(Myungsoo's POV)

As usual, I woke up the next morning as the sun rose. The house was quiet once more - the only peace this house ever experienced was when dad wasn’t home, or passed out. Right now, it was the latter. I sighed. Getting out of bed, I smoothened down the sheets before inspecting my cuts. They weren’t too bad; I’ve had worse. Most of them had dried overnight. I checked the gash on my leg, which I had bandaged the night before. It was pretty shallow, so I had nothing to worry about. Changing the bandage, I noted that I had to get more supplies from the school medical store. I still had to tend to my sister’s wounds. How on earth would she go to school today with all those cuts and bruises? It was my fault for not coming home early enough. That damned drunken man, I cursed under my breath as I painfully grabbed my little first aid box and headed to Myunghee’s room.

“Myunghee-yah, oppa’s here. Are you awake?” I knocked gently on her door as I quietly said these few words. It wouldn’t do to wake dad. Most of the time he sleeps like a log, but I didn’t want to take that risk. There was no answer from the other side of the door, so I turned the knob and peeked in.

“Myunghee?”

She wasn’t there.

My heart began beating faster as I entered and closed the door behind me. “Myunghee-yah, this isn’t funny. Come out now or oppa will be mad,” I spoke firmly, but she didn’t jump out from behind the curtains or under the bed. I frantically checked every inch of her room at lightning speed. “Myunghee? Myunghee, please don’t do this to me.”

From the corner of my eye, I spotted a piece of paper lying on the floor. I grabbed it without hesitation and my eyes widened when I read it.

“Oppa, don’t worry, please enjoy your life without me.”

I ran out of the house in a frenzy, still wearing just my T-shirt and pyjama pants. Hastily slipping on my shoes, I raced out onto the pavement.

“MYUNGHEE!” I yelled at the top of my lungs. I didn’t care that it was six in the morning. My. Sister. Was. Missing.

“KIM MYUNGHEE!” I ran along the whole stretch of road, hoping for at least a sign of her. She had to be nearby. She couldn’t have run very far with those injuries, and besides, she was never much of a long-distance runner.

Tearing all over the neighbourhood, I never stopped even when my breaths couldn’t keep up, or when the pain in my leg became unbearable. I kept screaming her name as I ran. What if she had taken a bus out of here? It couldn’t be. The bus services stopped at 9 every night. Then, the worst thought struck me. What if some thugs had taken her? Freaking out, I ran even faster towards the park. That was the only place she could hide, if she couldn’t get out of the area. Please, let her be there, safe, and not terrified for her life… I begged to no one in particular. These thoughts overwhelmed my mind as I approached the park.

My heart sank.

It was empty.

In a flurry of movements, I was searching all over the park, under benches, behind bushes, even up trees. “Myunghee!” I called. “Myunghee, please come out,” I pleaded. Anything could have happened to her. My thoughts overwhelmed me as I walked over to the last bush.

“Myunghee?”

Tears of relief formed in my eyes. There she was, curled up in a ball, fast asleep. Her long black hair was askew, and her clothes had picked up several leaves from the ground. “Myunghee,” I said gently, as I squatted beside her and brushed her hair aside. “Wake up, oppa’s here.”

I watched as her eyes twitched and then opened. When she finally seemed to recall the events of the night before, she looked at me with wide eyes. “Oppa!” She squeaked and quickly scrambled to get up, obviously shocked to see me. I gathered her into a tight hug. “It doesn’t matter what he does to me, Myunghee, as long as I can keep you safe. Do you understand?”

I felt her nod in my embrace.

“I promise we’ll get away from him. Just give me one year.”