Moonlight | Kim Taehyung

7: Luna

I make it back home safely. Once I open the door, I'm surprised to see Mina sitting on the sofa and looking at me.

"Why are you still awake?" I ask her as I close the door behind me.

"I'm worried about you. Why are you home so late?" She asks as she makes her way over to me.

I sigh, "I'm seventeen. I'm old enough to look after myself."

"No, you're not," my sister objects.

"I'll be fine. I am fine." I ensure her. "I'm back now, aren't I?"

"Just don't come home so late next time okay? Don't make me worry about you." Mina says as she looks at me with concern.

"Okay, I won't," I reply.

"Good," she says simply. "You should get some rest."

I nod, "You too."

We bid each other goodnight and head to our own rooms. I sigh as I get inside my room. Today has been a long day and I'm exhausted. I don't bother taking a shower or changing my clothes, so I just lay on my bed. I immediately shut my eyes once my head hits my pillow.

---

I wake up at noon and I head to the dining room to see my mum and sisters gathered around the table, eating lunch.

"Didn't bother to wait for me before eating?" I ask to get their attention.

They turn their heads to face me and Mina says, "I didn't want to wake you. You seemed to needed to rest."

"Fair enough," I say.

"Here," my sister places my plate of food that she prepared on the table.

I sit down beside her, "Thanks."

We eat in silence. Mina is the most composed out of all of us. Mum is fidgeting and Rae-na looks nervous. I reach my hand out to hold Rae-na's and she looks up to smile at me. She's only a child and she has to go through the pain of losing her father. I squeeze her hand to ease her.

"I have to go to work now," Mina says and she stands up to leave.

"Why?" Rae-na whines.

Mina walks over to Rae-na and kneels by her side, "I have to make money for us. So we can buy food and toys for you."

Rae-na nods her head slowly with a smile as she says hesitantly, "Okay."

"Can we go to the playground today, Luna?" Rae-na asks me.

She's grinning so happily, I don't want to disappoint her, so I say, "Sure. Let's go in half an hour?"

She nods her head excitedly and stands up from the chair, "I'm going to change."

Mina ruffles Rae-na's hair before leaving. I'm now left alone with mum. She's looking down at the empty plate.

"I can clean-up," I say and stand up to take the dirty dishes to the sink to wash them.

She suddenly says to me, "I'm sorry."

I keep quiet and continue washing the dishes.

"I'm so sorry," she repeats. "I'm sorry for being such a horrible mother. For neglecting you."

I can hear her sniffling and crying, but I choose to ignore her. No matter how many times she says sorry, it won't change what happened. Sorry just isn't enough.

"I'm sorry," she keeps repeating. "I'm so so sorry."

"Can you stop that?" I'm annoyed by her so I drop the dishes into the sink with a clang and say. "Can you stop saying sorry? Saying sorry doesn't mean anything."

I'm about to leave, but she stops me, "Luna, please."

"What?" I look at her frustratedly.

"I'll do anything to turn back time," she says as tears stream down her face.

"Well, you can't, can you? So we just have to keep on living and move on," I say and leave my mum to weep on her own.

People might think I'm being cruel and disrespectful to my own mum. But, she was the one who neglected me. The one who destroyed my dreams of becoming a singer. The one who didn't allow me to sing. The one who made my life so miserable that I'm diagnosed with depression. She made me cut myself. She made me attempt to end my own life. How can I ever forgive her? How can I forgive a person who made me go through pain and suffering?

---

I'm sitting on one of the swings at the playground and Rae-na is running around with the other kids. She's so happy and care-free. I wish I can be a little girl again. Then, I won't need to be troubled. I watch my sister the entire time as I ever so slightly swing myself. I feel as though I'm flying as I swing. Kicking my legs out and tucking them back in. My hair blows in the wind freely. I let myself relax and enjoy the sensation of being on a swing.

I stop abruptly when I feel that someone is on the swing beside mine. I open my eyes and turn to face the person. I'm taken aback when I see that he's someone I know.

"Taehyung?" I say in surprise.

I would have never imagined that Taehyung would be right beside me. What was he even doing here?

"Hi," he says, "Didn't expect to see you so soon."

"Hey, I guess fate wants us to see each other again," I chuckle and he smiles back at me.

"Maybe we're soulmates," he says.

I raise my eyebrows at him, "You believe in that?"

"Sure, I do," he says. "You don't."

I just shrug, "Not really. I just don't believe in that kind of stuff."

"Says the girl who talks about fate and butterfly effects," he says with a smirk.

I roll my eyes, "That's different."

"How different can it be?" he says. "Anyways, what are you doing here?"

"I'm with my younger sister," I say and point to Rae-na.

"The girl in a pink dress with her hair in braids?" he asks and I nod. "She's adorable and looks a lot like you."

"Is that meant to be a compliment?" I ask and smile.

"Maybe," he says.

"Well, thanks then," I chuckle. "So, why are you here?"

"I just wanted to take a stroll after going to the police station and I saw you, so I decided to come over," he says. "The police found out who killed my girlfriend."