Twice One Shots

35. The Strongest Maknae (2)

   In a matter minutes, Jihyo's world was flipped upside down. The second she saw Tzuyu motionless on the couch after the show, she knew something was wrong. The ambulance ride to ASAN Medical Center only took 10 minutes since it was late and they were in an emergency vehicle, but it felt like hours had passed. Her eyes darted from the monitor that was steadily beeping to Tzuyu's pale figure. She had an IV and an oxygen mask covering her mouth and nose. Jihyo stared down at her shoes like they held every answer in the world. She was clasping her hands together so hard her knuckles were turning white, unaware of the comforting hand on her shoulder from one of the medics riding to the hospital.

   As soon as they arrived at the ER, Jihyo's ears were flooded as medical jargon was being tossed around. She had heard people talking like this in dramas and had been to hospitals enough times to know that when people were speaking this quickly and several people were moving this fast, it was never a good sign. She rushed along the gurney that was carrying Tzuyu through the medical center's halls and only stopped when they took her to a restricted room. She stood there, only one thought going through her head. It's all my fault.

   It wasn't long before the other members rushed into the emergency room, frantically looking around for a familiar face. Quickly, they spotted one of the managers and a completely distraught Jihyo slumped over in the chair with her head in her hands. They shuffled over to take their place beside their leader, a few standing since there weren't enough chairs. Dahyun, being the best one to deal with emotions like this besides Jihyo, took a seat by her and cautiously put a hand on her back, rubbing small circles to try to calm the girl down. This worked for a second until Jihyo looked up at Dahyun who tried to give her a comforting smile. 

   Jihyo looked around at all the other girls and the second she saw their tired and concerned faces, she broke down. Sobs wracked her body as Dahyun wrapped her in a hug, shaking the other girl from how hard she was crying. The rest of the girls instantly knew that she was blaming herself for the incident.

   For a while, they sat there and Jihyo cried until she was sure she wouldn't be able to cry for the next few weeks. She eventually pulled herself away from the younger member, thanking her with swollen and red eyes. She sniffled and leaned back in her chair, looking up at the bright lights in the emergency waiting room. Her head was almost empty now, still only thinking about Tzuyu. She kept replaying the events of the night in her head to see if there would have been any way she could have stopped this from happening. The other girls in the meantime were trying to distract themselves.

   Nayeon and Jeongyeon were arguing over whose pets were cuter. Chaeyoung and Mina were quietly talking about the new lamp that Chaeyoung had bought for the apartment that she loved but Mina didn't. Momo and Sana were speaking to each other about some weird video that Momo had sent before the concert and Dahyun was quietly sitting still beside Jihyo, keeping an eye on the poor girl.

   Almost two hours went by and everyone was starting to get tired and impatient. The manager had fallen asleep in his chair and the girls were starting to get antsy. Jihyo though had barely moved from her position. In the past half hour she had accepted a cup of water from Jeongyeon and that was it. Every time a set of doors opened, she'd whip her head up, but each time a doctor was going to talk to another person who was waiting. Jihyo was about to fall asleep, exhausted from being awake and crying for so long until she heard footsteps closer to her and the other girls.

   "I'm Dr. Lee and I wish we were meeting under different circumstances." Jihyo quickly adjusted herself, all her focus now on the man in the white coat and scrubs in front of her. She didn't like the uneasy look on his face but tried not to dwell on it. "Did Tzuyu show any signs of discomfort today or did she say anything about feeling sharp pains or nausea?"