Foe To Flame

Chapter 31

Opening her eyes, Namsoon was greeted with the image of Ppappa looking at her while neighing, as if asking her to get up from the dirty floor. She blinked her eyes several times, trying to understand her surroundings. What's happening? Why is Ppappa suddenly still alive? Am I dreaming?

She was about to pinch herself when she heard Ppappa's aggressive neighs and started to run at full speed towards a different direction. Panicked, Namsoon used her super speed to follow Ppappa, afraid the male horse would hurt himself. She lost sight of Ppappa at the river. Calling out for him, she saw a figure standing in the middle of the river.

Squinting her eyes to see more clearly, she saw a male figure. The figure started to walk closer to her, and only then did she realise it was Si-O. Si-O? She wanted to call for his name, but her voice seemed to be stuck. She can see him walking closer to her. Stopping in front of her, he smiled. She returned the smile. She doesn't understand what is happening, but what matters most is that she can finally see Si-O's smile after so long.

It seems like she hasn't seen his smile in a long time. What did I do to lose that smile of his? She seems to not be able to recall what happened between them. Si-O started to slowly stroke her hair and trace the lines on her face before suddenly his hand went to her neck and chokedher hard. Her hands went to grab Si-O's, trying to break free from the choking.

She tried to use her superpower to break free, but it seemed like she lost her power. Trying very hard to yell his name, her effort is to no avail, as no words can come out of her throat. The oxygen in her brain is starting to decrease. Namsoon is fully crying now. She doesn't understand why Si-O is choking her. Her eyes are getting blurry from the tears that welled up.

Trying her best to look at Si-O's face, she can see that his eyes are red with tears. As if he is sad and angry. Why is he sad and angry? Why is he choking me? Does he want to kill me? Does he hate me? Thousands of questions are running through her mind. She can feel her lungs screaming for air, but the grip on her neck is getting tighter. She can feel the oxygen in her brain dropping at the speed of a crashing plane.

Her eyes are getting droopy, and she has no energy left to fight. She was about to let go of everything and close her eyes forever when her eyes suddenly jerked open. As if resurrected from death, she breathes in the air as if there is no tomorrow, almost choking herself in between. Was I dreaming just now? Her head started to spin from the sudden movement, and she held her head in her hands. Her ears are blocked, and all she could hear was the deafening sound of a long and sharp 'beep'.

She suddenly felt a pair of arms wrapped around her figure. She pushed away the arms in shock. Only then did she see Geumju looking at her as if she had seen a ghost. "...mom?" Namsoon said with a sore and broken voice. "Namsoon, my baby." Geumju said and went to hold her face. "Are you okay?" Geumju asked with tears flowing down her face.

She shakes her head, not understanding what is happening. Her head feels like it's about to burst. "It's okay. Let's get you home first." Geumju said. Geumju gestured to Heesik to assist Namsoon in standing up. Oh, Heesik is here, too. Namsoon was about to accept their help when she suddenly registered something.

She put her hands down. "Wait, where am I? How are you guys here?" Namsoon asked, slowly starting to regain her memories. "The last thing I remembered was..." Then her eyes turned wide and almost came out of their sockets. "SI-O! Where is he?!" She asked frantically and started to turn her body left and right aggressively to look for him.

Geumju held her body and said, "Namsoon." She tried to call Namsoon's name several times, but she seemed to be in the wrong state. "Namsoon!" Geumju jerked her body harder. It seemed to work as she looked back at Geumju. "When we arrived, you were the only one laying on the ground." Geumju explained. "I don't understand. What is happening?" Namsoon asked, crying.