It was four weeks, or days, I’m not sure because it felt like it had been forever when I finally cracked open my eyes. The moon greeted me first as it poured its light into the white room, coloring it in a calm shade of blue. I groaned and tried to shift around, but couldn’t. My body was stiff and as I moved my eyes down (my neck was also stiff) I realized why. My left leg was in a cast and tubes were stuck in my arms, making it painful to move. I don’t know how long I have been laying there, but it seemed like my brain only the switch to my eyes, because everything else refused to move. Or maybe I just didn’t have the strength to.

            I groaned again from the back of my throat and forced my lips to part as I took in deeper breaths of air. Goodness, even that was painful to do. After a few minutes of trying to lift my arms up more than just an inch off the bed, I gave up. I stared up at the moon for it was my only companion for the night. Well, it was until the door to my room clicked open and a man with heavy boots walked in.

            I winced and closed my eyes when I tried to turn my neck to him.

            “Hey, hey, hey,” the man said in hush voices as he set something down on the table and rushed to my side. He gently grabbed my face into his large hands and said, “You’re awake,” there was a smile in his words.

            “Ow,” I muttered, surprised at how nasally my voice had become.

            He chuckled and the smell of coffee hit me from his breath, making me instantly open my eyes.

            “Hi,” he said nervously like I was fragile and would break right there. His thumb began to unconsciously caress my cheek.

            “Jaejoong,” I said.

            Tears started to well up in his eyes. “Hi,” he said again in what I would consider to be very stupid, but from his cracked voice, I let his stupidity go. “Hi,” he said once more and laid his forehead onto my mine. I groaned and he immediately pulled back. “I’m sorry, am I hurting you?”

            I tried to shake my head, but that only ended in me looking like I twitched. “No,” I had successfully mumbled.

            “Hold on,” Jaejoong said. “Let me get a nurse.” I think I nodded and could now move my head as he retreated back to the door. Before he went out, he gave one more glance at me as if what he was seeing was just an illusion. “I’ll be back,” he reassured me even though I didn’t technically need it.

            I nodded and he smiled in relief as he pranced out the room.

“Hurry, hurry,” Yuri skipped to the front door of the café.

            “Yuri, would you quit it. Soo Yun needs to take her time,” Yoochun said as he helped me out of the back seat of his car and Jaejoong took out my wheelchair.

            While I was gone, apparently, Yuri had taken care of the shop and kept it nice and clean. She had told me some of the customers were upset that it was closed for so long, but had wished me the best. And today, when I could finally come home from the hospital, she wanted to show me how well she had kept the shop dust free. She insisted that it looked like I never left. I don’t doubt her.

            Jaejoong grabbed the handles to my wheelchair and slowly guided me to the entrance. Yuri opened the door and stepped aside immediately as Jaejoong brought me in. There was a loud pop and confetti fell down from the ceiling.

            “Welcome back!” all of the customers sang with Junsu at their lead.

            I blinked in surprise and was speechless for a while before shyly replying, “I’m back.”

            Everyone cheered and I blushed.

It was weird to be like a customer at my own café, especially the feeling of not working. I was forced to sit down at one of the tables as I watch Yoochun and Junsu mess up my kitchen while Yuri yelled at them. I chuckled at their little antics.

            My laughter died down when Jaejoong pulled up a chair next to mine and handed me a cup of coffee. “Enjoying yourself?” he asked.

            “Uh, I think so,” I replied and took a sip. It was a little bland, but still delicious.

            Silence passed through us even though there was a crowd of noises everywhere. Today was especially packed. Jaejoong’s fingers drummed on the table like he wanted to say something, but couldn’t find the words to do so.

            “I’m,” he stuttered. “I’m performing a new song later on.”

            I raised my eyebrows. “Oh, really? It’s not even Friday, and in the evening?”

            He nodded anxiously. “I hope you don’t mind.”

            “No, not at all,” I said. It was quiet again when something occurred to me from before the accident. “So,” I said, slowly slicing the awkwardness. “I heard that music agencies are contacting you now, is that true?”

            His eyes widened. “How did you know that?”

            I squinted and thought for a while. “I think Mari told me.”

            He kind of sighed. “Yeah, it’s true.”

            “Well, isn’t that great?” I smiled at him encouragingly.

            He nervously shifted around. “Yeah, it is. I just feel like it’s so overwhelming though and I don’t know which one to sign with. I haven’t been able to have time to call anybody and learn more about each agency since,” he paused and gave me a quick glance. Oh. Since I’ve been enlisted in the hospital and have been in a comatose state.

            “Say,” I said. “Why don’t I help you? I’m pretty good at absorbing information about companies and the internet is a wonderful use for that.” He only stared at me. “I mean, only if you want my help,” I quickly added.

            He shook his head. “No, no, that would be…great.”

            We exchanged smiles and the silence wrapped around us again. He was still drumming his hands on the table.

            “Jaejoong,” Yuri called to him and we both looked up. She gestured to her wrist as if she was wearing a watch.

            He shot up. “Shoot,” he said and rushed to the back of the lockers where he had placed his guitar. But before he had even made a step forward, he turned back to me and pulled me out of my position by redirecting my wheelchair the other way to face the stage rather than the three idiots who were having a hard time.

            I was stunned for a minute and didn’t have time to register anything to say for he already bolted to the back room. Yuri dimmed the room and pulled the curtains down to create a type of atmosphere as Jaejoong got on stage. Not only was I a customer now, but an audience. Jaejoong had just begun to strum the guitar when the seat next to me was taken over again.

            “Good to see you again,” she said energetically.

             “Hi, Mari. How are you?” I said.

            “Nothing compared to you. I mean, I’m so sorry about that day. If I hadn’t—“

            I raised a hand to stop her babbles. I smiled at her in reassurance and she seemed to calm down. We turned back to the stage and enjoyed the sweet tunes that Jaejoong had perfectly mixed in with his own velvet voice.

            “He really likes you, you know,” Mari said when Jaejoong finished his first set and stopped to gulped down some water.

            I frowned. “I think after what happened, we’re just getting back to being friends, nothing more.”

            “Are you sure about that?” she asked.

            I turned to her. “It’s best this way. I don’t think we can repeat what happened before.”

            “But now, it’s different,” Yoochun cut in as he set down Mari’s order in front of her. “There’s no one in the way, and the feelings seems mutual.”

            I blushed and was about to defend my feelings when Yuri butted in. “Don’t speak for Soo Yun. You don’t know her feelings and she can do whatever she wants with them.”