FLATLINE| JK

thirteen

When the ambulance pulls up to the emergency room bay, I'm on top of the patient doing chest compressions. The drive hadn't been good for him--he had nearly crashed twice and was in the process of a third time. Between me and the paramedics, we were out of ideas for as to how to keep the man stable. We needed to get him into the hospital.

I breathe a sigh of relief when the doors swing open, but don't stop my compressions. The ER doctors work around me as I dedicate all of my focus to the man on the stretcher. They roll us carefully off the ambulance and the other paramedics brief the doctors on the case--

"Good work, Moon." A voice says, and when I look up, I see Chief Kim. He isn't smiling because he's just as focused as I am, but there's pride in his eyes. "Switch me. You're getting tired. Take a break and get changed, and then come back when you're ready." Letting Chief Kim's hands replace my own doing chest compressions on the patient, I hop off the stretcher and they roll it into an exam room. Out of breath, I stare after them, trying not to show just how much Chief Kim's praise means to me on my face--I feel like I'm on cloud nine. Snapping out of my Kim Seokjin induced trance, I run to the locker room to change.

"Moon?" A voice breathes out before I can start removing my bloody clothes.

I'd know that voice anywhere. Looks like I can kiss cloud nine goodbye. Turning to look at Dr. Jeon, I'm expecting to see him how he usually is: pissed off. But there isn't anger in his demeanor at all. In fact, there's concern. He looks me up and down and sees the blood on my clothes, and like a moth to a flame, he gravitates towards me. I let out a surprised squeak as he cups my cheeks in his hands and inspects my face. "Moon, what happened? Where does it hurt?" He asks.

"Huh?" I manage to choke out. Wow, very articulate, Bong Soon. What has gotten into him, though?

"Where are you bleeding from?" Dr. Jeon ignores my confusion and continues to look me over. His hands remove Taehyung's large and bloodstained blazer from my shoulders and brush over my arms gently--and that's when I realize. He's looking for injuries. He thinks the blood is mine?

"Dr. Jeon, no--I'm fine. The blood is someone else's." I explain, grabbing his searching hands in my own. That's when I finally get a look at his eyes. They're reminiscent of that night in the moonlight at my apartment during his nervous breakdown. Full of fear and vulnerability. And tears. He's on the verge of tears. 

"B-But...but they told me you were in an ambulance. They told me Dr. Moon Bong Soon was on her way in an ambulance." He asks, voice shaky, and I shake my head, caressing his hands gently with my thumbs in an effort to comfort him.

"I was, but not like that. Someone at the restaurant I was at started hemorrhaging, I came with them in the ambulance to help the paramedics stabilize him." I explain, but Dr. Jeon's eyes still wander, checking me for wounds. Squeezing his hands to get his attention, he looks up at my eyes. There's a crease of worry between his eyebrows, and I fight the urge to reach up and smooth it away with my fingers. "I'm okay, Dr. Jeon." I say, offering him a small smile, though I don't understand why he's so worked up. 

Before I can protest, he's pulling me to his chest and wrapping me tightly in his arms. I hold my breath involuntarily in utter shock, but I don't dare move away. I can hear his rapid heartbeat in my ears, feel his warm, firm muscle beneath his white coat and cold, cold exterior. He breathes me in, face in the crook of my neck, and as soon as I feel his chest expand beneath my cheek, I remember to breathe, too. He smells like pine and something faintly sweet that I can't place. I gently rub his back beneath my palms, and he holds me so tight and close that it seems he thinks if he loosens his grip at all I'll fall apart in his arms. 

I still don't understand why he cares at all about my wellbeing. He's been avoiding me all week ever since he found about my date with Namjoon, and what few interactions we have had have been hostile. But I don't have the heart to pull away, so I stand there patiently in his embrace, letting him calm down with the scent of my hair and the feeling of my body pressed to his as tangible proof that I'm not hurt. Finally, when I hear his heartbeat return to a normal pace, I gently back away, holding him at an arms length. He averts his eyes.

"Really. I'm okay, Dr. Jeon." I reassure him again. He nods, still refusing to meet my eyes. "But, I might not be very okay once Taehyung finds out I got blood all over his blazer." I joke in attempt to cheer Dr. Jeon up. He doesn't light up, but the crease between his brows goes a way and the subtle hint of a smile grows on his lips. He finally looks up from the spot on the floor he had been staring at. Though the smile on his face is miniscule, the smile in his eyes is breathtaking. Happiness looks good on him.

"I'm sorry about...that, Moon." Dr. Jeon begins. "I just...I'm...you--" He stammers, and I've never seen him so unsure of himself. "You really make m--"

He's cut off by the obnoxious ring of my phone. I glance at the caller ID-- Namjoon. "Oop, one second, I'm sorry." I apologize, and turn away from Dr. Jeon to accept the call. "Hey, Joon." I answer.

"Hey, how'd it go?" Namjoon asks, and I smile to myself just at the sound of his voice.

"Good so far. I'm about to change and go help the Chief stabilize the patient. He gave me a compliment and I nearly died, Joon." I exclaim, and he chuckles.

"That's great, Bong Soon. You sound pretty busy, though, so I'll let you go. But even with everything that happened tonight I had a really good time." He says sincerely, and I grin to myself. 

"Me too. We'll try this again, okay?"

"I'll hold you to that."

"Bye, Joon." I say, and he says the same before hanging up. I toss the phone into my locker and turn back to Dr. Jeon. "Sorry, what were you saying?" I ask. But Dr. Jeons attitude has completely shifted, and his eyes that once were filled with joy are cold once more.

"The real question is, what were you saying?" He answers my question with a question. "It sounded like a personal call. Isn't Chief Kim waiting for you?" He asks, eyebrow quirking up. I stare at him in complete shock, taken entirely off guard by him.

"Uh, yes?" I blurt dumbly, and Dr. Jeon rolls his eyes.

"Then hurry up; that's unprofessional. Though, I don't know why I expected you to be anything but." He snaps, and like that, he turns on his heel and walks out of the locker room. I try not to let his words sting too much as I change clothes, but its hard to do when I can still feel the ghost of his arms around me giving me false hope that he is changed.

ahhh its been a minute but I hope this chapter made up for it!

stay safe, home and healthy, and i'll try to update again soon.