Chapter 5:
x
"time never waits, it delivers us all to the same end"
Genre: Romance || Suspense || Drama || Tragedy || Mafia War || Friendship || Humor

GD was staring at the hospital building for quite a while now. He was just leaning on his bike, cigar in hand and a blank expression on his face as he debated with himself whether he should go in, or stay out. He’s been like that for a few days now. Ever since that little talk with the Yakuzan and YG he stirred clear of the YG building for some time. He was hell pissed at him, not only for trying to pursuade him to take the corps, but also for throwing away Sandara’s records.

He took one last sip of his cigar before throwing it to the ground and stomping his feet on it. He gives up. He didn’t enter that building the past days he stopped by, so what makes this day so special that he will enter it now?

He was about to hop on his bike when he stopped himself and turned to look at the building again.

“I’ll just check on her for a second.” He muttered, finally going up the entrance of the hospital.

As he walked the hallway of the hospital he kept on muttering things like, “I’ll just peak at the door, see what she doing and then get out of there.”

He was already in front of the door to the ward when it had swung open, revealing paramedics carrying out a lifeless body. He looked down on the bed and his eyes widened to see that it was the girl he had talked to on his last visit here.

‘Was she dead?’ He asked himself even though he knew the obvious answer to that.

He stared at the retreating figures of the paramedics and then turned his head to the open doors of the ward. There she caught sight of the patients looking over to the direction of where the medics had left. His eyes looked for a certain girl inside the room.

Dara was sitting up on the bed with tears streaming down on her eyes as she stared at the open doors.

She saw him, but she didn’t let her eyes falter away.

He saw that she was really sad for the death of the girl. He went inside the wards, closed the doors and walked over to her, standing beside her bed. She was now looking at him. The tears stopped falling and what's left in her eyes were jsut plain sadness and sorrow for the girl. Unconsciously, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her head to rest on his chest.

She gave no second thoughts and let the tears out again, staining his shirt.

“It’s okay… she’s in a better place now.” He comforted.

He was surprised by the words that came out of his mouth. Never had he used those words in one sentence before.

The tears now stopped, but she didn't move her head away. “She was so young.” She breathed out.

He let out a heavy breath and braced himself for the words he was about to let go.

“People die every minute and every second of every day. We can’t stop that. It’s the way nature built us. To last for only a short while until our body gives in and finds its way back to nature…” He trailed off.

What was he saying? Where did those words come from? He felt like a Chinese guru with the words he said. What happened to the tough and cold exterior he established around her?

“Thank you.” She mumbled through his shirt.

She looked up to meet his gaze and he was suddenly stopped for a moment when he stared back into those lovely brown orbs. His throat tightened and his heart was fighting to get out of his rib cage. The blood flowed to his head making him feel dizzy just by the mere stare of hers.

“For coming back at the right moment.” She continued.

This time he felt the heat slowly creep up on him as he snapped his head towards the other direction to hide his crimson face.

“Jiyong…” He mumbled inaudibly that she almost didn’t hear it.

“Mwo?” She asked releasing her arms from his waist.

“My name.” He voiced out flatly. “It’s Jiyong.”

A smile broke out from her lips feeling happy that she can call him by a name that didn’t sound like it was taken out from a kung fu movie. She completely forgot about the death of her only patient friend here in the hospital.

“I like it… Jiyong.”

The way his name rolled on her tongue mad him feel giddy all over like an elementary school kid. The feeling felt abnormal to him in so many ways.

“Yeah, yeah whatever.” He waved a dismissive hand in front of her and sat down on his usual chair right at the foot of her bed.

She just kept the grin on her face as she stared at him like she was a 6 year old girl who just received a new doll for a birthday gift.

GD tried his best to avoid her eyes, but her staring like that, bothered him. It was suffocating, torturing every second he spent sitting on that chair just waiting for the awkwardness to go away because of her mere presence. And mostly because she just made his body react weirdly a few moments ago.

“So… “ He began trying to come up with a topic, but found none. He doesn't know what to say to her considering the fact that he has been really rude to her for the past days he visited. There was also the fact that he fet like words were choking him whenever he spoke to her. It just felt so alien to him that he didn't know how to handle a situation like this.

“Have you been smoking?” She asked popping up a subject for a conversation. He silently thanked her for doing that, but immediately took it back when the question sank in.

He stared at her with wide eyes as if to say, ‘how’d you know?’

She shrugged her shoulders and lay back down on her hospital bed. “You smell.”

GD stared at her in disbelief. He consciously grabbed his shirt and smelled it. True enough, he really did smell like smoke.

“I hate cigarettes. The smell makes my head spin.” She muttered, tucking her hands under her head.

He cocked an eyebrow at her. “How do you know that you hate cigarettes? I thought you had amnesia and can’t remember anything?”

“I just… I don’t know…” She trailed off. “I just feel it.”

He laughed dryly and stood from the chair, creating a screech sound on the tiled floor. This immediately made her sit up.

“Where are you going?” She asked as he was already two steps away from her.

“I’m gonna go grab a bite. You want something?”

Dara narrowed her eyes into tiny slits. “Sure, give me something that would last for one week.”

“Why would you want something like that?” He questioned.

“Because that’s probably the span of time before you go back here.”

He felt sorta guilty with her words. His last visits with her did have a long time span so she probably doesn’t expect him to visit too much.

He walked back to her and leaned close to her ear. He gave himself a mental pat on the back when he saw the heat rushed up to color her cheeks crimson. Consider it his revenge for the earlier scene, even when she did it unconsciously.

“I’ll be back in 30 minutes flat.” He whispered brushing his lips on her ear lobe making her blush even more.

He smirked before standing straight up. Her expression was priceless that it should be captured and put on auction for large sums of money.

GD went down to the hospital cafeteria to buy her food and immediately made gag sounds when he realized they didn’t pay justice to the bland flavors they served. He was about to leave the place when an annoying face popped into view.

“What are you doing here?” Bom asked pointing an accusing finger at him.

“I’m here to visit San Dara, is there a problem with that?” He asked, testing her patience.

“Didn’t I tell you to stay away from her?” She hissed.

“You have no authority over her so I come here whenever I want.” He stuck his tongue out at her like a kid and purposely bumped her shoulders, causing her to drop the clipboard she was holding.

“Aissht.” She cursed as she bent down to pick up the clipboard.

That showed her. He is going to visit Dara whenever he wants and no annoying red-headed nurse is going to stop him from doing that. Although, the way that nurse acted so protective over her friend reminded him of someone he hadn’t talked to for a while now ever since he threw his old phone. Maybe he should try contacting his hyung again just to check how his brothers at arms were doing.

Just when he was about to step out of the hospital with that thought, the corner of his eye caught sight of a familiar motorcycle parked just a few meters away from him. He turned his head towards the bike and widened his eyes when he saw the guy leaning on the bike.

“Hyung.” He called out approaching TOP.

Both their faces immediately broke out into a huge grin. To think he was only thinking about this dude just a few seconds ago.

“I knew the bike in there was yours.” TOP said pointing at GD’s bike.

They exchanged familiar and complicated handshakes first before starting the conversation.

“What are you doing here?” GD asked.

TOP’s face then turned serious. “Jiyong, I can’t lie to you…” He began, calling their leader by his real name.

The smile on GD’s face vanished. TOP only called him by his real name whenever he means serious business.

He didn’t say anything and let TOP continue.

“You do know about Ravin right?” He asked starting their topic of conversation with the late 7^th star of Chil Sung Pa.

GD cocked an eyebrow. “I do. What about it?”

TOP sighed. He took out his pack of cigarettes from his pocket and offered one to GD. He was about to take the offer then remembered what Dara said earlier about hating smoke. He refused the offer unbeknownst to the fact that he did so because the girl told him she disliked smoke. He’s not really a chain-smoker. He only smokes on days when he feels the most stressed and so far after that conversation with YG, he’d already finished 5 packs. But when that girl said those words, he immediately felt self-conscious.

Not minding the fact GD refused the smoke, TOP returned the pack to his pocket and lit his stick up. “The 1^st star sent some of his men to recruit us in the mob.”

GD’s eyes widened. “All of you?”

“Just me, Youngbae, Seungri and Daesung. They noted the fact that we were the closest to you. They thought that if we joined, you would be left with no choice but to join too and maybe then, ake the Lee corps under your wing.”

GD ground his teeth together at how low Chil Sung Pa stooped so low jsut to get him in. “Did you?” He hissed.

TOP laughed and shook his head. “Are you kidding? We never make decisions without consulting the leader first. Besides, we knew you wouldn’t join them if they kept on persuading you to go back to your father.”

“I don’t know why they really want me to take Lee Corps away. There are other heirs out there that would gladly accommodate their needs.”

TOP shrugged. “Dunno. You know these mobster bosses. They all have their classified selfish reasons.”

GD nodded his head in agreement. Yes, mobsters did have classified selfish reasons that they do not leak ut. Even G-Dragon himself didn't know the real reason why they wanted him so badly.

He checked the time on his watch and ralized he had took too long. “, I only got 10 minutes left.” He cursed under his breath.

TOP cocked an eyebrow and discarded his cigarette. “Left for what?”

GD walked away from him and towards a nearby café with TOP following him like a lost puppy. “I promised Dara I would be back 30 minutes flat with her food.”

“Dara?” His hyung asked seeming curious. “You have a girlfriend now?”

GD rolled his eyes as he bought a chocolate cake for Dara. “No hyung. She’s just some girl I pulled out of a car crash a few weeks ago. No one special.”

TOP smirked. “No one special yet you’re buying her chocolate cake?”

GD froze. He didn’t have an answer to that question, or that statement for that matter. He just paid for the cake and brushed pass his hyung, brisk-walking his way back in the hospital with TOP still following behind him. To be honest, he never thought it would be this irksome to have his hyung following him around. Maybe because it was the fact that TOP followed him just to pry information about Dara.

“So… is she pretty?” TOP interrogated as they paced their way to the ward.

GD ignored him and just kept walking straight. TOP almost fawned around him trying to tease his dongsaeng. He was excited himself. Not once in Kwon Jiyong’s life had this guy decided to buy chocolate cake for a girl before. Heck he didn’t even bother to buy anything for a girl before. Not even his mother and sister!

Because of too much fawning over GD, TOP didn’t notice the nurse in front of him who also seemed to walk in the same direction as them. He bumped into her roughly making her drop the clipboard she was holding. It was not their fault she walked too slow.

“Oh I’m sorry miss.” TOP apologized, his gentleman side kicking in as he picked up the clipboard that the nurse dropped.

“Why do I always drop this thing?” The nurse muttered also attempting to pick it up.

With the two of them bending low, their two heads conked together making them both whince in pain and throw their bodies back.

“Ow!” They both chorused.

GD stopped walking and turned back to his hyung. A wide grin immediately spread on his face when he saw who TOP bumped into.

“Here, let me.” TOP offered picking up the clipboard and giving it to the girl. He immediately stopped when he saw her chubby face that gave a small smile.

“Thank you.” She said breaking him out of his momentary trance.

GD let out a long high-pitched whistle, earning the attention from the two. “Nice job…” He taunted, not really directing it towards Bom or TOP. He just wanted to say it to see their reactions.

Bom narrowed her eyes at him ad was about to speak when TOP cut her off. “What’s nice Jiyong?” He asked cocking an eyebrow.

Bom turned to him. “You know him?”

“Yeah why?” TOP answered.

Bom shook her head. “Nothing.”

She noticed the small box GD was holding and clearly pointed it out. “What’s that?” She asked.

“Oh this?” He replied holding the box of chocolate cake up for her to see. “It’s for Dara.”

“Why the nice and generous guy act all of a sudden?” She asked with an arched eyebrow.

“It’s just an apology cake. Besides, she was upset about the death of the patient with colon cancer… or something like that so I hope this cake will brighten up her mood.” He explained.

The words that slipped out of his mouth was not him at all. And TOP could clearly see that. He was about to ask questions when GD turned and walked away, trying to avoid them.

Bom asked why he suddenly did that and TOP told her about how this was GD’s first time doing this for a girl. A smile immediately broke out on Bom’s lips after hearing that from TOP.

“I guess he’s alright after all…”

***

“Here.” GD said, placing the box of cake on Dara’s bed-side table before going back to his chair.

“Wow, you did come back; and not a minute to lose.” She replied prying the box open. “What is this?”

“It’s obviously a cake. Do you know another name for it?” He remarked sarcastically. Before he knew it, another book went flying for him. He couldn’t help but laugh at the scowl on her face.

“Just eat it before I take it away.”

She gave a cute pout, but started eating the cake none the less. It’s weird because he liked watching her eat with a smile on her face. It made him feel contented for some reason.

Dara noticed that GD was looking at her so she stopped stuffing with cake. “Do you want a bite?” She asked and offered the cake towards him.

He smirked, stood up and walked towards her. Without warning, he took her wrist to avoid her from pulling it back and took in the forked cake in his mouth.

Dara’s face instantly flashed red as she pulled her hand back when he let go of her wrist.

“You should have just taken the fork from me.” She muttered, looking away.

He chuckled before going back to his chair. “Now where’s the fun in that?”

“So this is Dara?” TOP’s voice interrupted.

He was standing there with Bom beside him. Neither GD nor Dara even noticed them come in.

Dara turned to TOP. “You know me?” She asked. The possibility of him knowing about her background lighted up her hope.

“No.” TOP plainly replied as he stood beside GD. He looked at her up and down and noted the fact that she is pretty… not to mention achingly familiar. He couldn’t quite put a finger on why though. He hated too much thinking so he didn’t strain himself trying to think of why the girl in the hospital bed looked familiar and just indulged himself in a conversation with Jiyong regarding the status of their gang back in Busan. They made sure to keep their voices on the low so the girls wouldn’t hear them.

A feeling of disappointment flooded through Dara’s whole body with what TOP said. It’s a shame that she still doesn’t know a thing about herself except for her name and the fact that she hated cigarettes.

“Dara, great news!” Bom exclaimed standing right in front of Dara’s dextrose.

“What is it?” She asked eager to hear the great news after receiving a not so great one from TOP.

Bom grabbed the thin plastic tube of the dextrose and said, “We can remove this now! Dr. Hyeyoung said your wounds have fully healed and you can get out of the hospital next week!”

A wide smile spread on Dara’s face when she heard Bom’s news. But the sooner the smile appeared, the sooner it also vanished as realization dawned on her. “I have nowhere to go, and I still don’t know about my whole background.”

GD’s ears perked up as his attention wandered from TOP to Dara. He wanted to offer her to stay in his apartment, but he couldn’t form the words in his mouth.

Bom grabbed Dara’s hand and squeezed it. “That’s the other great news! I talked to Dr. Hyeyoung and told her that you’ll be living with me! Isn’t this great? It’s like a slumber party every night… well aside from the fact that I’ll be gone some nights for my dutiest, but still!”

GD immediately dropped his suggestion. Of course she would stay with a girl. What will people think when they saw her coming in and out of his apartment? Of course, most will probably say they were girlfriend and boyfriend living together or maybe husband and wife because they were at the appropriate age after all.

He shook his head at the thought. Why did he suddenly think of marriage with her? He doesn’t even know her that well and already he's thinking of those things. It made him shudder to the core.

Dara kept the frown on her face. “Wouldn’t I be a burden to you in that way?”

Bom shook her head. “Of course not! You’re my total best friend now. And besides, my apartment is big, but it’s as good as empty, plus there’s an extra room where you can sleep in.”

Dara was still a little unsure of herself, but seeing the bright smile on Bom’s face she couldn’t say no. She knew she only knew the girl for 2 weeks, but it felt like she knew her since she was still a little girl.

TOP elbowed GD slightly on the rib and said in a low voice audible from the girls who were chatting. “Hey Jiyong… do you mind if I crashed in your place for a while?”

GD tore his eyes away from Dara and turned it to TOP. He noticed that TOP was looking at something… or someone in particular. And it was none other than Park Bom.

“Waeyo?” He asked cocking an eyebrow. “You want to stay here in Daejeon to see more of Bom, don’t you?”

TOP winked at him. Definitely not the reaction GD was expecting. He expected some sort of scowl or denial, but a wink? It was not what he anticipated at all.

“At least I know the object of my interest… unlike you.”

GD scowled. “Yah. What’s that supposed to mean?”

Author's Note:

So did that satisfy DaraGon thirst? Not yet? Well I'm sure Chapter 6 will make you feel giddy because it is DaraGon all the way. For now, I hope you enjoyed this chpater. Do comment alright guys?

Comment Replies:
[Can you guys voice out some of those thoughts? you? No? Aw...]

icegirl --- > You're not way off! In fact you are so warm with your theories.

Loveless3 ---> Bommie actually has a deeper reason to why she's treating Dara like that. It will be revealed in later chapters though... say around chapters 15-20? Just wait for it. I don't want to ruin the surprise ^_^