past, present, and future | hwang hyunjin

f o u r

c h a p t e r   f o u r

"Areum?"

I blinked my eyes open, trying to comprehend my surroundings. "Where am I?" I wondered out loud. I received no response, but I spotted hospital beds and many nurses around me. I felt a soft hospital blanket draped on top of myself as well. Looking up, I noticed a boy wearing a mask with alarmingly beautiful eyes peering down at me. "You're handsome." I murmured. That's when I finally snapped out of it.

I sat straight up, bewildered at what I had just said. My own mouth had betrayed me. "It's you," Was the first I was able to say in my non-dizzy state. However, when I looked next to me, Hyunjin wasn't there anymore. Instead, he was crouched down, holding his stomach trying/not-so-trying to keep in his laughter.

"I didn't mean it!" I yelled at him, cheeks immediately flushing red. "I was in a half-passed-out state!"

"Sure..." Hyunjin smirked at me. "I totally believe you."

"Why am I here anyway?" I asked him.

He scratched the back of his neck. "Well... I grabbed your hand, and then you just passed out on the spot. I first took you to JYP's first aid room, but no one there knew how to deal with fainting, so I brought you to a hospital and here we are."

A wave of realization hit me as my eyes opened wide. "My groupmates... recording! I need to get back to the building!"

"Nope, that's already been accounted for," Hyunjin told me. "I... uh, contacted the producers so that they would know where you were. They said you still have another song to finish recording, but you can do that tomorrow." His eyes softened. "Why did you pass out?"

I pushed him away. "Stop acting like you know everything." I crossed my arms. I couldn't let him get close to me. The last time I let any boys get on my vulnerable side, I...

Pain. It was the only thing I could feel in the moment. There was nothing else... no one cared... I was just someone to inflict pain on...

"Ow!" I snapped back into reality. I touched my cheek tenderly, then realized what had happened. "You hit me!" I turned to Hyunjin, who had one arm raised, and scowled at him.

His eyes betrayed his guilt. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "It's just, you kind of half-passed out again. Like, I don't know how to explain it but you did. I meant to hit you lightly, but I guess that didn't really happen..."

The ringing in my ears from my past was just fading. I shook my head. "No, it's alright. I... thank you."

Hyunjin looked bewildered. "Oh. Okay." He looked away awkwardly. "Well, when the doctors say you're ready to leave, I guess we can go. I called a group of staff to come pick us up."

"Thanks." I could sense the awkward tension. "Uh... you can leave if you want. I'll just stay here by myself."

"I called a group of staff to come pick us up, not me." He enunciated. He then looked behind him as nurse approached me. 

"Vitals... check, heartbeat... check..." The list went on and on. Finally, she released all the random tubes that were attached to me. "You're good to go. You must be her guardian, let's see..." she scanned a nearby sheet of paper. "Lee Baek-Hyeon?" She looked at Hyunjin, who had used a fake name, clearly oblivious of the fact that he was a celebrity. "Is he your boyfriend? He can take you home now."

I blushed, waving my hands quickly. "No, no, no... it's not like that-"

"Okay, sure!" Hyunjin replied without hesitation. "You can count on me."

The flush on my face deepened as Hyunjin swiftly took my hand and led me away from the bed where I was resting.

As I was leaving, the nurse reminded me, "Remember to not overexert yourself on the first few days!" I nodded in return.