Held By The Neck | Lee Eunhyuk

Chapter 1

Hideous. Ugly. Scarred. Tainted. Failure. Broken. Unloved. Alone.

Those were the few words that would always swim throughout my mind whenver I see my reflection on any surface possible, even if it's a clouded side mirror of a random car or a full length mirror in a shop I walk in. Feeling my neck, I felt the long thin bump of scar across my throat. Why? Is this some kind of punishment from above? Or whatever they call it? Another thought that crossed my mind.

"I'd be called pretty if it weren't because of this stupid scar. He always tells me that even after I had this scar. Too bad I'm still a failure."

My name is Bae Nara. Standing at 5"4', 20 years old and is living all by myself, just like an ordinary woman who unfortunately has had misfortune come through every step of my way towards a dead dream.

I sighed after looking at my reflection, brushed my wavy black hair with my fingers and turned away towards the small apartment that you call home, if you can even call it a home.

The space was small and had no rooms except for the bathroom. My bed, kitchen and dresser was fit into that apartment. I went towards my bag and rummaged through it, taking out notes after notes to study for the upcoming test.

I'm a student that takes an IT course on a nearby school, not that known, but I've always wondered if I can even make it out alive after graduating. It's tough being a grown adult with a working life, I've seen how it can drive people mad. And to their death as well.

Living alone with a whole lot of old money that came from generations and generations from your family but ever since that day, all of it was left to me.

Despite living alone, I always make sure that I look presentable and that the place where I reside in was clean. That's the least I can do.

A ding was heard from my phone so I stood up and went to get it when I heard a faint sound of a door opening and closing from the room next to mine.

"That's weird.", I said to myself as I stood in the middle of my room. "No one lives on that unit as far as I remember."

My phone let out another ding so I continued towards it to check who sent the message.

"You have been accepted to be an intern of Samsung for 6 months! We wish you good luck and hope that you do your best! Good day!"

"What?" I asked. "I got in?" my phone was so close to myself, trying to read it letter by letter to make sure if I read it correctly.

"I got in!" I exclaimed while jumping up and down my apartment, probably making a lot of noise and inconvenience to the person living on the floor before me.

I calmed down at the same time I heard another sound from the unit next to mine. I walked towards the peephole on the door, trying to see who's the new comer.

Someone, a boy, walked from the unit beside mine. His face wasn't seen because of his long hair. "So someone really does live there."

Another sound came from my phone that startled me that I almost dropped it but reflexes that came from taekwondo training for 9 years kicked in.

On the screen of my phone was two messages from the group chat of the class I'm in, asking if any of us got accepted as an intern on the companies we applied.

I replied that I did along with the company name which then followed by congratulatory messages and even a few jealous ones. Would they really be jealous if they see how I actually am? Another thought that I entertained, just like every other negative thought that enters my mind.

Despite being a hardworking student, I'm almost crawling on the floor just to make sure I get high grades because that's the only thing I'm holding on. That's the only distraction that I have ever since he left.

No, ever since I left.

Alone. Used. Worthless. Disappointment. Void. Fak-

A scuffle of what seems like a pair of feet suddenly broke me out of my trance. I went to see if the guy who just moved in was back to try and look at his face but what I saw was weird. It was the security guard.

The guard was already a bit weird from the start, always tailing me wherever I go around the place and it only stopped when he talked to the guard. No, what was weirder than that was that he was walking in a weird way, like he was leaning on the wall in front of my door, towards my door

As I was watching him the whole time, expecting that he would just pass by my door, but he didn't. He stopped, breathed out, and turned his head towards my door.

Almost like he knows that I'm watching him.

I stumbled back when he tried walking wobbly towards my door. Standing in the middle of my apartment, I stared at my door. "Please don't knock, please don't knock, go away." I chanted over and over again, breathing heavily.

I don't know why but it felt like I was in greater trouble and misfortune than I was already in.