Chasing in the dark

CHAPTER 2

The dark and turbulent clouds break open as a white line clear the darkness in the small bedroom. The rumbling of angry claps, leave a trail of scattered aftershocks in its wake. 

=Dae-Seong POV= 

I've never been afraid of thunderstorms. I used to run outside and play in the rain with my little brother. But something about this thunder felt off.

The thunder sounded ominous. 

It sounded angry. 

I could feel my bed sinking underneath my body. Warm breath tickled the nape of my neck as I feel the hairs on my skin stand up.

As I open my eyes, I stare into cold and dark ones. He places his hand over my mouth as I try to scream for help.

I try to struggle out of his grip but the more I struggle, the tighter his grip becomes. He places his index finger over his lips and "sshh" as he frees my mouth.

Gasping for air, I fill my lungs with much needed oxygen. I try to push him off but he grabs a hold of my wrists and throws my arms over my head.

"What do you want?" I breathlessly ask him. 

He slowly moves his head down and pierce into my eyes. The way he looks at me can only be described as a hungry lion getting ready to devour his prey.

My mouth turns dry as he smirks and a slight smile appears around his lips. He licks his lips and whispers "You!" As he moves in closer...

"NOOOOO!!!!!"

"Dae-Seong! Wake up!... wake up! You're having a nightmare. Hey!" I hear a small and frantic voice between the ringing in my ears.

I wake up, soaking wet. Trying hard to get my shallow breathing under control, I sit up and pant like a thirsty dog.

With a worried expression in his innocent eyes, my brother Jun-won fiddles with the damp cloth between his fingers.

"Are you okay?" he asks me, as he tries to mask the urgency in his small voice.

I cannot help but feel guilty at how quickly he had to grow up. At 11 years old, he has had to deal with the harsh realities of where he comes from and stuck in a family that has showed him nothing but pain with no way out.  

With his small hands, he dabs the damp cloth over my sweaty forehead.

Finally I pull myself out of my frozen state and grab onto his wrist, taking the cloth from him.

"I am okay. Go to bed. It's late." Another roar of the thunder bursts through our small 2 and a half bedroom house. My little brother freezes when another loud thunder breaks loose.

I open my duvet and pat the open space on the bed. He climbs in and I cover him with the blanket. 

We've been laying in silence for a while when he suddenly turns to look at me "What were you dreaming about?"

I couldn't answer as I feel my face turning red from embarrassment. I change positions and lay on my back as I stare up into the ceiling.

"Go to sleep. You have school in the morning". He reluctantly listens to me and closes his eyes.

I turn onto my side and stare out of the window. The lightning lights up my dark room and I see his face, with that smirk, staring at me.

I close my eyes. 

I feel my brother curling into my side as he tries to shadow himself from the bright stream of lighting pouring into my room. 

What the hell was that?! I think to myself as I forcefully swallow the access spit that's forming in the back of my throat. Releasing a deep and heavy sigh, I drift back into a deep and dreamless slumber.