There was a drawing on the page that vaguely resembled a teddy bear, but something about it was deeply unsettling, especially because the face had been completely scribbled over with dark, chaotic lines that covered the features until there was almost nothing recognizable left.
Yihan stared at the piece of paper for a while, unable to understand what it meant or why something like this had been lying underneath the couch in the first place, and after thinking about it for a moment, he simply assumed that someone had probably tried to draw a teddy bear but hadn't been satisfied with how it turned out, so they had scribbled over the face in frustration.
Completely unaware that the meaningless-looking drawing was connected to a past no one wanted him to remember...Yihan crumbled the paper in his hand and tossed it onto the floor before returning his attention to the drama playing on the television, completely unaware of the significance of what he had just thrown away.
As the night continued, Yihan became completely absorbed in the drama, eating popcorn, ice cream, and drinking a cold drink while barely paying attention to the passing hours, and before long, the living room had turned into a complete mess, with popcorn scattered across the sofa, crumbs stuck to his clothes, and traces of food around his mouth as he continued watching episode after episode.
He remained there until the darkness outside slowly disappeared and the first faint light of dawn began creeping through the windows, and only then did Yihan's tired eyes finally become too heavy to keep open.
Without even realizing it, he slowly closed his eyes and fell asleep on the sofa in the early hours of the morning, leaving the television playing quietly in front of him.
A little later, Hyunseok came downstairs, wearing comfortable clothes consisting of an oversized black T-shirt and a pair of light-smoke-colored baggy pants, while his slightly messy hair made it obvious that he had only woken up.
He walked directly into the kitchen, took a cup from the cabinet, added some coffee powder, and placed it into the coffee machine before waiting quietly for the coffee to finish brewing.
After a few seconds, the machine finally stopped, and Hyunseok picked up the cup before walking toward the small table near the living room, where he rested one hand against the edge and took a slow sip of his coffee.
That was when he noticed that the drama was still playing on the television.
His eyes shifted toward the sofa, and he saw Yihan sleeping there in an uncomfortable position, his body slightly curled against the cushions as though he had simply fallen asleep without caring where he was.
Hyunseok quietly placed his coffee on the table and walked toward him.
He stood there for a moment, watching Yihan sleep before turning around and heading back upstairs, where he took a soft blanket from the bedroom and returned to the living room with it folded neatly in his hands.
He carefully adjusted Yihan's position on the sofa, making sure he was lying more comfortably before gently covering him with the blanket.
For a moment, Hyunseok simply stood there and looked at him.
Yihan was sleeping peacefully, completely unaware of the world around him, and there was something about seeing him like that, without anger in his expression or confusion in his eyes, that made Hyunseok feel strangely relieved.
A small smile almost appeared on his face.
For the first time that morning, he felt as though his day might actually begin peacefully.
He turned around, intending to return upstairs and take a proper shower, but before he could take another step, something near the couch caught his attention.
A small piece of crumpled paper had rolled slightly out from underneath the sofa and touched his foot.
Hyunseok stopped.
"What the...?"
He looked down and noticed the paper lying near his feet.
For a moment, he assumed it was nothing more than a discarded piece of paper, but something about it made him hesitate.
He slowly bent down and picked it up and carefully unfolded the crumpled paper.
The moment he saw what was drawn on it, his entire body went still.
His heartbeat suddenly accelerated.
Despite the cool air filling the room, sweat began forming across his forehead, and his fingers tightened around the edges of the paper as his eyes remained fixed on the drawing. His breathing became heavier.
"Why...?"
His voice came out barely above a whisper.
"Why is this here?"
He stared at the drawing in disbelief.
"I thought I burned everything."
The realization hit him like a sudden blow, and for a moment, his mind seemed to stop functioning as countless thoughts began crashing into one another.
His eyes immediately moved toward Yihan.
Yihan was still sleeping peacefully on the sofa, completely unaware of what Hyunseok had just discovered. Hyunseok's grip on the paper tightened.
"Did Yihan see this?"
His breathing grew heavier.
"What if he saw it?"
"What if his memories came back?"
"What if he remembered everything?"
His mind continued producing one terrifying possibility after another.
"What if he saw this and lost consciousness?"
"What if he remembers what happened?"
"And what if he leaves me again?"
The questions continued racing through his mind without giving him even a moment to think clearly, and the more he looked at the drawing, the more frightened he became.
He looked at Yihan again.
For a brief moment, Hyunseok wondered if Yihan had already seen the drawing and simply collapsed from the shock of remembering something that had been buried deep inside his mind.
He immediately moved toward the sofa and grabbed Yihan by the shoulders.
"Yihan."
He shook him gently at first.
"Yihan, wake up."
There was no response.
Panic immediately began rising inside him.
"Yihan!"
He shook him harder, desperately trying to wake him, until Yihan finally shifted beneath the blanket with an annoyed expression.
"Tch..."
He turned his face slightly away and mumbled sleepily,
"What the... let me sleep for a few more minutes, please..."
The moment Hyunseok heard his lazy, irritated voice, his entire body finally relaxed.
There was no fear in Yihan's voice.
No recognition.
No trace of the person Hyunseok remembered from the past.
Just Yihan.
The Yihan who knew nothing about the memories buried inside him.
Hyunseok slowly released his shoulders and took a deep breath, feeling the tension gradually leave his body.
All the terrifying questions that had been filling his mind only moments ago suddenly became quiet.
Yihan hadn't remembered.
At least, not yet.
Hyunseok lowered his gaze toward the crumpled paper still held tightly in his hand.
Then he looked at Yihan once again.
He knew that the drawing meant something, but he didn't know what Yihan had thought when he saw it, or whether seeing it had awakened even the smallest fragment of something buried inside him.
Without saying another word, Hyunseok returned upstairs, changed into a bathrobe, and entered the bathroom.
He turned on the shower and stepped underneath the falling water, lowering his head as the warm water ran through his hair and down his body before dripping onto the bathroom floor.
For several moments, he simply stood there in silence, allowing the sound of the shower to fill the room while he tried to calm his thoughts.
Most of the questions that had frightened him downstairs had disappeared, but one remained stubbornly lodged inside his mind.
What had Yihan been thinking when he saw that drawing?
Hyunseok slowly tightened his grip.
He couldn't stop wondering about it.
He wanted to know what had crossed Yihan's mind in that exact moment, what memories, if any, had surfaced, and whether there had been even the slightest feeling of recognition hiding somewhere beneath his confusion.
The thought became so overwhelming that, for a ridiculous moment, Hyunseok found himself wishing he could simply open Yihan's skull and read his thoughts directly.
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