I feel like I'm consumed in a black hole. Darkness surrounds me. Images of my mother appear in front of my face. Her long, curly hair flows in the wind and she smiles at me. She extends her hand to me, beckoning for me to follow. Her button up jean shirt is stained with different colors of paint, and she wears dark green cargo shorts with a tattered pink jacket tied around her waist. I stand and stare at her, and she starts crying. A smile is still visible on her face, and then she turns around and faces the darkness. All of a sudden we are on a cliff. My mom takes a step towards the cliff and I reach out to her. She walks closer and I try to run to her but my feet are glued to the ground. I scream her name and watch her as she takes the last step. I cringe and then open one eye. She starts walking... on the air. I drop my mouth open as she ascends into the sun. She starts blending in with it as she steps closer. Finally, my mom turns around and extends her hand out again. I reach for it with all my might and then the sun explodes. I cry out as bursts of color consume the sky. Then I am running. I try to ascend the steps but I fall off of the cliff into the abyss. I feel helpless, guilty, and alone.

My eyes shoot open and I quickly attempt to sit up.

"Ow!" I exclaim.

Oh right... I got beat up last night.

I look at my body to see where I got hurt. There are a few bruises on my arms, mostly on my triceps. I see a minor scrape on my stomach and only a couple of bruises on my legs. Then I try to turn my back and yelp in pain. I slowly lift the blankets up and get out of bed. Then I walk to the mirror in my closet, take off my clothes, and observe myself. I slightly turn and see my back completely covered in bruises and bandages. There is a huge bruise on my neck as well. I slowly move each body part to see how well I can function. My legs seem fine and my arms are only a little sore. I reach to the sky and my back starts hurting so I pull back a little. Then I rest my hands on the back of my head.

"!" I yell as my head starts hurting like hell.

I fall to the floor, my head pounding and my back aching. Tears threaten to come but I push them back. My hands form fists on the floor and my hair falls in my face. I stay like that for a few minutes until the throbbing in my head lessens. Then, I throw on a white tank top and some nike shorts and crawl into my bed. I spread my arms and legs out so it's like I'm making a snow angel. I glance up at the button on the wall. I debate for a minute on if I should ask Jung Bi to take me to the hospital. Of course I can't expose my Uncle. He was probably really drunk last night.

I'll just say that I fell.

I press the button and hear Jung Bi's voice.

"Song Nari Yeong! I'm so glad you're awake. You slept all through Saturday and I was extremely worried about you. Do you need anything? You're probably starving. Bacon and eggs? Or do you want something light? You need water to hydrate you. I have som..."

"Jung Bi I think I need to go to the hospital." I bluntly interrupt her.

"Omo! What is hurting you?!" She cries.

"It's just my head. It hurts really bad from where I hit it."

"Ah... I see. Ne, I will drive you there. First, you need food in your system."

"I'm really not hungry. I feel like I might throw up if I eat anything. Water would be nice though." I say.

Jung Bi says she will be up in about five minutes. I close my eyes and visions of last night come to mind. I see myself collapse on the ground. Then I see Jungkook walking up to me. He kneels down and looks at me, concerned. He starts to reach for my hand but then falters. After a few minutes he cups my cheeks with his hands and uses his thumbs to wipe my tears away.

Why did he follow me? What is this feeling in my chest that I get when I think about it? How can he be friends with me when he's a famous super star singer?!

I grab my cell phone off of my side table. I have at least five messages from Ji Ae.

Jiaeswag: Nari what was that?!     Fri  10:11 P.M.

Jiaeswag: Where are you? Do you even know where you are?!     Fri  10:37 P.M.

Jiaeswag: Okay I'm really concerned now. You can talk to me you know!     Fri  10:45 P.M.

Jiaeswag: Jungkook texted me saying he walked you home. I'm glad you're safe. Call me when you get the chance!     Fri  12:22 A.M.

Jiaeswag: Wanna hang with the guys today? We were thinking of going to Klondike Cafe!     Sat  11:14 A.M.

Jiaeswag: Fine, give me the silent treatment. We'll be at Klondike if you change your mind.     Sat  12:06 P.M.

Jiaeswag: Are you okay?     Sat  5:53 P.M.

Jiaeswag: We're coming over to your house today so get ready!     Sun  9:30 A.M.

.

I immediately text her back.

NariNari: Hold on don't come over! I'm fine, really!     Sun  9:55 A.M.

I drop my arms on the bed and let out a huge sigh. Someone knocks on my bedroom door.

"Miss Song is it okay for me to come in?" Jung Bi says.

"Ne!" I say a little loudly so she can hear me.

She opens the door and walks in with a silver tray in her hand. On it is a small plate with toast and jelly and a glass of water. She helps me sit up in bed and places the tray in my lap. After I'm done eating, Jung Bi helps me into the bathroom to brush my teeth and take a shower. Then I throw on a grey T-shirt with some comfortable cotton shorts. I slip on my flip-flops and then Jung Bi helps me down the stairs and into the car. She sits in the back with me while someone else drives to the hospital. Neither of us talk. Then I hear my phone vibrate.

Jiaeswag: Too late we're already on our way!     Sun  10:29 A.M.

NariNari: Ji Ae I'm not even there!     Sun  10:30 A.M.

Jiaeswag: Well why not?     Sun  10:30 A.M.

NariNari: I'm spending today with my Aunt and Uncle.     Sun  10:31 A.M.

Jiaeswag: Jinjja?! You need to tell me these things!     Sun  10:31 A.M.

NariNari: You're the one who invited yourself over!     Sun  10:31 A.M.

Jiaeswag: Fine! We'll call it off. Bye     Sun  10:33 A.M.

I lay my phone down and lean back against the seat. Jung Bi glances at me with a guilty look. I don't blame her for anything. It's not her fault. She needs to put up with it so she can make money. My Uncle probably didn't want me to leave the house in case I told someone about what had happened.

Once we arrive at the hospital, Jung Bi goes into the waiting room and I am guided to a room where a doctor comes to inspect me.

"Omo! What happened here?" The doctor asks.

"I fell." I reply.

"That's quite a nasty fall, young lady. Do you mind if I ask you how you fell?"

"I was skateboarding down a hill. Then I leaned too far back." I say.

"Ah, I see." The doctor says as he uses his tools to inspect me.

Once he's done he leaves the room and returns about twenty minutes later. He checks me again and observes my bruises. Then he feels the back of my head and I jerk away in pain. Shocked, the doctor drops his hand and writes furiously in his notebook. His brows are furrowed and he is fully focused. He looks back up at me and tells me that he needs to check my head again. I try to stay still as his hand feels around my head and he asks me questions. Then he asks me to follow him. We go into another room with an X-Ray Scanner. Once that's done, the doctor gives me an MRI scan to see if the tissue in my brain has been damaged. Finally, he walks me back to the original room we were in and shows me the results.

"This is your X-Ray here. As you can see, there is no visible evidence that your skull has cracked. And in this MRI scan there is no severe damage to the tissue in the brain. My conclusion is that you had a concussion from the fall. Concussions are jolts to the brain which cause it to violently shake. This can cause headaches, fatigue, sleep disturbances, blurry vision, forgetfulness and/or anxiety. The best treatment is taking Acetaminophen, another word for Tylenol, and plenty of rest. Maybe take this week off of school. Here's a doctors note for the excuse. If your symptoms continue after four months I suggest you come back and get another examination. Arasseo?" The doctor says.

I nod my head and follow him back to the waiting room. He relays the information to Jung Bi and then she thanks him and tells him who to charge. Then we are on our way home. As soon as we get home I go to my room and lay down on my bed.

Just my luck. Of course this had to happen. I can't live a normal life!

I end up sleeping for the rest of the day to help cope with my frustration and stress. My alarm wakes me up in the morning and I turn it off. I start sitting up to get ready, but then I remember what the doctor told me.

So I have to lay in my fricken bed for a whole week??? This is not possible.

I sit up and look around my room at the empty walls. I decide that I should at least get out of bed. I slowly pull the covers off and swing my legs to the right so they hang off the edge of the bed. Then I grab my earbuds and my phone and go outside on the porch. I lean back against one of the chairs and click shuffle on my song list. As the song starts, I take a deep breath and let the sun hit my face.

After about an hour of dozing off my phone vibrates which causes me to . I scrunch my face as the bruises start hurting on my back, making it hard to move. Then I glance down at my phone.

It looks like Ji Ae made a group chat.

Jiaeswag: Song Nari Yeong where the hell are you?!     Mon  7:48 A.M.

TheCutest: Yeah I haven’t seen you in almost three days!     Mon  7:50 A.M.

Jiaeswag: BB what’s up with your username     Mon 7:50 A.M.

TheCutest: I like it because it’s true     Mon  7:50 A.M.

Jiaeswag: You wish.     Mon  7:51 A.M.

Golden17: Nari gwenchanah?     Mon  7:52 A.M.

I look at Jungkook’s text. My heart speeds up a little but I ignore it.

NariNari: Ne… I’m just sick. Don’t worry about me and go to class.     Mon  7:54 A.M.

TheCutest: Oh right what happened on Friday? Mon 7:56 A.M.

NariNari: It was nothing don’t worry about it. Mon 7:56 A.M.

Golden17: If you need anyone to talk to I’m all ears. Mon 7:58 A.M.

TheCutest: Me too. Mon 7:59 A.M.

Jiaeswag: Guys class is starting. Oh me too by the way! See you later Nari :) Mon 8:00 A.M.

NariNari: Kumawo guys. Mon 8:01 A.M.

The rest of the day goes by slowly. I do nothing but sit or lie down. I occasionally sleep, but that seems to make time go slower. Jung Bi comes in every once in a while to bring me food, drinks, and anything else that can make the times go by faster. At the end of the day she comes in with a stack of papers. She hands them to me and I go through them.

There’s my homework for the next week.

“Do you need anything else?” Jung Bi asks.

“Oh… Ne,” I say. I look up at her. “Does Uncle know about this?”

“Ne.” She says.

“And he’s okay with that?” I ask.

“I explained the situation to him. He seemed sorry for what he did to you. He didn’t mean to harm you like that, Miss Nari.”

I nod and look away. “What about Aunt Lee?”

“She is also very sorry. She blames herself for letting Mr. Lee drink so much,” Jung Bi replies. “You have to understand, they both work longer than 12 hours a day and their jobs are very stressful. When they come home they like to drink to ease their anxiety, but occasionally Mr. Lee has too much.”

“Occasionally? So this will be a recurring thing?” I raise an eyebrow at her and she falters.

“Oh… it’s not like that. They have never had kids so I’m sure he has learned something from last night.” Jung Bi quickly says.

“Arasseo.” I say.

I make her get out and then I shut and lock the door.