The room appeared silent, the steady ticking of the monitor and the soft breathing of a young woman, Mona, who lay unconscious. An IV drip was attached to her right hand, and an oxygen tube gently rested on her nose. The dim light reflected shadows on the wall, resembling an unhealed wound.
Beside Mona sat a man. His body was sturdy, with vacant eyes. A thin, unkempt beard adorned his face. His eyes were encircled with dark circles, his skin pale from lack of sleep. In his right hand, he gripped a crumpled bundle of papers, and with his left, he held Mona's cold, motionless hand, unchanged for the past three months.
His name was Rafel.
His life seemed to have stopped the day Mona's body was dragged into the ICU.
Rafel stared at Mona's face with utter hopelessness. Mona was the source of laughter in his life. The one who would always say,
"Don't be too harsh on the world, Fel, or it'll strike back hard."
But on the night of the incident, the world had been more than just harsh to them; it had shattered both Mona and Rafel's lives. Rafel leaned closer to Mona's body and kissed her hand.
"I already know who he is," he whispered softly. "I've prepared everything. He will feel pain beyond hell."
The wind blew fiercely outside the window, the air that night was bitterly cold. It wasn't just the air; Rafel's heart had frozen the day of the incident. He hadn't spoken a word to anyone, not even the police who interrogated him that night. Rafel only spoke to Mona and his plans. He had no words that could make him believe anyone would help him.
Rafel sat on a park bench, wearing a hoodie that covered his head. He held his phone and reread Mona's last messages. He read them silently. Almost every word he could recite by heart. Suddenly, someone sat at the end of the bench beside him. The person was Serafim, who remained silent for a moment before speaking.
"It's already late," Serafim said in a voice so calm it was almost inaudible.
Rafel glanced briefly but didn't respond.
Serafim continued. "Sometimes, the ones we love don't just leave. They leave a part of themselves... in our hearts."
"What are you talking about?" Rafel finally spoke, his tone sharp.
Serafim smiled warmly. "I've seen you sitting here alone many times, like now."
Rafel stood up. "I don't need a chat buddy."
"It's not a chat. I just... don't want you to feel sad alone."
Those words stopped in Rafel's chest but didn't leave his lips. Rafel walked away, letting the rain droplets that began to fall sweep his steps.
In his dark room, Rafel sat in front of his laptop. He stared at the screen, which displayed a photo of a man. Yes, the photo of the person who had caused Mona to lie in the hospital. The man had power, money, and influence. Rafel had tried his hardest to imprison this man, but the police always claimed the evidence wasn't strong enough. Rafel felt that if there was no legal justice for his beloved, he would create his own.
"Hell isn't deep enough for you."
On Rafel's desk, papers were neatly arranged: work schedules, home schedules, and the route the man took. The plan was laid out meticulously and coldly. This was not just anger; this was revenge.
Knock... Knock...
A knock echoed from Rafel's door. He opened it to find Serafim standing there.
"Rafel, you can still turn back."
"Who are you? Are you following me?" Rafel almost shouted.
"I know your plan, Rafel. If you keep going down this path, you won't ever be the person you once were. And Mona wouldn't want that," Serafim said firmly.
"Don't bring her into this," Rafel snapped.
Serafim looked at him directly. "Do you think revenge is a gift for Mona? Or for you?"
Rafel slammed the door shut.
But Serafim's words stuck in his mind, swirling around like a wound that couldn't be buried.
The sky that evening appeared overcast. Rafel held a glass bottle containing a clear liquid, but it wasn't just water. He had prepared everything: time, location, blind spots in the cameras, and a mask. Everything was nearly perfect.
But every time he went out to stalk his target, Serafim would always appear. Rafel didn't know who Serafim really was. Sometimes he would stand at the bus stop, other times pretend to be a homeless person on a street corner, and sometimes just a shadow Rafel caught in his rearview mirror. But his presence seemed to disturb every plan Rafel had made.
Then, one night, as Rafel sneaked behind the building where the man often hung out, Serafim appeared again, standing in the path Rafel had to take.
"Move!" Rafel hissed sharply. "You don't understand."
"I understand. More than you think," Serafim replied.
"What do you know? What do you know?" Rafel said, his voice filled with emotion.
"I know what happened to Mona," Serafim said softly. "I know this man needs to be taught a lesson. The law in this country won't be able to touch him with his current position."
"You know what he said in court? He was just 'admiring' Mona's beauty and wanted to experience her body. And the court couldn't punish a bastard like him," Rafel said firmly, holding back his anger.
"I know that. But I'm doing this not for him, but for your future and Mona's."
With teary eyes, Rafel shoved Serafim aside and walked away.
Days passed, and the morning sky looked too bright, as though God had deliberately turned all the lights on. Rafel prepared everything for his revenge later that night: jacket, helmet, mask, special liquid, and other equipment. His target would be vulnerable at 10 PM.
After finishing his preparations, Rafel felt uneasy. Not because of doubt, but because of a premonition. Something inside his heart urged him to visit Mona first. Rafel rushed to the hospital, managing his time to get there just in time.
His steps quickened, chasing the clock. His hand pushed open the door to her room, breathless. And then…
He saw Mona sitting on her bed, weak but conscious. Rafel stumbled forward, his eyes welling up with tears. He saw Mona's wide-open eyes and heard her soft cry. In the chair beside her bed sat Serafim, with a calm expression as if he had been waiting for him.
"Mona..." Rafel whispered softly.
Mona weakly looked at him. But her gaze was full.
"Fel... I know, Fel..."
Rafel swallowed. "Know what?"
"He told me everything..." Mona glanced at Serafim. "You're looking for him. The one who ruined my life, right?"
The tears Rafel had been holding back began to flow down his cheeks.
"I just... I can't accept what he did to you. I see you lying here and... I only have one goal."
Mona shook her head. "But that's not you, Fel. You're not a killer. Don't let anyone change you."
"He deserves it, Mon."
"And you deserve to live well, Fel." Her voice trembled. "I know he did this to me, I also know he has the power to manipulate the law in this country. The important thing now is that I wake up... I always remember you. I hear your voice every day. But if you disappear... I'll have no one left."
Rafel's body felt weak; he collapsed beside Mona. He cried loudly, like a child. Mona approached him and hugged him tightly, though still looking fragile, gently patting his back to calm him down.
Serafim stood up. "You have chosen the right path."
Rafel looked at him with eyes still red from crying.
"Who… who are you really?"
Serafim just smiled.
"I'm just someone who doesn't want you to lose more than what's already been taken. If this country's law can't touch him, I have my own law. Leave everything to me," Serafim said as he walked away from them.
That night, in an old warehouse on the outskirts of town, the cold air bit deep into the bones. The hanging warehouse light swayed slowly. Below it sat a man with his hands tied. This man was the perpetrator who had brutally tortured Mona. His body was bruised, eyes swollen, and breathing ragged.
In front of him stood Serafim. His face looked cold, unlike usual. His aura radiated wrath, like an angel weary of the evil in this world.
"Do you think you can run away from everything you've done?" Serafim's voice was heavy and pressing.
The man coughed up blood. "Who… who are you really?"
"I'm nobody. I'm just the voice you've been silencing all this time."
Then came the sound of soft footsteps from the corner of the room. From the darkness appeared a figure Serafim knew and smiled at—Azazel, who made the air grow even colder.
"Well, well… finally you took over, Serafim," his voice slippery like poison.
Serafim didn't look back. "I don't need your presence."
"But you must need… validation. You need to know that what you're doing is right. People like him deserve to be taught a lesson according to our law. And I'm here for that."
Serafim clenched his fist tightly, forming a sharp light.
"He hurt Mona," whispered Azazel in Serafim's ear. "Not just Mona, many women whose futures he shattered, and many families he tortured. You can hear the cries of every woman he hurt and the tears of every family he destroyed. Isn't it time you ended the suffering of all those he's harmed?"
Serafim stepped forward, full of anger. In an instant, the man's body lifted, and with a slight swing of Serafim's hand, the man was slammed against the wall. Bones seemed to protrude and break. He screamed in pain and crawled away from Serafim.
"Do you think you're immune to the law? Now you will face the law from the heavens!" Serafim shouted with a booming voice.
The man lay helpless, gasping for breath. His face was covered in blood, and his hands trembled.
Azazel laughed softly. "Good. Just a little more… kill him. Finish him. One more strike. One small light. And it's over."
Serafim raised his hand. His hand began to ignite a light that illuminated the entire room. The once quiet room trembled. Just as he was about to unleash a tremendous power, a girl's voice was heard, faint and soft.
"Don't…"
Serafim froze.
The shadow of a little girl appeared at the warehouse door. She seemed to be running away while holding a doll. Her face was vague but somehow familiar to Serafim.
Azazel stopped laughing. His eyes narrowed.
"Serafim… are you afraid? Or… are you weak?"
Serafim bowed his head. The light in his hand dimmed. He looked at Azazel and closed his eyes.
"What you need isn't death," Serafim said softly, "But the pain that all of them feel because of your deeds. And that… is far worse."
With one motion, Serafim bound the man's soul. Not to kill him, but to make him feel the pain, anger, disappointment, and sorrow of everyone he had hurt. The man's body trembled. His mind was strangled by his own fear, and his eyes looked empty.
Azazel hissed softly. "You will regret this, Serafim."
Serafim looked at Azazel calmly.
"No. I won't regret it. He will spend his life feeling the pain of others. I am not like you, Azazel."
Time passed quickly. Days turned into months. Mona's physical wounds began to heal, though her heart still trembled sometimes at night. But Rafel was by her side every day, every hour. He never left her side. Rafel had abandoned his plan for revenge and replaced it with a new goal: to protect Mona.
Serafim never appeared again after that night. Rafel and Mona saw news reports saying the man was severely injured and now mentally unstable. Rafel looked at Mona and smiled; he knew who had avenged their pain.
One peaceful morning, in a small chapel surrounded by sunflowers, Rafel and Mona held a simple wedding ceremony. Only soft acoustic music, humble food and bread, and close friends and family attended. But there was one uninvited guest, yet very much awaited.
Serafim.
He stood near the back door of the church in a simple suit. His face now looked serene with a faint smile. Rafel saw him from afar and nodded. Serafim returned the warm gaze. Mona, from the altar, gave a thin smile towards him. Their eyes spoke without words.
And while everyone focused on that sacred moment, Serafim suddenly touched his temple. His head felt heavy.
Flashes of images appeared in his mind. A woman with a vague, blurry but… beautiful face. Her eyes full of tears, as if calling out. But before Serafim could focus, the image vanished, dissolving like mist touched by light.
Serafim was silent. His breath caught.
"Who is she…?" he whispered.
Only silence followed. The sounds of Rafel and Mona's wedding vows echoed from the altar. Serafim smiled again, though behind that smile was a newly carved question.
***