Chapter 27

            Loki ran down the halls of Chrome Headquarters, nearly out of breath.  His heart was racing, not merely because his active body needed more blood, but because he had just been given the most incredible news he had ever heard.  He couldn’t believe it.  Soyul had woken up.

            Less than an hour ago, the doctor reported Soyul’s comatose condition with little to no hope of recovery.  When he first heard it, he couldn’t believe it.  The small, feeble creature that meant so much to him was in the place between life and death.  But he knew she wouldn’t sleep eternally.  She was a hot little chili pepper who wouldn’t back down without a fight.

            When he finally reached the medical room, he saw her there, sitting up in her bed, smiling happily at Seohyun who sat beside her.  He rushed into the room and kneeled on the other side of the bed.

            “Soyul!” he cried, staring at her desperately, as if she might fall into a coma again at any time.  “You’re awake!  You’re okay!”

            “She’s still recovering,” Seohyun informed quickly.  “Be careful.”  

            “Oppa, I’m glad you’re okay,” Soyul grinned, her eyes still slightly exhausted.  “I was afraid the Ahjussi would try to hurt you guys.”

            “Does it hurt, Soyul-ah?” he questioned, looking at her stomach anxiously.  “The bullet wound: does it hurt a lot?”

            “The morphine keeps the pain down.  I can hardly feel it, really.”

            “Get some rest, Soyul,” Seohyun pleaded, rising up from her seat.  She limped towards the door with her cast.  “I was supposed to call Yonghwa last night.  He might be worried about me.”

            “Yonghwa?” Soyul asked curiously.  “Is he…?”

            Seohyun blushed and looked down at the ground.  “Ah…yes.  He’s my…fiancé.”

            Loki stared after Seohyun in shock.  Watching him uneasily, Soyul found it painful for him to find out like this.  She took his hand squeezed it gently.

            “Loki?  Are you okay?”

            After Seohyun left, he looked back at her with miserable eyes.  “I…I just can’t believe it.  This always happens to me.”

            “Always happens?  What do you mean?”

            “First it was…”  He looked at Soyul in frustration and looked back to the door.  “And now it’s Seohyun.”

            “Wait, who was first?” Soyul questioned, pulling on his hand.  “Who are you talking about?”

            “You really couldn’t tell?” he sighed, his heartbreaking glance returning to her.  “It was you, Soyul.”

            “What?”

            “Ever since I began training under the Captain, I liked you,” he admitted crossly.  “What a fool you made out of me.  And here I am again, the same fool.”

            “Stop it, Moobin-ah!” she demanded, hitting his hand onto the bed.  “How did I make a fool out of you?  I didn’t even know!”

            He shrugged his shoulders and took a deep breath.  “I would always hear you talking to your members about all the guys you like.  And you would always mention the masses of schoolboys that adored you.  You would make fun of me and act like such a sunbae around me.  I knew you thought you were out of my league.”

            “Loki!” Soyul exclaimed, feeling a slight pain in her stomach.  She grimaced and shook her head.  “That’s what I like to do!  I like to talk about boys with the unnies!  And I like to make fun of you!  It’s how I could interact with you.  Couldn’t you tell that I liked you?”

            “You liked me?” he snickered.  “Oh come on, Soyul.  My heart is already broken over Seohyun.  You don’t have to say this because you pity me.”

            “I am in love with you!”  She glared at him angrily, feeling her cheeks burning red.  Tears started to fill her eyes, and Loki immediately became remorseful.  “I can’t believe all this time you thought this!”  She clutched her stomach and cried in pain.

            “Soyul-ah!  Sit back!” 

He grabbed both her shoulders and gently pushed her back into her bed.  But she quickly resisted his force, leaned forward, and kissed him.  She sensed his body stiffen and his lips freeze awkwardly, but that didn’t stop her.  Taking his crimson cheeks in her hands, she leaned her head back a few inches and smiled.

            “I’ve wanted to do that for so long,” she laughed sheepishly, gazing into his dumfounded eyes.  “Oh, all this wasted time.  How could you be so oblivious?  I just don’t understand-”

            Before she could continue, he pulled her into his arms and pressed his lips against hers.  She couldn’t believe how lovely he felt, as if the past few horrendous hours of her life were worth it.  As long as she was with him now, without secrets, without a barrier of hidden feelings, everything was okay.  They both smirked bashfully and leaned their foreheads together.

            “It wasn’t all my fault, you know,” he chuckled.

            “Ah…maybe it wasn’t.  It doesn’t matter now.  We both know everything, and I’m fine with that.”

            “Please…”  He leaned his head back and gave a worried look.  “Don’t get hurt again.  When I heard you were shot…I was filled with regret.  I couldn’t imagine never telling you how I felt before…”

            “I’ll try to stay healthy,” she promised blissfully.  “I can’t deny a demand that both you and the unnies make.”

            He smirked gratefully and placed her back in the bed.  Pulling the covers up to her neck, he looked at her in wonder.  “You’ve made me so happy, Soyul-ah.”

            “You make me happy all the time, oppa.”