The Girl He Never Knew | SVT THE8

12 | just a lie

#nowplaying

= There for you - Kim Na Young =

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The next day, I walked into class to an empty seat before me. For minutes I couldn't take my eyes off Myungho's seat, wondering if he was late to school because he overslept or something else. I have so many questions and doubts running in my head and I already planned to talk it out with him, but he has to be here in order for me to do so.

I shook my legs impatiently all through till the bell rang for first period, until I figured that he was not going to show up at all today.

The seat stayed empty for the next couple of days, and all I could do was stare at a soulless chair.

"Miss him much?" Seokmin plopped down the chair that my eyes were on.

"Is he okay?" I asked softly.

"I don't know," he shrugged. "I haven't seen him around too." Then he suddenly gasped and sat upright. "What if something happened at home again? Do you think his dad is back?"

I began to feel uneasy. I would never want anyone to experience such violence, even if that person was his own father.

"What are you doing?" Seokmin asked, looking up at me.

I blinked back in confusion.

"Why did you stand up?" He asked again. I didn't realise it myself but I did have a strong urge to walk right out of the classroom.

"I have to find him," I murmured in frowns, but I don't think Seokmin heard me.

I really, really wanted to run to Myungho and give him a tight hug.

Soon, the next period started and Seokmin screeched back to his seat. I lost my chance to escape and the rest of school was blurred me endlessly with Myungho on my mind.

...

Eventually, I ended up here again.

Standing in front of the rusty steel gate, this was the entrance to Myungho's home. I swore to myself I'd never be back because this place was a nightmare to me but I broke that promise too easily.

I remember stepping in cautiously and running out minutes later, looking pale and traumatised.

The same thing was about to happen, like déjà vu as I made small timid steps towards the staircase and climbed to the second floor.

"What the hell am I doing?" I muttered to myself. "He can't possibly be here."

The last time I came, I remember it was emptied inside out. No beds in the bedrooms, no sofa in the living room, not even tables and chairs. Seokmin mentioned before that the family had to sell all the furniture to pay back the debts. Apparently, Myungho's father owns this three-storey building, and it seems like a matter of time before he sells it.

I walked in with the slightest bit of hope for Myungho and scanned through every nook and cranny in the house.

There was no one.

I walked further into a bedroom and found a cheap mattress with a pillow and a thin blanket on the floor. It shocked me to see Myungho living in this state, struggling all by himself.

I knelt down beside his mattress, feeling the thinness of it, and let myself crash to the cold floor. My eyes had gone watery and I could pour it out any minute.

"It's not even my problem," I sobbed to myself. But what am I doing here?

At some point I realised that I cared for him more than a friend would, but now... I think I'm ready to admit it.