Nightmare | San

11

My eyes fly open and I notice I'm drenched in sweat. My mind takes a moment to process my situation and my breaths quicken as I remember that nightmare.

If it even was a nightmare.

I turn my head slowly and see Seonghwa sleeping soundly on the other side of the bed. My eyes then travel to my arm. It seems fine. I let out a sigh of relief and try to get up to get a glass of water.

Big mistake.

Agressive pain shoots up my arm quickly and my whole arm feels like someone is juggling my muscles and bones playfully from the inside. The feeling of tearing and shredding is unbearable and I scream, falling back onto my back.

Seonghwa suddenly jumps out of bed and flicks on the lights before running to my side. "Are you okay? What happened?" he worriedly asks. I bite my lip as the pain in my arm makes me feel dizzy. The burn on my leg feels like nothing compared to this.

"Arm...San..." I force out, unable to think properly. Seonghwa rushes to my arm and pulls up my sleeve, resulting in a louder and higher pitched screech from me. It feels like something sharp is stabbing my arm from the inside. Every time I move is pure agony and even movement in my fingers kills me on the inside.

He flinches at the sound but widens his eyes after. "There's nothing there?" he whispers. I hesitantly turn my head and just as he said, my arm looks completely fine. But why does it hurt so much then?

I simply make eye contact with him, tears streaming down my face. His expression looks troubled. "Let's go back to the hospital," he announces, already running to get his shoes on. I don't argue with him, mainly because I can't in this state. But more of our savings are going to go down the drain because of this demon...

He runs back quickly and carefully lifts me into my wheelchair. I can't contain my whimpers every time my arm moves at all.

The next few minutes go by excruciatingly slow. What was once about a ten minute car journey to the hospital feels like hours. Every time there's even a slight bump in the road, I let out a hiss and I can't contain my sobbing.

Seonghwa rushes me to the emergency department again and they instantly bring me in to run an x-ray scan, also puzzled by the appearance of my arm. I impatiently wait with my boyfriend for the results, barely hanging on to consciousness.

The doctor runs back into the room with results and she looks distressed. 

"I have the results here and it's an odd case because her bone in the upper part of her arm is completely shattered? It's only in one area with no sign of damage around it and somehow she has no bruises either, which seems impossible," the doctor explains.

Seonghwa nods along thoughtfully while soaking up the information but I chew the inside of my cheek. I recall the "nightmare" when San somehow put his hand through my arm. He must have snapped my bone like that somehow, just like how he gave me a severe burn on my leg only through a dream. This demon is way more powerful than I initially thought.

"How did this even happen?" the doctor wonders. "Forget that, get her pain killers or something!" he frantically demands, growing more nervous by seeing my pale face.

I offer a pained smile and open my mouth to assure him that I'm fine, but everything goes black before I can even utter a word.

"Seonghwa?" I croak with my eyes still shut. I instantly notice that the pain in my arm has gotten duller and my leg also hurts a little less.

I slowly open my eyes and gasp loudly when I see San's face directly in front of mine, staring down at my face.

Within a blink of an eye, he's gone.

"Are you okay?" Seonghwa comes running into the room. I catch my breath and realise we're at home. "I'm fine," I lie, chills running down my spine. There's no end to this torment.

"You were given pain killers in your IV drip. The doctor figured you blacked out from exhaustion so that's the only reason why you're like this. She put a cast on your arm so it can heal," Seonghwa sadly mutters. I don't even realise what he's talking about and observe my surroundings. Just as he mentioned, there's a needle inserted into my arm and a drip beside me. My arm is also wrapped around securely in bandages and a cast. I'm glad I was unconscious for that, it would have hurt a lot.

"When is the exorcist coming?" I ask, starting to get fed up of feeling scared.

Seonghwa bites his lip. "He said he'll be here by tomorrow," he hesitantly responds. I let out a long exhale. One more day of this suffering. Can I even survive that much at this point?

"I'm sorry I can't protect you much. But just stay strong for one more day, we're nearly there," Seonghwa softly comforts, rubbing a hand over my head. I nod slightly under his touch. If this really isn't over by tomorrow, I don't know what I'll do. I'll trust him for now.

I blink back some more tears. Why did I have to be foolish enough to play that stupid game even though Seonghwa warned me not to? I wanted him to get some rest but in the end I caused him more distress.

"I'm sorry for causing you so much trouble," I mumble. He shakes his head. "Don't worry about that stuff, just concentrate on getting better first. That's all I want right now," he sweetly sings with a smile.

I smile with him, feeling relaxed in his presence.

He gets up after a few minutes. "I'll make you some soup. Call me if you need anything," he offers before sprinting away.

I stare at the ceiling. What if San pops up in front of me out of nowhere again? I think of closing my eyes but even that isn't safe anymore. He has the most power when I'm asleep.

Maybe I just won't sleep until the exorcist arrives. Is it worth it to risk another limb just to get some sleep? It really isn't.

Suddenly I feel something touching my hand.