The ward is chaos. Monitors beep, patients cry, and the smell of antiseptic hangs thick in the air. My hands move automatically, checking vitals, adjusting IV lines, reminding myself that the world doesn't stop because my heart wants to.
I've learned to stay small, invisible. To blend. To survive.
But tonight, survival feels fragile.
I glance at the clock. My shift is almost over. Just a few more minutes and I can disappear into the empty streets, where no one knows my name, no one watches my every move.
I'm heading down the hallway, carrying charts, when something or someone freezes me in place.
A figure I know too well.
"Min-jae."
At first, I think it's a trick of the light, a reflection in the glass doors. My stomach twists. My hands tighten around the charts. I force myself to breathe.
I follow. Quietly. Carefully. The corridor is dim, shadows stretching long across the floor. He doesn't see me, doesn't even glance my way. Relief and dread twist together in my chest.
And then I see it.
He's not alone.
"Her".
Another woman. Familiar, laughing softly. Their bodies are close. Too close. Her hand rests on his chest; his lips brush against hers.
I freeze.
"Kiss."
The word feels like acid in my throat. My mind screams at me to turn away, to run, to vanish. But my feet don't obey. They carry me a little closer. I have to see. I have to confirm.
I choke back a sob.
Min-jae smiles. Smooth. Charming. Unaware of the storm about to hit him.
Or maybe aware. Maybe he knows I'm here.
The world shrinks to them. Everyone else disappears. And in that moment, I remember why I left. Why I thought I could escape.
And just like that, all my courage falters.
I take a step back. My vision clouds. My chest aches.
Then I noticed him.
Not the scene in front of me. Not the kiss that shatters me.
A boy. Younger. Watching. Standing at the end of the hallway in his school uniform, both hands in his pockets, eyes dark and calm. Focused.
On Min-jae. Not me.
He sees it.
Everything.
The manipulation. The lies. The control. The cruelty.
And he doesn't blink.
My heart hammers against my ribs, but it isn't fear. It's the first time in years someone has looked through him — seen the real monster behind the mask.
Min-jae doesn't notice the boy yet. He's too confident. Too arrogant.
But he will
I don't know how. I don't know when.
All I know is: the storm has already begun.
My knees feel weak, but I force myself to step back into the shadows of the hallway, pretending I'm just adjusting my grip on the charts. Every instinct screams at me to flee, to vanish before he even suspects I've seen it, but something inside me freezes — a mixture of anger, disbelief, and the sharp ache of betrayal. The betrayal itself doesn't just sting. It burns. Every memory of his hands on me, every lie he whispered, every smile meant to charm me suddenly flashes in violent, sharp clarity
And yet… the most frightening part isn't him. It's knowing how alone I am. How exposed. How fragile my defenses have always been. I swallow hard, taste the metallic tang of adrenaline, and realize how easy it would be for him to destroy me here, in public, and everyone would believe it's my fault.
I glance at that boy again. He hasn't moved. His eyes are locked on Min-jae, but there's something more — calculation. A quiet, dangerous patience that makes my stomach twist in both fear and something I can't name. It's like he can see every hidden truth, every unspoken threat, every lie that Min-jae has perfected over the years. And for the first time, I feel… seen. Not for my mistakes. Not for my weakness. But for what I've endured and what I've survived.
Min-jae's laugh echoes softly, oblivious, and it strikes something inside me, a spark I thought long dead. I'm shaking, but it's not just from fear. Rage and shame mingle together, curling around my chest like fire. And that boy who should be about ten years too young to matter — he makes it feel like maybe, just maybe, I don't have to carry this alone anymore.
I take a careful, trembling breath, knowing that the next step I take could change everything. Min-jae has no idea that eyes are on him that will not look away. And that boy? He's already making a choice. One that will intersect with mine whether I'm ready or not.
All I know is tonight will never be the same.
And for the first time in years, the night feels alive — dangerous, dark, and impossible to ignore.