“Twenty two months. It’s been twenty two months since you’ve stepped back into my life. These are the luckiest yet the longest months of my life. I can’t believe you’re still alive. You are a hero.

I’ve been lucky to spend all this time with you, admiring every inch of your being, thanking god for every time I see that chest of yours go up and down with every breath you take.

It’s been twenty two months since you have been lying motionless on that hospital bed. I spent all this time beside you: every weekend night, every time I could get rid of my internship duties were all dedicated to you.

I love watching your complexion. How can you be that perfect? Tell me my hero because I long for hearing that voice again. I want to see that angelic smile on your face.

I have spent the last twenty two months looking at every breath you take, each one of them filling my heart with hope and bliss. I want to know you. I want to hear about your hobbies, your favorite dishes. I want to know what type of music you like, your favorite movie, every single detail about your character.

Most of all, I want to know how it ended up like this. Trying to figure out the reason behind all this haunts my nights and my days. I want to know why they found those substances in your blood. Please wake up and tell me what happened during that night.

I wonder what kind of person he was so he could do that to an angel like you. Why did that man, the one you chose, the one who was supposed to cherish you and thank the heavens for having you everyday, hurt you like that? I should have known you were not happy even though you don’t even know who I am.

Today, I can finally say that I’m fully ready, I’ll be here when you’re up, I’m ready to protect you and take care of you.

Wake up angel, wake up and I’ll make it up for all your suffering.

Wake up and I’ll heal your wounds.”

He would always talk to the “patient” like that each time he visited him during the weekend. Dr. Jung Yunho was spending yet another Saturday night by Jaejoong’s side in his father’s hospital. The motionless boy was all what the therapist needed to be able to face the new week.

However, this night was special for Yunho. He ended his internship under his father’s supervision successfully. Just this morning, Dr. Jung Sr. announced him that he could start his own office and have his own patients as the two-year internship came to an end.

Yunho’s happiness would not be complete if he doesn’t share the piece of news with his long lost Hero. Truning down his family’s offer to celebrate with them, he preferred to carry on with his little regular weekend routine: leaving the office to take a shower, then heading back to the hospital to spend the night at Jaejoong’s bedside talking to him about his week.

During the whole two years, never once did the young therapist fail to make his habitual visit to the boy he liked to call “Hero”.

He still remembers what happened almost two years ago. He remembers how overwhelmed he was when, his good friend and colleague, Dr. Choi Siwon went out of the surgery room to announce him and Jaejoong’s best friends (who turned into his own friends during the 22 months of Jaejoong’s coma) that the person who had two bullets in his chest had miraculously survived the surgery.

He remembers that at that time he felt the tears of joy uncontrollably falling down his cheeks replacing those of despair and anxiousness which had been blurring his sight during the six hours of the surgery. Yoochun and Junsu were too busy comforting each other to notice there was yet another person as worried, if not more, as they were.

Till this day he still remembers how he felt when he saw the door of the surgery room being opened by Siwon and the relief he felt seeing his smiling eyes and hearing his words.

*Flashback* (22 months ago)

“The surgery was a success. We finally managed to extract the bullets without a great damage to the lungs, even though it took a lot of time. His heart was still intact. Your friend is just too lucky the bullet stopped a mere two millimeters before reaching the heart.”

Sighs of relief emitted from the three people occupying the waiting room before Yoochun managed to ask under his tears of happiness:

“Is he awake? Can we see him?”

“Unfortunately,” the surgeon’s expression shifted then to a serious one, he continued in a tone full of compassion turning his sight to the restless Yunho “the surgery took a long time. He lost too much blood and his lungs stopped functioning for a while. His brain lacked oxygen for too long…”

“What do you mean doctor? Please don’t speak as if we could understand any of this scientific blubbering. Say it simply, what should we expect?” Junsu cut him with a worried voice.

“What I want to say is that your friend is now in a coma.” answered Dr. Choi.

“That can’t be true, right? It’s just impossible! Our Jaejoong can’t be in a coma. He’s too lively and cheerful. That won’t last, right? He can’t be comatose for long, can he?” Junsu was now looking like a lost child. How could he face life without Jaejoong? He was almost shouting at Siwon while talking.

“Sorry to tell you that sir, but no one really knows about that. It depends on his own will. What is important is that he has successfully passed the dangerous state. He might wake up any time now, maybe in a few hours and maybe…” the doctor stoped there. He didn’t want to give too much hope to the patient’s friends.

“You mean, he… he might never wake up?” Junsu was now sobbing again.

“I’m sorry!” Siwon gave Yunho a last apologetic look before leaving the three devastated men in their own world.

(A few weeks later)

“Sorry sir, but do we know you? How come you’re here? Why do you even care? I’m sure Jaejoong never told us about having a doctor as an acquaintance.” Junsu could no longer bear the curiosity that has been building in him for the last few weeks. He grabbed the young doctor’s arm while the latter was heading to the door like every time he did when they came to see Jaejoong.

That day, Junsu finally took the chance to ask what has been haunting his mind all these past weeks. He was surprised to see the extremely handsome stranger every time he went to see Jaejoong at the hospital. The said man would always seem concerned and worried. When they met in their best friend’s hospital room, the young doctor, they recognized as the one who promised to take care of Jaejoong the first day he was taken to hospital, would always excuse himself to leave them alone with their friend.

What was even more puzzling was that the man requested a special VIP room for their friend at his own charge. They also heard from the nurses about the man’s daily visits and weekend nights spent by Jaejoong’s side.

“Oh, sorry” the handsome therapist smiled calmly and bowed slightly “I’ve never got the chance to introduce myself. My name is Jung Yunho. I work in this hospital, I specialize in psychiatry.”

“Pleased to meet you Dr. Jung. I’m Park Yoochun and this is Kim Junsu. We are Jaejoong’s friends since childhood.” Yoochun answered with a bow obliging Junsu to do the same thing though half-heartedly.

“But why are you paying for this huge luxurious room? Who are you to our Jaejoong ?”

Junsu could not help but burst his unanswered question to Yunho again. He had nothing against the man, but Yunho’s presence was a big question mark for him.

“Stop it Junsu, this man has only been helpful ever since we brought Jaejoong here. We should thank him instead of asking him such questions.” scolded Yoochun bowing and smiling shyly to Yunho.

“Excuse my friend doctor. Excuse my crazy friend…” Yoochun’s smile suddenly turned into a clear smirk before he added:

“Oh, since you are a psychiatrist, you may do something for this guy over here.” He pointed at Junsu and winked. Then, he suddenly stopped and winced at the sharp slap he got from his pouting friend.

“Yoochun!” that was Junsu’s cute whining voice.

Yunho noticed that Junsu’s expression was not as scary as before. The doctor thought Junsu was actually a cute guy after all. The two friends’ exchange of whining and pouting faces made the atmosphere friendlier.

Yunho smiled widely, he was really thankful to these guys for lifting his mood. He decided to behave more spontaneously in front of them from then on.

“O.K., I’ll try to find a solution for that.” Yunho carried on with Yoochun’s tease, he laughed slightly surprising the two friends who didn’t expect his relaxed face to be eradiating like that. His laughing face was luminous and showed sincere kindness.  It was then that they became fully aware of how y and good looking the man was.

“Concerning the hospital room, don’t worry, it’s free from charge. My father partly owns and is the head of this institution. As for Jaejoong, he doesn’t really know me. I saw him a couple of times at the university I had attended two years ago, and I happened to recognize him as my junior the night of the accident. I couldn’t help but feel the need to assist when I saw his state and heard what happened. You can say, I feel responsible for a man I barely know, and who probably wouldn’t even recognize me once he wakes up. It’s just that can’t help it.” Yunho said smiling and gazing at the angelic motionless form of Jaejoong.

“Is that so?” Junsu said after a long silence “I guess you really are a good charitable man. Sorry for being so rude. Please take care of our friend Dr. Jung” he added with a bow.

“Just call me Yunho, it’s not like I’m much older, am I?”

*End of flashback*

Yunho was still waiting for his “Hero” to wake up. He wanted to be the first person to see his eyes opening. He wanted to share his happiness with the university beautiful stranger. He has been waiting patiently for almost two years now.

However, being human, Yunho was also weak. He broke down that particular night, when he asked Jaejoong to wake in vain. Two years were too much to bear. He couldn’t help but cry seeing his hero’s face so lifeless. His body became smaller compared to the time he knew him. He was even thinner than the night of the “accident”.

He was starting to lose hope in ever seeing those eyes open. He got closer to Jaejoong bed and gently touched the boy’s cold cheeks ignoring the fact that his own were soaked with tears. As the minutes went by Yunho found himself longing to feel more of the boy.

Slowly, he leaned and brought the lifeless form up between his arms. He nuzzled Jaejoong’s hair and filled his lungs with his scent. Jaejoong smelled like the hospital bed sheets. His body scent was that of the medicines that he had been administered for almost two years now, but for Yunho, it was the most enticing perfume he had ever got to smell.

Yunho could no longer live like this. His love for the boy was destroying every inch of his being. He felt so useless. Seeing the man he loved in front of him lying like this and knowing that he could only do but wait, was breaking him.

He buried his sobs in Jaejoong’s hair and then he slowly lifted him up and hugged him tight to his heart. He felt his heart exploding. This was the first time he acted like this, the first time Jaejoong’s body was so close, but how could he resist. All this time he has been setting limits to himself. Never once did he touch further than Jaejoong’s hands or face. He knew going any further would tear him up.

Smelling Jaejoong’s scent, feeling his heartbeat against his own, nothing was enough to soothe Yunho’s thirst for the boy. He knew it was against his own principles and all the restrictions he put to himself. But tonight, Yunho was weak. He felt terribly lonely, even more than the two years he spent far from Korea to study. He needed some warmth, not the one a family or friends could offer, but that of love.

He needed his overwhelming and destructive love for Jaejoong to be exalted in the open, even without the permission of this lying hero. His appreciation and respect for Jaejoong were nothing compared to the longing and despair he felt that particular night.

He didn’t know why it had to be that night, but it just happened that the day he could finally call himself a doctor, was the day he felt the loneliest. He was finally a doctor, but he had nobody to celebrate it with him. He wanted this title so much and he, of course, had his family, but what he desired the most wasn’t that. He only wanted this man he loved to heal and wake up. Unfortunately, this didn’t seem to be happening any time soon.

Slowly, Yunho found himself leaning closer to the boy’s face. He was looking at every small detail of the perfect face of his love. “Once, just this time, let me feel you.” His fingers caressed every part of the peacefully sleeping face. The boy’s scent drove Yunho crazy, he was like drugged and his tears were flowing down.

His sobs grew louder as he found himself unable to prevent his lips from slowly brushing against Jaejoong’s. The moment only lasted one fraction of a second. Yunho suddenly stood up and let Jaejoong’s body fall back into the bed. He got scared of what he could do to the sleeping boy.

He felt like killing himself on the spot for taking advantage of a helpless boy. All he could do was staring at him from afar now.

“I’m sorry but I’m helplessly in love with you.”

What he saw next, made him jump closer to bed. Jaejoong’s eyes lazily opened from their two-year slumber and Yunho went closer again as he thought the boy was trying to utter something when he saw him moving his lips to form a word in vain.

Then, slowly, Jaejoong closed his eyes and went back to sleep.