It was on days like this, when Kyungsoo would curse the heavens. He swore he was ready to leave the earth, but Baekhyun was always there to stop him.

“Kyungsoo, calm down!”

“He called me a monster!”

Hurt flashed in Kyungsoo’s eyes, but Baekhyun ignored it. “You are used to it!”

Kyungsoo shook his head adamantly as he removed his white coat. “You never get used to it.” He sat down on the bench and stared at the cold floor.

“I hate repeating myself,” Kyungsoo said as he slowly removed his identification card that hung on his scrubs pocket.

“I know.”

“Could you deal with him today?”

Baekhyun’s face grew dark. He glanced towards Kim Jongin’s room and shuddered. “I’m not as strong as you are, Kyung. Plus, Joonmyeon has been keeping an eye on me lately. If he finds out I’m not with one of my patients, he’ll kill-”

“Byun Baekhyun, report to 203. Now.” The walkie suddenly sputtered. Baekhyun grimaced and braced himself for the worst. “203 always pees himself!” he exclaimed before running off. Kyungsoo knew he would be seeing an all out argument by lunchtime between his best friend and boss.

Kyungsoo closed his eyes and took out a small booklet from within a pocket of his scrubs. He quietly scribbled before getting up to do his rounds.  

Kim Jongin: Still no progress.

“Hey Doc!”

“Hello, Jongin. How is your day?”

“I think I remembered something!”

Kyungsoo mentally sighed. This always happened. Jongin would remember something and gave Kyungsoo hope, but the next day his brain would reset. It’s as if Jongin didn’t want to remember.

“What is it, Jongin?”

“Our first date.”

No.  Not that.

“Oh, please tell me about it,” Kyungsoo said as he looked down and prepared for yet another roller coaster of feelings.

“We went to the pool since I wasn’t sure where to take you and the movies was too cliche. We went and I drowned since I didn’t know how to swim and I got jealous that you were staring at the lifeguard. So I dived into the deepest level.”

Kyungsoo simply stared at the wall as Jongin continued his story. Their story.

“So then you saved me and once I was breathing again, you slapped me and threatened to end it with me. You made me swore I would never act stupid again. Then, you kissed me.”

Kyungsoo could already feel the tears. “You’ll forget tomorrow,” Kyungsoo said, mostly to himself.

“I won’t.”

“You will!” Kyungsoo screamed as the tears finally spilled. For the first time in 4 years, Kyungsoo finally shed tears.

“There’s a reason why you’re in here!” he shouted.

Jongin’s eyes remained still. He glanced down at the box in his hands and toyed with the ribbon. “You haven’t cried in front of me in 4 years...”

The moment those words left Jongin’s lips, Kyungsoo froze. “W-what do you mean?”

Just as Jongin was about to say something, a change in his eyes flashed. It went from love to hatred. Of course, how could Kyungsoo expect something else?

“Why didn’t you save me?!” he yelled as he began trashing. Kyungsoo stared dumbfounded. This has never happened before.

“I was waiting for you! T-they me...”

Kyungsoo’s eyes widened as his heart stopped.

“Jongin, repeat what you said.”

Kyungsoo took a step closer to Jongin, which panicked Jongin. “Stay away from me! You’re just going to hurt me!”

Kyungsoo knew this was wrong. It went against everything he ever learned. He might even get fired. At times like this, he was supposed to press a button which signalled back-up so he could tranquilize Jongin but this was different.

“Kyungsoo save me!”

At that moment, Kyungsoo lunged forward and  tightly hugged Jongin. Jongin was twisting and turning, but Kyungsoo didn’t care. He received a few hits and could already feel the bruises beginning to form, but he continued to embrace his lover.

“I’m here, Jongin... I’m here...” he whispered. Slowly, Jongin calmed down. “I’m here...” Kyungsoo repeated as he patted Jongin’s head.

Jongin closed his eyes and weakly smiled. “Kyungsoo...” he mumbled before he was plunged into a dark abyss within his mind.

Kyungsoo cheerfully walked down the hall and stared at the clock. Three more minutes until his shift officially began. Baekhyun, whose shift was about to end, showed up next to him and tsked. “Happy?” he asked playfully.

Kyungsoo grinned. “He’s making progress, Baek! It’s been a month and he remembers everything except the first year we met.”

Baekhyun nodded. This was way too good to be true.

Just as he was about to burst Kyungsoo’s bubble, he noticed how happy and alive he looked. He bit his tongue and kept his comment to himself. He bid farewell before walking away.

Kyungsoo waved excitedly and ran off to room 709.

“Doc! How’s my lovely boyfriend doing today?” Jongin cooed as he stood up and wrapped Kyungsoo in his arms. He pecked his cheek and enjoyed the vanilla scent that entered his nose.

“Awesome. Within two weeks, you can be dismissed. All tests came out negative!” Kyungsoo exclaimed. He was so happy. Jongin warily stared at his lover before releasing him from his embrace.

“Two weeks?” he asked.

Kyungsoo didn’t notice the insecurity in his voice and nodded. “Two weeks!” he repeated as he began to take vitals.

He documented the results and then threw his coat and task sheet on the table. He crawled into Jongin’s bed and enjoyed the company of his boyfriend.

Jongin shut his eye as he felt the box digging deep into his back. Slowly, a tear fell. Fortunately for him, Kyungsoo didn’t notice. He was too happy.