Bloodbath of the Fallen Crown

18

I went to the bed and looked under, in case there were any opened boxes. He had nothing but a pair of slippers. Inside the drawers there was a mess, but not a looking-for-information type of mess, more of an I'm-a-guy type of mess. The nightstand didn't look to be messed with, mostly because the lamp was still perfectly on top and because it was right on the very small line that I know Nicolas draws to let himself know where it was before he leaves. I couldn't help but feel warm in my chest and face. I gave him that idea.

I opened the small drawer on the nightstand and found a bunch of meaningless items. A watch, some fake passports, deodorant, paperclips, some Korean won, a pack of very destroyed gum, some paper. I stopped at the last item. It was a picture of him and I. 

It was folded and looked old. It was printed on computer paper, not regular picture paper. I could recognize the picture, however. I remember that day very vaguely, it was nearly two and a half years ago. After we got back together when he had broken up with me. It was a time when we went to beach since we had some time off. The picture was taken while we were sitting where the water covered our knees, a wave splashing us with water. He was giving me a kiss on the cheek, grabbing my face and laughing. I was laughing with my eyes shut. The water had gotten in my face and my arms were in the air. I looked to be nearly falling. He must have forced me to do that, because I would have never agreed to letting the water drench my clothes that way. Then again, he could've gotten me to do almost anything back then. 

"Here you are." I jumped back, throwing the picture inside and slamming the drawer shut with the back of my knees in a haste. The nightstand slammed against the wall roughly and the lamp fell off. 

"You-You scared me!" I ran a hand through my hair and let out my breath. 

"Sorry," he mumbled. "I thought that, you know, being twenty and all, you'd find a sense of professionalism. Learn not to snoop around." His teasing tone made my cheeks heat up. I looked away so he wouldn't notice.

"I'm sorry about your lamp," I went to pick it up. The bulb had shattered. "I'll get you another one."

"Not to this address, though," he walked to the bed and slowly laid down on it. "I think I might need to find a new place."

I sat on a corner of the bed, far enough. "Me too. Was anything missing?"

He looked over to me and shook his head. "Nah. I have a crazy security system down there, but with enough time anyone with enough expertise could crack it. They clearly didn't come for that."

"Do you have any idea why they did?"

He seemed to tense for a moment. "What do you mean?"

"Why they came, I mean. Do you have any idea why they would want to take Gabriel? If they maybe knew he was here? If they were the ones to blow up your apartment?"

He shook his head again. "No. I mean, I didn't have the best relationship with mister Ye-jun Seong or Seong Ye-jun mister, take your pick."

I raised an eyebrow in response to his weird reply. He sighed, "in Korea last names go first. So the way we would say his name is Ye-jun Seong, but over here last names go first so they would say Seong Ye-jun. Just like his brother. His name our way would be Jung-hee Seong, but in the Korean way would be Seong Jung-hee."

I rolled my eyes, "I know how Korean names work. I meant why don't you have a good relationship with Seong Ye-jun."

"Well," he dragged on. "He never really liked me. Thought I was too... reckless. They are very disciplined and organized. I was just kind of doing as I wanted for a while, so he didn't find that I fit with his picture, I guess. It wasn't anything too serious, just a difference in morals."