Chapter Eighteen

Lock Me Up
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“Jinnie… Byulyi fell off the bridge”

Jihye uttered those lines with a shaking and barely audible voice while sniffing back her tears.

It was enough for me to drop everything, stop shooting no matter how unprofessional it was, and headed to the hospital. I stole the keys from Yejun and drove myself to the hospital, leaving her with the stuff from W Korea.

This has never happened before. In fact, I wouldn’t dare doing anything like this. But there are a couple of bridges I knew around Jeonju, around Korea, and I could never comprehend how Byul would fall off from it, much less survive from the fall. I had to drop everything and see if she’s okay. I trust Yejun can explain on my behalf and I also promised to myself that I’ll make up for all of this.

I zoomed past the cars and the traffic lights as I drove from Seoul to Jeonju. I have never been more focused on driving than right now. Adrenaline and panic were pumping in my body and transformed me into a race car driver. Yejun must’ve felt like this everytime we’re running from one schedule to another.

When I reached the hospital, I parked the van and climbed out right away. Then I ran back to the car because I left the keys and I didn’t even bother closing the door. I made sure it was locked before I lifted my knee-length skirt a little bit and ran inside the hospital.

Yes… I’m still wearing the dress W Korea wanted me to wear.

“Moon Byulyi. Room number” I said between heavy breaths while hearing collective gasps around me. “Moon Byulyi” I said again, a little more urgent than earlier to the nurse who just stared at me in shock.

“Ah… Yes, mam. Sorry.” She went to the computer to check on Byul’s number while my long nails tapped impatiently on the desk. She pointed towards the elevators and said, “Third floor, hallway to your right, room 306,  Miss Hwasa”

“Thank you”

I pushed off the counter and lifted my skirt again for ease in moving. My dress is a long-sleeve body tight dress that makes me look like a peacock. The ugliest peacock now because I’ve been running since I left my dressing room the moment I ended Jihye’s call.

As soon as I got inside the elevator, I pressed the button for the third floor and took the time to breathe. I could feel eyes looking at me and even people whispering my name but my thoughts were slowly occupied with extreme worry for Byul. I tenderly moved my hair out of my face and blinked my eyes so hard when I felt them stinging from impending tears.

What happened to her? What if she couldn’t walk anymore? What if she broke so many bones? What if she broke her spine? What if she’s in a very terrible condition? What if she didn’t make it?

What if I lost her?

“Ah dammit, Byul” I cursed under my breath and closed my eyes to push back my tears.

I haven’t heard of anyone who survived from falling off the bridge. No one would. Not even the lanky Byul who’s gotten thinner already.

Numerous thoughts plague my mind, causing me to sniff back my tears. I quickly dabbed my tears and took a deep breath when I heard the elevator dinged. The moment the elevator opened, I ran once again with the single goal of making it to Byul’s room. My legs were shaking. My hands too. My sniffing never stopped when my tears were able to force their way out of my eyes. I almost ran into someone because of how blurry my vision has turned into from my tears.

I stopped on my tracks when I saw room 306 and didn’t bother to knock on the door anymore. I turned the knob and forced myself into the room, expecting every worst possible scenario. Byul lying unconsciously on bed with her sisters crying around her bed. Byul lying limply on her bed. Byul losing her arms and legs. Byul’s unrecognizable face because of the damage. Byul’s body covered in cloth.

The last image troubled me so much and made me regret a lot of things. I should’ve talked to her and let her apologize. I should’ve let her explain herself. I should’ve given her a chance because losing her meant no more chances anymore. No more opportunities to be mad at her.

No more Byul.

I pushed the door open and went inside her room. I held my breath with anticipation but was surprised to see Byul sitting on her bed. I scanned my eyes all over her body while my lips parted to catch my breath.

She’s alive.

“You’re alive” I whispered, running my tongue on my lips to wet them before gulping hard.

Byul looked equally shocked as me as she whispered, “Should… I not… be?”

I closed the door behind me and slowly made my way to the bed. The image of her lying with her body covered was so real in my head that I could not believe she’s alive, well, and talking in front of my eyes.

I stopped right beside her bed. I leaned a hand on the bed and reached my other hand to her neck. I pressed two fingers together and went to feel her pulse. I closed my eyes and checked that she’s really alive.

Byul and I gasped at the same time. I don’t know what made her do that but I gasped from the feeling of her pulse on my fingers. My eyes opened wide before I glanced at her. Her face was so close to mine and startled me to take a step back.

“Hyejin?” Byul asked, worrying while my hand went to cover my open mouth.

“You’re alive” I whispered again, still in shock.

“I am. What makes you think I’m not?”

“But Jihye said”—I glanced at Jihye sitting on the bench on the other side of Byul’s bed—“you fell off the bridge.” I looked at Byul again and saw her eyeing Jihye for a second before she looked at me.

“I did but I fell off a footbridge. Like a tiny foot bridge”

My hand fell from my mouth and my mouth shut instantly as I glanced towards Jihye. I gave her a pointed look while she grinned at me and timidly stood up, bringing Seulgi and Hana with her.

She chuckled softly and sluggishly walked around the bed with her two sisters behind her. “I did say it was a bridge. I just didn’t know that—Ah, no! I’m sorry!” She pushed Hana in front of her and hid behind her younger sister when I lunged towards. “Yes, I know what a footbridge is. I purposely left it out to make you worry. Maybe help you two talk. I’m really sorry! Please don’t hurt me” she hurriedly explained while cowering behind her sister.

“Hana step away”

“No, Han! Please no!”

I marched towards Jihye while Hana ducked just as I was in front of them. I had Jihye in a headlock with my left arm while she cried in exaggerated pain. My headlock was more like resting my arm around her shoulders and she’s being so squirmish in front of me already.

“I was in the middle of work, you punk! You cost me a day of photoshoot when I could just run here after work. What if I crashed the company van in my hurry to get here?”

She stopped squirming to look at me and asked, “You dropped your work just to get here?”

I tightened my arm around her neck and she started whining and wiggling in my arms again. “How could I face the executives of W Korea again, huh? You little punk…” I pressed my knuckles on her head and rubbed it fervently.

“Ow! I’m sorry! I thought you were just working with Yongsun. I didn’t know it was a different kind of work”

“You even cried on your way here” Seulgi said, my glare directed towards her now.

“Seulgi-ya…”

Jihye pushed out of my arm and ran out of the room with Hana trailing behind her, laughing their off. Seulgi grinned at me before she ran out of the room as well.

“Talk, you two, or else you’ll regret it” Seulgi said before she slammed the door shut.

“Little punks…” I whispered under my breath and went to the bathroom inside Byul’s room.

I checked myself in the mirror and sighed in relief that my tears didn’t ruin a lot of my makeup. I grabbed some tissues and wiped my face clean from tears, tapping lightly only. Then I threw the tissue away before heading back to Byul’s room. Since I’ve checked on her already and she’s still fine, maybe I still have the time to drive back to Seoul and continue the photoshoot.

Byul was groaning loudly, clearly in pain, when I got out of the bathroom. She was reaching to her side with her face distorted from hurt. Her back was to me so she didn’t notice it when I was already back in the room.

I sighed heavily and went to her bed to help her instead of heading to the door. “What’s wrong?” I asked her while she stopped moving when she heard me.

She tried to look at me but hissed and faced front right away. “I think Seulgi had my brace backwards. I can’t reach to unwrap it around me”

“Let me help”

“It’s fine, Hyejin”

“It’s clearly not” I argued and one look from me stopped her from arguing back. “Let me help” I said again while she shyly nodded at me.

I raised her shirt while Byul held it up for me. I reached behind her to unlatch the brace, hearing her taking a huge breath and holding it in. “What happened?”

She cleared before she whispered, “I was on my bike this morning. Then a squirrel suddenly ran towards me. I lost control of my bike trying to avoid it. I bumped onto the side rails. I fell off my bike and fell off the bridge. It’s really just a short bridge…”

I nodded as I pulled back with the brace in my hand. My eyebrows instantly furrowed when I saw a purplish bruise on her side. I took a step to the side and then leaned forward to have a better view of the bruise.

My hand instantly went to my mouth as I gasped loudly. I reached my shaking hand on her back and gently touched it.

“It looks worse than it actually is, Jin”

“It’s so big” I whispered, retrieving my shaking hand before I looked at Byul.

The bruise covered almost the left half of her back. It wasn’t just a short bridge or an ordinary fall for her to earn something as huge as that. That must’ve hurt a lot.

“Is that the only bruise you have?” I asked, my voice shaking while my tears threatened to come out once again.

Byul shook her head and kept shut.

I leaned closer to her again and wrapped the brace around her waist. I made sure that it’s on her correctly and that she’s comfortable with it before closing the brace.

I took a step back while Byul lowered her shirt again. “Where else?” I asked, my voice firmer this time.

“On my arm” she said, pointing at her left arm.

I raised her sleeve and noticed a new tattoo on her left bicep.

Encased in a rectangle is an ocean wave with a whale’s tail peeking above the wave. Then a moon was standing atop the rectangle.

Curiosity made me want to ask her what it meant but I remembered about her bruise. My mind is really all over the place.

I raised her arm just a little bit and then turned to the side to see about a palm-size bruise. It’s lighter compared to the one on her back but it still looked painful and big.

“What did the doctors say?” I asked her as I pulled the sleeve down.

“They had my X-ray to check on my spine and ribs but the results aren’t out yet. I have to stay here for a few more days to rest until I’m clear for a discharge.“ She winced when she took a deep breath and ever so slowly released it. “I’m sure I’ll stay longer. My chest and back hurts when I breath”

“Does your Dad know already?” I asked, lips turning in a frown.

“Yes… Uhm… Can you help me lie down? Please… It hurts to sit up”

My arms went underneath her legs and helped her raise them up on the bed again. Then I cradled her head and placed an arm around her shoulders. I slowly lowered her down on the bed while she’s holding her breath and wincing in pain.

“Sorry…”

“No, it’s fine” Byul whispered between clenched teeth while her arms were hugging herself around her waist. “It’s better than when I was moving earlier.” Slowly, she released her breath with her eyes closed and her eyebrows furrowed.

“You okay?”

“Yeah…” she whispered, her voice relaxed now as she slowly breathed deeply. She turned to face me before she said, “I’m sorry about my sisters. I didn’t know Jihye texted you. I only told her to tell Dad”

I simply shrugged and nodded at Byul. I went to sit on the chair beside Byul’s bed and closed my eyes when exhaustion finally hit me. “You’re flying home tomorrow, right? Or was it moved because you’re here” I asked her with my eyes still closed.

“My sisters are watching over me so we have to stay some more. Our extension depends on the results of my X-ray”

“Hmm…”

“Should I give a call to W Korea?”

I slowly opened my eyes and looked at her while she instantly pouted and avoided my gaze. “And why would you do that?”

“I don’t know… Tell them that it’s my fault why you had to leave the photoshoot? I had to fix Jihye’s mess and I don’t want you getting in trouble because of my sister”

I closed my eyes again as I mumbled, “Yejun can handle it. I don’t want to give false impressions or expectations. They might assume”

“I—Okay…”

It was quiet for a while. Only the hum from the AC unit and Byul’s struggle in breathing could be heard. I let my head fall back on the chair and planned to take a rest first before heading back to Seoul.

“Hyejin?”

“Hmm…”

“Can you please pass me the tissue?”

I opened my eyes again and found the tissue box by the bedside table beside me. I reached for it and handed it to Byul before closing my eyes once again.

“Sit up for a second”

My glare was instant when I looked at Byul and she patted the space beside her.

“You missed a spot. This will be over for a second” she explained, slightly pouting at me while trying to hold my gaze.

I released another sigh before I pushed myself to stand up. I raised myself to sit beside Byul, careful not to shake it to not hurt her back as I lowered myself on the mattress. I placed my hands on their side of her and then leaned closer so she didn’t have to reach her hand or push herself forward.

She cupped my cheek and held my gaze for a second before her eyes lowered. Her gentle hands wiped below my eyes while her eyes were trained on her task.

My face was so close to hers that I could see her tiny freckles around her cheeks. Her hand on my cheek reminded me of its warmth, making me close my eyes for a short second. I took a sharp inhale and leaned away from her touch.

“That’s enough” I whispered, grabbing the tissue from her hand before I moved to hop down on the bed.

Byul held my wrist and stopped me from going down. “Can we please talk, Hyejin? Just for a minute. I will not be demanding much of your time. Please…”

There was a knock on the door before the door was pushed open. Doctor came in here accompanied by a nurse, bringing her X-ray results.

Instead of releasing my wrist, Byul held it tighter before she breathed deeply and cursed under her breath for being interrupted. I held her hand and ran my thumb on her knuckles, loosening her hold on me.

“Sorry…” she whispered and finally let go of my hand.

I hopped down on the bed and bowed to the nurse and doctor. Then I turned to Byul and asked, “Should I go get your sisters?”

She shook her head before she whispered, “No. Stay…”

There’s not much I could protest and I also wanted to know her condition so I stayed. We turned to the doctor and nodded at him, signaling him to start telling us Byul’s results.

Byul had indeed damaged her ribs. There was a tiny crack on her ribs but it wasn’t that serious. This was also the reason why she was having a hard time breathing and moving. The doctor said that Byul’s ribs will be treated later after they have finished the preparation.

“She’s been having a hard time breathing. Is there anything you can do about it?” I asked the doctor.

“We can have her in oxygen, mam”

Byul instantly groaned as she mumbled, “No… I don’t need the oxygen.” She took a second to breathe first while I raised an eyebrow at her. That just proved my point that she needed it. She pouted at me and said, “No…”

“Why?”

“It makes me look like a dying person. I don’t want to look like that. I’m not sick”

I rolled my eyes and scoffed at her, earning a groan from her. “You almost became a dying person after riding in your bike so recklessly”

“A squirrel ran into me. Should I have killed it?”

“That squirrel can survive your weight and would’ve all been well more than you ramming your bike on the bridge rails”

She pouted at me and begged me through her eyes. “Jin…”

“Oxygen tank” I countered, narrowing my eyes at her.

She started kicking the bed and whined like a kid but instantly stopped as she took in a sharp breath. Her hand hurriedly held her side as she slowly released a breath.

“Told you. You need oxygen” I wh

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Thank you!
RedSparrow
WE'RE FINALLY DONE! THANK YOU FOR COMING IN THIS LOVELY JOURNEY WITH ME!
Twenty-four chapters, an Interlude and an Epilogue!
FILLER CHAPTERS IN APPENDICES [RS]!

LOVE LOTS :)
- RedSparrow

Comments

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chipchap
#1
♥️♥️♥️♥️
Zairrix
#2
Chapter 26: Wonderful journey! I really enjoy this rollercoaster ride, the ups and downs in their relationship, the changes and the happy ever after phase. I always appreciate how great you are at writing these fanfics. I hope to see more Wheesun stories from you in the future hehe
HadesShade
#3
WOW!!!🤟🏻thank you for this supppperrrrrr lovely story. 👌🏻 Hoping to have a byul POV for this story 😏😉😘
yllwz_
#4
Chapter 26: I LOVE THIS SO MUCH THANK YOU!
Ichig02101 #5
Chapter 26: Tq authornim for the lovely story 🥰
Its a masterpiece for me. The way construct the story line is amazing. Looking 4ward for ur new creation ☺️👏
maki-- #6
Chapter 21: Wheein 🤝 Hyejin
mga ate gurl na hinaharang ng mga guard sa building 🤣 🤣🤣
dnsymlh #7
Chapter 12: I'm hurt 😭😭😭
sadandlonely #8
Chapter 25: 😭😭😭😭😭😭
sadandlonely #9
Chapter 24: LO DIJO LO DIJO
sadandlonely #10
Chapter 23: I was also waiting for them to get married...