43
Snowing in the summer“Hello, is this JunSeo?”
“Yes this is him speaking, you are?”
“JunSeo…” He heard a sigh followed by a pause from the other line before the person decided to continue, “SoAh, I don’t know if she will be able to make it”
“What are you saying? My sister is still well and went to the school fine. Who the hell are you!” Anger took over him and JunSeo forced himself to believe that the person on the other line was fooling him.
“JunSeo, this is Dr Park. You have to trust me and come to the hospital right now. I am afraid, afraid that SoAh… can’t pull through. She is in the Emergency ward right now and I will talk to you more when you arrive. Please be quick”
JunSeo paled, he didn’t know what he just heard. Hearing no response, Dr Park felt worried. “JunSeo? Are you still on the line?”
“SoAh…” his voice trailed off
“You have to stay strong for SoAh, JunSeo, please. And JunSeo?”
“Yes?”
“Be quick but please be careful on your way here”
Running through possible alleys that SoAh might pass by, he was panting hard but not giving up, he had to find her. He had to know that she’s safe, he had to know that she’s okay. He has been running for an hour now but still no signs of SoAh. He was getting restless, he looked at his surroundings to find himself standing at the crossroad, confused.
His mind was in a mess, he had ran down the same way for the 3rd time, he was confused. The thought of going to SoAh’s house didn’t crossed his mind once. He was not thinking straight, running around with no sense of direction.
“SoAh, where in the world are you” Mark’s eyes watered with the thought of her crying in his mind. His heart hurts and he was blaming himself for not noticing how pale and how fragile SoAh had become. She had lost so much weight but all he could see was the SoAh that dumped him because of money. How could he be so childish, teasing and mocking her every time she walks past him. He was getting desperate, he felt dizzy, he felt messed up. The tears slipped down with frustration that he had held up for so long. His legs grew wobbly and he fell on to the floor.
He tucked up one of his legs and covered his face as he cried out in defeat and frustration. For the 3rd time, his heart broke because of the same girl. He felt the worst, like something was blocking his throat, like a stone weighing down his heart, like his heart crushed to demise.
“Mark Tuan… what are you doing, get up” Jackson came by just in time to see this sight.
After Mark ran off, the rest of the Got 7 was waiting for his return but after 20mins, they decided to look for him. They split up when they realise he was not in school, defying the school rules that they never once obeyed.
“Mark…” Jackson was taken aback by Mark’s sobbing. He bends down to Mark and sigh, tears welled up in his eyes too. It was hard to see his best friend in this state yet he don’t know what to do. He didn’t know where SoAh went too.
“Jackson… I really don’t know, really. It hurts, why was I so childish” Jackson gave him a brotherly hug to comfort him.
Jackson’s phone rang and he broke away from the hug and picked up his phone.
“Yes JB? Mark is with me”
“Jackson… I know where SoAh is”
“Where?” Jackson was uneasy hearing JB’s tone, his eyes ducked to Mark who was still on the floor.
“We are at the hospital Jackson. Are you able to bring Mark here?”
“Why is she there? What happened to her?” Jackson was getting unsettled.
“Listen Jackson, I need you to bring Mark here as fast as possible, I will explain to you when we are here” with that, JB hung up without even waiting for Jackson’s response.
“Mark, JB called to tell us they found SoAh, do you…are you ready to see her?” Mark looked up at Jackson with hope, without much hesitation, he stood right up and demanded Jackson to bring him to wherever SoAh was.
After Dr Park called JunSeo, he took the initiative to call SeongJun too, because he knew that JunSeo would not be in the right state of mind to think straight. Both of them rushed down to the hospital. On the way to the hospital, JB had called SeongJun to check if they knew where SoAh was, and all JB heard when he picked up was a sobbing SeongJun.
“What happened? Why are you crying?” JB asked, shocked.
“SoAh, my baby sister… SoAh…”
“Calm down SeongJun, where is she?”
“I’m afraid… really… I am…”
“Where are you? I am going to go to you so stay where you are okay.”
“Hospital…” JB did not hang up the phone and waiting for SeongJun to hang up. He was shock, utterly shock to hear SeongJun crying so badly that he could barely talk. He told his other members and they rushed down to the hospital together before calling Jackson.
Upon reaching the hospital that they are almost so familiar with, they immediately got to the emergency room to find the two brothers crying beside the patient on the bed, with so many tubes connected to her, she looks small and frail. It was hard for them to believe that it was SoAh.
Bambam covered his widened mouth due to the shock, and the others was frozen on spot. They took smaller steps as they were closing in, as if afraid to hurt the three siblings.
“Hyung” JR had his hand around JunSeo’s shoulder, comforting him.
Dr Park came in hurriedly before approaching JunSeo, “I know its hard to take in ... I don't know if treatment would be able to help her, but that's the best we could do here.”
The others were looking at the two brothers, trying to recover.
“Of course. Of course I want her to get treatment.” A sob left JunSeo’s mouth, “please…just do whatever to save her”
It hurts everyone to see this scene.
“I would need you to sign some papers to prepare her for the treatment.” JunSeo agreed and followed him out.
“Dr Park, honestly, will SoAh will last until her turn for the operations?"
“We all know she’s a strong girl Junseo” Dr Park did not want to make any assumption that would seem like a promise to him right now.
It was hard to say, say that SoAh might go anytime now. Even the doctor himself didn't expect for everything to hit them so fast.
“What do you mean by if I don’t settle the bill now, I won’t be able to send my sister for treatment?”
“Yeah his right Miss Kim, can you just let it pass this one under my name? we will settle after the treatment”
“I am sorry Park sunbae, it’s the hospital policy, I can’t do this”
JunSeo was having trouble at the counter. It was required for them to pay off all the bills before SoAh can be proceed for treatment but the problem was with money.
“bill isit? I will pay for him. How can a hospital be so heartless” Mark appeared in the hospital hallway just in time to see JunSeo shouting at the nurse. He passed his card to Jackson for him to settle for JunSeo, before running to the ward in the fastest speed. His heart was thumping hard. He stopped in front of the door, swallowed his saliva, as he raised his trembling hands to twist the doorknob.
Moving slowing, step by step with his shaking legs towards SoAh, his lips trembled. Droplets of tears dripped down from his eyes. It hit him hard, to see SoAh in this state, what had he done to her, what had he not do for her. He led out a shaky breath. He sat beside SoAh carefully, not to touch all the tubes and held her hands tightly.
“I am sorry…” Mark cried out, “Sorry SoAh”
“I should’ve stopped you and demanded you for answers but all I did was pushed you away. Please, please you are going for treatment soon, so please, please last through and get well. If not, I will not forgive you. I love you baby girl” Mark buried his head in her palm that he held on to, crying his heart out. The other members were tearing at the scene.
“You are so bad you know SoAh, how can you just tell BamBam and not your brother nor us. I am not sorry for bullying you all these while because of what you did unless you get up and recover fast.” Jackson was feeling so guilty that he too, had cry.
“SoAh!” Mark stood up all of a sudden feeling something moved in his hands. “She moved! Her fingers!”
SeongJun too, stood up from his seats and took a good examination on SoAh, hoping to see that what Mark had said were true. YoungJae had ran out to find JunSeo.
SoAh’s eyes had barely opened, and she saw Mark, “So you had to know” She used up her breath to say it. “but I am sorry this had to be the end for us”
“This is not the end Min SoAh, I will take it that that night didn’t happened, you didn't break up with me, I didn't agree, we are still together” Mark’s tears couldn’t stop flowing, he was choking on his words.
SoAh used her little strength to remove her hand from Mark, even when it was no use, Mark realised what she was trying to do, and he grabbed her tighter instead.
“You are not going to remove yourself from my life ever again. I am not going to let you go”
“No Mark, find someone else. Can’t you see what state I am in now” She was trying her best to bring out every words, tears formed in her eyes.
“What are you trying to say min so ah, I am not going to give up on you. never. We are going to send you for treatment you understand. We are not letting you go, neither are you going to give up on yourself!”
“I am not ready to go yet. I am scared. But I have no choice, I-“ SoAh was getting harder to breathe until SeongJun harshly knocked Mark out of the way, asking SoAh to stop talking so much. SoAh smiled looking at her second brother tears stained face. She reached out her hands as SeongJun placed his face closer.
“Don’t cry Pabo oppa” She wiped off his tears that made him cry even harder.
JunSeo came in and pushed SeongJun out of the way. He ignored his panting and hugged SoAh tightly as he cries with her in his arms.
“Why are you guys crying. Please don’t cry. This is not what I want” She said so softly that only JunSeo can hear. He carefully put her back down and wiped his tears away.
“Alright baby sis, we won’t cry. Huh. Right, wipe away all your tears, especially you two” JunSeo pointed at Mark and SeongJun. They did as told.
“Baby sis, we are sending you for treatment right now okay? We are going to try our best to send you for the operation as soon as posible. Please...please stay strong for us. Please hang in there until then okay? Can you promise Oppa?"
“Oppa… I have something to tell you”
“What is it SoAh?” JunSeo leaned in closer to her so he could hear her clearly.
“Oppa…Please be happy, find a sister-in-law for me and live happily. Seong oppa too. And please, tell Mark to find someone he really loves, if…if I am not able to see him anymore” a tears slipped off SoAh’s eyes as she said that. It hurts her to know that she might not have the chance to see her love ones anymore.
“No, you get well and tell that to him yourself.” JunSeo tears dropped when he heard all those. He was never ready to part with SoAh.
SoAh was losing conscious, she was losing her strength.
Mark was watching from the side when it suddenly hits him. He in his tears and wiped his face with his hands before he took out his phone and left the room. He was afraid he might lose SoAh within these few minutes, he got to do it fast. He ran out to find Dr Park while dialing a number on his phone as he spoke in fluent English to person on the other side of the phone. He was getting too emotional and anxious that he raised his voice a few times into his phone.
"Dr Park..."he trembled, when he finally found the doctor. Dr park was instructing the Nurses as he turn to look at Mark, "I need your help, I need you to pick this phone up. I need you to tell them Soah's condition."
"What is it young man? Who are you calling?" He doesn't get what Mark is trying to do.
"They are from Massachusetts General Hospital... we don't have time to explain, please just tell him about her condition." Dr park quickly took the phone away and spoke while Mark ran back to the ward as fast as he could while hoping for the best. His family had some connections with the board of directors of the said hospital because they used to stay in US. He was trying his luck when he dialed the number because he wasn't sure if he had enough power to do so, after all, he didn't bother keeping the connection with anyone. All he could, was pray and tried his luck.
He stopped outside the ward, afraid to enter. The cries inside the ward seems to be louder then before he left. He was afraid of the worse. His dried up tears once again began to form in his eyes as he dragged his trembling feet in.
Before he even fully entered the ward, Dr Park came running past him.
"Thank goodness to your friend here, SoAh gets the priority to the operations." His face brightened, as Mark's ears perked up with hope. "JunSeo I need your help to arrange to get her to the US." He told JunSeo in detailed what the process would be like, and that SoAh is in a very critical condition right now. Thus he had arranged to be following SoAh on the flight and she would be going through the treatment process on the flight so as to help her last through the Long hours before the surgery.
Seongjun fell onto the floor as he heard the news, "is my sister really going to get the surgery?" They were slightly relieved that SoAh was able to get the operation but they were still praying hard for her to last through the torturous 13hours. No one knows what could happen to her during these 13 hours.
Mark shifted over to hug her second brother, "she will be okay, she will"
"You're right." Seongjun weakly removed himself from Mark and stood back up to Soah's side. " SoAh... you heard that? You will be going to US for the surgery, you are going t survive. Don't be afraid, we will be there with you very soon. Just” seongjun swallowed his cries, “Just please try your best to pull through till then okay? Promise me."
SoAh was losing conscious, she was losing her strength, “oppa....” Please don't follow me to the Us... so that even if I were to die, at least you guys would not feel the lost of my presence. SoAh thought but didn't had the strength to voice it out.
“no no no, stop talking SoAh. You will come back, healthily, recovered, understand?”
“opp..a…” Was the last thing SoAh said before she passed out. Everyone in the ward was weeping, Mark fell on the floor, disbelieved.
What was he supposed to do now? His heart shattered in to pieces and he barely had strength to move. He felt like his world had stopped. SoAh was his everything, and now that his everything is gone, he was lost. Jackson and Youngjae helped him up while JB and JR attended to the two brothers, while yugyeom stayed by BamBam’s side. Mark hugged SoAh’s lifeless body and cry, wailed. He was afraid that this is going to be the last time he can hold on to her like this. It was scary for him.
“Min SoAh please, please wake up. I cannot afford to lose you. SoAh ya, please.”
Dr Park rushed in with a group of nurses helping with the movement of SoAh’s body. They were moving in a very fast manner, not wanting to waste any more precious time.
“I’ve arranged to go with SoAh, so that nothing will happen on air. I know telling y’all not to worry is no use. But SoAh is a strong girl, she will pull through this. Get yourself together.” He told all off them, specifically her brothers and Mark.
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