RIEUL

I stumble back into the door when the sun starts rising.

Jungkook's there at the exact same place I'd left him, curled up with his stuffed animal and breathing soft. And all I want to do is lie down next to his sleeping figure, but I needed to get to work.

I hadn't been able to sleep a single second because I'd been too busy watching Taehyung.

He'd been talking to someone— and it was a someone, I was sure. His psychosis.

At least I'd made sure he'd slept well tonight.

My head feeling all dizzy, I climb into my work clothes and kiss Jungkook on the forehead before leaving again. This time I don't go to the hospital.

Instead I go to the corner store.

"Hello," I greet the manager when I walk in, feeling lifeless as he points me towards a pile of boxes needing to be moved to storage.

"Young lady like you," He tilts his head before going back to the counter, pity in his eyes. "Shouldn't you be at home asleep right now?"

I force a laugh.

"I just need a bit of money." Then I hoist the first box into my arms, moving quickly back and forth until I've moved half the pile.

My eyes blink sleepily, before I force them back open.

Jimin didn't know I was working a third job. And neither did Jungkook, because I made sure to be careful not to let them catch on. I didn't want them to worry.

They already worried too much.

Two hours pass just like that, and I struggle back into the storage room with the last box. I feel so tired that I can barely move.

The manager finds me passed out against the racks.

"S-Sorry." I say when he shakes me awake, voice heavy as I pull myself up. He looks at me worriedly, before handing me a white envelope.

"I put some more in there." He says, and I smile gratefully in his direction. "Seriously, kid. Go home and sleep."

It's eight in the morning when I come out of the store, feeling more exhausted than I'd ever been in my life. My hands are shaking, and I'm walking with my eyes closed.

I finally give up after taking a few halfhearted steps around the corner.

Just a few minutes, I tell myself firmly as I plop down on the ground, leaning my back against the cold wall. Catch your breath, that's all you're going to do. And then you go back home, get ready.

My hospital shift started in an hour.

Just one minute. And then get up.

__________________________

"Noona!"

My eyes blur. I stumble back up to my feet when I realize Jungkook's looking at me with wide, scared eyes, his arms still gripping my waist.

"Noona, you f-fell." He panics, shifting his weight anxiously between feet to feet as I hurriedly find my balance. "What's wrong? Are you s-sick?"

I laugh, shaking my head.

"I just tripped, silly." I say, forcing my voice to be brighter to cover up the exhaustion. "Now go in. Look, the teachers are waiting for you, see?"

He looks back between the entrance of the school and me.

"Are you sure you're okey?"

"I'm fine." I giggle, blowing him a kiss as he uncertainly shuffles his backpack over his shoulder. "I'll pick you up later, alright? Make sure to have a good time."

I stand there until he goes up all the way to the entrance, watching him as he turns quickly and waves.

I smile.

After making sure he'd gone safely inside, I blink back to my half-dead state. It's honestly a miracle that I get all the way to the hospital, cursing all the way there inside my head.

Why do humans need to waste so much time on sleep to survive?

"Ri."

I look up to see Yoongi, looking almost as tired as I am. He's taking large sips from a coffee cup, and we both give each other an once over before raising an eyebrow.

Yoongi talks first.

"Why do you look like you haven't slept for weeks?"

"I was just taking care..... last night. I stayed up." I say vaguely, then shoot the same question back at him.

"Don't tell Head Nurse," He whispers low, taking another gulp of his drink. "You know that assignment she gave me to do? Well, I forgot about it until yesterday night."

"Yoongi!"

"What?" He shrugs, and I just shake my head in a never mind. I'd usually talk more, but today I didn't even have the energy to even breathe.

But I force myself to stand up.

"I'm going to restock the blankets for the patient rooms, okay?"

"What?" He mutters under his breath as I drag myself down the hall. I felt like I had to keep moving, just to stop falling asleep.

But my body feels heavier the more that I move it, and I'm about to turn the corner when I crash into someone headfirst.

I stumble back.

And the same time I look up, I pass out right there in the middle of the hallway.

Kim Taehyung.

What....

_________________________

TAEHYUNG

"Rieul."

But she won't wake up, and I curse under my breath as I lift her into my arms. She just sinks limply, her features totally slack as I scan her face once over.

What's wrong with her?

"Oh, Taehyung-ssi! There you are!"

I tilt my head slightly to see that woman I'd given my medication earlier. She comes rushing over, stopping when she sees Rieul unconscious in my arms.

"Wait, isn't that—"

"Jeon Rieul." I say, turning away. "Tell whoever's your superior that I'm taking her home. She's not well."

"But you need to take your medication back since you already paid—"

Ignoring her, I adjust Rieul's body and walk towards the parking lot.

I could take her anywhere.

But with a frustrated sigh, I shift her into the passenger seat of my car and lock the seatbelt as tight as it would go. Then I get in the other side, my eyes fixed on her passive face.

But she wouldn't like that, would she?

_________________________

The door's open.

I walk into the small house, lowering my head as I look around. There's no bed, so I just put her down at the pile of blankets stacked neatly on the floor.

She groans.

When I finish spreading some out, I move her to the middle and stare at her sleeping face. I'd come all the way to the hospital, angry that I hadn't found her next to me when I'd woken up.

But now I'm furious about something else.

"You left me to work, Miss Jeon." I say lowly, touching the deep dark circles under her closed eyes. "To work."

If only I could just take her.

My gaze skims over the inside of the little house. It's a one-room, with bookshelves and paintings hanging on the walls.

I raise an eyebrow when I recognize some of mine, a dark smile spreading on my lips when I see more of them covering the walls of the kitchen, the living room.

Her brother.

I turn back to Rieul, my mouth still curved. She shifts a bit when I touch her cheek, rolling over to her side and tangling the blankets. A soft whine escapes her lips.

My fading smile gets wider.

This girl.

Mine.