His 'Follower' | MarkHyuck

Changes

The clean smell of medicines and other substances filled the air in the infirmary room. Haechan didn’t need to open his eyes to know where he was nor did he need to open them to see who brought him here. But he still did, to make sure and, to see the state his wounds were in.

It took a little time but when he did, the lights on the ceiling blinded his vision for a bit. Just as he adjusted to it and his eyes landed on the wrists which he brought close to his face, making him stare at the awful reopened scars – which were now bandaged – gingerly, a voice filled the silence.

“You finally woke up.” The deep voice said, relief present everywhere in it.

Haechan simply hummed without looking at the person before dropping his arms by his sides and facing away from the other, laying on his side while staring through the pulled-up curtains into the already dark sky. His eyes widened in shock and for a second there he wondered how long had he been lying on this bed for it to be so late. The answer to that was given to him immediately, making him sigh in relief.

“Don’t worry. It’s only five.” A pause followed. “How do you feel now?”

Instead of answering to that question, Haechan decided to say a few words to express his gratitude. As annoying as it might be to thank this guy, he knew he had to. After all, deep down, he knew that if it wasn’t for him, then he’d probably still be there or somewhere worst now that that guy knew his weak point. Just the thought of that made a shiver run down his spine and it seemed like the other noticed it as he felt a gentle and warm hand on his shoulder. Not really wanting to talk about this, he quickly let those words slip from his lips.

“Jeno . . .” He sighed and a small smile tugged at the end of lips, knowing that he’s saying them from the bottom of his heart. He really meant it. “Thank you, really.”

As an old habit, Jeno couldn’t stop himself from caressing Haechan’s hair softly, trying to calm him down since he perfectly knew why he changed the topic so abruptly. However, a smile still formed on his lips when he could hear the sincerity the words were laced in. A flinch from the other part, though, made that very same smile disappear and realise what he was actually doing. This resulted in him pulling his hand away and starting to apologise endlessly.

“I’m sorry. I . . . I did it without thinking much and . . . and . . .”

Unconsciously, his gaze diverted back to his shoes in shame for forgetting that they weren’t in a relationship anymore and he had no right to act like how he did. Because of that, he kept on keeping it low even when he saw Haechan sitting up through his peripheral vision. Jeno wanted to help when he saw him struggling but felt like he’ll receive the same reaction and will make the younger feel worst, causing him to keep his head low.

Another silence fell upon them once Haechan fully sat up and stared outside, thinking whether he should talk or not. At the end, he chose the former.

“No, seriously, thank you.” He started by thanking him again. When Jeno tried to say something, he continued without letting him speak. “Look, we’re not together anymore, and the fact that you still risked it to get me out of there, shows how much of a nice person you are in general whether you still have feelings for me or not. I will not beat around the bush and will just say it plainly, but you’ll have to listen.”

Jeno didn’t know what to expect but he still nodded, both his attention and eyes back on the brunette.

“When you asked to date, I didn’t believe in it one bit but I still hoped a little that it would work out. I gave you my hope and trust, both things you crushed.” Venom filled his voice and that made the elder flinch, knowing none of it was lie. “It would have only hurt a little had I not actually developed feelings for you, but surprise, surprise, I did! And it fucking hurt when you broke it!” A sob left his plump lips but he still continued. “It hurt. A lot. I thought I finally found someone who’ll stand by my side, understand me, and protect me. Someone I could love, take care of and support.