One time, Kris became rebellious and climbed a tree, hiding motionless from people who were searching for him. But then, he dozed off and fell ten feet to the ground, landing on his back. It was as if the impact had knocked every wisp of air from his lungs, and he lay there struggling to inhale, to exhale, to do anything.

That’s how he felt now, trying to remember how to breathe, unable to speak, totally stunned as the words from the caller earlier bounced around the inside of his skull. Someone was gripping his arm, Hyoyeon, and he thought maybe he started to fall and she caught him.

“I’ll drive,” she said, taking the car key from him.

Kris let her drag him to the passenger’s seat and sat silently. Hyoyeon also drove in silent, glancing from time to time in his direction, the blood drained from his face, hands clenched in fists at his sides, staring blankly into space.

Kris only muttered the word ‘hospital’ before he rushed out of the house. Seeing his trembling state, Hyoyeon understood at once something bad had happened.

When they arrived at the hospital, a lot of people were already there. Amongst the crowd, Hyoyeon saw his aunt and uncle, Luhan’s parents. Luhan was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he was there, hidden from her view, but she didn’t have time to think about that. She was looking worriedly at Kris as he started walking with stiff, small steps toward the room where his grandma was placed.

“She is still unconscious.”

Kris heard his aunt telling them. He didn’t stop, and opened the door. The sight of a white room flashed in front of his eyes. It was those details, the annoying beeping sound from the machine, the clear tubes, that brought him back to himself.

“Grandma!” The strangled cry came out of his throat, and his sense started working properly again. “Grandma!” there was no one to block his path and just in a few steps, he reached the bed with rails, where his grandma was lying as if she was sleeping peacefully.

“This is a joke, right? You are playing a trick on me, right?” Kris was looking at her with a pained expression on his face.

He lifted her gauze-wrapped hand from the bed and held it gently in his, careful not to disrupt the wire connecting her to one of the monitors.

“Wake up, grandma. Wake up…” His voice came out as pleading. Some very unpleasant memories were beginning to come back to him.

He was in danger of crying but he choked back the tears. He couldn’t cry. He shouldn’t cry. He was not allowed to cry. Not when there were so many people outside who might be watching him right now. He’d always been trained to keep his emotion in check.

He shut his eyes, struggling to remain emotionless. The grip on his grandma’s hand tightened. ‘Grandma, please give me some strength…’ he whispered silently.

Hyoyeon swallowed hard. She stood still at the door, watching his actions. She wasn’t sure whether it would be a good idea to approach him or to just leave him alone. One thing for sure, she didn’t wish for this. She didn’t wish to see this day when everything fell apart…

Hyoyeon walked through the corridor of the hospital, searching for Kris. It had been a long time since he excused himself to talk with the doctor. An irrational surge of panic flooding through her. She shouldn’t let him go alone. He might disappear from her again, she thought.

She stopped on her track when she heard the voices of two people arguing. She immediately recognized the first voice.

“I’m staying here. I want to watch over my grandma,” Kris said grimly. Hyoyeon didn’t miss the desperation in his voice as he spoke.

“No, you can’t. You have to go. The company is in an uproar with this news about your grandma,” said the other voice.

She took a quick peek at the other person. He was wearing a neat suit, suggesting he worked at the company. There was this aura around him that told her that the man had a high ranking in the company.

“My grandma is more important than that!” Kris’ voice had risen to a shout. In it was all the anger, all the fear he felt at the moment.

“Kris, remember your responsibilities.”

Responsibilities. That word made Hyoyeon ache with pain. She was sure Kris would feel worse. They wouldn’t let him forget about that word even for a second.

There was no response from Kris. He just turned around into her direction, giving Hyoyeon the chance to have a good look at his expression. She was thunderstruck immediately.

‘Kris, don’t make such a face. The face that reflects your thinking that everyone’s your enemy…’

It was the first time she felt this way. She was afraid to talk to him as he walked past her.

At that time, Hyoyeon could only stare at Kris leaving. She felt a sharp-piercing pain spreading through