An annoying beeping woke me up from my dream and I wiggled my fingers a bit. Besides being stiff, I was able to move them. The smell of disinfectant also hit me and I knew I was in a hospital. Wait. 

I was alive. 

My eyes snapped open and looked up at the white ceiling. Officer Yong, defecting, Junhong. Junhong!

I sat up and ignored the pain that went with it. My heart meter started to beep rapidly and needles were being pulled out of my body. Two hands forced me back down on the bed and I fought them back, trying desperately to pull myself away from the grasp. I was too weak. There was no way I was getting out of this bed without falling on the floor and bleeding out again. Closing my eyes, I laid back down on the bed, the beeping slowing down. There would be nurses rushing in as well. 

"MeeYon-ah. We're trying to help you." My eyes opened and snapped to the left. Youngjae was standing there, watering a box of flowers that were next to my bed. It was a mundane scene for even him, but it somehow calmed me down a little bit.

Two nurses rushed in and I looked down at the blood coming out from my arm and my torso.

"Yoo-sshi. Can you leave while we get Kim-sshi situated and cleaned up?" He nodded and left through the door. I looked to the two nurses and saw their young faces. They couldn't have been older than me.

"You need to not sit up or move. Your stitches are still healing and you cannot afford more blood loss, even through a simple IV. You're already had three transfusions." Three? Did I lose that much blood?

I looked to the side of the one who lifted up my hospital gown. She touched my skin and I flinched at the pain, trying to throw her arms off of me. 

"Don't touch me!" I yelled at her and her face seemed to pale a bit. 

"Kim-sshi, you have to listen to us. Please. We are only trying to help." I squirmed a bit more, but my legs were stiff. At least I was moving enough that they couldn't restrain me. The one had just enough time to put a band-aid on me before leaving, probably to get more people. 

I fought off the other one as well. She was getting too frustrated and pulled my gown down before going the way the other nurse left. Youngjae walked in two seconds after her, probably being told to watch me. 

"You have to let them help, MeeYon." 

"My name is HyeIn." He rolled his eyes at me and I tried to sit up again, this time, the feeling of hot blood going down my right side came with it. With that, he walked over and forced my shoulders down, still holding me with a strong force. I squirmed even more, the pain inflating even more. 

"Why don't you listen to me?" He groaned and I tried to lift my arms to punch him in the face, but he held them down with his elbows. 

"I've never listened to you." He huffed in laughter and turned his head as two other figures came through the door rather loudly. 

"Youngjae, hold her down." My eyes widened and I squirmed even more. 

"Don't you dare touch me, Tuan!" I looked Youngjae in the eyes and he had a look of 'sorry' on it. I glared at him and a hand grabbed my wrists while another grabbed my legs. I kicked at the other, but he succeeded in handcuffing my legs to the bed. 

"If you'd play nice we wouldn't have to do this," Tuan growled at me, trying to fight my hands. He finally got a strong enough hold on them to handcuff them above me. If I moved now, a pain came into my wrists and ankles. I glared at all three of them, still trashing. Youngjae grabbed an IV needle and another syringe out of the locked cart next to my heart monitor. 

"All of this and you broke open your stitches. I thought you wanted to live to see my funeral, Kim." I growled at Tuan and a needle stabbed into my arm. I trashed again and again, but my body stopped moving. My eyes got heavy and the familiar feeling of sleepiness filled me. I looked up at Tuan and Youngjae's face. 

"When you wake up next time, you better be good." I didn't have enough energy to retort back at him and my eyelids fell all the way down. 

________________________________

I was awoken by the same heart monitor, but this time, the room was only filled with artificial light. I tried to sit up, but the pain in my wrists came back. I marked that the handcuffs on my ankles had come off. I sat up the few inches that I could and looked around the room. I took a gulp of air and my throat felt horribly dry. I wanted some water. Youngjae was sitting on the window sill, looking out at the snow. He was the only one in the room. 

"Youngjae?" I croaked out and he jumped up, almost running over to my bed. I was till tired and my right side felt extra tender. They must've stitched it up again. 

"Me-HyeIn?" He sat down in the chair next to my bed and tried to be face to face with me. 

"I need some water." He turned to grab a cup on the table and held the straw to my lips. So he wasn't going to uncuff me. I took a drink of water, not breaking eye contact with him. He set the cup down when I was done and looked me up and down. 

"Do you feel any pain that is over a rating of five? You didn't break your hand by the way. Just a small fracture that the doctors just splinted." I shook my head and he leaned back in his chair. 

"My side is tender from the stitches." He nodded and took his phone out of his pocket, the screen illuminating his face as he typed something in. 

"You confused Tuan and his guys when you called, but I knew right away when Jackson called me and told me what was going on. Jackson relayed your message too." I nodded and looked over at the glass door that let in the light from outside. It also let in the shading of three figures. I could see Tuan's outline and Jackson's, but I couldn't pick out the third. 

"Do you know about Junhong?" My voice cracked as I said the last syllable of his name and I could feel the tears flood into my eyes. I was not going to cry in front of everyone. 

"I know that he wasn't going to the University,but other than that, I lack information." 

"He's..He's my-" The door slid open cutting me off. Youngjae looked up, but I already knew who it was. 

"Sleeping beauty has awoken. It took long enough." I glared up at the ceiling before turning left to look at Tuan. He was extra happy right now. The sight of my immobile and near my death bed probably makes him . 

"I just told you she was up, not to walk in," Youngjae said a hint of annoyance in his voice. Tuan rolled his eyes at Youngjae and tossed a t-shirt on the foot of my bed. 

"She didn't bleed all over you, did she loverboy?" Youngjae took the shirt and threw it on the floor. Tuan leaned on the wall near a closet and smirked down at me. 

"Never thought you'd be in this place without my doing." I rolled my eyes and looked up at the ceiling again. 

"Jackson said that I could mandate who could come into my room. I think I'll add you to the 'Not Allowed' list." He let out a laugh and I turned to look at him again. 

"I'm the NIS officer that's overlooking you. You can't put me on that list because I make that list. Sorry, In-ah." I turned to Youngjae who was also glaring at Tuan. 

"Youngjae, how much of that tranquilizer will kill me?"

"I was thinking the same thing, but for a twenty-four-year-old, five foot nine man."

"I can see why the party wanted you two together." I tried to lunge at him, but the handcuffs held me back. 

"I swear to god Tuan, say something like that again and these handcuffs will not be a barrier." 

"Might I also remind you that I'm capable of doing what she wants to do to you." Tuan let out an even bigger laugh as he pushed himself off the wall. 

"You might want to hold back on that, Jae. Last time we were in a room alone together, the first thing she did was not trying to kill me." He raised an eyebrow at Youngjae and he rolled his eyes. 

"I have to go talk to Jackson now that you're up and not trying to kill anyone other than me. He'll come in to talk to you about what happened." He waved his hand as to say goodbye and slid the door back open and closed. 

"I hate him so much." I groaned. 

"The feeling is mutual." An awkward silence filled the room and I thought back to Tuan's statements: 'loverboy.' I can see why the party wanted you two together. 

"What did you tell him?" Youngjae sighed. He knew this question was coming. 

"When you came into the hospital I was the first one here and I didn't want anyone to look after you but me. We argued and he asked why. I told him that we were pledged to be married and I didn't want anyone watching my wife but me." I took time to process his answer. The first time he saw me, he was angry that we were ever getting married, then when he left for South Korea, he sent letters saying how much he missed me. When I went to him in Busan, he was mad that I ever came to South Korea and would hardly talk to me. Now, he wants everything to be all better and he wants to be married me apparently. If he thinks that, he's crazy. 

"Get out." 

"Wha-"

"I said get out!"

"Look, MeeY-"

"Jackson, come and get Yoo-sshi out of my room." 

"This is unnecessary. I just told him the tru-" The door opened quickly and both Tuan and Jackson stepped in. 

"If she wants you out, I'm the one who has to comply. The door." Youngjae glared at Tuan and Jackson before stepping out. Tuan shut the door behind him, taking his place on the wall. Jackson walked over and sat in the chair Youngjae was in. 

"So, I told you I have to tell you your options and fill out a report. What do you want to do first?" I looked up at my hands, which had to look raw by now. 

"Can you take these handcuffs off first?" Jackson nodded and took a key out of his pocket. 

"Whoa, wait. She'll try to kill me, Jack."

"I thought you said you weren't scared of her?"

"I'm not, I'm just sa-"

"-Why do you have to be in here?" He looked down at me as I rubbed my free wrists. 

"If anyone is in here with you and they get killed, that's on me."

"Why weren't you in here when that one," I gestured to the door, "was in here?" Tuan shrugged. 

"I really don't care if he lives or dies."

"That's the one thing we agree on." He seemed confused, but Jackson interrupted with his questions. 

"Okay, so let's do the report first. I'll cater it to your favor. Where were you the morning of February 5th?"

"I was grocery shopping for Mino's mother for Seollal."

"What made you leave and go to the warehouse in question?"

"I got a piece of paper with directions from North Korea."

"And you followed them? Are you dumb or are you du-"

"Did the directions lead you to said warehouse?" Jackson cut off Tuan and seemed to be highly annoyed with him. 

"Yes."

"When you walked in, what did you see?"

"Nothing at first, but then an officer walked out. His name is Officer Yong."

"Anyone else?"

"Soldiers and...." I looked down at my hands and moved them. I did not want to show emotion when Tuan was here. 

"And?" Jackson prompted. 

"My...my brother."

"Brother?" Tuan and Jackson said that at the same time. I took a deep breath trying to force my tears back down my throat. 

"Can you leave this part off of the report?" Jackson put his pen down next to me leg and I mustered up enough breath to speak. 

"He's my replacement because they think that I will defect and that I am not loyal to the state. They've done something to him. They've...I-it's not my brother. He's the one who shot me, but he was supposed to hit my heart not my side. Something I said to him must've brought him...brought the real him back."

"Did they do anything after you were shot?" 

"They...they shot him." I wiped the tears that fell down my cheeks. My goal now was not to break down. 

"Was he okay?" 

"He shot him in the leg when he called me...called me N-noona." Those words squeaked out and the look on Junhong's face replayed in my mind over and over again. 

"I'm so weak," I muttered under my breath, wiping my face harsher than before. 

"After that, you called Tuan's office trying to get a message in. Why didn't you call 911?"

"Because they wouldn't have known my situation."

"And you talked to me while Tuan got to you. When did you pass out?" 

"When Tuan walked in."

"I ran in but, you know, that's not going to be important." I whipped my head around to face him.

"Can't you make one thing no about yourself?! Your job is to save people, why am I any different?! If my brother wasn't involved, I would've died! The only reason you came was so you could save your record! I can't believe I'm even alive because of you. You're no different from any of the other agents. You came because of your personal gain. I bet if it was anyone else than the person who was keeping you at 99 percent, you would've taken your time!" My heat meter sped up again and Tuan's hands went into fists. 

"I came because someone was in trouble, and it's my job to save people! I came because I felt sorry for you! When you said you were defecting, I knew you were in trouble so I helped. Next time this happens, why don't you just call Youngjae or Jackson?! Thank you for not appreciating what I did for you!"

"You were the one who did the same thing to me three years ago! I bet you felt satisfied that I was dying!" His eyes darkened and he looked like he was about to draw his gun and shoot me. What was new? 

"You know what? Next time, I'll just let you die." He walked out, slamming the door and rattling everything on that wall. My heart rate was up to 170 and the monitor was beeping. The nurses were going to come in again. 

"Let's get back to-"

"I don't ever want to see Tuan Yi-Eun's face again unless I have to. Got that Jackson?" I turned to him and he gulped. 

"So, I need to tell you your-"

"Leave." He stood up quickly and walked out. I could hear Tuan yelling about me in the hallway. 

"Who does that think she is? I saved her ! I literally carried her to the ambulance and all she says is to stop thinking about myself? I was a good person and went to save her! She better pray there isn't a next time. Next time I'm going to let her ing die!" There was a thud next to the closet wall and he had either punched at wall or...

"Say that again!" Youngjae's voice was as loud as I had ever heard it. He had thrown Tuan against the wall.

"I'm sorry. Did I speak wrongly about your little wife? Wait, I forgot. She doesn't want to marry you. You really gotta get over her ma-" There were yells in the hallway and more people came running in. They were fighting, great.

"Hit me again you communist ! See what happens to your freedom!"

"Tuan get a hold of yourself!" Jackson yelled.

"I'll be at the precinct if you need me." Loud footsteps went down the hallway and it quieted down outside.

"Junior, Youngjae, go back to your apartment. I'll be the one who stays with HyeIn from now on." 

"You can't tell me not to visit her." Youngjae's voice was low and murderous. Jackson, tell him what I want you to say. 

"She doesn't want to see you. When she asks for you personally, I'll call you. For now, stay where you are put." I smiled and silently clapped for Jackson. Thank the Lord for men like him. There were more footsteps leading away from my door. Finally, it was quiet.

"HyeIn, I'll come in tomorrow morning. I'll be outside if you need me." Jackson said through the door and the legs of a chair scraped against the floor. What time was it?

12:34 PM.

I reached up to the remote on the table and turned off the lights around me. Tuan and Youngjae must've the life out of me. Maybe I could do that to Tuan and not have to deal with him ever again.