𝕘𝕚𝕧𝕖𝕟-𝕥𝕒𝕜𝕖𝕟 | ᴇɴ-

𝟖

My head is pounding. The sun is too bright and they're talking too loudly. I just want them all to shut up for a moment. I want everyone, everything to shut up. Just a few seconds for this stupid headache to stop.

"...time like this we can't afford to split up again!" Jungwon is saying.

"Try telling him that then," Jay answers.

"What are you even talking about?" I ask.

They all look at me. Five pairs of eyes. Five, not six.

"Where is Sunoo?"

"Jeez, hyung, have you heard anything we've said at all?" Jake asks me.

"Been a little busy with this headache, sorry."

"Your head hurts?" our maknae asks me, worried.

The sun makes his golden hair even brighter and it's hard for me to look directly at him. We're in the dining room at our usual table having breakfast. Except it's not a normal day. Yesterday, Sunoo almost gave us away in the living room, and today he's not even here.

"It doesn't mean anything," Sunghoon tells Niki, placing a hand on him. I can tell he's trying to act strong in his condition, but the truth is he looks bad. Very bad.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I add. "Don't worry about it."

"Don't worry about what?"

The Mistress has approached our table. She stands with her characteristically neat bun at the bottom of her head as primly as ever.

"I—um —I have a small headache. But it's nothing," I stammer.

"Oh, but if it's bothering you it is something," she says with a smile. "I'll ask the nurse to give you medicine."

"Thank you."

She nods before moving on to check on the other orphans. I glance over at Jungwon and see him biting his lip in nervousness, but I don't get a chance to say anything to him because just then Sunoo walks into the room.

He looks in our direction for a moment before grabbing a tray and lining up for food without a word to us.

We stand up and move in line behind him.

"Where were you?" Jungwon asks him. He ignores the question.

"You told Sunghoon he should've learned his lesson, but you should too," Jay tells him. "You know it's not smart to divide ourselves at times like these."

"I'm sorry alright!" Sunoo finally faces us. "I didn't mean for that to happen. I don't know why it did!"

"You can talk to us," Jake tells him.

Sunoo turns away again, reaching for his food. The cook serves him oats and eggs. Then she hands him a plastic cup with the daily vitamins. Sunoo takes it and walks away to sit at our table reluctantly. I follow him with my eyes and see him pour two pills into his hands.

"There's something for you too," the cook tells us and each of us take a plastic cup too. I notice that beside the vitamins is a new white pill.

"The Mistress told me you were having a headache. The pill will help with that." She tells me before turning to the others. "You can take it as well and there won't be secondary effects."

"Why do we have to take it?" Jay asks her.

"Mistress's orders."

We look at each other. I can almost hear the words hanging in the air in the ensuing silence: something isn't right. But the cook doesn't give away anything and we go back to our table.

After taking the new pill I feel the headache receding slightly and it calms me. There's nothing to worry about. Nothing to give us away. Just a normal pill for a normal headache.

"You don't think they know anything do you?" Jake asks us in a low voice, so as not to be overheard.

"They couldn't have seen anything," Jungwon tells him. "Jay-hyung was covering Sunoo-hyung."

Sunoo purses his lips but doesn't say anything. He isn't looking at any of us.

"They're just looking after us," I add.

We go back to our food after reassuring ourselves. I force the oats down my throat and go through the egg slowly. Somehow, the food here never satisfies me. It isn't bad, but it feels tasteless in my mouth. Like it isn't enough.

I watch as Sunghoon moves his food around his plate and takes small bites. Niki is watching him too. What he said yesterday changes everything. Because the truth is, I don't feel completely healed either.

After a while, though, all our plates are empty.

"Sunghoon-ssi!"

We all wince at the sound. The head nurse is calling him from the hall. For his duties, I remind myself.

"Well, I'll see you later," he tells us as he stands to go with her. And just like that, we're split again.