Sacrifice || ENHYPEN FF

𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 84

~2 chs in a day. yall should consider urself lucky~

-Start of Chapter 84-

Darkness.

That's all I see when my eyes snap open. No light, no surface to reach for—only an endless, suffocating void.

I try to breathe, but there's no air, just the icy water pressing against my chest, squeezing the life out of me. My lungs burn, desperate for oxygen, and I claw at the water, struggling to rise, but my body feels sluggish, weighed down by exhaustion and blood loss.

I choke, coughing violently, only to inhale more water. The cold rushes into my lungs, sharp and agonizing, making me convulse. 

Each attempt to cough it out drags more water in, my chest heaving as the pain sears through me.

I'm drowning.

My vision dims, and my thoughts blur into a haze of panic and despair.

Then, faintly, through the muffled silence, I hear it.

A splash.

The sound is distorted, filtered by the water, but it's unmistakable. Someone diving in.

A flicker of light cuts through the darkness, faint and fleeting, like a distant star breaking through a storm.

Before I can process it, strong arms wrap around me, pulling me upward. The cold water rushes past my face as I'm dragged to the surface, my head breaking free with a gasp that tears through my chest.

Air. 

Sweet, precious air floods my lungs as I cough violently, expelling water and blood.

I barely register the frantic motion around me as I'm hauled onto the shore. My body collapses against the ground, shivering uncontrollably.

"Breathe" a voice commands, steady but urgent.

I cough again, harder this time, water spilling from my lips as I choke and gasp for air. 

My throat burns, and every breath feels like fire, but I'm breathing.

A hand presses gently against my back, helping me sit up. My head lolls to the side, my gaze unfocused, but I catch a glimpse of him.

Sunghoon.

He kneels beside me, his face pale and strained, water dripping from his hair and clothes. His chest rises and falls rapidly, but his hands are steady as he tucks a wet strand of my hair behind my ear.

"You're okay" he says, his voice softer now, but there's a tightness in it, like he's barely holding himself together. "You're okay."

I want to say something—thank him, apologize, anything—but all I can do is cough again, the sound harsh and rattling.

I lean back against a tree, my body trembling uncontrollably. My soaked clothes cling to me, and the chill seeps into my bones, but Sunghoon stays close, his hand lingering by my face as if to reassure himself that I'm still here.

"You scared me" he mutters, his gaze fixed on mine. His usual calm is gone, replaced by something raw, something fragile.

I try to speak, to force out some words, but instead, a sharp, wet cough escapes me. A spray of water and something darker splatters onto the ground.

Blood.

Dark, thick blood pools between my trembling fingers as I clutch my chest.

Sunghoon's eyes widen, his expression shifting from relief to alarm. "What the—" His voice falters, his hands moving to steady me. "What's happening to you?"