They had kissed for the first time in the brisk spring rain, despite the fact that neither of them had realised it was raining at the moment. It was a moment of pure spontaneity when their lips met. His heart raced in his chest, the sensation of kissing Bella overwhelming him with joy and contentment.

Today, as Yoshi dared to peek through half-lidded eyes, he found himself locked in a gaze with the mesmerizing star that was Bella.

Her sky-blue eyes glazed back at him, and there was no lie between them.

Bella had sneaked out once the play ended, leaving her brother with Bella and Ahyun to meet Yoshii and tell him how amazed her brother was.

"He loved your performance, Yoshi!" She jumped at him, catching him in surprise, but her presence was enough to tame his restless heart beating against his chest.

"I was scared, Bella..." He whispered, pulling her onto one of the sofas inside his dressing room.

"Why?" Her eyes widened at the surprising phrase, "You know how good you are!"

Yoshi sighed, intertwining his fingers with hers. "Not that. What if he didn't like me?" His fear lay bare, and the vulnerability in his words touched Bella's heart.

That's how they ended up the way they were right now.

She was curled into his lap, her frail arms hanging loose around his neck, her fingers tucking at the strands of his hair as Yoshi explored her lips with his own. His palms caressed the sides of her body, not crossing any barrier Bella would feel guilty about, yet the warmth basking Yoshi in this sensation was enough for him to understand how much this woman meant to him.

As they pulled away from each other, their foreheads touching, Bella whispered softly, "You won't ever lose me."

"Bella!"

The voice was exactly like an angry, fuming Tobias. Bella was quick to separate herself from him, turning to face a burning Tobias, all red.

Yoshi, piecing together the puzzle, understood the gravity of the situation. He was not just any man; he was Tobias Green, Bella's brother.

The next few moments happened in a daze, and before Bella could act, Tobias had already pinned Yoshi to the ground, punching him relentlessly, and Yoshii welcomed each hit, doing nothing in return. Neither did he dodge any attacks, nor did he try to hit back.

Each blow felt like penance for a moment of indiscretion, no matter how pure his intentions had been. He could understand Tobias's emotions all too well. No brother would be able to hold back their anger at such a scene.

And Tobias didn't stop with gifting him just a bloody nose. He wanted more damage done.

Seojin had stepped in by now, slipping through the crowd, and without thinking twice, he ran up to the duo, trying to pull Tobias away.

"Leave him!"

"No! How dare he touch my sister in such a way?"

"Listen to what they have to say!" Seojin had enough as he pulled the angry man with all his force as both of them fell across the room.

Bella ran to Yoshii, her tears falling onto his battered face as she cradled him in her arms. "Oh Yoshii, I'm so sorry," she sobbed, her voice choked with emotion. "I never meant for this to happen."

Yoshii, despite the pain coursing through his body, managed a weak smile. "It's not your fault, Bella."

"Tobias, please," Bella implored, her eyes pleading for understanding. "You have to believe me. Yoshii would never hurt me. He's a good person."

Tobias turned to face his sister, his expression a mixture of anger and pain. "How can I trust anyone after what I just saw?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Seojin's mind raced as he tried to formulate a response. He knew he had to stand up for Yoshii, but how could he convince Tobias of his innocence?
He withdrew and moved towards Tobias, crawling to his side. He knew things had turned messy, but he had to fix it all.

"Are you fine?"

Tobias turned to face Seojin. "You-u?" He stammered.

"I am Kim Seojin, Yoshii's friend."

"Liar!" Tobias spat in his face, glaring at the man. Getting back up on his feet, Tobias looked at the man again. "Your friend would be just like you, a molester!"

"I-"

Those words hit Seojin like a physical blow, knocking the wind out of him. How could he convince Tobias of the truth when he seemed so convinced of their guilt? Desperation clawed at Seojin's throat as he struggled to find the right words.

Before Seojin could respond, Tobias turned towards Bella, his expression hard and unyielding. "I do not like Yoshi; I don't like anyone related to this man named Kim Seojin, Bella. Now the choice is yours: me or Yoshii?"

"Tobias, please, what are you saying?" Bella pleaded, her voice filled with concern for both her brother and her boyfriend. But Tobias seemed oblivious to her presence, as if he had tunnel vision focused solely on the man who claimed to be Yoshii's brother.

The world around her seemed to crumble like a tower of Jenga blocks, each moment slipping away beyond her control. She felt the weight of the pain that had engulfed her, a result of clinging on to memories that were never truly hers to keep. As she grappled with the chaos of her existence, she was struck by the harsh reality of immortality. Everything she held dear was fleeting, just like a passing breeze.

Every person, every experience, and every second were momentary, passing through her life like a whisper in the wind. And in the midst of this realisation, a choice loomed before her: Yoshi or Tobias?

As she sat in the midst of the storm, feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders, she turned to Yoshi with tears in her eyes. Gently, she placed a tender kiss on his forehead, whispering, "Take care."

...

"For millions of years, mankind lived just like the animals. Then something happened which unleashed the power of our imagination. We learned to talk, and we learned to listen. Speech has allowed the communication of ideas, enabling human beings to work together to build the impossible. Mankind's greatest achievements have come about by talking, and its greatest failures by not talking. It doesn't have to be like this. Our greatest hopes could become reality in the future. With the technology at our disposal, the possibilities are unbounded. All we need to do is make sure we keep talking."

Stephen Hawking's voice mirrored through the room, a repetitive play of words that played in an infinite loop at this apartment of Seoul. The deck looked clear, cleaner than an average bachelor's room. The scientist wasn't there apparently, and Timothy was busy cleaning the left-over carcass of rejected notions and ideas rolling on the floor.

Thinking it to be a student's work, he quietly held the crumbled sheet in his fist as his fingers straightened the creases to see how the scientist had rebuked the kid.

Mr. Kim was one of a kind, a scientist appointed at the Harvard who left all his work to settle in the city of South Korea far away from the mankind's reach teaching in an obscure high school. He was one angry man, a very talented yet unfurnished version of the old Kim. A fifty eight year old man living in the loneliness of his life.

Timothy had asked him a million times, only to be scolded at. Once the old man was ready with a quartz triangle to scoop his eye out. All Timothy had asked was 'Where's your wife?'

Hunching back to the present, Timothy unfolded the sheet over the table as his other hand adjusted the lamp to throw its light over the light-grey letters curved into the paper.

"T-H-E, the... T-W-I-N, twin... P-A-R-A-!! Aahh!"

Another day when the old man pulled him away by his ear right into the kitchen.

"Sir please, that hurts! Aah..."

"How many times have I asked you not to get inside without my permission?" The man roared letting go of his ears.

The boy was already in tears, his right hand crawled up to the red throbbing spot to rub and soothe the burn his skin had taken in.

"Bu-but y-you wen-t out..." He muttered between his hiccups.

"That doesn't explain why you went in, and this is the last time, Tim! I will throw you into the trash if you do this again!"

Stomping his feet in anger, the old scientist made his way back into the room shutting off the door and the trembling boy. The heavy metal door echoed with a resounding thud, leaving Tim feeling trapped and isolated.

He had witnessed firsthand the destructive power that could be unleashed when curiosity turned into recklessness. The old scientist heaved a sigh of relief as memories flooded his mind. It had been a long and complicated journey to reach this point, but he had finally learned from his past mistakes. In his mind, he was a failure for all his life and nothing more. He dreaded being where he was, but he had nothing else but this.

Maybe, this would work in a way nothing ever did.

____________

Hola!!
WC: 1553