Kill Me Softly

My Life

"Woo...?" Yoonbum asked weakly, "what..? Hey, what was that stuff you fed me?"

Sangwoo looked surprised, but quickly started to laugh'

"Oh, that? That was just alcohol. I only meant to use it as a painkiller to calm you down, but you just kept passing out. Guess you don't drink much, huh?"

Yoonbum felt his face go red. He had never had any alcohol except for maybe a sip, and that stuff hadn't been strong. He wasn't exactly sure why, but the thought that he was such a lightweight that he had passed out, twice now, embarrassed him.

"N-no... I, um, I-"

"Don't worry about it," said Sangwoo, clearly sensing how Yoonbum had been feeling, "hey, you still need to recover. Why don't you go back to sleep."

Yoonbum didn't remember exactly what he had been dreaming about, but he knew his uncle had been there. He shivered and shook his head at Sangwoo's suggestion,

"Can't... I'm scared."

Sangwoo stared at him for a moment with an expression Yoonbum couldn't read, and then stood up and sighed. Yoonbum hadn't expected to elicit any sympathy from Sangwoo, of course, he just couldn't bear the thought of going back to sleep. He wasn't safe in his dreams. Fully expecting Sangwoo to leave the room and come back with some more alcohol to force him to sleep, Yoonbum was shocked when he felt Sangwoo shove him lightly,

"Move over," he said, Yoonbum rolled over and watched in shock as Sangwoo climbed into the bed with him. He was so shocked he could barely move as Sangwoo embraced his small body and buried his face in Yoonbum's chest,

"You don't have to be scared of anything when I'm here. Go back to sleep."

Yoonbum's state of shock was replaced by an overwhelming sense of safety, and he felt his eyes close softly as he drifted off in Sangwoo's arms. He was awakened by the sound of Sangwoo exiting the bed and sunlight streaming into the room from the hall. Yoonbum kept his eyes closed as he listened to Sangwoo leave the room. He had thought last night was a dream. He thought that his fever or maybe the alcohol had caused him to hallucinate the events that led up to him falling asleep in the arms of his jailer. But as he felt the large dent in the mattress next to him, he knew that it really had happened. Was it possible that Sangwoo had cared for him? He couldn't wrap his mind around it. The man who had brought him pain and terror had made him feel safe after a nightmare and taken care of him. He wondered if what Sangwoo had told him was really true. He didn't think the person he had just seen would have pushed him down the stairs. He couldn't imagine this Sangwoo doing anything to hurt him, and if he really had, why was he taking care of him now? Suddenly, a pain unlike anything Yoonbum had ever felt rushed through his head. He screamed and began to thrash around in the bed. Sangwoo threw the door open and rushed over.

"Bum?! What's wrong? Oh, god, Bum, talk to me, what's happening?!"

Yoonbum couldn't answer, he just lay completely still, barely conscious, with his head throbbing in pain. Sangwoo rushed out of the room and came back in record speed with a bottle of pills. He forced some of them down Yoonbum's throat and sat next to him, holding his hand and looking like he was near tears. After a few minutes, the pain subsided almost completely. The headache had taken up all of Yoonbum's strength, but he still managed to stay awake,

"...Woo...?"

Sangwoo laughed in relief and began to talk, almost rambling,

"I didn't know what happened, but you looked like you were in so much pain. I guess it must have been your head injury. I kept these pills in case of an emergency. My mom and I used to use them when my dad beat one of us badly. We couldn't go to a hospital, so... anyway, they're about the strongest painkillers you can get."

Yoonbum, mustering his last bits of strength, looked at Sangwoo very seriously and said in a very weak voice,

"I... remember everything... Woo... I know."

The last thing Yoonbum saw before he went unconscious was Sangwoo's horrified face.