moon child | lai guanlin

three

after we left the café, the sun was already saying its goodbyes. the sky slowly turned into hues of purple, a few lightning bolts and grumbles in the sky indicated that we had to get home as soon as possible if we don't want to get stuck in a thunderstorm.

"see you in school tomorrow, heeun, my bus is here. you should go home too, i think it's going to rain pretty soon." heejung gave me a little wave and climbed onto the bus, along with a few other people.

the bus drove off, the smoke from its exhaust pipe caused me to cough as i ran away from the bus stop.

and almost at that exact same time, water droplets fell mercilessly from the dark sky, landing heavily on the paved ground and on my head. i let out a yelp and scurried back to the bus stop, where there was at least a shelter i could take rest at while waiting for the rain to calm down.

"the day i decided not to bring my umbrella is the day i need it desperately. who did i kill in my past life to deserve this fate.." i mumbled to myself. the rain was gradually getting heavier, the pitter-patter of the water droplets grew louder as well.

just as i was debating whether to camp at the bus stop for the night or risk my life and run back home, a tap on my shoulder snapped me out of my obscure thoughts.

i twisted my neck to face the culprit and soon after let out a screech that scared him more than he scared me.

"holy shit, calm down!" the guy put both of his arms in the sky and slowly backed off, eyes wide with shock.

i gripped my bag tightly, my hands were shaking. without hesitation, i stood up and ran, i didn't want to talk to him. i didn't want him to help me, because i knew he was going to.

the raindrops wet my hair, my uniform, my socks, my shoes, my skin. every gust of wind that passed by made me shiver, it was so cold. but even so, this was better than having to let that guy take me home.

we'll probably have to share the same umbrella, we'll probably look like one of those couples in the movies.

after about ten minutes, i couldn't feel my feet or my hands. they turned completely numb, so numb they didn't even feel cold anymore. my legs were wobbly, i couldn't even walk properly anymore.

"just.. a few.. more.. blocks.." i gasped out. the street lights lit up the pathway that led me to my house, the only one with no lights. the one at the end of the road, dark and gloomy, with no inhabitants except for me.

my knees gave out, making me fall onto the ground. the loud 'thud' that you're supposed to hear when you fall was muted by the loud rain falling onto the road. the skin on my knees were scraped by the tiny bumps on the road.

"ah, shit.. god, you really hate me, don't you?" i yelled out, silently cursing everything in my sight. i supported my weight onto my right arm and tried to stand up. i couldn't put pressure onto my knee, so i ended up hopping back home on one leg.

i let out a hiss everytime the raindrops land on the scrape on my knee, curses almost automatically fall out from my lips as well.

once i reached my house, i whipped out my house key and hastily stuffed it into the lock. i've never been so happy to hear the 'click' noise as i pulled the gate open and stumbled towards the door.

before i could step inside my home and take a nice, warm bath, someone screamed out my name from outside the gate.

"hey! lee heeun! are you okay?" the same boy called out, his voice hoarse.

i turned around, letting out a small gasp at the sight. he wasn't carrying an umbrella, he was just standing outside the gate, raindrops falling onto his body. his clothes were completely drenched, he looked miserable.

did he chase after me in the rain?

"what are you doing here? why didn't you go home? you're gonna get sick!" i yelled, walking back over to the gate, where he stood with a worried expression.

"because i couldn't just leave a girl alone in the dark, especially with this heavy storm! plus, you looked so scared just now, i just.. wanted to make sure that you were okay." he looked hesitant when i opened the gate, but stepped in anyways.

his lips were pale from the cold and he couldn't stop sneezing. i don't know why i decided to let him into my house, but i knew that i couldn't just leave him outside in the rain. i felt bad, even just a glimpse of his face made me feel guilty.

"where are your parents? i mean, if you don't mind me asking." he suddenly spoke, breaking the silence. i turned the lights in the living room on and handed him a pair of house slippers.

"they're.. busy. yeah! they're busy, you know, with work and stuff. they don't come home that early, or come home at all. i'm usually always alone, you get used to it after a while." i cleared my throat, not liking the subject he brought up.

"anyways, i'll go get some guy clothes for you, there's two bathrooms so you don't have to worry. just wait here, alright?" i limped up the stairs, letting a string of curses spill out of my mouth after i accidentally bent my knee a little too much.

"oh shit, you fell, didn't you?" i felt a cold hand touch mine. i immediately tensed up and pulled away, hopping up the stairs and continued to limp towards my brother's old room.

"hey, why do you always avoid me? did i do something?" he sounded hurt. i could hear his footsteps behind me, growing louder and louder.

"n-no, i just.. i'm afraid of.." i trailed off, not sure whether or not to finish my sentence. what if he found me weird? what if he told everyone about it, then jiyeon wouldn't leave me alone, she would tell all her little friends, she would even tell her family. soon, everyone in and out of school would know, what if that happens?

"afraid of what?" i grabbed the largest piece of clothing my brother has, a pair of joggers and a clean boxer. or at least i think it was clean, and turned around to face him.

i handed him the clothes, along with a towel, which he took gratefully.

"the bathroom is downstairs, i'm pretty sure you can find it easily. there are already shampoo and body wash inside, there should be new tooth brushes inside the cabinet too. remember to turn on the heater, it's right next to the lights." i said without making eye contact, avoiding the last question he asked.

before he could say anything else, i slipped out of the room as quickly as i could, which wasn't that quick, and staggered into my room to grab some clothes.

i heard his footsteps leave my brother's room and down the stairs before they completely disappeared.

"i'm such an idiot, why did i even let him in the house.."