old cigarettes | min yoongi

lx.

from the time the plane landed until the taxi pulled up at the hospital, it was all a blur for suga. a couple of times he knew that some people who had seen him had recognized him, and had taken pictures. he also knew that he looked like a wreck from crying, but couldn't care in the slightest. the only thing that seemed to matter was you.

during the drive, it struck suga how... normal everything seemed. it felt eerie to him as he stared out of the window where a light rain was collecting on the glass, blossoming into miniscule frost flowers. but of course it would be normal, why wouldn't it? just because it felt like his world was ending didn't mean that the physical world was ending.

as the drive continued, suga dully noticed something different underneath his fingers that had previously been kneading the edge of his shirt. he'd played with it so much that the hem had started to come undone, stray threads flying outwards. suga let out a short laugh at the universe's cruel attempt at symbolism. he was determined to make it to the hospital before breaking down into hysterics. no need to scare the poor taxi driver.

suga fiddled with the loose threads, making them even longer until the taxi finally pulled up at the hospital. he thanked and paid the driver, going to retrieve his bag from the car's back when he heard someone shout his name. jerking his head up and fearing the worst, he spotted jin-ae standing just outside the hospital's automatic doors, waving frantically. suga thanked the driver once more before jogging up to jin-ae, his suitcase dragging behind him.

"thank fuck you're here. i wasn't sure if you'd be able to come or not, but jin said he would try his best to get you over here." jin-ae said, smoothing her hair that was starting to look as if she'd stuck her finger in an electrical socket. it struck suga at this point how much more mature she looked. it was almost like she'd aged five years from the time that the car hit until now. it didn't surprise him in the least. after all, if his sister got hit by a car for the second time in two years, he would be going through twice the amount of emotional turmoil that he was already in now.

suga tugged his mask down to speak more clearly. "i don't know how he did it, but i definitely owe him one. but, what about nari? is she okay?"

jin-ae swallowed audibly, but waved suga to follow her into the hospital's waiting room. "i had to approve a surgery on her behalf, but apart from that she's apparently doing okay. there was some pretty nasty damage to her leg because it was the same leg that broke last time, so the doctor suggested that they perform the surgery on her leg to fix it before she woke up and felt all the pain."

"that's not good," suga winced, "but it could have been a lot worse. how bad was the damage to her leg?"

"completely shattered." jin-ae shuddered as she sat down in one of the plastic waiting chairs lining the walls. "the doctor said that if the surgery goes well and if she recovers well enough, she would only have to walk with a cane instead of a full-on wheelchair. either way, it won't ever be healed completely. she'll probably have a limp for the rest of her life."

suga chewed his bottom lip. "is she awake yet?"

"no. i don't think she'll be awake for a while. here," she fished around in the pocket of her bomber jacket, producing a set of keys. "the shop's not too far away. it's closer than the dorms. let yourself in and dump your stuff in nari's room. and maybe bring me a coffee and some food. the food at the cafeteria here tastes worse than cardboard."

"of course, your highness. would you like fries with that?" he raised his eyebrow at her.

jin-ae raised her eyebrow right back. "don't test me, it's been a long fucking fourteen hours." she let out a sigh, her voice softening. "please?"

suga rolled his eyes in response, tugging his mask back up before dragging himself and his suitcase back outside. it was still raining lightly, the clouds locking out the sunlight. it didn't take suga long to find the main street and then the music shop. he knew that the dorms weren't too far away, but it was an unnecessary distance. as well as the fact that going there and finding the place empty would only make him feel twice as anxious and distraught. it would be like a school at night. haunted with nobody there, not even the place's soul.

suga cracked open the shop's front door before he could let his thoughts wander to where the crash had taken place. thinking about that wouldn't do anyone any good either. the list of things to not think about was growing by the second. with a sigh, he turned to face the stairs. and then his suitcase. this was going to be fun.

after a particularly grueling experience of testing his strength against the combined wrath of the stairs and his suitcase, suga was very glad that he had packed light. well, lighter than the other members. which reminded him, jin said to check in with them once he landed. it could wait until after a coffee, though.

he flicked the necessary machines on before searching the fridge and cupboards for food. after he found enough for two sandwiches, he clumsily folded them up in the plastic wrap he'd seen while looking in the cupboards.

just as suga finished pouring the coffee into two travel mugs that he found buried in the bottom of one of the cupboards, his phone buzzed loudly. jin-ae.

"hey. get back here. a nurse just told me she's awake now."