Roses Left To Wilt

Chapter 10

April 19th, 2014

Felix

It felt surreal. The beautiful woman, who was crouched down in front of me holding her son, was my mother. My real mother. I had to blink twice. Anger was rising in my chest. But so did relief. So did happiness.

"Oh, Hyungwoo," she was speaking to him in Korean. I felt a pack of jealousy watching them. The bitter-sweet moment of meeting my mother was one I had never imagined. Rosella sensed my uneasiness.

"So, you're half Korean?" she tilted her head and nudged my arm, trying to lighten up the mood.

"Yea, I guess," I laughed lightly and looked at her lovingly. "How's your arm," I touched her bandaged arm gently.

"How are you?" She poked my chest, her eyes piercing through mine.

"I'm..." I paused and turned to look at my mother. My eyes stung with tears. In all honesty, I was a confused mess. I just couldn't let Rosella think that. "I'm okay." I tried my best to crack a smile. My mother walked up to us smiling, telling us something in Korean.

"She says she's thankful that you saved me," Hyungwoo looked up at his mother, who continued speaking, "She says you can stay here as long you want,"

"Thank you so much," Rosella smiled widely at her. The woman came closer to me and held my shoulders, saying something.

"You grew up so handsome," Hyungwoo translated. I couldn't help but smile, feeling overwhelmed.

"I know," I laughed.

Mother's house was beautiful. Not very fancy, not very flashy, but nonetheless, it was beautiful. It was a homey, rustic cabin near a big field of flowers and trees. It had wooden walls and small little furniture pieces that went well with the rustic, simple look. Not very fancy, not very flashy, but nonetheless, it was beautiful.

"Your room," my mother managed to say to Rosella and me, a welcoming smile plastered on her face. She looked very pale and thin; her sunken eyes and protruding cheekbones made it look like she has had several sleepless nights. I would too if my son had been kidnapped.

"Thank you,"

Uneasy silence took over as me and Rosella glanced at each other. Then we shifted our eyes to the king-sized bed. One king-sized bed.

I looked away, shy, "I can sleep on the floor if you'd-"

"No, no, it's okay," she then widened her eyes, "unless you don't want to share a bed- I mean I could always sleep on the ground! Not that I don't want to sleep on a bed with you, I just don't want you to feel uncomfortable. I mean, I won't bite!" she laughed forcefully.

It's so hard to not kiss you right now, Rosie.

"I'm okay with it," I dropped my gaze.

"With what,"

"With it," I swallowed.

"Which option?" she played with her fingers.

"The...bed one," I glanced at her, "if you're okay with it,"

"Oh, I am!" she laughed oddly.

Why are you so perfect?

Her joyful smiles, her big curious eyes, her little nose, and the way she gets nervous when she's uncomfortable- I couldn't resist her bubbly aura, the twinkle in her eyes whenever I saw her. No matter what life throws at her; she always ends up with a smile. She always ends up making me smile. She made me feel loved. She made me feel special.

"I'm gonna go change," I leaned my head forward, hesitantly leaving a soft peck on her lips, before turning my heel in embarrassment. I grinned widely, biting my lips to suppress my constant smiling.

You drive me crazy.

April 20th, 2014

Rosella

I went from having a completely normal life, to a really messy one. Every event was just so...unexpected and confusing. I knew for a fact that Felix had an explanation for everything- I just couldn't ask him; he was already going through so much.

It was early morning on a balmy Sunday; sunlight was peaking through the white curtains, slightly blinding my vision. I caught myself staring at Felix for a hot minute. It was peaceful; the only sounds being those of the chirping birds by the garden. I gave the pillow between us a nasty look before sitting up and rubbing my eyes. I checked my phone, shocked by the notification I got.

Rich businessman, Onruang Terruk, denies abuse rumors.

Rich business man's nephew missing after accusing Onrunag Terruk of abuse.

How did people know about this? And I had never heard anything from Felix about policemen. I looked at Felix with a frown.

"What else are you not telling me?" I tilted my head and sighed, leaving the room, feeling reckless.

"Hey," I saw Hyungwoo sitting on the couch.

"Hi," his eyes twinkled as he smiled.

"Where's Mum?" I looked around.

"Cooking," he muttered.

"Does she cook well?"

"Mhm," he nodded. I noticed a box of crayons near him. He was drawing something.

"What are you drawing, Hyungwoo?"

"My friends," he kept his eyes on the drawing.

"Can I see?" I sat next to him. The moment I caught a glimpse of the paper a gasped. Children. Stick figures of tied up children. The patches of red crayon resembled blood; I didn't want to believe it.

Please tell me he just watched a sick horror movie...

"Hyungwoo, where are these people now," my voice was heavy.

"The place we first met," he started organizing his crayons. My breath quickened.

"Are they still there? Hyungwoo, you have to tell me everything you know about this drawing, okay? Can you do that for me?" he nodded.

"They allowed me to meet them sometimes," he touched one of the girls in his drawing, "That's Kennedy,"

"And what do they do to those children?" I stammered.

"Whenever I see Kennedy, she's...hurt," he looks at me with a pleading look.

"How is she hurt?"

"She says she can't breathe when the water is in her lungs." He started crying, "She says they take videos of her screaming,"

I was in a loss for words. It broke my heart- hurting kids for ransom. It was twisted. I gritted my teeth, feeling helpless. I hated feeling helpless.

"We'll save her, Hyungwoo," tears were flowing down my cheeks.

"Promise?" he managed, his voice a whimper.

"Promise."