The Knife Returns
At that moment, it felt as if the world had stopped. "Yoo Suhyun!!!!!" "...!!"
The person I thought I had forgotten appeared right before my eyes. How had he found me? Weren't we supposed to never see each other again? Even if I wanted to see him, wasn't that impossible? Though I had reunited with my family, all that flooded in was confusion and pain. There was no trace of joy. It was terrifying. His massive frame charged straight at my small body, a kitchen knife clutched in his hand.
The world began to slow. The problem was that my body was slowing down too. I was scared. My heart started pounding like it had gone mad. Thump, thump, thump, thump. "Ah… I'm going to die." This was death. I had only just begun to feel happy, and now I was being torn away from this world. If I died, would I be reborn again? Even if I were reborn, would I be happier than I was now? I had no idea. My legs trembled violently.
"Suhyun…!! Get a hold of yourself!" "Kehk…! Kuhk!" I must have been holding my breath; now I couldn't even breathe properly. Yeon-a shook me, telling me to breathe. I felt my body trying to run away, but I couldn't move. It was as if my legs had taken root in the floor. My chest hurt, like something was pounding against it. It was already too late to run. Father was too close. I was dead.
"…It hurt, though." Honestly, dying like this didn't seem so bad. I closed my eyes and decided to face my father. I could think of it as an apology for dragging my siblings down with me. Mom and the kids… they'll be sad. What about Yeon-a and Haram? Ah… Yuna, she was so happy about becoming an editor. Tears threatened to spill. I didn't want to die like this. From far away, I heard Yeowu shouting at us to get out of the way. I wanted to tell her it was already too late, but I swallowed the words and squeezed my eyes shut.
Thud!!!Drip, drop, drip. I heard the sound of flesh being pierced and blood splattering onto the floor. I had braced for the agony, but it didn't hurt as much as I expected. In fact, it didn't hurt at all. That was when I heard the voice.
"…Run…! Get away!!!" "Huh…?"
There stood Kei, drenched in cold sweat, his face twisted in pain as he looked at me. I hadn't been stabbed. Instead, Kei had taken the knife. My mind went blank. Then a voice that made my body flinch struck my eardrums.
"Who the hell are you?! Get out of my way, you bastard! I have to kill that thing! Want me to kill you first?!" "Hic…!!" I let out a terrified sound and looked up at Father's face. He was glaring down at me, his expression contorted with rage. "Kuhk…! Hah…!" I couldn't breathe. No matter how hard I tried, air wouldn't come. I clutched my throat, but it was useless. My stomach began to churn violently. I have to… run…! "Ugh…!! Uweeeek!" In the end, I collapsed onto the floor, cold sweat pouring down as I vomited.
Kei had been stabbed. Because of me, someone completely unrelated had taken a knife meant for me. No… no… "Ki… Kei-nim…!! Run, quickly!!" "Kei-nim…? You're bleeding…!!" "I'm fine… khh, I'm fine, so hurry!! This guy's target is Vam-nim! Run!!!" Even as he shouted, Kei kept urging Yeon-a to snap out of it. Suddenly, my body was yanked backward while I was still retching.
"Let's go…!!" I didn't want to go. I had to apologize somehow. I was the one who deserved to die. I needed to die to atone. I'm sorry… I'm scared…! Now, dying truly terrified me. I had become selfish, unwilling to lose the precious things I had found. That realization was so heartbreaking that tears streamed down my cheeks.
* * *
Haram's hands shook as she dialed 112. [Yes, this is the ○○ Police Station.] "Police…!!! Please hurry!! Someone here has been stabbed!!!" she cried, her voice breaking. The officer's tone shifted immediately, asking if she could send her location. [Caller, what is your current location? Are you the one who was stabbed?] "No…! It's my friend! The location is, um… it's…"
Her mind had gone completely blank. [We don't have time. We'll trace your location. Is your phone's location service on?] "Y-yes! Please hurry!" [Rescue and police will arrive within five minutes. Stay calm. How is the injured person? What about the attacker?] "R-right now, my friend has been stabbed in the stomach… and the attacker is holding him so he can't escape." [Understood.]
The call ended. Haram sank to the floor. "Haram-ssi! Run away! Cough…!!" "Ah……" Tears blurred her vision. The YouTuber she had admired had been stabbed. And the one who had done it was the father of the man she liked. Suhyun, Jiwoo, and Minwoo had endured such cruelty, and the fact that they were still suffering broke her heart. The thought that she could be next filled her with terror. There was nothing she could do to help. Yeowu, who had rushed over, had also called the police, but she too could only watch helplessly.
* * *
Junsu felt his body move before he could think. The instinct to protect had sent him lunging forward. A dull pain spread through his stomach, and he immediately regretted it. "Kuhk…!!" "Who are you?!" The attacker looked startled, his face menacing. Looking at the murderer, Junsu instantly understood who he was after—Suhyun, the very person he had thrown himself in front of to save.
"Ugh… khh…!" Suhyun was completely panicked, unable to breathe. Junsu frowned at the sight. I heard their family situation was complicated, but… her actual father? The pain in his stomach was making his head foggy, but Junsu knew exactly what he had to do. More than anything, he wanted to protect the family that had only just found happiness. …Damn it, am I going to die because of my meddling? Even as the thought crossed his mind, he shouted over his shoulder.
"Ki… Kei-nim…!! Run, quickly!!" Yeon-a stared at him in shock. "Kei-nim…? You're bleeding…!!" "I'm fine… khh, I'm fine, so hurry!! This guy's target is Vam-nim! Run!!!" Every time he shouted, blood spurted from his stomach. He was scared. His abdomen was growing hotter by the second. As Takhon moved, waves of agony crashed over him. Afraid that pulling the knife out would make the bleeding worse, Junsu forced his body to stay tense. What do I do? Did he hit an artery? His mind was going white. The only small mercy was that Yeon-a had taken Suhyun, who had been vomiting, and disappeared into the distance.
His heart pounded wildly. Now that he thought he might actually die, fear finally set in. "Let go!! You crazy bastard!!" Takhon snarled, threatening him. Junsu’s eye twitched as he looked at the man. "Junsu-nim…!! What do we do…!" "…!!" Haram's voice came from behind him. Junsu's pupils shook. She didn't run? Yeowu hadn't fled either; she was staring at him in terror. Cold sweat poured down, blurring his vision. The police… did someone call them? What's going on? Junsu's thoughts were slowing. Then something happened that made him jolt in surprise.
Crack!!! "Kuhk…?! Kek!!!" "Junsu-hyung…!! I'm here!!" Giseong, the last to arrive, had come up from behind and locked his arm around Takhon's neck. Takhon dropped the knife and fell backward. Giseong kept choking him, trying to knock him out, while Takhon struggled to stay conscious. Seeing this, Junsu finally collapsed.
* * *
Yeon-a dragged me into a nearby building and shoved me into a bathroom stall. "Uweeeek…!! Ugh…!!" "It's okay… it's okay, so… hic." She sobbed as she rubbed my back. Under her touch, I could only cry endlessly. It hurt so much. "B-because of me…!! Again, because of me!!" Once more, someone had been hurt because of me. Mom, Jiwoo, Minwoo—everyone had been injured because of me. Now even my new friends had been hurt by my father. If they had never stayed with me, none of this would have happened. I really was irredeemable trash.
"Hic…! Sob……" The tears wouldn't stop. Tears alone couldn't fix anything. "…It's not your fault, Yoo Suhyun…!!" "…Hic." Yeon-a called my name, stopping me from blaming myself. She grabbed a handful of tissues, wiped my mouth, and pulled me into a tight hug. "It's not your fault… That man is the crazy one. Please, stop blaming yourself, Suhyun." "……" Even if she said that, this time it was clearly my fault. Kei-nim would probably hate me now. Mom might even lose her job at the gukbap restaurant.
"…Yeon-a." I called her name in a dazed voice. She looked at me. "…I… I want to be happy. I don't want to… hurt anymore." Tears dripped down as I spoke. I wanted to be happy. The fact that I had even considered dying for a moment terrified me. I didn't want to die. Dying was still terrifying. The tears kept flowing. My clothes were stained with vomit. Yeon-a silently held me tighter, crying as well. She must have been badly shaken too. I reached up with my small hand and gently patted her back.