Between the pages

Chapter 11 A little bit better

~His Pov~

It was the day after yesterday, and thankfully, I finally had a day off from the coffee shop. The morning was crisp, a faint chill in the air as I made my way to the hospital. The sun was trying to break through the clouds, though it hadn't succeeded yet. Everything about today felt... subdued, like the world was just waiting for something.

I had a bag of tarts in my hand—something I knew she'd like. She had a soft spot for sweets, especially the tarts from the shop. But I had also brought something else with me, something I wasn't sure she'd expect, but it felt right. I wanted to do something, anything, to make the time pass more easily for her.

Today, I just planned to spend the day with her. No distractions. I knew she didn't have anyone else to talk to, and as someone who could at least do that much for her, I wanted to make her time in this place a little more bearable.

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I arrived at the hospital and made my way to the front desk. After a few minutes of quick conversation with the nurse, I was heading toward her room. I could feel the weight of the air around me, thick with hospital smells I didn't particularly like. The place had a certain heaviness to it—always did. It was a reminder that this building could hold both the happiest and the most heartbreaking of stories, and right now, it was holding hers.

With a small sigh, I approached the door to her room. I knocked three times, the sound hollow in the quiet hallway. After a moment, I opened the door and stepped inside.

"Hey Y/N... how are you?" My voice was quiet, gentle, but she didn't reply immediately.

Her back was to me, and she seemed focused on something. I moved closer, noticing the earbuds in her ears and the notebook in front of her. She was writing, maybe even lost in her thoughts.

"Y/N?" I called again, my voice a little louder this time.

She didn't respond right away. As I stepped closer, I noticed how still she was, absorbed in whatever was on her mind. And then, just as I was about to speak again, I heard her voice.

"Hey, Giyu."

I flinched, startled by the sudden sound. I hadn't expected her to notice I was there. But she did—of course, she did.

I watched as she pulled the earbuds from her ears and set the notebook down. Her bright smile greeted me, as it always did, and for a moment, I wondered how she did it. How did she keep acting like everything was fine?

She giggled, snapping her fingers in front of my face. "You good? You're spacing out, mister waiter."

I blinked a few times, pulling myself from my thoughts. I placed the bag of tarts on the table, smiling nervously. "Yeah, was a bit distracted."

She raised an eyebrow, then noticed the second bag I was holding. A playful smirk tugged at her lips. "You staying over or something?"

"Actually, I am." I smiled and let the words hang there for a second, watching her reaction.

For a moment, the room was quiet. Then, she broke out into laughter, a sound I always found both comforting and a little bittersweet.

It was funny how quickly she could slip back into her usual teasing mood. It made everything feel normal again. But even as we bantered, I couldn't shake the unease in my chest. She smiled, she laughed, but the truth was—nothing was normal. She couldn't sleep anymore. She was fighting something she couldn't control, and yet somehow, somehow, she still had it in her to lift the mood, to make light of the heaviness hanging over us. She was always trying to keep things light, to pretend everything was fine even when it was falling apart around her.