Chae-Won was walking with Sun-Woo on their way to Jung-Hwan's house to hangout. As they opened the gate and walked a few stair up, they were surprised to see Deok-Sun dressed in a white Hanbok carrying a sign labeled Madagascar.
"Ah! You scared me! Did they change it to Hanbok now?" Sun-Woo asked still clutching his chest with a frown on his face. Meanwhile, Chae-Won was smiling beside him admiring the outfit of the older girl.
"Yes. It's pretty, right?" Deok-Sun smiled blinking rapidly hoping for some compliments to boost her confidence.
"No, it's not pretty," Sun-Woo deadpanned earning a smack on the chest from Chae-Won who playfully glared at him.
"Don't listen to him. It's really pretty, Deok-Sun. I think it's better than the one before. It suits you more," Chae-Won smiled, always being the nice one.
"Really? I know right," Deok-Sun smiled. As she watched them enter the house she was happy to count on her younger friend for confidence. But it was shattered as soon as Dong-Ryong entered with the same startled expression.
Inside the house, the four out of the six friends hung out in Jung-Hwan's room. It was a spontaneous decision decided by the chicken that they were currently devouring.
"The olympics is in 7 days, right?" Sun-Woo asked earning a nod from Chae-Won who happily ate her chicken, not caring she was making a mess of herself.
"Doek-Sun seems really excited about being a picket girl," he continued wiping the side of Chae-Won's mouth with his thumb. He sighed and told her to eat slowly earning a smile from her while completely ignoring what he just said.
"She looks pretty in Hanbok. I want to wear one, too," Chae-Won muttered trying to grab another piece of chicken but ended up eating the one Dong-Ryong hesitantly pushed in her direction. The geeky counselor saw how she was struggling to pull the leg from the chicken and it was beginning to annoy him how the Choi sibling found the simplest things complicated and the most complex things easy.
"You must be crazy. She looks like a ghost in all white Hanbok. Not to mention her caked face," Dong-Ryong shook his head.
Chae-Won smiled and muttered absentmindedly, "Pretty ghost." This made the three boys burst into laughter. Chae-Won looked at them with wide eyes before joining in their happiness.
Forgetting about her condition, she laughed too hard that tears were coming out of her eyes, Before Jung-Hwan could tell her to stop, she suddenly slumped forward and almost fell out of Jung-Hwan's bed that she had been sitting on.
"Chae-Won!"
Her jaw dropped and head slumped as her muscles weakened. She felt dizzy and disoriented that she didn't noticed her being laid down. She was slurring incoherent words that she didn't even notice she was saying.
"Lay her down on the bed." Dong-Ryu said something serious for the first time in a long time. But how could he not, this was his life-long friend.
Right as Jung-Hwan and Sun-Woo laid her down on the bed, she snapped out of her catalepsy and sat up. She rubbed her head and went into a micro sleep for two seconds before snapping out of it again.
"Are you okay?" Jung-Hwan asked worried.
She simply nodded and stood up trying to stay awake. She stretched her arms and legs but her knees gave up halfway. She caught herself with her arms and sighed. She closed her eyes and waited out the attack.
Chae-Won could feel the eyes of her friends on her and she was thankful that they weren't talking to her. She feels embarrassed when things like this happen to her because they make her look weak. Before her condition, she was a happy-go-lucky girl that could never be put down. But after discovering she had narcolepsy, she tried her best to not lose herself. She tried her best to be that smiley Chae-Won that everyone knew her to be. Yet sometimes she feels like the world's against her; that she had been a bad person in her past life and is being punished for it.
She sighed and stood up before facing her friends with a tired smile. She took a seat beside Sun-Woo on the floor and drummed her fists on her thighs in hopes that it would keep her awake. She was really tired but she wanted to stay awake as long as she could.
"What happened? You never usually have cataleptic attacks unless you're exhausted," the boy next to her asked.
Chae-Won shrugged and answered, "I'm just busy in the studio trying to catch up with the statue that needs to be done for the Olympics. Someone broke in and destroyed my first one."
The boys looked at each other incredulously as if asking each other if they knew about it. It didn't help that she was so nonchalant about it. Before they could ask her, she had already dozed off again and was slumped on Sun-Woo's side.
TWO DAYS AGO
Chae-Won had just arrived at the studio building she used. She smiled brightly, happy that she got a full 8-hour sleep last night. However, her mood changed when she stood in front of her open studio.
She was confused and shocked at the same time because it's never open. The only time it's open is when she enters and exits the studio or when the boys open it with her spare key when she falls asleep inside.
It was a sacred place for her to work on her artworks and everyone knew not to touch even a speck of dust in it. And recently, the artwork she had been working on was for the Seoul Olympics that was in 9 days. It was a statue of a man holding a torch. It was a big project which is why she started weeks ahead to make sure she doesn't overwork. But that no longer mattered when she looked into the studio and noticed it smashed on the floor with its head missing.
She thought she was hallucinating again but when she heard the gasp of Mr. Min behind her, she knew her worst nightmare became reality.
Instead of panicking and crying, no matter how much she wanted to, she quickly asked Mr. Min to have people clean it up and find her new materials. As soon as she could, she started the sculpture again and tried to use all the salvageable pieces left. She focused to get as much done that day and was lucky to have only fallen asleep 2 times. But as soon as she exited the studio late that night to find Jung-Hwan sitting on the floor reading a book, she collapsed asleep. That was why she never got the chance to tell them what happened. Every time she got to meet them, she was asleep.
Later that night as she laid down ready for bed Chae-Won closed her eyes and let her tears flow out. She didn't sob or even whimpered, she cried a soundless cry. Although she wouldn't admit it, she was ashamed of herself for being so dependent on everyone. She knows that it's not her fault she was born like this but she can't help but feel like a burden. She used to be the one who always helped everyone. But how the tables have turned. She's now the one needing someone with her all the time. Even at this moment as she was about to sleep, her father cracked his door open, just like every night, so that if something happened to her he would hear it right away.
As stupid as it sounded, all she wants right now is to ride a bus to the mall and buy her friends gifts all by herself. A day of independence for her and one less thing to worry about for her friends.
She also wanted the pity in her friends eyes to stop. Every time she gets sleep attacks around them, the last thing she sees is them looking at her with worry and pity. She even remembers when Jung-Hwan got scolded when they were younger for allowing her to walk to the Dolly store alone. Chae-Won woke up to being carried and hearing Jung-Hwan's mom yelling at him behind her.
She turned around to lay on her side and wiped her tears. She couldn't afford to be sad now. She has to wake up early tomorrow to finish her sculpture. Chae-Won smiled to herself and whispered, "Smile! You can do this!"
YOU ARE READING
REPLY 1988: CHOI CHAE-WON
Fanfiction[ONGOING] Choi Chae-Won is the twin sister of Choi Taek. Being a sibling of the great 6-dan Choi Taek was not only how the public described Chae-Won for she was a talented artist as well. But every person has their weaknesses and sadly for her, it w...
