the footsteps of his boots echoed through the half-empty underground corridors as he walked after another check-in. behind him, he could hear the voices of people, some still frightened, some dissatisfied with the amount of food they were receiving. greed was not a quality to be displayed in this place.

he stopped in front of a so-called doorway, where a large piece of fabric hung precariously in place as a replacement for a door. Chan-Yeong stood there for a minute, gathering his thoughts, before knocking on the wall (since there was no door) as a gesture of respect and slowly pulling back the piece of cloth that blocked his view.

“am I disturbing you?” his voice was as soft as always as he approached the spot where you were sitting on the makeshift bed, holding the open book he had given you earlier as a gift.

“I brought you some food.” he quickly remembered why he came when he placed a bowl of porridge next to you, receiving your puzzled look in response.

”I already ate today.” you said bluntly, just as you were about to return the plate to him, you felt his fingers touch your arm.

”I know.” he just replied, not taking the plate you were holding out to him.

”no need, someone else goes without food because of me.” you objected again, but he immediately shook his head.

”they won’t. It’s my portion.”

in that second, silence fell between you as you looked down at your bowl of porridge, feeling doubtful about it.

”oh, I almost forgot—” Chan-Yeong broke the silence again as he reached into his pants pocket, catching your attention.

”this is for you.” he took a small chocolate bar out of his pocket, handing it to you.

”where did you get this...?” judging by the way your voice dropped to a whisper, your eyes widened, and your lips parted slightly, you were clearly surprised.

”It doesn't matter, it's our little secret.” he smiled softly at you, placing the chocolate bar in your palm.

"chocolate is good for brain, and you need to eat well to stay healthy. I'm not hungry anyway.”

this soldier visited you every morning and evening, every spare moment between patrols of the tunnels and checks for cleanliness among the survivors. It was a bad idea to get attached to someone here, but he found it was already too late.