warm like a gun | ot23 nct; ot5 red velvet

Chapter 15

Yuta walks the halls of a familiar house. He knows what's going to happen, but he walks slowly all the same, all the way to the end of the hall, where he pushes the door open.

His mother is nearly swallowed by the bed. Yuta's father is at her side; he lowers his voice when he hears the door creak. "...not too late, you know? I could still go—"

"No," Yuta's mother replies, sharply. "No, Tatsuo," she repeats, quieter and more gently. She reaches up with a trembling hand to touch her husband's face. "We wouldn't want to risk ending up on the other side of the mirror."

"I'm sorry," Yuta's father says.

"It's not your fault," his mother replies. "And this will work. There's no need."

"Where are your sisters, Yuta?" His father turns to him.

"Haruna was crying," Yuta says softly. "Momoka told me to come check with you."

There's a knock on the door, and the man who owns the house pokes his head into the room. "Tatsuo-ssi? It's time." He opens the door wider, and Momoka and Haruna slip past. "I thought they might want to wish Sayuri-ssi good luck."

"Yes, thank you." Yuta's father gestures all three of them closer. "Come give your mother a hug," he says.

Yuta knows what's going to happen, but he walks forward all the same, leading his sisters to his mother's bedside. They take turns hugging her tightly; Momoka kisses her temple.

"I'll see you guys soon," their mother says, and then they're whisked from the room.

"Mama will be okay, right?" Haruna asks.

"The doctor will do his best," their father replies.

Yuta knows what's going to happen, but he finds himself taking Haruna's hand all the same. "It'll be alright," he tells her.

The next time they see their mother, she's in a casket. Momoka helped their father with the funeral arrangements, and Yuta was tasked with staying at home to watch Haruna. At her funeral, Yuta and his sister accompany their father to the podium. Their father keeps his speech short; Yuta can't tell what he's saying. It's all muffled in his ears, something about a perfect mother and a perfect wife. His lips move of their own accord along with everyone else's as they send her off.

"Now I give you back to the world," he mumbles in chorus. "May you find your freedom out beyond these walls, and one day when the earth turns over once more, I will meet you there." Haruna clings to his hand the whole time.

He raises his head and looks up at his mother's casket. He almost expects her to rise. He wants her to. But she stays still, stays lying down, stays dead.

Yuta gasps as he wakes up, twisted in sweaty sheets. He pushes his bangs off his forehead, staring at nothing in the dark. Tears gather in his eyes and he lets himself cry silently in the stifling space of his tiny bedroom. It's been over ten years and still, he gets these nightmares. Sighing, he fumbles for his phone, brushing a few stray tears away so he can see. It's 04:18, too early for even his father to be awake. He blows out a steadying breath, and flops back down on his pillow. Though he's tired, no matter how he tosses and turns, he can't get back to sleep.

>>>:<<<

The passing of information is difficult these days. They're all busy, and they can't keep meeting for no reason. Jungwoo's working on securing some kind of line for their phones, but he's also working on the phones, so the work is slow. So usually news shows up at the front doorstep, unexpected, and unannounced.

This time, it's especially inconvenient. Yuta's finally got the unit to himself—his father is on a job somewhere in the city, Momoka's at the shop, and Haruna is at school. So, naturally, he and Sicheng are naked in his bed when the doorbell rings.