Chapter 4

Jung SoMi~

My breath hitched when our eyes met. I didn’t know how to react in this situation, so I remained reticent. My teeth clashed against each other, clattering from my low body temperature. Shocking my clammy skin, Ahjussi’s touch scorched through my drenched clothes as he sat me down on the edge of the tub before turning on the hot water. Instinctively at the absence of his heat, my arms went to wrap themselves around my core as I shivered with my long hair sticking to my face and neck. When he left the room, my eyes traveled to my bare feet, which were pale as ghosts with slivers of blue running through. My eyes followed his every move when he returned to place a towel and some clothes on the counter. I assumed that he felt me staring at him, for he glanced back at me for what seemed like the longest second. Then he walked out, closing the door behind him.

I didn’t even realize that I was holding my breath until I exhaled deeply once alone in the bathroom. For some reason I couldn’t explain, I felt absolutely shattered. Peeling off my wet clothes and underwear, I lowered myself into the filled tub and contracted when the hot water momentarily electrocuted me. Tears fell at the knowledge of what a mess I truly was as I stood underneath the running water that soothed my aching body.  

Since I left the house in a dazed hurry after waking up from the nightmares, I wasn’t wearing a bra. Muttering under my breath in nervousness, I picked up the dry set of clothes and slipped on the solid black tee shirt. Keeping my damp underwear on out of much needed decency, I pulled on the pair of black sweats and tightened them until there wasn’t any room to anymore. Walking out of the bathroom, never did I feel so self-conscious before. Not even when I was and pressed against WooHyun during our first time together.

Only then did I get a thorough look at Ahjussi. It was as if those twelve years never passed, for he looked the same as he did before the cops took him away in front of the stationary store. However this time, there weren’t any cuts on his face that made it look like he was crying blood tears. He stood in the kitchen, pouring hot water into a mug clad in a white tee shirt. I sat down on the couch and wrapped my arms around myself, still feeling cold with water droplets falling onto my shoulders from my damp hair. A cup of steaming tea was placed in my hands and I took a sip as his shoulder touched mine. Because of his close proximity, I averted my eyes straight and allowed the hot tea to warm me up. He was mum, while I fought the urge to not look at him and bit my chapped lips.

“What were you doing out there?” His low, deep voice startled me, for the silence was more bearable for me in this moment. I wanted to tell him the truth, cry, and be comforted by him but instead I lifted my shoulders in a shrug and sipped my tea. Then suddenly, he grabbed the mug from my hands and set it down on the table. But what came next was what finally broke my indifferent guise. His fingers gently cupped my chin, making it impossible for me to not face him. Tears pricked my eyes as his fingers grazed my left cheek and then the still raw scratch marks near my temple. His warm touch replaced the stinging pain that I felt the day before. My face contorted in anguish.

“The memories won’t leave my head…” I confessed, feeling that tightness in my chest once again. The tears flowed without restraint for once in a long time as I melted into his embrace. I cried into the crook of his neck, comforted by his tight hug. It was his embrace I always longed for in moments of despair.

He pulled back to wipe away my tears and I recognized the sorrow in his glinting eyes as my reflection. With the rising sun illuminating him from the window, Ahjussi was a vision of peace.

While I was still trapped in the shadows, drowning in misery.

Lee SooHyun~

“SoMi?” I shouted from my bed, wondering where she was. Her phone was on her nightstand, but her bed was unmade. I slipped on my slippers and searched the place for her. I checked the living room, bathroom, kitchen, and doorway to see no sight of her. The sun had just come up, meaning that it was around six in the morning. Today was a school day and SoMi did go to sleep last night in our room. Where was she? Her phone was here and her folders and laptop were still on her desk, indicating that she didn’t leave for school earlier than usual. She wouldn’t be with WooHyun at this time, since he tended to always be late to class.

I was getting worried, for I knew that something was going on. I didn’t want to force her to open up, because whatever was going on was really affecting her. She hides it so well underneath her pristine appearance and smiling face. She doesn’t think that I know how her foundation conceals her dark circles and