SOOYOUNG POV:

In my hazy dream (or was it a nightmare?), Evangeline is trying to kill me. Literally; she is holding butcher knives in both hands, charging at me. I know why she's so angry, and my guilt this time is so heavy that I'm swallowed up by the darkness and crushed under its weight. I gasp for air, call for help, and suddenly I'm in Minho's arms, and I'm safe and warm. We're hugging, and everything else seems to dissapear, we're lost in our own world. But then I hear Evangeline, and she's pulling me by the hair, her knife point digging into my back...

And then I wake up, laughing and crying at the same time. The coldness hits me, and I regain my senses. I for Evangeline's familiar form next to me, anxious, but all I can feel are cold, empty sheets. She's gone. 

I feel a vibration in my pocket, and suddenly my ringtone blasts out a tune into the stillness of the apartment. I rummage frantically through my pockets for the cheap plastic mobile phone. Snapping it open, I see that it's Minho calling. "Hello?" 

MINHO POV:

"Meet me after school at the gates. You're coming to my place." I try to sound as mysterious as possible, then hang up. Best to leave a girl hanging, right? But I can't hide my excitement, and throughout the rest of the day I fidget, counting down the seconds until the bell. 

At last, it's home time, and I charge out to the gates. Sooyoung is already there, perched on the railings daintily. I smile up at her and she draws out one hand, beckoning. I take it between my own and pull her gently off, and she lands with a slight squeal. 

We walk home in the falling snow, my arm draped across her shoulders. Somehow it feels like déjà vu, but I shake off the ningling feeling. As we walk, I can sense that Sooyoung is nervous. Her head is lowered, and she's shaking, despite my body warmth. I pull her closer. "There's nothing to worry about. My mum isn't that scary." I tell her reassuringly. 

She shakes her head, biting her lip cutely. "She is. To me especially." she whispers, and sighs. "Everything else is fine, it's just her. And more importantly, she'd hate to see this. " She digs her hand beneath layers of jackets and pulls out a pendant. She holds it out to me, and I stare at it wide-eyed. It's so familiar, and I could swear I saw it somewhere before. The pendant was beautiful; its middle was a large emerald, and the silver surrounding it was encrusted with tiny red gems. It hung from a thick golden chain, which dangled off Sooyoung's palm. 

"My mum told me never to show it to her. You know, your grandpa had a lot of these things custom made, and he gave one to each of his wives. He have my mum two, because she was his favourite. But when she ran away, he made all his wives give them back. And then he burnt them all, so my mum and I own the last two in the world. My uncle told me about it." She looks away, eyes shining with tears. I squeeze her shoulder comfortingly, but my brain is ticking. I remember where I saw it before; with my Grandfather. He carried it around everywhere he went, clutching it tightly in his hands as if it were so precious. My mum had, like Sooyoung had said, hated the sight of it. Probably because she knew the history behind it, and felt angry that my Grandpa still felt a connection between that pendant and the woman it reminded him of. 

Sooyoung was silent as we slowly walked up the driveway of my house. My mother must have seen us from a window, because a few moments later, the door burst open and she was standing there, looking ready to kill me. She glared murderously at our clasped hands, and Sooyoung started to slip her hands out of mine. I held them firmly, and stared determinedly back at my mother. 

Silence. I could have taken a knife and stabbed the tension. "Choi Minho. Come here." She spoke in a measured voice. I held Sooyoung's hands and we warily walked towards my mother. She raised both hand and slapped us both across the face, hard. A sharp crack echoed, breaking the stillness. Hotness spread across my face, from the blow, my anger and my embarrassment. I glanced across at Sooyoung. She had let go and of my hands, and they hung by her side, still. Her cheek was bright red, but she was expression-less as she looked down.  

My mother looked ready for more, but as she raised her fist to punch Sooyoung, I grabbed it. "Stop," I barked, "What are you ing doing? Are you crazy?? What has she done to you?" 

She glared piercingly back at me, shaking me off. "I am punishing her for your actions," she spoke lowly," For your disrespect. I am your mother, SHE is a girl you found off the street. You're foolish, just like your Grandpa!!" 

Sooyoung lets out a sob, but muffles it in her gloves. I don't look at her. "You may be my mother, but you don't act like it. Never, for a second of my life, have I regarded you as motherly. If you were my mother, you would have respected my wishes. You're no mother of mine, you're a prison guard!" 

With a shriek of mad frustration, my mother flings a hand across my face, scratching my lip. "YOU. INSOLENT. BRAT!" She roars, repeatedly lashing out at me. I take a step back, holding an arm across my face to protect it from her blows. She was going crazy, as if  she had bottled up all her anger my whole life for this moment. I peek at Sooyoung. Finally, she had moved. She was crying, shouting at my mother to stop. She ran up to my mother and bravely caught her arms. This did nothing but infuriate my mother even more, and she turned her anger to Sooyoung. She rattled out a string of harsh abuse and swearing. I couldnt make out what she was saying, but Sooyoung seemed to become even more frightened. 

"Sooyoung!" I call hoarsely, but she doesn't hear me. I taste blood on my lip. As I take my hands away from my face, I see that they're wet with blood and tears. 

Without a word, Sooyoung turns around and hurries down the driveway. Her back looks defeated, and she seems to have given up hope. She's shaking with sobs, and she doesn't look back when I call her name. My legs are rooted to the ground. I helplessly watch her slowly dissapear, tears running down my scratched face. "Please, come back." I close my eyes and collapse to the ground, knowing that she had slipped through my fingers. Sooyoung, my first love, had walked out of my life.