This Love » vkook

chapter twenty-two

| Los Angeles, CA |

It had been four hours since the doctor had shared with everyone the state Jungkook was in. Everyone was quiet, along with the other visitors in the waiting area who were waiting on news for their loved ones.

Jimin had fallen asleep on Jin's shoulder, Jay had gone somewhere else to check on Taemin and tell Alice what was going on, and Yoongi had gone to get snacks. Hoseok and Jihun sat quietly, looking up every time someone passed by, thinking it was Taehyung. Namjoon had left an hour ago because he got called back to the studio and expressed his condolences before leaving the group.

After hours of waiting, two set of feet walked towards the group in scrub gowns and caps. Jin was the first to notice and motioned Jimin to wake up. Jihun got up and went looking for Jay. 

It was the same doctor who had checked with them the first time with an older, more experienced looking female doctor.

 "Sorry to keep you waiting. The surgery was more extensive than anticipated," she said, looking at the group. 

Jay and Jihun had returned, with Yoongi following behind with a bag full of chips. 

"Is my dad okay," Jay asked, a desperate look in his eyes, hoping for good news. 

"The blood clot had grown by the time we got him into surgery so we had to perform a craniotomy. It was a successful surgery and we just checked with the patient and we found no neurological damage. He's going to feel tired and weak for the next few days, but I expect a full recovery," she informed with a smile at the end. 

Her words brought a sense of relief to everyone. Jimin began to cry tears of joy on Jin's shoulder. Jay went up and even hugged the doctor, praising her for his dad's successful outcome. 

"When can we see him," Jin asked the doctor. Jay looked up at the doctor, wanting to know the exact same thing. 

"It's best to limit his visits to one person at a time to let him rest," the younger doctor replied. 

"Let Jay go first then,"Jimin said to Jin. 

Jin nodded and turned his attention back to the doctors. "Jay is his son, he should go first," gesturing to Jay. 

"Like we said, it's best to limit visitation to one person at a time," the older doctor informed. "There is already a visitor with him."

Jay looked at her in confusion. "Who?"

________

Taehyung had made his way back inside the hospital roaming the endless halls in search for the waiting room where everyone else was at. His tears had ruined his appearance so he had stopped by the restroom first to clean himself up. He looked less like himself than he did earlier in the day. His reflection in the restroom mirror showed hopelessness and despair, rather than the confidence he usually embodied. 

Taehyung passed by a group of nurses walking towards a set of elevators he had passed by. The nurses sped past him, in the speed that most health professionals walked, like each second counted to save a life. They talked amongst themselves and Taehyung didn't worry if they recognized him. Most people do, especially in his home city, but he didn't care enough to hide his face. 

Taehyung reached a front desk that he didn't recognize with two hallways on each side of it. The entrances to both hallway had a different set of doors than any other door he had seen in the building. There was a sign on both doors, Intensive Care Unit, written on them. 

A female doctor came out of one of the doors alongside with another doctor following her. 

"I want neuro exams every hour and page me if the swelling increases to a dangerous level," she instructed, walking towards the front desk with a chart in hand.