I Got Married to an Idol?! [EXO Kpop Fanfiction]

Chapter 24 - It's not always good

The beginning of the year passed by quickly and it was already time for EXO's latest comeback. Jiyoon was excited but also felt anxious because Luhan didn't come home as often anymore and slept at their dorm instead. He'd still call her and text her but nonetheless, she was still worried, even if Luhan had told her already at the beginning of the year that he would be busy.

Jiyoon was now at the mall with her best friends, it was the weekend and they had nothing better to do. Every time they walked past a music store, posters of EXO hung on every wall and in every window. She sighed, seeing EXO becoming so popular was great, but it also made her feel a little envious for having to "share" Luhan with the world. She touched the ring hanging from her neck and felt slightly reassured that they still belonged to each other.

Eunmi tugged Jiyoon's hand, startling her out of her thoughts. "Come on, let's go in! This is my favourite store," she said, dragging Jiyoon into a large music store. There were posters everywhere and a few life-size standees were scattered around the store.

"I'll buy you something if you stop pouting like that," Eunmi said, poking Jiyoon's cheeks. "You have to stay beautiful for your fiancé."

"Yeah, except his comeback is soon," Jiyoon whispered back, not wanting anyone to know. "So, he hasn't been around for a while. He's always busy these days."

"I know, I know! I mean look at Soyeon, there're practically hearts coming out her eyes." Eunmi turned Jiyoon around to see that their other friend was staring longingly at an EXO poster. "It doesn't matter too much, right? That he's not coming home often. I mean, you get to go backstage to see him when he has performances! That's pretty exciting isn't it?" Eunmi nudged her friend and gave her a sly wink.

"Ew, don't do that. But yeah, I guess so," Jiyoon sighed and crossed her arms. "I hope he does actually get me tickets or whatever it is. Maybe I can convince him to bring you guys along too, that'd be nice." Jiyoon moved closer to Eunmi to link her arm with her friend's. "I don't want to be alone while watching the performances; especially if I stand there and then he waves at me. I'd probably die from the daggers the other fangirls are going to shoot at me." Jiyoon shuddered at the thought, knowing full-well how those girls acted, considering she was one herself.

Eunmi tugged Jiyoon along with her to stand in front of Luhan's life-sized standee, before turning to look Jiyoon in the eye. "Look at him, this pretty boy. Do you really think he's not going to do everything for you and spoil you to death?" she asked, giving the standee's face a poke and causing it to wobble a bit. Jiyoon shook her head in response.

"Then there you have it. Since you already know what he's like. And besides," Eunmi turned to face Jiyoon and placed her hands on the latter's shoulders, "I doubt he'll ever leave you. I mean, you guys are technically engaged and you'll probably marry as soon as you finish high school or university. Oh, don't forget to invite me or else I'll come cast a spell on you! But I digress. Instead, you will probably be the one that leaves him. I seriously want to smack you upside the head every time you walk away from him or reject him. Have you seen the way he looks at you once you turn your back? Like a kicked puppy!" Eunmi exclaimed, only to be shut up by Jiyoon's hand over her mouth.

"Okay, okay, I get it. You don't have to lecture me, umma. But I guess I should be a little nicer to him, huh? I mean, my heart always seems to get this constricted feeling, as if I'm actually guilty about walking away from him. It hurts," Jiyoon sighed, her mouth creasing into a frown. "But what do I do?! I don't know how to handle him!"

"Then just shower-"

"SHOWER? What?!"

Eunmi slapped Jiyoon's arm, "Jeez, let me finish first! I was going to say, shower him with smiles and love." She rolled her eyes, and then went back to linking her arm with Jiyoon's. "Hahaha, what are you thinking, you naughty girl!" She pinched Jiyoon's cheeks cutely and pointed her chin at Soyeon. "Let's go fetch that lovesick one!"

The three browsed through the entire shop for the rest of the hour, ending up buying a few items - Eunmi bought the 'Luhan' standee for Jiyoon and a 'Chanyeol' one just to tease Soyeon; Jiyoon bought herself a new pair of headphones, while Soyeon didn't buy anything at all, causing the other two to tease her further. "Stingy! I even bought you a standee!" Eunmi whined, but she was smiling, giving away her joke.

As they stepped out from the store with their purchases, Jiyoon's phone began to ring. "Ah, you guys can go ahead to the food court. I'll be right behind you," she waved her friends off tucking the standee under her arm, as they reluctantly left her alone. She quickly answered the phone, not bothering to see who the caller was since she had set a specific ring tone just for this person. "Yeoboseyo? Luhan?" she answered.

"Oh! How'd you know it was me?"

"I set a specific ring tone for you," Jiyoon answered monotonously. She rolled her eyes and sat down at an empty bench with plenty of people about, just in case anything might happen to her.

"Ah, really? Aw, you're so cute!" Luhan cooed through the phone, causing her to cluck her tongue in disgust.

"Ew, stop it. Why'd you call me?"

"That's right! Where are you right now?"

"I'm at the local mall."

"Okay, that explains the noise. Well, I'll come to pick you up soon then. I need to see you right now. I've got some news," Luhan said his tone was serious. Jiyoon responded by sitting straighter and nodded, but quickly answered, "Okay," since Luhan couldn't obviously see her nod.

"Wait with your friends until I come. Where should I meet you?"

"I'll be at the food court. Probably near the fast food area," Jiyoon replied, a nagging feeling in her chest. Something was off with the way Luhan was speaking, but at that moment she couldn't think of what it was. She said goodbye and tucked her phone into her bag before heading off in the direction on the food court.

Luhan arrived to pick her up soon after in his usual disguise - hat, sunglasses and facemask, waving goodbye to her friends before he quickly took her hand and hurried to the car park. Jiyoon had to run to keep up with his fast pace; something was definitely wrong. "Why are we hurrying?" Jiyoon managed to puff out, just as Luhan's car came into view. He didn't reply, only opening the door for her to get in before shutting it and getting into the car himself.

The car sped out of the car park and out into the open road, merging with the traffic. Jiyoon stared pointedly at Luhan as he drove, trying to get his attention by waving her hand near him. But he didn't turn around once, his expression dark and brooding. The mood was suffocating and Jiyoon opened the window, hoping to relieve some of the tension in the air. What is he so upset about? He definitely sounded cheerful over the phone...

A million questions flooded her mind, and Jiyoon ended up blurting out the first one, "What kind of news is it?"

Luhan looked at her; his eyes seemed to swirl with sadness and he gave her a bitter smile, "You'll see when we get there, Jiyoon." He had used her name; a rare occurrence since he always liked to call her 'my love' or something along those lines. Jiyoon could only imagine how serious the situation was.

Soon, they arrived in front of a hospital - Seoul National University Hospital to be precise. She began to worry about who it was that had been hospitalised as Luhan got out and ushered her inside hurriedly. They passed by the front desk, the nurse nodding her head and pointing to her left. Luhan pulled Jiyoon along towards the elevator, pressing the button for the correct floor. When they arrived, Luhan once again pulled her along before stopping at the front of a room - number 825. There was a clear glass window looking into the room, and inside lying still on the bed, was someone sleeping.

"Who is it?" Jiyoon asked, tugging on Luhan's hand. She couldn't see the person's face clearly; they were wrapped up in the white bandages, making them look almost mummified. She just hoped it wasn't one of EXO, not when they just made their comeback.

Luhan sighed heavily, then took in a deep breath. He turned to Jiyoon, guiding her to sit on one of the seats facing the viewing window, mumbling, "You might want to sit down first," before holding her hand tightly and turning his eyes on her.

"You want to know who that is, yes?" Luhan asked. Jiyoon nodded, too afraid to speak. She could feel his hands shaking, see the the moist sparkle of his eyes, and the usually strong shoulders drooping.

"It's someone related to us, isn't it?" She asked timidly. Luhan remained silent, simply clasping her hands tighter in response.