On his clandestine trip to Seoul National, Mingyu couldn't help but think strangely of the way Chaeyeon had seemed when he'd talked to her earlier. He wasn't able to pinpoint it correctly, but it sounded a lot unlike Chaeyeon. She would have pried for Mingyu to tell her why he suddenly 'didn't feel like it', but she hadn't – almost as if she'd been expecting Mingyu to turn away and leave.
Or maybe Mingyu was just overthinking; probably a result of the baffling news he got to know. He felt the need to go see Wonwoo – conscious or not – earlier.
Mingyu realised he liked travelling on his own, without his incompetent chauffeur who could die of old age before he dropped Mingyu off at Pledis.
Of course, Mingyu had to cover most of his face up, because he didn't want people pouncing on him just for being Kim Minkyoung's son. He liked the peace, and the feeling of being treated ordinarily.
He arrived at the stop he'd been awaiting soon after, and he anticipatedly got off the bus, which had stopped right across the massive hospital. Without thinking further, Mingyu calmly crossed the road, and was inside the hospital in a couple of minutes.
He'd never been inside a hospital before, and the structure was quite unlike what Mingyu expected it to be. It was dead silent, with footsteps being the only source of any small noise. Everyone minded their own business, and Mingyu knew he should too. He approached the receptionist for the ward details, vaguely answering the few questions the man behind the desk threw his way. He seemed annoyed, Mingyu observed, but didn't understand why. There weren't many people he saw around that would talk to a receptionist.
"May I know your name, sir?" the man inquired, pure professionalism lacing his voice: the tight-lipped smile, and bland voice as though he'd been chewing on dry biscuits for his whole life.
"Kim Mingyu."
The receptionist raised a brow, but shooed off any growing suspicion. He probably realised there could be more than one 'Kim Mingyu's living in the country.
"Your reason to visit?"
"I wanted to see a... Friend..."
"Name of patient?"
"Jeon Wonwoo,"
Yeah, basically Mingyu did not enjoy the sharp conversation he had with the man. Thanking him with a nod of his head, Mingyu made his way to the elevator and pressed the button of the floor number he'd been told.
When he arrived in front of the ward, Mingyu hesitated for a minute, the gravity of the situation settling over him. He was still unsure of whether or not he should enter. Wonwoo might not want to see him – that was a huge possibility. Nonetheless, Mingyu stepped inside, convincing himself to just go on with what he felt like. "He might not even be awake, Mingyu,"
Unlike what he'd told himself, Wonwoo was very awake as Mingyu entered. The boy looked like he was about to turn to the bedside table for a drink of water, but the moment his eyes landed on Mingyu, he froze; and so did Mingyu.
"...Do you need me to call a nurse or someone?" Mingyu finally managed to mumble, after a few dumb minutes of ogling at Wonwoo clad in a tacky hospital gown.
"No, I'm fine,"
"Are you alright?"
A soft scoff escaped Wonwoo's mouth. He didn't reply, and the silence spoke enough.
"There's no one else to see you?"
Mingyu regretted asking that the moment he caught the look on Wonwoo's face. His expressions contorted into an annoyed, sour one, and immediately shifted to look defeated.
