CHAPTER 8 : BRUISE AND APOLOGY 

Yoojin 

I worked over the order silently and that had happened for 3 days and I'm not gonna ing say anything to him! And I won't blame Taeyong and Yuta who every now and then, would ask if we fight. I would be brazenly said, "Why would we fight? There's nothing to fight for. We're good. Totally fine", only to be answered with... 

"Yeah, like we would believe it but okay." by Yuta. 

I don't know why am I so furious about the incident. Was it because my heart almost explode when I saw him up close, looking like that? Or the fact that he knows how much I am uncomfortable about the way we're...Oh ! Stop thinking about that! I furiously shook my head as I turn around, only to meet him, face to face. 

I didn't even look at his face or any part of his body that I had trouble forgetting in the past 3 days. I had been avoiding him for the past 3 days and I still remember the sting on my palm when it reached his right cheeks. 

This probably is the longest that we didn't spoke to each other. And I think he also gone to the dinner that Joanne had invite him to. That somehow made me angry a little bit more than necessary. 

A little bit sorry that I actually slapped him. But I was furious, can you blame me? And he actually seems to be avoiding me too. This is probably the first time that he didn't care and look at me whenever Taeyong or Johnny hugged me. The closest of our interaction for the past 3 days would be a yell of a customers order or something like 'Send it over that table'. 

"And here I thought you two are glued to the hips." 

I snapped out of my trance with Jaehyun looking down at me when Sungchan, Jaehyun's little brother walk into the cafe. 

"What are you doing here, puppy?" I asked and out of habit called him puppy, the nickname that Aungchan hate so much. 

"Ahe...don't call me that! I am not a puppy! I am a big boy, babe." And he end up scoffing, which I didn't understand why. 

"Why are you here? Did you run away from school or what?" I finally heard Jaehyun spoke..and why is he still behind me? 

I can feel him moving a little bit closer. I move a bit to the side and I didn't see Yuta was holding a pot of boiling water to the sink. It happened way too fast. 

It was just a pure chaos when I accidentally nudged his arms and the pot slipped from his hands, the water splashed on my arms. My mind is blanked and I can't think of anything. Not even the arms that had been pulling me by the waist from the back. The pain is exceeding everything at the moment. 

"What the hell? Can't you be more careful?!" Jaehyun had yelled at Yuta and I fisted his shirt by the chest. 

The pain is pretty much bearable but my tears can't. I've worked here for 4 years and this is the first ever accidents like this happened. 

"Jaehyun..it hurts!" I can't exactly stand straight because some of it splashed over my foot and my Converse is steaming from the hot water. 

"Damn it! Let's get you to the hospital! Sungchan, do you have anything important coming here? If you don't, we'll talk later." 

Sungchan just shake his head as Jaehyun asked his little brother. I would be surprised if it's not because of the pain I'm feeling right now when Jaehyun actually carry me in his arms, not piggybacking me. 

The car ride is filled with his worried voice, asking if I could stand the pain or he would go faster. And his hands keep holding mine, and I don't know why it felt so different from how it always was. 

Arriving at the hospital and given a medical attention never was my favourite and I had to endure it. Because I keep flinching, the doctor had to put me to 'sleep' and I was awake few hours later, which I noticed already 9PM. 

And Jaehyun is sleeping over my bed. I winced as I finally feel the numbing pain from the scalding on my arms and foot. It's bandaged nicely but I can hardly move as I pat Jaehyun's finger slowly. 

"Hey...wake up..." I called him in a hushed voice and he's quick to sit straight, rubbing his eyes slowly. 

"You're awake! Do you need anything? The nurse said that if you want to eat, you can try a light one first like the porridge or soup. If you feel like vomitting, you had to stop. Or you want to drink? I can get it for-..." 

He stopped when I squeeze his fingers with my left hand. I shook my head lightly. 

"I'm fine. I want to go home." I said but he looks at me disapprovingly. 

"The doctor told you to stay the night. They are keeping you here for another two days so hold it in." He said as he hold my left hand in his. 

After that, we suddenly go silent. The memory of our three days cold war rushing into my mind. Now that I think about it, I am quite the . I slapped him. 

I slapped Jaehyun. 

I slapped my bestfriend. 

As the guilt eating me up, I wanted to slam my head over the headrest. And his last quest