I Heart U

Chapter 4

“Jungkook, you’ve got to take it easy,” Jimin scolded.

“It’s stupid,” Jungkook insisted as he struggled to wheel himself over to the fridge.  He was getting frustrated with how hard it was to roll the wheels.  He felt a slight pain in his chest and let out a huff as he slumped and just sat there.

“I’ll get it for you,” Jimin said, going to the fridge.  “What do you need?”

“To not be broken,” the younger male said dejectedly.

When he was born, Jungkook’s family had found out that he only had three chambers in his heart.  The hospital had made an artificial chamber for him, and he constantly had to get it checked out in case it had to be enlarged as he grew.  The doctors said he wouldn’t make it see age ten.  But here he was, living and breathing still.  Of course, he constantly had heart trouble.  He’d had three heart attacks in the span of six months.  He was really lucky to survive them.

Little things could set him off if he got too agitated or excited.  He hated living like this.

“Hey,” Jimin said gently as he knelt down in front of the wheelchair.  “You just got out of the hospital yesterday.  It’s okay to take it easy.”

“I always have to take it easy,” Jungkook complained.  “Jimin, I hate that everything could kill me.  Why don’t I have a good heart?  Why is mine like this?”

“I’m sure there’s a reason,” Jimin cooed.  “Listen, you’re on a transplant list, Kook.  I can’t make you move up that list any faster.  You’ll get a new heart, a good heart.  You just have to be patient.”

“Whatever,” the younger male said, waving it off.  “Can you get me some tea?  Please?”

“Sure,” Jimin said softly.  “Why don’t you go in the living room and put on a movie?”  Jungkook nodded and wheeled himself out of the kitchen.  He got into the living room and bumped into the couch.  He frowned but moved himself over to the movie shelf.  He bumped into that too, knocking movies onto the floor.  He got so frustrated, the pain in his heart came back.  He reached down to get the movies, but he was unsuccessful.  He got so mad.  Why couldn’t he just be like everyone else?

He had a sharp pain in his chest and in his arm as he slumped in the chair.  He gasped and whined.

“Jungkook!” Jimin cried out as he came over.  “It’s okay, I’ll call the ambulance.”

~~~~

Jungkook sighed softly as he was pushed down the hall.  He was going home after having a successful heart transplant.  It felt so unreal, like a dream come true.  And it was so nice of that doctor to come to check on him so much.  What was his name…Seokjin?  Yeah, he was really nice.

“Do I have to stay in this chair for long?” he said, gazing up at the nurse curiously.

“It’s just what you use to get out of the hospital,” she reassured.  “Once you get home, you are free to walk around on your own.  Just remember to take it easy for a few days while you get used to your new heart.”

“Right, always gotta take it easy,” he said with a chuckle.  For once, he was okay with that.  He didn’t want to mess up his heart.  He smiled when he was wheeled out to the car where Jimin was waiting for him.

“You look so much better, more color in your face,” the older male said happily as he helped Jungkook out of the wheelchair and into the car.  “Ready to go home and start living life?”

“I’m ready to go to work tonight,” Jungkook said with a hum.  “I missed enough lately.”

“Are you sure you should be working so soon?” Jimin asked as he got in the driver’s side and started to drive them home.

“I feel so good, Jimin,” the younger male said with an eager nod.  “I’ll go slow, but I really wanna work without having to worry about having a heart attack in the middle of my shift for once.

“Alright, if you’re sure,” Jimin said softly.  “Just remember to call me if you feel like you need to come home and rest up, okay?  I don’t want you to overdo it.”

“I’ll be careful,” Jungkook promised.  “Oh, and if you see that nice doctor, Seokjin, would you tell him I really appreciate him coming to visit me so much.  He wanted to make sure my heart was treating me right before I headed home.”

“Oh, yeah, I can do that,” Jimin said, nodding slightly.  “It…it was pretty nice of him to check in on you.”

“I wish there were more people like that in the world,” Jungkook said as he gazed out the window.  “We all need more nice people in our lives.”

~~~~

“Can I get another beer?”

“Coming right up,” Jungkook said, grabbing a bottle and popping it open before he slid it over to the customer nearby.  He worked on cleaning a few glasses to pass the time.  After a few moments, he heard the bell from the door and waved absently.  “I’ll be right with you.”

“Just give me something strong…”

He turned after setting the glass he was cleaning down.  He blinked a few times when he saw it was the nice doctor from the hospital, Seokjin.  Jungkook pulled out a bottle of the good whiskey and poured the doctor a small glass, sliding it over.

“Thanks,” Seokjin said with a soft sigh.  He sipped from the glass and gazed at the younger male, smiling a little.  “How’s the heart?”

“It’s good so far,” Jungkook said, letting out a soft breath.  “No complaints.”

“Good,” the doctor said as he sipped more of his drink.  “Sorry, it’s been a bit of a rough day for me.”

“Wanna talk about it?” Jungkook suggested.  “I’m a bartender, it’s my job to lend an ear every now and then.”

“Just missing someone,” Seokjin said vaguely as he gulped the rest of his whiskey down.  Jungkook filled the glass again and gave a sympathetic smile.  “I don’t wanna talk about it right now, I wanna forget about it.”

“Fair enough, but give me your keys if you plan on drinking that much,” Jungkook said, holding out his hand.  “I won’t let you drive home drunk later.  I’ll call you a cab when you’re ready to go home.”  Seokjin hesitated slightly before handing over his car keys.  He could live with that as long as he could get really drunk and forget the pain of missing Taengie for a little while.