“The boy is going to die if he doesn’t get a transplant soon.”

The doctor’s words rang in Kyuhyun ears as he stared at the motionless Ryeowook’s face. His skin stretched tight over his pronounced jawline and his pale skin reflected in the moonlight.

It had been two months since the boy had been sent to the ICU and his condition had gone nowhere but downhill. The doctor was frank about it. He was running out of time.

“How much time does he have left?”

“That depends on how much he wants to live. But by the look of things,  around a week or so.”

“And if he gets a transplant?”

“Assuming that he doesn’t get any serious complications from the coma and the transplant surgery goes smoothly, he would be able to live for at least a couple more years.”

“Alright, I understand.”

But who was going to donate their lungs? You had to wait for someone to die before you could ask them to be a donor and by that time, most people wanted their dead family member in one piece. Other times, people would scream at the doctor for not working as hard as he could to save  the dead person because he wanted to take their organs.

Kyuhyun sat facing the blank wall in front of him as the hallway echoed with screams and sobs. Some guy had just fallen off his balcony and died. His lungs were a match for Ryeowook and his body was in great condition. However, with the way things were looking, the family had broken down and bluntly refused. The doctor, with a tired expression, once again looked towards Kyuhyun’s direction and shook his head. Sorry, this couple won’t donate.

Sighing, he got up from his seat on the row of chairs down the hallway and quietly left. His shoes squeaked as he walked on the hospital tiles and even as he neared the ICU, he could still hear the screams. He was a bit upset that the hope in his heart had been extinguished again but he hadn’t expected much. After all, being asked to have someone you cared about cut open after they had already died was not something most obliged to.

The screaming did not stop and he cursed his good hearing as he tried to cover his ears with his hands. It was more faint but it was still there.

Stop it, make it stop

He leaned against the wall outside Ryeowook’s room and slowly slid down until he was in a squatting position. Wrapping arms around his knees, he buried his head in his legs and broke down in tears.

Kyuhyun had forgotten how many times the doctor had called him with news of a donor, and how many times he had gotten nothing but a head shake and a “I’m sorry”.

He knew it wasn’t the doctor’s fault and did not take it out on the doctor but he was frustrated. He didn’t want to hear any more apologies; he just wanted a solution.

Nothing was more painful than watching the person you cared about die in front of you without being able to do anything.

At that point, he became aware of the vibrating in his pocket. He had no idea how long his phone had been ringing as he took it out. Clearing his throat, he picked up the call.

“Hello?”

“Kyuhyun ah”

“Sungmin hyung, what’s wrong?”

.

.

.

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“Kyuhyun, I found a donor.”