Hyunsik finally came back from the washroom and ran up to Sooyoung once he saw the pair on the ground.

“What happened, Sooyoung-ah?” asked Hyunsik in a panic.

Sooyoung related everything quickly, half in tears.

“Call an ambulance, Sooyoung-ah. I’ll let the guys know,” said Hyunsik in a panicked tone.

Sooyoung nodded and took out her handphone. Hyunsik took out his handphone and started texting.

Hyunsik: Guys! Sungjae got attacked by gangsters and passed out from his injuries. We just called an ambulance.

Minhyuk: BWOH? Where are you now?

Eunkwang: Is Sooyoungie safe?

Hyunsik: Both of us are fine. But Sungjae’s injured very badly and Sooyoung’s really scared.

Eunkwang: Text us your location. I’ll inform Sungjae’s mother.

Hyunsik texted his location and put away his phone. Sooyoung had called for an ambulance and was still trying to get Sungjae to wake up.

“Oppa! OPPA! Please wake up!” Sooyoung kept repeating in delirium, as tears streamed down her face.

Hyunsik took out his handkerchief and tried to stop the bleeding on the back of Sungjae’s head. “Calm down, Sooyoung-ah. Sungjae will be all right.”

The ambulance arrived after a few minutes and Eunkwang and the rest shortly after. At Sooyoung’s insistence, she and Eunkwang followed Sungjae in the ambulance, while the rest took a cab down to the hospital.

…

Sooyoung and Eunkwang sat in the waiting area of the hospital, as they had arrived before the rest did.

“This is all my fault, oppa. If only I hadn’t insisted on following you all to find Sungjae-oppa,” wept Sooyoung.

Eunkwang put a comforting arm around her shoulders and patted her gently. “Don’t be silly, Sooyoung-ah. Nobody knew this would happen. Stop blaming yourself.”

“I’ll never forgive myself if something happened to Sungjae-oppa,” sobbed Sooyoung.

“Don't say that, Sooyoung-ah. Everything will be fine. He’s the happy virus in our group. Nothing can possibly happen to him,” assured Eunkwang, wishing he could believe his words as wholeheartedly.

The rest arrived shortly after with Sungjae’s mother. Sooyoung saw her and broke down again.

“Jinjja mianhe, eommonim,” cried Sooyoung. “This is all my fault.”

“Don’t be silly, dear. Nobody could have known that this would happen. It was partly Sungjae’s fault for roaming in those areas at night too,” said Mrs. Yook. Mrs. Yook was sick with worry but she treated Sooyoung like her own daughter ever since Sungjae had become friends with her and didn’t want to put Sooyoung under more stress by worrying.

The group waited for four hours before the doctor stepped out to meet them.

“How is he, doctor?” asked Mrs. Yook.

“His condition is stable now. The bleeding on the back of his head was due to a deep cut after his head hit the ground. We’ve cleaned and stitched it up. The scan showed no damage to his brain, so we don’t need to worry about that. There won’t be any permanent damage to his body. He passed out due to exertion and lack of rest. Has he been very stressed out about something?” asked the doctor.

“Yes, he has, doctor. But we’re still not sure what it is,” replied Mrs. Yook.

“Once that’s sorted out, I think he should be well on his way to recovery,” assured the doctor. “You can go see him now. He’s asleep as we sedated him for the brain scan. We needed to make sure that he would remain unconscious for the duration of the brain scan. I think it’ll be good for him to rest for now. We will keep him under observation for a few more days just to be sure but from experience, I think there should be no major issues.”

“I understand. Thank you, doctor,” said Mrs. Yook.

The doctor left and the group walked over to Sungjae’s ward to see him. The hospital staff had bandaged his head and patched up all his wounds. Sooyoung teared up again at the sight of him and turned away quickly.

Mrs. Yook looked at the group and said, “It’s been a long night for all of us. Why don't you all go home and get some rest? You can come and see him again tomorrow, if you want. He’s in no immediate danger anyway.”

Eunkwang and the other guys looked at each other and nodded.

“We’ll make a move first then, eommonim,” said Eunkwang.

Mrs. Yook turned to Sooyoung and asked, “Do you want to go with them, dear?”

Sooyoung shook her head and asked, “Can I stay for a while longer, eommonim? I want to stay with oppa for a while longer.”

“Of course, you can. But you need to promise me that you’ll let your parents know and that you’ll rest when you feel tired,” insisted Mrs. Yook.

“Neh, eommonim,” replied Sooyoung.

After the boys left, Mrs. Yook put her arm around Sooyoung and let Sooyoung rest on her head on her shoulder.

“Sooyoung-ah. I want to ask you something,” asked Mrs. Yook.

“Neh, eommonim,” replied Sooyoung.

“Do you like Sungjae?” asked Mrs. Yook baldly.

Sooyoung gave a start and lifted her head to look at Mrs. Yook. “Why did you ask that, eommonim?”

“Because I’m not blind,” said Mrs. Yook with a smile. “If I’m right, you've liked Sungjae since you met him in middle school.”

Sooyoung looked down at her knees, not knowing what to reply.

“You don’t need to answer me, Sooyoung-ah. But you cannot lie to your heart,” said Mrs. Yook.

“Oppa just treats me as a dongsaeng, eommonim,” replied Sooyoung.

“That’s his problem, Sooyoung-ah. It’s his problem that he cannot figure out his feelings for you. I know my Sungjae has never been good at expressing his feelings, Sooyoung-ah. Not just to you but to everyone around him,” said Mrs. Yook. “Think about what I said, Sooyoung-ah. You’ll make a good partner for my Sungjae. Don’t shortchange yourself because of his foolish behaviour. He’s treating you like that not because he’s mean. He’s treating you like that because he doesn’t know how to express himself. No platonic friend will launch himself at a gangster who looks more than capable of killing you.”

Sooyoung remained silent, as she didn’t know what to say. She didn’t have the heart to tell Mrs. Yook what had happened between her and Hyunwoo. She simply sat there in silence as the both of them watched over Sungjae that night.

…

The next day, Sooyoung got dragged out to lunch with her three unnies at