Clara's voice echoed in a gentle tone when she opened the car door. "This is where we're staying… for now."

Kai blinked twice at the brightness, then stepped out of the BMW. The wind flew across his face in a warm but wet taste, sliding through the strands of his hair with a soft push.

Kai whirled around, scanned the surroundings and then followed Clara. When they stopped at where the three bald men stood, Clara bowed and thanked them.

Kai didn't. He slowed his steps and looked at their egg-like faces.

The shaved heads of the men shone under the rising sun, and the reflection of the bamboo trees in a perfect mirror-like view that reflected the sun's light like a polished stone.

Kai stared at them, his brows tightening as if the sight of their bare scalps stirred something in him.

Kai didn't bow or say anything. He stood there and walked past them when Clara began to move.

The oldest among the three men stepped forward, the ends of his robe brushing quietly against the sand, while the two younger monks followed behind Kai and Clara.

Kai tried to tune his ears to the footsteps of the two men but couldn't, as the men stepped on the ground in soft paces, forming a rhythmic whisper along the stone path that led toward the inside of the Shaolin Temple.

The walls of the temple breathed quietly and echoed like a heavenly chime as the five figures approached.

Wind clicking bamboo stems together, birds spinning in low circles above the roofs, and the faint hum of chant echoing from deep within the halls filled Kai's ears, calming his fast-beating heart.

As Kai breathed, the air there was different, thicker somehow and carried the scent of something unpleasant in a pleasant way.

The older monk stopped at a wooden door and opened it, then stretched his arm and smiled.

Clara turned a soft gaze at Kai, placed her palm at the back of Kai, and forced him to bow his head, then trod inside the room.

When they entered, Kai blinked twice again as the inner side of the room felt like a room preserved for a divine presence. It creaked softly, revealing a small space with one sleeping mat, a low table, and a square window that framed the distant sea like a painting.

Kai stood there for a moment, brushed his fingers against the rough edges of the doorframe, and moved to the window. The scent of warm wood and the burning, cloth-like air he smelled earlier wrapped around him so hard that he placed his palm over his nose.

"What is that smell?" he asked in a voice that got blocked by his own skin.

Clara smiled, then shook her head. "That's the smell of incense."

"This is your room," she added, placing a hand in Kai's hair and brushing it. "…Now, I have to go and see my room."

The two young monks smiled at Kai and escorted Clara out. As they walked in the huge yard, Kai leaned against the side of the door, watching, then entered the room when they turned and vanished from his sight.

Instead of stepping inside calmly, Kai walked in quickly, shut the door, and locked it, letting a loud bang sound echo through the temple like a bell.

All three of them, Clara and the two young monks, tilted their heads sharply toward the direction the sound came from. But for Clara, she somehow knew where it actually erupted from.

The two young monks exchanged a brief look, their faces tilted with concern.

For the next month, Kai's door remained locked, not even opening at the time of breakfast, lunch, dinner, or supper.

Clara visited every morning, knocking gently and mentioning Kai's name in sync with the pace of her knocking, while her voice trembled more with each passing day.

"Kai… please, at least drink the tea I left outside. I'm begging you."

Only the humming walls and the door answered Clara.

Each night, she sat outside the door, her fingers twisting the fabric of her sleeves, while the memory of Gray hunted her like a devilish soul.

Then, on the thirty-first day of the second month, she heard a soft click echo from behind her after she had knocked and turned.

Before she could turn, the door cracked open. And from within it, Kai stood there, skinny, his eyes sunken but glowing faintly beneath the lashes.

His hair had grown longer and messier, falling past his brows and covering his face.

When Clara saw him, her breath caught in her throat. "Kai…" she whispered in a soft tone that echoed not.

Instead of answering, Kai simply lifted his gaze to her, and for the first time in eight weeks, Clara saw life in it.

Her worry dissolved instantly into a calm relief that was so heavy she had to hold the wall to keep herself upright.

…

Months passed, and in those months Kai rarely spoke, but he walked, sometimes to the large courtyard, and sometimes to the sea.

But most often, he walked to the bamboo forest behind the temple and spent almost an entire day staring at the moving branches and the birds soaring high above them.

And in the second year at the temple, Kai changed his location from the bamboo forest to the sea, where he walked on the shore with his eyes closed.

He spent more hours sitting on the damp rocks that were a few meters away from the shore and inhaled the salty wind that flew across his face and brushed through his hair like gentle fingers.

Consistently, his heartbeat coincided with that of the waves, steady and deep, as he watched and listened to the seabirds soaring above him.

The seabirds' cries cut through the sky like horns, each sound emerging from the cries echoing like a music only he could hear.

Kai sat there calmly and watched the horizon until he could feel it moving inside him… mixing and countering over Gray's memories that kept giving him hard times and a fast-paced heartbeat.

For the other half of the year, Kai joined in with the temple workers, the ones they referred to as weak, wretched, and bullied.

He swept the fallen bamboo leaves, washed incense bowls, and carried buckets of water from the sea to the last building inside the walls of the temple.

The bones in Kai's hands toughened, his shoulders grew stronger, yet he never complained, not even when the temple disciples pushed him and made him fall, causing the buckets to crash down.

Every struggle Kai refused to react to was seen by the three monks who welcomed them.

…

In the third year, Kai's quiet endurance carved a space in the hearts of the monks.

One morning, as the orange glow of the sun spread over the courtyard tiles like spilled gold, the oldest monk walked toward Kai's door and knocked on it.

The moment the door opened, the monk placed his arms at his back and smiled.

But Kai couldn't see the smile on the monk's face, as he was busily rubbing the drowsiness from his eyes.

"Kai," the monk said in a soft tone that made the boy jolt his head upward and look at the thick, tall monk.

"…From today forward, you are no longer a cleaner. You will train… learn… and become one of us."

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