Flashback

“What took you so long?” Jieun asked when she saw Jongin running towards her. The latter’s hair was a mess and so was his uniform. Jieun noticed that his shirt’s buttons were not buttoned properly. She sighed and rolled her eyes before pointing them out. Jongin was catching his breath.

“Sorry. I forgot my phone in my room so I had to go back,” he replied as he quickly fixed the buttons of his shirt. “I’m going to the dance fest this afternoon. Wanna come?”

Jieun shook her head. “I’m going to help at the shop. The part-timer’s sick and dad went to Jeju to visit grandma. Mom needs my help.”

“What a shame. You won’t be able to see me win,” he commented, nudging her a bit before chuckling. Jieun rolled her eyes. “You’re so full of yourself,” she stated and Jongin just shrugged.

“I’m confident because I have something to show.” Jongin was smiling cheekily. Jieun couldn’t say anything about that. Her friend’s right – he has something to show. He’s on a different level when it comes to dancing. Everytime that she sees Jongin dance, there’s something in there. It’s fascinating every single time that he dances. You won’t get tired watching him dance in daily basis.

Their little chat went on and on as they walked down the road. “Wait. I’m going to buy a mask,” Jieun said before running towards the nearby pharmacy. Jongin fished his phone from his pocket and started playing with it when he noticed an old woman looking at him intently. He awkwardly nodded his head towards her direction before looking back at his phone. The old woman kept on staring at him.

Jongin looked around to check if she’s looking at something else and not at him. “Umm…Do you know me? Is there something wrong?” Jongin softly asked when he came up with the conclusion that she’s really looking at him. The old woman moved a bit.

“Can you show me your hand?” she asked after a while. Jongin slowly showed her his hand. She stared at it for some more time. He was feeling a bit uncomfortable. The old woman sighed.

“Why?”

“Death.”

“P-Pardon?”

The old woman let go of his hand. “Death. You have death surrounding you.”

Jongin couldn’t even comprehend what he was supposed to feel. “Excuse me? I don’t think you have the right to say something like that to a stranger.” He was starting to feel irritated. How would you feel a complete stranger would say that to you?

“Four years. You have this energy which will put people around you in danger. You need to be careful with your actions or else your actions will lead to their death.”

That’s it. Jongin reached his limit. “Look here-”

“Jongin.”

Jieun tapped his arm. She looked at the old woman then at Jongin. “Is there something wrong?” she asked when she noticed how tensed Jongin was. He had his jaws clenched. He drew a long breath. “Nothing. Let’s go.”

Even from the back, Jieun could see how Jongin’s mood suddenly changed. And from that day on, she noticed that Jongin’s been very careful with his actions.

End of Flashback

The sound of the monitor beeping, the white walls and that strong hospital scent welcomed Jieun when she gained consciousness. Her eyes slowly fluttered open. Surprised by the bright lights, she shut her eyes once again. She could feel her whole body aching. She slowly tilted her head to her right and saw Jongin sleeping with his head rested on the side of the bed.

She carefully lifted her right hand. Slowly, she started playing with his hair. Maybe it’s the medicine that gave her courage to do that. His hair’s so soft that it reminded her of her favorite blanket. He suddenly opened his eyes and when he realized that Jieun’s awake, he quickly sat straight in surprise.

“Hi,” she said with a small smile. Jongin looked really surprised. He covered his face with his two hands as he took a deep breath and when he looked at her again, he had a smile on his face.

“You’re awake,” he stated.

“I am.”

Jongin held her hand with his two shaking hands. “Y-You’re awake. You’re awake. Thank God that you’re awake.” His voice was shaky and his hands were cold. He lowered his head. “You’re awake.”

“Why are you crying?” Jieun asked when she noticed that his shoulders were also shaking. Jongin cleared his throat before lifting his head. He roughly wiped his tears and gave her a sweet smile. “I’m just happy that you’re awake,” he replied, not letting go of her hand. “I thought I was going to lose you too.”

Flashback

Jieun could feel her heart beating faster and faster as she ran inside the hospital. Her hands were ice cold. The emergency room was crowded. Doctors and nurses were busy going from one patient to another. She looked around, trying to find her friend. She spotted him walking towards the exit.

Her eyes went to the spot where he just came from. Jonghoon was lying on the bed and his parents were crying. The doctor had his head down. Then, she noticed the blood pool below the bed.

Jongin…

She quickly ran towards the exit and saw Jongin standing blankly just beside the lamppost. She slowly approached him. “Jongin,” she called out with a small voice. He looked like he was not listening at all. Jieun was trying to not cry. She tugged Jongin’s shirt. “Jongin.”

He slowly turned to her. His shirt was bloody and so were his hands. There were blood mark