Lee Dong Wook could feel the ringing in his head getting louder. His limps were heavy, and his throat was sore. But he didn’t let his guard down. He was lying in bed, tightly clutching the blanket that was covering up to his chest. Always on alert, he steeled his mind under the scrutiny of the enemies’ eyes.

The room had been in a state of complete silent for 15 minutes now. The atmosphere was tense. To his left, Lee Seung Gi, who was standing with his arms folded on his chest and a no-nonsense expression on his face, was staring down at him as if he was looking at a spoiled brat. On his right, Go Ha In was sitting on a chair by his bed side, looking at him with cold eyes. Her face was stoic, and her right hand was flicking the thermometer in the air ever so slowly.

The enemies were ruthless.

But if they ever dared drag him to the hospital, they'd see what was what.

“Talking about pot calling kettle black.” Finally, Go Ha In spoke in a low, cold tone. She narrowed her eyes and shook her head slightly. “You refuse to go to the hospital cuz you’re afraid of shots? Is this the same person who was chastising me the whole time my ankle was injured?”

Dong Wook felt chills running down his spine, but he refused to look at her as he mumbled a reply.

“You told the doctors that you hate the smell of the hospital. Who does that?”

“Me. And you have no right to judge.” Ha In replied in a superior tone as if to say, I only hate the smell, but you hate the pain.

Seung Gi, who was standing at the side silently thought they both weren’t better than the other. Children.

He sighed and spoke in a reprimanding tone, “Well, I did warn you not to over work yourself.”

Dong Wook could only scrunch his nose in silence because his friend was right. For the last few weeks, he had been working non-stop, pushing himself over the limit. He could actually have slowed down a little, but a certain someone had been extra busy lately and had come over less and less often. He suddenly found himself with some free time even after hanging out with his friends as usual, and he didn’t know how to deal with it. In the end, he decided to spend that time and energy working rather than feeling silly waiting for that certain someone to stop being so busy.

She’s here now… but I'm paying the price. Urg.

Seung Gi shook his head as he looked at his friend’s sorry face before grabbing his coat, ready to head out, “I’ve supplied the medicine. You’re on your own. I got an appointment to go to.”

“What?” Dong Wook opened his eyes in disbelief and tried to sit up. “Your best friend is sick, damn it! How can you leave me?”

Seung Gi just shrugged and left.

“Bastard – ” Dong Wook hollered after him with his hoarse voice, but Ha In slapped a fever gel patch on his forehead so hard that he was lying down on his back again.

“Sleep.” She said with a stern voice.

Dong Wook wanted to protest but seeing Ha In took out some books from her bag, he calmed down. She’s staying. He closed his eyes, waiting for the medicine to take effect.

RING!

“Hi, Haley” Ha In, who was still rummaging through her bag looking for her mini note pad, immediately answered her mobile, afraid that the ringtone would wake up the sick person by her side.

“Hey, Ha In! Guess what! I got 3 tickets to today’s musical that Young Ji really likes. I haven’t asked her yet but I’m sure she’s going. Let’s go together?” Haley’s voice came out with obvious excitement. She finally found a chance to help mend the relationship between her good friends.

“Really?” Hearing this Ha In couldn’t help feeling excited herself. This was a great chance, indeed. Smiling brightly, she couldn’t wait telling Dong Wook about it. But as her eyes landed on the sleeping face on the bed, she felt strangely calm instead of disappointment, “Umm, actually. I’m a little busy today. Maybe next time?”

“Huh? Are you sure?” Her friend sounded disappointed.

“Yeah. Thanks, Haley.”

“Okay.”

Hanging up, Ha In was a little surprised to see Dong Wook looking at her with his eyes half opened.

“You should go. I’m fine.”

“It’s ok. Young Ji can enjoy it better without me there.” She smiled reassuringly.

“You don’t know that.”

“Try to get some sleep. I’ll be outside.”

So just like that, Go Ha In spent the day alternating between finishing her work from school and taking care of Lee Dong Wook. She checked on him from time to time, but he was sleeping well. She also received a call from Lee Jung Gi once asking her how Dong Wook was doing, and she reported that he was asleep like a baby. And to that, Jung Gi response with a Ha-ha which sounded suspicious, but then she just shrugged it off and gave it no more thought.

At around 11 o’clock, while Ha In was deciding whether she should make lunch, Chan Yeol arrived at the door step with lunch for her and rice porridge for his boss. Courtesy of Midnight Blue. Chan Yeol seemed to be in a hurry, so she saw him off before waking Dong Wook up, so he could eat the porridge and take medicine.

Dong Wook went back to sleep soon after. The day was rather uneventful. Ha In smiled and resumed her work in the living room.

DING DONG!!

At around 2 o’clock, the door bell rang again. Running to open the gate, expecting to see either Jung Gi or Seung Gi, Ha In was face to face with an unfamiliar middle-aged woman.

“Hello?” Ha In greeted the woman uncertainly, wondering who she could be since Dong Wook didn’t have any relatives.

“Hello. I’m Lee Jung Gi’s mom.” The woman said with a warm smile. If she wondered why there was a girl answering Dong Wook’s door, she didn’t show it. “I heard Dong Wook’s sick, so I’m stopping by to check on him.”

“Oh. Of course. I’m sorry. Please come in.” Ha In hurriedly apologized and let her in before introducing herself. “Nice to meet you. I’m Go Ha In, a friend of Dong Wook-shi.”

“Oh. Are you that clumsy patient that Dong Wook had to take care of?” Mrs. Lee looked surprised, but somehow not so surprised. “I didn’t know you keep in touch after that.”

Clumsy? There goes my reputation.

“Ah yes. Dong Wook-shi has been a great friend.” Ha In replied cheerfully anyway.

Mrs. Lee just smiled and nodded in agreement as they entered Dong Wook’s room. She sat down and gently put the back of her hand on his forehead. Dong Wook opened his eyes slightly then.

“Eomoni…” He said softly, still feeling drowsy.

“Got careless again, silly kid?” She scolded, but in a gentle tone.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. Get some more sleep.” Dong Wook weakly nodded and closed his eyes again.

Leaving the room, Mrs. Lee said to Ha In, “Seems like his fever’s gone down. He’s not as bad as when Jung Gi told me about it.”

“Yes. I guess the medicine works and the sleep helps.”

“I was surprised when I first heard that he’s sick at home. Now I see why.”

“Pardon me?” Ha In was puzzled by her comment. In the first place, she didn’t understand what was there to be surprised about a person being sick at home.

“When Dong Wook’s sick, he never stays at this house.” Mrs. Lee chuckled as she saw Ha In raised her brows in surprise. “He would go to Jung Gi’s or Seung Gi’s to be taken care of. Real whiner, isn’t he?”

Remembering this morning’s shenanigan, Ha In smiled and nodded in agreement, “He sure is.”

“Dong Wook likes to boss those two around so much that sometimes I hear them complaining and telling him to crawl back home in frustration. And in defense, Dong Wook would always say