Chapter4
1284 Words
The following morning, I woke up feeling off — hungover, with a severe headache. I went to the bathroom to wash my face and saw my reflection staring back, red-eyed and disoriented.
What happened yesterday? Where am I?
The memory of the night before started settling into my brain — right up until I remembered being helped into a car. I looked around the unfamiliar room.
Was I robbed by the driver? Am I in a kidnapper's house? No — this had to be the worst dream I'd ever had. It wasn't the first time I'd been kidn*pped, but I never wanted to relive that feeling, not even now.
I rinsed my mouth to get rid of the smell and came back into the room — surprised to find my bag sitting right where I'd left it, untouched.
No. I wasn't kidn*pped. No kidnapper keeps a victim this intact, or leaves their things untouched. I checked myself over, sitting on the edge of the bed. This doesn't look like a hotel. So where is this place? I asked myself, half-expecting an answer that never came.
What is this feeling? I wondered — comfortable, or maybe just... not scared. No, that can't be right. I'm the strongest girl there is. Still, it was better to face it than sit there in fear. I got up.
When I opened the door, a boy of about fourteen was standing there, clearly debating whether to knock.
"Hi," I greeted him, waving.
"Hi," he said back, like he was searching for the right words.
My stomach growled — I remembered I hadn't eaten anything except the food at the café. The boy kept staring, and embarrassed, I started to close the door.
"No, young miss, don't be," he said, as if he could read my mind. I smiled and stepped out.
"Can you tell me where I am?"
"You're at our house. My dad brought you here yesterday. You weren't really yourself — you kept screaming and shouting someone's name, crying the whole time."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Sounds like someone broke your heart. If you tell me who it was, I'll beat him up for you — teach him a lesson about breaking hearts," he said, full of confidence. "You look just like him."
"Just like who?"
Did I say something? I was lost in thought for a second. "Never mind, don't worry about it," I said, smiling and patting his head.
"Ohh, stop smiling at me like that. You're going to make everyone at school jealous when I tell them my new big sister is this cool."
"What?" I said, caught off guard.
"You're pretty, and confident, and apparently good at self-defense too. I bet you'd be an awesome big sister to have around."
"An awesome big sister, huh?" My mood softened despite myself. "We'll see about that," I murmured.
The boy noticed the shift right away. "My dad wants me to bring you to breakfast — let's go," he said cheerfully, tugging me toward the dining room.
"Honey," a woman called out to her son as she pulled out his chair.
"Mom," he said, rushing over and sitting down.
"Good day, young miss. Did you sleep well?" "Yes, ma'am," I said, bowing slightly.
Everyone looked surprised, but the woman just smiled warmly.
"Oh, no need for that."
"No, I need to," I said. "I'm sorry about last night — that wasn't really me. I just... I was upset, and I lost control."
"No, young miss, that wasn't you losing control. You were sad and hurting, and I could hear every word — even the parts others couldn't catch. I'm a mother. I know when someone's in pain." I was surprised by the gentleness on her face.
"Thank you — for understanding," I said, looking down.
"No need to be shy. You're probably still hungover — here, drink this. It's a little sour, but it helps. And come, eat with us."
I looked at her as I took the bowl of soup. "Have we met before?"
She glanced at me and went quiet for a moment. "No," she said, smiling.
"Oh, what do we have here?" her daughter shouted, throwing her arms around me in a hug.
"Hi — are you okay? You seemed really unhappy last night. You kept saying something like 'stay with me,' but I couldn't make out the rest."
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah."
"Mier, let her rest — she's still hungover, she wasn't herself last night."
"Can we just eat now and stop hugging her? She might throw up."
I looked at the girl who'd hugged me. She looked like me — the way I used to look, when I was younger.
"Good morning, sir," I said, bowing to the driver as he walked in.
"Good morning, young miss,"
he said, something like pity in his eyes.
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The following morning, Mr. Hoon came home completely drained. Dr. Loveth was waiting for him patiently.
He smiled, though it carried the full weight of everything he'd been holding. "She's awake?" "Yes, boss," she said, smiling.
Mr. Hoon walked into the room. His wife was standing there, staring at a photo frame.
"You're not happy," he said, though he already knew the answer.
"Babe, we're not sure yet," he said carefully.
She smiled, still looking at the frame. "Not sure about what?"
"About whether Liu was really involved in drugs — or whether she just ran."
"Babe, you know Liu couldn't have done that. She was set up."
"Why do you believe that so strongly?"
"Babe," he said, taking her hands. "I'm going to find her."
"Why would you want to do that?"
"Don't you want to?"
"Why should I?"
Mr. Hoon froze. "What's wrong with you?"
"Babe — Sophia is our real daughter. Why do we need to keep caring about Liu?"
"What did you just say?"
"I said I'm tired of raising someone else's child."
"Minger — are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm perfectly fine. Liu will sort herself out. Let's just find some peace."
"Peace? You're out of your mind."
"Yes. I am. My real daughter came back, and you've been unnecessarily cold to her. That's why I changed. Liu didn't deserve the love that belongs to my Sophia.
She never did."
"Minger, what has gotten into you?"
"Nothing. I just wanted the bastard out of my house."
"Did you kill her?"
Minger said nothing, looking away.
"The maids messaged her when they saw Liu leaving that night. She told them to ignore it."
"Are you even human?"
She looked away again.
"Liu has been with you for years. And all you wanted was her death?"
"She isn't dead. She just left home."
Mr. Hoon looked at his wife like he was seeing a stranger. "There's more to this. Isn't there?"
"More to what?"
"Minger. You're hiding something from me."
"I'm not."
"Then why the sudden change?"
"You changed first, and I followed. She deserved it — she almost got my daughter killed. Can't I avenge that?"
"Avenge? Can you still call it that, now that Liu is confirmed dead?"
"She should have died. I was the one protecting her from worse."
"Minger!" Mr. Hoon shouted. "You are never allowed to say that in front of anyone. Ever." She looked at him, then away.
"What are you planning to do about her company?"
"Why do you ask?"
"I just want to know."
"That's none of your concern," Mr. Hoon said, storming out of the room.
Mrs. Hoon closed her eyes the moment the door shut behind hi
m.
"They can never find out," she murmured.
- Writer
