Then I Wake

Chapter 7

Seonghwa

I'm a murderer...

I emerge from the bushes, slowly, head down. A trail of blood is left in my wake.

San and Jongho rush to my side, supporting me as we walk to the others.

"Seonghwa, can you hear me?" San begins to run the usual tests for consciousness.

"Yes."

"And you can see me? Your vision's alright?"

"Yes, if a little hazy."

San nods in relief as we get back to the others.

"Seonghwa, what-"

"I'm a murderer. I'm... I killed him..."

"Who? Seonghwa, where's Lee Know?"

"He's dead."

Han crumples in defeat and grief, breaking down in a flood of tears. I mean fair enough, his boyfriend just died.

"Who?! Who killed him?!" Han asks between sobs.

"I found Wonwoo, we had a duel... But Lee Know, he..." I stop for a moment, still crying, "He took the bullet for me..."

"NO!" Han screams, wracked with pain and grief.

"So I killed Wonwoo."

Han stops crying, and stands up. "You did?"

"I did."

Silently, Han walks over to me and hugs me. "Thank you..."

"Can we see him?" Chan asks, stepping forward.

I nod and turn back towards the path out of the park, leading them back to where it happened. My feet feel heavy as I think of the scene.

"They're-"

They're gone. The bodies, the blood... Everything. No bullets, no guns, nothing.

I turn around.

"They were here, I swear!"

Everyone looks at me, but their faces are distorted. Mouths stretched, eyes bloodshot and large, like something from a horror movie.

What's wrong with them?

Running away feels... Sticky, like I can hardly move. Soon enough, they catch up with me, and Changbin picks me up like a feather.

"No, stop, this isn't funny!" I beg him to put me down.

He carries me to the park, lead by Hongjoong and Chan, everyone else following. The hole where Taeyang rested is still a gaping, empty hole of dirt.

I hit the bottom of the pit with a thud, and they all stand around it, shovels in hand.

"Please, stop, I don't like this anymore!" I plead, but my cries fall on deaf ears.

One by one, they throw soil and mud down at me.

I'm being buried alive.

I can't breathe.

Jongho

He's still out cold.

"Seonghwa? Wake up! Wake up, please!" I slap him round the face to try to help him regain consciousness.

"Stop that, Jongho." Hongjoong pulls my hand away.

San and Wooyoung carry a bucket of water over, and San uses his shirt as a cloth to dab his forehead with water, tearing his and Wooyoung's into strips as makeshift bandages.

Wooyoung keeps a close eye on Seonghwa's motionless form as San works.

"Hey, he's waking up!" Wooyoung exclaims in relief as Seonghwa stirs.

"What-" Seonghwa murmurs, still drowsy, as he tries to sit up.

"Nuh uh, stay down. You need to rest." San pushes him back down and keeps the cloth on his forehead.

The rest of us stand in a circle around him, and he looks round at us one by one.

"Yeosang, Han, Mingi, Lee-" he blinks in confusion, "LEE KNOW?! YOU'RE DEAD!"

"What? No, Seonghwa, no. Are you feeling alright?" Lee Know looks down at him worriedly.

What does he mean, Lee Know's dead? He's perfectly fine!

"But..." Seonghwa starts, "You're dead... Wonwoo shot you."

Lee Know takes a deep breath, "No, Seonghwa."

"Wonwoo shot you."