*Flashback*

“It’s okay Belle, please stop crying.  I’m trying my best.”  I tried to calm her but nothing was working.  She was too hot and getting hotter the more she cried.  “Excuse me sir, do you know where Myung Woo hospital is?”  I asked a man walking down along the sidewalk.  He pointed down the street and kept walking.  I started running in the direction he pointed.  As I rounded the corner I saw the sign for the hospital and sighed.  “We’re almost there sis, hold on.”  I was about to take off again when I felt something warm against my chest.  I looked down to see Annabelle passed out against me.  I held her tight as I ran.

I burst through the front doors, “HELP ME!!  Someone please, help me!!”  I yelled causing everyone in the emergency room to look at me.  One nurse came up to me, bending down to look me in the eyes.  “What can I help you with hun?”  I pointed at my sister, “Her, help her!  I think she has a fever, she won’t stop sweating and crying.  And I think she passed out on the way here.  Please,” I begged with tears threatening my eyes.  “Help my baby sister.”  The nurse took Belle out of the carrier that I had her in and took her to an open bed, I followed.

“I need an oxygen mask for an infant over here!”  The nurse yelled to no one in general.  But next thing I knew someone was bringing her a small machine with an even smaller mask thing.  I walked around the nurse to watch them put it on and nose.  “That won’t hurt her will it?”  I asked.  The nurse smiled at me and said, “No, it’ll help keep her breathing steady and make sure she is getting enough air.”  She went back to checking my sister’s vitals.  I just stood there staring at my Belle, laying lifeless on the big bed.  “If only I had gotten here sooner…”  I whispered.

The nurse that brought the machine over started working on my sister and the other nurse took me aside.  “What’s your name?”  She asked me in a sweet voice.  I glanced back to Belle then answered.  “Mark.”  “Well Mark, I’m Dr. Park Oh, it’s nice to meet you.  How old are you?”  I sighed, Why does any of this matter?  My sister is the one that is sick.  I thought.  “I’m 14.”  She smiled at me.  “Where are your parents?”  She asked looking around at the other people in the ER.  I shook my head, “We don’t have any.”  Dr. Oh stopped looking and stared at me in shock.  “Well we do, but they don’t care about us.  That’s why Belle,” I said pointing to my sister, “is so sick.  She wouldn’t stop crying and my mom said that she was just throwing a fit.  But I’ve taken care of her enough to know that something was wrong.  So I took her and we ran away from home.”  I said.

“Dr. Oh,” the other nurse suddenly called. “You might want to come look at this.”  Dr. Oh looked at me and walked over to my sister’s bed.  “She has a weird heartbeat, listen.”  “What?  What does that mean?  Dr. Oh, is she going to be okay?”  I asked starting to freak out.  “Shh, I need to be able to hear her heart.”  She said putting her stethoscope against my sister’s chest.  She looked at the nurse in shock.  “Do you think we can operate?”  She asked.  “OPERATE?!  What do you mean operate?”  I said, officially freaking out.

*Present day*

I felt something hit my leg, snapping me back to reality.  I looked down and picked up the ball, looking for who threw it to me.  Belle was dragging another little kid, by his ear, over to me.  “Just ask him for it.  He won’t bite you!”  She said in a huff.  Then she giggled and whispered, to where I could still hear.  “At least not very hard.”  She’s a bully.  My baby sister is a bully in a hospital ICU.  I thought laughing.  “I won’t bite you at all, don’t listen to her.  Is this what you want?”  I asked holding the ball out to him.  He shook his head.  “Here you go.”  I said holding it closer to him.  “Thank you.”  He mumbled, grabbed the ball and ran away.

“Who was that?”  I asked Belle.  “His name is Landon.  He got here about a month ago.  He has something wrong with his heart he said.”  She looked at me.  “Do you think it’s the same thing I have?”  She asked.  I smiled at her, “Who knows.  The doctors said that it was really rare.  They were surprised to find it in you, especially at such a young age.”  I grabbed her and set her on my knee.  “Want to hear a story?”  She smiled and nodded, snuggling up closer to me.

“Well, you know that we don’t have parents.”  I started, and she nodded becoming a little sad.  “But you have me, so why would you need them?”  I laughed, trying to lighten the mood.  “Once upon a time,” I started chickening out on telling her the truth, “there was a beautiful princess named Bell.  She lived in a castle far away from any village.  It was a beautiful castle, but not as beautiful as the princess herself.  One day, the king decided that the princess should not be prettier than the queen so he decided to lock her away in the dungeon and leave her there.”  She was staring at me.  I didn’t think this was that interesting.  Maybe I could work the truth in.  I thought and then continued.  “When her brother, the prince, returned home from battle he went to find his sister.  She was nowhere to be found and the brother threatened the king and queen for if they didn’t tell him he would cut off their heads.  With that they were scared and decided to tell him everything.  He ran to the dungeon to find his sister laying on the floor, stricken with an illness.”  Tears threatened my eyes as I continued.  She doesn’t even know this is about her.  I thought.  “He took her away from their horrible parents to the town’s doctor who healed her enough to take her to the next kingdom where she had to stay for the rest of her life to survive.  And she always said as long as she had her brother, nothing bad could ever happen to her again.  So the brother stayed with her, as long as he could, and they lived happily ever after.”  I smiled as she wiped tears from her eyes.

“Oppa, it’s like you and me!  As long as I have you, and these nurses, nothing bad will happen to me.”  She said smiling.  If only you knew sweetie.  If only you knew.  I thought smiling back to her.  She kissed my cheek and jumped off my lap.  “Thanks for the story Oppa.  It made me feel better.  I’m going to go play again.”  She smiled, waved and ran off.

I didn’t really do anything the rest of the time I was there.  I watched Annabelle play and occasionally played with her when she came running over to me.  It was getting close to their supper time and I wouldn’t be able to stay for that.  No matter how much Belle begged the nurses.  “Please!!  I’ll give him my food.  I just want him to stay.”  She begged.  But the nurse had to follow protocol.  “I’m sorry sweetie.  You know the rules.  Plus, you need your food to get big and strong.”  She smiled.  I nodded my head knowing that I wasn’t allowed there during or after supper time.  “Fine!  He doesn’t have to eat my food.  I’ll eat it in front of him and make him feel bad.”  I scoffed, Like that would happen.  I thought.  “Please, I just miss my Oppa and want to see him a little longer.”  She continued to beg.

I shook my head; I was getting tired of listening to her beat a dead horse.  “Sweetie, I’ll come back as soon as I can.  Your birthday is coming up and you said you wanted me here right?”  I asked.  She smiled and nodded her head.  “Well then I’ll see what I can do to be here.  And I might even have a surprise for you.”  I said winking.  She got really excited then started shoving me to the door.  “Leave!  Go so you can go get my surprise and come back!”  She said not trying to hide her excitement in the slightest.  I laughed and picked her up into a bear hug.  “I love you.  Be good or I won’t get you a surprise.  I’ll be checking with the nurses!  Don’t think I don’t have the number.”  I smiled and kissed her forehead.  I put her down and walked out the door.  Once it was shut I turned around to see her crying on the shoulder of the nurse.

I hated leaving her but one day, one day I’ll be able to take her out with me.  I sighed, got my stuff, and left.  There isn’t anything I can do yet.  I have to wait till she is better no matter how bad I just want to take her away and keep her safe.  I thought as I got in the van.  “You ready to go to practice Mark?”  Z, our driver, asked.  I sighed again and shook my head yes.  Not really, I want to stay here forever and never leave my sister again.  I thought closing my eyes as we drove away.

*At practice*

We were halfway through practicing ‘A’ for the 10^th time in a row when JB stopped the music, earning weird looks from us all.  “What are you doing?”  I asked the question that was on everyone’s mind.  He glared at me and then looked at the others.  “Wouldn’t you all like to know where Mark went earlier?  I mean, I sure would like to know what you’re hiding.” He shot me another look before continuing, “We are practically brothers Mark, and you shouldn’t lie or keep stuff from us.”  I grabbed a water bottle and rolled my eyes.  “There are some things in life that you are allowed to keep private.”  I sat on the couch and took a swig of the water.  “Yes, you guys are my brother and I love you all.  But there are just some things about me that you don’t need to know about yet.  You’ll know soon, can we just leave it at that?”  I asked looking back to them.  Everyone expect JB shook their head yes.  Big shocker.  I thought.  Maybe I should tell them, but I doubt they’d understand anything.  Maybe it’s better if they don’t know.  I couldn’t decide what the right thing would be.  I almost yelled all the cuss words in the book, but then I remembered I wasn’t alone in the practice room.

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