paper cranes | uc.

( 18; i think i love you )

'paper scent.'

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[name] carefully put away the lid of the pot, making sure to cover her hands with a thick cloth so they wouldn't burn; she couldn't have ms. chu push herself yet again now to heal a possible pair of burnt hands now, would she?

a pleasant aroma of chicken feet soup calmed her senses, all the pain and despair vanishing into thin air as she gulped down her need to taste it right now, and feel all those pieces of meat and vegetables that were sizzling and juicy and ah. she could already feel her stomach growl.

grabbing a spoon and a small dish, she dipped it into her pot and took a small taste out of it, immediately fanning her tongue because she forgot to blow on it and now her tongue got burnt. "damn that's hot..."

but it's missing something...

walking over to the refrigerator, she crossed her arms and stared at what it contained, wondering what was missing from the soup. mushrooms, potatoes...aha! carrots! bending down and grabbing them, a soft tune resounded from her while she began cutting it up into dices. she was hoping they would like, they who were so nervous and in a tight situation with mr. park, they didn't even have time to sleep last night, much less have any healthy food other than mo-tak's subway sandwiches.

just as she grabbed a glass of water to drink from...

bzzzzzt-

crash!

the cup fell from her hands and her ears began to ring yet again, the floorboards beneath her creaking and she is growing nonchalant, perhaps even numb all over again.

shit, not again....

stumbling back, her head began to spin violently, setting her balance off and making her fall to her knees. she had gotten used to her little visions so far into the job, but the moment she went through one...was always horrible.

and didn't she just see one last night? give her a damn break.

clutching her ear and biting down a painful groan, she tried to block out the noise, chewing on her lower lip and nails digging into her earpatch; her skin feels cold and her eyes gaze but were distant, as if her consciousness drifted apart, silhouetted against the pulsing instinct of her racing heart. the thoughts crumble like ash, and she almost lost herself in the vision if not for sudden warmth on her cheeks.

she could feel it.

mun was stroking her cheeks with his thumbs.

and from that alone, she was able to calm herself and navigate around her vision.

the blurry edges of her veils clear up like cleaning foggy glasses, and she sees a woman she didn't personally know, instead, she knew through pictures. she only flashed for a moment, covered in pipes and attached to a ventilator, the beeping of the monitor indicating the rhythm of her heartbeat.

then, a smirk. the same one, she realizes, as the one she saw in ma ju-seok's memories. grim, lips pursed and then stretched, skin taut and teeth showing. that smile is the first of many things that broke through her facade, making fear burn up like a hot flame from hell in the pit of her stomach.

she's seen that smirk before.

she swore she had.

another scene; a man with a red tattoo on his neck, doing away at something else as he did so. she recognized that drawing...it was the same one mun drew and displayed on the wall to remember the tattoo he saw on the guy's neck, the one who stole her shoe.