Warnings for this part: language, mentions of anxiety, hyperventilation

Minhyuk’s POV

Standing in the corner of the dim bedroom, I had my eyes fixed on the bed, more specifically on the lump on it. _____ didn’t even look like a person, buried under a thick blanket I had covered her with to keep her warm. Her figure was just a weird lump lying down on the bed, only slightly moving when she would breathe.

I didn’t know how long it had been since I had brought her there - me and the guys’ hiding place for emergences - but _____ had been sleeping pretty much the whole time. She had had a few pretty nasty nightmares, judging by how strongly it affected her body. When I would notice her having a nightmare, I would walk up to her and calm her down. I hadn’t left the room since I was too scared to leave her alone. I felt like leaving her alone even for a second would lead to something terrible.

I had a plan. No, actually, it was just an idea I decided to test out spontaneously, not something I had planned out.

I’ll just go with the flow, I guess…

My idea was to wait there until she woke up. I had no clue when that would happen but I was ready to wait forever if needed. When the time would come for her to wake up, I would see how she’d act. The main thing I wanted to know was her mental state. See, sometimes the blue blood had some after effects, usually things like feeling nauseous, having headaches and/or spacing out. In more severe cases memory loss and things like hallucinations could occur. I was somewhat worried since I had given her way too much and because she pretty much died before the blood could do its thing.

Rather than pissing my pants because of being scared about her getting amnesia, I was more worried about her possibly hallucinating. I had heard of cases where the human would keep hallucinating for months after the incident, which clearly isn’t good for anyone’s mental health. Also, the hallucinations usually had something to do with negative memories and fears, according to what I had heard. Though those cases were rare, I was still worried about the fragile human being who was calmly sleeping on the bed in front of me.

I would be lying if I didn’t admit to being slightly worried about her losing her memory, too. I mean, it definitely did not worry me as much as the hallucinating but still, it bothered me. What would I do if she had forgotten me? Taking precautions, I had decided to keep myself hidden to her until I knew if she remembered me. After thinking about it for a long time, I had decided it would be better for her if she just forgot about me if it came down to that. I would just contact her mother if she had forgotten me. I would just exit her life quietly and let things go back to the way they were before we “met”. Though painful to me and possibly confusing to her, it would be best like that.

Hearing a groan, I was brought back from my thoughts. My gaze traveled to the bed, focusing on the lump on it. My heart ached a little as I noticed that _____ had started to shake, looking restless.

A nightmare, huh?

The shaking quickly became worse, causing me to hurry over to the bed. Worried, I placed my hand on her arm, and thankfully, she stopped shaking. It took a bit before she opened her eyes. When her eyelids parted, I pulled my hand away and she sat up, panting. I watched her as she panted heavily, looking like she had been running instead of sleeping.

Please…

Still panting, she started to look around with a confused and somewhat panicked expression. I held my breath, not sure what I was hoping to hear her say.

Just say something…

“Where…?” she whispered with a hoarse voice, sounding and looking panicked. “Where are you?” she moved around restlessly on the bed.

My heart ached as I waited for her to be more specific. She could have been talking about pretty much anyone, her mother, Eunkyung, a stranger. I wanted to be sure that she was talking about me. My actions - as in just watching her suffer - didn’t suit the situation but for everyone’s best, I waited patiently, hoping she would make herself clear as soon as possible.

Who?

“Why are you not here? I can’t see you… Don’t leave me alone…” she seemed more panicked as seconds passed. “Please, Minhyuk…” her voice broke and as I saw her eyes get teary, I let out a conflicted - relieved yet worried - sigh. Without hesitation, I went to her and wrapped my arms around her shaking figure.

“I’m here,” I said and felt her arms wrap around me. “It’s okay.”

She started crying and I gently her hair. She gasped for air, wheezing. I listened to her sobbing with mixed feelings. In a way, I was happy that she still remembered me but on the other hand, the future bothered me. Nothing had been resolved yet, everything was still messed up, and she would have to continue putting up with it. I was worried about her mental health as well as her life; I had no idea if I would be able to protect her. I would always try but the main reason we even were in that situation in the first place was because I couldn’t protect her.

“Do you remember what happened?” I asked with the softest voice that had ever left my lips. I felt like if I spoke even a tiny bit more harshly, she would shatter to pieces.

She nodded her head against my chest.

“I’m sorry,” I sighed, feeling bad for her. “It’s my fault.”

She kept sobbing, hugging me tightly. Minutes passed and we stayed like that the whole time. She was the one to move first, pulling away from the hug to wipe her cheeks. I watched her, not sure how I could help. Still, I reached my hand out and gently wiped her tears with my thumb.

“I saw Eunkyung…” she said, tears continuing to fall.

My stomach twisted a little and I pulled her back in to my embrace.

“She looked healthy,” she sobbed while I her hair.

“Did seeing her make you feel good?” I asked with a whisper-like voice.

“I don’t know…” she whispered and sobbed, making my heart ache.

A silence followed and we stayed like that for a bit. I waited until she had stopped sobbing before doing anything.

“You should rest some more,” I said with a soft voice, gently pulling away from her. “You’ll feel better if you sleep.”

She nodded slowly, wiping her wet cheeks with her hands while I got off the bed and gently laid her down. She looked at me while I grabbed the blanket and placed it on her. After that, I stood straight and our gazes met. She looked uncomfortable.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Nothing,” she shook her head.

A brief silence followed. “You can tell me.”

She hesitated. “Don’t worry, I’m just feeling a little weird…”

I observed her face that was half-covered by the blanket she had pulled up. “Why are you trying to hide?”

She remained silent, avoiding my gaze.

“_____,” I crouched down next to the bed and looked at her. “Please tell me. Not knowing will bother me more than knowing.”

She glanced at me and hesitated for a while. “I’m… worried.”

“About?”

She pulled the blanket a little higher, turning her head away. “Sleeping.”

There was a short silence. “Why?”

“For a lot of reasons…” she mumbled, turning the rest of her body away from me. “Nightmares, waking up alone, to name a few…”

I stared at her back, thinking about what to do. She needed to rest but I’d rather let her sleep peacefully. After a bit, I stood up and sat down on the bed. She didn’t react to my actions and I calmly lay down next to her, turning to face her back. Without giving it much thought, I gently wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her closer.

“Wh-what’s this?” she asked, voice shaking while she lay there, frozen.

“Me trying to solve the problem,” I calmly responded, resting my head against her hair. There was a very faint but pleasant scent that brought a small smile to my lips as I inhaled it.

“Minhyuk-“

“Just sleep,” I cut her off. “Don’t think too much about it. I promise I’ll be here when you wake up. I’ll wake you up if you seem to be having a nightmare. I’ll make sure you’re alright. Okay?”

“Okay…” she said hesitantly.

I rested my head on the soft pillow, looking at the sleeping _____. She was sleeping peacefully, like she had been for a few hours now. I had fallen asleep for a bit but woke up when I had noticed her shaking. After waking her from the nightmare and making sure she had fallen asleep again, I had stopped to just look at her. And that’s what I was doing at the moment; just admiring. She was now facing me so I could see her face. Her features seemed fascinating so up close; I wondered how someone could look so perfect. My eyes couldn’t spot a single flaw in her, even though I was sure there would be some according to someone else.

Is this what “blinded by love” means?

While watching her, I felt protective. She seemed so fragile - though she wasn’t, according to how well she had survived all the misfortunes I had caused in her life - that I felt like I could kill anyone who tried to hurt her. Like the vampire back at the store.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, getting rid of the memory of what had happened. I didn’t want to think about that. What mattered was making sure _____ was feeling safe and that she could rest peacefully.

Once I opened my eyes, I was slightly surprised to notice her eyes opening. She was obviously still half-asleep but her eyes opened, looking at me blankly.

“Everything okay?” I asked.

She blinked a few times before nodding her head slowly. She hummed with a hoarse voice.

“Still sleepy?” I fought a smile and subconsciously moved strands of hair off her face.

She hummed again and closed her eyes for a bit before opening them again and looking at me. “You kept your promise…” she mumbled while staring in to my eyes blankly.

I gave her a small smile. Her gaze traveled around the room, scanning it.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“Somewhere safe,” I said and she didn’t look quite pleased with my answer. “This is a cottage me and the guys own. For emergencies.”

She nodded, understanding.

“Like I said, it’s safe here. No one knows about this place, only the seven of us. And now, obviously, you.”

“You don’t have to kill me for knowing such a secret?” she asked jokingly with a serious face.

I snorted. “I wouldn’t even if I had to, I just saved your life, you know?” I gave her a look. “Speaking of which, how are you feeling? Does it hurt anywhere? Do you want to sleep some more?”

She shook her head. “I got enough sleep. I do have a headache, though. And - though I’m not sure if it’s just me being hungry - I’m feeling a little nauseous.”

“Well, I’m just glad my blood didn’t do anything worse to you,” I said with a smile.

She seemed uncomfortable all of a sudden. She sat up, staring in to space with a serious expression.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, sitting up.

Her gaze found mine. “Your blood?”

I cursed at myself inside my mind as I realized what I had said.

Why’d I let that slip?

“Minhyuk, what do you mean?” she asked, grabbing my hand.

I looked at her, contemplating whether I should tell her or not. “I gave you my blood to save you,” I decided to tell the truth. “A measure I thought I would never have to take.”

She just stared at me.

“When I found you…” I took a deep breath. “You weren’t exactly alive anymore.