Noctura

eight

seungyoon

I KNOCK softly on the door three times before gently turning the knob and opening the door just a small bit.

"Hello?" I call quietly into the room. "Nephi?"

I step into a small room with a bed on the right, a desk on the left, and a small boy standing right in the middle.

He smiles at me when he sees me. "Seungyoon! You're back!"

He runs toward me and slams into me, giving me a hug. I bend down and wrap my arms around him, hugging him back.

"I am back, and I came here just for you."

Nephi looks up at me and beams. "I drew a picture for you!"

He races over toward his desk and I follow him, leaving the door open a bit.

"See? Look!"

He hands me a paper and I see a smiling boy holding hands with a guy with white hair. There's a rainbow behind them and a sun in the corner of the paper.

I smile. "Is this guy supposed to be me?"

Nephi giggles. "Yep! And that's me." He points to the little boy. "Do you like it?"

"I love it, Nephi," I tell him, kneeling down to reach his height.

He smiles and takes the paper from my hands. He runs over to the wall on the other side of the bed, where dozens of his drawings are taped up.

"I want it right here!" He places it in the middle of all the other drawings and then smiles at me.

I grab some tape off his desk and walk over to him. I help him tape it up right where he wants it.

"Perfect?" I ask once we're done.

He smiles at me. "Yeah, perfect!"

I squat down to meet Nephi's height. "How have you been doing, buddy?"

"I'm good," he tells me with a smile. "I draw a lot. You told me to, remember?"

"I sure do," I say. "I told you to draw because it can help take your mind off things, right? And it's fun."

He nods.

I give him a smile. "I know I just got here, Nephi, but I'm gonna have to leave soon."

His smile fades into a frown.

For a split second, his face morphs into one of a young girl, giving me the same frown.

Stay in the present.

"I'm sorry," I tell him, ruffling up his hair. "I gotta go take care of other things, remember?"

He nods. "I know. You're the hero and you have to take care of the bad guys."

I smile at him.

"I just wish you didn't have to leave so soon." He pouts. "I wanted you to play your guitar for me."

I let out a small sigh. "Well, how about this? I'll go grab my guitar and play a little song for you to fall asleep to. How does that sound?"

"Bedtime already?" He whines.

I laugh. "Ah, come on, Nephi. You need your rest."

He sighs. "Okay, fine."

I smile and stand up. I offer him my hand and he gladly takes it.

We walk out of his room and move down the hall, passing other rooms with other people in them. We get into a larger, main room where people are moving about, doing paperwork, or helping others.