June 2017

Itaewon, Seoul, South Korea

“I don’t believe it. You probably heard wrong.”

“Are you sure?! There’s got to be a mistake.”

Ryeowook looked at the 3 other men in the room. They were at Kangin’s flat, it was almost 3 AM, and Ryeowook sat opposite Kangin, Yesung, and Shindong on the couch. This was his first full weekend off since joining the army, and after a dinner with his fellow group members, he had discretely asked the three to meet him later. It had been more than a month since that night in the hospital when he overheard the conversation about an idol needing a transplant, and he had been more than anxious to find out more information. Slowly, as rumors and gossip spread around the base, he had narrowed it down to his two older hyungs in Super Junior…but which one? And then, when he heard about Siwon’s collapse after the May concert, he finally had his answer. But what to do? What can he…no…what can they do?

“Hyung, I know what I heard,” Ryeowook said again. “A transplant, that’s what the nurse said. Siwon-hyung needs a new heart.”

“But…are you absolutely sure?” Shindong asked even as he still tried to understand what Ryeowook said. “Siwon…he’s healthier than all of us put together. He….”

“He collapsed after the U concert last month and had to be hospitalized.” Ryeowook interrupted.

“Yesung, you were at the concert,” Kangin turned to address his younger friend. “Why didn’t you tell us about Siwon?!

Yesung looked at the others but didn’t answer, instead choosing to let Ryeowook to continue.

“And Siwon is much closer to Yoona than Donghae. Remember that General Im and Siwon’s father are lifelong friends.” Ryeowook stated.

“So…so what do you want us to do? What can we do?” Shindong asked. With all the struggles that had been through over the years, he couldn’t even begin to think of how they would deal with this latest crisis. “Siwon is not going to let us know. We all know how he works. He’s going to think that he’s a burden to the group, that this is his problem, not ours. He’s going to keep this a secret.”

“Yes, Siwon is keeping a secret, “Yesung finally spoke up. “But it’s not his secret, it’s Donghae’s.”

“What?! Ryeowook, Kangin, and Shindong retorted in unison.

Yesung took a deep breath before continuing. He had found out by accident. After leaving Siwon in the hands of Yoona at the hospital, Yesung was halfway home before he realized that he had left his mobile in Siwon’s room. And when he went back to retrieve the phone, that was when he overheard Siwon, Donghae, and Yoona talking. Rather, it was Siwon and Donghae arguing and Yoona trying to calm the both of them down.

“You stubborn bastard! You’re not helping me by covering for me like this…by working yourself to exhaustion! Jiwon will never forgive me…I can never forgive myself…if something happened to you, Siwon.”

“Donghae, it’s nothing. I just overdid it a little. The doctor said it’s nothing serious, just heat exhaustion and a little dehydration. I’m fine. I’ll back with the unit tomorrow morning.”

“That’s not the point,” Donghae argued, his frustration rising.

“Then what is the point?” Siwon challenged.

“The point is that you need to stay healthy…you need to be here to take care of Jiwon…take care of our family…after I’m…after I’m….” Donghae didn’t get to finish his sentence.

“Don’t you dare talk like that, Lee Donghae.” Siwon said with an edge of finality in his voice. “Don’t even think about that. I told you, we are going to beat this thing. YOU are going to beat this thing. You are the strongest, kindest, most decent person I’ve ever had the blessing of knowing. You are my brother, in every sense of the word. YOU ARE GOING TO BEAT THIS THING. And you are going to have a long and loving and happy life with Jiwon.”

Yongsan Army Barracks, Seoul, South Korea

Truth be told, Donghae had not wanted anyone outside of their families to know yet. He didn’t even want to tell the other guys yet. He wanted time to consider his options. He didn’t want the feeding frenzy that would surely ensue if the news of his problem, his terminal disease, became public. Donghae was seriously considering leaving Super Junior and getting on with his life with Jiwon…for whatever time he had left. He knew that the chances of getting a successful transplant were good, especially for someone young like him. And he knew that he would get the best care, medical and otherwise. But still, having to stare at his own mortality every morning did make him accept a different perspective and priority in life. The group could and would go on without him…as they did when Hangeng left…when Kibum left. And there was no way that he could keep up with the strenuous demands of the business. If he stepped away now, then he wouldn’t be holding the rest of the group back. He wouldn’t burden them….

“Earth to Sergeant Lee,” Yoona smiled as she nudged her friend, who was lost in deep thought.

“Huh…oh…sorry,” Donghae said as he was snapped back to reality. “Your dad, er, I mean, General Im is running late. He’ll be here in 5 minutes. He’s asked that you wait in his office.”

“My father always had a knack for picking his aides, but I’m going to ask him to pick less of a space cadet next time.” Yoona teased, earning a sardonic smirk from Donghae. “Ahhh…there he is, my Donghae oppa is back.”