💭Forget-Me-Not: Chapter Eighteen

The collapse. 🕳️

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Without another word, without any consideration for his feelings, Sae Ra left, leaving him in a wake of anger as she knocked over the trees she and Tae Ri had hidden behind before, ripped notices off the walls, and finally slammed the door to the stairs behind her.

And then she was gone.

“I’m sorry it took so long for me to reach out to you,” Sung Joon said placidly in his usual seat. “But you understand now, right?”

Across from him, in Sae Ra’s usual seat, was Tae Ri, her eyes looking up at him with a careful balance of demureness and wariness, like a newly rescued cat unsure of how much to trust the person before her. She didn’t want him to think she would be difficult, as that might not be beneficial to herself—and yet she didn’t want him to be complacent and think he’d earned her trust quite yet.

He understood the energy she was giving off perfectly and showed that he respected it. She didn’t care whether he did or not. She also needed him to know that.

Sung Joon, an excellent reader of someone’s character, did indeed get that message, as well.

The two had met up earlier that day, the same day of the re-recording.

–

Tae Ri had just stepped foot into the company as usual when someone tapped her on the shoulder. She nearly dropped her breakfast sandwich upon seeing the tall Ma In Ha, dressed today in a silk blouse tucked into a flattering pencil skirt that fell below her knees with a small slit off center.

“The CEO would like to meet with you today,” In Ha said.

It took a full second for Tae Ri to absorb this information. She exclaimed, “Well, it’s about time!” and headed towards the elevators, calling over her shoulder, “But as he probably knows, I have a morning meeting, so I’ll come up after that.”

In Ha smiled at her. Sung Joon had indeed known. “The meeting is scheduled for eleven. I will see you then.”

Tae Ri simply gave her a thumbs up without turning back.

–

A few hours later, after the morning meeting, which was as pointless as she had expected, Tae Ri was staring at the third piece of the mysterious stone with a leather cord looped through the top to form a necklace. Sung Joon was holding it so it dangled before her, as if he might try to hypnotize her at any moment.

“As an apology, and using my best judgment, I had decided to give this third piece of the stone to you. I’m sure Sae Ra had already informed you of the stone?” he asked.

“It’s not really my style,” she said. She was decked in silver jewelry, from rings on her fingers to cuffs on her ears.

“Luckily for you, it’s not meant to be stylish but to help you with your gift. You hear other people’s inner thoughts all day, don’t you?”

She nodded slowly, her expressionless eyes on the stone.

Sung Joon continued, “This will help mute that for you.”

She tried not to show on her face that the prospect excited her. She would’ve grabbed it from his hand right then and there, but she knew better.

Tae Ri almost regretted not grabbing the necklace when she could. He gathered up the cord to lift the stone into his hand and close a fist around it, hiding it from her view. He leaned forward, both elbows on both knees to close the distance between them.

“There’s an added benefit to this, but I’m not sure how much you’d like it,” he continued.

Of course there’s some tradeoff, she thought with an inner eye roll. Life, man.

“While this will mute other normal people’s thoughts, the stone can emphasize your own gift.”

“That seems contradictory.”

“Meaning you have more control over your gift and can use it more to your own benefit,” Sung Joon elaborated—or thought he did, but Tae Ri’s gaze told him to get to the point already. She wasn’t like Sae Ra, hanging onto every word, here for the drama of it all. She wanted the barebone facts and details.

He chuckled and went on, “Meaning if you try, this stone can help you read the minds of those you couldn’t before.”

This did perk her interest, but she again didn’t betray this on her face. Instead, she said drily, “I’m not interested in Sae Ra and Hyun Woo’s thoughts, thank you very much.”

“It’s up to you,” he said. “Use it how you’d like.”

“I hear Hyun Woo likes sexy women. That’s definitely not something I need to know more about.”

Sung Joon held the stone over her hand, which she reluctantly opened. He dropped the stone piece into her hand and folded her fingers over it.

Just then, Ma In Ha walked back into the room. She had briefly stepped out, but apparently, some unpleasant news had reached her ears since.

“What is it?” Sung Joon’s voice was sharper than usual as he could sense something was wrong.

“It’s Sae Ra.”

–

That was how a few minutes later, Tae Ri faced Sae Ra on the roof of the building. The stone had helped lead her to Sae Ra, the force of the other woman’s thoughts so violent and forceful that it pulsated, and the stone pulsed with it the closer it got to her. As she neared Sae Ra, Tae Ri ignored the pull of the other more confused and milder source that was likely Hyun Woo a few floors beneath them.

Sae Ra spun to face Tae Ri.

How could Kang Yoon?

I could’ve done it all. Erased them all.

Hyun Woo deserves it. Nothingness for him.

I could do it to Kang Yoon, too.

He better not stop me again.

My head hurts.

My heart hurts.

A deep ache was settling into Tae Ri’s head, much like the one felt by Sae Ra in that moment. The pain was even spreading to her chest, as if she could feel Sae Ra’s pain, her heartbreak, her loss of her sense of self.

Sae Ra’s face was crumpling, overcome by all the emotions, tears gathering in her eyes. Her legs wanted to give, wanted her body to likewise crumple, down to the comforting and solid ground. And so she did. Her hands went up to her head. She rocked back and forth.

“Sae Ra,” Tae Ri voiced, wincing from the pain, also about to collapse.

–

Sung Joon, in the meantime, went to check up on the situation at the studios. From what he could see, the re-recording was progressing as normal. They were on a break. Everyone was chatting happily, like nothing had happened, although a few here and there looked a bit confused or out of it still. Some nursed mild headaches.

Apart from them, alone in the darkness, was Hyun Woo. He sat on an upside down crate, slumped over and clearly deep in thought. It seemed he had filled in whatever memory was necessary to make the re-recording proceed as normal, and he was weary now. Sung Joon nodded in approval.

Very good, Hyun Woo, he thought. But don’t wear yourself out. I’m going to need you.

He turned. His next stop was the rooftop.

When he arrived, he saw two more slumped figures. Sae Ra was lying on her side in a fetal position, unmoving. Tae Ri was conscious and seated, but likewise balled up. Sung Joon went up to Tae Ri and gently pulled the necklace off her, dropping it into her hand when she looked up in surprise.

Without wasting another second, he next strode over to Sae Ra and picked her up. Wordlessly, Tae Ri slowly got up and followed after them. He knew all the back routes where no one would see them, leading them eventually back to his office, which wasn’t too far away as it took up the topmost floor.

When they arrived, Tae Ri took a seat while Sung Joon laid Sae Ra gently down in another. In Ha came with a cup of fresh water for Tae Ri to sip. She also placed a cool, wet towel on Sae Ra’s forehead and covered her with a blanket. Sung Joon looked down at Sae Ra, eyebrows furrowed slightly.

“What now?” In Ha asked quietly.

“Please go get Kang Yoon.”

She bowed and turned to leave, but was stopped by his next words.

“I don’t quite understand what’s going on.”

She faced him again, a question on her face.

“All this. So much chaos.”

“That’s how life is. Life happens, and it’s unpredictable. They are young and emotional, and the everyday stressors are taking a toll on them. They’re not like you. Give them time.”

He thought for a few seconds, then gave one definitive nod, acknowledging her words. In Ha finally took her leave, closing the large doors behind her and leaning against them for the briefest second as if taking a breather—except her small, polite smile slowly widened into a self-satisfied grin that made her face look more alive than it ever had before.

She clapped her hands like dusting them off after a work well done, her hips swaying more as she took long and confident strides away from the mess she had left behind.

Next time on 🌸Forget-Me-Not🌸

He hoped her dream land was treating her way better than reality was. These days, it wasn’t hard for that to be the case, that was how dark the real world could be.

**Author’s Note**

Friendly reminder that my other story, How to Write a K-Drama, is back with its third season, so go check it out!