Sehyuk runs, holding onto his art canvas bag with no time to get to his motorbike. He looks back and Kihyun is closing on him at full speed. He wonders how a guy who has been limping his way throughout the day is running as if Usain Bolt's spirit just dropped into him.
"Today I will end you!" Kihyun yells adjusting the straps of his backpack.
Sehyuk curses, the sophomore sounding too serious to be joking. He has no other way but to wear him out and hide somewhere. He focuses on the path in front of him, trying not to trip or lose balance. The streets are crowded as it's a time when almost everyone is on their way to their homes. As the chase of cat and mouse continues, the two pass through bustling people on the footpaths and honking vehicles in the middle of the roads. If it weren't for Kihyun, Sehyuk would've enjoyed the light breeze on his bike, basking under the blue purples of the evening sky. But the boy is hot on his heels, with no sign of giving up. If Sehyuk could just lose him for today, the anger boiling in the other would simmer down.
He stops on the footpath, taking in a long breath, eyeing the other side of the road. He needs to cross it before Kihyun catches up to him. There's no traffic signal for the incoming cars but Sehyuk would be fast enough to cross. He braces himself, clutching his art bag and running towards the opposite end. He turns to take a quick look at Kihyun, only to find him wide-eyed, his hand reaching out as if to catch him.
"Min Sehyuk, look out!"
That's all the said boy hears before the headlights of a car blind him and its front bumps his shins. He falls on the rough asphalt and hits his head. The sounds around him disperse into white noise and the lights dull until there's nothing but darkness.
"Can we go home now? Do you have everything you wanted?" A man in his late forties asks, ruffling the boy's hair and patting it.
"Yes! Uncle Yeonwoo." The boy shakes the plastic bag in his left hand.
"Let's get to the car then."
The two walk, Yeonwoo holding the kid's wrist, and guiding him toward the parked car a few feet away from them.
"Balloon-man!" The boy yells, eyes almost sparkling at the street seller that stands with a bunch of hydrogen-filled balloons. He yanks his hand from the man's grip and runs to the other side of the street. "I want that!"
"Wait!" Yeonwoo fusses but the boy is faster, unaware of the traffic he has to cross through to get to the seller. The older man sprints, trying to catch up to the boy as a car approaches him. "Sehyuk!" He pushes him to safety in time but isn't able to do the same for himself.
"No!" Sehyuk jolts awake, breathing heavily, his mind still woozy and vision blurry. His head is aching and he squints to adjust to his surroundings. "Crap..." he presses a hand to his forehead, rubbing his eyes and sighing at the feel of a bandage wrapped around his head. He lays motionlessly, hoping the pain would subside soon. The last thing the blond remembers is talking to Jaemin and then being chased by Kihyun.
Oh, right! The strange dream that woke him up must be a manifestation of what happened with Kihyun. But...Sehyuk does vaguely recognize the man in his dream. He's seen him but doesn't know where. He shuts his eyes when a prickling pain hits his head.
"Min Sehyuk!" A loud voice booms as the hospital room door opens, a furious Byun Jaemin walking in with large strides. "For the love of anime, can you stop being so reckless and not try to kill yourself?" He huffs and sits on the stool near the hospital bed. "Or if you hate life so much, let me just choke you to death and be over with it."
"Threatening a patient may not bode well for you, Mr. Jae." Sehyuk chuckles, rolling his eyes. "I'm hurt, treat me with love and care."
"Yeah, right." The shorter of the two snorts, lightly slapping his thigh. "Luckily, the car just touched you enough to trip you, that's all. No other injury except for the cut near your temple ." He points at the bandage on Sehyuk's forehead. "They said you could leave when you wake up."
"How did you even know I was here?"
"Your new best friend called me, scared and guilty." Jaemin grins. "He just left after you woke up."
Sehyuk hums, sitting up and removing the blanket covering his body. "Let's go then, I have things to do."
"Alright." Jaemin stands and this time picks Sehyuk's bag up.
The blond puts his hands flat on the mattress to move from the bed, but he stills at the heavy feeling in his legs. He tries again, this time harder, with force but doesn't move. One last try and his breathing fastens, heart thrumming against his chest like a caged animal. "Jae..." he swallows his spit. "Are you sure...the doctors said everything was fine?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Because..." Sehyuk presses his lips together and folds them, sucking in a breath. "Because I can't feel my legs anymore..."
Jaemin snaps his neck towards the younger's legs, his eyes widening and eyebrows shooting up in horror. "If you're joki—"
Sehyuk shakes his head vigorously. "No, no, I'm serious!" And the dread that passes through his eyes is enough for Jaemin to blast out of the room to call the doctor. The blond sits still in a stupor for a few moments, his fingers curled into tight fists. 'Please don't let this happen. Don't punish me like this.' He keeps chanting in his head desperately, feeling an impending doom strangling him. If this is a way to redeem his past actions, Sehyuk's throat constricts at the thought. As much as this isn't dreadful like what happened in the U.S. he wouldn't be able to recover if he lost his legs. The back of his eyes sting with unshed tears and he grits his teeth together to stifle them.
"Hello, I'm Dr. Kim Haneul from the neurology department. You friend here tells me you can't feel your legs." The doctor starts as soon as he approaches Sehyuk, with a concerned Jaemin trailing behind him. He rolls up the boy's pants to check. "We didn't find any external injuries so assumed you were alright. But we'll have to run a few tests to get to the cause. Does it hurt when I do this?" He asks poking two of his fingers hard into Sehyuk's flesh.
"No."
The doctor turns and gestures to a man in a blue uniform. "Nurse Jung, please bring him into the room, we'll have to conduct EMG and NCV tests."
"Is...is he going to be okay?" Jaemin asks, his foot tapping impatiently on the floor.
"As far as I can say, it may be due to the shock of the accident that occurred or the car that hit him did damage his nerves. Let's hope for the best." The older man pats his back as the nurse pulls Sehyuk by wounding an arm around his waist and helps him settle in the wheelchair. Jaemin gives a tight smile to his friend and the other just nods in response, unsure of his voice being confident.
"You'll receive the test results in the evening tomorrow. Till then you can use the hospital wheelchair if it's still required by the time you come. Although, I'm hoping that wouldn't be the case." Kim Haneul smiles gently, taking a seat on the rolling chair and pressing a few keys on the keyboard placed under the monitor and on the table that supposedly holds the NCV machine. It's a metal cuboid with buttons and two insulated wires hanging from it, a taser-like device at the end of it. The doctor pulls it, while the nurse pushes up his pants even further. He then puts the taser-like device on Sehyuk's shin.
"The process will take about an hour, so sit comfortably." The blue-haired doctor then proceeds to explain the working of the EMG and NCV machine. Sehyuk is listening but the words don't register in his brain, too occupied with the whirring thoughts in his head.
"You needn't worry about it," the doctor states once he takes a look at Sehyuk's somber expression. "Stay strong and it wouldn't be long before you're up and running," he grins, eyes focused on the device in his hand. "Come with your parents tomorrow."
"I live alone. I'm a transfer student from U.S." Sehyuk speaks for the first time after finding his voice, feeling somewhat assured at the doctor's words. "It hasn't even been six months."
"Ah, I see. I went to L.A. to study medicine. Was skeptical about fitting in but did find good friends that accepted me." The doctor adds, "but since my family is in Seoul, I decided to come back and work here." He types on the keyboard with one hand, entering data on the screen beside him. "What university do you attend here?"
"Hanhwa."
"Oh," the doctor glances at Sehyuk momentarily, a hint of recognition passing through his eyes. A soft smile graces his perfectly proportionate, wide lips. "I hope you're having a good time."
"I am," Sehyuk replies. And he does mean it.
For the rest of the time, Kim Haneul engages the boy in random chatter, trying to distract him from the condition he's facing at the moment. Sehyuk genuinely appreciates the doctor's efforts and lets himself be taken in by the friendly aura around the blue-haired man. For a while, he forgets the incident that happened in his high school or the unsettling dream that felt too real, drawing his attention away from the pity in Jaemin's eyes or karma's way of messing him up.
"And that's all," the doctor says once he's done. "You can come by for your reports anytime after evening." He moves to stand behind Sehyuk and pushes his wheelchair as the boy leans to properly pull the bottom hem of his pants to cover his ankles and rest just above his Vans shoes. "The hospital provides automated wheelchairs. I suggest we get one for you for the time being. You just need to fill a form in the reception."
"Alright."
As they pass through the hospital corridor, a concerned Jaemin joins them and Kim Haneul fills him in on the details he talked to Sehyuk about. Not long after, the blond sits in a black electric-powered wheelchair with a joystick that helps it move in the direction he wants on his right side, his numb legs supported on the footplate below his soles. The leather under his arms is soft and the cushion sticking to his back when he leans is comfortable but the bile in Sehyuk's stomach rises at the thought of being a cripple, strapped to a chair for the rest of his life. He wants to throw up and scream into a void for the helplessness slapping him in the face.
"I'll see you tomorrow," Kim Haneul breaks Sehyuk's train of thought as they reach the hospital exit.
Sehyuk swallows, his situation becoming too real for his good, but he still smiles like he's been doing it for some months now. "Thank you for your kindness, Dr. Kim."
"Oh no," the said man bashfully dismisses him with one hand flapping in the air. "I'm just doing my job." He places a hand on Sehyuk's shoulder. "But gratitude is always welcome, so thank you to you too."
As they stand outside the hospital, waiting for their cab to arrive, a heavy silence stretches between the two boys. Sehyuk side glances at Jaemin, who's been fiddling with his fingers, the pads running over each other anxiously. "You know..." the blond clears his throat. "Didn't know your wishes come true within a span of a few hours."
"Huh?" Jaemin draws his eyebrows together in confusion.
"You said you'd break my legs and here I am, being offered to you on a silver platter," Sehyuk laughs, mustering up the largest grin he can for now. "Or more like on a black wheelchair." He then takes a look down. "Now it's the perfect time to be patting my head."
Jaemin freezes at the comment, his eyes blowing open and mouth parting in stupefaction. "I—I swear I didn't mean it! I'm so sorry!" He hurries to the younger's side, hands frantically hovering over him in disarray.
"Hey, hey," Sehyuk calms him down, holding onto the boy's shoulders. "You looked too tense so I wanted to lighten up the mood, stop being such a worrywart. I'm totally fine." He then settles back into the chair and puffs out a cold breath. "What's done is done, there's nothing we can do about it. I don't dwell in the past as it isn't going to do any good."
'Liar.' Sehyuk's mind supplies but he presses on. "Running away and taking the risk of crossing a busy road was my decision alone."