I had gone completely lost in my mirage of thoughts, my mind failing to process as it slowly spiraled into madness. A long, endless night of false hopes and broken promises drove me to the tip of my sanity, my consciousness long lost but still alive. I writhed in a puddle of my my own sweat, tears and a mirage of other liquids than tainted the floor, forgetting that it had been there for god knows how long now.

I have been lying completely still for an eternity inside this cold prison. Not making a move because it would remind me that I was lying in a puddle of my own humiliation. I had secretly wished that I wasn't awake, that I was brain dead so that I wouldn't be able to feel all the disgust, shame, disappointment, all the types of pain that I had been haunting me all night. I had no idea how I was still alive when my body has used up all the oxygen in this cramped up room. I didn't know if I was still alive.

The only thing that knocked on my consciousness was the feeling of something warm, a hand, grabbing onto my bicep and slowly, but painfully, bringing me back to reality. It was still almost dead silent, except that I could hear muffled, hard to make out voices ringing around me. They were just there, floating in the air, making their presence known to me. Were they going to help me? I had no idea.

All I felt were a bunch of forces dragging me here and there, pushing and pulling my body to places. I had no energy to move, nor the brain cells to recognize who they were. I suddenly feel a gush of ice-cold water splash on my face, causing me to nearly die of a heart attack but somehow elevating my senses a little further. Far enough for me to recognize the owner of said voices that have been haunting me for a while now.

"Jun?" I hear a familiar voice call out to me. I couldn't do anything but squeeze my eyes to try to regain my vision back.

"Jun, are you okay?" it was the voice of a female, the warm embracing tone nearly ran like music to my ears. Were they failing me? I could slightly make out a shadowy figure in front of my face, the said figure had long, flowing hair that ran down it's shoulders. It was indeed a woman, but I couldn't see her face as it was too dark.

"Jun... can you hear me?" Little by little her voice started to become fully recognizable, it was that warm, hushed tone that my ears always loved hearing and her face, it slowly registered into my eyes. Could it be? Was it really her?

"Chewy..." I faintly called out. There she was, it was indeed her. Her innocent face was filled with concern, her bulbous brown orbs staring deeply with sorrow and sympathy into mine. If this was heaven, then I wish to never return.

"Chewy" I called out again, my lips forming the widest smile. I gathered all my strength and brought my arms around her back, hugging her slim figure within my arms like I had been longing for it my whole life. My eyes found themselves closing and my lips ever stretching in joy. My heart felt at bliss that I was able to hold her once again, after everything that happened.

"I'm so glad you're okay now" I muttered into her ear as I held her tighter. She uttered no words, but it didn't matter to me, her presence alone was enough to comfort me. I buried my face into her long, fragrant locks as I sunk deeper into pleasure.

It wasn't until I opened my eyes that all the bliss started to fade away. Several tall figures stood around the area, they were all brooding and mysterious, never moving a muscle. They were all clad in white and their faces bore the expressions of peculiarity. The stares that they were giving me made me feel uneasy, they all looked at me as if I was some... some foreign creature.

I didn't like it one bit, I found myself longing for Chewy's fragrant locks once more, only to find them gone. The dark brown streaks that ran down her body were now all tied up in a bun and just above said bun, was a nurse cap. Her figure was no longer tall and slim, but rather, short and petite. This was not the Chewy I knew. My eyes immediately snapped wide open, my entire body freezing at its spot at the realization that... I could be holding someone... or something entirely different.

I slowly let my grip fade away from whoever I was holding, my heart beating like a madman as her head slowly distanced from mine and slowly unraveling her face. It only proved my suspicions correct, instead of bulbous, brown orbs, I found crescent, rich black ones. Instead of sharp, defined cheekbones, I found puffy, almost chipmunk-like cheeks. Rather than a piercing jawline, a rounder one outlined her face.

The look on her crescent eyes mimicked the peculiar stare that the brooding figures were giving me, but I could still see the warm sympathy living in them. They were not Chewy's but they were still as familiar as ever.

"Ch..." I tried letting out, but my voice provided little to no sound, either because I had very little strength or because of the embarrassment that was living inside me.

"Ch-" she stared at me silent, as if anticipating my words.

"Chaeyoung?" I finally managed to say. Her face in front of me, her puffy cheeks were burning red as she stood there speechless. I once more noticed the environment and finally realized that I was in a hospital bed of my own. I was surrounded by several other nurses of both genders, only this time I finally understood why they were giving me such stares.

My mind had played me like a fool, projecting an image of Chewy when someone else was in front of me. I was embarrassed and somehow disappointed that it wasn't reality, but I was more worried as I remembered the events of the previous day.

"I... I'm sorry" I say as I felt myself melt under the stares of the white-clad staff, and Chaeyoung.

"I-It's fine" Chaeyoung put in her best attempt to brush it off, but the stutter in her speech and the reddish hue on her face made it obvious that she was flustered. I would make it up to her, but now would not be the best time.

"Where's Ch-" I say as I propped my arms behind me and attempt to lift myself off the bed, only to be greeted by a splitting headache as I got up. I wince and cup my hand over my forehead in a feeble attempt to ease the pain.

"Careful, you're still not well" Chaeyoung says as she pushes me back down on the bed.

"Ugh... what happened?" I groan as I rested my head on the soft pillow.

"We found you passed out in one of the supply rooms, you were completely drenched in sweat and you were barely breathing. As soon as we opened the door, the temperature just blasted out" Chaeyoung says as she stands beside my lying body.

"What were you doing there anyway?" she asks as she gently lays her hand on my arm, her touch providing me with an unusual sense of comfort.

"I..." I was at a loss of words. I didn't know if I should tell her the truth, although now my actions were obvious since they have basically caught me red handed. But if they had caught me red handed then, where was the...

"Could you leave us for now, I think I can take care of this" as if on cue, Chaeyoung signals to the other nurses who obediently nod their heads and head off for the door. I was flustered at the authority that she had over the other nurses, especially since she was basically one of them.

"What was that all about?" I ask her in the now empty room. Without giving me an answer, Chaeyoung simply walks over to me and leans down, her puffy face hovering above mine causing me to get flustered and my cheeks to warm up.

"I know what you came for" Chaeyoung says in a hushed tone, as if she was careful not to let anyone else hear. Her weight was somehow leaning on the bed, and on my right arm which I found very distracting.

"W-What?" my voice was a lot more hushed than hers. I found myself confused at her statement, my mind unable to work properly at Chaeyoung's position. She suddenly sneaks her hand underneath her uniform, causing my eyes to widen up and my cheeks to blush. I had no idea what he was doing but she seemed to be touching herself underneath the white fabric. My conscience screamed at me to look away, but eyes found themselves glued to her clothed hand, anxiously anticipating her next move.

After a few seconds of fishing underneath her tight uniform, Chaeyoung brings out what appears to be a plastic bag. I wasn't able to recognize it immediately due to my flustered state but when I did, I realized it was the same insulin pack that I had taken the previous night.

"I saw you grasping onto this when I found you inside the room, but I didn't tell them about it" Chaeyoung says as she holds the bag in her hands. A part of me was thankful that Chaeyoung had saved me from trouble once again but another part was itching to bring it to its desired location: Chewy's room.

"T-Thank you..." I simply said.

"No worries but can you please tell me what's going on?" she asked me. I found myself unable to speak as I had so much to tell. Too many words floating in my head that I didn't know where or even if I should start.

"You have been acting very odd lately, you keep getting yourself into trouble and you still haven't shown up for work. Wendy is losing her mind in your absence" Chaeyoung visibly stressed to me. I could see it in the way that her eyebrows creased together and the way that the tone in her voice sounded distressed, that she was genuinely concerned. I was taken aback at how her demeanor had changed dramatically but once I placed myself in her shoes, I wasn't surprised. But why was she so worried about me?

"I... I don't know what to say. There's just, too many to tell..." I sigh in my place.

"Then... just tell me what you want to tell me" Chaeyoung sympathizes after noticing my distress. I shifted me head to the side away from Chaeyoung, searching my endless sea of thoughts for even at least a single word to say. A lot has happened lately, and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to give her a simple answer and at the same time, give her the answer she needed.

"I got that for Ch... Sally" I simply tell her, nearly forgetting that Chewy had another name in this building.

"Why would you get this yourself? Shouldn't her doctor be getting it?" Chaeyoung says and just like that, everything becomes very difficult once more. I noticed that whenever I tried to change the flow of my conversations with her, she would always manage to instantly bring it back to where it started making it all the harder for me to differentiate what I wanted to tell her and what I needed to tell her.

I honestly wanted to tell her everything since she seemed like a sweet, young woman; that I had been going through hell for a couple of days now, it felt like the whole world was conspiring against me and the only thing I ever cared about is confined to a hospital bed fighting for her life. The worst part of it all is that it was all because of me.

"I... I just felt like I... need to make up to... to her" I say, the slow building emotion in my voice making me unable to speak straight as with every word I spoke, it felt like I was about to break down into a mess and I didn't want to put Chaeyoung through that.

"To who?" Chaeyoung's voice turning soft at my sorrow.

"To... Sally" I let out.

"Why would you need to make it up to her?" Chaeyoung asks.

"Because..." I paused, covering my mouth and shutting my eyes when I felt the wave of emotions hit me the instant I said that word. It was truly hard to admit but I couldn't deny it.

"Because... I was responsible f-for... why s-she's... here" at that point, I couldn't hold it in any longer. I cupped both of my hands over my face to hide my tears, I sobbed into my hands trying my hardest not to make them audible, but my body shook, and my throat choked. My whole body was crying out and I was only covering a small part of it.

I felt ashamed of myself, ashamed because I had neglected Chewy and sent her to the hospital but mostly humiliated that I was breaking down in front of Chaeyoung. It was an overwhelming mixture of sadness and humiliation and it left a bitter taste in my mouth.

Seconds later, I felt a warmth engulfing my upper body. It draped over my entire torso somehow easing up the tension inside of me. I felt a strange sense of comfort as I felt it, it eased the pain but it felt oddly familiar. I opened my eyes to find that Chaeyoung was on top of me. Her head rested on my belly and her hands clasped onto the sides of my waste. I found myself completely speechless as I watched her lie on my stomach. Her eyes briefly met mine, sending butterflies into my insides, before closing. Her body felt so warm, providing me a weird sense of comfort.

I lied there silent with her on top of me, my heart pounding vigorously against my chest, sending waves of mixed emotions all throughout my body. I would have loved to stay like this a little longer, but the uneasiness inside of me made it unable for me to do so, I was still flustered by her actions. I gently tapped the crown of her head, signaling her to stand up. Chaeyoung quietly complied, rising up from my torso which was struck with cold air now that her body wasn't there to give it warmth.

"W-What was that for?" I stuttered as I stared at her with wide eyes. She just hugged me while I cried.

"I'm just returning the favor" Chaeyoung flashes a smile at me. That ever so innocent smile, that one innocent thing in this madhouse. I lied speechless, soaking up her innocence before I would have to step outside to the crazy world.

"I know you've been going through some tough times. Don't beat yourself up too much, the mere fact that you were willing to get into trouble just for Sally. She's very lucky to have you" Chaeyoung says, causing my heart to flutter at how she just described me.

She always knew just how to make her way into the hearts of people that it made me question if it was a part of her job, maybe it was what made her one of the top nurses in this building? Maybe that's what gives her authority over the other one or maybe she was just a sweet young woman. I'll never know.

"Thank you for everything you've done for me. I'd really make it up to you but, there's somewhere I need to be right now" I tell Chaeyoung as I sat up on my bed, no longer feeling the pain that had haunted me earlier.

"You don't have to Jun, we're pretty even. I just hope you can tell me what's going on someday, it's not easy covering up for you" Chaeyoung replies. But what did she mean by 'even'?

"I know, maybe someday. There's just too many things happening right now, but I hope I can give you the answers one day" I tell her. I honestly felt guilty that I was keeping all of this from her, she was such a sweet girl and I was already starting to feel ashamed after everything she's done for me. But no matter how much I wanted to, I just couldn't. Not now.

I was now making my way across the not so empty hallways of the hospital. It was the afternoon and everyone around were all busy rushing from one room to the next. As everyone were all busy, getting their bodies worked, their sweat pouring down and their hearts pumping, mine felt like it was going to burst out of my chest as I was making my way back to Chewy's room. It had been nearly a whole day since I haven't seen her, and it was killing me softly.

I had no idea how she was doing, I hoped that she was still sleeping soundly, ever oblivious to the events of this crazy world. But then, it still made me wonder what was going on inside her head. Was she happy? Was she as peaceful as she looked on the outside? She must be feeling lonely, being stuck on a bed and not being able to do anything. Maybe she wanted to wake up and return to her not so normal life, but couldn't?

I had allowed myself to get carried away in my train of thoughts that I didn't notice I was already standing in front of the door to Chewy's door. I grasped the handle with my right hand and looked over to the insulin pack on my left, mentally thanking Chaeyoung for allowing me to bring it, and took a deep breath. However, before I could twist the nob, I was suddenly stopped when I heard voices coming from the other side. I couldn't make them out since they were too muffled, but it only startled me more when I heard two voices.

It was a man and a woman conversing, initially I convinced myself that they were probably just the nurses or the doctors, but the moment I noticed that one had an abnormal speech patern, my heart immediately stopped.

"How are you feeling, sweetie?" a strangely familiar male voice asked.

"Head, painful..." the female mentioned.

"Oh, does your pretty little head hurt? Don't worry I can make it feel better" the male said. My ears perked up at the way he spoke to her. I leaned my head against the door to hear better.

"Here take this sweetie, I don't think he'll be back anytime soon." what did he mean by 'he?' was he talking about me?

I wasted no more time and opened the door to find Minjun holding something in his hand, it was a small, white tablet and it looked like he was going to give it to...

Chewy was awake.

She was slightly sitting up on her bed, her back against the surface of the bed that had been elevated higher. Her head turned towards me the moment I stepped into the room, immediately stopping me in my tracks as I noticed there was something off in her gaze. It wasn't the usual, warm and innocent gaze that I normally saw when I looked at her, but this time her gaze was almost blank, as if I was a stranger. I felt like I was going to freeze in her cold gaze, but nevertheless I still felt overwhelmed that she was finally awake.

"I'm so glad you're awake now" I said as I walked over to her and pulled her into a hug. I was so glad that I was finally holding her for real, that it was no longer just a dream. I was holding the real Chewy and everything in front of me was a reality, she was okay, and I wasn't dreaming. I released the hug after realizing that Minjun was still around, I could hold her all day, but I wasn't going to do it in front of him.

It wasn't until I had parted from Chewy that I noticed something was wrong: she wasn't looking at me at all. Her eyes were fixated on the wall in front of her, never moving a single inch. Her face was completely blank and expressionless. Her entire body was cold and stoic, it seemed as if it was frozen in place. I felt uneasy, I have never seen her so cold and expressionless.

"Chewy, what's wrong?" I ask her. But she didn't say anything, she didn't even bother to look at me.

I didn't know why but I suddenly found it so hard to look her in the eyes, they were not the usual warm, round fuzzy brown orbs that I had come to like. But rather, they were completely void of any emotion.

When I had stepped inside this room and met Chewy's eyes for the first time in a while, I felt something different. I somehow felt like I wasn't welcome, that Chewy didn't want me around. The look that she gave me was something I didn't know she can do. I had come to know Chewy as an innocent, kind young woman who knew nothing about the world. I had never expected her to be capable of displaying such stoniness on her face as she always seemed to be amazed by everything she had encountered so far.

"Are you okay?" I ask. I reached out my hand to touch her forehead and check her temperature, but I felt something break inside of me when her eyes shifted to the opposite direction. What was wrong with her? Why was she acting so cold towards me? It's almost as if she wanted no part of me at all. I didn't know what to feel, a part of me felt very confused and concerned at her actions, but a part of me felt hurt. I didn't know why I was feeling this way, but it was devastating, it felt like something had broken inside of me, something I needed to go through every day.

She probably isn't feeling well, I mean after all she just woke up from her coma. But I couldn't understand the coldness, it looked as if she was upset about something. I wanted to know, I wish I could ask her, but I was too discouraged to do so. Her actions had such an impact on me.

"*ehem* Chewy?" I hear Minjun clear his throat which causes me to turn around and face him. He stared at me as if I spoke in a foreign language, but the smirk on his lips showed that he was intrigued in what I just said.

"I thought her name was Sally" Minjun smirks. My tongue started tying itself into several knots, I immediately started to kill myself on the inside for being so careless. How could I forget about the name I had used to register Chewy in this place? Probably because I had never referred to her as such. I couldn't help it, the moment I saw her awake, I suddenly forgot about everything. My mind just blocked out the entire world and focused on the girl that was in front of me to the point that I even forgot that Minjun was still here.

But wait... isn't it morning now? I thought he only worked night shifts.

"I didn't know you had nicknames, how cute. What does she call you?" Minjun says in a mocking tone causing me to grit my teeth and curl up my fists, in doing so, I felt my right-hand squeeze into something cold and squishy. I looked down and found the insulin pack still lying in the palm of my hand. The plastic bag was now heavily wrinkled after going through so much through the night.

"Here's your damn insulin pack" I said as I reached the bag out to Minjun, but he didn't take it. He only stood still in his place, staring at my hand like it was a pity while the smile on his face started growing.

"What's so funny?" I asked, my patience waning by the second. Minjun only chuckled and looked over to Chewy's place when I suddenly remembered something, when I had entered the room, I noticed Chewy had a tube tapered onto her hand. I turned around to find a brand-new insulin pack, hovering above Chewy's head. It was at that point, that I felt that my sanity begin to break into a million pieces.

"You bastard!" I berated Minjun who only laughed my remarks off.

"Oh Jun, I waited so long for you to come back with the insulin. I really did, but you never came. Sally here, she's been waiting for you as well, she needed a new pack and she was running out quickly. Of course, me, being the good doctor that I am, I went out to get one myself. Something you couldn't do" Minjun went on. That was it, that was the last straw, I felt myself lose it when he mentioned her name, I didn't like the way it sounded coming from his mouth, not one bit. It only infuriated me as he had already crossed the line. It made my blood boil like lava, I felt it rushing through my body with the speed of light.

My hands started to shake violently and my grip on the insulin bag hardened to the point where it nearly burst in my palm. I raised my hand over my head and slammed the god forsaken bag down on the ground, causing it to bounce and land right in front of Minjun's toes.

"You have no idea what I went through just to get that!" I yelled starling both Minjun and Chewy. I stared at the crumpled bag on the ground, it felt like I was staring at my own reflection. I had been through so much, I had been drained, my sanity had been pushed to the limit and I was just worn out. Worn out like the crumpled bag lying on the floor.

"Tell that to your 'cousin' Jun. You don't know what she's been through, she's been through tougher times than you have. I only did what was right, something you are not capable of doing" the tone on Minjun's voice changed. He no longer sounded like he was playing around, it now sounded like he was starting to take this seriously. I had no idea what he was talking about, what does he know? He knows nothing, I had no idea where his sudden seriousness come from. I saw the look on his eyes, somehow underneath that facade of his, I spotted a tinge of bitterness in them. But it was nothing compared to what I had been through.

I marched towards Minjun and placed both of my hands on the collar of his shirt. I pulled it upwards and slammed him against the wall causing some of the surrounding equipment to shake. Minjun tried to pry my hands away but I wasn't letting go, I held onto it with a vice grip. I felt my cheeks burn up intensely and my temple throb from the anger. I wanted to choke the life out of him, I am officially sick of seeing his disgusting face.

"Don't you ever talk about her that way ever again, you have no idea what I've been through and what she has been through so don't act like you know because you don't and the next time I hear you talk about her I won't hesitate to snap your neck!" I yelled at his face. Minjun tried his best to keep his smirk plastered onto his face but I could see that he was starting to lose his composure. His eyes flared up and his jaw clenched, the smile on his lips hanging on for dear life but he tried his best to keep it on.

"Do it then, I dare you" he smirked. I felt myself transform at his words, I felt like I was a completely different person, forgetting about my morals as I wanted to hurt him so bad. I wanted to give him what he wanted, and I nearly did. I lifted my right arm, a fist forming at the end of it, waiting to meet his face when I suddenly hear the door open.

"Sir, is everything okay?" a female voice stopped me from going any further. It was her voice, that warm voice of hers. It made me scared to do anything further to the man in front of me.

"Everything's fine, Chaeyoung" Minjun answered, never breaking contact with my eyes. His visible anger started to fade away and so did my grip on his collar.

"Are you sure? You want me to get some help?" Chaeyoung said further scaring me at the possibility of drastic measures being taken into play.

"Yes, I'm just horsing around with my good friend, Jun, here" Minjun faked a laugh and just like that, the Minjun I saw earlier had completely vanished. He was back to his arrogant, fake self. The smirk returning to his face as if nothing ever happened.

"You're a rough one, buddy" Minjun faked a friendly tone and started to playfully hit on my shoulder. Every hit he made got stronger and stronger, the last one nearly causing me to groan in pain. I held my breath in and decided to just let it slide, faking a smile of my own to hide the tension between us.

"Chaeyoung can you start to process Sally's papers please, she's medically cleared to be checked out now" Minjun orders Chaeyoung who obediently complies. As Chaeyoung left the room, Minjun fixed his uniform and leans towards my ear.

"We will meet again. Next time, you will start to see the truth" his whispered in my ear. His words shaking me as he left me standing in the room. What did he mean by 'the truth'? Was there something about him that I needed to know?"

After hours of waiting for Chewy's clearance and signing tons and tons of paperwork, it was nearly time to check out of the hospital. It had been hours of agonizing silence and overwhelming awkwardness as Chewy never said anything to me. She remained in her bed, staring blankly at the ceiling and not uttering a single word, even when I had spoken to her, she simply brushed of my words. I decided to just let her be since she had just woken up from her coma although I was starting to get seriously worried.

Her silence was intimidating, she was such a sweet girl but when she chooses not to be one, she can be scary, and it was starting to get to me. I sat at her bedside, blankly staring at her as she lied down, trying to figure out why she was behaving so oddly. From time to time, she would turn her head to glance at me, but I would look away in response, I was afraid to look her straight in the eyes. I didn't know if it was because she looked scary or if it was because of my overwhelming guilt for being responsible of her predicament.

After an eternity of avoiding each other's eyes, the door finally propped open and Chaeyoung came in with a binder in her hands.

"Everything's done, you ready to go?" she asked, neither the two of us giving her an answer which made things a lot more awkward than they already were. Instead, Chewy propped her hands on her sides to sit up and tried to push herself to stand.

"Let me help you" I tell her as I helped her stand up, still receiving silence in return.

"Can you walk?" I asked her, Chewy gave no answer and placed her right foot forward to take a step. I held onto her arm, worried that she might fall any second.

"I can do it" she suddenly speaks causing me to flinch after not hearing her voice in a long time. I sighed in defeat and slowly released her arm. Chewy stood still for a while, her head hung low, I was nervous at what could happen since she just woke up and I feared she might not be able to walk. I was proven wrong when Chewy started taking slow steps towards the door where Chaeyoung was standing.

I stood in my spot for a while, trying to process what just happened. Chewy never refused my help, not even once. All this time I went out of my way to make her life feel as comfortable as possible and, even though Chewy barely expressed her gratitude towards me, I never complained. I was always so contented seeing her being comfortable in my house, but we were in the outside world and now and things were very different. Chewy refusing my help was something else, I was speechless. I felt like a total failure.

As soon as Chewy was through the door, I walked over to Chaeyoung who was holding the door open for her.

"Do you think she's okay?" I ask her.

"She'll be fine. Don't worry about it, she just woke up. She'll go back to normal in a few days" she tells me, noticing my worried expression.

I sure hope what you're saying is true Chaeyoung. I don't think I can live with myself if she continued to act like this.

Chewy is back... but something isn't right with her.

What does Minjun mean by 'the truth'. Does he know something that Jun doesn't?

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