Snowball √

FOURTEEN

[her]

14. THE STAGES OF GRIEF

TWO YEARS PRIOR

mr. kim and mrs. kim swallowed hard as the made their way towards the seven seater. they took the middle seat while nari and minji took the backseats.

nari clenched minj's hand tightly. she bit her tongue until a metallic taste seeped through her mouth. worry and distress filled her.

the car drove for half an hour of gruesome silence before it stopped in front of a barren land with a tiny warehouse in the distance. the officer switched off the engine.

he turned back to the group.

"the state she's in." he paused, "it might be a bit distressing."

that was all it took for mrs. kim to break into a silent cry as her husband soothed her.

minji squeezed nari's hand. nari swallowed the growing lump in her throat. she held back her tears, trying to be strong for hyejin.

the officers led them towards the warehouse. dozens of other members of the police force stood there. each one was covered in dirt, digging deep into the grass around the warehouse. the ambulance was there too it's shrieking cries with flashes of red and blue echoed through the silence.

as the group made their way through the rubble heads turned towards their direction. on their faces read solemn, sadness, despair and guilt.

there was another family there at the same time as nari. the mother cradled a little girl no more than eight in her hands. the little girl was weeping, her face covered in tiny slits and scars. her eyes held fear as her orbs shivered.

nari's heart fell, it dropped below the earth's crust. it sank deeper than the oceans.

the police officer pointed to the little girl, "a passerby heard a scream coming from this warehouse."

mrs. kim fell into louder cries with every passing word. her husband gently rubbed her back, trying to soothe her with soft words.

the police officer glanced in another direction.

nari's gaze followed his.

a man in cuffs. he was quite old, around forty to fifty. his black hair had dusts of gray seeping in. he frowned with his gruff beard.

the officer took off his glasses, putting them in his pocket.

"he murdered her."

nari shook her head, "no. no. no."