【Original】The Forgotten Lights

----Chapter 4

*Hansol's POV*

"It was a quiet thirty or so minutes before the first bomb went off. We were sitting around the table, Ma, myself and my brother Kris having lunch. My oldest brother was in his room working on his school work, as usual. He was a big fanatic about his studies back then. He was always studying, I always wondered if he had anything better to do. He was very smart, and made me feel stupid sometimes. Anyways, the roof almost came tumbling in. Dust came down from the ceiling, and the light smashed onto the ground. Shattering over the hard floor. Ma looked at us, and told Kris and I to hide in the cupboard and not to come out until the enemy had passed. I thought it was crazy. We didn't even know what had happened, let alone think the enemy was attacking. We both just sat there, looking at her. 'Run!' She yelled. She was looking like she was panicking. It was like, this had happened to her before, like she knew what was going to happen. 'Go hide!! Please!!' She screamed. We both looked at her. 'What about Ryeowook?' Kris had asked, worrying about our older brother. She looked at him. 'I'll deal with him, you both run!!' She commanded. I wanted to stay with her, but she looked very serious. So we did as we were told, Kris ushered me into the cupboard, and behind the small gap in the wall that we both fit in. I was clueless of what was going on. Kris had cupped his hand over my mouth before I could ask questions. Then, before I knew what hit us we heard footsteps, then screaming. I tried to go out to help Ma, but Kris held me back. I wasn't the strongest against him, after all I was younger than him. Another scream came from the kitchen where we just were. Then we heard a loud bang. There was a small silence. Kris held me close to him, hoping that we'd be okay. I hoped that Ryeowook and Ma were going to be okay. There was footsteps, and a closing of a door. We presumed they were gone, so Kris led me out of the cupboard. 'Ma?' He mumbled, opening the cupboard. He gasped, so me being a curious cat walked over and peered out from behind him. A tear was rolling down my cheeks. 'Ma!' I sobbed, running toward her body. She had horror imprinted onto her face, well what was left of her face. We heard a small thud, and both quickly ran back into the cupboard. We quietly hid in the cupboard, with a small crack in the door so we could see their faces. A familiar face came into view. Kris pushed the door open. 'Ryeowook... we can explain!' He sobbed. Our brother turned and looked at us. His eyes were swollen from the crying, and his cheeks were wet from the tears. Ryeowook ran over, and grabbed hold of us. He was smiling. Why? I wasn't too sure. 'You're okay!' He cried. He kept on crying. He kept on saying the same thing over and over again. We heard more footsteps. We knew they were back to check our house. 'We have to leave.' Ryeowook said, then that's when it started. That's when this whole thing began."

As I finished the story, I looked up for approval. A small crowd had gathered, and I didn't seem to notice. I was too busy telling the story. Most of the people were crying, or holding their hands to their faces. They were all shocked. "What? You were the ones who asked me to tell my story. So I did. Don't blame me if it was too horrible for you." I said, looking at Kris. He nodded. "We aren't disappointed in you. Although, we are a little shocked about your story. Sorry about your mother. It must've been hard for you, cub." My friend Siha said. He sat down on an up turned box across from me. His eyes saddened. I always thought Kris might've told him about his life before now. Obviously he hadn't. I looked around at the other people. They were all disbanding, and going back to their own things. "How old are you?" Someone asked. I looked up, a tall woman, whom looked in her 30s was standing there. She had long brunette hair in a messy bun, and was wearing a long flower dress. She didn't look like she was from my town, I don't even think I've seen her before. "I am 15, ma'am." I replied to her. I didn't want to be rude, so I answered her question. Although it was weird for her to ask how old I am. Why would she need to know? She gasped slightly. "Really? You mean you were only 12 when the enemy attacked?" She asked. I nodded. "Yeah." I replied. It was true. I was 12 years old when the enemy attacked. We didn't know who they were, why they attacked, or where they came from. They just attacked. So, we just call them the 'enemy'. It was a pretty reasonable name for someone who goes around killing the innocent. I sighed loudly. The woman quietly nodded. "You poor thing, it must've been horrible for you to witness all of this." She sobbed, leaning toward me slightly. I was confused. She then pulled me in for a hug, which was very uncomfortable. Kris and Siha chuckled slightly. "Hey!" I whispered at my brother. He wouldn't stop laughing. Stop your stupid laughing and help me!! My mind screamed. I couldn't exactly say anything, this random woman was squishing me! Kris walked over, wiping his eyes. "Hey, Luna." He said, pulling her away from me. "I think you were crushing him." He chuckled. She smiled. "Sorry, I always get carried away." She apologised. I felt bad now. I never liked hurting others feelings. "No, it is okay- Luna is it?" I replied, questioning what Kris had called her. She nodded. "Yeah, I'm Luna." She said chuckling. I smiled. What an odd name. I've never heard such a name in my life. Though, I mustn't be rude. So I might as well tell her my name. I started to introduce myself when she put her hand to my mouth. Her hand was so rough, and smelled like oil. "I already know who you are, you are Hansol." She said, then smiling kindly removing her hand from my mouth. Yes. I am Hansol. And how she knew that was beyond me, I couldn't understand how everyone knew who I was. I was just a kid. A kid. No more, and no less. There were thousands of kids here. Kris smiled. "Ah, Hansol, everyone knows who you are because of Ryeowook and me." He said, as if he was reading my mind. I nodded understandingly, though still a slight bit confused. "Yeah- and how is that?" I asked, concerned. Kris hadn't mentioned Ryeowook since now, and I hadn't seen him since the enemy took Ryeowook and Kris away when they first attacked us. I looked down slightly. I was beginning to worry about Ryeowook. My brother kneeled down. He looked as if he was in pain. Was he okay? "Luna, Siha. Give me a moment please." He said, looking to the other two. I wasn't prepared for this at all. "Kris?" I questioned. There was something he hadn't told me. He was holding it back. I looked at him as he prepared to tell me. "Hansol, when we were taken away from our home and we lost you, Ryeowook was very dramatic about it. You know how he is, always worrying about us. Of course, he's our older brother." Kris started. I nodded, showing him I had got what he had said. "When he got to the enemy's camp, they tortured us. We met most of the people in this base there. Ryeowook was the one who got us out. He became our leader after that, and led us out. Ryeowook appointed me as his right hand man. Everyone knew us." Kris paused. I knew that this story was not going to end well. "Hansol, he- the enemy then told us as he rebelled against them- they told us in Korean that they killed you. They told us they killed you when we got taken away. They told us that they killed you because of us! They said that you were dead!" He sobbed, putting his hand on my face. "Ryeowook was furious at them. I was furious at them. Then, Ryeowook attacked them. He rebelled against them- the enemy... they..." He was stuttering. I was crying now too. I couldn't understand. I didn't want to understand him right now. Was he telling me that the enemy killed our brother?