We're Way Too Different

Episode 13

"Jimin..."

"Jimin..."

"Jimin!"

Hye Na calls my name for the third time. "What?!" I snap at her.

I'm very irritated at the moment after what happened last night. And I'm not in the mood to talk.

"What's up with you? You've been really zoned out since this morning." She points out.

"I'm fine." I mumble.

"No... You're not fine Jimin. You just snapped at me!"

"Sorry. I'm just out of it today." I get ready to stand up. "Can we skip studying today?" I ask her.

"But, finals are tomorrow..." She grabs my hand.

"I don't care about finals right now Hye Na-ah... I have a lot going on right now and..." I pause keeping the tears in. "I have to go." I pull my hand out of her grip and walk out of the cafeteria as she calls my name.

~~

As soon as school ends I rush out of the building like my heels are on fire, get in my car and drive off. I didn't say 'bye' to Hye Na. I'm too worried about my mom's state at the moment.

She's in a state of mind where she doesn't want to do anything. She cries non-stop and wallows in bed all day.

I walk in the house, loudly closing the door behind me. "Eomma!!" I call out loudly.

Silence...

"I'm home!" I call out again.

Silence...

I walk up the stairs hearing as the wood creak under my sneakers. "It's too quiet." I think to my self. It's almost frightening.

I slowly go up to her bedroom door and knock.

"Mom..."

Silence...

I walk in, and her bed is empty. The sink water is running in the bathroom and the light is on.

I approach the door and almost too scared to look in, but none the less, I step in.

"Mom!" I run-up to her lifeless body on the floor. Pills spilled everywhere. And different bottle merges them, making it indistinguishable to know which one she took.

I feel for a pulse, and she's barely holding on. I grab my phone and dial 119.

... "My mom, she overdosed herself on pills. She's barely breathing!" I blurt out, panic evident in my voice.

"Can you tell me what pills she took?" The female operator asks.

"I-I don't know..." I breathe heavily, rising to my feet, putting the phone on speaker, and shuffling through the 10 different bottles all opened on the sink.

"How many?"

"They're 10 bottles. Pills all over the floor. I-I don't know..."

"Ok, an ambulance is on its way. It'll arrive in 3 minutes." She tells me.

Agreeing, I hang up the phone and run out of the room.

Soon enough, the paramedics come in and soon after they walk in, they leave with her in the ambulance, while I decided to stay back.

So many thoughts are racing at once in my mind.

"Why would she do this? What about me? If she leaves, what will I do? I turn 18 in a couple of days, she can't leave me. Not yet? How will I pay the rent? I male enough money at my job, but still?!"

All these questions are brewing in my head and it hurts. I just want to rip out my hair. And at the same time, Hye Na decides to call.

"Hello?" I say with little strength and motivation in my voice.

"Jimin-ah, you're not going to tell me what happened? Why you're like this?" She asks.

"Hye Na, I need to think right now! I can't do that with you all in my business. Please, just back off!" I hang up in her face.

~~

Today is Saturday, and it's been 3 days since she's been admitted. I got up early and passed by the flower shop, and a small coffee shop I always go to, to get her cinnamon rolls. Her favorite.

"Excuse me, my mom was checked in two days ago-"

"Oh, you're Park Jimin. You were the second person on her emergency contact list. We couldn't reach your father. She's in room 1295." She smiles at me.

I walk down the hall and reach her room. She was only put under an IV bag, and the heart monitor gave steady beeps.

Sighing, I put the flowers in the water-filled vase and put the cinnamon box next to her on the side table.

She shifts around and slowly open up her eyes. "Hey..."

"Morning..." I kiss her head.

"Why aren't you at school?" She asks.

"It's Saturday." I smile back.

"Oh, I guess I've been here for longer than I thought.

We talked and talked for a while, and I got around to ask her some of the questions that were boiling in my head two days ago.

"Why did you do it?" I ask with my head down. She grabs my hand and rubs it gently.

"Sweetheart..." She pauses. "Your father and I have a long history. You already know." She looks at me. "Seeing him end our family like that, and throwing it all away... It's sickening. And I guess after a couple of days, I lost it." She explains.

"You can't do that. You can't leave me my birthday is days away and..." My voice starts breaking. "You would have missed that day."

"Oh..." She hugs me. "I'm sorry Jimin-ah..."

We stayed like that for a while and soon I had to leave. I drove back home, and when I pulled up, I saw Tae's (my best friend) car parked out front. I told him what happened and he decided to be over.

"Hey!" He jumps from the couch.

"Sup?" I close the door behind me and drop my keys on the table.

"I brought chicken, beer, and the American Transformers series." He shows the items out on the table.

"Ugh... Thanks." I walk over and sit next to him.

"Jimin-ah your mom will be fine. I'm sure. It's your dad I want to smack upside the head for doing what he did." He says through gritted teeth.

"Me too. But I guess it is what it is." I sigh and play the movie.