoulder, "This is Lee Eunjin. Eunjin, this is the sergeant major and he is my best friend... Kim Jongin."

 

Eunjin's smile slowly fades away. The memory from the ship where Chanyeol warned her about this person comes into her mind like a video tape playing in sepia tone. Eunjin’s expression turns into a poker face and she could feel her body tensed. Jongin looks at her with a bright smile, "Nice to know you, Eunjin-ssi."

 

Charming, pretty eyes, and bright smile ̶ he’s perfect. But she knows, he is not going to do any good.

 

"Nice to know you too... Sergeant Major." She says, her tone changes.

 

Jongin laughs, “Just Jongin, sweetheart.”

 

“Well then. Nice to meet you, Jongin-ssi.”

 

Chanyeol, I'll keep our promises.

 

 

 

THE END