Disclaimer: All the events that are happening in this fanfiction is not based on any true story. All events are strictly based on the imagination of the writer.

***

*Seoul, after the accident*

The road to the hospital where Sunggyu was rushed to was full of tension. Right after the news registered into the members’ heads, there was a scramble to rush to where he was. Dongwoo was calling the CEO to break the news to him in case he was not aware yet. Sungyeol and Sungjong rush to the car that they rode on. Woohyun rode with Myungsoo who was the first one to get his car started. Hoya drove Dongwoo’s Infiniti Q50 because he was still on the phone.

As if they were racing against time, the members sped through the streets while hoping for the best. Sungjong quickly called the most important company staff members and asked for an update regarding the press. He wanted to help keep things as organized as much as possible in this situation. Sungyeol was muttering some incomprehensible words as he drove. Sungjong patted his hyung’s shoulder to calm him down. In Myungsoo’s car, it was painfully quiet. The atmosphere was so grim.  Myungsoo was clenching onto the steering wheel tightly. Woohyun was quiet and has so many things going through his mind. He thought about the last encounter he had with Sunggyu and regretted how the argument did not end well. The regrets were starting to sink in. He found himself running fingers through his hair and biting his inner lip to the point that it almost bled.

Jungyeop who just hanged-up the call collapsed at his office chair and found himself staring at one of the group photos he had with Infinite during their very first concert that sat in his office table. He saw Sunggyu’s beaming smile and suddenly the news that was shared with him played over and over in his head. “Sunggyu hyung got into an accident.” He suddenly imagined the scene – seeing Sunggyu bloodied and unconscious beside a very bad car wreckage – and lost all of strength all of a sudden. He can’t remove the image off his head. With shaky eyes, he left the office and rushed to the hospital.

In the hospital where Bora was admitted to, Soyou paced back and forth outside Bora’s room. She just saw the news. She found herself biting her nails. How is she supposed to break the news to her exhausted sleeping friend? At the same time, she was worried for the condition of Sunggyu. Two of her closest friends in the industry… One fainting because of getting over-worked and one getting into an accident, it makes her lose her strength even more. She slightly opened Bora’s room’s door and peeked in to see how she’s doing. She was sleeping peacefully. It breaks her heart to see her friend not knowing what happened to her boyfriend right now. She left instructions to the nurse who was attending Bora not to let her open the television while she was gone. Soyou also picked up Bora’s phone so as to refrain her from getting news from social media. It will not be good for her recovery to learn about Sunggyu’s accident right when she wakes up.

She left her a note saying “Unnie, please rest. I took your phone because the doctor said you should refrain from using electronic things for the time being. I’ll be back soon”. She then put on a mask, cap and dark glasses she always carry with her and headed to the hospital’s emergency department. Sunggyu was bound to arrive there soon. Their last conversation played on her mind. “Which hospital is she in?” Sunggyu asked with a hurried and worried voice. “Oppa you don’t need to come.” She said. She was worried that articles may soon come up if they were in the same hospital together. As if he read her mind, he countered “No, I have to. I don’t care about articles.” Soyou sighed and told him the hospital. “But oppa, you’re not worried about articles at all? Our companies wanted you two to hide it well but with what you’re doing, it might cause something.” From the other end of the line, Sunggyu sounded so determined and just said, “I can always make an excuse that I’m sick too.  Or got into a small accident. Soyou ya… Don’t worry. I can handle this.” He hanged-up after that. Soyou was so close to tears. He really is coming to the hospital but not in a condition she expected. In an ambulance, fighting for his life after a big accident… How is he supposed to handle this? And Bora…

*Seoul, Hospital – after the accident*

Just as the members reached the hospital, they saw some press people starting the gather. As much as they want not to get seen, most of the entrance has some reporter standing by. The members put there masks and glasses on. One by one, they started heading to the hospital building. They turned down every interviewee and ignored all their questions. It was a good thing that the hospital security did not let the reporters in. Woohyun and Myungsoo were the last ones to get into the building. Myungsoo had to use all the strength he has to hold Woohyun’s clenched and shaking fists. One of the reporters dropped a bomb just as they were trying to get in.

“Woohyun-ssi, did you let Sunggyu-ssi use your car so that he can get into an accident?” It was a very stupid and harsh question to ask but it got into Woohyun’s nerves. “Hyung, don’t!” Myungsoo chided in hushed manner. He held his clenched fist until they got inside. Woohyun found himself punching the wall just as they were out of their sight. He found himself cussing. Myungsoo, being the calmer one, held him in place and helped him calm down.

Woohyun collapsed to the ground and a single tear rolled down. Myungsoo saw it and he started to loosen his grip. “Hyung, I know it’s hard but let’s be strong…” he said but even he is started to feel choked. A heavy feeling started to settle into himself and he found himself getting teary-eyed. “I should have at least talked to him properly…” he murmured. He bit his already bleeding knuckles and tried to supress the tears forming in his eyes. They sat there for a while.

The emergency department was busy. The security was tightened in case there were reporters or fans that managed to sneak in. Since it has been broadcasted everywhere, even the patients in the department were curious and started to cause a commotion. Nurses were stationed to almost every patient in the department so as not to let the patients wander off to the operating area.

The members started arriving in the operating area to be greeted by a woman clad in a long brown coat and wearing glasses and mark. Perhaps because they’ve known each other for so long, despite the disguise, they were able to recognize her. Dongwoo noticed a security nearby and knew it was from her company but he was startled why she was here in the first place. “Soyou, when did you get here?” Dongwoo asked slightly widening his eyes. Soyou’s voice was shaky, “Dongwoo oppa…” was all she could manage to say before collapsing into the seat near her. Dongwoo sat beside her and pat her back.

Hoya, Sungyeol and Sungjong arrived not long after. Surprise cannot be erased from their faces. Did anyone see her was the first question in their minds. As if Dongwoo knew what was going on through their minds, he shook his head ‘no’. They sat opposite of them. Hoya stared at Soyou who was shaking – he would have been like that too but he wanted to appear strong. He was getting choked trying to stop the tears in his eyes but he wanted to remain strong.

Sungyeol stared at the door of the operating room – his mind focusing on the flashbacks of the moments he was with Sunggyu. They may not be blood-related but Sunggyu has been like a true brother to him. Like a brother from a different mother. With a ragged breath, he leaned against the wall and stared at the ceiling hoping to stop his tears from flowing.

Sungjong stayed near the emergency department that was overlooking the entrance. He was trying to contact the company staff to send representatives over to take care of the situation. Tapping his foot, he was on the phone for the majority of the time. His hyungs were too shocked to handle this matter so he figured he should be stronger for them and do them this favour. But even he started to get teary whenever he sees Sunggyu’s face in his head every few minutes.

Woohyun and Myungsoo arrived not long after and settled down to the seat beside Hoya and Sungyeol. Woohyun frowned at Soyou’s attendance. “Ya, why are you here?” he said in a hostile tone. Myungsoo grabbed his shoulder as if to stop him from saying anything more. The members stared at him. Soyou, who was still silent and shaking froze. “Who said I can’t be here?” she fought back in the same tone. “You told him to come didn’t you? That’s why he got into an accident!” Woohyun accused. Even if they were all wearing glasses, they can see Soyou’s eyes starting to seethe with anger. “What did you say?!”

“Are you deaf?!” Woohyun started raising his voice. “Nam Woohyun, stop it!” Dongwoo scolded. “Nobody is at fault here, do you understand?!”

As if trying to defend his stance, Woohyun continued “She probably called him about his girlfriend and because of that he rushed to the hospital the Bora is in. And because of that he’s like this now. And she’s here because she’s guilty!”

Hoya, who has been biting his lip the whole time stood up and grabbed Woohyun by the collar and said, “Get your act together. Nobody here is at fault. Every one of us here is here because of the same thing – to hope for the best. ” He walked out right after. He headed to the hospital’s rooftop to get some fresh air. “Sungyeol, take him away to get some air or something.” Dongwoo commanded, referring to Woohyun. Woohyun glared at Soyou before getting taken away by Sungyeol.

Soyou broke down soon after. “Oppa, I stopped him. But he insisted… He said he’ll be at this hospital and even if he has to feign sickness or small accident just to see Unnie he’ll do so… I didn’t expect him to get into an accident like this…” The rest of her words were incomprehensible and Dongwoo patted her back the whole time. Myungsoo who has been quiet the whole time finally spoke up. “It’s not your fault. Don’t worry about Woohyun hyung. He’s been through a lot today.”

There was silence after that. Even Soyou who broke down cried silently. “Myungsoo, why don’t you send her home?” Dongwoo offered. “She’s probably tired. I’ll stay here…”

Soyou looked up and said, “Dongwoo oppa, I’m okay. I’ll stay here. Bora is here too.”

“Ah really? Then Myungsoo should bring you there so you could rest.”

“Oppa, I’m okay. I’ll stay here until I hear something from the doctor.”

Not long after, Jungyeop and Sungjong arrived at the operating area. He didn’t seem surprised by Soyou’s attendance and seemed to know what’s going on. His face was gloomy and looked as if he’s aged ten years. The commotion outside seem to have died down a bit.

It has been about 4 hours or so when as surgeon came out of the surgery room. Dongwoo who was the most alert of the bunch stood up right away and rushed towards the surgeon. Soyou and L who were still around rushed towards the doctor too. “Are you the guardian of the patient?” he asked. “No, but I’m his friend.”

Jungyeop stood up and approached the doctor with heavy steps. “I’m his guardian.” He stated. The doctor took a long look at him before sighing. “We did everything we could do.” Jungyeop started to feel like he’s losing his strength. This sentence will somehow follow that hated sentence. No way. There’s no way Sunggyu would die like this.

“We’re sorry to tell you…”

Soyou found herself gripping tightly onto Myungsoo’s arm.

“He won’t wake up anytime soon.” As if a needle has been removed from their chest, Jungyeop and the others breathe a sigh of relief just to know he’s still alive. “He suffered from internal haemorrhage and even though we’ve taken care of the bleeding, he’ll be comatose. And for now, we can’t tell for how long it will take for him to wake up. He had broken ribs and fractures. He also suffered from lacerations, mostly in his arms. We’re currently attending to his back injury. It will take him a while to recover from this. We’ll be moving him to the Intensive Care Unit after that surgery.” For the people who were in attendance as they listen to the doctor, their facial expressions were almost the same. They also felt choked and their eyes were shaking. But still, there was this look of hope.

The doctor left them and they sat at their seats again before they lost more strength. Woohyun, who was in back to his senses came back with Sungyeol. He sat with Soyou and offered his apologies. Soyou just nodded. Dongwoo explained what the doctor had said to them to the two members that just came back. Although his current situation is not good, it was not bad either because they were able to dodge the scariest part of it – death. They stayed there until they saw a stretcher being taken out of the hospital room. All off them sprung up from their seats and saw a glimpse of Sunggyu with a bandaged head. Plasters and gauzes can be seen from all over his body.

Soyou found herself covering as she saw how bad his condition was. She finally collapsed to the ground. Myungsoo helped her up while he himself bit his lip as he saw his hyung’s condition. Jungyeop turned his back on it and pinched the bridge of his nose. Woohyun, found himself looking for a wall support as he saw Sunggyu’s condition. Dongwoo and Sungyeol stared on until the stretcher was out of sight before heaving a deep sigh. It will be a tough but they’ll try to survive this.

*Seoul, “Accident” Street – after the accident*

Soojung desperately tried to sleep but a lot of today’s events have been bothering her. When she had that almost unbearable chest pain and the voice in her head, when she suddenly regained a part of her memory and then she witnessed an accident that led to a discovery of another being like her. Was it fate? What did those things mean?

Just as she stirred from her sleeping position to face the street, she noticed that the man disappeared. She got alarmed. “Omo, where did that guy go?” She was somehow worried. She didn’t hear any noise from him. She stood and made her way back to the spot where he was lying down. The street was quiet. There were no cars passing by and everyone was still sleeping. She looked around. There seemed to be no one. How is it possible? Was it a hallucination? Was her brain playing tricks on her? It was a well-lit street but she can’t see anyone around? How can that man react so differently from her?

Suddenly, she felt a pull. As if there was an invisible force guiding her, she turned around and saw a faint light coming from the poorly-lit park near the street. “Ah, he’s there.” She told herself. His aura is starting to glow brighter as she got closer. She walked cautiously. She did not want to startle and scare him. He must be in a state of shock. She saw him seating at one of the park benches with his back facing her.  He was pulling his hair with his hands and he seemed to be shaking. Empathy was what Soojung felt at that moment. For some reason she wanted to sit beside him and comfort him. “What happened to me? Why am I here?” she heard him murmur. There was anger and confusion in his tone. Soojung cannot help but sigh. The man’s ears must have been sensitive because he quickly turned to Soojung’s direction as soon as he heard the sigh.

Just as Sunggyu turned, he saw a faint yellowish aura being emitted from the girl who stood about two and a half meters away from him. Was he hallucinating? “What are you?” he can’t help but ask. The girl did not seem surprised by the question. She casually walked nearer to where he was seating and he naturally inched away as much as he could while still seated at the park bench. “You finally woke up.” The girl absentmindedly stated just as she sat beside him. Sunggyu blinked a few times as if to convey his confusion. She stared back at him before realizing that he must have seen her aura. “Don’t be scared. I’m not a ghost. At least I think I’m not. I just called myself a Soul. And you are a Soul now too I guess.” Sunggyu gave her a look of disbelief. She gave him a smug look. “Do you want me to explain everything to you?”

Sunggyu gave her no response. Soojung sighed. “Basically, from what I know so far…” Soojung paused, trying to piece some things together and forming a hypothesis. “When you get into an accident and you don’t want to leave the world yet or maybe it’s not your time yet…” Soojung paused again. She herself isn’t sure what she’s saying but for now, to help him settle into his new world, she’ll have to come up with something. “You become a Soul like me. You are still alive but you can’t seem to get back to your body.” Strangely, it seemed believable for Soojung. It seems like a reasonable explanation of her existence. Maybe her body is really out there somewhere.

Sunggyu found himself frowning. “It can’t be. You’re lying. What you are saying is not true.” He started to walk away from Soojung and attempted to cross the street. A car was silently speeding through and Sunggyu didn’t notice it coming. Soojung, by instinct shouted at him to alert him. It was too late, the car was too close for him to move away. Sunggyu instinctively closed his eyes shut. It was taking so long for him to get hit. Did it stop? He slowly opened his eyes to find himself still standing. There was no sign of the car. He turned around and saw Soojung’s smirking face. She then pointed towards the road and he followed it. He saw the car slowly fading away into the distance. It left Sunggyu’s mouth open. “Now do you believe me?” Sunggyu slightly jumped when he found her already standing beside him.  He stood there frozen. He was trying to process things but nothing seems to be coming in. That’s when he wasn’t able to take it anymore and he dropped to the ground, knee first and screamed out loud while pulling his hair. He felt frustrated for some reason. “No, no, no. This can’t happen.”

Soojung just stared at him with an indifferent look. She felt unconcerned because she found it a normal sight to look at.

“I was supposed to go somewhere but I woke up lying on the ground like this…” His eyes seemed to be trying to search for an answer from the ground. But when he came up with nothing, he turned to Soojung with a pleading look. “What exactly happened to me?”

Soojung bit her lip and contemplated to tell him what she saw. Sunggyu, sensing that she knew something stood and grabbed her by the shoulder out of desperation. “Tell me!” his voice was raised and full of urgency. Soojung looked shocked at the sudden actions of Sunggyu. Sunggyu saw her widened eyes and loosened his grip upon realizing what he has done. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have grabbed you like that.”

“I-it’s okay…”Soojung stuttered. Sunggyu then noticed her small frame and short stature. She seemed to be nearly 160 cm tall but not quite. He offered his apologies again. This time, Soojung became more composed. “It’s okay.”

Soojung told him that they should find somewhere to sit first and be away from the road. Even if they were souls, Soojung from time to time finds it awkward to stay in the middle of the road. As she told him what she witnessed, Sunggyu looked more and more depressed. Knitting his eyebrows together, he tried to remember what happened what happened to him but there was nothing. Eventually, Soojung tried to ask for his name. He found himself frowning again. He can’t remember. Soojung shrugged, “Oh well, you’ll need a day or too also I guess.”

“What?”

“It’s the same for me. I didn’t remember my name until after two days… Give yourself some time.” Soojung said monotonously. She was running out of energy. She needed her sleep. Sunggyu just stared at her for a while before bringing his attention to the road once again… A thought suddenly came to Soojung’s mind. “How did you react the moment you woke up? I didn’t even hear you…”

As if breaking from a trance, Sunggyu stuttered as he asked her to repeat what she was saying. Soojung rolled her eyes. “Forget it. Do you have a place to sleep?” she asked instead.

“We can sleep?” Sunggyu asked, his small eyes widening. Soojung’s mouth hang open. Did that question just come out from his mouth? But collected herself not long after. It’s understandable. He just turned into a Soul. He doesn’t fully know how she lived. She breathe in deeply to control her emotions. “If you’re ghost, you don’t need to sleep. But beings like us? We get tired.” Soojung racked her brain and tried to offer more explanation – even if it something she can’t confirm. “You’re not dead yet. You still get tired. Let’s keep it as it is. If you want to get some shelter, follow me. But if you prefer staying in the open in an area like this, feel free to do so.” She started to walk away and towards her turf. She didn’t look back but she knew he was following.  She used the stairs leading to her turf, a rusty aligned parallel to the wall. She reached her balcony and jumped over. She then laid at the floor and found Sunggyu staring at her. “What?” she innocently said. “This is your shelter?!” Sunggyu said in disbelief. Soojung just uttered “uh” before turning her back on him. “It’s enough space for the both of us.” The balcony was quite spacey actually – a two by 3 metre balcony. It’s enough for them to sleep on. “Don’t you feel cold?” Sunggyu asked out of curiosity. Grumpy and tired, Soojung replied “Try for yourself. Beings like us do not feel temperature. Good night.” Sunggyu sat and hugged his leg and let his chin rest on his knee. He wanted to ask for her name but he didn’t want to disturb her much needed sleep. He also doesn’t feel sleepy. He focused on trying to regain his memory until he got exhausted and dozed off.

Soojung woke up briefly and saw the guy drifting off to sleep. She had a satisfied yet sad smile on her face as she went back to sleep. He's starting to adapt to the situation, she thought.

*Seoul, Hospital – after the surgery*

Myungsoo brought Soyou back to Bora’s room after they stopped by the ICU. It was already morning by then – 6am. Gladly, Bora was still sound asleep. “Will you be okay?” Myungsoo asked as he looked at Bora who was sleeping soundly. “Uh” was the only reply Soyou could utter. “Do you want me to stay with you just in case?” Myungsoo offered. Soyou shook her head no. “I’ll handle this. Don’t worry.” Myungsoo left soon after. Soyou sat at the sofa overlooking Bora. She sat there for a while – her brain empty of thoughts. She grabbed her things and headed to Bora’s place to get her a change of clothes. The company decided to cancel the group’s activities while Bora is recovering. While their individual schedules still goes on, Soyou asked for a break as well. She remembered how Bora cheered her on when she was the one recovering from her sickness 2 years ago. This time, she wanted to be the one there for her. Anyway, she doesn’t have much schedule to attend to. Perhaps it was fate because now that Sunggyu was in such a condition, Bora would need someone by her side to help her become stronger when she learns about Sunggyu’s condition.

Dongwoo stayed at the ICU area till around 7.30 am in the morning before going back to the dorm where he found Hoya asleep beside four cans of beer. Dongwoo sighed as he collected the empty cans and threw it at the trash bin. He nudged Hoya awake. When he finally woke up, he went straight to his bedroom and went back to sleep. Dongwoo sighed once again before heading to his own room to get some sleep. He plans to go back to the hospital again when he wakes up. He figured he’ll have to adapt to this kind of arrangement soon.

Jungyeop, Myungsoo and Woohyun drove to the police station – where some press have camped out to gather some information – to give some statement as to why and how come Sunggyu was driving Woohyun’s car. Woohyun left out the details of their argument about him quitting and told them the rest of the details – how Sunggyu recognized his car in Han River and that he told Sunggyu that he can use the car to go back due to a small misunderstanding and that it was the last time that they talked. They also asked about updates about the truck driver who was now missing after the accident.

Sungyeol and Sungjong drove back to the company to handle press matters. Although the company representative has already given an initial response, the calls and the presence of reporters have not died down. Due to the security at the hospital, the reporters moved to the company instead. They were camped out there to gather more information. Sungyeol heard from Sungjong that there were reporters claiming that it was the most explosive story of the year. Sungyeol was fuming with anger but he can’t do much about it.

At the company, Sungyeol was watching the news report regarding Sunggyu’s accident. The wreckage was showed in the video before a reporter was shown reporting from a police station. A clip of Myungsoo, Woohyun and the CEO were shown as the reporter started to say his piece “At approximately 8.45 pm in the evening yesterday, K-pop Idol Kim Sunggyu of Infinite got involved in an accident. It was reported that the car he was riding in collided with a truck that was trying to beat the red light. Nam Woohyun, the group’s member was present together with Woollim Entertainment’s CEO and other member L in the police station to give a statement about as to why his fellow member was using his car. Prior to this event, all the members were seen to have rushed to the hospital right after they’ve found out about it.” A clip of them going inside the hospital was shown to the camera. “Our sources have stated that Kim Sunggyu who was in critical condition has completed the surgeries but currently in the Intensive care unit. We’ve also found out that the truck driver who’s the root cause of this accident is currently on the run. More updates will be broadcasted soon. This is…” Sungyeol turned it off before the reported even finished his piece. He went to search for news article next and one article made his blood boil. The title said, “Infinite’s Nam Woohyun caused fellow group member Kim Sunggyu’s accident?” It was a ridiculous article and unheard of in the beginning. Who is this reporter spouting nonsense? “Lee Sungjong!” he shouted. Sungjong, who was talking with staff members rushed to where Sungyeol was. “What’s the matter hyung?”

“Tell them to sue this person.” He said, as he threw the tablet he was holding at the sofa. Sungjong took the tablet and took in the title. His eyes widened. “This person is crazy.”

“Exactly.”

“And also this person.” This time Sungyeol threw his phone towards Sungjong. It was another journalist spreading false information. “Just tell the staff to sue everyone releasing informations with no basis. These b*st*rds…”

Sungjong stared at the back of Sungyeol. ‘We’ll be able to adapt to this situation…’ he thought, trying to comforting himself.

Bora woke up finding no one in her room. It was already 8 am in the morning. The sun blinded her. As she sat, she noticed a note beside her. ‘Soyou’ she thought. Having spent so many years with her, she easily recognizes the handwriting.  She smiled at the note Soyou left. She stood up and dragged the IV drip with her to the windows. She wanted to close the curtains but before she even closed it, something else caught her attention. She noticed a small crowd gathering at the parking area of the hospital. “What’s happening?” was a thought that came to mind. She walked towards the television provided for her and tried to open it. It wasn’t opening. She looked for where the socket could be. After a minute, she finally found it. She found out the t.v. wasn’t connected. When she finally set up everything, she opened it and immediately flipped to the news. At first it was only showing general news. Then she saw her picture and a car wreckage being flashed to the screen. The reporter went to say that two idols are currently admitted into the same hospital – one was her and one who got into a car accident. The reporter went to report about Bora first. Just when he was about to report on the car accident, the television screen went black. Bora blinked a few times before she realised someone turned off the t.v. for her.

Soyou was so glad she reached back in time. She saw Bora watching the news about her as she entered the room. Then suddenly a car wreckage picture was flash. Soyou panicked and dove to where she hid the television remote. She quickly turned if off.

“Soyou ah…” Bora greeted in a slightly upbeat tone. Soyou felt like it was a needle in her chest. While she and the others are starting to adapt to the situation already, it’s not the time for her friend to know about it yet. She can’t adapt yet… Not yet…