The moment that those three words left Jungwon's mouth, an immediate wave of fear crashed over her. The heart monitor began to beep quickly, showing that her heart had sped up. The EEG also showed some brain activity. All of it was quick and clearly panicked. Which wasn't a good sign. Nefeli quickly yanked her hand out of Jungwon's, beginning to freak out. She panicked and sat up in her bed, falling out of it as she tried to get out. She only fell to her knees and was able to get back up. Seeing her act this way, was exactly what Jungwon was afraid of. He got out of his chair, holding up his hands.
"Nefeli, please. It's not what you think. I promise that we're not like the vampire who killed your mom and none of us are like your brother. I promise you," Jungwon said quickly, trying to calm her down.
But, it didn't work.
"You expect me to believe that? After all of the shit that's been happening? I lost my mother and a brother I once knew! And the brother I have now, is a deranged, murderous, psychopath who wants to kill me! He's already almost succeeded! And he's a vampire, too! You really expect me to believe none of you are the same way?" Nefeli cried, ripping the wires off of her chest and the disks off of her temples.
"You have to believe me. Don't you think that if all of us were really like your brother, that we'd have tried to kill you by now? That counts for something doesn't it?" Jungwon asked, frowning.
"No, it doesn't count for anything! That doesn't mean shit! You guys could just be luring me in and trying to make me think you're different! And when you succeed, you could hurt me! Or worse, kill me!" Nefeli yelled at him, while breathing heavily.
She was hyperventilating. She was also starting to feel light- headed. She couldn't believe what she'd just been told. Her brother was right about all of them; They really were vampires. She had hoped that they weren't. That they hadn't kept something like that from her. That was a very dangerous and serious secret. But, it all made sense now. Why she was missing some of her memories from that day Riki had saved her.
"You lied to me. All of you did. And one of you erased my memories of the day Riki came to save me. I knew that there was something off. I felt like something was missing from that day. And now I know why. One of you erased that part of my memory! How can I believe you're different from my brother?" Nefeli yelled again as she felt her chest ache.
All of the chaos must've reached outside the room, because the door opened quickly. When she looked up, she saw Sunghoon and Jake walk in. They looked at her and Jungwon, a bit confused as to what was going on. Their leader looked at them, frowning.
"I told her. I told her everything. She knows."
When he said that, it all made sense. It became clear as to why she was freaking out like this. The two boys looked at her.
"Nef, just calm down, okay? Don't get worked up. We promise we're not going hurt you. We'd never even think of it," Sunghoon said, putting up his hand.
She looked between the three of them, frowning. She breathed hard, her chest hurting. It went from a dull pain, to a very sharp and suffocating pain. She shook her head as tears filled her eyes. She was unable to believe that they'd never hurt her. They'd lied to her, they'd erased part of her memory. And they kept all of this a secret from her.
"You say that, but you already hurt me. You all lied to me! You kept this a secret! And you all erased my memory! And you stand there.... Expecting me... To believe... That you wouldn't hurt me? You have no right... To ask me... To believe you!" she yelled at them, struggling to breathe.
Nefeli looked away from them, putting a hand on her chest. She was finding it hard to breathe normally. It didn't help that her chest felt like it was being stabbed over and over.
"Nefeli, you need to calm down. You're getting worked up. Please, just trust us," Jungwon begged her, frowning and clearly upset.
"Get out... Get out of my room," she whimpered quietly, staring at the floor.
Hearing her say this, made all three of them feel like their hearts had been broken. But, they didn't blame her. They all knew it was their fault for lying to her and erasing her memories. They should've been honest with her from the beginning. From the day they met her, they should've told her. But, they weren't honest. All of them had been completely distrustful. And she had every right to be upset.
"Please, just let us explain. We promise we'd never hurt you," Sunghoon said softly.
"Get out," she whimpered again, unable to look at them.
"Orchid, please," Jake started, his familiar Australian accent filling her ears.
"Get out!" Nefeli screamed at all of them, startling them.
She released a struggled moan of pain, putting her hands on her face. She slowly slumped to the floor, leaning against the wall. She brought her legs up to her chest, sobbing loudly. Her sobs came out in struggled gasps. The three of them watched her, feeling their own form of pain. Not from her yelling at them. But, from lying to her and causing her to be this way. They all looked at each other, frowning in silence. But, they couldn't force her into this situation.
This was something she needed to choose on her own.
"Okay. We'll leave," Jungwon said softly, frowning.
"What? No, we can't leave her like this," Jake said, clearly opposed.
"Jake, we have to. It's what she wants. We need to respect her wishes," Sunghoon said softly.
Jake frowned and looked over at Nefeli, who was still on the floor, crying softly. She had her hands in her hair, still struggling to breathe. He really didn't want to leave her like this. He wanted to go over and hug her. Comfort her. Apologize for hurting her and telling her that she's okay. But, his friends were right.
She needed space. And they needed to respect her decision.
So, despite wanting to stay and hold her, Jake followed Sunghoon and Jungwon out of the room. Jungwon gently pulled the door closed behind him, sighing.
"Let's get back to Decelis."
