pellucid. + jhs.

sanshier

TWENTY-NINE hours after the incident, jae and her mother visited dr. choi for an important conversation. she despised going, but her mother requested her to do so, and it would be disrespectful to disobey her.

"i don't understand why we are making such a big deal of this situation," jae states, with clear irritation in her voice.

"this situation is a very big deal," dr. choi replies.

she sighs, shrugging her shoulders, "it's just sex. it's a part of life, right? a lot of kids do it, y'know."

"they do it because they chose to, jae, and usually, they enjoy it," her mother explains, softly as possible.

"i enjoyed it, mother," she says, her eyes slightly perked up, "i enjoy it, a lot."

her mother's eyes widen, "y–you enjoyed it?"

jae nods her head slowly, "yes," she tilts her head slightly to the right, "was i not supposed to?"

"well, n–no, i–it's just..."

"it's just what?"

"we didn't think you'd be able to enjoy sex for the rest of your life," dr. choi interrupts, catching their attention, "not without remembering some very bad memories of your older sister and you."

jae's body stiffens, his words causing her to remember a few moments.

"is it about those two men mom showed you four days ago...," she asks.

her parents' and seokjin's eyes widen, while dr. choi leans slightly forward.

"y–yes."

"they just.... if i can recall... beat me and yeona up," she recalls, and pauses for awhile, being awfully shook from the sudden flashbacks, "and yeona... was beaten up to d–death... r–right?"

"oh my gosh," tears start to fall from ms. kim's face, "jae, oh, jae."

the girl's eyes showed fear and panic as she looks at her family, "mother?"

her mother buries her face into her husband's shoulder, while seokjin stares at her with swelling pity.

"father...? seokjin...," jae's voice started to become softer and softer as she spoke. seokjin's adam apple bobbed up and down as he leaned forward.

"jae, those two men, they...," he pauses, releasing a quavering sigh. he looks to his father, but when he shook his head, he prompted for dr. choi to explain.

"jae," dr. choi's usual emotionless expression shows slight trouble, "those two men did hit you and your sister, yes... but they only did so because both of you refused to give them something that... that they'd enjoy from the two of you."

her eyes widen, as she sits back into the couch, "they... they wanted to have sex with us?"

"yes," he faintly replies, "and you two refused to abide so... so they hit you, and soon forc–"

"they raped us," she asks monotonous.

"o–only your sister... you were probably n–next, but, they were too late..."

"and they killed my sister?"

"y–yes. they killed her because she was too loud, according to what i've been informed of."

"and i–i forgot about all of it?"

"seeing your sister, someone you love, being hurt and touched like that, caused a severe amount of trauma for a thirteen year old," he informs, "it's your brain's way of protecting itself in a way; by repressing all the memories."

jae shakes her head, expression turning sour.

"i can't believe you all hid it from me."