Hard to love : A haesoo love story

Chapter 25: In sickness and in health

Hey everyone,

So, this was not the chapter I thought I would be publishing this week, but these thoughts just kept swirling around in my head. And, as always, it ended up being longer than I expected.

A big thanks to all of you for your feedback last week and your ongoing support. Oh, and a special shout-out to the people who recommended my book on Twitter – you seriously made my day!

I hope you all enjoy reading it. 

Stay happy and healthy!!!

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"KIM JISOO, Open the fucking door" Haein yelled, frustration in his voice. It was so unlike him to shout, especially at Jisoo. He couldn't wrap his head around how everything had shifted in under fifteen minutes. That morning, he'd woken up early, hit the gym, showered, and had gotten dressed while waiting for Jisoo to wake up. On her days off, she usually slept in a bit longer. Besides, she'd had terrible headaches for the past few days, most likely from the heat and exhaustion of performing two nights in a row in Thailand's humid summer.

Trying to help her out last night, Haein gave her a gentle scalp massage and applied an ice helmet to help relieve some of the pain. It seemed to help her enough to fall asleep at least.When Jisoo finally woke up, she looked pale. As Haein kissed her forehead, he could feel that she wwashot and not in the usual Jisoo way. She was most likely running a fever.

"How are you feeling?" He asked softly while lovingly stroking her cheeks.

"I'm okay," she replied without much conviction.

"How's your headache?" he questioned further.

"It's still there! Could you give me my Manuka honey lozenges please?" she requested weakly.

Haein quickly grabbed the Manuka honey lozenges from the bedside table and handed them to her with a worried look. He knew the lozenges usually helped soothe her throat, but he was concerned about her overall health and wellbeing. As she slowly sucked on a lozenge, Haein couldn't help but suggest a doctor visit to get a thorough check-up. Jisoo, being her usual stubborn self, refused and insisted that she just needed some rest and whatever this was would eventually go away on its own.

So that's exactly what she did. She grabbed a few of her favorite jellies from her bedside table, chased them with some headache medication and water and tried to get some more sleep. In the meantime, he had prepared some breakfast for himself and some Juk for Jisoo. 

A little after 1 pm, he brought in a homemade strawberry smoothie packed with immune-boosting supplements hoping it would help her, with some medicine his mom had recommended. He'd also grabbed a couple of Covid tests at his mother's insistence. When he found her already awake but still looking rough and sucking on what seemed like another lozenge, he felt even more concerned.

"Here, drink this and take these!" he gently urged, handing her the smoothie and medicine.

"Thanks," she whispered in a raspy voice, giving him a feeble grin. Haein couldn't ignore the sinking feeling that something was seriously off – after all, Jisoo didn't even put up a fight.

Jisoo carefully grabbed the smoothie and the medicine from Haein, taking a sip of the cold, soothing drink. Her throat felt a little better, but she still didn't have the energy to do much. Haein sat next to her on the bed, his face filled with concern as he saw how difficult it was for her to swallow even the tiniest sips. "Jisooya, please let me call a doctor. I don't like seeing you like this." But Jisoo stubbornly shook her head, insisting that all she needed was more rest.