“How are you feeling right now Seo Jaehee ssi?” Han Taewoo was on a full doctor mode right now. He just finished a full body check up on Jaehee, from her vital signs to her reflexes. Later she will be subjected to a CT scan and MRI and all other laboratory tests that Han Taewoo said that I’m not familiar with.

“Jaehee ya… are you really okay?” Miss Seo is finally her and she's at Jaehee’s feet. Han Taewoo and the nurse both stood on each side of Jaehee.

“I’m really okay mom, stop worrying already,“ Jaehee tried her best to reassure Miss Seo, her face looked convincing.

Jaehee may be right. We can stop worrying, for now.

“Nurse Kim,” Han Taewoo called the nurse, “Continue to monitor the patient’s vital signs every hour. Note for any fluctuations notify me immediately if there’s any changes. For now you can leave first.”

The nurse said her goodbyes and left. Han Taewoo also moved away from Jaehee so that Miss Seo can go at her side and comfort her. Han Taewoo joined me at the sofa, where I have been positioned ever since I ran to the nurse station to tell them Jaehee’s awake.

While Jaehee and Miss are having a small private conversation, Han Taewoo was eyeing on me to have our own as well. He mouthed the words ‘Outside’ when I looked at him. I stood up, stiffly, even Jaehee noticed my sudden movement.

“Where are you two going?”

“Outside, to give you two some time,” I don’t know what this talk will be about, but I don’t want Jaehee to be curious about it later.

“You’re going out with Taewoo oppa,” I could tell Jaehee’s analyzing her own statement right now. I just nodded.

But Han Taewoo happens to talk too much, “Actually Suho and me became best friends…” I glared at Han Taewoo, “good friends, while you were out Jaehee ya.”

Han Taewoo then proceeded to put his arm on my shoulders, which shocked the bot of us. Jaehee looked more unconvinced.

“You two… Suho and you…” looks like Han Taewoo is the one digging his own grave right now. God this guy… Is he acting like this because he knows I’ll be the one to explain everything to Jaehee later?

I subtly dragged Han Taewoo out of Jaehee’s room. Once we were out, I shook his arm away from my shoulder and walked first. He followed me all the way to the stairs.

“So…” What’s this about?

Han Taewoo grinned at me like a kid, which annoyed me.

“What’s wrong with you? Cut the act already and tell me.”

He gave up and just sighed, “I just wanted to be friendly with you Suho ya. Also, stop talking to me formally please.”

“I don’t want to. It’s the only respect that I can give you right now.”

He scoffed, “Stubborn bastard.”

He’s face changes, maybe he’s back on doctor mode again, “I spoke to aunt last night. The results of the crossmatching are out already.”

Please… please tell me I passed.

I cleared my throat, “And?”

“You both failed Suho ya.”

Failed.

“You’re not lying for Jaehee’s sake are you?”

“Hey, you can at least give me some credit,” Han Taewoo raised his right hand to imply that he was being honest, “I’m telling the truth. I… I also did the test and… I failed.”

So what now. What happens to Jaehee’s future? The uncertainty kills me.

“Don’t give up Suho ya…” Han Taewoo must’ve noticed my distress already, “There’s still hope for Jaehee.”

“I’m not giving up.” I’ll never give up on her.

Han Taewoo raised his right hand again, and this time he pinched my cheek. “Why the long face though? Seriously you gotta learn to smile you punk.”

“Hey! Stop that!” I jerked away from his hand. I was started to get annoyed when he grinned at me. There was something wrong with his grin, like it was forced.

“She’ll be fine Lee Suho, don’t worry. If Jaehee’s condition gets worse, then an open heart surgery is still an option. Or we can attach a pacemaker or an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillatior, ICD, to her heart to monitor and prevent any abnormal cardiac rhythms in the future. We can monitor her condition every now and then. Checkups will be more frequent, she’s more diligent on her meds than on her checkups you see…”

He kept talking about the other possibilities, “You’re saying…”

“What I’m saying is that it’s too early to look defeated Suho ya, we’re not out of options yet.”

“What we can only do is prepare for the worse though,” what I said was tactless, but it was the truth, “It’ will not stop her from dying, instead it can only prevent her from it. I don’t think I can… what if something like this happens to Jaehee again? I—”

“What Jaehee needs right now is our support Suho ya. The only thing that will make her feel better right not is to stop thinking too much of her illness in front of her. If we feel hopeless and useless right now and let her see it, what do you think she will feel?”

He said it himself. Better… but not fine.

“Suho ya…”

“I completely understand Han Taewoo,” everything is so clear to me. Right now is what’s important. The Jaehee ‘now’ is what important, “Thank you… for everything.”

Han Taewoo mood lightened up a bit, “Hey Lee Suho,” he placed his arm to my shoulders again, then proceeded to give me a head lock, “I told you to drop the formalities didn’t I? Disrespecting me is better than all these formal speech of yours, it’s making me feel old you know.”

I elbowed him softly in the gut. I was slightly annoyed, but right now I want to reciprocate his jokes. I cleared my throat and spoke again in a formal manner, “Well, you are older.”