Author's Note: (Read to avoid confusion)

This is a special chapter, a filler chapter. This one took place a few weeks/days before the boys got admitted to the mental hospital. This is like a flashback but it does not necessarily mean that the characters are thinking about it. The time when this happened may be confusing so if you want to back read to see what happened in the previous special chapter of Jaehwan ft Wonshik, it's in Chapter 2.5.

Wonshik's Special Chapter

After staying on the park bench for more almost a month, Wonshik had met almost every single kind of people—from the weird ones, the overly romantic ones, to the stoic ones, and the ones who were just living for the sake of it. He thought he had known every personality a person could have. But he stood corrected when he met a certain stranger with a big nose. That stranger—believe it or not—gave Wonshik the best advice a person could give to another.

Wonshik did not expect anyone to give such a great advice. He would not even consider it. Sure, before, it had crossed Wonshik’s mind at least once or twice but he thought that it was an insane idea—a crazy talk. But thinking about it, it was a nice plan.

To cut the story short, Wonshik found himself standing in front of the big building only several minutes later. He was in front of the biggest public mental hospital in Korea—the one that was funded by the rich Han family. If he had to be honest, Wonshik did not really care about who funded what. He only cared about the rumors going around—the fact that the said mental hospital was a bit too luxurious for patients and that the food there was as good as that of a five star restaurant. It might just be Wonshik’s dream come true. Or not.

“You wish to stay here?” The doctor, Dr. Choi, asked. He was confused because it was the first time that someone willingly came to the mental hospital with his own two feet. Dr. Choi stared at the stranger in front of him—a tough-looking 183 cm guy who looked like he had been sleeping for ages. Of course, the last thing that the doctor would expect was to meet such a guy in a mental hospital. Aside from that, the said guy had just woken up after more than an hour of sleeping on the couch of Dr. Choi’s office.

The guy—Kim Wonshik—simply nodded his head. “Yes, I’m out of my mind.” He replied, wiping his drool as coolly as he could.

The doctor looked skeptical about it. “Are you sure? I mean, people who have mental illness do not really go and tell the doctor that they have lost their mind. What aspect makes you think you are out of your mind? The part where you sleep a lot? Maybe, we can treat you as an outpatient.” He suggested.

Wonshik was not happy. Being an outpatient would not help him. He would not get free food or free lodging. Surely, he would not get anything good from it and that was not his motive. For a moment, he doubted if the advice of the weird guy in the park was helpful at all. Well, maybe it was not. Wonshik regretted getting his off of the warm bench of the park. He was not very fond of moving—not even a bit. Since he was already there, there was no way that Wonshik would leave just like that. The opportunity was already right in front of his face. He was not going to abandon the rare opportunity.

“I think we just have to observe you for a while. You must be a hypersomniac—an opposite of someone who has an insomnia. Let me ask some questions about your sleep pattern if you don’t mind me asking, Mr. Kim.” Dr. Choi stated.

“If that would make me a patient of this institution then go and ask ahead.” Wonshik nodded his head.

Dr. Choi shook his head. “I’m so sorry but no. I am planning on referring you to another doctor in another hospital—a sleep medicine specialist. He can help you more. Don’t worry, it’s also a public hospital and the Han family is funding it as well.”

Wonshik frowned. He knew himself that he was not hypersomniac so he could not act like he was if there was a specialist. “Why are you so judgemental?” He asked, recalling the interview of a certain trot singer. Yes, he slept in a park but that did not mean that he was not interested in news and gossips about celebrities. Before, he thought that he would not be able to use that hobby of his but he stood corrected. He could totally use the trot singer’s lines to the doctor—simply because the lines sounded crazy enough.

“Do you think I’m feeling okay every time? Just because I am smiling, that does not mean that I am not hurting!” Wonshik stated, forcing himself to tear up even when he, himself, knew how much he at acting. Once when he was in elementary, he auditioned for a school play as a grass but was still not accepted—in his defense, nobody told him that grasses should not snore when they’re asleep but pretending that they were not because their teacher would scold them. Wonshik’s acting career did not stop there because the next year, he auditioned as a tree with more confidence yet he was also rejected—those teachers did not know that they had been missing real talent, a future superstar.

Dr. Choi was taken aback and was quiet for a few seconds.

Wonshik, fully knowing that he really did not know how to act, knelt down on the ground and cried out. “Dr. Whoever you are, I really am out of mind already! Please, please, just take me in!”

“But people who have mental illness don’t really go begging to stay on a mental hospital.” The doctor commented, a bit freaked out because Wonshik was begging with his voice still as deep as it could be.

“Fine!” Wonshik huffed, annoyed. “I’m not crazy and I don’t like to go to the mental hospital anymore. I mean, what do I get here? Just free food, board and lodging, electricity, and water. What’s so good about it right? I’m just going to go back to the park and sleep there. It’s free and I wouldn’t have to argue with a doctor.” He said, giving up.

Dr. Choi nodded his head. “Now that I think about it, maybe you do need to be observed. I’ll have you confined in this hospital for the time being. I will just call the nurse.”

“Are you the new under observation patient?” An old nurse asked. Her eyebrows were furrowed as she looked upon Wonshik in disgust. “You look pretty normal to me. I mean, you look like a bum who just got up from the park bench.” She commented, narrowing her eyes. But she shrugged it off in a second or two. “Anyway, I don’t really care as long as I get my salary every month.” She firmly stated.

Wonshik nodded his head. He also did not care as long as he got his bed and free food to eat. At least, he would not need to work his off just so that he could eat delicious foods and sleep comfortably. He could finally relate to Leeteuk’s line in the song Mr. Simple: “What is so hard about this? We just have to eat well, sleep well and do well too, that will do.” That was exactly the life that he wanted and no one was going to ruin his dream that he just achieved with his own efforts (partly thanks to the weird man at the park). If Wonshik were to see that weird man again, he would thank the latter, of course. If it wasn’t for the weird man, Wonshik would not have the genius idea of staying at a mental hospital.

The old nurse eyed Wonshik one last time before leaving the male alone. She probably had some other patients to attend to but Wonshik could not care less. He was living the time of his life.

Wonshik believed that he had already achieved his dreams—his dream of being a bum who would not have to pay for anything, who was not forced to work just for a living. If he were to meet the sponsors of the mental hospital, he would probably go on his knees and cry out in happiness.

Wonshik burped out loud after finishing his dinner. He had been in the ward for days and he was living happily. He got the free life that he wanted. Sure, he had to admit that it was a bit boring to stay inside a white ward alone without any source of entertainment but he got the hours of peaceful sleep that he wanted! That was the life that he wanted to have. For some reasons though, he grew anxious that day when the old nurse—whose name was nurse Park—entered the ward.

“Mr. Kim Wonshik, a new patient is going to occupy the room across you. If you could, tone down your snores a bit.” Nurse Park said in a monotone. “He’s a bit sensitive because his cockroach died—not that I care.” She rolled her eyes. “But told me to inform you so that the new patient won’t bother you.”

“So, you mean, he’s like a guy talking to cockroaches?” Wonshik asked.

“Not like, he really does talk to cockroaches.” Nurse Park responded. “He’s bothersome so do yourself a favor and get out of here if you don’t wanna be doomed.”

Wonshik’s heart grew uneasy and it made him gulp. “I’m sure it’s not that bad.” He wasn’t sure. But he thought that the old nurse was just trying to scare him away. If he knew, he should have had listened then and just saved himself all the trouble and the problems.

Author's Note:

I've been gone for a long time, hello! Hahaha...