Breaking Perimeter

The streets were unusually crowded on my way home.

At first, I thought it was just another group of noisy students hanging around after class, but as I got closer, I realized something was wrong.

A fight.

Several students had surrounded someone in the middle of the alley.

Shouting echoed through the narrow street while punches were thrown mercilessly.

I stopped walking.

Wait…

Is that Jian Cheng?

I narrowed my eyes, trying to see clearly through the crowd.

Seriously?

Yoo Nam was right. He really is troublesome.

For a moment, I considered walking away. We barely knew each other, and honestly, he already annoyed me enough on my first day.

But still…

We were classmates.

And judging by the looks of it, those guys had no intention of stopping.

One of the gang members grabbed Cheng by the collar and slammed him against the wall.

“You think you’re tough?” the guy spat angrily. “Next time, no one’s saving you.”

I frowned.

What a bunch of idiots.

Quietly, I reached into my bag and pulled out a mini speaker.

Then I pressed play.

Within seconds, the sound of loud police sirens echoed throughout the alley.

WEEEOOOO—WEEEOOOO—

The gang immediately panicked.

“Damn it! The police are coming!”

“Let’s go!”

Before leaving, the leader glared at Cheng coldly.

“You’re lucky today,” he hissed. “Next time, we’ll beat you to death.”

The group quickly scattered in different directions.

I almost laughed.

They seriously fell for that?

I switched off the speaker and slipped it back into my bag proudly.

Serves them right.

Jian Cheng remained leaning against the wall, breathing heavily. His lip was bleeding slightly, and bruises were already forming on his face.

He looked terrible.

Still… not my problem.

I started walking past him.

“I helped you enough,” I muttered quietly. “Handle the rest yourself.”

But just as I crossed by him—

He suddenly grabbed my wrist.

My entire body froze.

The tight grip.

The sudden pull.

For a split second, everything around me disappeared.

I wasn’t in the alley anymore.

I was back there.

That night.

That hand.

That fear.

“Please help m—”

I immediately pulled away in panic.

“Let go of me right now!” I snapped loudly. “Don’t touch me!”

Both of us fell silent.

Even Cheng looked slightly surprised by my reaction.

Without waiting for him to respond, I quickly ran away.

My heartbeat wouldn’t calm down the entire walk home.

—

Later that night, after dinner, I laid on my bed staring blankly at the ceiling.

But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stop thinking about what happened earlier.

When Cheng grabbed my wrist…

It felt exactly the same.

The same fear.

The same helplessness.

Two years ago, when the murderer caught me while I was trying to escape, he held my arm just like that.

I still remembered how desperately I kicked him just to break free.

I closed my eyes tightly.

Why am I even thinking about that stupid sleepyhead?

Maybe he didn’t mean it.

…Still, he should’ve warned me first.

I groaned and buried my face into my pillow.

Next time I see him getting beaten up, I’m definitely ignoring him.

Probably.

Suddenly, my bedroom door opened.

I sat up immediately.

“Mom, don’t you know how to knock?” I complained dramatically.

My mother smiled apologetically before entering the room.

“Of course I do,” she replied. “I was just worried about you.”

She sat beside my bed and looked at me carefully.

“You seemed distracted during dinner. Is something bothering you?”

I forced a small smile.

“Just thinking about a classmate.”

A very troublesome classmate.

My mother stared at me for a moment before gently brushing my hair back.

“You know,” she said softly, “I’m happy to see you slowly opening up again.”

I blinked.

“Mom, I already told you earlier,” I sighed. “You don’t have to worry about me so much.”

Instead of replying, she suddenly hugged me tightly.

Too tightly.

“M-Mom!” I laughed while trying to breathe. “Are you trying to kill me with your hugs?”

She finally let go, laughing softly.

“Alright, alright,” she said while standing up. “Get some sleep now.”

I smiled warmly at her.

“Good night, Mom. I love you.”

For a moment, she simply looked at me quietly.

Then she smiled.

“Good night, Heiwa.”

As she closed the door behind her, the room became silent once again.

But strangely…

Tonight didn’t feel as lonely as before.

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