Kim Jinwoo – New York – Day 25

He didn’t even bother to go to the café. He didn’t bother to check if his shoes were matching. He didn’t bother to wait for the cab driver to hand him change. He just rushed out of bed and to her apartment. He had known that something was wrong when she hadn’t answered her phone the night before. He didn’t think much of it. He just assumed that she was too busy studying but he should have thought more of it. He should have tried calling her more than twice. He should have left hundreds of messages. He should have gone to apartment to check up on her. But why hadn’t he? Why hadn’t he cared that much?

When he got to her door, he searched everywhere for the spare key. He patted down the area and finally found it under the floor mat. His hands shook as he tried to insert the key and it took him several attempts to actually open the door. But when he did, he ran to her room and stopped when he saw her sleeping. She looked pale and cold sweat formed on her forehead. He could see her shivering. He could tell that it was more than just a cold. She had lied to him that morning. There was something to worry about. She wasn’t okay. She needed more than sleep and rest.

Jinwoo rushed to her side and called out her name softly. But she didn’t respond. He wiped away her sweat and checked her temperature and he wasn’t pleased with just how warm she was. Jinwoo panicked for a few seconds. His mind grew blank and he wasn’t sure of what he was supposed to do. When he saw her frail body lying in bed, under a mound of blankets, he picked her up and wrapped her up in warm clothes before carrying her down. He quickly hailed a cab and desperately asked the driver to rush to the hospital.

Waiting for her to get into a room and for the doctor to finish his diagnostic felt like a thousand years to him. But when he saw the doctor, who was fortunately Korean, he felt like time was passing by slower and maybe it almost stopped for a moment.

“She’s got multiple myeloma. It’s cancer of the blood and bone marrow.”

Jinwoo could feel his heart beating against his rib cage. He felt lightheaded and it felt like the floor beneath him was about to crumble. “What will happen to her? Will she be okay?” He needed to hear what he wanted to hear. A part of him knew the answer. He wanted to doctor to lie to him. “She can get treatment but she won’t be able to live long. She’s already in the mid to late stages of the cancer. She’s most likely got about a few years to live. I’m so sorry.” At the last three words, he felt his lungs caving in. He could feel the floor crumbling. He could feel the life being out of him.

Lee Seunghoon – New York – Day 25

“Oh, come on. It can’t be that bad.” Seunghoon tapped the edge of her sofa as he waited for Katie to come out of her room and when she did, he recanted his last statement. Her black eye was worse than he had imagined. Thankfully, it wasn’t too severe and she could still open her eye. “How did you get that again?” Seunghoon was still in a state of shock. “The door knob hit me. I chose the wrong time to get up. I look ugly, don’t I?” Katie sighed and hid her face.

Seunghoon stifled a laugh and stood in front of her “No, you look beautiful. It’s not that bad, trust me.” He grabbed her wrists and pulled her hands away from her face and he began to laugh when he saw how adorable she looked even with a bruised eye. Katie’s mouth hung wide open in shock when she saw him laughing. “I knew it! I look ridiculous. I refuse to show myself to you anymore until I get better!” Katie turned to run back to her room but Seunghoon stopped her.

He held her from behind and told her he was sorry, that he was only laughing because she was cute. He dragged her limp body to the kitchen and made an ice pack for her before putting it on her eye. Katie didn’t say thank you and just scurried over to the sofa. Seunghoon watched from the kitchen and smiled to himself. Even if there was a physical flaw on her, she still looked perfect. She still looked beautiful and she still looked like the girl he was in love with.

He watched her sit on the sofa, slumping forward with her lower lip jutting out into a cute pout. He heard her sigh again and again. And he still thought that she was perfect. He walked over to her and plopped down onto the seat next to her. He grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to face him. He removed the ice pack that she was holding onto and stared at her seriously. Then, to her surprise, he kissed her “ugly” eye. “You’re the most beautiful girl in the world, Katie. Your eye will get better but I still think that you’re perfect. Even if all of your teeth and hair fell out, I would still love you. If you were to become deformed or handicapped in any way, I would still love you. Do you know why?” Katie shook her head. “Because you’re Katie Hong. Your physical abilities or appearance doesn’t define you. I love you because you just shine. Your kind heart blinds me and it’s all that I can see.”

Katie began to smile and he did, too. To reward him for saying such perfect words, she pecked his lips before she attacked him. She pinned him onto the sofa and she giggled “Did you know that you’re the best boyfriend ever?” Seunghoon chuckled and shrugged “I thought I was but you just confirmed my thoughts.” With one more smile, they both leaned in for a longer and more meaningful kiss.

Song Mino – New York – Day 25

Mino and Minyoung just lied in bed, facing one another. They just lied there, under the warm blanket, in silence. They had spent the last hour like that. Minyoung would open her eyes every once in a while and she would look at Mino. She would question herself. What had she done to deserve Mino? Why did she love him so much? Why did he love her? Would he be with her forever?

“What are you thinking about?” Without opening his eyes, he asked her. She loved how his voice was lower and huskier than usual. And she loved how whenever she snuggled closer to him, his scent grew stronger and more comforting. Mino opened one eye and looked down at her as she buried her face into his shirt. “What’s wrong?” Minyoung shook her head lied still. Mino sighed in content and he held her closer. “Minyoung?” his voice seemed to reverberate throughout her small room. “Hmm?” her response came out muffled and soft. “Do you want to help me write the rest of my novel?” She looked up from his shirt with a quizzical look on her face. Mino looked down at her with an eyebrow raised.

She thought about it for a few seconds before nodding eagerly. Mino smiled and pulled away from her to reach for his laptop. He sat up in her bed and urged her into his arms. She leaned her head against his shoulder and stared at the word document. The last sentence caught her attention.

She hadn’t realized that he had loved her all along, scars and all.

“When did you last work on this?” Minyoung asked softly. Mino smiled tenderly “The night after we went to the bar.” Minyoung looked into his eyes and she could feel another wave of emotions coming over her. She felt like she was back in her bathtub, crying as Mino held onto her for dear life. She saw that his eyes were twinkling with adoration and promise. “Why do you love me? Why not a girl who is happy and free of ugly scars?” Mino lovingly brushed the back of his hand against her soft cheek “Because your scars make you all the more beautiful. They complete you. And I love that even with your own past, you care for mine. Your curious and mystic mind draws me in and your lovely heart traps me in there for all of eternity.” Those were the most beautiful words that she had ever heard and they seemed to be made just for her.

Minyoung glanced down at his tantalizing lips before capturing them with her own. He was more than eager to forget about his story once more and continue with theirs. He closed the laptop and set it aside as he pushed her back onto the mattress. As he hovered over her, he pulled away. “Minyoung, I love you, all of you.” He set them back up into the position they had been in before he opened his eyes. He grabbed her arm and kissed her scars, each and every one of them.

Kang Seungyoon – New York – Day 25

“Are you jealous? Mad? Pouty?” Jennie nudged Seungyoon’s arm with her elbow playfully. He turned away with his arms crossed. “I told you that I was the victim. I didn’t know he was going to hit on me. And it’s not like I fell for his cheesy pick-up lines. Come on, babe. You know that my eyes are only on you.” Jennie looped her arm through his and affectionately batted her eyelashes. She began to laugh when Seungyoon ignored her and continued the pout.

“Babe, smile.” Jennie sighed when her efforts were of no use. She got up and walked toward the kitchen but stopped halfway. She looked over her shoulder and stared at Seungyoon as he wallowed on her sofa. She smiled deviously as an idea came to her mind. Suddenly, she slapped a hand on her arm and yelled out in pain. She fell to the floor dramatically and quickly glanced over at Seungyoon to see if he was looking. And he was. He stared at her, dumbfounded.

“That guy’s girlfriend hurt my arm. It really hurts.” Seungyoon sprung up from his seat and knelt down beside her. He grasped her arm and examined the “wound”. He saw that there wasn’t a scratch on her arm. He looked at her and she sheepishly smiled. “I think a bruise is forming underneath my skin. It really hurts.” Jennie stuck out her lower lip and sniffled. Seungyoon couldn’t help but smile at her. He had been in by her cute and adorable act.

He lifted her into his arms and carried her over to the sofa before setting her down into a seat. He went back to examining her arm with feigned concern. “How dare she hurt you? Are you okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?” Jennie smiled brightly “Nope. I think I’ll be just fine. But I think I need a kiss to make it feel better.” Seungyoon grinned and pecked her lips gently. “I meant on my arm. But that works just fine.” Jennie giggled as she pinned him down to the sofa and bent her head down for proper kiss.

 When they pulled away, they looked into each other’s eyes as they smiled blissfully. “Want some pizza?” Seungyoon laughed aloud at her question. There wasn’t a moment when she wasn’t entertaining or hungry. He pecked her lips once more before giving her an okay. Jennie became a bundle of giggles and smiles as she hopped off of him and grabbed her phone. Seungyoon smiled at her as she happily ordered pizza. How was he going to live without her?

Nam Taehyun – New York – Day 25

Taehyun’s eyes darted back and forth from his sketchbook and Aena. A soft smiled appeared on his face as he watched her read a novel by his living room window. Some of her hair fell and framed her small face. She looked gorgeous. His pencil moved this way and that and in a few minutes, he completed yet another sketch of her. He stared at the paper and smiled proudly before his face suddenly contorted with pain. He grasped his right hand and groaned. Aena’s attention was now on Taehyun. When she saw him in pain, she rushed over to him and asked what was wrong.

“My hand. It hurts.” Aena grasped his hand and massaged it gently. After a few minutes, the pain disappeared. She wetted a small towel with warm water and placed it over his once aching hand before gently massaging it again. “You should probably take a break from drawing. Your hand is cramping because you’re working too much.” Aena’s face was etched with concern. Taehyun used his useful hand to her cheek tenderly. “Thanks for worrying but I can’t help it when you give me endless inspiration.”

Aena continued to massage his hand as she asked him a sudden series of questions. She asked him why he drew her often. Why did he feel the need to save her those nights? Why did he love her? Wasn’t she not good enough for him? Wasn’t she a burden? Wasn’t she flawed? Wasn’t she a despicable human being to him?

Taehyun removed the towel and grasped her hands in his. He stared into her eyes “Aena, you know that I love you, right?” Aena blushed but nonetheless nodded. “Would I be insane to ask you if you could just live here with me?” Taehyun’s sudden question caused her eyes to widen. “I don’t think I would ever be okay again if you left. You’re my inspiration. You make me feel all of these emotions I can’t explain. And I just can’t go a day without seeing you.” Aena gave it some thought “If you’re truly okay with it.” Taehyun smiled against her lips. He mumbled and “I love you” before deepening his loving kiss.