𝘹𝘹-𝘋𝘳𝘢𝘸𝘯 𝘋𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘦-𝘹𝘹 [𝘈 𝘛𝘟𝘛 𝘍𝘢𝘯𝘍𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯]

𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘖𝘯𝘦

Ten Years Ago

The early morning street buzzed with an abundance of individuals. Some were out to complete their jobs for the day, while others were out having fun with friends and family. As for me, I was going on a short shopping trip with my mother.

As I glanced around town, the sweet aroma from the local bakery had caught my attention, giving me the desire to stroll into the store and grab a delectable treat.

"Bye mommy! I'm going to the bakery!" I exclaimed, releasing my grip on her hand and skipping into the store.

My eyes scanned over the wide variety of delicious baked goods. I grinned, grabbing a muffin, taking a second one for my friend, Taehyun.

"Hello sir! I'll take these two muffins!" I told the man at the register. He smiled and scanned my items, placing them into a pink bag.

"Is that all for you, kiddo?" He chuckled as he handed me the small bag.

"Yes, sir! Thanks!" I ecstatically ran out of the store to greet my mother. "Look at what I got, mommy!"

"That's great, Kai! Is that other muffin for your friend?" My mother grinned as she patted my head and ruffled my hair in a playful gesture.

"Yes, mommy! I'm so excited to eat it! It smells so good!"

"Aww, I'm glad my son got something to his liking!" My mother beamed as she kneeled down, wrapping her arms around me in a tight embrace.

I continued downtown, helping my mom grab some groceries and necessities from the market. Soon after, we returned home. Luckily for me, Taehyun's residence was right next to mine, making it easy to deliver my gift to him.

"Mommy, I'm going to play with Taehyun!" I shouted. After hearing a noise of approval from my mother, I swung open the front door and sprinted to the neighboring house, wasting not a single chance I had of precious play time.

I knocked on his front door a few times before hearing it creak open, seeing Taehyun's head peek out.

"Hi Kai! Wanna play?" He smiled as he closed the door behind him. "Let's go to the neighborhood park!"

I nodded, accompanying him as we both ran into the distance, away from our homes.

"I brought some of my favorite action figures with me, hehe! I hope you like them!" Taehyun said as he pulled some out of a paper bag, placing them beside me.

Upon hearing him, my cheeks rose into a smile, "Really? I brought something too!" I extended my arm, revealing the pink bag of muffins.

"Wow, it's muffins! Thank you so much Kai!" The small boy hugged me with tears welling in his eyes. "It's been so long since I've eaten one of these!"

I frowned, "It's been so long? My mommy lets me eat them all the time! If you ever wanted them, you could've just asked me!"

"Really? Then, I'll make sure to ask you every day from now on!" He giggled.

I grinned, scratching my tiny head, "Maybe not everyday! That's a little too much! How about every week?"

"Yeah! That's a good idea!" Taehyun smiled as he savored every little bite of the muffin that he could.

After finishing our treats, we picked up our action figures and began to create our 1000th story with them. We ran around the playground, went on the slides, and climbed the monkey bars.

"Hey Taehyun, I think we should go on the swings next!"

"Yeah! Let's go!" He ran to sit on the blue swing as I took a seat in the pink one.

It wasn't long before my swinging gained momentum and I was being flung into the air by the small seat.

"TAEHYUN! I'M SCARED! IT'S GOING TOO HIGH!" I screamed in horror.

"Oh no! Stop moving the swing! Just stay still!" He hopped off of the swing and attempted to grab the chains that attached my seat to a bar above but it was to no avail and he was knocked in the face by my feet. "OW!"

"I'M SORRY! I CAN'T CONTROL MYSELF!" I shouted, flailing my body in every direction.

At that moment, the worst possible circumstance occurred. The worn out chains holding up the swing slowly cracked off of the bar above me, sending me plummeting out of the ride. I shrieked as my body thudded against the ground, sharp pain penetrating each and every one of my senses.

"ARE YOU OKAY?!" Taehyun shouted as he rushed to my side.

I sobbed, "OW, my leg hurts so much!" I whined in between sniffles with snot, tears, and dirt lathering my face. I pulled up my pants, revealing a bloody gash.

Taehyun gasped, "I'll go get some bandages from the convenience store! Wait right here!" He panicked as he scrambled into the distance.

I sat on the mulch, rubbing my wound while waiting for Taehyun. Little did I know, he wasn't going to return at all.

❥

I panted as I sprinted to the convenience store, Huening Kai's injuries being the only distinguishable thought in my head.

I hope he will be okay, I thought, frowning. I should have gotten hurt instead.

At last, I arrived at the doors of the store. I stopped to catch my breath, using the wall in front of me as support. Once I had reached normal breathing levels, I extended a hand out towards the door handles.

Before I got the chance to enter the store, a tall cloaked figure suddenly blocked my way to the entrance, snatching my frail body.

The world around me began to fade to a dark color, spinning in every direction. My surroundings mushed up into incoherent blobs as tinnitus filled my ears. I kicked and screamed at the figure, but it was no use.

I couldn't feel my body anymore.