KANG SIAN

"Sian."

I open my eyes to those of an equally haunted one. Jungkook is a wreck— his face is pale and ashen, his usually straight hair all messy. There's a dark look in his eyes— and it worries me.

I sit up on the hospital bed, wondering why I hadn't been discharged yet.

"I'm sorry." He says, eyes avoiding mine. "I heard hyung went back unconscious— and he has a problem with his heart? I didn't really understand."

"Is it time?" A sudden voice perks up from behind the doorway, and I stiffen in surprise as Jimin's head pokes in through the door.

He looks around.

"Okay, not time." He concludes before disappearing back out the door. "Forget I was here!"

"I-I'm so sorry." Jungkook says quickly, glaring at the direction of the closed door. "He's really just clueless all the time."

My eyes feel bleary when I blink them, wondering how in the world I was supposed to tell Jungkook the fact that Taehyung was going to die in less than a week when I still couldn't accept it myself.

"It's not you fault." I say softly, crossing my legs on the bed as I shake my head. "He was.... already going to be like that."

Jungkook's head shoots up.

"What?"

"He was already sick." I can hear my voice get smaller as the boy's eyes grow wider. "I don't know why, and I don't know how to make it right. But he's going to die in a week."

It somehow feels better when I share it with him, even though Jungkook's face freezes when I do.

"He..... will die? But how does that make any sense?"

That's what I'm wondering myself.

"Patient 503?" A sudden voice of the nurse echoes at my doorway, and I turn my tired eyes to a woman who holds a clipboard. "Are you ready to be discharged? Patient 504 is waiting for you."

"What?"

I nearly fall off my bed as I rush to grab my jacket, almost forgetting to put my shoes on and almost leaving the room in hospital slippers.

"He's awake? Ready to be discharged?" I ask, can't helping the hope that fills my voice. "Doesn't he need to stay here longer?"

"There's nothing we can do for him here." She says, and I purse my lips together as she holds up the clipboard. "Are you ready to go?"

Even though I kind of want to just lie back down and never get up, Jungkook's steady stare makes me nod and force my feet into my shoes. It wasn't any use if I couldn't put a straight face here— what would I do when I saw him?

"Sian-ah!"

I barely gulp down a lump in my throat as Taehyung wraps an arm around my shoulders, his warmth still there even though I wasn't really sure about mine.

This boy will die in a week.

Shaking the thoughts off as best as I can, I kiss his cheek and try not to notice how noticeably pale he'd gotten. But instead I smile, and he scrunches his face up as he laughs.

"Hot chocolate." He suddenly says, pulling out a cup of steaming brown liquid behind his back. My eyes instantly widen as I quickly take it from
him.

"Taehyung! You could've burned yourself."

"Look, no burns." He says reassuringly, flipping his hands and showing me both his palm and the back. "I'm fine."

"Right." I say forcefully as I tug his jacket firmer around his shoulders, zipping it all the way to his neck. "It's cold outside, so keep that up, okay?"

________________________

Crap.

I completely forgot.

The eviction sign flaps at me mockingly, as if it was shaming me to forget that I no longer had a home. And neither did Tae—

"What are you doing?" Jimin pipes up, eyes curious as he pulls open the door to Jungkook's apartment. "Tae's already inside."

"Wait, what?"

"You can stay here." Jungkook's voice echoes inside the open door of the apartment, and Jimin anxiously stomps his feet on the ground as he looks back between me and the smell of meat cooking. "Hyung too. Don't worry about it."

"Come in."

"Wait— I can't just do that." I say shockingly, guilt already flushing my face as I chew on my lip. "I don't think I can just—"

As if he'd gotten tired of hearing me blubber, Jimin wraps his fingers around my wrist and pulls me into the apartment. And then a happy expression floats in his features as he pats my back and hurries toward the meat.

"Wow!" I hear Taehyung's bright voice, and I look up to see him chewing slowly with his eyes wide. Jungkook has a smile on his face as he takes off another piece of meat from the pan and places it on a plate.

He reaches out in my direction, but before I can even do anything, a pair of chopsticks appear out of nowhere and pluck the entire strip of meat off the plate.

Jimin happily chews, ignoring Jungkook's pissed look.

"Here." A deep voice suddenly echoes inches from my ear, and I jump in surprise as I turn to look at Taehyung smile as he shoves food into my open lips.

He pinches my cheek when I instinctively start chewing, his arms tightening around my neck.

"You're okay, right?" He asks, worry showing through his dimmed eyes. "Why are you being so weird? I mean— not weird, but—"

"You seem sad."

Surprise flickers through my features at the look on his face, and my lips purse when I realize I'd been acting strange without myself knowing. I'd thought I'd made sure to look fine.

"I'm just tired." I assure him, and I suddenly feel Jungkook's gaze on me, shifting to Taehyung. He turns back, lips pursed and eyes carrying the same weight as mine.

"I'll take care of you." He suddenly says, gripping my wrist and leading me to one of the rooms. I look back in shock towards Jungkook— this was so rude, acting like this at his house—

It's okay, He mouths, before gasping in surprise as Jimin jumps on his back.

"The nurse said you might feel really down after this, so she said to take care of you a lot and tell you a lot of stuff." He says, pulling me to his chest as he closes the door with his back.

Oh.

She was so nice.

"Stuff like what?"

When I ask curiously, he lowers himself down on the bed so that his eye level is even with mine. It's funny how my standing height is nearly the same as him when sitting.

"That.... That I love you." He mumbles, his large eyes steady and so intense that it makes me quickly scramble to say the first thing that comes on my mind.

"Where did you learn that from?"

He looks away for a second, and I almost laugh when I see him swallow. Then his fingers tighten around his knees, and he rests his head against my shoulder.

"You taught it to me."