Engraved in Flesh

Beautiful

He was tired and frail.

The very first thing that he remembered right away was being with his brother figure and friend, Gang Ho, on their way to their next battle. They hand been talking to each other while the were traveling by ship, eyes open for the enemy. The next moments were blurry and hard to remember. He remembered hearing the frantic yell coming from his friend's usually calm tone as a loud booming noise was heard nearby. He remember going down and falling farther away from the comforting voice of a friend. He remembered feeling cold and wet. He remembered hearing the waves of the water. He remembered feeling weak as he heard the cold wind blow as the distant sound of children's laughter barely reached his ears.

He remembered the exact moment when he heard the softest and kindest voice as he felt his body begin to move.

He didn't know how long it had been since his body was laid on the soft surface, but it felt like an eternity before he finally convinced his brain to open his eyes. It took a second for him to register everything, but he freaked out once he did. He had no idea where he was. As he attempted to quickly sit up, he winced and slowed down. Had he been injured? Exactly what had happened to him while he was out of it? Taking a breath, he slowly sat up and rubbed the soreness out of his shoulders. Rubbing his eyes, he took the time to look around the room in order to find clues as to where he was and why. His search didn't help him much, seeing as the room held no photos of people or any personal information. Frustrated and unsure, he walked over to the only window in the room and peered out to the outside world.

Children of all ages were playing in the streets as teens and young adults made trips to gather rations at a nearby market. Elders strolled along the sidewalks and sat on porches, comforting those around them about the war. He could scratch being held captive by the enemy off his list. Deciding that it was best to not delay any encounter waiting for him any longer, he made his way to the door and into the hall.

The hall was giving him way more clues than the room had. There were a few pictures of what he assumed was the family that lived here. He slowly walked down the hall until he reached the stairs leading down to the first floor. Gathering all his courage, he slowly made his way down the stairs. Each step he took drained his moral and energy levels at a moderate pace. He had just made it halfway when he heard the click of a gun. Startled and terrified, he lost his balance and tumbled the rest of the way down the stairs, slightly cutting his arm in the process. He heard a hushed voice scold someone before cautiously going near him. He was hesitant, but he finally convinced himself to look up.

She was beautiful. She had beautiful brown eyes with golden specks visibly blended with the brown when you were as close as he was. She had rosy pink cheeks that looked soft and delicate. She had perfect, short, natural curls that hugged her face perfectly. She looked like an absolute angel that was sent down from above for him. He was mesmerized by her beauty to the point where he didn't realize she was talking to him. He watched as she tried speaking to him in English with her warm voice, but he couldn't make sense of any of it. Mumbling apologies in Korean, he tried his best to understand the Asian looking American girl but to no avail. Then, as if his heart's wish came true, she spoke Korean to him. If he thought her voice was warm beforehand, then her voice was like the sun itself now. He shyly answered her questions, allowing her to examine him after the fall.

"Mook?"

He nodded to confirm that Mook was indeed his name. His name sounded perfect when it came from her lips, he wished she would say it again. He didn't know why he was thinking these thoughts or feeling this way, but he didn't try to stop any of them from forming. They felt nice and comforting. He shuddered as her small and delicate hands softly touched his arm, inspecting the small injury. He suddenly felt energized and warm once again. He watched as she nodded to herself and politely asked him to sit on one of the sofas, quickly getting him a glass of whatever in the process. He hesitantly did so, eyeing the tanned girl with the gun in her hand. The warm girl went over and lowered the gun in her friend's hand, softly convincing her to leave the gun. It took some time, but she managed to convince her friend that he would not cause any harm to them while he was there. She then went to another room for a second, making Mook extremely uncomfortable with the second girl waiting with him, watching his every move.

When the beautiful girl returned, Mook quickly sat up and watched as he opened a small bag. She mumbled calming words as she tended to the wound, wiping away the blood on his arm. The gun wielder and Mook then both became worried as the girl froze, eyes widening as she looked down at his right arm. Peering over to her left arm, she began to visibly become nervous. Handing Mook a pen, she asked him to write anything on his arm. Not seeing a problem with anything so far, he shrugged and drew a small heart on his arm, a small blush forming on his cheeks as he did so. The beautiful girl then frantically looked between Mook's arm and her own, as if something big and alarming just happened.

Then she fainted.