Daehyun switches off the television as nothing catches his attention. It’s almost midnight, but he’s not sleepy at all. The questions that keep coming into his mind bother him; he can’t drift off to sleep. His apartment is eerily quiet, and he uses this as an opportunity to clear his mind. Something has been tugging at him; something is telling him that it’s clearly not right. He remembers completely nothing. The cause of him falling into a coma sounds suspicious, but he has no one to turn to. What if someone purposely wants to put him into a deep sleep? Or worse, what if someone actually wanted to kill him but failed? What if someone is going after him right now? The thoughts alone make him shudder.

He can’t let this be. He reaches for his phone and dials Yongguk’s number. He knows that it’s unlikely for the doctor to pick up since it’s almost midnight, but he has to try his luck. Just as he expected, the doctor doesn’t pick up his call. He groans as he puts back his phone on the table. He slaps his face a few times, trying really hard to make the memories come back to him. What really happened that day? He takes a deep breath and releases it slowly. He needs to be calm to remember, and this is the perfect time.

19^th of March.

He uses all his will to remember the events on that day.

He was reading the letter from Sooyoung, and after that he drove back home. Because it was late at night, he was feeling sleepy while driving. Was that what caused the car accident? No, no. He got home safely that night, he’s sure of it. Although sleepy, he was still alert. After getting home, he probably fell into a deep sleep.

But wait.

Daehyun subconsciously touches the back of his head.

Pain. That was the last thing he felt before blacking out.

But the pain wasn’t because of a car accident; instead it was a direct blow to his head. He instantly out, experienced a vivid dream, and woke up with Yongguk telling him he was involved in a car accident.

Yongguk was lying to him… But why? Could it be Yongguk?

If Jiyoon trusts him so much, he might as well trust him. Plus, Yongguk doesn’t seem like someone who would cause pain to other people. He barely knows Yongguk, so he doesn’t have a reason to do that to him. Or does he? “Argh!” He hits his forehead with his palm, and winces when it hurts.

As if it’s a miracle, the memories come crawling back at him slowly, one by one…

He didn’t go straight to sleep. He was woken up when he saw the ring he bought for Sooyoung, just beside the trashcan. He fished the box from the paper bag, snapped open the lid, revealing the diamond ring. He was crying. Wishing for Sooyoung to come back. Then, his phone rang. But he’s still fuzzy on who it was. It was someone he knew, offering condolonces and inviting him to go out to comfort his heart. Daehyun must have accepted the offer because he really needed it at that time.

The man offered to pick him up, so Daehyun was in the passenger seat the whole time. The man didn’t switch on the radio because he knew that Daehyun likes the journey to be quiet. Surely, it’s someone who knows him so well. After a few minutes of driving, they finally arrived somewhere serene.

“This can help you to calm yourself,” the man had said.

Daehyun had gotten out of the car, and took the time to enjoy the peaceful surroundings. Everything seemed to come back to him, except for one thing. He couldn’t remember who the man was. He was standing, and the next thing he knew was there was a sharp pain at the back of his head.

He digs his memory deeper. He searches around for any indicator that would lead him to the man. He closes his eyes again and focuses.

The man had a scar on his hand. Yes, and he knew about that because he kept stealing glances at it.

“How did you get that scar?”

“Small accident, nothing you should worry about.”

The face of the man flashes before him, and now he’s sure of who’s the culprit. He doesn’t want to believe it, but he trusts himself. It’s clear on who it was.

It was Hyunshik. Jung Hyunshik, his own brother. His own brother, related by blood, was the one who put him into a coma. He doesn’t know why Hyunshik did that to him, but it was him.

He loses his focus when he hears the door to his apartment being closed. He turns his head to look at the direction of the door, but it’s dark. He can’t see anything because he didn’t bother to switch on the lights. Fear grips his heart as he makes his way slowly to the entrance. He is furious at himself as he was too focused, until he didn’t realize someone snuck in. He searches around to find anything to be used as a weapon, but he’s too late as a cloth is put over his nose. The smell of chloroform fills his nose, and he drops to the floor, unconscious.

…

His eyelids part slowly, revealing himself to the new surrounding. His mouth is gagged, his hands are tied to the back and he feels lightheaded. He’s in an abandoned building, and the realization hits him hard. This will probably be the last day of his life. He knows he’s being pessimistic right now, but if you’re in this condition, you can’t help but think about the worst that could happen.

“Finally, you’re awake, little brother.”

Daehyun shifts his focus towards his brother who just came in. The odd thing is, he’s wearing a suit. It would be very tacky if you’re the one doing the killing, if you ask.

“You’re probably wondering why I’m wearing such nice clothes when I’m about to kill you, don’t you?”

Daehyun answers, but his voice is muffled.

“That’s because I’m not the one who’s going to do the killing, you idiot. My friend is going to do it for me,” he waves his hand towards the door, just as Yongguk comes in. Daehyun tries to hide his surprise when he sees the doctor standing there, his face showing no expression. “But before he kills you, any last words, my dear brother whom I love very, very much?” he says it sarcastically. Daehyun can’t believe his own ears and eyes as the brother whom he admired so much, hands a gun towards Yongguk. Even worse, Yongguk takes it gingerly from him, still expressionless. Yongguk doesn’t say anything. Hyunshik walks towards him and unties the gag.

“Hyung…”

“Don’t call me that. I’m not your hyung.”

“Why… Why did you do that to me? Why do you want to take my life away so bad? What have I done to you? I looked up to you so much; I even liked you more than I like Jiwook hyung.”

“You’re so dense, Daehyun. I never asked you to look up to me. You don’t think that just because the both of us spent more time together, I would have grown up liking you? I hated you and Jiwook hyung with all my heart. Being the middle child means you get no privilege, you’re just there. Nobody cares about you, not even your own parents. You and Jiwook hyung always get what you guys want, but I never do. I thought that maybe if I grew up well, mom and dad would be proud of me. But they never did. All they were focused on was Jiwook hyung and you. Jiwook hyung has a high position at the company, and they sent you away because they wanted a better environment for you. What, you think that dad slapped you because he didn’t like you? Tsk, no. He was just too flustered. He didn’t want you to turn out like me. Getting drunk every day, ruining our family’s image. I tried being better, Daehyun, but they took no notice of me. Only then I started getting drunk. You’re the golden child, Daehyun. Can’t you see? You have your own apartment, with unlimited supply of money. You don’t even need to work to get all of that. What about me? I work my off trying to get noticed but do they applaud me for that? No. They still worry about you even though you’re living your life at your own apartment. You’re living on your own, without having to worry what’s happening at home. I was suffering every day, but the both of you continued living your glorious lives. How am I supposed to stay still?”

He stops, takes a deep breath and continues.

“I can’t take it anymore when I see you having a girlfriend, who stayed by your side no matter what. I was jealous seeing you have a loyal girlfriend. I know they say that I can get girls easily, but since you get them easily, they go away easily too. They’re unloyal. But with Sooyoung… she was what I wanted. No matter how many times I approached her, she didn’t waver. She loved you too much, and that just made me feel worse. I followed her everywhere, stalked her but she didn’t say anything. She was too nice, that girl. One day, I saw her coming out of a hospital. She was crying. I approached her, grabbed her hand and asked her what’s wrong. She struggled to get free, but I was too strong for her. I snatched the envelope she was holding and it showed that she had brain tumour. She ran away crying after that, but I couldn’t bring myself to run after her. When I heard about the news that she passed away, I couldn’t think anything other than blaming you. I felt like you crossed the line, that it was your fault everything came to this.”

“You’re a psycho. You’re crazy! Why are you doing this to me?”

Truth is, Daehyun feels bad when he hears everything. Maybe he does deserve this. He didn’t even notice his girlfriend was suffering so much, yet he was just thinking about himself back then.

“Because everything is your fault!”

Yongguk puts a hand on his shoulder to calm Hyunshik down. “That’s enough, Hyunshik.”

“Right, that’s enough. We’ll put an end to this. Let your last memory be our faces, little brother.”

Yongguk raises the gun, aiming straight for Daehyun’s chest.

Daehyun can only close his eyes as he wait for the moment he will hear a loud blast, which will put an end to his life.