Vulnerable Heart

Chapter 19: Vulnerable Heart

{Y.J}

His mind was a jumbled mess. There wasn't much that his uncle told him over the phone, except that both his parents were rushed to the hospital for immediate and intensive care. Yi Jeong found himself driving like a mad man and his mind had gone completely numb. That feeling which he had not felt in weeks when it came to his parents was now back and though he tried hard to fight against it reminding himself that he was no longer involved with either of them, that did not work. The fact was that they were his parents.

When he arrived to the hospital he met both his aunt, uncle, and his counselor, Emma.

"I don't want to deal with you right now." Yi Jeong spoke honestly.

"How are they?" He questioned turning to both his aunt and uncle.

"What happened?"

"Your mother escaped the psychiatric ward two days ago. We didn't want you to worry about it, we had people looking for her but."

"You should have said something I had a right to know."

"We didn't tell Il Hyun either. This." Yi Jeong watched his uncle hesitate to speak as he tried to find the right words to say. His aunt placed a comforting hand on her husbands' shoulder and the man sighed.

"You two have been through enough and my sister's mess isn't yours to clean up anymore. I wanted you to be normal again."

While Yi Jeong wanted to be angry at his uncle his words to him made the anger he was feeling dwindle away. Sighing Yi Jeong spoke.

"What happened?"

"Your mother went to look for your father at home. She's not in the right mindset." His aunt explained.

"What do you mean?"

"She's had more than a nervous breakdown. She's been diagnosed with manic bipolar disorder." Emma spoke causing Yi Jeong's heart to clench, forcing down the knot in his throat.

"What did she do? Where's my father?" Yi Jeong questioned when he realized no one was truly answering his questions, if anything they seemed to be going in circles.

"Answer me!" Yi Jeong yelled out in frustration.

"Your mother... she went back to the house and your father happened to be there. We don't know what happened from what the doctors have explained she drugged him at which point she set the entire house on fire. She wanted to kill herself and him. There must have been some kind of struggle because they found your father on the first floor and badly burned."

"My mom?" Yi Jeong found himself asking, feeling as if something was pulling him within himself once again. His entire body felt numb and his heart was being squished into a prune.

"Yi Jeong."

He was unsure of who it was that was talking to him for just a second. Then Yi Jeong suddenly found himself enveloped into a tight hug.

"Il Hyun." Yi Jeong spoke in both relief and surprise.

"I'm sorry." Il Hyun continuously repeated to Yi Jeong who was now fighting back tears. He felt overwhelmed and simply clung on to his brother much like he had done so when he was a child.

"It's going to be okay. I promise. You still have me. We still have each other." Il Hyun continued to repeat. These were words that Yi Jeong had long learned to be comforted by. But it had been such a long time since Il Hyun had said those words to him.

"I'll take care of it. Go home with Aunt and uncle Lee. Jae Hee and I will stay here." Il Hyun spoke.

It took Yi Jeong a moment to process what his brother was saying but then he realized that Jae Hee was standing there quietly. She didn't say anything to Yi Jeong, simply offered him a kind smile.