Page 110 of Scarbound

“I tried to cover myself. I kept saying, ‘Gong, stop. Please stop.’” Noeul’s eyes were fixed on the floor now. “He just kept saying the same thing.”

“What?”

“‘You don’t care about me.’ Again and again.” His throat tightened. “Every blow… ‘You don’t care.’” His eyes filled. “And the worst part was that he sounded hurt.”

Dr. Kim frowned slightly. “Why was that the worst part?”

“Because I still wanted to comfort him.” The confession came out before Noeul could stop it. He looked up. “Even after he hit me. He started crying, and I remember thinking that I should go to him.”

“To comfort the person who had just beaten you.”

“Yes.”

Dr. Kim’s tone remained neutral. “But you didn’t.”

“No. I knew it would make things worse.”

“So you left.”

“I ran to our bedroom. I collapsed onto the bed.” Noeul stared at his hands. “I couldn’t breathe properly. I was shaking. Then I cried.”

“What did you think?”

Noeul was silent for several seconds. “That Gong had hurt me.” His expression hardened. “And not just physically.” He rubbed his thumb across the ring again. “He was the person I had protected my entire life. My twin.”

“The person you believed would never cross that particular line.”

Noeul nodded. “He had crossed it.”

Dr. Kim leaned forward slightly. “And what changed after that day?”

Noeul looked at her. “What do you mean?”

“You said it was the first time.”

“Yes.”

“So what did you learn?”

Noeul frowned. “I learned that he could hurt me.”

“Anything else?”

Noeul thought for a long moment. His expression slowly changed. “I learned to watch him more carefully. I learned what words upset him. What expressions meant he was getting angry. When to send people away. When not to touch him.”

The room became very quiet.

“And what happened to your own feelings during all of that?” Dr. Kim asked.

Noeul didn’t answer.

“You became very good at monitoring Gong,” Dr. Kim continued gently. “But who was monitoring you?”

Noeul gave a short, bitter laugh. “No one.”

“Again.”

Noeul looked at her.