Fallen Crown

Chapter 11

Chapter 11

"Where are we going?" Eun Sang asked. "The computer lab isn't that way."

Hyo Shin turned to look at her over his shoulder. He was leading her in the opposite direction. He gave her a suspicious frown. "Are you just going to change the end because I said so?"

This question caught her off guard. She hadn't even thought that she could, indeed, refuse to change the ending. It was her story after all. As usual, Hyo Shin seemed to guess her thoughts because he smiled knowingly. He knew a great deal about people; what they thought, what they dreamed, and even what they feared. He was an observer, always absorbing his surroundings through a mask of disinterest. How much had he gotten to know about her?

"I'm worried that you thought you had to change the end simply because I said so. Do you plan to fold so easily under pressure?"

"Were you testing me?"

"I don't believe in testing people," he said. "I believe in provoking them."

And yet he always defended peace.

"What worries me is not so much the act of suicide but rather the emotion behind it."

"It's a fictional story. It has no relevance—"

"Do you plan to fool me with such unconvincing lies?" He sounded amused. "At the beginning he was an incarnation of Young Do, wasn't he? But now the ghost has become a representation of your nightmares."

"I'm not going to kill myself, I assure you."

"There are many forms of suicide, Eun Sang." He nodded ahead toward the gardens. "Want to hear about mine?"

For Eun Sang, Hyo Shin had always been an enigma. He was studious, good looking, very popular, charismatic, and yet he was solitary. His loneliness was self imposed. Hyo Shin didn't lack friends, it was rather that he didn't seem to want to cultivate the relationships in order to deepen the bonds.

People knew of him what Hyo Shin wanted them to know. She was aware of this because she also hid like him. It was just that while Eun Sang lived in the background Hyo Shin was even further away by being one step behind.

As he stood there, seemingly willing to show what he hid behind his mysterious smile, Eun Sang found herself curious enough to take the bait. She walked ahead of him and was satisfied when he quickly fell into step beside her. His pace was leisurely, as though they weren't pressed for time. Eun Sang didn't hasten because she thought that perhaps he
was gathering courage along the way.

Hyo Shin sat at one of the benches under a tree and looked up at the sky. He reached out a hand and caught a stray snowflake. At times like this he seemed like someone with a burden heavier than his shoulders could sustain. And she wondered, not for the first time, just what made him look that way.

"You're wondering, aren't you?"

Eun Sang blinked. "How do you do that?"

"Magic," he smiled. "You really must be puzzled when you're willing to stand in the cold for a revelation." "You knew I would be."

"I'm not that arrogant. But I am glad you're curious."

Eun Sang sat next to him. She watched him from the corner of her eyes. He dug inside his jacket and pulled out a bottle of pills. He shook it next to his ear and then handed it to her. It was a prescription medication written for him, with many refills. For what it was, Eun Sang couldn't begin to guess.

"Sometimes they tell me I don't seem to feel much of anything."

A pang of guilt hit her, as though the comment was directed at her despite the lack of accusation in his tone.