Everyone has either had a happy past that they would love or cherish in their memories...or a complicated past that they just wanted to escape from forever. But, there's one thing you should know: you may be able to run away from your past, but you can't hide from it entirely...

My past has been a little bit of both.
My past was sometimes filled with fun moments and then it was sometimes filled with sad moments that I just wanted to forget about completely.
Yes, the past may be in the past, but it could still come back to haunt anyone in the future.
That's why I try to let go of it and move on.
It was heavily raining outside and because of the storm, the power had went out throughout all the buildings in Seoul, including ours.
I try to keep Juno calm as I lit all the candles in my bedroom, the sweet smell of apple pumpkin, French vanilla and Midnight Jasmine filling the air.
I take a deep breath, taking in all the beautiful smells of the expensive candles.
God I love scented candles...
Just then, I heard a knock on the door, causing Juno to jump on the bed, shivering with fear as he hid under the blankets.
I place a kiss on his cheek, giving him a reassuring smile.

"It's okay Juno, it's probably Mr. V checking in on us, he always does whenever there's a power outage~"

"O-Okay okay...sorry if I'm scared for no reason."

"Don't worry, I'm here to protect you if anything happens, okay?"

I promised as I then go to the living room that was also lit up with candles and opened the front door.
It was Mr. V, just as I expected.
His arms were holding a bundle of folded blankets and flashlights as his brow drips with sweat.
Oh yeah, the elevator is down too, so Mr. V had to climb up all those annoying stairs...if I was in his position, I would quit my job on the spot.
But Mr. V has always been determined and flexible, that's what made him a great landlord of this apartment complex.
He stared at me with a worried expression as he uttered his words.

"Mrs. Huntington...thank goodness you're okay, where's Juno?"

"Don't worry Mr. V, he's in the bedroom hiding from the storm~"

"Ah good good...do you guys need anything? Blankets? Flashlights? Snacks? I'm just making sure everyone has everything they need while the power is out. I shouldn't have gone into Kou's room without knocking though...because I accidentally walked in on him while he was..."

Mr. V then awkwardly coughed while I scoffed, rolling my eyes.
Stupid Kou...doesn't he know we're in the middle of a scary situation here?
The thing is he does, he just doesn't care.
I then answered to Mr. V.

"No thank you, we have everything we need here. Do you need any help? Me and Juno could hand out supplies to the other residents."

"Noooo no, that's alright! It's my duty as the landlord to take care of my people! Except Stephano and...her. They won't even answer the door. Either they're busy with their own thing or they're just ignoring me."

"Tch, if Stephano REALLY wants to be the owner of this establishment, he should learn how to be more caring..."

"Well, I can't really do anything about it except try to do my best at keeping my job...anyway, I'll go now. You two be careful, okay? And call me if you need any help with anything!"

"Yeah, thank you Mr. V!"

I chirped as I closed the door and walked back to the bedroom, where Juno was patiently waiting for me.
He hugs the pillow to his chest, still shivering.

"I-Is everything alright?"

He stuttered. I giggled as I plop down next to him, handing him a cup of hot chocolate.

"Yep~ Now we just wait for this storm to pass. Hmm in the meantime, let's talk about random things, okay? Just to get our minds off of this whole mess."

"Ah! Okay okay! Good idea! Hmm...well, did you know that I used to be in the math academy when I was little?"

"Whoa! No! Were you smart?!"

"A-Ah, no...I was just put in it by my parents. I had a fun time in it though before I went to middle school...that's when...well, my past got a little more harder."

"Harder? Like, what kind of harder? Was school too challenging for you?"

"No no, I didn't have much trouble in learning the material...but I did have trouble with the people around me. You see...the teachers used to punish the male students by hitting them with sticks...I used to get hit a lot myself."

I gasped as I stared at him with wide eyes, feeling my heart shatter by his words. I have heard about the harsh punishments South Korea used to practice, but just hearing this from Juno's perspective...
It hurt me a lot.

"W-Why were you punished so much?"

"Well, for small things, don't worry...one time, I fell asleep in class and the next thing that happened, I got beat for it. My hips were red and aching so much from it...but don't worry, it's illegal now."

My hand automatically touched his hip area, causing him to blush and stare at me, puzzled by my sudden action.

"Mackenzie?"

"...I'm sorry...you had to go through that."

"H-Hey hey it's okay now! The past is in the past!"

"Is it really...? Because if so, why would you flinch like you were in pain when I touched it?"

I questioned him as I pull my hand away from his hip. He looks down at it before looking back up at me, surprised by what I said. He then slowly nods before sighing.

"...I guess I'm still scarred by it."

"...Yeah. What else happened in your past that I should know about?"

"Mackenzie-"

"You don't have to tell me if you're too uncomfortable to talk about it...but I would be glad if you told me. I'll even tell you mine just to be fair, okay?"

"...Okay. I'll tell you then."

Juno muttered as he then puts the pillow down, staring into my eyes as he held my hand, gently squeezing it as he told me his story.

"During my middle school and high school years...I was bullied, a lot. I was SO bullied that every time they left, I would cry..."

"..."

"I couldn't do anything. I was just so afraid that I would just get hurt more and more...I still remember all the horrible things they did to me and I just took it all without fighting back...it made me think to myself, what did I do to deserve this? Why do they pick on me? Maybe it was because I was a dork, a loser with no friends..."

"Hey, look at me. Look at me!"

I command as I then lift his chin up with my hand, causing him to blush as he stared into my eyes.

"You are NOT a loser...they're the real losers here. They keep picking on you because they're just assholes thinking they're better than you. But look at how far you've come, you're in college now, on the path to your future career! I bet they're working at a fast food place and not achieving anything at all. So guess who's the real winner here. Yes, it's you. You're the winner here and no one can stop you~"

"M-Mackenzie...thank you, really. No one has ever told me that before, or encouraged me so much...you just give me so much power."

"Don't thank me Juno...I'm just being honest with you. Why would I lie? I hate lying and I want you to know what I think of you and I think of you as a strong man fighting hard for his freedom and happiness~
Hey, want to know something?"

"Yeah? What is it?"

Juno asked as I then place him on my lap, playing with his dark hair as I confessed to him.

"I used to be bullied too..."

"What...? Why would anyone bully you? You're so sweet and kind and caring and just super sweet!"

"It was because of who I was back then...when I was in elementary school, I used to be labeled as...autistic."

I choked on the word as Juno stared at me, surprised. I then continued my story.

"My mom didn't believe it, but the school believed it. Even the students themselves believed it. Eventually, I would believe it myself after how the others treated me...one time, I saw these two girls on the baseball field and I wanted to play with them. So I went up to them and said hi. But they gave me weird glances and then threw apple tarts at me...that's why I didn't have many friends during the school years too. I was always the quiet one in the back, doing my work and then going home to watch YouTube or play Minecraft."

"Aww if I was there, I would be your best friend! I wouldn't care if you were autistic or not! You are you, Mackenzie! You're not fake or different, you're just you..."

"Yeah thanks...it would've been cool if I had friends at the time. I started to get to know other people when it was my high school year...and then, I fell in love for the very first time...I was so
happy during that time too.
I felt light as a feather and I felt like I was walking on air...but my world came crashing down when I found out my boyfriend, my first love, my first kiss...cheated on me."

"What...? Why would he do that?!"

Juno shouts as his face turned red with anger. I calm him down by holding his hand, caressing it.

"Honestly, I ask myself that same question every time a man cheated on me...I've had some good boyfriends, yes, but it just didn't work out in the end. Then, I became a mess...a huge mess. I got so consumed by lust, that I almost did it with...one of them. I'm lucky I stopped him in time, but after that...I was just so scared of it.
And then I met you...and I'm happy that I met you because you're so different compared to them. Yes, I sound so naive right now, but there's just something so different about you...in a good way, I mean."

"You're so different too, Mackenzie. You're so different compared to my first girlfriend...well, last girlfriend I mean. You're so sweet and you give me so many kisses...you were my first kiss too."

"E-Eh? Really?!"

"Y-Yeah...my ex never kissed me. All we did was hold hands and hug...but that was it. That's why you're so different compared to her, because you love me for me, even if I was too clingy."

"Awww but I love you being clingy! Because I'm clingy myself..."

I nervously chuckled as Juno giggles, hugging my waist as he rubbed his cheek on mine.

"God I love you so much Mackenzie...you have no idea how much I'm happy to have you...umm...there is something else I should tell you..."

"Hm? What is it? If your ex did anything else to you, I swear-"

"N-No no she didn't, don't worry...but...after we broke up, I went to the military since that was every Korean man's duty to do. While I was in military...I was so upset and broken that I..."

"...You what, Juno?"

"...I almost...killed myself...because I was just so upset...I felt so hopeless that I didn't know what else to do...but then, I changed my mind and that was the end of it."

I pulled away from the hug, staring at Juno with a serious expression as I felt my blood boil with anger.

"...Why would you do that? Why would you want to do that?"

"...I'm sorry, Mackenzie-"

"Why would you want to do that?!
Do you really want your parents to find out that their son, their SWEET AND BEAUTIFUL boy, took his own life?
Do you know how upset they would be? Do you know how upset your brother would be?
Do you know how upset everyone else would be? It only takes ONE shot and that's it..."

Juno was about to say something but I cut him off after I put a finger gun to his head and shout,

"BANG!"

Juno stares at me with a shocked expression, while I stare at him with sadness in my eyes.

"You're dead Juno! You're dead..."

"..."

"You may think that suicide is a solution, but it's not, Juno. It'll only leave more problems behind, it'll only leave more hurt people behind...don't you understand? So please, promise me, you would NEVER EVER do that again...okay? You have to fight, you can't give up now, you've made it THIS far! You have to fight! Do you want to work in your dream job? Do you want to work and live in America? Do you want to marry the person you love and have kids of your own?"

"...Yes. Yes, I want all of that."

"Then you have to fight for all of that. You have to carry on. You have to live, Juno. You have to..."

Juno then embraced me, crying as he shivered in my arms. I rub his back, whispering sweet things to him as I tried holding back my tears.
I'll be honest, I too have had thoughts like that...but I never had the guts to DO it.
If Juno almost DID it...then he had a very hard past, even more harder than mine.
If only I was there to save him from that hard past...then he wouldn't be hurt so much.
And with that...I saw that my tears had fallen too.