𝐕𝐎𝐈𝐂𝐄𝐒! 황현진.

chapter twenty nine

-TWENTY NINE-

when changmin awoke, he felt strange. nothing felt normal in the moment. well, that was partially because nothing was normal. for one, the boy never usually found himself in the hospital as a visitor. trips there usually consisted of him being the sick one. but this time, that was not the case.

it had been about two weeks since the fire incident. and in those two weeks, changmin and his roommate chanhee had done quite a bit. the two had gone to multiple "fun" places such as amusement parks, shopping malls and a staycation just to name a few. but recently, changmin had rediscovered a brand of sour candy that he enjoyed as a kid. at times, it was just to keep him entertained but as of late, it became an escape. when things didnt feel real, he'd suck on sour candies until his tongue was parched and hurt whenever he'd move it, even inside the confines of his own mouth. the candies eventually became a sort of drug to him.

he knew it sounded strange for a candy to provide that sort of relief to him but he was thankful that he had not taken up a more threatening coping mechanism like smoking or use of recreational drugs. (A/N: dont do drugs kids.)

chanhee also had source of comfort, that being changmin. over their time apart, chanhee had come to realise just how much the other meant to him. he missed having someone he could confide in and share drinks with and he missed not being alone. but most importantly, he missed his friend.

so it was no surprise to either of them when chanhee slid his small hand into changmin's when the nurse called their names.

"follow me." the nurse instructed.

and the boys did so.

when they entered the room that they were led to, they were greeted by nayeon, hyunjin and jihyun. yes, jihyun.

the two sauntered over to the bed where she lay and took a look at her after so long.

at first, changmin was shocked. so many burns... they must have been from the fire. but beyond that, he could still see her clear defined features and some of the girl that she used to be. her skin was now tanned and golden, instead of the milky white that was there before. this was partially because her cell in the asylum had no windows and she was never allowed outside. nontheless, she remained unchanged.

at least, on the outside.

she had not yet awoken, but the doctor informed that she was due to regain consciousness within the next few hours.

changmin looked over to hyunjin, trying his best to get in a 'hello' at least, but he knew that there was no point.

hyunjin's eyes were still trained on jihyun. just as they were ever since they got into the room.

hyunjin woke up halfway through the first week and had been spending his free time with jihyun. since his job had been eradicated since his workplace had been burned to a crisp, his schedule was freed up completely. his wounds were not so fatal as he got out before jihyun and jisung and were mostly from inhalation of smoke rather than the fire itself.

and as for jisung, he was here too, in the hospital. but in his own room, also unconscious. just like his sister.

chanhee knew why jisung did what he did, and frankly, he understood. he got it. his actions made some sort of sense in retrospect. was that the best solution? no. of course not. but when you're thirteen years old and a murderer, there isn't much else you can do to save yourself apart from shift blame.

changmin and nayeon had talked to the police already. they told them what they knew about the han twins and their trauma along with the events of late.

the plan was that as soon as jisung awoke, they would take him into questioning and decide what to do with his case. if the evidence seemed plausible, they would hold him up for trial and if not then they would let him walk. changmin strongly hoped for the former, but only time could tell the outcome. life is unpredictable.

the four had begun to engage in some basic conversation and chanhee had started gushing about a meal that he and changmin had consumed a few days ago. in all honesty, it was pretty good.

the friends mouths had not spoken words of everyday conversation in a while, so they had a bit of warming up to each other to do. nevertheless, changmin enjoyed talking about normal things. it was refreshing and sparked joy in his heart. it had been so long since he had this sort of interaction with anyone.

and in that moment, he smiled and thought,

maybe this isn't so bad.

well, thats what he thought until the same nurse from earlier burst in and informed, "mr. han has awoken. the police have been contacted and he will be taken by them as soon as they arrive."

—<3–

hihi.
this is a bit more happy i think but dont get too fond it as there is still more to come.
jihyun has finally come home !
but its not the end yet !!
there is still a lot to uncover so please stay tuned and thank you for staying with me and this story for so long ):