My Little Lover

Four➷

The moment Changil opened his eyes, he noticed that he was already at a hospital. He couldn't recall much of how he lost consciousness, but he did remember seeing Hyebi's concerned face. He was also glad that he had not left the world just yet. But how long? How long could he hold on?

"Changil!" The first thing he heard was the worried cry of his mother and then found his parents running towards his hospital bed.

Changil weakly looked at them. On his mother's face, she held mixed emotions. She mostly looked relieved, but part of it, she was nothing but worried. Same went for his father.

"What happened?" Changil weakly asked. The oxygen mask on his face filtered his voice a little weirdly.

"You've been rushed to the hospital. Can you not remember what happened?" his father asked.

"I remember I was at school and fell off my chair but other than that... not really," Changil replied.

"Yes, you were at school. A teacher rushed into the library and immediately contacted the hospital to send an ambulance. You were already unconscious by the time the teacher entered," his mother filled him in.

"What about my friend? What about Hyebi?" Changil asked, trying to recall what happened after that. He must have already lost consciousness because he couldn't see any other memories.

"She's waiting outside."

Changil's eyebrows were raised after his mother said that. He was surprised to know that she was actually here in the hospital too.

"Do you want to see her?" asked his mother.

Changil weakly nodded. He wanted to at least apologize for the ruckus he had caused. He had probably scared her and he also wanted to apologize for that.

His mother nodded and walked to the door. Changil's family wasn't well off, but his parents always wanted the best for him. They always got him at least a VIP room.

Shortly, Hyebi was inside the room. She looked at Changil and he only did the same. He gave her a smile, hoping to assure her with just that. From the look of her eyes, he could tell that she had been crying. He felt sorry for causing her sadness.

"We'll leave you two alone for a moment. If anything happens, just call a doctor. Okay?" his mother told Hyebi.

"Okay," Hyebi answered back, bowing at his parents as they walked out.

"Hyebi, before anything, I'd like to apologize," Changil weakly said.

"Don't apologize. You're in no state to apologize. Are you feeling better now?" Hyebi asked, walking nearer to his hospital bed.

"Yeah," Changil answered. He looked at Hyebi and noticed that she was blaming herself, even if there were no heard words. He felt bad. "Hyebi, it's not your fault. I just wanted you to know that."

"I know it isn't, I just..." Hyebi inhaled a deep breath. "I was scared. I was scared you'd suddenly leave."

Changil felt his heart flutter at the small comment and smiled behind his oxygen mask. "Thank you for caring, Hyebi. Thank you for your existence in general."

Why does it sound like I would confess to her next?

Changil reminded himself that he shouldn't take that risk. Only because he didn't want her to suffer. What good would he do if he got together with her, only to end up leaving permanently in the end? No, Changil didn't want to be someone like that.

"Promise me you'll get better?" Hyebi asked, her eyes looking glassy again.

Changil knew he couldn't make promises he couldn't keep so he stayed silent.