Résonance: a LingOrm's Story

Chapter 14: The Rain

Orm stumbled into her dorm room, her chest tight, and tears already blurring her vision. The moment the door closed behind her, the sobs she had been holding back all evening finally broke free. She collapsed onto her bed, burying her face in her hands as the weight of everything hit her all at once.

Prigkhing, who had been lounging on the other side of the room, jumped up in alarm at the sight of her friend sobbing uncontrollably. "Orm! What happened? What's going on?" she asked, rushing to her side, trying to pull Orm into a comforting hug.

Orm didn't respond right away, her shoulders shaking with each sob. Prig rubbed her back, murmuring softly, trying to calm her. "It's okay, Orm. Whatever it is, we'll figure it out."

After a few moments, Orm finally managed to choke out, "P'Ling... she... she won't talk to me."

Prig blinked, confused. "Wait, what? I thought everything was okay between you two."

Orm wiped at her tears with the sleeve of her shirt, sniffling. "It was! But then... ever since she came back from Hong Kong, she hasn't replied to my messages. Not even one. I don't understand what I did wrong."

Prig furrowed her brow, trying to piece together what Orm was saying. "The last time you talked was when she was still in Hong Kong?"

Orm nodded, her voice shaky. "Yeah. Everything was fine then, but now it's like... like she's avoiding me."

Prig thought for a moment, her mind flashing back to the night she had seen P'Ling's car speeding away from the dorms. "Wait, Orm... do you remember the night we were hanging out with Kim? After we got back to the dorm, I saw P'Ling's car parked outside. I didn't think much of it at the time, but she drove off really fast."

Orm's eyes widened, her heart skipping a beat. "You... you saw her?" she whispered, her voice trembling.

Prig nodded, still trying to connect the dots. "Yeah, I didn't realize she was there until after. But now that I think about it... maybe she saw something. You were with Kim, right?"

Orm's face paled as Prig's words sank in. "Oh no... no, no, no..." She shook her head, her hands trembling as fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. "She must've thought... Oh god, she must've thought something was going on between me and Kim!"

Prig's eyes widened, realization dawning on her. "You think that's why she's been avoiding you?"

Orm nodded frantically, her sobs returning with even more force. "I didn't even see it coming. Kim... he just... he confessed out of nowhere, and I didn't know what to do. I swear, nothing happened! But P'Ling must've seen us, and now she thinks—"

Prig hugged her tightly, her own heart aching for her friend. "Hey, hey, it's okay. We'll figure this out. But you need to talk to her, Orm. She's probably feeling just as confused as you are."

Orm nodded, but the pit in her stomach only grew deeper. She had to fix this. She had to make P'Ling understand that it had all been a misunderstanding. But the thought of reaching out, of facing the hurt and confusion in Ling's eyes, terrified her.

Over the next few days, Orm tried reaching out to Ling again. She sent messages, tried calling, but there was no response. With each unanswered attempt, the gnawing anxiety in her chest grew worse. What if Ling never wanted to see her again?

Little did Orm know, Ling wasn't ignoring her on purpose. Ling's condition had taken a turn for the worse, her fever spiking dangerously high. She had barely managed to call a taxi to take her to the hospital, and by the time she arrived, she was so weak she could barely speak. The last thing she did before collapsing was hand the nurse her phone with Ying's number pulled up.

Ying arrived at the hospital in a hurry, her heart racing when she saw Ling unconscious in the bed. She stayed by her side all night, refusing to leave, her worry etched deeply into her face. Ling had pushed herself too hard, both emotionally and physically, and now she was paying the price for it.

The next morning, as the sun began to rise, Ying sent Orm a message, letting her know what had happened.

Orm read the message with wide, panicked eyes. She didn't waste a second, throwing on her shoes and rushing out the door. She needed to see P'Ling, to make sure she was okay.

By the time Orm arrived at the hospital, her heart was pounding in her chest. She raced through the halls, barely able to focus on anything but the overwhelming fear that something had happened to Ling. When she reached the room number Ying had given her, she stopped short just outside the door.

Inside, she could see a man sitting beside Ling's bed, gently adjusting the blanket around her. He looked familiar, though Orm couldn't quite place where she had seen him before.

The man, Hon, was Ying's best friend, someone Ling had known for years through the modeling agency. He was a comforting presence, watching over Ling while Ying had to step out for work. As he turned to leave, he noticed Orm standing frozen in the doorway.

"You must be Orm," Hon said softly, offering a small, understanding smile. "I'm Hon. Ying asked me to stay with Ling until you got here."

Orm's throat tightened as she stepped into the room, her eyes immediately falling on Ling's sleeping form. She looked so pale, so fragile, and Orm's heart ached with guilt. This was her fault, wasn't it? If she had just explained things to Ling earlier, if she hadn't let the situation with Kim spiral out of control...

Hon stood up, sensing Orm's distress. "She's going to be okay," he reassured her. "She just needs some rest."

Orm nodded, though the knot of guilt in her chest didn't loosen. She approached the bed slowly, her hands trembling as she reached out to brush a strand of hair from Ling's forehead.

"I'm so sorry, P'Ling," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Please forgive me."

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Notes:
At first, I want to put Hon as a conflict, but I lost my draft... yeah...