Chapter 32: Here For You
I'm Not Cute!
Eunhyuk's POV
"He's in room 284 on the second floor," the woman at the front desk told me. I thanked her and quickly made my way over towards the stairs, climbing them up to the second floor of the hospital since I was too much in a hurry to wait for the elevator. I was just about ready to pass out from running all the way to the hospital, but I couldn't stop now. I have to know what happened to Mr. Lee.
Once I reached the second floor, I ran down the hall and looked for room number 284, carefully passing through the doctors and nurses. I knew I had reached the room when I saw Sungmin, Kyuhyun, Ryeowook, and Yesung standing outside. They all looked at me with sadness in their eyes. I was about to pass through them and enter the room when Kyuhyun pulled me back.
"We can't go in yet. The doctors are in there right now," he explained.
"What happened?" I asked, catching my breath.
"We don't know. He seemed to be fine throughout the day. But then he suddenly collapsed at the cafe and Ryeowook and I called the ambulance," Yesung said, holding Ryeowook by his side. I knew he was feeling a bit scared since he was shaking a little.
"Eunhyuk, did Donghae ever say anything about Mr. Lee feeling sick lately?" Sungmin asked. I shaked my head and was about to reply until the doors to Mr. Lee's room opened, having several doctors step out.
"You may see him again," one of them said before walking off. Kyuhyun gestured his hand towards the room, telling me to enter by myself. I nodded my head before stepping forward into the room, seeing Mr. Lee lieing down on a white hospital bed. The only light in the room was coming from a lamp in the corner. Mr. Lee had his eyes closed and was breathing very slowly. I looked towards the cardiac monitor to see his heart rate. It was going by slowly.
"Eunhyuk..." I heard my name being barely called out from Mr. Lee. He opened his eyes slowly and turned his head to look at me. I went closer to him and kneeled down.
"Mr. Lee, are you okay? Are you in any pain?" I asked. He hesitated to answer before smiling sadly at me.
"No, Eunhyuk, I'm not okay. But I will be. I'm in a lot of pain, but it'll be over soon," he replied.
"Is there a reason why you called for me?" He nodded his head slowly.
"I have a favor to ask of you." I waited patiently for him to continue speaking since he might be hurting just by talking. "Eunhyuk, are you willing to take my place by staying by Donghae's side if I'm not able to?" he asked with a very hoarse voice.
"W-why are you asking this? Mr. Lee, don't worry, y-you're going to be fine," I stuttered.
"I know. I'm going to be perfectly fine. As long as you're with Donghae, I'll be fine. So, will you? Will you stay with Donghae and keep him happy if I won't be able to anymore?" he asked once more. I saw tears beginning to form in his eyes, but I knew he was trying to hold them back.
"Of course I will," I instantly replied, hearing my voice cracking a little. My tears were beginning to come out too, but I immediately held them back. Mr. Lee smiled before chuckling softly.
"I've told you this before and I'll tell you again. Donghae is always much happier when he's around you. He smiles bigger. He smiles all the time when he's around you, doesn't he?"
"Y-yes. He's always smiling."
"Do you know why?" I shook my head. "It's because he wants to hide how he's really feeling inside. Even around me sometimes, he'll smile when he's feeling down. He doesn't want me to worry about him so he just smiles and tells me that he's okay. I can't help but worry about him more though. I'm sure he does that around you all the time. So I have another favor to ask you. If he ever wants to cry, let him cry. If he feels angry, let him be angry. I love seeing his smile, but I want him to open up more. Especially towards you."
My throat felt too dry to speak, so I just nodded my head. I knew it. Jealousy aside, I always noticed Donghae smiling all the time when he's around me. There was always something funny about his smile. And he's never shown any other emotion to me. I was starting to think that he was just too happy all the time. It makes sense now.
Suddenly, Mr. Lee started groan in pain and I began hearing loud beeping sounds.
"Mr. Lee, are you okay?" I asked, panicked. He looked at me again and smiled sadly.
"I'm grateful to have met such a wonderful person who will take care of Donghae. Thank you, Eunhyuk. For being my employee and Donghae's friend. You're like a second son to me. Really, thank you," he whispered before closing his eyes. The sound just kept getting louder and louder.
"Mr. Lee? Mr. Lee!?" I shouted before doctors and nurses began rushing into the room. I was immediately pushed out of the room and the doors closed instantly. I was too shocked to move. I just stared at the white, closed doors with wide eyes until I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around to see Kyuhyun standing behind me.
"Are you okay?" he asked, and I nodded my head before he sighed. "That's the fifth time that's happened tonight. We don't know what's wrong yet."
"Kyuhyun, we're going to calm Ryeowook down," I heard Sungmin say as he and Yesung wre rubbing Ryeowook's back since he was crying. Kyuhyun smiled softly at him before nodding his head.
"Okay. I'll stay here with Eunhyuk and wait for Donghae to come back." Kyuhyun walked me over to sit at a bench while Yesung and Sungmin took Ryeowook somewhere to calm down.
"Donghae...is here?" I asked and Kyuhyun nodded his head.
"He got here when we did. He went into another room with another doctor just earlier. He didn't tell you?" I shook my head before leaning back and sighing. "I wouldn't really expect him to. He never tells people anything when something is bothering him. I've known him long enough to tell whether or not something is wrong though."
"Kyuhyun, you met Donghae because Mr. Lee and your father know each other, right?"
"Yeah. It was by accident too, but I'm glad that I met him. He's a pain sometimes since he's very childish, but he's not a bad guy. He just has trouble expressing himself to others when something is wrong. Since I was close with Donghae, I decided to get close to his father too. Man, I would do anything to have him as a father instead. And because I knew him well too, I knew he was getting sick. I tried to ask Donghae about it, but he wouldn't tell me anything."
"How long has he been sick?" I asked him.
"A while. Since Donghae didn't want to tell me anything, I figured it must've been because of stress. I asked Donghae why he doesn't stay with his father to take care of him, but he always says that he wants to be with you instead. He says his father even says to stay with you. Those two really are alike. They don't anybody worrying about them."
I stayed quiet for a while, trying to clear my head. I'm completely confused with all this information being said to me. Is this technically all my fault?
"Don't even think about saying that this is all your fault," Kyuhyun said, as if he was reading my mind. "It couldn't possibly be your fault. Not entirely at least. It just started with stress from the cafe. I'm sure you know by now that my father practically owns half of it and that he get's most of the money Mr. Lee owns. It started out that way, and just got worse today."
"What do you mean?"
"I heard my father saying that he was going to close down the cafe today. I guess Mr. Lee got a call from him before he collapsed. The only one who should be getting all the blame would be him," he said before slouching back with me.
I felt tears starting to form in my eyes again. Why am I such a crybaby? I cry at everything. But even so, I feel more angry than sad. This is all his fault. This wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for him. I feel like punching a wall, but even that wouldn't be able to let out all of the anger and sadness in me. Why can't anything ever go right for once?
"I'm sorry," Kyuhyun apologized.
"For what?"
"I feel like I should take responsibility for my father's actions; since it's his fault and I'm his son. They were best friends, yet he doesn't care what happens to him." I frowned at him. He must always feel like that whenever his father does something. He can't help but feel responsible. I feel bad for him.
"It's not your fault, Kyuhyun. Though I'm sorry to say that I compltely despise your father now." Kyuhyun smiled a little before lightly chuckling.
"I don't blame you. Despise him as much as you want. It won't bother me one bit." I smiled a little with him too until we started to hear footsteps coming our way. We turned our heads to where it was coming from and saw a doctor with papers in his hands and Donghae, who trailed behind him with his head down.
"Donghae..." I called out as I stoodd up. He picked his head up and stared straight into my eyes. They looked teary and I could tell that he had been crying earlier because of the tear streaks left on his face. He looked so...broken.
Just then, all of the doctors and nurses came out of Mr. Lee's room. Instantly, the doctor that was with Donghae took him inside and closed the door. A few minutes later, the door opened again, only revealing the doctor with a frown on his face.
"Is he okay?" Kyuhyun asked him. He sighed before shaking his head.
"He's gone. It's already too late. I'm sorry," he replied before walking away. I stood frozen in place. A tear escaped from the corner of my eye as Kyuhyun stood up with me and patted my back. I knew he wanted to cry too, but he's not as big as a crybaby like I am. Though, I'm not crying as much for Mr. Lee, but more for Donghae, who was still in that room.
I was about to go inside when the door opened again, revealing Donghae with his head down. Kyuhyun walked over to him, patted his back, and sighed before walking off; probably to find Sungmin and the other two. I was left standing in my spot, just staring at Donghae with tears running down my face. I looked more closely at his, and was surprised to see that tears weren't rolling down his cheeks like I thought they would.
"D-Donghae..." I called out with my voice cracking a little bit. He hesitated to looked at me until he picked his head up to look at me. The emotion he showed put pain into my chest.
He smiled at me. A very sad smile.
"H-Hyukjae, I didn't know you were here. Were you waiting for me?" he asked, trying to sound cheerful. I wanted to cry even more.
"Why do you always smile at me? I asked him, almost in a faint whisper.
"Because I love you, silly!" he tried to laugh, forcing his smile to become wider. It only made me want to cry harder.
"Stop it."
"W-what?"
"Stop smiling at me. Stop trying to force a smile for me."
"But-"
"Just stop it already!" I yelled, unable to control my tears from flowing. Donghae was surprised by my voice suddenly becoming louder. I clenched my fists to prevent me from punching a wall. "You're not suppose to be smiling right now! You're suppose to be crying! You're father just passed away; why don't you cry!? Be upset about it! Scream if you have to! Don't just smile and make everyone believe that you're okay right now! You're not okay! You're practically broken; I know you are! You don't have to keep smiling for me to tell me that you're going through with this by yourself. Don't you know that it'll only make me even more worried? Tell me if you're ever being bothered by something. Tell me if you feel like crying. Tell me if you're ever upset. Tell me if you ever just want to scream. Tell me anything. Tell me everything. Just don't say you're okay when you're really not. I can tell when you're not at your happiest. Don't ever lie either."
I was screaming at the top of my lungs. My throat hurt, my eyes never stopped crying, and my heart was in pain. Donghae just stared at me, not saying a word.
"I may be the biggest crybaby you've ever met. I cry at almost everything. I'm not afraid to cry. And you shouldn't be afraid to cry either. Just cry God dammit!" I screamed one more time before burying my face in my hands and leaning against the wall.
I really am the biggest crybaby in the world.
Before I could even calm myself down, I began hearing muffled cries. I looked up from my hands and saw Donghae crying in his hands. I was about to walk over to him until he ran over to me and pulled me into a hug. He began crying loudly on my shoulder. His grip on me became tighter, but I didn't mind. I wanted him to cry. I wanted him to cry so much that he wouldn't have any tears left. I held him closely as I began crying on his shoulder as well until we slid down the wall and cried together on the floor. I didn't care if people were starting at us. Nothing mattered at that moment. All that mattered was Donghae.
It was the first time I've ever seen Donghae cry. Of course there were a couple times where he almost did, but its the first time he's ever cried to me.
And sadly, it might have been the last time he'd ever cry to me like this.
We stayed together like this for a while until Kyuhyun and the others found us. They didn't cry as hard as we did (well, except for Ryeowook) but we still stayed together, crying as one big group. We knew we had to leave though, so we all left together. I took Donghae home and stayed with him. He didn't stop crying until he fell asleep. And I didn't dare leave his side.
The next day, Mr. Lee's funeral was being held. Everyone wore black and had emotionless faces. For some reason, it was a really sunny day. I didn't think it was very appropiate weather for such a depressing day, but the sun was up; bright and shining beautifully. All of Donghae's relatives were there. It was the first time I met his mother. She was really beautiful, and he looked just like her.
"So, you're Eunhyuk? I've heard a lot about you from Donghae and my husband," she said with a quiet voice. She looked up at me with a small smile on her face. Being polite as ever, I smiled back at her and shook her hand.
"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Lee," I said back and she giggled.
"My, what a polite, handsome, young man you are," she complimented, and I blushed at the compliment. "Thank you for staying with Donghae this entire time. I hope he hasn't caused you any trouble."
"He's no trouble at all ma'am," I replied. It was the only conversation we had before she left along with other relatives. By then, everyone was gone. The only ones who were left were me, Donghae, and the other four. They suggested to go and get something to eat. I told them to wait as I made my way towards Donghae, who's been inthe same spot every since we got here. He stared down at his father's grave like it was the most amazing thing in the world. Once I reached him, I just stood next to him, not saying a word.
"I love you, Hyukjae," he cheered as he looked at me with a bright smile on his face. There wasn't anything wrong with his smile either. It was real. "And thanks for yesterday. I really needed to hear those words from someone and I'm glad I heard them from you. I love you twice as much now!" he laughed.
I don't know why, but just by looking at him, tears started to flow down my cheeks again. He continued to smile at me as he wiped them away.
"You really are a crybaby, Hyukkie. But that's okay. As long as I'm the one who's going to wipe your tears away, cry as much as you want," he told me before giving me a soft kiss on my lips. I felt my face getting redder and redder by the second.
"Y-yah, I'm not that much of a crybaby..." I said quietly, knowing that I was just lying to myself.
"Sure you aren't," he teased. I stuck my tongue out at him and he just did the same thing to me, only in a playful matter. The Donghae I know was back and cheerful as ever. "C'mon. The others are waiting for us, aren't they? Let's go! I'm really hungry anyway," he cheered once more before grabbing my hand and literally dragged me. I told him to slow down, but he didn't listen.
I didn't argue back and just smiled while rolling my eyes at him.
Although I want him to cry sometimes, he's much better when he's smiling.
I'll be here for him. Just like what Mr. Lee wanted.
"Hyukkie, do you want me to buy you some strawberry ice cream?"
"Yes!"
A/N: I'm sorry for not updating for two weeks! My computer recently crashed and I lost all of my stuff >.> And how the heck did I get 346 subscribers? WHere did you guys come from? You guys just multiplied like rabbits ._____. I'm kidding. I really love you guys <3 But I'm back with another update! Just like I promised, its an Eunhae chapter :) I was planning on making it a sad chapter, but I ended with my precious fluff <3 Though it seems a little shorter than what I usually type out >.< You thought Eunhae was getting together that fast? Ohohoho, I don't think so ;) Sorry to say, but I still got a lot more chapters to write, so you're just gonna have to wait~ Be happy that I ended it this way though~ Next chapter shall be more Kyumin with a little Yewook in it :D My fluff will be coming back for the next few chapters, so drama is on hold for a little bit ^^ Please comment and subcribe!!! <33333333333333
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