Lightning Crawlers (Part 4)
“Never go back there again,” a police officer pointed his finger to the three young guys in front of him.
The young guys nodded in unison.
“Don’t just nod!” the police officer narrowed his eyes, “it’s dangerous. The mist is going to be thicker and thicker by the day. It’s winter. Do you understand?” he spelled the last word to make sure the young guys really understand.
The three nodded in unison again.
“Good,” the officer crossed his arms, satisfied, “get in the car.”
Kyuhyun, Henry and Zhoumi walked hazily to the police car.
“I call the front seat!” Henry shouted.
“Noooo, Henry! I want to be in the front seat!” Zhoumi retorted.
“First one to get it!” Henry ran to the police car while Zhoumi after him.
“Henry! Zhoumi! Stop running! Yah!” Kyuhyun shouted.
The two guys raced to the car but then Henry falls on his face. Zhoumi was surprised and he tripped on Henry’s body. He stumbled and fell in front of the shorter guy.
“No one sit in the front seat,” Kyuhyun walked pass them and then he sat on the front seat, “go sit in the back.”
Zhoumi dusted the snow from his clothes and jumped in the car.
“You cheater,” Henry hissed as he also hopped in the car.
The three friends sat in the car in silence.
They told the police about the body they found on top of the communication tower. As a result, they’ve been brought in to the police station and questioned for about three hours.
Kyuhyun sighed. He was quite shocked actually, having to see his first dead body, moreover hanging on the top of the communication tower. He knew that his two friends were also as shocked as he was but they didn’t show it. They joked around and all chirpy but deep down, Kyuhyun knew that they were also scared.
“Hey,” Henry said.
“What?” Kyuhyun answered, didn’t bother to look behind to his friend.
“Don’t you want to talk about it?”
“No!” Zhoumi hated the topic.
“But you guys saw it, right? I mean, what could possibly happen to that man? He was hanging on the top of-.”
“Dude!” Zhoumi yelled, “just quit it! Three hours worth of questions by the police and those still weren’t enough for you!? Gee! I want to get it out of my head already,” he massaged his temple.
“Fine! Kyuhyun, what do you think?” Henry resorted to Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun didn’t answer. He was lost in his thought. He closed his eyes and images from his past came flowing back.
His old house in Seoul, a fairly huge house. He could remember the red ugly rug all over the house. The screeching second story floor and the busted window in his room. He could even remember the smell of the wall when winter comes.
But those peaceful images were ruined by guns and white grenades. Kyuhyun could recall so clearly the sound of broken glasses and blazing bullets. And the one sound he wanted to forget the most was the sound of thunder.
“Kyuhyun?” Henry’s voice brought him back to reality.
“Yeah?” Kyuhyun heaved a heavy breath.
“What do you think?”
“I don’t know.”
“Hey, the officer is coming,” Zhoumi said as he saw a police officer was walking toward the car.
“Good, we can go home now,” Kyuhyun sighed.
The officer knocked on Kyuhyun’s door.
“Sit in the back,” he said.
And Kyuhyun walked out and sat in the back.
**
Siwon and Hankyung ran barefoot in the cold snow. They hiked a hill, straight to the direction of the setting sun.
Siwon gritted his teeth, the cold was excruciating and then he dropped to the snow, panting.
“You okay?” Hankyung asked.
“My feet… they’re frozen,” Siwon stuttered.
Hankyung looked behind them. They were far away from the building they were in before. The building was burning at few places. He wasn’t sure what happened so he and Siwon just ran.
Hankyung then looked to the hill in front of him. He didn’t know where to go but he knew he had to go as far as he can.
“Siwon,” Hankyung knelt down in front of Siwon, “get on.”
“Huh?”
“Get on,” Hankyung repeated, “it faster.”
Siwon hesitated. This guy Hankyung was pretty butch and Siwon knew he’d strong enough to carry him a few miles but then again, they were in the middle of a winter. And they were barefoot.
“Come on,” Hankyung was getting impatience.
Then suddenly jackets fell from the sky. Two pair of shoes fell beside Siwon and then two chocolate bars.
“Huh?”
A lightning struck the snow behind Hankyung and Siwon, threw them off their feet.
“You two…,” a guy with red hair came out from the lightning, “when I say you got to run, you should’ve prepared. It’s winter for God sake.”
The red guy was wearing a fur coat and he was frowning.
“You!” Siwon shouted, “I saw you at the building!”
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” the guy crouched and rubbed his head.
“How did you do that? You were a lightning! What happened to us? Where are we? What--?” the red guy sushed Siwon.
“Too many questions,” he sighed and then his eyes looked straight to Hankyung, “you there.”
Hankyung flinched.
“Put on the coat. You’ll die,” the red guy’s voice soften, “and eat the chocolate.”
Hankyung nodded and took the coat. Siwon did the same. He also quickly put on the shoes and when he did, he was very thankful to whoever invented shoes.
The red hair guy didn’t do anything. He just crouched down, his hand on his chin, watching Hankyung with sharp eyes.
Hankyung had a problem buttoning his coat and then Siwon stood up to help him. “Here.”
“Leave him alone,” the red hair guy protested, “he’s not a kid.”
Siwon frowned but helped Hankyung still.
“We need to go far away from here. There’s a highway just a few more miles to the east. Let’s go, before the people in that building start searching,” the red hair guy walked in front of Siwon and Hankyung.
“Tell me what happened?” Siwon said.
“It’s too long and complicated. I’ll tell you later. Beside, I’m tired,” [i]and in a bad mood.[/i]
“At least tell me your name.”
The guy stopped and then he looked to Hankyung.
“I’m Siwon and this guy is Hankyung. I think he’s foreigner, he doesn’t speak much,” Siwon introduced him and Hankyung.
“I know who he is,” the guy mumbled.
“Excuse me?” Siwon tilted his head.
“I’m Heechul,” the red guy sighed and then, again, he looked at Hankyung.
“Nice to meet you,” Hankyung nodded a bit.
Hankyung turned around and walked, “so you really don’t remember me, huh?” he said under his breath.
--
The young guys nodded in unison.
“Don’t just nod!” the police officer narrowed his eyes, “it’s dangerous. The mist is going to be thicker and thicker by the day. It’s winter. Do you understand?” he spelled the last word to make sure the young guys really understand.
The three nodded in unison again.
“Good,” the officer crossed his arms, satisfied, “get in the car.”
Kyuhyun, Henry and Zhoumi walked hazily to the police car.
“I call the front seat!” Henry shouted.
“Noooo, Henry! I want to be in the front seat!” Zhoumi retorted.
“First one to get it!” Henry ran to the police car while Zhoumi after him.
“Henry! Zhoumi! Stop running! Yah!” Kyuhyun shouted.
The two guys raced to the car but then Henry falls on his face. Zhoumi was surprised and he tripped on Henry’s body. He stumbled and fell in front of the shorter guy.
“No one sit in the front seat,” Kyuhyun walked pass them and then he sat on the front seat, “go sit in the back.”
Zhoumi dusted the snow from his clothes and jumped in the car.
“You cheater,” Henry hissed as he also hopped in the car.
The three friends sat in the car in silence.
They told the police about the body they found on top of the communication tower. As a result, they’ve been brought in to the police station and questioned for about three hours.
Kyuhyun sighed. He was quite shocked actually, having to see his first dead body, moreover hanging on the top of the communication tower. He knew that his two friends were also as shocked as he was but they didn’t show it. They joked around and all chirpy but deep down, Kyuhyun knew that they were also scared.
“Hey,” Henry said.
“What?” Kyuhyun answered, didn’t bother to look behind to his friend.
“Don’t you want to talk about it?”
“No!” Zhoumi hated the topic.
“But you guys saw it, right? I mean, what could possibly happen to that man? He was hanging on the top of-.”
“Dude!” Zhoumi yelled, “just quit it! Three hours worth of questions by the police and those still weren’t enough for you!? Gee! I want to get it out of my head already,” he massaged his temple.
“Fine! Kyuhyun, what do you think?” Henry resorted to Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun didn’t answer. He was lost in his thought. He closed his eyes and images from his past came flowing back.
His old house in Seoul, a fairly huge house. He could remember the red ugly rug all over the house. The screeching second story floor and the busted window in his room. He could even remember the smell of the wall when winter comes.
But those peaceful images were ruined by guns and white grenades. Kyuhyun could recall so clearly the sound of broken glasses and blazing bullets. And the one sound he wanted to forget the most was the sound of thunder.
“Kyuhyun?” Henry’s voice brought him back to reality.
“Yeah?” Kyuhyun heaved a heavy breath.
“What do you think?”
“I don’t know.”
“Hey, the officer is coming,” Zhoumi said as he saw a police officer was walking toward the car.
“Good, we can go home now,” Kyuhyun sighed.
The officer knocked on Kyuhyun’s door.
“Sit in the back,” he said.
And Kyuhyun walked out and sat in the back.
**
Siwon and Hankyung ran barefoot in the cold snow. They hiked a hill, straight to the direction of the setting sun.
Siwon gritted his teeth, the cold was excruciating and then he dropped to the snow, panting.
“You okay?” Hankyung asked.
“My feet… they’re frozen,” Siwon stuttered.
Hankyung looked behind them. They were far away from the building they were in before. The building was burning at few places. He wasn’t sure what happened so he and Siwon just ran.
Hankyung then looked to the hill in front of him. He didn’t know where to go but he knew he had to go as far as he can.
“Siwon,” Hankyung knelt down in front of Siwon, “get on.”
“Huh?”
“Get on,” Hankyung repeated, “it faster.”
Siwon hesitated. This guy Hankyung was pretty butch and Siwon knew he’d strong enough to carry him a few miles but then again, they were in the middle of a winter. And they were barefoot.
“Come on,” Hankyung was getting impatience.
Then suddenly jackets fell from the sky. Two pair of shoes fell beside Siwon and then two chocolate bars.
“Huh?”
A lightning struck the snow behind Hankyung and Siwon, threw them off their feet.
“You two…,” a guy with red hair came out from the lightning, “when I say you got to run, you should’ve prepared. It’s winter for God sake.”
The red guy was wearing a fur coat and he was frowning.
“You!” Siwon shouted, “I saw you at the building!”
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” the guy crouched and rubbed his head.
“How did you do that? You were a lightning! What happened to us? Where are we? What--?” the red guy sushed Siwon.
“Too many questions,” he sighed and then his eyes looked straight to Hankyung, “you there.”
Hankyung flinched.
“Put on the coat. You’ll die,” the red guy’s voice soften, “and eat the chocolate.”
Hankyung nodded and took the coat. Siwon did the same. He also quickly put on the shoes and when he did, he was very thankful to whoever invented shoes.
The red hair guy didn’t do anything. He just crouched down, his hand on his chin, watching Hankyung with sharp eyes.
Hankyung had a problem buttoning his coat and then Siwon stood up to help him. “Here.”
“Leave him alone,” the red hair guy protested, “he’s not a kid.”
Siwon frowned but helped Hankyung still.
“We need to go far away from here. There’s a highway just a few more miles to the east. Let’s go, before the people in that building start searching,” the red hair guy walked in front of Siwon and Hankyung.
“Tell me what happened?” Siwon said.
“It’s too long and complicated. I’ll tell you later. Beside, I’m tired,” [i]and in a bad mood.[/i]
“At least tell me your name.”
The guy stopped and then he looked to Hankyung.
“I’m Siwon and this guy is Hankyung. I think he’s foreigner, he doesn’t speak much,” Siwon introduced him and Hankyung.
“I know who he is,” the guy mumbled.
“Excuse me?” Siwon tilted his head.
“I’m Heechul,” the red guy sighed and then, again, he looked at Hankyung.
“Nice to meet you,” Hankyung nodded a bit.
Hankyung turned around and walked, “so you really don’t remember me, huh?” he said under his breath.
--