I woke up, my vision blurry again. The familiar bright glow of the hospital lights was the first thing I could see. Yugyeom must have carried me all the way to the hospital again since he was the person I remembered being with before fainting. The moment I had clear vision, I looked around the room to see Yugyeom's brother.

"Um... Yugyeom's hyung?" I called out.

He was wearing a white cleaner's uniform.

"Oh yes, I'm Mark by the way... Oh yeah and I work here part time so... don't be afraid. Haha! I'm not stalking you," he joked making me laugh a little.

"Oh... Oppa, where's Yugyeom?" I asked, seeing that he wasn't in the room.

"Ah~ He's doing that group project thing with two other boys. I think they're doing at a ddukbokki shop. Yugyeom told me to tell you that he'be back soon so that the hospital could release you," Mark said.

Just then, a nurse came in and started checking some of the stuff like looking at that small big filled with liquid and all that. She left a white file on the table in front of my bed while Mark continued sweeping the room.

"Oh, could you please wipe this table? There's a bit of crumbs here," the nurse said to Mark.

Mark went over to the table and started wiping it. Then, I saw a change of expression on Mark's face. His eyes widened and he seemed shocked. A few minutes later, the nurse left with the file and Mark still seemed shocked.

"Oppa, is everything okay?" I asked.

"How long more?" He asked suddenly, staring at me.

"Wh--- What do you mean?" I asked, hoping that he hadn't figured it out.

"The file was open... I saw your case notes... Cardiomyopathy?" he stuttered.

(Cardiomyopathy: disease of the heart muscle)

I sighed in dismay. I got found out.

"Yup... That's it..." I said.

"How long more do you have to live?" He asked.

"I have 2 more years... maybe more, maybe less. It depends..." I replied sadly.

Just then, the door opened and Yugyeom came in.

"Finally you're awake, you had been unconscious for 4 hours," Yugyeom said, sounding more like a scolding, as he slumped down on the chair beside me.

He looked at me and back at Mark, then back and forth again.

"Was I interupting something? The atmosphere is really weird here," he said, feeling the tension in the air.

"Um... No, you didn't. I have to go clean other rooms. See you at home, Gyeom," Mark said before leaving.

LATER ON...

Yugyeom and I came out of the hospital. Then, at the carpark, I saw my parents storming over to us.

"KANG SOWON..." Appa scolded firmly.

YUGYEOM'S POV

I looked from the man and woman to Sowon. Sowon looked helpless and weak, like she was too tired to say anything. I knew it wasn't my place... whatever, that situation was. I held Sowon's hand lightly and pulled her gently behind me. The man and woman looked at me furiously.

"I'm sorry. I don't know who the both of you are... but I'm guessing that you both are Sowon's parents. Anyways, please don't be so harsh on her... she just got out of the hospital," I explained as calmly as I could.

All of a sudden, the man pushed me aside and held Sowon's arm. I came closer but Sowon looked at me. Her gentle eyes told me not to do anything so I didn't.

"Omma... Appa... He saved me. Please treat him kindly," she said.

"The doctor told us what happened... WHAT DID I SAY?! HOW MANY TIMES DO YOU HAVE TO BE ADMITTED INTO THE HOSPITAL, SOWON AH?!" the woman yelled angrily at Sowon.

"Look, maam, she got into trouble because of me... I had to help her escape. I had no idea that she was feeling unwell today or anything like that that could endanger her life by running. Please don't be mad at her," I said.

The woman led Sowon into a huge, black car.

"Look, boy... Thank you for helping Sowon... but please, it would help if you stayed away from her," the man said before joining Sowon and the woman in the car.

"Stay away from her?" I asked myself.

THE NEXT DAY...

I didn't sleep at all in class... because the whole time, I was staring at Kang Sowon's empty seat. Since she started school, she had never missed a single class. Everyday, she would come to school, bright and early at 6am. JB and Youngjae would walk with her through the school gates. The three of them would walk down the school halls... and sometimes, me and her would make brief eye conatct and it would be like the whole world was in slow motion. She'd settle down in her seat and be entertained by Jackson's sometimes inappropriate jokes. She'd raise her hand every time the teacher asked a question to the class and answer it with enthusiasm.

That day when she wasn't there... it was like she never even existed. The whole classroom was so grim and boring. That was normal but... I didn't want 'normal'. 'Normal' wasn't enough for me anymore. Then at that moment, I realised that life got so much more... less 'normal' with Kang Sowon. I needed her in my life because I wasn't just breathing anymore, I was living. In other words, I fell in love with Sowon... and I have no idea what to do.