MICHAENG : THE STORY UNFOLDS WITH YOU

CHAPTER 33- SMALL BEAN

-FLASHBACK-

Mina's lips pull into a half-formed, heartless smile. For a moment, her head starts to spin, her skin loses all color, becoming chalk-white, her sight blurring. She blinks several times, hoping to clear her view.

Panic engulfs Chaeyoung as he notices Mina's eyes barely open. He holds her cheeks, "Mina-yaa ?? Heyy..look at me," he gently slaps her face to keep her conscious as she starts to sway. "Yaa...Mina-yaa..please..please stay with me," his voice filled with shrill worry, his heart racing.

Chaeyoung's voice, at first loudly banging on her senses, slowly feels like he's speaking underwater, growing more distant. For a split second, her body doesn't feel like her own, her blurry vision turning into pitch black as she finally collapses in Chaeyoung's arms.

After a while, Mina's heavy eyelids slowly flutter open, and she realizes she's lying in her bed, neatly tucked under the blanket. The voices around her pierce through the haze, initially sounding like gibberish but gradually becoming clear. One of the voices sounded familiar, belonging to someone she knows well. She blinks away the dizziness and gulps down the bitterness in her mouth before softly uttering, "Chaeng..."

Chaeyoung, engrossed in conversation with another unfamiliar man, notices Mina's return to consciousness. "Hey, Mina, you awake??," he says, immediately sitting beside her on the bed and gently brushing away a few strands of hair from her face.

"What happened?" She mumbles weakly as she gathers some energy to her weakened body, trying to sit up straight.

Chaeyoung assists Mina, helping her to sit against the headboard. For a moment, he gazes at her with a mixture of affection and gratitude.

Mina senses Chaeyoung didn't take his eyes off her, feeling a bit curious. "Why, Chaeng? Is something wrong? Is there something on my face? Did I drool?" She immediately brushes her face with the back of her hand.

Chaeyoung giggles, gently removing Mina's hand from her face. "No, there's nothing wrong with your face, babe. You're still as beautiful as always," he reassures her, then turns his gaze to the man standing before them.

"Who is he?" Mina whispers to Chaeyoung, realizing she hasn't met the man before.

"Mina-yaa, this is Doctor Joshua, and umm actually he has something to tell you," Chaeyoung explains, his dimples deepening as he smiles gently at Mina.

"Doctor? Chaeng, you didn't have to bring a doctor just to check my reddened wrist and bruises on my neck, though," Mina says, her lips twitching with sadness flashing back to what happened to them just now, but she didn't want to bring it up anymore. Her eyes hinting for Chaeyoung to speak further.

Chaeyoung's smile fades slightly. "I know, but there's something else Doctor Joshua wants to tell you," he reassures Mina, gesturing for the doctor to proceed.

"Mina-ssi, how have you been?" The doctor asks, smiling at her, trying his best to convey something indirectly.

Mina furrows her brows. "Um... good?" she replies hesitantly. She then slowly brings Chaeyoung's hand to her temple, and Chaeyoung spontaneously massages her temple, obeying her silent request.

"Great! But I must ask just for confirmation about your current condition. Mina-ssi, have you ever felt any signs of dizziness, nausea, fatigue, or the urge to vomit?" He inquires, patiently waiting for her answer.

Mina is bewildered. "I don't think I've experienced any of that, except I just fainted just now," she replies casually, sensing there's more to the doctor's and Chaeyoung's concerns.

The doctor simply nods. "It's quite unusual that she didn't feel that," he confides in Chaeyoung.

Chaeyoung, also puzzled, furrows his brow and stops massaging her. "Are you sure, babe? You didn't feel any of that?" he asks Mina again, his hand uncontrollably trailing across her face.