Blaze

The Sounds of Apologies

A few countless sighs escaped Suho's lips as he hung his head back, gently knocking it into the wall. The corridor was empty and he would have started being paranoid of hearing noises, but there was no mood for it. After all that happened, he felt like he was partially responsible for Namjoo's fall, Donghae's irrational behavior, Tao and Kris' fights, Victoria's competitive game with Donghae, and Lay and Chorong, who've been putting forth all their effort but gotten emotionally exhausted in the process.

Suho, the medium, felt like he could have done something to lessen all the stress and tension within the group. But he hadn't been able to.

Releasing a deep sigh he finally turned to walk into the room. He'd been sincerely glad and relieved they'd gotten to Chorong, but he hadn't been given the chance to relinquish the relief. Once at the hospital he'd followed Victoria to the surgery ward, because his long time mate's life was on the line. He wasn't about to choose between Chorong or Namjoo. They were very different people to him.

While waiting for time to pass, he thought he could at least stop by and see how Chorong was doing. He owed it to her for having lost her to those people so easily.

Chorong was sitting on the bed with her knees pulled up to her chest, her eyes concentrated on the window at the side. The curtains hadn't been closed, offering a delicate night view of the city lights. A white bandage had been gently wrapped around her head with a soft sheet of cushion as pressure against the cut at the back of her head. There was a needle in her wrist. She looked like a lonely patient, secluded from the outside.

To catch her attention he knocked his hand against the wall and offered a smile when she turned.

"How you doing?" He asked walking in.

"I'm doing fine," she replied with a bursting smile, a little soft, a little sad.

Plopping down onto the bed beside her, he too, turned to look at the city lights. The way they sparkled amidst the darkness was appeasing and peaceful.

"Are you able to go home soon?" Suho wondered.

"Maybe in the afternoon, I hope."

He nodded and they continued to sit in silence, not the kind of awkward silence that had gathered between them at headquarters that one morning. It was a soft endearing silence stretching the exhaustion between them in a gentle, coaxing manner.

"I'm," Chorong began, "a little hungry."

Suho turned to look at her before firmly smiling, "What do you want to eat? I'll get it for you."

"A burger and some fries."

A while later after his return he watched Chorong hungrily chow down the food like a child starved for hours. When he thought about how hungry she'd been, but had been unable to do anything in her weak state he was even more apologetic. Yet, he didn't know how to start apologizing to her.

After hungrily swallowing she glanced at him embarrassed and he offered a smile to help her relax. He was glad to know she was hungry and he was glad he'd been able to feed her. In a way, Suho felt proud, like he'd done a good deed.

Holding out some napkins to her he watched her wipe her hands and her mouth before clutching onto them. A momentary silence swept over them until she lifted her eyes up to look at him somewhat shyly.

"Thank you," she thanked. "I was actually waiting for you to come see me."

Slowly lifting his eyes back up to look at her he lowered them again. And he felt guilty and he was sorry that he had no time to spare to talk about her feelings, his feelings. As if getting his vibe, Chorong looked away.