The old clock on the wooden desk ticked slowly.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
The hands of the clock stopped at 2:00 AM.
Outside the window, dark clouds covered the sky above the mountains of Nepal. The night was silent at first, but suddenly the wind began to move through the trees.
Then the rain started.
At first it was light.
Then heavier.
Soon the sound of rainfall echoed through the quiet mountain valley.
In the middle of those mountains lay a small peaceful village, surrounded by forests and hills. The houses were simple and close together, their lights already turned off as the villagers slept through the stormy night.
Inside one of those houses, in a small bedroom, a boy slept quietly on his bed.
His name was MK.
The room was dim and silent. A wooden desk stood near the bed, covered with scattered papers and notebooks. On top of the desk sat a single bottle.
The rain continued falling outside.
And then—
The scene changed.
The Dream
MK stood in darkness.
A girl stood in front of him.
Her voice echoed softly in the empty space.
"MK… I told you before."
"You should stay away from me."
MK remained silent.
He wore a mask, hiding most of his face.
The girl stepped closer and looked directly at him.
"But you won't leave me alone… will you?"
Her hand slowly reached toward his mask.
She began pulling it away.
Before completely removing it, she spoke again.
"Before you take that mask off…"
Her eyes moved to the long scar on the left side of his face, stretching from his cheek toward his ear.
"What makes you think you're beautiful… with a face like that?"
Reality
MK suddenly woke up.
His eyes opened wide.
His body was covered in sweat, and his breathing was heavy.
For a few seconds he just sat there on the bed, trying to calm himself.
Then he slowly raised his hand and touched the scar on his left cheek.
His voice was quiet and tired.
"Why…"
"Why can't I forget her?"
The rain outside grew louder.
MK pushed the blanket aside and stood up from the bed. He walked slowly toward the desk and sat down in the chair.
He placed one hand on his forehead.
"One year has already passed…"
"But even now… her memories still chase me."
His head felt heavy.
"I think I even have a fever."
His eyes drifted toward the bottle on the desk.
"I thought… maybe tonight I would finally drink it."
MK leaned back in the chair, staring into the darkness.
"I don't even remember when this scar appeared on my face."
A faint memory flashed through his mind.
A bicycle accident.
The right handle of the cycle had struck the left side of his face.
The wound had been deep.
The doctor had stitched it from inside his mouth.
"They wanted to stitch the outside too…"
MK whispered.
"But back then… I was just a kid."
"I kept crying."
"Because I hated this face."
Memory — Family Dinner
The scene shifted.
A warm dining room.
MK's family sat around the table eating dinner.
His mother and father, his two older brothers, and their wives were laughing and talking together.
Suddenly the eldest brother picked up a photo and smiled.
"Mom, look at this."
"Doesn't our little brother MK look incredibly handsome in this picture?"
Everyone laughed.
His brother continued joking.
"When this guy gets married someday, who knows how many girls might jump from buildings just because such a handsome man is getting married!"
The entire table burst into laughter.
Back to the Rainy Night
The memory faded.
The sound of rain filled the room again.
MK's voice quietly echoed in the darkness.
"I never wanted a beautiful face."
"What I wanted… was someone who could understand me."
He slowly picked up the bottle from the desk.
"I think I'm finally tired of this life."
MK lay down on the bed, holding the bottle in his hand.
Without hesitation, he drank it all in a single breath.
Moments passed.
His body began trembling.
His breathing became unstable.
Foam slowly formed at the corner of his mouth as his vision blurred.
Inside his fading thoughts, a question echoed again and again.
If I disappear…
Will anyone remember me?
Will someone cry for me after I'm gone?
Will there be any reason for someone to remember my name?
A bitter truth echoed in his mind.
"Honestly…"
"This is the cruel truth of the world."
"No one remembers someone like me."
Outside the window, the rain continued falling over the silent mountain village.
And inside that small dark room…
The story of A Silent Author had just begun.
End of Chapter 1