Before you disappear

Chapter 21

Jungkook's head felt heavy as he regained consciousness. He couldn't yet find the strength to open his eyes, simply because of the fear his headache would return.

What happened?

Even that thought made him cringe. He groaned inwardly.

The memory of saying goodbye to ARMY surfaced, simultaneous with the feeling of relief washing over him because he had succeeded in finishing the concert. But after that... nothing.

I must've fainted.

Embarrassment rose inside his chest. The band members would be so worried, just like the last time this happened right after a performance. "You have to slow down," RM would say again. "You need to take better care of yourself," Jimin would add.

He sighed.

He had taken better care of himself since then, and it hadn't happened again. Until now. But what had made this time happen?

Jungkook remembered the splitting headache, the blurry vision and the pain that had made his arm tremble at one point. But those were all fleeing moments. He'd been fine in between.

"She's doing well considering what she went through," a female voice spoke suddenly. "Please don't worry too much.... Yes, I'll call you when she wakes up... No, it's fine. I completely understand... Okay, we'll talk tomorrow. Bye."

A soft click sounded, followed by a sigh and the scraping sound of a chair being pulled across the floor. "Your sister is so worried about you," the voice whispered to him.

My sister?

Jungkook wanted to open his eyes and look at the woman who told him about his sister. He didn't recognize her voice and something about the tone of her words made it seem like she was speaking in a different language, yet he understood every word she spoke.

"You need to wake up soon, so we can go home and she can see you're fine. She needs to see you're fine. And I need that, too."

The light touch of fingers against his hand, startled him. Instantly, the fingers retreated. "Are you awake?"

Her voice sounded so hopeful, it almost broke Jungkook's heart. Whatever had happened to him, apparently had affected this woman.

But.. who was she? Was she part of a memory he couldn't yet unlock? A memory he had forgotten because of what had happened to him?

"You know, I had such a blast with you at the concert," she continued. "I mean, first row! We were so close to our guys, right? But..." She inhaled sharply. "I do remember that look on your face right before you..." Her voice trailed off and a few seconds later, he could hear her sniffling. "I can't believe this is how our BTS adventure ended, with you in the hospital. Three days it's been! I don't know how much longer my heart can take seeing you like this. Since we connected over our love for BTS, I feel so much closer to you. I do consider you to be my best friends and someone I can share everything with. So... you need to wake up soon, okay?"

Jungkook listened intently to what she was saying, a suspicion growing inside of him that the girl wasn't talking to him. When she spoke about her 'BTS adventure', Jungkook's breathing faltered. This definitely wasn't aimed at him.

She must be talking to a fan, someone who went with her to our concert.

So, that meant both of them were fans. But then why was she so close to him as she spoke the words? Why did he get the sense that she was actually talking to him.

Another touch, this time taking his arm and slightly turning it so his palm was facing up. Her fingers touched the inside of Jungkook's arm.

"Do you remember when we went to the tattoo shop to get this done? It was the first time I realized our bond through BTS was solid. I decided on the number 7 in the BTS logo, and you decided on this heart," she said, as her fingers trailed over my skin causing it to tingle. "The heart of the Love Yourself series. It suits you so perfectly."