He didn't know what to do.
He didn't know if he wanted to puke, cry, scream, or punch something.
He didn't know .
Their faces were deathly pale. As pale as the corpses, he had seen in the fields, as lifeless as the corpses he would leave behind on missions.
But it was so undeniably them.
The mortician quietly covered them back up with the white sheets. As if that was going to be enough to hide the reality from him.
To be quite honest.
He wasn't exactly sure how he got back to his apartment. It wasn't like other times when he was on autopilot and was aware of the fact that he was on his way back home.
One moment, he was looking down at their corpses.
And the next moment, he was sitting down on the floor of their entryway. Sitting down on the small ledge as he clutched a package (He also doesn't know what it is now that he thinks about it) tightly to his chest.
He…he needed to get ready for school.
He still needed to take a shower for the night.
Then pack his bag so he could be ready for the evening training session.
That math homework still needed some finishing up.
He still needed to give Hyeokjin his folder back. He forgot to do that.
He had to make his own breakfast. He better start the prep for it now so he won't have to rush in the morning.
The funeral home.
He can't forget about the funeral home.
He needed to hurry up and find a funeral home for them.
Fingertips pressed against his shoulder, "-etie?" he jerked out of his thoughts. Barely realizing that there was a woman right in front of him. Kneeling as the baby in the carrier babbled.
He stared at her.
Who the hell was this woman?
"I'm Eun. Han-Gyeol is my husband."
Han-Gyeol?
"I came to pick you up. Major Kang asked me to."
Major Kang?
That's right.
He still needed to call the major and tell him what happened.
Should he ask for a few days off from school?
Maybe?
Maybe not?
He had a few tests coming up. He couldn't afford to miss class because he made a bet with Dayeon an-
How did Eun get into the apartment?
"I used the spare key you gave Han-Gyeol."
Eun answered his question. He must have said it out loud.
Distantly, he felt himself nod in understanding. Though he still wasn't sure why she was there.
Wait she was there to pick him up. How could he forget so fast?
He was being pulled up to his feet, and his duffle bag handle was being pushed into his hand.
"Come on sweetie," there was something about her voice that him trust her.
Maybe it was because she was Han-Gyeol's wife?
He didn't doubt that she was married to Han-Gyeol. He could Ye-Jun looking at him over the carrier. her tiny ponytail flopping from side to side as she tilted her head at him.
A blanket was being draped around his shoulders. Making him realize that once again. He had completely blanked out.
"I'll be right over there," His eyes trailed her finger, pointing at a door that had to be a bedroom. He could hear Ye-Jun giggling inside the room.
There was a hand holding onto the end of his fingers as if they weren't sure if he would welcome further contact if they tried to hold his hand properly.
It was warm.
"We'll figure everything out tomorrow," He ducked his face into his knees.
Right.
Tomorrow.
He still needs to find a funeral home for them.
"Han-Gyeol is already flying in. so is the major. They'll be here by tomorrow morning."
He was supposed to have lunch with Grandfather with Dayeon.
His eyes burned.
It felt like the time he had gotten blood into his eyes. Only this time, he knew that his eyes were burning because he hadn't been blinking enough. His knees ached after sitting in the same position for however long he had been sitting.
Something was being pushed into his hand. It was accompanied by the smell of a familiar cologne and aftershave.
"Drink this."
He didn't want to drink it.
He didn't want to do anything.
He didn't want to call the funeral home. Nor go to school, finish the homework, the training.
He just wanted to have lunch with Dayeon and Grandfather one last time. He wanted to wake up to the familiar sound of voices and the smell of breakfast.
He wanted to walk into the kitchen. Where Grandfather's cologne and Dayeon's perfume would mix with the lingering smells of breakfast, their smiles making it feel like home all the more.
"That's an order Ijin."
His stomach churned dangerously.
But orders were orders.
He sipped at the liquid, distantly realizing that it was some sort of flavored water. The pill he was ordered to swallow lingered on his tongue just long enough to impart its taste before he washed it away with the flavored water.
It tasted bitter.
Their voices were quiet out of courtesy for the sleeping teenager that was a few feet away.
Major Kang sighed heavily, shifting his position as he felt the grip on his sleeve tighten just a little bit.
By the time he saw Ijin, the poor kid was curled up in a small ball, his chin on his knees as he stared blankly at the wall across from him.
If he thought Ijin had a hollow look to him when they first met.
Then Ijin was like a doll at the moment.
There was not a single reaction when they spoke to him. They called his name, asked him questions, asked him to look at them. But there was not a single reaction.
The only reaction they got was when Kang ordered Ijin to drink the sports drink- They had no idea when was the last time he ate, and they were sure it had to be approaching the 24-hour mark- and when Kang ordered him to swallow the sleeping pill.
They knew that Ijin had to be out of it if he was intaking what he was given without question.
Even if they gave him a new snack to try, he would eye them warily until it was in his mouth.
Now that he was eating and drinking without a single thought. They were a little bit more than worried.
Han-Gyeol stood up," I'm going to call his school. Let them know what happened and all."
That sounded like a good idea.
Eun stood up," I'll make something for him to eat. Something light."
"He's allergic to lychee."
"Got it."
He sat there for a few more hours.
Due to the iron grip that Ijin had on his sleeve, he couldn't move too much. It got uncomfortable after the first hour of sitting. But he just couldn't bring himself to try and make the kid let go for his own comfort.
Nearly five hours after he ordered Ijin to take the sleeping pill. Ijin finally woke up.
He looked marginally better.
The teenager still looked exhausted, but there was a slight improvement in his color. And he seemed to be more aware of his surroundings.
They made eye contact, and Kang saw the moment when everything clicked into place for the young teenager. When the teenager realized that the previous day was not a dream.
That the reality of his sister and grandfather dying was very much true.
Ijin broke down into tears almost immediately.
Kang had no words to comfort the teenager.
There was nothing he could say to make it better. Nothing. Nothing would bring what little remained of Ijin's family back, and nothing would help the emotional anguish that the teenager was feeling.
Instead.
He let Ijin cling to him. He let the teenager sob and hiccup into his shoulder. He held onto Ijin just as tightly as Ijin was holding onto him. Hot tears stained his collar as Ijin sobbed with enough force to make both of them shake.
It didn't take long before he was crying right with him. His heart breaking at the way the kind people he had met were gone, and at the way, the ever so stoic teenager was practically unraveling in his arms.
What rotten fucking luck.