Untouched [minsung]

Chapter 75

Hyunjin POV

I'd run from the house and through the woods without stopping for what felt like an hour. I had to have gone nearly 4 miles by now and my bare feet were killing me.

I stopped and looked around. I was completely alone. I couldn't hear anyone around me. No footsteps. No gunshots.

I pulled out my phone and sighed when I realized that I had no service. I was completely on my own.

When Jeongin had broken in, my heart had stopped. He looked like he'd gone to hell and back. His skin was even worse off than Han's, his eyes were bloodshot, and he had so much misdirected anger in him.

It wasn't Han or me or any of us that he should have been going after...it was our parents. They were the ones that caused all of this and made him feel worthless. They were the ones that pushed him too hard. And they were the ones that never showed him any love.

I felt bad for him. He wanted their validation so much that he'd given up his humanity.

When I'd begun to run, I heard a gunshot behind me. I didn't even turn around to see who was hit. I'd sprinted down the stairs and over Han and Seungmin and straight towards the woods.

Looking back, I knew I'd been selfish. I should have stopped to help, but I couldn't stop. The panic had overwhelmed me and was screaming at me to get away.

As I sat, I listened for any indication of where everyone else was. The silence was deafening.

I considered running back towards the house but the thought of seeing Jeongin again was too terrifying. He wouldn't miss his shot to kill me next time.

I rested my head against the tree and closed my eyes. I inhaled sharply and could smell the faint scent of smoke. I stood up and looked around. Seeing nothing, I decided to climb a nearby tree, which was a stupid idea since I had never climbed a tree in my life. I couldn't make it more than a few inches off of the ground.

I walked a little deeper into the woods and heard a river. I decided to follow it, thinking the others might have the same idea.

For a while, I heard nothing but the sound of the water rushing past me, but out of nowhere, I heard footsteps. Multiple people were running this way and I jumped behind a bush to see who it was.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw Seungmin and Han. But the fear on their faces and the fact they were running told me one thing: Jeongin was coming.

I continued to hide and watched as they grabbed rocks and hid behind a tree a few yards away from me. I prepared myself to watch my brother get annihilated by stones, but then they tossed them into the stream, giving up their weapons.

I realized they were trying to fool him into thinking they were running in the other direction. They had decided not to fight a gun with rocks...smart move.