By Zephyria 
“……”
He slowly opened his eyes, which he had tightly shut. The surroundings were dim. It didn’t take long to realize that the wheezing, rattling breath, full of phlegm, was his own. His limbs felt numb.
His eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness. Through his focusing vision, he could see the outline of Seong Hae-min’s face. He carefully called out Seong Hae-min’s name.
“Hae-min…?”
Seong Hae-min squinted and looked down at him. But his face was completely red. The wet liquid flowing from his head dripped onto Seong Hae-jun’s forehead. It took a few seconds to fully grasp the situation.
Earlier, the ceiling of the building where the fire had broken out had collapsed, and he had tried to get away, but his body wouldn’t move. At that moment, Seong Hae-min, who was beside him, had pulled him…
His breath hitched. Only then did the heavy pile of concrete behind Seong Hae-min come into view. Seong Hae-min, who had embraced him tightly, was supporting the concrete with his own body. His lips trembled. Tears welled up instantly.
Seong Hae-min smiled faintly at him. His lips moved. Beyond his tear-blurred vision, he could read the shape of his mouth.
‘Are you okay?’
Along with it, a scream erupted from his throat.
“Seong Hae-min!!!”
Tears flowed uncontrollably. He tried to wipe away the tears obscuring his vision with his trembling hands, but his hands, trapped in the narrow space, wouldn’t cooperate. He cried and shouted like a madman.
“Help, please help! Someone save Hae-min, please save Hae-min…!”
“Hae-min! Hae-jun! Can you hear me?”
“It’s here! Hae-min is here, he’s here…!”
He could hear people calling out to them urgently as they cleared the building debris. His throat kept constricting, making his voice tremble uncontrollably. Seong Hae-min, barely moving his lips, whispered to him.
“Hae, Hae-jun… I…”
“Stop, stop talking. Your blood, your blood is still…”
“I, I reme, remembered…”
“Tell me later, okay? Please, please…”
His eyes were obscured by blood, making them hard to see. That was so terrifying that he kept trying to stop Seong Hae-min from speaking. He didn’t want to hear it. He continued to wail like a beast, and Seong Hae-min continued to whisper words that sounded like the wind.
“That day… the day we first met, next door… you kept your promise to be family… thank you…”
“Hae-jun! Hae-min!”
The moment Seong Hae-min finished speaking, the concrete that had been covering them was removed piece by piece. His friends were digging through the debris, coming to rescue them. A chilling, damp air flowed in. Seong Hae-min’s face became clearer. Seong Hae-min smiled faintly, his body listing, and collapsed onto him. An immense terror struck him.
“Seong Hae-min!!!”
He could only cry out for help, his voice hoarse. He was just so scared. His heart pounded wildly. The faces of people filled with fear, dread, and worry came into view. Lee Beom, Min Si-hu, Jeon Jae-hyung, Do Yun-hyeok, and even the police…
“Hae-min, his blood, his blood…”
Only after the concrete was removed and he was freed did he raise his hands to embrace Seong Hae-min. He tried to stop the blood gushing from his head, but it was futile. How much blood he had lost—the floor, the concrete fragments, his own cheeks and hands were all stained red with Seong Hae-min’s blood.
Outside, a torrential rain was pouring down. The sound of the rain echoed like tinnitus.
“An ambulance has been called!”
“Hae-min, Hae-min…”
Someone shouted, but he wasn’t in a state to hear such things. He held the fallen Seong Hae-min and repeated the same words like a broken radio. Nothing else came to mind. His limbs trembled uncontrollably.
Seong Hae-min’s face, after the blood was roughly wiped away, was as pale as a corpse. He felt Seong Hae-min’s warmth fading, so he couldn’t let him go from his embrace.
Everything that had happened was because of him. His teeth chattered. He tensed his whole body to stop the trembling and hugged Seong Hae-min tightly.
“Seong Hae-jun, please calm down!”
Lee Beom pleaded. But his tears wouldn’t stop, so he couldn’t properly see Lee Beom’s expression. Lee Beom shouted to him with a choked voice.
“You need treatment too, right now.”
“Hae-min…”
“You’re badly injured too!”
Lee Beom shouted as if crying, but his head was buzzing, and he couldn’t properly hear the words. He hugged Seong Hae-min tightly.
“Because of me… because, because of me…”
“It’s not because of you! Everyone knows that.”
Lee Beom denied it firmly. But his body still trembled. Lee Beom, overcome with emotion, swallowed his tears and hugged his shoulder. He closed his eyes tightly to endure the dizziness. Lee Beom’s shoulder became damp.
Why did this happen to Seong Hae-min? Was it because this was a novel? Was it a predetermined fate? Then what was the point of trying to save Seong Hae-min all this time?
He felt immense self-resentment. The only one he could hate and resent was himself. He felt thrown into a chaos where he knew nothing about what to do.
What if Seong Hae-min met the same end as in the novel’s plot?
The moment that thought occurred, fear consumed him. There was no room for any other thoughts. He couldn’t breathe properly. Sensing this, Lee Beom slowly patted his back. He gasped, trying to regain his breath.
“Your blood… a furnace…”
Jeon Jae-hyung, approaching with a dark expression, knelt and wiped his forehead. He shook his head at Jeon Jae-hyung’s words. His vision wavered. He could see the police moving busily. It felt like the top of his head was detached and spinning somewhere. But with Hae-min injured, none of that mattered.
“Hae-min, Hae-min…”
He cried out, clinging to Jeon Jae-hyung. What if he died? What would happen to me? He wanted to ask, but he was afraid of tempting fate, so he couldn’t utter it. He felt deep sorrow and worry in the eyes looking at him.
“…Seong Hae-jun.”
Jeon Jae-hyung called him with a trembling voice. His voice, heavy and low, was tinged with moisture.
“It’ll be okay…”
His clumsy comfort did nothing to stop the tears from flowing endlessly. Min Si-hu hovered nearby with a worried and anxious expression. From a distance, Ban Seo-yi stood stunned, looking at the scene with a dazed expression, as if she had been hit.
“I wish…”
He mumbled nonsensically. Ban Seo-yi looked at him. Her eyes were bloodshot. He mumbled again, lost in thought.
“Let’s start over…”
Ban Seo-yi’s pupils, which had been vacant, trembled as if an earthquake had struck, and tears began to well up. The tears filling her eyes then began to fall like an unlatched faucet. Do Yun-hyeok, turning his head away, bit his lip hard.
Everyone in this place was weeping mournfully.
He lowered his head and curled up as much as possible. Pressing close to Seong Hae-min in his arms, he tried to protect his warmth by any means necessary. Tears that flowed down his lowered head dripped onto the floor. Tears fell incessantly onto the blood-soaked concrete.
Amidst their own fear and anxiety, I felt their presence comforting me, and I prayed earnestly to an unknown entity.
‘Please, please, please. Anyone, please save Hae-min…’
An ambulance arrived late, its siren wailing urgently. Paramedics carried Seong Hae-min on a stretcher. I chased after them in a daze. I don’t remember what Do Yun-hyeok’s face looked like, or what expression Lee Beom had. Or what Min Si-hu said to me… none of it.
I watched Seong Hae-min’s pale face endlessly. At some point, my vision also blurred due to a high fever.
❖ ❖ ❖
I opened my eyes again to a hospital bed with the sharp smell of disinfectant. As soon as I opened my eyes, I tried to sit up abruptly, but my body wouldn’t obey me, even though it was mine. But I couldn’t just lie there. I struggled to move my body.
“…Hae-jun!”
As if sensing my stirring, Min Si-hu and Ban Pyo-ran saw me and looked overjoyed. Both of their eyes were swollen. Without delay, I asked,
“Where’s Hae-min?”
“……”
Min Si-hu hesitated, holding back his words. As I urged him again, Ban Pyo-ran stopped Min Si-hu and answered,
“He’s in surgery.”
My heart sank. I barely held on as my vision threatened to go black, and I pleaded firmly,
“Take me there.”
“Hae-jun.”
“Take me there.”
“That’s…”
“Take me there.”
“……”
“Then get out of the way. I’ll go on my own two feet.”
As soon as I moved my body with effort, a pain like my muscles tearing shot through me. But I couldn’t just lie there. I moved my body against the pain.
Right now, only Seong Hae-min’s life or death mattered to me. I had no time to worry about anything else.
“Your body…”
Min Si-hu choked up, but I rose from the bed like a vengeful spirit with only determination left. My legs were trembling, and I nearly collapsed immediately. Min Si-hu, who rushed over in surprise, had tears welling up in his large eyes.
Supported by Min Si-hu, I limped along, barely managing my weakening legs. My lips trembled with every step. Cold sweat broke out.
The area in front of the operating room, where I arrived with great difficulty, was chaotic.