Sunrise [Yungi FF]

27. Next Sunrise

Yunho sat on a temporary bed in the hospital. His shoulder wound, cleaned and wrapped in bandages, didn't hurt anymore, though it still ached if he tried to raise his arm above his chest.

"Stop staring at it." He chuckled, looking at Mingi. "It won't heal faster if you do."

"I know." Mingi tore his gaze away carefully. "I still can't believe I did that to you. I- I'm..." He trailed off and stared at his fingers that were fiddling with the fabric of his pants.

"Hey," Yunho said, leaning forward to take Mingi's hand. It was like slipping into a furry glove - always warm and comfortable. "I'm fine. This is nothing compared to what you had to go through."

Mingi stiffened at that. The memories of what he has done were still fresh in his mind, like hundreds of needles pointed at the inside of his skull - not lethal, but not pleasant at all. They also gnawed at his heart, a constant reminder that he had hurt so many people without even being aware of his actions.

"I'm happy enough to know that you'll never do it again," Yunho added, emphasizing the 'you'.

A squeeze on his hand made Mingi look up. He saw a reassuring smile on Yunho's lips and immediately his eyes began to sting with tears. Knowing those tears would fall if he spoke, he tightened his grip on Yunho's hand too, hoping that would somehow transfer his thoughts across.

Thank you for forgiving me - I don't deserve it but thank you for doing it so I have a chance to forgive myself.

A ringtone spared Mingi the need to actually say anything. Using his free hand, he took his phone and checked the caller ID. After a moment of hesitation, he said, "It's San."

He slackened his other hand but Yunho held on. "Give me the phone after you're done. I want to talk to him."

Mingi glanced up in surprise but obliged and nodded as he lifted the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

There was a long silence before San spoke. "I'm sorry I took so long to call you. When you ran out I thought you wanted to be alone, and I thought I was the last person you'd want to listen to. But Yunho's friend came back and told me Yunho found you and I was just so glad-"

"It's okay," Mingi cut off before his flatmate could ramble any further. San sounded so different, so anxious and worried. The usual confidence and firmness he had when he told Mingi to take his medications and stay home at night was gone. "You told me the truth in the end. You stayed with me all these years just to give me a somewhat normal life. I can't ask for more."

When San spoke again his voice was choked. "Yes you can. Even if you don't I will still do more for you. I will help you get proper treatment. You deserve to be happy with Yunho, so I'm sorry for trying to ruin that. I'm sorry for everything."

"I get it. You were just trying your best," Mingi said with a smile. Then he looked at Yunho and added, "Don't hang up yet, Yunho wants to talk to you."

Yunho took the phone from Mingi, feeling nervous all of a sudden. He released his hold on Mingi's other hand and diverted his gaze to an empty bed across him. 

For a while neither of them said anything. Yunho could feel the awkwardness creeping through the phone speaker, making him shift uncomfortably on his bed. He took a deep breath and mustered the courage to say, "I'm sorry-"

"You were right," said San at the same time.

Flustered, the word slipped out of Yunho's mouth. "What?"

"Everything you said this morning," replied San. Each word ended abruptly as if he wasn't quite sure if he was saying the right thing. "I thought I knew what was best for Mingi, but clearly not."