Jihyun's POV
The door opened, and for the first time since the hour I woke up, my eyes moved from an empty space and turned towards it.
Baekhyun stood there, looking a bit surprised. "O-Oh, sorry... Did I wake you??" he asks silently.
"No."
"Oh... Good," he chuckled, entering the bedroom and closing the door gently behind him. "Does your head still hurt?"
"It... I feel way better now," I answered. That was a lie just to ride with another lie I made last night.
Last night...
I sighed inwardly.
"It just aches a little bit..." I quickly took back, not wanting to get off this bed yet.
"I've brought you medicine," he says, making his way towards me and sat right in front of me.
I smiled and sat up. "Thank you..." I uttered.
"What could have caused it?" he asks. "You seemed fine last night before suddenly disappearing. Then we just herd from D.O. that he's driving you home."
"I'm so sorry for leaving you guys all of a sudden," I said. "It just really ached so bad last night. I guess it was from stress or something."
"I understand that. Here's some pain killer."
"Thank you," I uttered, taking the pill and glass of water from his hands.
"Oh. I will go get you breakfast, alright??"
"I-I can get up---"
"I insist," he tells me, holding me down by gently pushing me down by my shoulders.
I sighed and just nodded.
"Wait for me here, alright?"
I nodded again and watched Baekhyun walk out of the bedroom.
I sighed and stared down at the pill in my hand then slid it in the pockets of my pajama. Then I proceeded to empty the glass.
Just then, Baekhyun came in with a tray table in his hands and a smile playing along his lips.
He walked towards me and then placed the table down in front of me as I shifted to a more comfortable position.
"Thank you, Baekhyun," I said.
"Anything for you." he beams and I smiled back.
"Have you eaten already?" I asked, though I am sure they already did.
He nods his head. "Just a few minutes before I came to check on you. So don't mind me here."
I nodded and started to chow down. D.O.'s meals are truly spectacular.
"If you want, you could rest after this. It's a Saturday anyway."
I shook my head. "It's alright. I'm completely fine already," I answered assuringly. "Could you... um... tell me what happened last night after I left?" I asked.
"Well, D.O. just told us he received a call from you saying you wanted to go home because you were feeling unwell. We were supposed to come along but he insisted us to just stay. But we didn't stay for long though and just started packing up and paying tight after he left," he answers.
I sighed, "I am sorry.. You had to end the night because of me."
"Hey..." he calls out, reaching out to hold my hand. "It wasn't your fault so do not apologize... Chanyeol left last night too. Speaking of which, I am wondering if you knew where he went. Tao says he saw you follow after him when he headed out."
I bit the insides of my cheek. The pain from last night still lingered, and the fact that it was just mentioned made the pain more evident.
I sighed once more, "I-I didn't know where he went... I just saw him drive away, that's all," I lied.
Baekhyun nods, his eyes travelling down onto the sheets.
I shut my eyes tight and forced to get the unwanted thoughts and flashbacks out of my head and continued eating.
"...If you don't mind me asking... Is there something wrong with you and Chanyeol??"
My eyes went wide due to his sudden question. Just then I found myself coughing as I choked onto the food.
Panicking, Baekhyun quickly handed me a glass of water he brought with him and I immediately gulped it down, my breaths heavy right after.
"T-Thank you.." I coarsed out before composing myself. "No... Nothing happened between Chanyeol and I."
"Oh... I asked because I was noticing some sort of distance between the two of you whenever you guys are together," he goes on. "Like, unlike when you two are together - you'd usually bicker all the time and just be pretty loud against each other. I am not quite seeing that cat and dog style of you two, you know," he laughs.
"Really now," I tried to laugh back. Though deep inside, I hated to admit it but he was actually right.
And I hate to admit it that I actually miss that side of us.
"I guess Chanyeol finally started becoming a man," I jokingly stated. "I mean, he is hanging out a lot with Choimin recently so maybe that shifted things a little bit. And I won't start anything between the two of us."
"That's not true."
"It is!"
"It isn't, Jihyun," he laughed. "There are times that you'd start the 'war' too."
"Hmph." I crossed my arms and pouted. "Majority of those 'wars' were started by him though."
"That I couldn't disagree with."
Chuckling, I decided to continue eating. After that, I persistently brought the empty plates and glass by myself and washed them.
The others questioned me about my state too and I just answered them truthfully.
Before lunch, the boys and I opted for a small tutoring session. It wasn't hard coping up since I already had some ideas about there lesson that I read from the textbooks yesterday.
"Gosh, Jihyun... It's still bizarre how you could manage to tutor us about lessons that we already knew before you did beforehand," Chen utters out in the middle of our Science session.
Luhan, who was busy reading some other things because he apparently understood the lesson already, raised his head from the book he read and replied, "He's right. I mean, we should get used to it by this time now but I swear - you keep surprising us all the time."
"I wouldn't have done it without your notes though," I pointed out.
"Stop dodging our compliments and being all modest," D.O. snaps with a smirk.
"Kyungsoo-ah!"
"What??" he laughed.
----------
"I'm heading up to the rooftop to catch some fresh air, just in case the other asks," I told D.O., fixing on coat and gloves.
He gave me a small nod before I turned to head out and up to the said place.
As I opened the door and felt the winter wind blow cold against my skin, I inhaled sharply as I shivered through the cold.
With a sigh, I walked up to the edge of the roof, rubbing my gloves palms together.
I held onto the railings and looked up into the night sky. There weren't any stars but the moon was shining bright.
"Jihyun.."
"Oh... D.O.." I uttered when the latter walked towards me with a small smile.
"You good?" he asks, his breath fogging up in the cold winter air.
I chuckled back, "I don't know," and leaned my back against the railings. "After everything that happened last night, I just want to take a break from everything else.."
"Well that's good... Healthy even," D.O. replies, going right beside me.
All of a sudden, I felt myself on the brink of crying again. I sighed, letting out a bitter laugh and looking up as I tried to stop the tears from falling.
"Ah... Why is this still happening??" I reached up to wipe some of the tears away.
"It's fine... Just let it all out," D.O. says, comfortingly patting my shoulder.
I took in a deep breath as I dropped my arms back to my sides. "After this night..." I uttered, jaw clenching lightly as I tried to hold back the other tears. "...I swear I would forget about everything that I had for him... I'm going to go focus on Baekhyun more - I am not letting my mind or heart drift off anymore... Not anymore..."
"Hey..."
I turned to D.O. and he faced me, holding both of my hands and looking at me by my eyes.
"Just remember... When you need someone to talk this about or ask for some advice.. I am always here, alright??"
I beamed and nodded, quickly pulling D.O. in a hug and whispering a silent 'Thank you'. To him.
"Do you think we can go down now?? I am starting freeze..."
I laughed. "Sure thing, Kyungsoo. Let's go."
He laughed back and followed me back downstairs.
"Where did you to head off to?" Baekhyun asks upon seeing us enter the door.
"We just went to catch some air from the rooftop," I answered.
"Isn't it freezing up there??" Luhan chimed in, walking in with a tray in his hands. "Here, guys... Have some tea."
D.O. and I took our coats and gloves off and sat down on the carpeted floor.
"Careful, it's hot.."
"Thank you," I uttered to Baekhyun and gently took the mug from his hands.
I blew the surface for a few seconds before taking some sip, sighing in relief as I felt the warmth fill me up.
After tea, we cleaned up and headed to bed.
"What the---This is not fair!!" Chen whined from his own bed. "D.O. you've been stealing all my preys, how dare you!!" he adds, with a scowl on his face as his thumbs rapidly worked their thing on his phone.
"Admit that you just suck," D.O. fires back.
"Quiet down," Luhan shushed as he placed down those jelly pads that go under the eyes. "Lay's already sleeping."
I turned to the latter who was indeed sleeping soundly, and I couldn't help but smile a bit at his peaceful figure.
"Aren't you going to sleep yet?" Baekhyun asks me as he laid down.
"I'll just finish one last chapter," I answered, motioning the book I had in my hands.
"Favor please??" he whispers.
I looked down at him. "What is it, Mr. Byun?"
"Play with my hair like you usually do to help me sleep.. Please.."
I chuckled and removed the pillow on my lap and beckoned him.
Baekhyun shifted under the sheets and placed his head onto my lap as I worked my free hand in his hair, tousling it with my fingertips.
"I'm gonna go sleep now," Luhan states and turns his bedside lamp off. "Don't stay up for too long guys."
"Yes, mom," Chen mockingly replied.
"I'll get you tomorrow morning, Jongdae, just watch.."
After a few more minutes, I finally finished the said chapter and decided to call it a night.
I placed the book on top of the beside table and dimmed my light down too.
Then I turned to the sleeping Baekhyun on my lap and carefully transferred his head onto his pillow.
I laid down beside him and pulled the sheets up to our chests.
I turned to my side, facing Baekhyun. I reached my hand out and gently brushed the strands of his hair from his face.
I'll just keep my focus on you. You and no one else...
----------
I woke up earlier the next day - even earlier than the others too. So I decided to do a little something and prepare them some breakfast.
I carefully slipped out of bed and the room so that I wouldn't wake anyone. Then I made my way to the kitchen and prepared everything I needed.
Trying to keep my mind busy, I played some music on my phone in a low volume and sang along as I started to cook.
"You were the shadow to my light, did you feel us..." I sang. "Another start.. You fade away... Afraid our aim is out of sight, wanna see us... Alive... Where are you..."
I trailed off when the song suddenly felt a bit more nostalgic because of it.
"...Was it all just a fantasy... Where are you now.."
I finally realized why.
This was the exact song Chanyeol sang and played that night when I first came to their hideout.
My, was his voice so deep but so good for the ears.. Full of emotions... Full off...
"Ugh!" I groaned and turned the music off.
Damn it. This couldn't go on.
"What in the..." muttering, I turned to the stove. Then my eyes widened in realization that the eggs I was frying was starting to burn.
"No, no, no, no, no..." I quickly ran up and turned the stove off and sighed. I grabbed the spatula and lifted the egg and groaned seeing how burnt that side was. "Ugh..."
I instantly transferred it onto a plate and just started to eat that burnt egg as I continued to cook the others.
D.O. and Lay came in a few minutes later and gave me a hand. After that, we started to eat as soon as the others woke up.
"Let me help you," Baekhyun says as I washed the dishes.
"Thanks.."
"Hey, Jihyun... What do you say about coming with me for my check-up today?"
"W-Wait... Check-up?"
He chuckled slightly before answering, "Yeah... Check-up. You do know that I have a slightly high sugar level, right?"
I was dumbfounded. "No... I don't know that?"
"Oh..."
"It's alright thought... I would go," I told him.
His face brightened up with a grin. "Thank you."
Since we had some business right after this, we took a bath, I went first before him, and then fixed ourselves up.
Saying goodbye to the rest, we headed out of the apartment and drove off with his car.
The reason we came early so that Baekhyun would be appointed earlier too.
We finally arrived at the hospital. Baekhyun and I exited the car and headed inside.
----------
"Your test results came out good, Mr. Byun. Just keep taking your medications until your sugar levels finally normalize and maintain them right after, alright?"
"Yes, Dr. Moon. Thank you very much," Baekbyjn says and we exited the clinic.
"I seriously didn't expect that your sugar levels were sort of high," I told him.
"I thought I already informed you about it back then," he says. "But yeah... It sort of runs in the blood. Both of my parents have the same conditions with me and discovered about this as young as I am currently... I discovered mine around three years ago when I had this sort of wound that took months to dry out like a normal wound in just days or weeks. And a lot of our ancestors died due to diabetes..."
"Well, you aren't a stubborn patient so I guess you won't have any more problems with that," I remarked, giving him a light pat on the shoulder.
He gave me as smile as his hand went up to mine that rested upon his shoulder. He squeezed it lightly before lifting it off, continuing to hold it as we walked out of the hospital.
"Say, Jihyun... What do you think about spending the rest of the day out??"
"Hm... Like a date??" I smirked subtly.
He smirked back. "If that's what you want to call it," he says, shrugging and I laughed.
"Then let's go!"
We literally ran up to his car and quickly drove off.
"What do you say we go shopping?" he asks. This boy really... Sometimes I feel like when he goes missing I could just head to the mall first thing and find him there immediately.
"You shop more than a girl should."
"Hey... It's not my fault it's my hobby..." he pouted which made me chuckle.
"I was just kidding. We would go shopping, but.." I pointed a finger. "Let me spend my own money this time?"
He shook his head which made me glare at him. "No, no, no. Let me spoil you, Jihyun-ah~"
"Baekhyun..."
He sighs. "Fine... I just want to shower you with my love~"
"You never fail to do so everytime, and it needn't to be this way, alright?"
"Alright... But..."
"But what?"
"Just lunch. I'll treat you to lunch - only lunch."
I laughed knowing that he wouldn't really let even one opportunity for him to treat me slip. "Okay. Just lunch."
We arrived at the mall and he immediately headed to the men's clothing floor.
I just followed behind Baekhyun as he went to one stall from another, constantly being asked about my opinions on some of the clothes he was putting in his carts.
"Let me help you with that," I chuckled as I watched him struggle with the amount of paperbags in his hands up to his arms.
"N-No... I... can manage."
"Come on... I insist," I said, grabbing one that nearly slipped off the tip of his fingers before he could even protest.
"Thanks," he laughed sheepishly when I took seven more bags from him.
"What do you say we bring this to the car first?" I asked him.
"Aren't you going to buy some things for yourself too?"
"Maybe a few books," I said.
We brought the bags to his car and placed them at the back seat before entering the mall again. Then we realized that it was already time for lunch so Baekhyun led me to a restaurant to eat.
Like said, he treated me for lunch before we continued roaming the mall.
"Jihyun look!"
I turned to Baekhyun who pointed at a bookstore. Excitement was written all over his face wherein I should be the one more excited about it since it was my idea. "Let's head there now!"
I shook my head with a silent giggle as he pulled me there.
The smell of the books is what welcomed me as soon as I entered the store and I loved it. The books were actually second-hand, I realized we were at a booksale. And that just made everything better for me.
I went through the aisles, going through one book onto another as Baekhyun went to find something to read as well.
It's admirable, to be honest - the fact that both Baekhyun and I have some interest in books too.
I sighed. That's great. I need more of these things to make me think about him more.
"Oooh.. What's this..." I muttered, grabbing one gigantic book as I placed my book-filled basket down. "...Popular..." I uttered.
Popular...
"Mr. Popular!!"
I groaned, shutting my eyes tight. My grip on the book tightened as a frown etched upon my face.
Putting the book back, I grabbed my basket and headed back to another aisle.
Damn it. No matter how much I try to get him out of my mind he always manages to slip in---
"Oh my gosh!!"
I stumbled down and the basket fell from my hand. I looked up and saw a concerned Baekhyun looking down on me.
"Jihyun! I am so sorry---I-I didn't see you there!" he apologizes, holding my hand and helping me up.
"N-No! I wasn't looking a where I was going," I said and bent down to place the books back in the basket, thanking Baekhyun as he crouched to help me. "I-I am really sorry.."
"It's fine.. I hope you aren't hurt?"
I shook my head with a smile. "No. I am fine."
"That's good," he sighs in relief, his gaze then dropping onto the basket I had in my hands. "You really love books, huh?"
"I couldn't get enough of them," I chuckled. "Are you finished looking for books yourself?"
"I'm good." he shrugs, bringing up the three books he had in hand.
"Same thing... Let's go pay for these."
We headed to the cashier, though I still felt a little disturbed about just bumping into him. But I didn't let that get further to me and just shrugged it off.
As I took some money to pay for the books, I subconciously turned to Baekhyun who had some sort of gloom in his eyes.
"What's wrong?"
He sighs, shoulders slumping, "I really wish I can buy those books for you."
I chuckled, facing the cashier once more to receive my change and take the bags that held the books. "It's fine, Baekhyun, really.."
"At least let me help you carry those."
"Alright."
He grins and takes two of the bags I had then we headed out of the store.
"Do you think we should go home now?" I asked him.
"I don't know... It's two in the afternoon," he answered. "You want to go home already?"
I shrugged. "Don't be offended... But I just feel like its not fair for the boys if we stay out for too long again."
He chuckled, reaching out to slightly ruffle my hair. "No offense taken," he replied. "But what do you say about passing by that French shop near the village and buy some boxes of macaroons?"
"Sounds good," I remarked with a small smile.
Baekhyun and I then walked side by side out of the mall and to the car at the parking lot.
"Oh shoot..." he suddenly hissed which made me glance at him.
He clicked his tongue after placing the paper bags down beside those that sat there earlier.
"I left my own bag of books!" he exclaimed.
I chuckled. "Let's go get them then."
"No, no. I'll get them myself. Just stay here alright?"
I nodded and he took that as a cue to run back inside the mall.
That guy really...
I chuckled silently to myself as I opened the door to get in.
But something from afar suddenly caught my eye.
At first I thought I was just seeing, because I felt like it was sort of impossible to see them here too.
But my heart thumped in a unusual way.
I took in a sharp breath as I felt that usual tightening feeling again.
As long as I stared, the clearer it get.
Not so far from where I stood, there was Chanyeol...
...hugging Choimin.
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Hey peeps! I am back again with a chapter!
Just a small warning, I may have some trouble with updating the next chapters because we are having that same problem with our WiFi and it sucks.
But I would still try updating of course.
Thanks for reading!
Love lots!
R.E.T. ♥