Of Wedding Cakes and Dresses

Chapter 17

A/N: In between trying to wrap some Christmas presents, I will try to upload the rest of the chapters for this story today. This is the second story in the Kyuhyun/Misa trilogy, and was completed awhile back. I haven't finished the third and final installment yet, but I'm hoping that by publishing what has already been finished, my muse will come back. ;-)

Anyway, here's the next chapter; enjoy!

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Misa slowly opened her eyes, a small yawn escaping her lips. She gently rubbed her eyes, then blinked until the raised bedrail just to her left came into focus. The lit buttons sharpened as her vision cleared, and she slowly glanced around.

“Hey, you’re up,” she heard a familiar voice say, turning her attention to up and over the rail.

Kyuhyun’s face immediately came into view, a soft smile on his handsome face. Misa returned his smile. “Don’t you ever go home?” she jokingly asked. She didn’t know for sure how many days had passed since she’d awakened from her coma, but what she did know was that Kyuhyun had been there to greet her everytime she’d woken up. It had been a comforting sight to see him smile at her each time she opened her eyes.

Her voice was a lot less raspy and was beginning to sound stronger, much to Kyuhyun’s relief. He heartily chuckled. “Wherever you are, angel,” he told her, “I’m there, too.”

“Stalker,” she teased, making him laugh again.

“Are you hungry, angel?” he asked, pointing to the table at the foot of her bed. “The nurse brought breakfast for you a few minutes ago,” he explained.

As if on cue, Misa heard her stomach growl. “Ow,” she said, wincing as a sharp pain raced through her lower abdomen.

Kyuhyun was immediately concerned. “You okay?” he asked, worriedly. “Should I call Dr. Kang?” He gently took her hand in his and gave it a squeeze.

She shook her head, her jaw slightly clenched. “It’ll pass,” she assured him, though he noticed her hand tightly clamped around his. She gently placed her free hand on her side and took a couple of quick breaths.

After a few seconds, she let out a long breath, and her jaw slowly relaxed.

“Remind me not to get stabbed in the stomach again,” shelamely joked. All in all, Misa had been stabbed nine times in various parts of her upper torso: four were in her abdominal region and caused considerable damage to several of her organs, while two had been well aimed to her spine. Initially, Dr. Kang had been concerned that the injuries to her spine would result in paralysis, but in the days after her awakening, assessments showed no such diagnosis, although Misa had reported some numbness that disappeared. The remaining three wounds (one just under her collarbone on the left, and two across her shoulders), had also been serious, but paled in comparison.

Kyuhyun grimaced. “Ugh, that was bad, angel,” he told her, shaking his head. “Even more lame than my jokes!”

Misa grinned, although it looked like a cross between a smile and a grimace. “As long as you can admit your jokes are lame,” she teased.

Her fiancée rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah,” he muttered, rolling the table over and positioning it so that it now rested over her lap. He turned back to her. “Should I raise your bed a little?” he offered, gesturing the top half that was already resting at a gentle incline.

She nodded. “Yes, please,” she answered, fiddling with the top of her blanket.

Kyuhyun nodded, then pressed and held a small square button with a green plus sign on the bedrail. Once the bed was at a comfortable sitting position for her, he grabbed the edge of the rollaway table and glided it over her lap.