voice | kim mingyu

one

A cold night. A soft light. Through her eyes, it was just a lie.

Her hands scratched, her legs bruised and her body almost at its limit. She was in her favorite outfit. A black blouse paired with blue jeans. But, unlike how it was this morning, it was ripped at the edges and stretched until it was too big for her.

The sound of cars passing by was almost too faint and the noises from her head are clouded by a fog of empty thoughts. The night was thick and somber, no stars appeared from the blue-black curtain. The moon was in half and the river, ah, the river. It was empty.

Her feet brought her to the infamous bridge, the bridge of life. It was quiet. She liked it. For a moment, she felt like she could hear herself. Almost. Her strides slow down as she reached a pole with a phone box attached to it.

Trembling, her hand reached out to touch the handle of the green phone. The material is cold and her hands don't transfer any heat, instead, she seemed to make the phone even colder. The earpiece is against her ear within a few seconds. She pressed down on the green button and waited.

"Lifeline Operator, how can I help you?" a male voice spoke calmly as her ears perked up at the unique encounter. It was a male. Not a female. For some reason, this sparked her curiosity. Her free hand reached up to the mouthpiece. But stopped. Hesitation was still there.

"It's okay. You can talk. I'll listen," he assured her through the device as she gulped and landed her finger on the mouthpiece. With a few taps on the plastic, the sound echoed as if it was simply a noise.

Surprised, the boy almost had forgotten he was on the phone as his head processed what she had tried to say to him. His heart almost skipped a beat from how nervous he suddenly was, "I understand. Say to your heart's content."

Fingers tapped on the letters on his keyboard as he started the document he was to send to the station. His eyes trained on the screen as the words slowly spell out at the sound of the girl scratching against the voice piece.

He typed: Kang Hyein. Mute.