Son Hyejoo
Hyejoo turned in her bed, groaning as she's met with the blinding rays of sunlight. Nothing was more obnoxiously waking as seething sun rays squeezing itself in between the little cracks of her curtains. It was one of the many things she disliked most about having to wake up, yet again. It didn't help that she had the same recurring dream. It's like a broken record.
(Hyejoo decides it's best not to dwell on said nightmare.)
"Oli, you've missed one of your classes again." A husk voice whispered into her head, and the tone of it was anything but worry and genuine concern. More of just pure mockery and it's incessantly clear goal to annoy the hell out of her.
Hyejoo rolled her eyes, kicking her pillows aside as she threw on one of her sweaters. "Shut the hell up Midnight." She growled, bunching her hair into a ponytail. Hyejoo glanced at the corner of the room where there was a black silhouette of her companion, Midnight.
A lot of people always envy her for being granted with such an ability to be able to summon a companion, especially one that was as powerful as a wolf. Don't get her wrong, as a child she enjoyed Midnight's presence. It was refreshing at times since Midnight had a knack for being blatantly honest so he was mostly Hyejoo's voice of reason had she fallen off track. However, Midnight, now especially, was more of a pain in the ass than anything.
Constantly mocking her, poking fun at her and questioning the most idiotic things. Yes, Midnight is quite literally the embodiment of her vast collection of emotions but Hyejoo just wishes she can shut the damn wolf up. Well, she can by de-summoning him but doing so without warning would only result into a small fist fight between her and the wolf.
It's an interesting partnership.
"By the way, Hyunjin came up here to check if you were awake. Told me to tell you to go down once you were." Midnight hummed.
"Why didn't you wake me up?" Hyejoo turned to the wolf, who was slowly emerging from it's shadows. The familiar golden eyes peering up at her and there she could already sense an annoying comment about to leave Midnight's jaw.
"You were asleep." It's gruff voice bellowed silently with the buzz of the air conditioner.
Hyejoo opened her mouth to let out a snap but stopped, knowing she'll only deteriorate her mood even more than it already was. With a strained smile and a held breath, she brought her fist down, "Thanks, now hurry up and come back." Surprisingly enough, Midnight didn't even protest, he just nodded and the silence in her room had become increasingly evident with his absence.
Her room was dark - it always was - but it felt darker than before. As if the corners of her room were being swallowed up by these nonsensical shadows. And the silence had become deafening; it made her feel uneasy. Midnight may be a constant pest all the time but Hyejoo knows they both appreciate each other's company. If it weren't for Midnight, her room would feel much colder, much more desolate than when Midnight was there.
If Midnight heard her he'd surely make fun of her.
With a grunt, Hyejoo rushed down the stairs, almost slipping as she did so. The scent of freshly baked pastries circled the entirety of their building, covering every wall with it's sweet sugar.
"You called?"
"Like an hour ago, yeah." Hyunjin chuckled, eyeing Hyejoo, waiting for a reaction. To which she earned an eye roll and a small ramble of curses and complaints. "I was actually gonna wake you up for your classes but Midnight said you wanted to sleep in." She shrugged.
Hyejoo gawked at her, eye twitching with irritation. "That damn-" She groaned, settling on the lone chair of the cafe. "Whatever, it's not like i'm failing."
"Which I hate you for." Hyunjin turned to the younger girl, eyebrow raised, "How the hell do you do it?"
"Talent?" Hyejoo boasted, crossing her arms. A Cheshire grin plastered on her face as she pointed to herself brazenly.
Hyunjin shuddered, "God, don't do that." She grabbed a few trays, swiftly chucking them into an oven effortlessly. Honestly, even without her quirk, Hyunjin would probably still be able to move as quickly as she does now. Well, not really but you get the point. Hyunjin's naturally athletic and paired up with her quirk she becomes a born racer.
"Oh right, I need a favor from you."
"Gross."
"Oh shut up." Hyunjin growled, "Need you to buy a few ingredients. I need it now so don't you dare stop buy the game store."
Hyejoo shrugged, grabbing her bag and throwing it over her shoulder. She stepped towards the glass door, her fingers hovering over the metal knob before her thoughts had called to her. Hyejoo winced at the sudden rush and breathed in, eyes averting from the city landscape up front.
"Haseul misses you, you know." Hyejoo manages. And the halt of metal clutter made her stomach churn slightly.
Silence circled their empty cafe. Left alone to take in the small tension that started to grow at the corner of the room. Hyejoo usually hated the cliche piano melody that played through their small store but now she wants it on repeat and blasted.
The noise of a pan moving slightly echoed in the room. Hyejoo knew Hyunjin heard it. After all, they both have quite exceptional hearing.
"Tell her I do too." A mellow voice whispered back.
Ask her. At least one more time.
Hyejoo snapped around, her mouth opening wide, "Hyun-"
"Go." Hyunjin turned her back to the younger girl, a familiar tremble creeping in her voice. But Hyejoo knew Hyunjin was desperately keeping her stature straight. Desperately keeping her voice strong and steady. "I need those ingredients now, remember?"
Hyejoo felt angry - no - frustrated. She felt her fingers itching with some kind of way to push her way back into Hyunjin's life. But she knew better than to argue back.
"Right."
The bells rung against the door and Hyejoo's brooding persona had left the cafe all to Hyunjin. But if people were to look into the glass pane, they wouldn't see a trace of a soul. It was all dark, lifeless and pretty contrasting to the normal vibrancy Aeong Cafe wore during the afternoon.
A sharp metal bang echoed against the cafe walls, followed by a thud. And through the heavy noises there were the faint sobs that mixed with the metal falling. Sobs that were being covered by a hand and a body trembling with grief.
****
Hyejoo never really tried much anymore. Not as much as she did 1 year ago after the battle. Try as she might, Hyunjin never budged. It's come to the point that Hyejoo would only barely mention their team considering it's become such a taboo topic in their household of 2.
But it's not like she can blame Hyunjin either.
That battle left wounds. Wounds that even time couldn't possibly heal.
"You're overthinking again kid." Midnight chirped, sitting idly beside her. "Why don't we just bring your sister's stuff home before she calls us, hm? Oli?" Hyejoo sees the grey wolf turn its head towards her, small mist of air leaving it's snout.
"You bring it to her." Hyejoo shoved the small plastic bag in Midnight's direction, ignoring the look of disappointment annoyingly obvious on her companions face. It's not like it would hurt anyways. The cafe is only a few metres away, Hyejoo can manage the distance.
"You've trained enough." Midnight slowly walked away from her, strutting a few feet before turning his head. "Go visit if you want, I'll stay with your sister." Before Hyejoo could even begin to deny anything, her companion had long ran off. Midnight's hind legs pushing further and further away from her.
Hyejoo let out a shallow sigh before standing up. She threw her hood over her forehead and tucked her hands into the depths of her pockets. Winter was for sure on its way.
It's been, what, 1 year? Right. That long since that forbidden day.
Hyejoo hasn't really done much, come to think of it. She never stopped training with Midnight as far as productivity goes. Things on her end got better, to some extent. Hyejoo was able to control her emotions much better; even as far as taming Midnight had he became a little too swallowed up by his and her emotions.
Lies.
Who am I kidding?
Things never got better; it got worst.
The never ending guilt nipping at her very mind happened every day. It's as if the world was staring at her, eyes filled with so much anguish and hatred; it was screaming at her for the carelessness she's inherited from her stubborn old man. That doesn't matter, it's the past. Nothing can change.
But you could have changed it.
She could've been here.
They could've been alive.
Hyejoo misses it all. The overbearing chatter amongst her teammates. When the world became all too silent for her, all too heavy for her to handle; somehow her team had made it feel lighter on her back. With them, she could conquer anything, anyone.
How idealistic.
They were all just a toy. Mindless robots left to walk amongst the quirkless, saving citizens left and right. It was all still the same, but without the thrill, without the excitement to patrol around the city. To run on the sidewalks side by side with her team, smiling courageously at the people who gawked at them in both admiration and envy.
None of that was there anymore.
All of that was taken away from them in a blink of an eye. All of their efforts rotting in the corner of the roads became useless garbage at the end of the day.
Hyejoo took in a sharp breath, growling as she grabbed the nearest object and chucked it across from her. With resentment towards the world, towards those damned monsters, towards herself, Hyejoo kicked and punched walls. She ran her fists against concrete, screaming, wailing and cursing.
"I could've saved them." A broken cry left her dry throat. Slowly she slid down, her arm scraping against the tattered bricks. "I could've stopped.." Hyejoo muttered to herself, her mind rushing only with guilt and loath.
Had this been a year ago, tears would be streaming continuously down her cheeks. But Hyejoo's shed enough tears in those painful inbetweens that she can't let out any more. She was left empty; a void.
An empty void to rot away in the destiny she's always wanted to circumvent from.
"Yeojin!"
Hyejoo's eyes snapped open. Sniffling, she hastily pushed herself off of the broken garage door and while wiping away at her eyes she noticed how far she's walked. How far she's wondered because she arrived to the one place that held the many painful memories.
Lazily, Hyejoo glanced to her side and saw a lopsided sign reading Under Construction: Do not Enter plastered across it. She paid it no attention and passed the supposed boundary, excusing herself unconsciously in the process.
Hyejoo brushed through old building ruins and took in the abandoned city. This area was always closed off to the public - understandable. It was a hazard considering the structures around here were pretty much unstable and you were at risk for having a car sized concrete platform fall onto your head. Pretty life threatening.
It didn't matter, Hyejoo didn't avoid this place for it's risks. She avoided it like a plague because this place lets her mind play that same nightmare over and over again. Reminding her every single time that she failed and that she can't bring back the lives they've lost.
Hyejoo shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut, hoping to loosen her mind from those chains of guilt even just for a moment.
"Yeojin!" A voice called.
The younger girl ran to a broken down car and hid, peaking over it's hood only to catch a figure desperately looking around the rubble. Feathers lifting medium sized objects at a certain height, as if looking for somethin- someone.
Hyejoo blinked and she slowly stood up, her mouth forming into a thin line of a frown. Her shoulders relaxed and her eyes wanted to cast away from the scene but she couldn't.
"Haseu-"
"Yeojin! Are you here?!" A winged figure searched desperately, eyes filling with hopelessness and fear all together. Her leader sped across each side of the road, lifting up rubble with her feathers, swinging her snow white wings - now dirtied with all the dust she must've looked under - to make the simple overgrowth of plants drift off.
Hyejoo watched. Hands resting ample on her sides as she watched her leade - no - an older sister searching anxiously for her missing younger sister. She studied as Haseul slid in the air effortlessly, not caring about the obvious exhaustion eating her up.
That's right.
Hyejoo remembered.
I wasn't the only one who lost something precious that night.