It was almost foreign— the feeling of her voice vibrating in and the hoarse sound that came out of it— and it left Hye Jin slightly uncomfortable. It felt like she had taken another step back, away from her own body and it was like she was losing herself. Because the Hye Jin she grew up with couldn't talk.

"Hye Jin-ah!" The voice was muffled out by her thoughts. The only time she realized that someone was calling her was when Sunggyu was there gently shaking her shoulder.

She looked up, finally taking in her surroundings; she was in a brightly lit hospital, the sounds of machines beeping and nurses chatting or scattering about. She couldn't remember, how did she get there?

"Are you alright?" Sunggyu held his breath, patting his pockets for his phone as he handed it to her. 

Hye Jin stared at the phone, reaching for it with a shaky hand. That's right, she can still be the old, mute Hye Jin if she doesn't talk. Then maybe everything can go back to being normal. She opened the notes, slowly typing her message.

'I'm alright. Myungsoo...'

Sunggyu sighed, unsure of what to say. He looked around, eying any of the nurses, hoping one of them would catch his gaze and understand that he wanted answers. He could comfort her better, if he knew her friend's condition after all.

He felt a tug on his sleeve, and his heart nearly stopped when he saw the look etched onto her face; guilt, remorse, fear, and all these other emotions she shouldn't be feeling.

'I could have stopped him, oppa.'

"No you couldn't have, he... He was mentally unstable, Hye Jin. It could have been you if you tried anything," Sunggyu reasoned, a hand petting her soft hair. He sat beside her as he cooed, what he hoped were comforting words. "But you found him and that's what matters now. He'll be able to survive now because of you."

She growled, shaking her head as she gripped onto the phone and aggressively pressed the keypad of Sunggyu's phone into a hastily typed message.

'But I could have saved him!! I knew about it, I've seen— dreamt about it. I could have done something!'

"You couldn't have, Hye Jin. Don't be silly, if anything I should be concerned that you're dreaming things like this—"

The phone was shoved into his face again, 'But I did.'

장 엔드 | Waking up would stop me