I heard the rhythmic beeping of the machines before I saw them. The ache in my head seemed to have intensified but it was a lot easier to open my eyes. I blinked a few times, trying to steady my gaze as panic started to swell in my chest at my unfamiliar surroundings.

"Oh, thank God. You're awake."

I slowly turned my head toward the sudden voice, a quiet baritone with a hint of a southern drawl. The man left his chair by the wall and carefully sat on the edge of the hospital bed I was currently occupying. My vision was still a bit hazy, but I could make out his hand running through auburn hair. A large hand. A very large hand attached to a very large man; even sitting, he seemed to tower over me. A few more blinks awarded me with a clearer view of his face.

The eyes. The green eyes.

The green eyes and the face they belonged to were sitting next to me.

I only had about a million questions to ask. Why was I in the hospital? What happened earlier? Who was he, why did he have a worried look on his face and why the hell did my head hurt so badly? But all I could muster was a barely audible "Hi."

He waited a beat before responding. "Hi. Do you know where you are?"

"Hospital." I thought for a moment before clearing my sore throat. It felt like I hadn't spoken in months. "Why am I in the hospital?"

"You were in a car accident. Probably one of the worst I've seen." He shook his head. "You're damned lucky to be alive, we had to cut you out of your car."

"What happened? Is everyone okay?" I asked.

The worried face turned into a quizzical one. "Uh...yeah. Everyone else involved is okay, even the who ran the red light and t-boned your car. Are you okay? The doctor said you have whiplash and a concussion."

I tried to sit up and groaned, every muscle in my body screamed in protest. "Is that all? Can I go home? I really hate hospitals."

He placed a hand on my stomach that stopped me from moving further. "Stop." he commanded in an annoyed voice. "You're gonna hurt yourself more than you already are. You may not have broken bones but you're banged up somethin' fierce. Just relax for a minute."

Not even bothering to argue, I closed my eyes and swallowed. "Thank you. For being there. For saving me."

He squeezed my belly gently before removing his hand. "No need for thanks, Miss. Just another day in the life of a firefighter. Um...I'll get the doctor for you. I gave them your purse with your wallet and they called your emergency contacts."

That got my eyes opened all the way, the panic that had started to subside as we were talking immediately dialed up to ten. "Oh no...please tell me they didn't call my parents."

"Well I don't care if she is sleeping, I'm not missing my flight to Cabo just because she can't drive properly!" The earsplitting voice filled the hallway outside of my room. The firefighter stood suddenly as I shut my eyes tightly and braced myself for the incoming storm.

"Jesus Christ, Soojung!" barked my mother as she slammed the door open, "You just had to pick this week to get into an accident? You know how important these vacations are to me!" A vision of pearls and a red and white polka-dotted sundress, her elegant exterior never could hide the horrible person she actually was. She cut her grey eyes at me as she continued her scolding, "Your father had to reschedule our flight, and look at you! You're fine!" My father stood in the corner without acknowledging me, on the phone that was constantly affixed to his ear.

"Excuse me Ma'am, but your daughter is anything but fine, and I don't think yellin' at her is helpin'," interjected the firefighter. For a brief mment, my mother's anger steered towards him. "Why are you talking? Who are you, a nurse? Go be useful and bring me a coffee."

"Mom, please stop," I pleaded in a low voice. "This is..."

"Sehun," he helped.

"This is Sehun, and he's one of the emergency responders who saved me. You know, from dying."

Mom scoffed. "So, what, do you want a tip or something? God, the help is always so annoying."

"I'm sorry," I mouthed silently to Sehun. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans and shrugged it off.

"Monica, our flight leaves in an hour." My father int