Beomgyu and Yeonjun have been friends since childhood. Beomgyu, the son of a CEO of a luxury car company. Yeonjun, an orphan on a scholarship for their arts school. The feelings have always been there, but neither brave enough to voice them.
When Be...
The male nurse's voice causes Beomgyu to stop in his tracks. But it's the scene before him that makes him freeze completely. A teenage girl is running straight toward him in the hall. Her teeth are bared, and her clothes are torn along the hem. The nurse is chasing after her, shouting.
"Stop it! Cara!"
Beomgyu knows he should move. He's played soccer before. He knows when to shift to get out of the way from being tackled. But something in his mind can't tear apart the image from his frozen instincts.
Yeonjun is in the bathroom, and Beomgyu has always been weaker alone.
It's this sad thought that runs through his head as the girl draws near. The last thing Beomgyu sees is her matted hair, the wildness in her eyes. He must've had the same look when he pounded against the wall in the middle of the night.
He goes flying as the girl spearheads him.
Beomgyu doesn't make a sound as the air leaves him, as he tumbles straight into the ground. Although after the impact is complete, he lets out a groan. Cara stands up, seemingly unharmed, and continues to run toward the far end of the hall. Her panting is like a deadly metronome.
"Are you okay, Beomgyu?" A female nurse is squatting down beside him the next thing he knows. But time is a bit hazy, he doesn't know if ten second or five minutes have passed.
"Let's get you back to your room," she says. She helps him up, and he places an arm around her shoulder. She's petite, but surprisingly strong. She opens the door to 553, holding it open with her foot and shuffling in.
"What happened?" Yeonjun asks when he returns, immediately drawing to Beomgyu's side.
"An accident," the nurse explains. "One of the patients was running. He got hit."
Yeonjun's eyes widen, then narrow in anger. His voice is dangerously low. "He got hurt? Because you couldn't keep an eye on someone?"
"Yeonjun," Beomgyu says, in a warning tone.
"This is supposed to be a safe place," Yeonjun continues. "It could've been more than just a hit."
"We apologize," the nurse explains, letting Beomgyu go as he's strong enough to stand on his own. "But things like this happen in the ward."
"Well they shouldn't!" Yeonjun's scowl is enough to burn an imprint onto the earth.
"Yeonjun," Beomgyu repeats, and now he's actually angry. The older boy is making this into such a big deal.
Yeonjun finally receives the signal. "Okay. I'm sorry for getting angry." He's speaking as much to Beomgyu as to the nurse.
"Dinner is in a half hour," the nurse says, politely bowing out.
Beomgyu turns to Yeonjun immediately after the door closes. He sees the hole in the wall he made in that reckless night, hastily covered over with some plaster. "What are you doing? Why are you so angry?"
Yeonjun shakes his head, crossing then uncrossing his arms. "They're supposed to be the protectors here. They let you get hurt."
"It wasn't anyone's fault," Beomgyu says. He moves further into the room, widening their distance.
"It was!" Yeonjun's voice heightens, all the stress of living here coming to a peak. "If they took more precaution, you wouldn't have fallen."
"It's fine," Beomgyu says.
"It's not," Yeonjun argues.
Beomgyu shakes his head, sitting down on the edge of the far bed. "Yeonjun, maybe you should leave."
"What?" The older boy looks stunned, like he took a punch to the gut. "I'm here. I'm doing this for you."
"It's not good," Beomgyu says. "I mean, I love being with you, and I'm so thankful that you're helping me through this. But you need to go. This ward isn't a good place for you."
"Beomgyu...." Yeonjun is pained, holding back a torrent of emotion.
"Yeonjun, this whole month has been made so much lighter since you've been here. But I think it's time for you to go."
Yeonjun opens his mouth, as if to argue. But he closes it again. When he finally speaks, his words are measured. "Are you sure that's what you want?"
Beomgyu doesn't hesitate. He wants the best for his best friend, and that means Yeonjun needs to return to real life while he gets better. He's felt guilty for keeping Yeonjun here, and he needs to learn how to heal alone. Without being so dependent on the one named healing himself.
"That's what I want," Beomgyu says.
Yeonjun deflates, but he doesn't cry. And he doesn't push it further. "Okay, I will go. But know I'll be the first one waiting when you walk out that door."
"I know you will, Yeonjun." Beomgyu smiles, and he puts all his effort into it, even as the hopelessness of this month has been burning through him like a fire each night.
"I love you," Yeonjun says.
Beomgyu wasn't expecting those words, so sudden yet so filled with sincerity. He takes it in, letting his ears buzz with each syllable. Then, it's his turn. He knows it to be true, and he's been wanting to say it for half of his life. "I love you too, Yeonjun."
Yeonjun smiles, and Beomgyu thinks that it might just be his panacea.
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Is TXT your panacea? I am so thankful to be a MOA. This community is so special to me and I hope to be a part of it for a long time.
