Another Life | chanseungin

dramatic

Flashback

Chris, who was five years old, walked into his neighborhood. It was summer, school was almost out. The feeling of his backpack on his sweaty back was uncomfortable, so he took it off and held it in his hand.

He waved to his neighbor, Ms. Railand, she was old, almost seventy. She was so nice to him, always made him cookies. He stepped onto his porch. He pulled the key that was around his neck off and was about to unlock the door...

Hm?

It's already open?

'did mum leave it open?' he thought.

And then he heard a baby cry. Two babies crying.

He went upstairs to see his newborn brother and two year old sister crying. He picked Lucas up and tried to shush him..

'where is mum?'

He realizes that they're both probably hungry and fed them. It was hard, considering that he's in fourth grade taking care of two babies alone. He put them to sleep.

He looked for his mum or dad, they wouldn't leave Hannah and Lucas alone..

He decided to look in their room. He walked into the hallway, stepping down it slowly. He reached their shut door, and turned it carefully. He cracked it open.

He couldn't see much, just a pair of shoes, the heels facing up. They're his dad's shoes. Why would his dad leave his shoes like that? He decided to open the door all the way, and the sight he saw was terrifying.

His mother was on the bed in her nightgown. There was blood everywhere.... Her neck was almost detached from the rest of her body...

His dad was on the floor and blood was pooling from his body. He couldn't see anything because he was face down.

Chris ran downstairs and grabbed the home phone. He dialed 000. His voice was trembling..

"What is your emergency?"

He couldn't speak. He tried but he couldn't, he just cried.

"Excuse me? Do you have an emergency?"

"Mum..." He whispered..

"Did something happen to your mum? Can you give her the phone?"

"Please come..."

~

A few months had passed. Hannah and Lucas had been placed in a foster home and were already in line to be adopted by their new "family". Chan on the other hand, he had bounced from home to home.

And to rub salt on his wounds, he was deported. He and his parents were immigrants, they moved to Australia when he was two. He was sent to live with his dad's sister, a woman he had never met. Living with her was okay, until she died.

After his aunt died, he was placed in an orphanage.When he was sixteen, he started drinking. It made him forget.

Forget that he found his parents' dead bodies.

Forget that he has no idea where his siblings are.

Forget that he is a failure.

Forget everything.

🍃

Everyone stared at him. Some were shocked, some were sympathetic looking. He rolled his eyes. "This is why I don't tell people, stop ogling like I'm a fucking sad little puppy."

Everyone looked away.

The rest of the meeting went by without him saying anything else. He just wants to go home...

🍃

Chan walks into the house and takes his shoes off. He walks over to the table and picks up the mail for the day. As he's going through it, he notices another letter from Australia. Sigh, why does Hannah keep trying to talk to him?

He walks to his room and puts the letter with the other twenty of them.

For months, she's tried to contact him. And for months, he's been ignoring her.

He wants to talk to her, to see how she grew up. But, he doesn't want her to see him, he has too many issues.

tbc~