GATEWAY 🝔 LEE JENO

🝔 2.2

Some memories can never be shared with anyone because they are unexplainable

Hypnotised to the outside world, he stared out his window, mesmerised by the distant horizon painting the skies golden orange like the soaring Phoenix radiating blaring strikes of inferno across the broad blue sky.

He misses that world

He undeniably misses it. Maybe more than he should. He never presumed that he would get this attached to it. But he hated how he suffered alone, unable to tell anyone about it. How could he tell others. He would just sound stupid saying that he jumped into another universe.

How ridiculous does that sound?

So he chose to keep it a secret. He didn't want to tell anyone about Narva. However, Renjun found out about Ga-eun. The boy at first thought she was from Seoul. After Jeno began constantly talking about her, he mentioned information that made no sense. Since then Renjun believed that Jeno was hallucinating this girl. Who wouldn't think that though?

Especially after saying how the first thing she did was shoot an arrow at him and took him on a horse ride out of a forest. After that conversation failed he chose not to mention anything about Narva to anyone. Sadly, that thought went down the gutter.

But he was glad that it did.

Because his mother believed him . . . even though it took some convincing.

🝔

"Jeno" he heard a soft call grabbing his attention. When turning around he found his mother slowly walking over to him. Immediately, he ran over carefully aiding her, knowing that she was still to recover from her surgery that she had a week ago.

It has only been 4 days since Jeno's return back to Korea and he was over the moon to find out that his mothers surgery went well. However, he was partially upset because he wasn't there for her. Hei-ran never blamed him. She was more than happy to see that her missing son had come back safe and sound.

"Are you ok?" he questioned as soon as she sat down at the edge of his bed. Slowly nodding she looked up at the blank wall. "Are you?" she asked back just to receive silence. Pursing his lips he put on a fake smile. "Of course I am," he bluffed.

Nodding Hei-ran let out a heavy sigh. "Jeno, I am your mother. It's not easy to lie to your mother like you do in front of the media. I gave birth to you and watched you grow up. I know when my son is upset or happy" biting his bottom lip he tried to refrain from bursting out all his painful emotions that were itching to receive comfort.

🝔

"Mum, what would you do if Jia is still alive?" he began. Not anticipating this sort of conversation coming from him, her features immediately deformed into pained one. "I don't know Jeno, but there is no point of thinking that because she isn't so-"

"I saw her" he cut her off, taking her by surprise. Eyes widening, she let out an airy scoff, finding it absurd. "Jeno you don't even know what she looks like" pressing his lips together he fiddled with his finger nervously. "Im Jia" he spoke out, making her breath hitch. "Her full name is Im Jia" he repeated a little louder.

"H-How do you know?" it made no sense. Hei-ran has only told her kids the name of her friend but never had she mentioned the family name. Gulping down her clogged up throat she twisted Jeno's shoulders around so that he could be facing her completely. Studying his features she felt a strange emotion build up into her heart not able to comprehend what was really going on.

"Her daughter is the same age as me. Her name . . . Im Ga-eun" clenching her jaw and tightening her fists, she felt her chest squeeze together as her muscles tensed up. Shutting her eyes, she took deep inhales and exhales to calm down her pounding heart. "How do you know?'' She repeatedly, her voice fell low and quiet. A small crack between her words indicating how she was holding back her welling up emotions. It was overwhelming.

No one knows the name of Jia's child except for Hei-ran. After all, she named the newborn herself. Straight after that, news reached her saying how they both died.

Hei-ran never mentioned anything about the name of Jia's newborn to Yohan or anyone else. It was an untold piece of information she kept to herself. So hearing Jeno mention something that he shouldn't have known made her think that maybe what he was saying was true. Maybe she really wasn't dead.

"Mum" Jeno called out softly, making her gaze up at her son's sorrowful features. "You told me that it's not easy for me to lie to you" gulping hard she wandered her trembled orbs between his. "Look at me. Look at me properly and believe my words. You know that I am not lying"

Lip quivering and tears welling up she couldn't hold it in any longer. Beads of misery and despair cascading down her cheeks falling into a painful heartache. It was too much to take in. Too difficult to believe that her friend was alive all this time.

Gently, Jeno wiped her tears before delicately wrapping his arms around her shaking body. Soothingly he rubbed his hand up and down her back waiting for her sobs to quieten down. The thin material of his t-shirt drenched in anguish but he did not pull away knowing that his mother needs a shoulder to cry on. He was willing to stay like that until she was ready to move away.

Gradually, pulling off him, she wiped her tears with her palms before looking at her son with a different expression than before. Now with a wide smile.

"She's alive?" He gave her a short nod. "Ga-eun?" she asked. And again he nodded. Biting her bottom lip she took small sniffs. "Where are they? I want to see them" Hei-ran spoke out, a lace of excitement falling off her words as she grabbed her son's hands into her palms waiting for him to tell her where their location was.

Watching the cheerful gaze staring right back at him he felt his heart drop down into a pit of thorns digging through him ever so slowly. "You can't," his voice fell quiet, below a whisper. Guiltily he averted his sight away from her.

Furrowing her brows her smile slowly faltered away yet again not understanding what her son was trying to convey. W-why?" gulping down his dried up throat he took a deep breath gaining some courage to speak out the next part which may be even more difficult for her to believe than what had been said so far.

"They're in another world"