Seo Moon Jo was wondering why he was in an asylum when he felt perfectly normal. He was as sane as they can be. Why can't they release him? And now, the doctor wants him to return to his room.
Yoon Jong Woo came to the hospital to pick up his brothe...
Chapter XIII Pink Paper Flower (Do You Like Me, Dear?)
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Moon Jo let his hands fall back to his lap, and he felt a swelling in his chest. He forgot ever being hesitant to speak.
Jong Woo wanted to get to know him. That was a good sign. "Of course." He thought back to his life in his province, to the cold winters and sleepless nights. "I grew up with my mother. My father is no longer around."
"Neither is mine, actually..." Jong Woo's voice faded into nothing. He shook his head. "What is your mother like?"
"Mother is very sweet, but... there are moment she's a bit different."
Mother always clung to Moon Jo, always grew agitated when he left her alone. Sometimes she even went into fits of rage, which were disturbing if not outright frightening. A shudder went down his spine and he quickly adverted his thoughts.
"Mother have not visited yet."
"I'm sure she will." Jong Woo spoke confidently. Moon Jo instantly felt a bit better, though he wasn't entirely sure if he wanted that to be true. "Does your mother know you're here?"
"No, she don't." And Moon Jo was reluctant to tell her. After his father passed, he was the only one who takes care of his mother, the only one who always there for his mother; to be strong even though it was hurting him sometimes. Mother did not need to know that he was in this hospital, among these kinds of people.
The very idea sickened him.
His stomach twisted into painful knots, a strange mix of guilt and anxiety. "I... sometimes misses her," he said without thinking. Jong Woo nodded in understanding, listening intently, and Moon Jo felt safe enough to continue. "I used to support her, but now, I can't do that. It makes me feel... not useful." He surprised himself when he admitted it, and it surprised him even more when he didn't regret it.
"Your health would be important to your mother, right?" Jong Woo moved away from the corner and closer to Moon Jo, seemingly without meaning to. Moon Jo's pulse quickened. "You should tell your mother."
Moon Jo knew that was unavoidable. The idea still put him off, but Jong Woo saying these things made thinking about it more bearable. His mind began to wander, and before he even knew he had opened his mouth and said, "I wonder if Mother's hair has grown."
Jong Woo blinked. "I'm sorry?"
"When I was a child, she had long, beautiful hair. But when I was growing up, she cut her hair short and made it permed." Moon Jo smiled to himself, remembering. His mother's hair was lovely either way. "I used to put it up for her. Sometimes during summer I put flowers in it."
