COME ALIVE

three

[ WARNING - MENTIONS OF DEATH AND BLOOD ]

He was dizzy, but the boy could make out some voices. He could make out a woman's scream, then silence. There were sounds coming and going as if the Jungguk had fainted every second. Then he could hear the screams of several people as if he were surrounded by a whole crowd.      After a few seconds, the boy fainted again, the sounds around him fading.

After a while, a time that seemed for Jungguk to be only a second, the noises were no longer there, and he was all in the black field of his mind. It was quiet, and the only thing he could tell was the bitter taste of his blood. He felt like his lip was broken, and blood was entering his mouth. There was no pain, and the boy had the impression that his legs and hands were cold, even frozen. He was tired, so he decided not to fight the sensation, thereby he let himself be dragged by the darkness, saying that he was too tired of all the noises around him.

The third time he woke up, the only thing he could feel was his legs, which were very numb and not so cold as before. Every time he tried to move them, that numbness didn't go away. After a few seconds, his hearing returned, now he could hear a beep and a voice in the background. Jungguk did not understand what that person meant, but he knew for sure that it was a male voice. He tried to listen more carefully, only to get tired and faint again in a void of dreams.

"Why? Why can you be like him? He's perfect, he's smart, what are you, you useless brat?"

"Dad..."

He woke up a few more times, but all he could see was black. He suspected that he was dead, and that place is actually the afterlife, or at least the place where he will spend all his eternity.

"Why? I want to be able to make my own decisions."

"Jeon Jungguk, your decisions don't matter."

This was death? the boy had wondered. Peace. That's what Jungguk wanted, and if death brings him peace, then he was happy. He hoped his parents will learn from their mistakes... Soobin, his dear friend, Jungguk hoped he would find happiness and he will continue his life with a smile on his face. His dream was over, and a new chapter was about to begin. Maybe somewhere in the world beyond or maybe he will reincarnate you in a better life, with more patience and understanding parents, who will support his dreams.

"Follow your dreams, even if it kills you."

"Everything that kills me makes me feel alive"

The book that Soobin recommended was on Jungguk mind even then. The boy remembered some parts of her, how Jungkook's parents were always with him, even after the countless accidents he had. They waited 10 years, hoping that their son would come back to life, but to no avail.

That's what Jungguk wanted. That's what the boy needed, an anchor that he could cling to in difficult situations. His whole childhood was about how he should be the smartest, the most mature, and the best of all. His passion was different, however, he wanted to skate on the ice for hours, expressing his emotions with the help of his skates and his arm movements. He loved music, he loved to watch people jump and express themselves with the help of skates and a large piece of ice.

"Jungguk..."

"Junggu-..."

"Jungku-..."

"Jungkook..!"

Pain entered the boy's head, and now he could feel it all. The cold ice beneath him, the skates squeezing his legs, the blood on his lips, the bones that hurt terribly, and the worst thing the boy felt was infernal dizziness that didn't last long until he fainted again. The next time he recovered his consciousness from that horrible dizziness he could hear voices talking to him.