VI

The air smelled like lemons. A while ago he had his first meal of the day, which was a couple of toasted –hard– bread but a hot, tasty bowl of mushroom soup. What was to expect from hospital food? Tasteless. But now, it wasn’t. It was really delicious he had to say that. It’s been ages since he had salt in his tongue. After some minutes, some of the people he deemed to be those guys who keep his room clean came and started spraying the freshener around. It was the first time ever though. He almost believed someone was paying him special attention.

Donghae thought it was a bit weird though. One day barely nothing was happening and the next suddenly he gets air fresheners and tasty food. Somehow it was quite unnerving. What if somebody was planning something? What if they pamper him now because later on they will do something horrible to him? He doesn’t want that to happen. The nice feeling of getting these good stuffs vanished and was replaced with fear and paranoia all of a sudden.

Today was relatively different. Donghae decides on that after one nurse came in but didn’t ask him those same stupid questions. She just asked him if he liked the smell of the air and he nodded since he really liked the new air. She smiled at him –to him it was surely faked– then informed that his bath was in an hour or so.

Different really. He was sure of that. As the nurse had said, Donghae took his bath but the twist now was he didn’t take his usual shower in the same bathroom where he bathes with the other patients. It was secluded. There was only him, the same nurse who helps him, and the huge, white, bathroom. Oh, and he was inside a bathtub. That was really, really… insane.

It didn’t stop only at the bath. When he came back to his room, he was once again cuffed to his bed but his surrounding had changed. Instead of the blinding light above him, the room was dim but still bright enough. His eyes don’t hurt anymore when he looks up. The air still smelled lemons. The bed was still as comfortable as ever. And there were now two chairs beside his bed. He didn’t know what they were for but still it was different.

A knock echoed from the door and Donghae immediately tensed. Maybe it’s Hyukjae. But his soon smile turned to a frown when he did see Hyukjae entering the room but he was with someone. There was another nurse and a man in white lab coat. Hyukjae flashed him a small, hidden smile. The other nurse and Hyukjae stood behind the man while the latter took the seat.

He looked at the man now in front of him. He looked at the all too familiar man in front of him. The man had his hands clasped together leaning a little and his lips’ ends curled upwards. “Good Afternoon, Lee Donghae-sii.” He greeted in a velvety, soft voice. He glanced at Hyukjae for a second seeing him look at him plainly. Hyukjae was sporting a poker face and Donghae didn’t like it one bit. Then, it came to him. Maybe Hyukjae was acting? Right. So he should play along too, right?

“My name is Lee Jinki…” Donghae stopped as he heard the name. He felt the air suddenly became too tense and his ears rang loudly the name of the man echoing in his mind. He knows he knew this man! “… and I’ll be your personal doctor. Tell me, how are you feeling today?” He was brought back to reality when he felt the man’s hand on his arm.

He did not reply. He was frozen stiff. The man’s hand on his was slightly cold and it caused the hairs on his arm to rise. His eyes were wide and unblinking. The man continued to stare at him expectantly. Hyukjae, on the other side, was staring concernedly at Donghae who seemed to have a mental lockdown.

“Do you have problems with speaking?” Dr. Lee asked once again but Donghae was still unmoving.

“Sir, since he …came here, he hasn’t said a word. Rumours also said that he had stopped talking ever since his family’s tragedy. A lot of us have tried throughout the years but no one can make him say anything.” Donghae sighed relieved when Hyukjae interrupted stating what ‘he’ and the others experienced in Donghae’s presence. He was only half-lying. It wasn’t bad, right? It was the truth that almost everyone even the strictest nurses of the institution had tried to make him talk but no one could. He didn’t even expect Hyukjae could make him talk.

The doctor nodded seeing as the patient was nowhere near talking, “Would you mind if I check you up for a while?” The doctor removed his hand from Donghae’s arm and lifted his chin to his eye level. He opened his mouth motioning for Donghae to do the same to which the latter did obediently. Donghae was still dumbfounded seeing this man up close.

Lee Jinki examined Donghae for a few minutes asking medical questions here and there and the latter couldn’t understand a single thing. After a while, he sat back down, crossed his legs and looked at Donghae intently again. “Let’s run some few tests to see if there are any problems, okay? Right now I see some phlegm in his throat. Does he have cough?” Now he asked towards the nurses.

“Not that we know of, sir. He doesn’t.” The unnamed nurse replied politely.

“He doesn’t show signs of anything. It’s really hard to get through him.” Hyukjae said this time looking at Donghae.

“Okay then. But give him medications starting tomorrow before he gets a cold.” Ji