𝗬𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗘 ─ 𝗬𝗔𝗡𝗚 𝗝𝗨𝗡𝗚𝗪𝗢𝗡

XXII. How Can I Help?

"Thank you, I promise I'll make it up to you."

"You know that's not necessary, right? You aren't even the one I'm taking care of."

"Still, I'd like to thank you for helping me help him out. You guys aren't that close, so I figure I'm the mutual friend between you two. Just let me thank you, okay?"

"Fine. But know that I'm going to have to return the favor."

"Hmm, that's fine with me."

"So are you heading home?"

"Yup, just came here to bring you both some food. It's the least I can do to help. I'll come back again tomorrow. If you need me, I'm just a call away."

"Take care of yourself too. I don't want you ending up like Jungwon, okay?"

Minji softly smiles at Heeseung's remarks.

"Thanks. You get some rest too."

---

The bright rays of the sun enter through the translucent curtains in Heeseung's bedroom. The sunlight meets the skin of a young boy's eyes. Awoken by the bright light, Jungwon slowly opens his eyes to find himself in a room unfamiliar to him.

As he observed his surroundings, he saw several key objects that helped him guess where he is. Business Management Textbooks, a bunch of bucket hats, and a picture of a child in graduation attire. The child looks very similar to the person he had in mind.

Then, the door opened. Jungwon then saw the person he had expected to be the owner of the room.

"You're finally awake." Heeseung speaks as he sets down a tray with food on it.

"How'd I get here...?" Jungwon asks softly. The tone of his voice indicated that he was still weak even though he's now conscious.

"Minji brought you here. She found you at the school parking lot - passed out on the floor."

"Ahhh, right..." Jungwon murmurs to himself.

"Wait, you let Minji take me here? I mean, you agreed to take care of me?" Jungwon added. The whole time he's known Heeseung, the two of them haven't exactly been close to each other. It surprises Jungwon that Heeseung is helping him.

"Yeah. Minji asked me many times. She couldn't take care of you because she lives alone and...well, you're a boy. So she thought it'd be better if I take care of you." Heeseung responded, mixing the hot chocolate he had made for Jungwon.

"But why? Why did you say yes?"

"As I said, Minji can't do it, so I did. Plus, I wouldn't want you to get hurt. We don't exactly see eye to eye, but that doesn't mean I'd rather have you gone."

"Thank you hyung...really. I appreciate it." Jungwon said with a small smile of gratitude.

Heeseung nodded before asking Jungwon some questions regarding what happened.

"So what happened? You seem...weak. Really weak."

"Ahhh...I uhmm...must have fainted because of...the heat." Junwgon said in an attempt to hide what had happened to him.

"I'm not buying that excuse." Heeseung said as he's fixing the toiletries Jungwon will use.

"But it's really just that-"

"You've been unconscious for two days straight. I wanted to bring you to the hospital, but I know nothing about your information like your parents or guardian. I decided to keep you here and take care of you myself. And you have bruises on your stomach. That's not just fainting from the heat."