CHAPTER I: LOST

“She wanted to freeze the hands of time. Wanted to revisit, revise and rewrite the past…edit out the monsters hell-bent on taking the lives of everyone she loved.” 

― R. W. Patterson

~~~

She did not know where she was going. 

The thick vegetation and the autumn evening mist both doing their best to lead her into a directionless wander,  Haerin breathed hard as she continued running aimlessly.

Feeling her lungs nearing their limit, Haerin finally slowed her steps as she neared a small stream at the edge of the village, the steady sound of running water doing its bit to calm her whirlwind of thoughts. 

Who was she? And what was she doing here? 

Trying to focus on the ebb and flow of the water to control her breath and from keeping her thoughts from spiralling out of control, Haerin shut her eyes as she tried to remember. She had woken up moments ago in an unfamiliar bed, her head hurting immensely and throat parched as if she had been asleep for a long time. She tried, she really tried, to dig into the depths of her brain for a clue, anything, that could explain her situation, but all that came to her was one name —Haerin. She recalled the gaze of a tan handsome young man who had been by her bedside the whole time as various people, doctors she assumed, fussed over her. In all honesty, their endless fussing probably contributed to her head hurting even more. 

Did she know him? He had stared back at her with a pair of warm and kind eyes that she could not seem to turn away from, his lips sporting a gentle smile, wide enough for her to sense it but not too garish that it became intimidating. For some strange reason, his gentle presence comforted her.

Inching closer to the bank as she stared engrossedly at her own reflection trying to see if looking at her physical appearance would give her a clue about who she was on the inside,  she gasped as she felt a sudden movement behind her before a hand clamped over to prevent her from making a sound. Instantly on alert, Haerin tried to struggle as she made failed attempts to move out of the perpetrator’s iron-clad grasp, only managing to land a weak stomp on his foot.

“Haerin, stop! It’s me, Sehun!” the perpetrator whisper-yelled as she found herself whirled around, face-to-face with the masked perpetrator.

“Se-who?” 

Rolling his eyes in frustration, the perpetrator pulled down his mask to reveal his face. “It’s me, Haerin, for god’s sake, stop struggling! Let’s get you home before we get discovered,” he hurriedly explained, his grip moving to her wrist as he attempted to pull her along with him. 

Momentarily stunned, Haerin found herself being dragged along but soon came to her senses as she wrenched her herself out of the man’s grasp. 

“Let go of me! I don’t know you!” 

The man moved forward to take her hand but stopped short in surprise when Haerin backed away hastily. 

“What do you mean you don’t know me?” he almost laughed as he moved closer, slowing down his movements this time in a bid not to scare her. “I’m Sehun — your Sehun!” 

“Stop! D-don’t come any closer!” Haerin cried out in desperation as she found herself slowly being backed into a large tree. 

Clearly losing his patience, the ma