Nine
SanctuariaI can't see anything.
The darkness around me make me suffocate, even though I can breathe just fine. My throat feels itchy, so I scratch it out of the habit. My legs feel sore, and my hands flail around, looking for a wall or something so I can lean my body there. I walk forward and backward, left to the right until my back hit something. Without thinking what is it, I slide to the ground and lean on it. My breath hitch, and I rub my chest, hoping that it would comfort my lungs to breath properly.
Suddenly, my head throb painfully. I knock my head with my hands, knock it on the wall, anything to ease the pain, but it didn't work. My back arch, making my legs even more hurt than before. I can feel tears streaming down from my face, and I let out a sob, hoping that someone will help me.
The pain last longer for awhile, and when it stop, I feel nothing. I'm at ease. And then, I don't remember anything.
•••
The of my cheek, that makes me wake up, and when I open my eyes, I can see grandpapa is looking back at me. I frown a bit and try to sit, wondering why he's here in my dorm room but then he hold me back and shake his head. I lay down when I see his firm gaze on me. I badly want to ask him something, but the words don't want to come out. I can hear a shuffling of feet making their way towards my bed, and then I see Joohyun, holding a tray with Luhan beside her.
"Oh, you're awake?" Luhan says, sounding so relief that I can see his shoulder slump. Joohyun does the same, and she walk to the other side of the bed and carefully put the tray on the nightstand. I glance at the clock and sees it's 10 p.m. I sigh and try to sit again. This time, grandpapa don't push me back, instead he helps me. After I settle down, Joohyun pushes a bowl of porridge in front of me and I take it without hesitation.
"Tomorrow, you don't have to go to school," grandpapa open his mouth for the first time, making my jaw drop a bit. Grandpapa suddenly raises his finger. "Nu-uh. I won't accept any appeals." I pout and look at Joohyun, but Joohyun just give me a look.
"What?" I burst and then I hear someone snort. Luhan moves a bit, and I see Lay sitting in the corner of the room. I glare at him and he just raise his hand in 'I surrender' manner. I sigh and frown at grandpapa. "But why?"
"You want to go to the school with this condition?" Luhan asks and scoff, crossing his arms. "I don't think so."
"Yeah, and care to tell us who did this to you?" Joohyun gives me a piercing glare and I duck my head. But then I remember the last few words that she asks for me and I frown at her in confusion.
"What do you mean?" I ask, and her face immediately change to a confuse one.
"You don't remember?' she mutters, and I look at her like she has grown two heads.
"Remember what?" I ask, taking a sip of the porridge. Joohyun turns her head to look at Luhan, grandpapa, Lay and then back to me. I stare at them one by one. "What?" I incredulously ask, looking at grandpapa.
Lay sigh all of a sudden. "I told you she won't remember anything," Lay says and Joohyun let out a gasp.
"You don't remember me?" she shrieks, holding my shoulders. I let out a yelp when she start to shake me, making the porridge fall out from the bowl and drop on my bed a bit. I groan and send a pitying look at my grandpapa. Grandpapa snorts and takes Joohyun away from me.
"Joohyun sweetheart, calm down," grandpapa brush her hair. "She remembers you. If she doesn't then Ji Ae must be wondering who are you, who are us," he say and I can see Joohyun calm down a bit. Then she settle down next to me and put her head on my shoulder, ignoring the porridge stain on the bed.
"Then why she didn't remember a thing?" she asks and my eyes look up at the ceiling, wondering what she meant. I barely hear someone sigh before a hand grab my shoulder and then suddenly, my vision display everything that was happening before. There's me with Luhan and Minseok sitting in the library, I'm going to the toilet, there's a girl behind me and she started hitting my head on the wall, I fainted and then Sehun came by and started yelling something and then Jongin came, picking me up and sent me to the infirmary. After that, I can see myself waking up and started running away, in which Jongin followed me.
Everything makes sense now.
I gasp when the vision of flashback end and I stare at them, who all looking at me with anxious, worry and concern. Within a second, I start to cry and spill all the things that happened to me this morning.
•••
My grandpapa was - of course - furious. But immediately calmed down once Luhan told him that he would try to find the culprit. Joohyun just hugs me and said that she will never leave me alone. I kind of flattered with that. Meanwhile, Lay just sit back in the corner of the room and spaced out. Luhan, on the other hand, just wore his blank face. I didn't know if he was angry or upset with what happened. He just stood there and continued to calm my grandpapa down. I was surprised to see him with Luhan. He looks like he knows Luhan for so long. But then again, maybe it's just me.
It's nearly 1:00 a.m. now.
My grandpapa is sleeping already on Joohyun's bed. Joohyun is beside me, spooning me and already far away to dreamland. Luhan and Lay are probably in their own dorm, sleeping. I can't sleep, maybe because I already slept most of the day. My fingers fumbling with Joohyun's, thinking of what should I do.
In the end, I decide to take a fresh air a bit. I know it's late night already, but I need to make myself a bit tired so I can sleep properly. Besides, there are a lot of question that I want to ask grandpapa. Like how he, Luhan and Lay manage to get into my dorm and who give him a permission to sleep in my dorm. Carefully, I move Joohyun's arm away from my torso. I pick my phone and earbuds, jumper from my closets and wear Joohyun's sneakers slowly. She has the best sneakers ever, and besides, I don't have any sneakers, so.
Opening the door slowly, I carefully slip out from the door and smile triumphantly when I don't hear any creak the door make. Closing the door, I briskly walk to the elevator and push the button. Not even a second, the elevator's bell ring and I walk into it. When I'm in the hallway, my instinct tell me that there's someone who's watching me right now. I turn to the left and right, but I don't see anything. Shrugging, I push the glass door and put the earbuds on my ears.
I walk to the pocket park across our dorm building. The place looks dark, even though there are street lamps around it. There are around three bench on the park, and I walk to third bench when suddenly an air swoosh, making me stumble. I turn around, searching if there is really someone who's following me. I look back when I found none and see a guy sitting on the third bench. He's wearing a white top with cardigan and dark blue jeans. I squint at his face. I think I've seen him before, but where?
He smiles and swirl my earbuds around his forefinger. My hands reach my ears, and true enough, they are empty. Must be the wind, I think.
"Can I share this with you?" He show one of the earbuds and put it on his jumbo ear. My mind starts replaying his voice and realize that he's one of the mentors. I gasp and stare at him in shock.
"Chanyeol sunbae?"
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