Hacking Seoul

0.18 - Blood and Steel

Blood was dripping from her knuckles, sipping through her closed fist. He had never seen the formation of droplets so clearly with his own eyes, the way each drop of blood formed and hung on to the tips of her knuckles until it finally trickled. His whole body was frozen and he stared unblinking, just watching the red blood drop, unable to process this horrific scene in midst of shock and confusion.

The smile she had on her face was long gone. She glared at him coldly for one last time. His heart chilled at the familiar disdain in her eyes, exactly the same as how she met him. She turned her head away from him and ripped the passenger's door open with her left hand. Then she dived into her car and slammed the door shut, all in one graceful motion. He heard her car lock.

From the window he could see her looking down into her laps, examining her hand. It was still bleeding profusely. Angst flooded him and he took a step closer to her car, the need to check her injury to make sure she was alright now accompanied his confusion. Why was she bleeding like that? When did it happen? How did he not notice this? How badly must she be hurting right now? He stared into the car, wishing he could be there next to her and hating himself for what he had done to her.

She was now searching for something in her car. He watched her twisting her back and peering into her empty backseat. Upon realizing she didn't have anything like tissue papers back there, she turned back and went back to starring at her bloody hand. It was starting to look horrible and scary. He shuddered at the pain she must be feeling, surrendering to the throbbing pain in his own heart. He wanted to hurt himself if it meant alleviating her pain.

From somewhere in the car, the girl had found a sheet of paper. He watched gingerly as she kept her palm open and picked out a piece of material from the messy bloodiness. The tiny piece of something was soaked red by her blood and she placed the particle onto the paper with trembling hand. Then he saw the big piece of glass. Cut into her palm was a shiny red shard of glass that appeared to look like a former beer bottle. He sucked in a breath. That cut was deep. Was she going to pull it...?!

She pinched the piece of glass with two fingers and time seemed to stop. He held his breath as he watched her pull it out of her flesh slowly and set it down onto the stained paper in her laps, her face pale and both of her hands shaking. She rested her head back against the headrest, her lip red from being bitten too hard. He bumped his head into her window.

He didn't realize he had come so close to her car. She jumped a little at the bang on the window and turned her head to glare at him angrily. Then she pointed her chin up at the street ahead and jerked her head, get yourself out of my face!

He could practically hear her furious voice. He knocked on the window softly, pleading.

"Let me see your hand. I am so sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm...." He choked on the words and stared into her eyes. She turned her head away and pointed her left hand forward. Leave, now.

"Please, I'll leave as soon as I take a look at that.... You need help. You need help. Let me help you. Please." His voice was unrecognizable even by him. Moisture was building up in the back of his throat and his voice was coming out thick and gravelly, desperate. He knocked on her window again, but she ignored him completely.

She was now holding a water bottle up to assess the quantity inside. His heart soared with hope. She needed to wash off all the blood, surely. And that required her to at least open her window. He nodded frantically, unable to speak in this moment of mental torture.

She looked out the window at him nodding stupidly and burst out saying something he couldn't hear, her expression nothing but disgust. She scrunched up the paper carrying that damned piece of glass and stuffed it away. Then she started to climb over to the driver's seat. He did the only thing he knew was right. He rushed right in front of her car.

The engine started. Strong beams of lights took away his sight. He couldn't see anything in front of him. And maybe she couldn't, either. He bent down and slammed his hands on the hood of her car, the same time the car surged forward and he felt his woeful collision with steel.

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