PITYING THE PRISONER | p.jm

f o u r t e e n - j i m i n

After all of this; after everything I've been through with her, I've failed her. Lee Cora lies dead on the ground, having taken her own life to save mine. She died for me, even after all the time she spent living for me. And after all of her sacrifices, all of her commitment, I could not return the favor. I failed my one and only task: to come back for her. I was too late, and now her blood is on my hands. The blood of the girl I've grown to love is on my hands.

In what seems like the distance, Sangmin is radioing his men, calling them either to our position or out of the forest. I don't care which. It doesn't matter. I just cry, letting out everything I've dealt with for the past month. Tears flow so freely from my eyes I feel as though I may actually cry myself into unconsciousness. I grip loosely onto Cora's shirt with one hand, the other balled into a fist; angry at me for my failures.

Then there's a hand on my back, a reassuring one. "You did everything you could, Jimin-ah," Sangmin says, trying to comfort me. "It just didn't work out in your favor."

I push his words away, choosing to disregard them rather than see reason. "It's my fault, Sangmin! I should have stayed with her, we should have gone down together!" Clutching even more tightly to Cora, I hear Sangmin speaking again.

"Come on, Jimin, stop this," Sangmin says. "You got back here immediately, you've exhausted yourself, and your lungs are still nowhere near fully operational. You risked everything coming back here to get her as soon as you could. You shouldn't be guilty. You gave it everything you had."

That's true; I know that's true. I did do everything in my power to get back to Cora, but it doesn't negate the fact that she took her own life to save me. I never even got the chance to return the favor.

Then, something remarkable occurs. A cough, a simple, sputtering cough breaks the tension. I look up. Cora's head lifts up and her eyes meet mine. She coughs again and blood flies from her mouth onto the ground beside us. A smile crosses her face, though she looks as ragged as a person can be. She coughs one more time before she speaks.

"Jimin, I told you to go get help," she says weakly. "Also, get off of me, I can't breathe."

In complete and utter shock, I quickly move to sit on the ground beside Cora; watching as she slowly pulls herself into a sitting position. My eyes are wide and my mouth is definitely agape. She's alive; Lee Cora is alive.

"I thought you were—" I manage, trying to find the words.

"It was all part of the plan," she replies.

One of the members of Sangmin's team suddenly speaks. I didn't know he was here.

"Are you wounded, Cora-ssi? Are you hurt?"

"Just on my leg," she says, gesturing for me to help her stand. "I'm pretty sure a bullet grazed it. It's all a bit hazy, though. Those blanks pack a punch."

I help her stand, letting her lean on me as we move.

"You have a lot of things to explain to me," I tell her. "I thought you were dead! What's all of this?" I gesture to the blood on her head.

"I'll tell you soon," she replies. "The police are going to want to have a word with both of us, anyway, and I need to rest. You do, too."

"She's right about that, Jimin-ah," Sangmin interjects, coming over to Cora's other side to assist her in walking. "We're going to take both of you back to the hospital, and in the morning we're going to ask you some questions. As long as you're feeling up to it by then, I mean."

"I should be fine," Cora replies. "What about you, Jimin?"

"If you're okay, I'm okay," I say, smiling.