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Hyunwoo
~the next morning~
~at the restaurant~
Something was missing. Or more like someone was missing. Kihyun was not here. How odd because he usually comes in thirty to forty five minutes before service starts on days when he doesn't do prep. Could something be wrong?
"Hey, Hyungwon," I asked the sleepy thin male.
"Yeah...," he says slowly as one could possible say a single word.
"Where's Kihyun? He didn't miss a single day of work before," I asked.
"...he's okay. Just take a day off," he says with an awkward smile.
"Oh, why?"
"I don't know," he says quickly.
"Alright..."
~the next day~
~fifteen minutes into service~
"Hyun-," I began to say before he cuts me off.
"He isn't coming in today either," he says. I nodded and walked off into Kihyun's office. After I sat down, I pulled out my phone to start texting him.
From: Me (Robokuma) [10:16 a.m.]
Kihyun ah~
From: Me (Robokuma) [10:23 a.m.]
Kihyun?
From: Me (Robokuma) [10:25 a.m.]
Are you okay?
From: Me (Robokuma)[10:27 a.m.]
Did I do something wrong?
From: Me (Robokuma) [10:33 a.m.]
Did my parents say something bad?
From: Me(Robokuma) [10:38 a.m.]
Ki?
"Hyung! Some help out here," Mingyu shouts from the kitchen.
"Coming," I shouted back before looking at my screen one last time to see if he had replied or not.
~during dinner service~
I absentmindedly wiped a bowl dry with a towel as I was too focused on thinking about why he isn't talking to me.
"Hyung, if you wipe that bowl even more, it is going to be shinier than Buddha's head," Hyungwon said from behind me.
"Yah. Don't suddenly talk to people when they are deep in thought," I said quickly as I felt a bit embarrassed that I was spooked by that.
"Here," he says with a strong look in his eyes, and hands me the keys.
~ at Hyungwon's and Kihyun's apartment~
I rang the doorbell and waited for him to answer the door. After three minutes past, I started to knock and called out to him. Still no answer. Then, I opened the door with the key and went inside. I stood in front of his bedroom door and knocked. I could hear a soft groan from in the room.
"Kihyun ah~," I called.
*thud*
Thinking that something bad happened, I threw open the door without anymore hesitation. Mochi barks at me multiple times and growls from the end of Kihyun's bed. On the bed, Kihyun is hiding under his blanket shaking slightly. As I got closer, Mochi growls threatenly and stands guard not wanting me to get any closer.
"Kihyun ah," I said again. He shifts under the blanket but doesn't do anything else. I sat down on the edge of his bed and reached out to take the blanket off. Right then, Mochi starts to gnaw on my hand. I glared at the corgi. He stares at me in the eyes for a minute before huffing and hopping off the bed as if to say, "Make it right."
Gently, I placed the same hand onto what I think is Kihyun's shoulder. "Kihyun, are you okay," I asked. He sniffs and mutters, "I'm fine."
"If you ar-... You know you can tell me anything right? I am here for you. Through better and worst," I said as I stroked his back. He doesn't say anything in reply.
"We can get through whatever is weighing on your mind together," I added. The blanket lowers down a bit allowing me to see the top of his head.
"If you will just tell me, I will do whether I can to help," I murmured.
"No one can help me," he says bitterly. His voice sounds so drained and so not full of life.
"Don't say that. It isn't true."
He turns on his back and pulls down the blanket until his eyes were shown. They were red and puffy. Immense sadness filled those beautiful milk chocolate brown orbs of his. My heart ached at this sight. I laid down on the bed next to him and slowly pulled down the blanket further so that I saw his whole face. His cheeks are soaked with tears. I wiped them off with my thumb before caressing his cheek.
We stared into each others' eyes until Kihyun breaks it and hides his face against my chest. I held him close and rested my chin on top of his head. Slowly, I patted his back and hummed a tune that my mother used to when I was crying. He grips my shirt tighter, and takes a few deep breathes to calm his nerves.
"It's okay. You can tell me later. You can rest," I whispered.
Suddenly, he sits up and looks down at me. "N-o...I h-a-ve to tel-l yo-u n-ow," he says slowly without meeting my gaze. Sensing a change in the air around us, I sat up too. He hesitantly reaches out, and grabs my hands. I squeezed his hands back to let him know that I am there for him. He licks his dry lips and looks me in the eyes before saying words that I never wanted to hear come out of his mouth.
"I'm dying."
"What?! No way. You got to be lying to me. This is some joke," I laughed as my mind refused to process it. He stares at me silently, and shakes his head.
"I'm sorry," he says with new tears flowing from his eyes and a sad smile on his face.
From then on, I vowed to love him for every second we had left, and to never spare a second for anything or anyone else.
A/N: This isn't the last chapter. Still a few more to go. (o-o)
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