Paperclips - YJH

Twenty-Four

Jeonghan fell to the floor with a loud thud and laid limb on the ground for a few seconds as I stood there processing what I just witnessed. Panic and concern washed over me as I quickly ran towards him, knelt down beside him, and lightly tapped his cheeks to wake him up. I frantically got up and ran to the living room to get my phone out of my bag to call for help, but stopped as I heard Jeonghan's faint voice calling from the floor. I rushed back to him, held his hand, and used my other hand to support his back as I helped him up.

"Are you okay?!" I placed my hand on his shoulder and gently pulled him closer to me to check for any wounds or signs of distress.

He observed as I examined him, a faint smile gradually appearing on his face. "I was just dizzy for a second." he reassured me. I helped him sit down on the couch and grabbed a glass of water for him to drink. I gave him the glass of water and watched as he drank it slowly.

"Are you sure you're okay? What if it's something serious? What if—" He cut me off as he placed the glass on the table and sighed as he laid back comfortably on the couch, closing his eyes before opening them again and looking at me.

"I'm fine, really. I just need to get some rest." He stated it with a small shrug that pissed me off. How could he not care at all?

"Oh? So you get this often?" I asked, trying to hide my frustration. He gave a small nod, his eyes still closed. "Yeah, it happens sometimes. Apparently, I'm just sleep deprived." I couldn't help but feel a mix of concern and annoyance at his nonchalant attitude towards his health.

"Just sleep deprived?" I scoffed in disbelief. "That's not that healthy, you know." I shook my head, feeling like a mother to a kid who doesn't behave.

He slowly opened his eyes, and he gave me a smirk. "Are you perhaps worried?"

I rolled my eyes as I turned around and headed to the kitchen to prepare some soup for him. "I just don't want you passing out on me," I replied, not looking back, trying to hide my concern with a playful tone.

As I was about to take a pot out of the cabinets to prepare some hot soup for both of us, my phone rang from the living room, interrupting my thoughts. I quickly glanced back at him, making sure he was okay before going to answer the call. I picked up my phone and looked at the caller ID, seeing the name 'Mr. Lee' flash over the screen. My face turned to a frown as I wondered why Mr. Lee was calling me at this hour. Hesitantly, I picked up the call and placed it against my ear as I continued filling the pot with water for the soup.

"Mr. Lee?" I answered the call, trying to sound composed despite my growing unease. "What's the matter?"

"Oh, you're home, right?" He asked with a relieved tone. Confused, I said yes and asked him what this was about. "I just found out from Jia that you were at Hoshi's birthday party, and I was worried about you reaching back home safe," He explained, relief evident in his voice. "...I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Oh... Well, thank you." I replied, even though I was slightly creeped out, but I still managed to sound polite and ended the call. It was unsettling to think that someone was keeping tabs on me without my knowledge.

"Why is Mr. Lee calling you at 3:30 in the morning?" Jeonghan chimed in from behind, scaring me in the process. He was looking at me with a raised eyebrow as he rested against the kitchen counter.

"He was worried, I guess?" I mumbled, focusing on cutting the vegetables for the soup, as I failed to notice Jeonghan poking the inside of his cheek with his tongue from beside me.

"Does he like you or something?" Jeonghan asked, making me look at him in amusement, as if he just stated something absurd.

"Don't jump to conclusions, buddy." I replied, shaking my head. Jeonghan shook his head as he shrugged, "Do you like him?" He asked again with an expression that didn't look happy.