Page 47 of Scarbound

Dr. Kim held his gaze. “That isn’t the same as not being afraid.”

Noeul’s eyes dropped again. “No. I was terrified.” He took another breath.

“I pushed Gong away. I kept telling him…

“‘He’s our brother.’

“Then something changed.

“At the word brother… Gong froze.

“He looked at Ji-Woo.

“Then at me.

“He stared down at his own hands.”

His voice dropped almost to a whisper.

“He said…

“‘What… what’s happening to me?’”

Silence filled the room.

Dr. Kim spoke first. “What did you see in him then?”

Noeul’s face tightened. “He looked so scared. So lost.

“He covered his face. He apologized. He kept saying he hadn’t meant to do it.”

“And what did you do?”

“I told him to go to his room.” Noeul closed his eyes. “I’ve wondered about that moment so many times.

“Maybe I did the wrong thing.

“Maybe I should have hugged him.

“Maybe I should have told him I wasn’t going anywhere.

“Maybe he needed that more than anything.”

Dr. Kim studied him. “What did you need in that moment?”

The question seemed to catch Noeul off guard. He slowly shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“Try.”

Noeul drew in a shaky breath. “I needed him to stop.”

Dr. Kim waited.

“I needed Ji-Woo to be safe.” Another breath. “And I needed someone else to take over.” He looked away. “But there was no one.”

Dr. Kim’s voice softened. “So you were frightened, protecting Ji-Woo, trying to manage Gong during an episode, and still expecting yourself to know exactly what Gong needed.”

Noeul said nothing.