Just one day

Waking up was difficult. His whole body was numb, like he wasn’t in control anymore. Actually, it was more like he was tied on the bed. It was hard enough to wake up and now it was hard to keep his eyes open. He knew he was moving, as the lights above him were rushing, but now there was just a harsh white light over him steadily blinding him, though his mind kept telling him that he was in motion still. He tried to glance over his head to spot the nurse, but there was no one. He focused on his sides. On his left, there was a wall that used to be white, but now it had grew yellowish. On his right, he could make out the open corridor and the dark chestnut hair of another patient waiting. The hair looked messy, like a bird had run through it, but he wasn’t one to judge. His hair was probably as bad after having the surgery hat removed.

 He wasn’t sure what was happening or why he and the other patient had been left there, but he suddenly felt the urge to take a better look at his comrade. Of course he still had difficulty to move, feeling all dizzy and disorientated, but he managed to turn his head. In his surprise, the boy also had his face turned to his side, looking at him as well. He looked innocent with his boyish look and his big, wide eyes. The first thing that came into his mind after seeing him was that he was handsome. The second thing was if he was seeing him. He was looking at him, but was he really seeing him, or was he still sleeping?

The boy blinked. Taehyung held his breath.

“Did they abandon you here too?” the boy asked, after a few seconds of awkward staring that almost resulted to Taehyung looking away if he wasn’t still numb from the anesthesia.

“I’m not sure…” Taehyung admitted. He started feeling sleepy, but just then a nurse showed up.

“You guys, be patient for a few minutes and we’ll take you to your rooms,” she said and disappeared again.

“Why are you in for?” the boy asked, not having taken his eyes of him.

“Appendix, you?”

“Nothing serious,” he replied, this time looking towards the ceiling. Taehyung felt that he was hiding something, but he didn’t say anything.

“I hope we meet again,” the boy smiled, as he was wheeled away down the corridor.

Taehyung followed up. He was helped on his bed and after a quick check up, he was left to sleep, closing the curtains all around his bed. When he woke up, he thought that he had dreamt all of it. But the pain over his lower tummy reminded him that at least part of it was real. He had decided not to have his family over, as it was an easy procedure and they lived away and it would have been difficult for them to come just to take care of him. However, he was starting to regret being all alone. He was dizzy from the medicine, in pain and all tubed up. He could hear voices all around him, but he kept his curtains closed, creating a safe nest for himself. Only the nurses came in and out, bringing him medicine and checking his pulse.

“Are you starting to feel better?” one of the nurses asked.

“I don’t really know.”

“You should try sitting up. Maybe walking. That will make you feel better,” she said and left.

Taehyung tried to follow her advice, but he felt exhausted only by trying to get up. He leaned on the back of the bed and stared at the closed curtain. On his side, the cloth was forming a small opening from where Taehyung could peek to the bed next to him. Till now he wasn’t curious about who was occupying the space next to him. But some movement caught his attention.  He could see through the small gap fluffy chestnut hair resting on a pillow. Taehyung’s room didn’t have a tv, nor did he know where his cell phone was located. So, watching the patient next to him sleeping was the best entertainment he had so far. He observed how the faint light created waves of golden silk on hair, like it was shining from an inner forces rather than the ill lighting of the hospital ward.

 Taehyung was so absorbed watching the hair that he didn’t notice the patient moving, until he realized that he wasn’t looking at the hair anymore, rather a wide open eye was staring back at him. Taehyung quickly turned his gaze away, feeling his face turning red from the embarrassment. Had the patient noticed or was he still dizzy from sleeping and thought that this was just a dream. Taehyung’s hope was crushed when he heard the curtains pulled aside. He tried to keep a straight face when he turned to face the patient, but he couldn’t hide his surprise when he came face to face with the boy that he had met in the hallway after the surgery.

“Do you believe in coincidence?” the boy asked and smiled, making Taehyung feel better and less awkward.

“Even if I didn’t, I should now,” Taehyung replied and smiled back.

“Coincidence is just a way for the universe to send you back to the right path.”

“So, the right path is to be here with you?”

“Maybe,” the boy answered, giving him a mischievous smile.

“You’re alone too?” Taehyung asked, observing that no one was around the boy’s bed.

“For now. You?”

“It’s not something urgent so…”

Taehyung didn’t know how it happened. Maybe it was because it was easy to talk to him. But, by the time the doctors came to check up on him, he had told Jungkook everything about him moving to the city to study, working at a lousy job to support himself, even that he hated the study course that he had chosen. On his behalf, Jungkook told him about working at his family’s restaurant, but always wanting to become an artist, though his father didn’t even want to hear any of it.

“He wants me to take on the family business no matter what. He told me that if I do something stupid like wanting to sing or something, I won’t be considered his son anymore and I should not come back home.”

“That’s awful.”

“We don’t really see eye to eye. And I would have risked following my dreams if my mother wasn’t sick. I can’t leave her with him to take care of her and he won’t let me do it if he doesn’t approve of me anymore.”

“Don’t you have any siblings?”

“My sister, but she is studying in the US.”

“We are turning the lights off now,” a nurse announced, their cue to go to sleep.

“I had a really great time talking to you,” Taehyung admitted, as he laid down, feeling exhausted all of a sudden.

“I knew you would hear what I had to say,” Jungkook replied.

“How so?”

“When I first saw you, I just knew that you would. It felt like it.”

“Well, you too are someone who I can easily talk to, oddly enough.”

“Then, go on a date with me,” Jungkook said.

“What? Are you serious?”

“Yes. Tomorrow, go on a date with me.”

“You’re crazy! We are in a hospital. We can’t go out,” Taehyung said, confused.

“We won’t. We will have a date in the hospital. Come on, what do you have to lose? You’re leaving in a few days anyway. Even if the date is a bust, you won’t even see me again.”

“I don’t know.”

“Didn’t we have a good time? Well, if you go on a date with me, we will have a blast. You won’t regret it, I promise. And I promise never to bother you again after it. So, what do you say?”

“Okay,” Taehyung said, without even realizing what he had just done. He spent the rest of the night rethinking it though. He hadn’t been on many dates and he had just come out of a really ugly relationship that caused him many hours of crying and self loathing. Was he ready to jump into something new and obviously adventurous? But, on the other hand, could he actually tell that to Jungkook and turn him down?

He made up his mind to cancel it first thing in the morning.  He waited for the nurses to come and then for the breakfast to be over and then for the doctors to come and s