In the streets of Seoul, early in the evening
JONGIN POV

I woke up to Sehun, gently shaking me. His features showed worry and concern, but some sort of anger was mixed in. I felt a throbbing pain at the back of my head and my body ached all over. I reached up to feel for blood but only sensed a bump that would surely grow bigger in the next hours.

I slowly recalled what had happened earlier, after I left my friends in such a hurry while we were having lunch. 
The man was not alone. The rest of his gang had been waiting for me a few streets down. But by the time I ran into their arms, he had already joined them. I cursed at my own foolishness for not expecting it. Of course, there was no way he would come after me alone.

I had ended up getting cornered and, being greatly overpowered, beaten up like a rag doll.

"Hey man, are you okay??" Sehun's voice brought me back to where I was now, lying on the hard pavement in some dark alley. I slowly sat up, moving my arms and legs to make sure nothing was broken. Everything seemed fine, if not pretty sore, so I raised to standing position with Sehun's help.

"How did you find me?" I croaked, wincing slightly at the pain in my jaw.

Still eyeing me over to check for any signs of blood, Sehun answered :

"After you ran off like that earlier, I figured you had some 'personnal buisness' to attend to, so I gave you a little time. But it was getting late and you weren't back yet, so I decided to sneak out and search for you myself. I found these guys beating you up and I kind of... panicked, so I told them the police were on their way."

"Anyways, thanks Sehun. You probably saved my today." I half-joked.

"Who are they anyway? Are those the guys you were talking about, the ones you owe money to?" Sehun said, the peak of anger I had noticed earlier resurfacing in his voice.

I only smiled at him, nodding slighlty. If only he knew. They were after me for way, way more than money.

Back at the dorm
JONGIN POV

"What the heck happened to you??" Kyungsoo whisper-shouted when Sehun and I entered the room. Chanyeol and Baekhyun hadn't even looked up from their loud video game when I limped by, still supported by Sehun, and the other guys had gone off somewhere, so we made it to the shared bedroom without any questions. But there was no way I would be able to hide from my best friend, even though I would have prefered to.

"Shhh, keep it down. I don't want the whole neighborhood to know." I hissed. He shot me one of those looks before leaving the room. By the time he came back a few minutes later, first aid kit in hand, I was seated on the bottom bunk bed. Kyungsoo proceeded in disinfecting the few cuts on my face in complete silence. He then ordered me to take off my shirt, which I did without questionning. He looked pissed and I knew by experience that it was best not to mess with a mad Kyungsoo.

He dabbed some ointment on several bruises here and there. He then put everything back in the little plastic suitcase and slammed it shut. Rising to his feet, my friend looked me dead in the eye and let out the question he was furiously holding in :

"Now, are you going to tell me who the heck did this to you?"

I looked at my feet uneasily, wondering how much I should let him on to. I myself still couldn't cope with what I had done, so there was no way I would tell anyone yet.

"It's those guys I owe money to." I decided on telling him the least I could, without sounding suspicious.

Hospital, 8:45 PM
JONGIN POV

I decided it was about time I visited my sister. I was aware I had neglected her the past few days, but so much had happened. Nevertheless, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt when I stepped in her room.

She was asleep, so I sat down on the visitor's chair next to her bed. I took her hand, holding it up to my face, and gently pressed my lips against her skin. It had become natural for me, watching her sleep. When she was first admitted to the hospital, they had given her some pretty strong medication. Each time I would visit her, she would end up falling asleep while I was talking to her. The treatment drained all of her energy and she was barely able to stay awake through a conversation. I had gotten used to it, and I had learned not to take it personnally. I waited for her to rest and when she woke up again, we picked up right where we left off, like nothing happened.

She had gotten better for a while, before relapsing a few months ago. The doctors had said that this time, she wouldn't get through it if she didn't undergo surgery. It was a very expensive surgery, and as her younger and only sibling, I had insisted on her getting it. Inah had stubbornly refused, not wanting me to have to deal with the costs of her own illness. But I had eventually conviced her that I was very capable of bearing the responsibility.

That's how I ended up owing money to some unrecommendable people. Sometimes, I regretted not asking my friends for help instead of a stranger. But I had decided it was best not to mix friends and money, and I was satisfied with my decision.

INAH POV

When I woke up, I was filled with joy at the familiar warmness around my hand. I rolled on my side, still firmly holding onto Jongin's hand, and watched him. He was sitting in what looked like an extremely uncomfortable position, but that kid could fall asleep anywhere. I frowned when my gaze came upon his face : it was covered in bruises and he almost had a black eye. Had he gotten into a fight?

Jongin stirred a bit before opening his eyes. When he saw that I was also awake, he gave me a sleepy smile and rubbed his eyes with his spare hand. He winced when he touched his swollen face, but quickly shook it off so I wouldn't notice. He then ran his hand through his hair, ruffling it.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty." he teased me.

"Morning, sleepy head." I replied. "Did you get here last night?"

"Yeah." he simply answered. "You were asleep when I came in."

An akward silence fell between us. I felt like something was bothering him, but he couldn't bring himself to tell me. He seemed preocuppied and his smile wasn't as full as it usually was. I decided not to push him : he would come to me when he was ready.

We had always been pretty close, even though we had a 5 year difference, him being the youngest. I could see right through his mask, even though others might not notice he was even wearing one. I could sense that something was bothering him, even if he tried to play it cool. I also knew that if I gave him a little time, he would talk to me. I was his only noona, after all.

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And there you go! That's it for today ;) I'll see how it goes and maybe update in a few days. If I get lots of interest, I'll upload frequently because, like I said, the following chapters are already written and published on Wattpad.

Thank you for the support, please comment your opinion ;)