Sick

Warning: If you haven’t seen episodes 472 - 474, there might be some spoilers for you below.

Disclaimer: The story is a product of my imagination and was inspired by the previous episodes. Like most spartace shippers, I am wishfully waiting for the day that our ship will sail. Hope you enjoy this story!

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Ji Hyo was sick for the past two weeks. During their shoot in Anyang, she was already struggling with a bad cold. It was so bad that she kept hiding behind Jong Kook’s back to blow her nose and avoid the cameras but it was no use as it was still caught on film. Eventually, her cold just seemed to have worsened throughout the day as they kept running around the city.

After filming, they went to Jong Kook’s home to have dinner with his parents but when Ji Hyo was about to hug his mother, omoni reached for her hands and quietly observed her face.

“Ji Hyo, you’re too pale. Are you alright?” she asked.

“Don’t worry omoni. It’s just a case of a bad cold,” Ji Hyo smiled.

Jong Kook’s mother examined her closely and curled her lip. Jong Kook noticed the shift in his mother’s expression and started to get worried as well. He came closer to Ji Hyo and placed his hand on her forehead.

“Yah, you’re burning up!” He accidentally raised his voice out of concern.

Ji Hyo gently removed his hand and held it, “I’m okay, Oppa. Just slightly feverish.”

“This won’t do. Jong Kook, bring her to your room so she can rest. Give her medicine for that cold and fever. I’ll warm up the soup,” his mother sternly instructed him.

“But omoni, who will help you prepare dinner?” Ji Hyo protested.

“Nonsense! I’m not done cooking yet and Jong Myung and his family are on their way. They can help out in the kitchen. Now, go on and take your rest,” she insisted and gently pushed her to proceed to the room.

“Ji Hyo-ah, gwenchana. Let’s get you rested,” Jong kook placed an arm around her and led her to his room.

When they reached his room, Ji Hyo couldn’t hide how sick she felt. She immediately laid down on the bed and wrapped herself around the blanket.

“Jagiya, here. Take this first before you go to sleep,” he handed her the meds and a bottle of water. She quickly took the pills for her colds and fever.

“Gomawo oppa. I feel really bad for letting omoni do all the work,” she confessed.

“Hey, it’s no big deal, okay? Rest first and I’ll go help omoni out, if that would make you feel better,” he caressed her head.

“Please do and promise me you’ll wake me up when dinner is ready. I should at least join your family tonight.”

“Okay, I promise. Now, go to sleep and don’t fight it,” he kissed her forehead and left the room to help out in the kitchen.

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Once the dinner preparations were finished, Jong Kook came back for Ji Hyo and accompanied her to the dining room. As they entered the area, his niece ran towards Ji Hyo and gave her a hug.

“Imo, you’re here!!! We can play together!” his niece exclaimed and kept jumping up and down while holding Ji Hyo’s hand.

“Aigoo, don’t do that. Your imo is sick,” Jong Kook warned his niece.

His niece frowned and glared at her samchon for being such a spoilsport. Ji Hyo was amused by his niece’s reaction, “Don’t worry sweetheart, you can sit next to me if you’d like.”

The little girl’s face instantly lit up and pulled Ji Hyo to her preferred seat, “Ji Hyo imo, let’s stay here.”

Ji Hyo happily obliged and sat on her assigned seat, with his niece on her right and Jong Kook on her left.

Throughout dinner, the kids actively shared their stories and jokes from school. The adults listened and laughed with them. The grown-ups also had their respective conversations while the children vied for Jong Kook or Ji Hyo’s attention. Jong Kook’s family was also very considerate of her health. From time to time, his father would ask her if she needed anything, his mother would get her more soup, and his hyung and his sister-in-law would scold the kids to give her some space. Despite the warm atmosphere she was receiving from his family, Ji Hyo was starting to feel lightheaded. She slid her hand on Jong Kook’s thigh to call his attention. Jong Kook caught the look on her face, “Ji Hyo-ah, are you okay?”

Ji Hyo blinked a few times, “Oppa, I’m really dizzy like I feel like passing out.”

Upon hearing this, Jong Myung instructed her to drink a glass of water and told Jong Kook to let her lie down to rest. Jong Kook assisted Ji Hyo to the couch and gently massaged her head. The rest of his family observed her quietly and were attentive to her needs.

Ji Hyo was grateful for Jong Kook’s soothing hands. His fingers were pushing with the right amount of pressure to relieve her from the dizziness. She felt relaxed and was slowly regaining awareness of her senses. However, she couldn’t deny that she still felt weak. She rarely gets sick from a cold but today is an exemption.

“Ji Hyo, you must have overworked yourself this time,” Jung Myung commented.

“I think so too,” she admitted.

“Why don’t you stay here with us for the night so you could rest?” Jong Kook’s mother offered.

“Omoni, it’s okay. I don’t want to be a bother and I’ll be able to rest more at home too,” Ji hyo explained.

“That’s ridiculous! Where on earth did you get that idea? You can always stay in Jong Kook’s room as long as you’d like,” Jong Kook’s father refuted.

“Appa, Omma, stop pressuring Ji Hyo. You know very well that she won’t be able to resist you both. Don’t worry about it. I’ll take her home and look after her,” Jong Kook assured them.

“Aigoo. I better pack some food for you to take with you,” his mother went to the kitchen, followed by his sister-in-law.

“Make sure you put more food in Ji Hyo’s container,” his father added.

Ji Hyo could not suppress her chuckle. Ever since Jong Kook introduced her to his family as his girlfriend, his parents had been overly caring for her. She was treated like family in an instant and his father would often show her favor over him; not that he was complaining.

When his mother finished preparing their “take home” food, Jong Kook helped Ji Hyo get up on her feet to say goodbye and thank his family.

“Omoni, Abuji, thank you so much for this evening. I’m sorry for causing you so much trouble this evening. I’ll visit you soon and treat you for dinner when I’m better,” Ji Hyo hugged them both.

“Aigoo, such a worrier. You should focus on getting better first. Don’t mind us, arasso?” His mother hugged her even tighter.

“Jong Kook, you should take care of Ji Hyo more. Make sure she doesn’t skip her meals and lack any sleep,” his father instructed him.

“Yes, Appa. We should get going now. It’s getting late,” he said.

The other members of the Kim family also said their goodbyes to the couple. Jong Kook’s niece hugged Ji Hyo tightly and whispered, “Ji Hyo Imo, please get better so we can play again.”

“Neh~~, I’ll visit you soon, okay?” Ji Hyo pinched her cheeks.

Jong Kook tapped his niece’s head as a signal that they already needed to go. In response, she hugged her samchon before letting them ride the car.

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Ji Hyo was asleep the whole ride back to Seoul. Even as Jong Kook was driving, he would glance at her every now and then just to check if she was comfortable. When they got to her house, Ji Hyo was surprised to find her family waiting for her.

“Omma, Appa, why are you not asleep yet?” she asked.

“Jong Kook sent a message to Sung-moon that you were sick,” her mother answered.

“Aish, Oppa. You didn’t have to text Sung-moon, I would’ve been fine,” Ji Hyo complained.

“But you won’t let me stay over to take care of you,” he retorted.

Ji Hyo was about to argue but she stopped when she realized what he said was true. 2019 has been a busier year for her beau. She has been very supportive of the new projects he had taken and had been very strict about giving him more time to rest in between filming schedules.

“Will you let me stay then?” Jong Kook .

“Aish, just go, you have a schedule tomorrow,” she whined.

He chuckled. He ignored her and handed her parents some goods from Anyang that he asked Gap Jin to buy while they were shooting Running Man. Her parents adored him so much that they enjoy his company whenever he was over. They don’t even care how cheesy or sweet he acts towards their daughter and would often scold Ji Hyo for being too stiff about it. They would remind her to be grateful that a man like him was crazy enough to like her.

“Aigoo, this young man, you did not have to!” her mother laughed

“It’s okay omoni, it was no problem at all. I know you particularly like this snack,” he smiled.

“You know, you shouldn’t really listen to this daughter of ours. You can always stay here any time you like,” her father said.

“Seriously, Appa!” she groaned.

“Yeah, Hyung. It’s better for you to stay here so she won’t boss everyone around,” Sung-moon added.

“Yah!!!” Ji Hyo was getting annoyed which only resulted in an eruption of laughter by everyone in the room.

“I’d love to stay but that would only stress her out. I’ll get going abuji, omoni. I’ll drop by again tomorrow,” he bowed

He gave a soft fist-bump to Sung-moon to thank him for waiting for them to arrive. Before leaving, he gave Ji Hyo a hug and whispered to her ear, “Take some rest okay? I promise I’ll try my best not to stress you out as I check on Sung-moon about your health.”

Ji Hyo giggled and clung