A second chance.
That was what I wished for.
The one thing I prayed for every night before I sleep. The one thing I prayed for, at the very night before I woke up in an entirely different life.
A new life.
My second chance.
❈❈❈
I was 30 years old wh...
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—First life. St. Vincent's Hospital, year 2026—
The desire to find out more about Jimin's story had led me to invite him back into my room that night, worried that tomorrow would come far too long. We sat side by side, sharing my bed with him lying sideways next to me. Empty plates from our dinner were placed aside as he started to tell his story.
We have never spent time together aside from our meetings at the ward, and that night marked the first time I would be spending my time alone with him. Which was probably the best decision, since we could finally talk more privately without curious stares and people openly eavesdropping our conversations. We had managed to convince some nurses to let him visit me in my room, carrying his dinner with him. I hated hospital food, and I couldn't eat anything during this period of my treatment. So it became the perfect excuse for him to leave his room, since everyone figured that I might be able to finish my meal if I had him to distract me.
"I've told you about how I was back then. About what kind of life I lived in after I started dancing and left school for it," he started, right after we finished our meal. We were both lying sideways by now, facing each other as we talked. I had only realised then how much closer we were than we have ever been before. But it was surprisingly comfortable and safe.
"Oh, I don't think I can forget about it so easily," I laughed, referring to the stories which he had shared before about his adventurous sex life.
He only chuckled, and I could not help but smile the moment I saw his eyes glowing mischievously. "I never would've thought I'd leave such an impression on you, really," he said as he took a deep breath while keeping his eyes on me. I returned his gaze and his sad smile with my own, silently encouraging him to continue.
"Remember when I told you about how much fame we gained from winning dance competitions?" he asked me, which I nodded to answer. I remembered when he told me about the events and competitions his dance crew had joined at the time, and kept winning, and all the parties that came along with it.
"We were invited to join a street dance battle that was held in a university across the city. Everyone we knew was there and we had a lot of fun that we got carried away in the middle of it. But we still won," he laughed. His eyes were glowing with reminiscence. "Everything went so well that we felt the night deserved some proper celebration, so we went to have drinks right after. At that same night, my cousin had invited me and my friends to join her and her boyfriend to camp out at their new lodge. It was located right at the foot of the hills, not too far from the university where she was studying at, and we were only a few miles away. For anyone who was able to think more rationally, driving there after drinking alcohol might not seem like the brightest idea. But we were so hyped and excited that we just ignored all rational thoughts."
"I bet you couldn't resist when you were offered a chance to have a free party—"
"—and free booze," he finished my sentence while laughing. "I honestly don't remember much of that night. Everything went well at first, I remember that much. We managed to drive there safely against all odds and had fun. My cousin and her friends made a bonfire, so we had a barbecue and more drinking. We pretty much partied really hard that night, I think. And what was planned as a camp night with innocent barbecue feast turned into a bonfire drinking party thanks to us joining in."
