Red String | Trainee A Leo

Chapter 7 - Tied But Cut

[Flashback]
(4 years ago)

"Mom I swear you're gonna like her. She's so nice and pretty too." Leo said to his mom with his eyes sparkling.

Earlier when Leo was walking his way home, he felt something appeared, a thing that wraps on his pinky finger. It was glowing radiant red. He followed where the thread leads, and he saw a girl on the other end, sitting in a bus stop. He approached her and they were aware that they were soulmates. That girl was Hanna.

"You talk like you're already his boyfriend for her to meet me that early." His mom chuckled, whimping over his son, Leo.

"We'll get there mom, I promise you'd be the first one to know." Leo smiled, a sign of reassurance. Suddenly, his eyes turned from being vibrant to being dull. His mom didn't fail to notice it.

"What's the matter, Leo? You were worried about something?" His mom asked, she herself feels the worries in Leo's eyes.

"Remember when you told me about red strings? Is there circumstances that our string will be cut or tied with another person? I mean, I'm sure that I saw mine tied with Hanna, but is she really the one?"

His mom sighed. She cupped her son's face making Leo look at her before she smiled.

"You know, our strings could loop onto people who will eventually pass through our lives."

"What do you mean, eomma?" Leo asked confusingly.

"Time will come and you'll get what I'm saying. Now its getting late, you need to sleep or you'll be late for school." His mom then planted a goodnight kiss on Leo's forehead cuddling him dearly as Leo falls asleep.

Few months after being good friends, they dated. They enjoyed each other's company anyways, and no one is against their relationship. Things were going smooth for Hanna and Leo back then.

Then the accident happened. Hanna died in Leo's arms. He saw the glow of the string slowly losing it's shine. And before he know it, it turned to black.

[end of flashback]

Leo let the warm breeze or summer air to hit his face. After remembering those scenes, he thinks now he understand.

"Is this the answer to my question, Hanna? That you'll just pass through my life but we won't end up each other?" He let out a deep sigh. Not long, he heard the bell ringing, a sign that it's time for dismissal.

He was about to head out of the building but he bumped into Sangwon in the hallway, begging him to come with him.

"Leo we need your help! Please, you're the only one who can help us!" Sangwon clasped his palms infront of Leo while putting up his puppy eyes method to convince him making Leo himself, sigh.

"Fine. It's just noon but I need to go soon for my work. I'll give you an hour or two." Leo said making Sangwon freak out of joy and pulled Leo into the event hall.

'I wonder where's Aehyeon. I never seen her anywhere in the campus today' Leo thought. He just shrugged it off and let himself be dragged by Sangwon.

~

"You know that the foundation day is coming, right? Well, uhm... the student council was the ones appointed to decorate the event hall, and the heads of the school wanted the whole wall infront of us to be a huge canvas for the event. The thing is... no one among us knows how to paint so...could you, perhaps...." Sangwon hesitates to ask knowing Leo's past but he had no options left or else they'll be doomed.

"Paint?" Leo sighed. He's not interested. Anything but painting. He'd gladly help you in anything except painting.

"I'll be going, thanks for wasting my time." As he turns around to walk away, Sangwon held his arms, desperately begging him to stay.

"Leo just this once please. I won't tell Junil that I saw you with Aehyeon flirting in the library, I'll keep my mouth shut just please please please help us."

After Sangwon said those, Leo widened his eyes. He's contemplating whether to explain his side and expose his connection with Aehyeon, or to deny everything to Sangwon as if he'll believe after what he saw.

"Sangwon, look. You know what happened to me. Even if I wanted to help, I couldn't since my hands are acting up everytime I hold a paintbrush. And forget what you saw in the library, it's not what you think it is." You can say that Leo is holding back his anger. He sees Sangwon as his little brother, sure he can help him in everything. But after the incident last year, he can't hold paintbrushes since then.

"I have an idea." Sangwon's face lit up as an invisible light bulb seem to appear above his head.

~

After the old man that Aehyeon helped got discharged in the hospital, they decided to have a little talk while eating lunch in a cafe nearby.

"This is my son. When he was little, I had to leave him and his mom because I was diagnosed with schizophrenia. I got scared that might hurt them physically so I decided to live abroad, find a suitable job, and find a cure for myself." The old man handed Aehyeon a picture of a child, he's around 2 or 3 years old. And he seems very, very familiar to Aehyeon.

"By any chance, is his name, Leo?"

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[A/N]: A little TMI~ Schizophrenia is a type of mental disability, there are various types of schizophrenias, and one type of it shows being agressive that can cause harm to the people around the latter. ANOTHER A/N: THIS IS ACCORDING TO MY STOCKED KNOWLEDGE. I DON'T HAVE ANY IDEA TO OTHER MEDICAL TERMS SINCE I AIN'T A MED STUDENT, SO IF YOU ARE ONE, FEEL FREE TO CORRECT ME, PLEASE. IT WOULD BE HIGHLY APPRECIATED.

BTW, sorry for abandoning this sht for like I don't know how many days, author's block really sucks I don't know where this is going either, and it's hard to stick with the plot please bare me😭🙏 I'll update often if I found an inspiration again so guys send inspiration fleees kidding😆