Freefall // Hyunlix

A Friendly Stranger

1:50pm rolled around and the duo had just finished the latest episode of their favourite drama series. As if fate was perfectly timed, a strange figure walked into the room.

"Hi! I'm Doctor Choi, I'm going to be looking after you while you are here." The doctor said politely. "You are Mr Hwang? Am I correct?" The doctor gazed at the two boys cuddled on the bed, he thought they looked rather cute.

"Please, call me Hyunjin." Hyunjin said, staring at the Dr. Choi with a death glare.

Dr Choi noticed the boy's hostile nature immediately and looked to resolve any tension between the pair. "Hyunjin, I'm not here to hurt you. I want you to be able to leave here feeling better, isn't that my job as a doctor?"

Hyunjin nodded. He wasn't sure what it was about Dr Choi that he liked, but he felt he could trust him somewhat. "Hyunjin, are you aware of the procedure you are going to have shortly?" Dr Choi said, studying the boy. Hyunjin tensed, his whole body became rigid and his eyes widened. Felix, who was cuddling Hyunjin, noticed this too and began to worry. He started trying to relax the boy by drawing small shapes on his leg, squeezing his hand as he held him in his arms. Hyunjin couldn't bring himself to answer Dr Choi's question, instead his eyes fell to the floor, fixating on a rather interesting looking tile.

"Do you want to talk about how you feel Hyunjin? What you're afraid of? Any questions you might have about this procedure? It might help you feel a little more comfortable."

Hyunjin felt stuck. He had so many questions about what was going to happen, but acknowledging that he would lose control of his body was out of the question. He had made so much progress and now... it would be ruined with the blink of an eye. Tears dripped down the boy's face as he started pointedly at the floor, even the tile became warped and blurry, a reminder of how sick everyone thought he was. The silence was broken by Felix, asking the question Hyunjin was too afraid to ask.

"Will it hurt?"

Dr Choi contemplated his answer carefully. Although 'hurt' wasn't the right word for it, it would be an extremely uncomfortable experience. He knew that realistically Hyunjin wouldn't get the tube in first try and that each new attempt would cause another layer of discomfort.

"To be completely transparent with you, it's hard to say. " Dr Choi said, deciding the truth was the best answer for Hyunjin. "It will be extremely uncomfortable and you really won't like it. You'll have to be as brave as you can Hyunjin and it might take more than one attempt to get it in properly. The upside is that it is a quick procedure and it will be over before you know it."

Hyunjin appreciated the honesty. Doctors always lied, they always sugar coated everything, making things out to be so much smaller than the reality. But Dr Choi was different. Maybe Hyunjin could work with him. "Thank you for telling me the truth. '' He said distantly. Hyunjin couldn't really focus on anything, his mind was too foggy with thoughts- mostly negative ones.

"Just so you are aware Hyunjin, I will be sitting in on your appointment. As your primary doctor, I want to make sure everything is done correctly and that your boundaries are not crossed. If you need anything, don't be afraid to ask alright?" Dr Choi said, smiling at the raven haired boy. He could see Hyunjin's hostility breaking down, maybe with some more work he would be able to convince the boy to let him see past his walls. Maybe he could help save the boy. Hyunjin nodded gratefully as he watched Dr Choi take a seat in the corner of the room. Mere moments later, the specialist entered with a nurse pushing a table of scary looking equipment.

Hyunjin started to panic. Fear flooded through him, his body began to shake, his breathing became fast, his chest tightening every second. Even his heart couldn't seem to keep up, the beeping on the monitor skyrocketed. He was having a panic attack.