Chapter Thirteen - The Truth Hurts (Part Two)
Live and Let LiveJin Ae skipped into her classroom happily, expecting to see Byunghun there to greet her, but his desk was empty. She frowned slightly but was quickly distracted when a girl from her class appeared in front of her.
“Hey Jin Ae-ssi, I have a question about cleaning duty…” Pushing the thought of Byunghun from her mind, she smiled at the girl as they began to discuss their classroom duties. Anyway, he probably slept in or something.
But as the day progressed, Byunghun was nowhere to be found. Jin Ae had even checked the roof top during lunch to see if he was there. She tried to text him and call him but there was no response. She was slightly worried but she tried to brush it off. Maybe he’s just not feeling well today, I’ll go see him later. She resolved with herself. It was now the end of the day and she was about to walk back home when one of her friends from class invited her along with them to go eat.
“Come on Jin Ae, it’s a Friday!” They pleaded and she gave in, Byunghun momentarily leaving her mind.
The streets were quiet, the shops were less busy as people were probably already settled in at home, maybe eating dinner. Byunghun walked alone down the street, his hands buried deep in his pockets. He had spent the day at home inside his bed, feigning sickness. His phone would constantly vibrate and ring and Jin Ae’s name would always pop up on the little screen. Looking at the name, he smiled – she knew something was up, but he couldn’t bring himself to tell her anything.
He walked as slowly as possible, not quite keen on reaching his destination too quickly, but before he knew it, he stood in front of the corner store. Sure enough, there stood C.A.P holding a black bag.
“You’re getting better about being on time.” He smirked. Byunghun ignored his remark and decided to get straight to the point.
“What is it that you want me to do, C.A.P?”
“In a bit of a hurry are we? You that desperate to see your, ah, girlfriend?” He held up a familiar picture in between his two fingers while snickering. Byunghun’s blood began to boil.
“Look, I don’t care what the hell you do to me or what you make me do, but do not touch Jin Ae.” He growled menacingly. C.A.P only laughed mockingly at him before stowing away the picture in his jacket pocket.
“I can’t promise you anything Byunghun, but that’s another matter entirely – “
“I said, don’t bring Jin Ae into this.” Byunghun interrupted and C.A.P frowned at him, taking a step closer.
“I’ll do what I want punk, now you listen to me or else she will get the bad end of things.” Byunghun didn’t answer but glared right at him.
“Good, now I want you to use whatever’s in this bag and I need you to get something for me in the corner store.” Byunghun raised an eyebrow.
“You want me to steal something?” C.A.P just shrugged as he threw the bag at Byunghun.
“I’m not on friendly terms with the owner and besides, it’s the money that I want.” Byunghun’s heart dropped – shoplifting was one thing, but what C.A.P was asking him to do was full out robbery.
“Wait, what…?!” Byunghun asked incredulously but C.A.P just narrowed his eyes at him.
“Just think of your precious girl okay, now do what I say. I want you to grab cash and get out. Everything you need is in the bag.” He nodded at the object in Byunghun’s hand and he sighed, opening it. Inside he found a black ski mask and a small pistol.
“Why do I need this?” He pointed at the silver pistol, almost afraid to touch it. C.A.P picked up on his discomfort and smirked.
“How the hell do you expect to get anything? Now hurry up.” C.A.P said before disappearing in the shadows. Byunghun’s mind was in complete chaos at the moment. Never would he have imagined himself caught in this predicament.
Man, I really screwed up this time. I could try to make a run for it, but knowing C.A.P, his’ probably still watching somewhere…
Byunghun gulped and his hands shook as he pulled the ski mask over his head. He then reached into the bag again and pulled out the pistol, looking around to see if there was anyone around.
Knowing that he was quite alone, he frantically tried to find an alternative to his situation. An idea then popped into his head and he looked down at the pistol in his hand. He carefully dismantled it, shaking out the bullets and throwing them into the garbage can nearby. He closed up the pistol again and adjusted his mask before stepping into the dimly lit store.
There were few people shopping at that time and Byunghun thought he’d be able to get in and get out. He quietly made his way to the front, hiding behind a row of instant ramen. He peeked around a stand and saw two people waiting to pay. He decided that now would be the ideal time to strike – and sure enough, just as the owner opened the cash register, Byunghun summoned up all his courage and stepped out from behind the stand.
“Give me the money.” He said with a low voice. The owner only looked at him blankly and Byunghun was trying his hardest not to run out.
“I said g-give me the money.” Crap, I stuttered. The people seemed to notice and Byunghun thought it was time to pull out the empty pistol. Once he took it out, all three of them froze in their tracks. He ran behind the counter and pointed the pistol at the cash register.
Byunghun, what the hell are you doing.
“Put the money in.” He spoke again, the owner’s trembling hands fumbling with the bills.
“Son, please put the gun down.” Byunghun looked up and saw a familiar face looking back at him.
Oh …
“N-No.” He found himself saying.
Damn it Byunghun, just get out of there!
“Please, you’re not doing anyone a favor by doing this…”
Always the reasonable man Mr. Park, I see where Jin Ae gets it from; Byunghun, just listen to him…
“I h-have to do this.” But as he said this, Byunghun lowered his pistol a small centimeter and when Mr. Park saw this, he took a small step forward when…
BANG!
Byunghun looked at the old face staring right at him, traces of pity was all that was left before his eyes rolled back and he collapsed on to the floor.
“Yunhwa!” Byunghun’s head snapped up as he saw yet another familiar face – Mrs. Park was running towards her husband when it happened again.
BANG!
The two bodies lay on top of each other and Byunghun looked in disbelief. He subconsciously dropped his gun and looked towards the door. There he saw a shadow of a figure whose silhouette he could so easily recognize. He thought he saw the slightest flash of a smirk and a glint of metal before the mysterious man disappeared. Byunghun’s chest rose up and down as he breathed heavily, unable to comprehend what had just happened. He glanced at the shop owner who had taken advantage of Byunghun’s distraction to call the police.
“Son, I know you didn’t shoot them.” Byunghun was surprised to hear the owner speak to him.
“B-But how did you – “
“Your pistol’s empty, it was empty this whole time wasn’t it?” Byunghun looked into the wizened old face of the owner, the faint sound of sirens slowly coming closer.
“And you knew those two didn’t you?” Byunghun couldn’t understand why, but he answered the man’s questions.
“Please, let them take me in.” The man’s expression remained pitiful as he lightly grasped Byunghun’s shoulder. The sirens were getting louder and louder.
“Dear boy, you didn’t do this, you could get seriously charged – “
“It’s my fault any of it happened anyway, please, if you must, you needn’t say anything to them, I’ll confess to the whole thing. Just please ahjusshi, those people just now…they mean a lot to me…they meant a lot to me…”
“Put your hands up!” Byunghun immediately stood up and held his hands in the air, turning his back to the shop owner. Everything else that happened after that was all but a blur, a flurry of movement, lots of lights flashing, the speeding car driving down the empty streets. Byunghun could only remember the two faces of the people that had done so much to care for him as their own. He looked out the window and saw yet someone else he recognized running down the street.
Word spreads quickly.He thought as he watched Jinsang run towards a small neighborhood where he knew Jin Ae probably sat waiting, most likely fuming that Byunghun had missed their movie night.
I’m sorry Jin Ae, I’m so sorry.
“A suspect has now under custody after an attempted robbery…” The television lit up a very dark living room. Jin Ae sat on the couch, curled up into a little ball, only half listening to what the news anchor was reporting.
“Aigoo Byunghun, where are you?” Jin Ae said to no one in particular. She glanced down at her cell phone – it stayed silent and she threw her head back on the couch. It was then that the house phone began to ring.
“Hello, is this Park Jinsang?” Great, probably one of his stupid subscription notices.
“No, he’s not home right now, may I take a message?”
“Ah, then is Park Jin Ae at home?” Jin Ae’s patience was wearing thin but she couldn’t help but to feel slightly uncomfortable.
“Yes, who is this?”
“Hello Jin Ae-ssi, I would like to inform you that there will be two police officers to you down to the station, they should be arriving any minute now. I must ask that you do not watch the news reports while you wait for their arrival.” Jin Ae blinked in disbelief.
“I’m sorry, but if this is some kind of stupid prank, I’m not buying it.”
“Please Jin Ae-ssi, I’m calling from the police department, I must ask you to listen to me.” Jin Ae was feeling rather skeptical but decided to comply with the supposed officer’s wishes. She quickly turned off the TV just as a grainy image of a masked robber flashed on the screen. She said goodbye to the officer and just as she hung up, there was a knock on the door.
“Police, please open up!” Despite the warning that she had gotten, Jin Ae still wasn’t sure how true the phone call was and left the chain on the door as she opened it.
“Jin Ae-ssi?” To her surprise, there really were two fully uniformed police officers standing on her front step. She quickly removed the chain and crossed her arms, shivering slightly as the cool night air rushed in.
“Hello officers, I don’t mean to be rude, but what exactly brings you here? Have I done something wrong? Maybe I should wait for my parents to come home.” She noticed that both of them had sad expressions, making her feel worried. What’s there to be worried about?
“It is best if we discuss this along with your brother at the station, so if you could – “
“Ji!” There was a shout from the end of the sidewalk and Jin Ae looked and saw her brother running towards them. The officers looked more burdened than ever, one standing rather stiffly as Jinsang approached the doorstep.
“Jinsang, there you are! There are officers here and – hey, are you okay? Jinsang?” Jinsang’s eyes were red and his face was blotchy, tears messily streaming down his face. He took one look at his younger sister and rounded on the officers.
“Who did it?” The officers looked at each other.
“We should really talk at the station – “
“Officers, please, I beg of you, who did it?” They gave no response and at this point, Jin Ae grew increasingly worried. She gripped Jinsang’s shoulder and tugged on it.
“J-Jinsang, what’s going on? Who did what? Could someone please tell me something?” She begged, looking from one officer to the next, and finally at Jinsang who held both her hands tightly. Jin Ae looked straight into Jinsang’s eyes and saw pain and anger swimming behind the tears. He looked back at the officers.
“If you won’t tell her then I will.” The officers could only look at him helplessly as Jinsang pulled Jin Ae into the house, not bothering to shut the door. He kept a hold on her arm and she started to feel scared.
“Jinsang, what’s this all about?” He took a shaky breath and closed his eyes, the tears still cascading down his cheeks.
“Jin Ae, we’re on our own now okay?” He said, his voice barely more than a whisper.
“What? What the hell are you saying Jinsang?”
“They’re gone Ji, Mom and Dad are gone.” Jin Ae shook her head.
“No, they said they’re coming back after running a few errands at the convenience store.” Jinsang then took both of Jin Ae’s hands and held on to them tightly, his own voice starting to tremble as he tried to keep as calm as possible in front of his younger sister.
“There was a robbery, a masked man walked into the store and had a pistol. He went up to the cash and took the owner hostage. Mom and Dad were…they were about to pay and Dad – he tried to calm the robber down, but there was a gunshot and…he got hit…” Jinsang took another deep breath and Jin Ae looked at him, bewildered.
“You’re kidding right? What is this sick joke? It’s not funny Jinsang – “
“Ji, listen to me! Mom was there and as she ran to help Dad, there was another shot and…Ji…” Jinsang couldn’t seem to control himself anymore and he gripped Jin Ae’s hands even tighter as he closed his eyes. Jin Ae just couldn’t believe a word she was hearing and tried to pull away from Jinsang.
“No, this isn’t funny, let go of me Jinsang. I’m going to go find Mom and Dad.” She had successfully removed herself from Jinsang’s clutches and ran out the door, past the two police officers who, surprisingly, still stood on the front steps. Her phone was still in her pockets and she hadn’t bothered putting on shoes and ran down the sidewalk in her slippers. She kept on running and running, trying her best to push Jinsang’s words from her mind. He couldn’t be telling her the truth; he was just lying, right?
Nonetheless, she didn’t stop running until she reached the convenience store. Her heart dropped as she saw multiple police cars surrounding the area, a few people poking their heads out to see all the commotion, and a yellow caution tape surrounding the area. She desperately looked along the sidewalk, trying to see some sort of reassurance that this was some sort of set-up. But then her eyes landed on a grey mini-van that was still parked along the sidewalk. That’s their car, no this isn’t real…
Jin Ae had began to run again, this time her feet not taking her home, but to her place of comfort. She found the park she always went to and knelt down by the tree where she and Byunghun had carved their initials in. She knelt down and began to sob earnestly. She needed comfort, or at least to hear someone else’s voice – taking out her phone from her pocket, she dialed a familiar number and put it to her ear.
“Hello?”
“B-Byunghun…” Silence.
“Byunghun, talk to me, please…”
“Jin Ae, I can’t talk to you anymore. I’m sorry, but I need you to leave me alone for a while.” Jin Ae gasped, her heart pumping ten times faster than normal.
“W-What are you talking about Byunghun?”
“Jin Ae, just leave me alone. I just don’t want to talk to you anymore – you’re an annoying little brat and I just can’t deal with you.” His voice was hard and Jin Ae stiffened.
“Byunghun, what are you – “
“Just leave me the alone, I hate you!” With that, there was a beep and Jin Ae let her phone drop on to the sandy ground. It was ironic how she took comfort in looking at the initials on the tree while still taking in what Byunghun had just told her.
It was just all too sudden, it didn’t seem right. Nothing seemed right – confused, alone, and helpless, Jin Ae was taken over with a new wave of fresh tears as she sobbed into the night.
Are you guys confused yet? I wouldn't really blame you. Anyway, if you guys ARE confused as to when this is all happening, this and the previous chapter are flashbacks. If you remember in Chapter 11, they were at Byunghun's house because Jin Ae was attacked and almost , and these flashbacks are a way of Byunghun telling her the whole truth. If you have any questions or if I just made you even more confused than before, just drop a comment! I hope you enjoy ♥
OH! And this story got a review HERE by Maria at lemonswirls. The poster was done by Nixie at lemonswirls as well, it's quite lovely (:
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