fourteen

-Nine years ago-

"For the last time, I said no." Twenty-year-old Choi Seungcheol said with a tone of finality and slight annoyance.

It was only seven in the morning and was already engaged in a headed argument with his younger brother. It was becoming the norm as he found himself in arguments every other morning about the same thing, money, or rather, the lack of it.

"Come on," Hansol pleaded. "I'm not quitting school. It's just a part-time job after school."

Hansol was Seungcheol's younger half-brother. The two had a relationship that was less like brothers and more like a father and son. Seungcheol's mother had died before Hansol was born and their father walked out on them five years ago. Now, Hansol's mother was too ill to get out of bed most mornings, leaving Seungcheol to shoulder most of the burden left behind by their absent parents. Hansol often voiced his guilt and his want to help, but Seungcheol would refuse him each and every time. Seungcheol had been fifteen when he became the man of the house. He had to grow up before his time and he refused to let Hansol experience what he had. He was only seventeen. He should have been worrying about exams, college, and his first love, not about how they were going to make all the bills that month. However, no matter how hard Seungcheol worked to hide the true reality from his little brother, Hansol always managed to figure it out, leading to arguments about jobs and money. Hansol had been suggesting that he could get an after-school job, but Seungcheol wouldn't let him. Hansol would even go as far as to try and get the jobs secretly, leading to Seungcheol dropping him off and picking him up for school every day just to stop him from scheming. Despite all his efforts, Hansol refused to give up.

"You have homework to do after school." Seungcheol pointed out as he packed Hansol's backpack for him, zipping it up when he was satisfied with its contents.

"I could always do it after work," Hansol argued.

Seungcheol scoffed at the nativity of the answer. "You would be too tired after work to do your homework. You still have time before you need to enter the work world. Enjoy this time while you can." He told him as threw the younger his backpack and continued to get everything together.

While Hansol getting a job would make things a bit easier, Seungcheol didn't want him to experience what he was just yet. He wanted to give Hansol the chance to discover a job he liked and not be stuck in an exhausting endless cycle just because they needed money. Most importantly, Seungcheol didn't want Hansol to have a life like his. His little brother glared at him as he caught his backpack.

"You're being ridiculous. I'm going to have work one day."

"Well, that's not today."

"You can't protect me forever." Hansol scoffed.

The words cut Seungcheol deep. They were true. He couldn't protect his little brother forever. One day he was going to grow up and do things for himself and was going to be exposed to the harsh world Seungcheol had tried to hide from him. It was a fear that kept him up at night. Regardless, he cleared his throat, not wanting to show just how much Hansol's words affected him.

"Why can't you just enjoy your childhood for the short time it lasts?" He asked.

His voice had a hint of desperation in it as if he was pleading with him. Tears began to well in Hansol's eyes, but his expression was full of anger and disbelief.

"Enjoy my childhood?" He repeated with a mocking tone. "What is there to enjoy about having to come home every day and see my brother so tired he can barely make it past the doorway? What's to enjoy about having to worry if we're going to have a house next month or food the next day, knowing there isn't anything I can do about it? I can't enjoy my childhood if I feel helpless for most of it."

Hansol was nearing tears at this point, but like Seungcheol, was too proud to let them spill. The older's heart broke at the sight. Normally, their arguments would end with Hansol storming out or giving Seungcheol the silent treatment. Never once had he been reduced to tears in such a way. Seungcheol kneeled in front of him.

"I'll make you a deal if you pass your next exam, I'll let you get a part-time job." He offered.

Hansol perked up. "You mean it?"

Seungcheol nodded. "Things aren't that bad right now." He reassured. "There's no need for you to rush into a job. You can freely focus on your exams."

While Hansol seemed a bit happier and placated, Seungcheol's stomach churned. Things were bad, worse even. Rent was nearly two months behind and the landlord had been harassing Seungcheol nonstop. On top of that, they lost their insurance and their mother was getting worse. The medical bills were getting to be too much, but Seungcheol would never let Hansol know how bad it actually was. Seungcheol was used to dealing with it alone. He always managed to figure it out. He was sure he would do so this time as well.

Things were a bit better between the brothers as Seungcheol walked Hansol to school. While neither of them were talking, they also weren't angry or upset at one another. That was the most important thing. As they walked, Seungcheol's phone rang. His body stiffened at the thought of who it could have been, but remembering that Hansol was next to him, he tried to play it off. He quickly answered and tried not to wince at the harsh nagging of their landlord.

"This is your final warning." He threatened. "I'm tired of being patient with your family. You think you're the only ones struggling?"

"I'll get it to you shortly," Seungcheol replied, trying to be as vague and calm as possible.

"You better. I'll be there later this evening and you better have all of it or find a nice piece of sidewalk to sleep on."

"I understand." Seungcheol sighed as he hung up.

As predicted, Hansol turned to him. "Who was that?"

Seungcheol faked a tiny smile. "A coworker. I promised to get him something."

Hansol nodded, seeming to believe him. The conversation was dropped as they arrived at the school. After watching the younger meet with his friends before going inside, Seungcheol briskly made his way to work. He was risking being late and he was going to have to try to figure out how to solve his problems on the way there. Once at work, he greeted his co-workers. Half the day passed in a blur and before he realized it, it was lunchtime. One of his older coworkers approached him with a slap to the shoulder causing Seungcheol to flinch.

"Hey, Kid, how about we all go to lunch?"

Seungcheol wanted to refuse and spend his break alone to think through his problems, but he remembered he gave Hansol his last few dollars so he could buy snacks at school. He didn't have money for lunch. Maybe it would have been best to go with someone else, so he agreed. Another coworker approached them.

"Did you finally get Seungcheol to agree?"

"Yep, he the stubborn little bastard finally agreed."

"Great," The other said as he looked at Seungcheol. "Are you going to treat your seniors?"

Seungcheol froze on the spot. He couldn't tell if the older man was joking or not, but if he refused, it would be seen as rude and could make his work more of a living hell than it already was. So, stupidly, he nodded his head.

"I just need to stop somewhere first." He told them. '

The older men seemed to understand and agreed that they would be waiting for him at the restaurant down the street. Once he was sure no one was looking, Seungcheol ran to the ATM outside of the bank across the street to withdraw money. Seungcheol stared at the balance on the screen and winced as he withdrew a bill and it put a sizable dent in the amount. He still had no idea what to do about the rent. He tightly gripped the money in his hand.

"One thing at a time." He told himself as he placed the bill in his pocket.

He was about to go to the restaurant when he heard a commotion coming from inside the bank. Feeling curious and worried, he opened the door but quickly wished he hadn't as he walked in on an ongoing robbery. One of the robbers instantly noticed him and ordered him to kneel on the floor. Seungcheol did as told and kneeled by some startled strangers. He noticed one of them breathing way too rapidly and upon closer look, Seungcheol noticed she was pregnant. Carefully, he reached out and placed a hand on top of her. She was startled and panicked at first, but when she saw Seungcheol's calm and kind face, she calmed down a bit.

"Take deep and even breaths." He instructed lowly. "It'll be okay. Try not to put any more stress on the baby."

The woman nodded and tried to take deep breaths as Seungcheol instructed. As she was doing that, Seungcheol looked around at the other and the robbers. There were five in total. All of them had guns. It would be hard to take them all down. Beside him, an older man nudged him.

"If you're thinking of taking them down, don't. You'll wind up dying and will probably get the rest of us killed."

"We have to do something. They could kill us all anyway." He insisted. He gestured toward the pregnant woman who was still trying to regulate her breathing. "Should we just let her be killed?"

The older man sighed. "You can't protect everyone." He said nearly mimicking Hansol's words earlier that morning. "Sometimes, you just have to let the events play out."

Realizing the older man may have been right, Seungcheol gave in and stuck to watching everything unfold helplessly. He was starting to understand exactly what Hansol had meant by feeling helpless. His mind drifted to his little brother and what would happen to Hansol if Sungcheol didn't make it out of the bank. Before he could get any deeper into his dark thoughts, he heard a yelp from a woman as one of the robbers grabbed a fistful of her hair.

"I told you not to press any buttons!" He yelled.

He released her hair and she kneeled to plead with him. "I'm sorry. Please don't kill me! I'm sorry!"

Without thinking, Seungcheol took quick action and rushed in between the robber and the woman. However, before he say or do anything else, he felt a sharp stinging pain in his spine following the piercing sound of a gunshot. He had concluded that he'd just been shot in the back. Everyone started screaming at the fact that someone had been shot as Seungcheol lay helplessly on the cold floor.

"Check that he's dead. If not, shoot him again. Finish your job." One of the robbers ordered.

Though he couldn't feel much by that point, Seungcheol felt himself being returned over and he heard a gasp of surprise.

"Hyung?"

Seungcheol may have been slipping away at a rapid pace, but he would recognize that voice anywhere. It was Hansol. His own brother had shot him. The last thing Seungcheol remembered was hearing the sound of his brother's sobs before letting the darkness engulf him.