Forget-me-not

Seungmin

A few hours later, Seungmin followed Chan upstairs to Flora's apartment. Cynthia was still sound asleep back at the dorm. Most of the guys finished at the studio and went home early. Hyunjin came over and was keeping an eye on Cynthia in case she needed anything.

"You're really quiet today. Something on your mind?" Chan asked. He led the way into the elevator and pressed a button on the side panel. Behind the pair, the sliding doors shut and the elevator rumbled to life.

Seungmin's eyes went to the side of the wall. Someone had hung up a small push-pin board full of fliers and information about different events in the area. He scanned them, but none of the colorful papers stood out to him.

"Earlier, I stayed home with Cynthia while you guys went to the studio. You already know that, but-" He frowned, "she said something that doesn't quite make sense. She said she caused the accident. I hope she doesn't think it was her fault. She wasn't the reason why the driver slammed into her, they were speeding."

"I hate thinking that she blames herself for all of this," he continued. "I know what it's like to blame yourself. None of this is her fault. I don't know why she blames herself."

"Well, she probably feels guilty about everything. I'm sure there's a reason behind her guilt. You'll just have to give her a bit of time."

Seungmin nodded, but Chan's words did little to comfort him. By the time they reached the fifth floor, Hye-soo was already waiting for them. She stood with her back pressed along the white wall outside of Flora's apartment. A silver key on a key ring dangled from her hand.

When they moved closer, the pair could finally see just how much damage Flora's fists had done. One of Hye-soo's eyes was swollen shut and a mix between plum purple and ocean blue. The bridge of her nose was puffed up and bright red.

"Glad to see you've finally made it." Her eyes darted between the pair before she spun around and unlocked the door. "This is Flora's apartment and, according to the building manager, he said you're entitled to get whatever you need. He's pretty pissed about the whole situation with Flora. Apparently, our fight here at the complex doesn't bode well for his dignity."

"Thank you," Chan said.

Hye-soo nodded and placed the apartment key in his hand. The two began to talk and Seungmin ignored them. Stepping into the apartment made his stomach churn. For the past four months, this was where Cynthia had been held as a hostage.

How much of her pain seeped into these walls? Was she like him? Did they hear her scream? Did she stare out the window and pray to some higher power? Did her tears seep into the couch? Did they soak her pillow?

A lump began to form in his throat. The overwhelming pin-pricks of tears appeared in his eyes. He sucked in a deep breath and let it back out. He needed to keep himself together and gather some of the stuff she needed.

Boxes were pushed up against multiple different sides of the walls. Curiosity began to swarm him. What had Flora been planning to do? He stepped closer to a box until something crinkled beneath his foot. His eyebrows furrowed and he bent down.

His fingers clutched the paper and he brought it closer to his face, so he could read it. He recognized Cynthia's overturned car in an instant. The cracked windshield, the gaping hole, and the blurry images of cops in the background. The photo had been taken before they towed her car away.

It was the first time he was seeing the car. Beforehand, he had never seen what Cynthia's car looked like after the wreck. The guys kept him sheltered from seeing anything associated with it. His pain was too raw and too real to handle it. He let the clipping fall back to the ground and glanced over.

Scattered all over the floor, there were papers and photographs. He walked to the nearest one and flipped it over. He physically felt his heart ripping apart in his chest. It was a Polaroid photo that Hyunjin had taken of Seungmin and Cynthia while they were asleep.

It was sometime last year before the crash. Seungmin's arms were wrapped around Cynthia's torso. His face was nuzzled into the back of her neck. Her wavy hair hid his facial features. Cynthia's face was relaxed while she slept and her hands cupped Seungmin's. He didn't even know the photo existed.

"What is all this?" Chan's voice pulled him from his thoughts. After finishing talking to Hye-soo, she returned to her apartment. He stepped inside Flora's place and shut the door behind him. "Why are there so many boxes?"

"I don't know."

"You don't think Flora was going to actually mo-"

"I do. That's exactly what I think. Everything out here in the living room is almost gone. I haven't explored the bedrooms yet. I think she was going to take Cynthia and run."

"Holy shit," Chan muttered.

Seungmin bent down and began to pick up the photographs. All these photos, he watched Felix pack them back in January. He put them into one of the boxes of Cynthia's clothes. He was hoping that she'd see the photographs and it'd help boost her memory. How many of these photos had Cynthia seen?

Chan walked over to the small overturned cardboard box and nudged it over with his foot. Cynthia's car key, with the Puppym keychain, sat on the floor. Beside it, there was a small journal and a few more photos. Chan picked up the journal and began to flip through it.

No bigger than his hand, he wasn't sure what he was expecting to find inside of it. His fingers swept over the maroon leather exterior and he began scanning words. Across the way, Seungmin was about to grab another photograph when he found the remains of a shattered phone.

It wasn't hard to recognize, considering he bought the case for it. The case was filled with soft colors and hand-painted flowers. Since Hyunjin had a knack for flowers, he asked Hyunjin to help him design it. Peaches, sage greens, baby blues, and satin pinks were swirled around in different flower patterns.

Cracks webbed through the front screen. Seungmin pressed the side bar and, to his surprise, the screen lit up. This must have been the phone that she used to call Hyunjin a few days ago. Somehow, the old cell phone managed to survive the crash.

There was suddenly a soft thud across the way. Seungmin's hand froze mid-reach and he glanced over. Chan's eyes were wide with shock and he looked rather pale. Seungmin frowned and glanced at where the journal had fallen.

"Are you alright?"

"Call the cops."

Seungmin's eyebrows furrowed, "what?"

"Call the cops and stop touching things. We need to get out of here. We have to go and wait for the cops."

"Hyung, what are you talking about?"

"This whole place? This whole place is now considered a crime scene. Don't touch anymore, let's just, let's just go."

Before Seungmin could ask anything else, Chan walked over, grabbed his wrist, and pulled him out of Flora's apartment.