It was a crisp Saturday morning, with bright blue skies, however the temperature outside was brutally cold.  It was the end of January and Hye -Yoon had been awake for one day. Not only was she was fully awake but she was also ready to communicate. Mama and Papa Choi were at her bedside at the moment, trying to converse with her as much as they could, trying to navigate sounds and phrases due to her dysarthriatic condition.

" Wh...way...ee...uh-t...t...t. Ho...puh...puh..ng...ung", she said, twisting like a pretzel as she struggled to get out the words. Mama Choi looked at her husband, confused.

" I don't know what she's trying to say. What is she saying?", asked Mama Choi.

" She's asking what happened. You  need to listen carefully.", Papa Choi snapped. " Yeobo, don't worry about any of that now, everything will be explained soon enough.", he said tenderly to Hye Yoon. TOP walked through the door not long after. Papa Choi, saw him and bolted up right before he could enter the room.

" Son, don't come in just yet. I'll met you in the hall.", said Papa Choi, ushering a confused TOP into the hallway.

" Appa, what's going on? Is she not ok?", asked TOP with an expression of fear and sadness on his face.

" She's fine, she's fine. I just...I just want to prepare you. She's not the Hye Yoon you remember.", said Papa Choi.

" I know. She talkes funny now, so what? She's still my sister.", said TOP.

" I know, but just be prepared when you see her. I know that mentally you understand this condition, but to see it before your eyes is a different story. Just listen to her, pay attention to what she's trying to say , because you won't understnad anything that's coming out of . okay?", said his father. TOP shook his head in agreement, then let out an uneasy chuckle.

" Now I'm really scared.", he half - joked. His father smiled.

" Don't be. Don't be. Come on. She will be happy to see you.", said his father as they walked back into the room. TOP slowly walked towards Hye Yoon's bed and saw for himself what his father had just told him. He saw his sister with gaped open, forcing out syllables and consonanats that didn't seem to go together. At one point stayed open, the same sound jutting out over and over like a skipping CD. TOP could feel tears start to well in his eyes. She looked so helpess. She so desperately had something she was trying to say to their mother but couldn't. He could even see ithe frustraion on her face. To slumber and then to wake up,like this...it must have been a nightmare for her. TOP walked over and sank down next to her on her bed. He wrapped his arms around her as she continued to try and speak, finally getting the word out. She looked at TOP and the frustration in her eyes was replaced with joy.

" Sh...shung..hee.", she said, attempting to say his name. TOP smiled as he continued to hold her.

" I love you.", he said kissing her cheek. Her body melted into his embrace.

" I...I..lab..yo..you.", she said, resting her head against his shoulder.

..................................

Se7en returned late at night to his motel, a standard one bedroom dump that doubled as a summer home for cockroaches. Se7en didn't mind however, as he came from humble beginnings. HIs father worked hard for every meal that made it to the table when he was a  child and the neighborhood he grew up in, was less than savory, so this was nothing he couldn't handle. It was temporary and after tonight, he'd planned on boarding a flight to Utila, Honduras. a small island south of the Mesoamerican barrier reef. He envisioned himself lying on white sandy beaches and sipping maragaritas as he pulled out his keys. In a matter of seconds, a swift arm, slid around his neck, jarring him out of his thoughts. He was being locked into a sleeper hold by someone. It was CAP, dressed in the same black hoodie pulled over his head and dark jeans. He was also carrying a small backpack. Se7en struggled and tried reaching for his gun, but after a few moments of writhing about,  he was out cold. CAP then grabbed Se7en's keys, unlocked the door and drug Se7en's limp body into the motel room. Once inside CAP flipped Se7en's body over and reached into his backpack. He pulled out a series of items including; duct tape, rope, handcuffs,a jacknife and pliers. He proceeded to prop Se7en's body against the bed and handcuff his hands to the headboard, as well as roping his feet together and duct taping his mouth shut. CAP had to move fast as the sleeperhold only rendered a person unconscious for up to ten minutes, tops. After completing this task CAP sat at the foot of the bed, the television and pulled out a pear.
Not much later, after about  3 to 4 minutes, CAP felt shifting on the bed. He turned around to see Se7en slowly emerging into consciousness. CAP angled his body to face Se7en while biting into his pear.

" Welcome back Se7en. So glad you could join me.", smirked CAP whilst crunching away. Se7en squinted his eyes, adjusting his blurred vision. CAP was nothing but a muted black blob sitting at the edge of the bed. But as he continued to come to, his eyes widened  and he saw CAP clearly. He also realized that his hands and feet were bound. CAP laughed as he watched SE7en writhe around like a snake, trying to break free. He stood up and hovered over Se7en's body, with a chesire cat smile on his face.

" It's pointless , my friend. This is the end of the line. However  -", CAP walked over to the aray of tools he'd set out previously and picked up the pliers, "  - I thought we'd have a little fun first.", grinned CAP, eyeing the glistening steel amidst Se7en's muffled grunts and cries.