PARK BOGUM.

"k-kang hyunbin..."

those two words were enough to break my heart and crush all my longing expectations.

i waited so long. but i was always second place.

i was always forgotten.

i clenched my fists and looked down to suhee. i waited for her so long. i wasn't going to hate her because she couldn't remember me.

i'll never hate her.

"suhee, get up." i muttered.

suhee was only breathing heavily, her hands clutching the surface of the ground so hard that her knuckles were turning white. i knelt down beside her and grabbed her hand, in which she returned by quickly pulling them away.

she let out another long and shaky breath, and then fell down. i luckily caught her before she hit the ground, catching a glimpse of her unconscious state.

i frowned, wishing to only see her bright and happy face from before. i picked her up in my arms, and covered her face with a scarf, in case security cameras could capture us sneaking out the soon-to-be crime scene.

i looked at the unconscious body of the man that suhee claimed she loved. i felt a pang of guilt, recalling her furious eyes that she looked at me with earlier on.

"please remember me." i whispered to suhee.

—

KIM SUHEE.

there were two boys. maybe around 9 years old, just like me.

one was a cute boy named kang hyunbin.

i can't remember the second ones name. what did he look like again?

we were playing, because we were best friends.

but something happened.

"SUHEE-AH!!!"

i let out a gasp, my eyes shooting open with the feeling of cold sweat running down my temple. why couldn't i remember? why couldn't i remember anything?

how did i ever lose my memory?

where are the two boys now? who is kang hyunbin?

they were important. i know for sure.

or were they? the brain only remembers important things, after all.

i let out a long sigh, adjusting my blurry vision to clear after looking at my surroundings.

i grabbed my trembling hand with my opposite one to calm it down. i was in an unfamiliar place.

sungho died last night.

and i met him again.

the killer who saved me.

i turned my head to the side, to see someone sitting on the ground, leaned against the wall that was across and farthest away from me.

it took my five seconds to recognize the face that made my blood boil. part of me was relieved i was saved—but the main emotion right now was anger.

the killer.

he was completely awake, doing nothing but staring at me with his dark and empty pupils.

i could've killed somebody last night if i didn't pass out.

"y-you...." i muttered. "why didn't you kill me last night?"

"is that even a question?" he replied, standing up with a grunt. "i stabbed him to save you. why would i kill you?"

"why did you save me then?" i asked, narrowing my eyes at him as he merely ignored my question and walked out the room, shutting the door behind him.

why did he save me?

even though i survived, sungho didn't.

i shouldn't have.

i hopped off the bed, surprised that my legs were feeling wobbly still. i quickly regained my balance and exited the room, heading out into the unfamiliar house.

it was quite big. i headed straight to the kitchen, where the killer's back was turned to me. the sight of him made me want to throw up.

"how did you know where the kitchen was?" he asked, not even paying attention to my presence.

i froze. how did i know where the kitchen was?

"i'm going to call the police on you—" i said, grabbing the phone and a kitchen knife off the counter. i pointed the knife at him. "don't come any closer."

"suhee-ah." he said calmly. "stop."

"no!" i yelled. "stop calling me that!"

"put it down." he said. "i won't hurt you."

"you're a killer! a murderer!" i yelled louder. "that's what they do. that's what they do to anyone no matter what!"

but he saved me.

why am i doing this then?

"i'm going to kill you, even before the police arrives." i said.

"suhee you can't—"

"DON'T CALL ME SUHEE! DON'T ACT LIKE YOU KNOW ME! YOU KILLED HIM! YOU KILLED SUNGHO!" i finally snapped in half, charging straight at him with the knife.

the killer didn't even budge in his spot. before i could plunged the blade into his stomach, his caught the sharp edge with his hands.

"please...don't do this to me anymore." he muttered, his eyes only filled with pure hurt.

i shakily looked down to his hands holding the knife, as the red blood dripped down, staining the carpet beneath my feet.

my eyes made their way back to his again. looking up close—i felt like i was remembering something. i closed my eyes and furrowed my eyebrows, attempting to dig deeper in my memory to recover it.

i let go of the knife, giving up. there was something important about this person. had i met him before, after all?

i still can't remember.