PART 4 ~ 6

Hoseok’s POV

Day 17. Yoongi stayed in bed almost all the time now. An oxygen mask around his face. Tubes and needles attached to his every part. The doctors said he hardly felt anything now. But still, it pained me to see him like this. Almost right after the beach, his condition had started to worsen. Gradually, he couldn’t take trips to the garden anymore. Even with the wheelchair, the doctors said it’d be risky to move him too much. His seizures became more frequent. I remembered all too well as I slammed my hand onto the red button every time he did. Doctors and nurses came flooding in and I had tears in my eyes. But he pulled through every single time. Until this day. Sometimes, he whispered to me about his pains. Everything hurt. His body, his chest, his heart. I hated myself for not able to do anything. All I could do was hold his hand, say soothing words, and just be there for him. I was the first person he saw when he woke up and the last when he went to rest.

The doctors didn’t say, but we both knew. The time was near. I held his hand as he slept. Sometimes, he squeezed me back. And I knew he was awake. We couldn’t do much, I couldn’t do much. We could only wait. And then one day, he became better. A little better. He could sit up. The colours returned to his face. He suddenly had the strength to speak again. I was baffled at first. But the doctors told me that this was how the patients normally would react when their time is near.

“Treasure this moment with all your heart,” he advised. I nodded.

“Thank you, doctor,” I thanked him gratefully as I made my way back to Yoongi’s room.

He sat there, the oxygen mask still attached to his face. They were afraid he would have difficulty breathing. He smiled a bit when he saw me walking in. I smiled back, biting back the tears, as I sat on his bed and held his hands.

“How are you feeling?”

“I feel…,” he replied, pausing for a moment, “Okay. I feel fine. Just fine.”

He tried to smile. But I saw him winced.

“Are you in pain?”

“No, why would you say that?”

“Yoongi, please don’t lie,” I said softly, “Not right now.”

“Sorry, I…well, kind of…,” he said, looking down.

“Where?”

“Here,” he said, pointing to his chest.

“Let me kiss that for you,” I said, wanting to cheer him up, as I bent down to kiss his chest.

As I did, he put his arm around my shoulder so that I