Sleeping Beauty Syndrome

21

I don't know how long I lay with my face on Wooyoung's chest and cried, but at some point I was shaken by a violent coughing fit and shortly afterwards the door opened and Yeosang came in, probably to see what was wrong. He sat down with us and touched my forehead. Then he quickly jumped up and ran out, I hadn't even had a chance to say anything. It wasn't long before he came back with Seonghwa, who held the thermometer to my ear and looked expectantly at the display.

"37,6... Only just above," he said happily to Yeosang and I felt somehow left out.

"So you know, I'm right here, you can talk to me too." I grumbled and Seonghwa looked at me apologetically.

"I'm sorry, Noona. You were barely responsive last night. But your fever has gone down and you look quite cold..." he remarked and I nodded weakly.

"Yeah, I don't think I have a fatal fever, but we have another problem... Wooyoung won't wake up." I said quietly and their faces immediately became concerned. Yeosang grabbed him by the shoulder and shook him, but like me before, he didn't react. Before I was shaken by another coughing fit, I held out my cell phone to Seonghwa. He understood what I wanted him to do and called Dr. Park, who promised to come immediately.

While we waited, I cuddled up to Wooyoung, unwilling to move away from him, I decided to pretend he was just sleeping. Seonghwa stayed with us, stroking my hair reassuringly while we waited. It wasn't very long before the door opened again and a tired-looking Dr. Park entered, her doctor's bag firmly in her hand. With a mumbled "Hello." she got straight to work and tended to Wooyoung first until everything was in place. Then she turned her attention to me. She heard my lungs, looked down my throat, nose and ears, took my temperature and then smiled.

"Just a little viral infection. The good news is, fevers never come on during colds. There hasn't been a single recorded case of someone having both at the same time. So you should be pretty safe from it for the next week." she informed me with a smile. At least that was a relief... but what good would it do me without Wooyoung?

"Is there any news about the ones in the coma?" Seonghwa asked, looking worriedly at my sleeping friend.

"No, still nothing, they just won't wake up, but no one died either, so it's not life-threatening. They're researching at full speed, but they don't want to make any more mistakes, like with the vaccine. But we had no other choice, coma or death... In a coma, at least you still have a chance. Without the vaccine, very few people would still be alive..." she told us and I became more and more desperate. When would they finally be able to wake my friends up again?

"So there's nothing we can do? Just wait and see?" Yeosang asked in a hopeless voice and Dr. Park just nodded sadly.

"Take care of them, talk to them, it's only a light coma, they will surely hear you. Otherwise, I don't know what else you can do. We're all stumped at the moment and no one can explain why or how it happened in the first place. I'll come back in a few days, if you don't have to get me before then," she said before saying goodbye and leaving. Yeosang had also gone back to bed, but Seonghwa stayed. He lay down next to me so that I was in the middle, between him and Wooyoung, and took me in his arms.

"Since I'm sure you want to stay in the room with him, I'll stay here for now to look after you. I won't let you cry alone now..." he said softly and I was grateful for his support.

"Do you know what keeps going through my mind right now? I haven't even replied to his I love you.... I fell asleep before I could say it back and now it's too late..." I whispered through my tears.

"If what Dr. Park said is true, then he hears you and now he knows..."