Chapter 23

"Are you alright?" Yejun touches my right cheek while asking me. I cringed because of the coldness of his hand.
"Y-yeah." I retorted.

"That bastard Seohyun! If only I knew that he would do this, I might have ended him a long time ago!" Juno growled. His eyes are piercing while scanning me, maybe because I look beat up.


"Mr. Choi, you need to go to the doctor," I said in concern. I turned my attention to him while Yejun was still looking at me.


"Let's go to the Doctor, Miss Jia." Mr. Choi was worried about me, so I quickly nodded my head to him.


"Thank you for saving us." I glance at Yejun. He didn't answer me. Instead, he kept his eyes on me.

Mr. Choi started to walk to the elevator while Yejun and Juno were following us. There's a silence in the air aside from Juno's babbling from time to time.


We reached the second floor, and Mr. Choi quickly guided me to the doctor's room while Juno and Yejun waited outside.

"Ms. Kim. You've frequently been visiting me," says Doctor Yeon. She gently treated my wound in the neck. The nurse treated Mr. Choi.

"Could you pretend this didn't happen too?" I asked her. This person is a friend of my sister. I saw her a lot coming to our house when I was a kid. Dr. Yeon stops her hand and looks at me with a grave expression. Her big black eyes narrowed while studying my face.

"You know my duty as a doctor, Jia." She called me by name. I hinted that her patience was running out.


"It's a favor, eonnie," I whispered while meeting her gaze.

"Sigh. I don't know what you've been doing these past weeks, but your sister told me that you have changed. Take care of yourself, Jia." Dr. Yeon continued to treat my bruises. I did not speak and let her do her duty.


After the deafening silence between us, Dr. Yeon finally finished wrapping my bruises. Luckily, I have my blue scarf on me. I hang it on my neck, so my injury is not visible.


"Jia. If your sister asks me, I don't think I could lie to her." I stopped leaving when I heard her speak. I turn my head to her.


"That much, I can do nothing," I said and turned the lock to get out of Dr. Yeon's office.

Mr. Choi is already outside, talking earnestly to Yejun and Juno. They are having a serious conversation based on the look on their faces. I walked near them. The first one to glance at me was Yejun. His face is still handsome, but there's a mysterious expression within him that I couldn't encrypt.


"Are you done?" Juno asked me an obvious question. His expression changed, and he is back to his regular outgoing face.


"Yes. They said that it's only a minor injury." I mumbled, trying to hide my raspy voice.


"Are you still going to visit Daniel?" Juno asked again. I look at him and the two men waiting for my reply.


"Yes. I don't want to worry them. Can you keep it a secret? I mean, just the fact that Seohyun strangled me?" I plead. I don't want to cause any necessary worries to them.


"But…" Juno is hesitant while Yejun remains his unemotional face.


"Please?" I said in a hoarse voice. I stared at them with my tired eyes wanting to convince them.


"Okay." Yejun finally agreed.

I sigh.

"Miss Jia. Can we talk for a while?" Mr. Choi is standing beside me. I turned my head to him and nodded.


"You guys can go ahead. I will talk to Mr. Choi." I walk five meters away from them without waiting for their response. I see them in my peripheral vision, not leaving nor moving their place. I guess they will wait for me.


"Miss Jia. I'm afraid I need to report this to your parents.
You just came back from the hospital, and this incident happened to you… but if you ordered me to seal my lips, I will follow your command." Mr. Choi is like a big brother to me, and he helped me even before without asking my decisions. He is loyal, and I felt terrible that he was hurt multiple times because of my incompetence. I'm thinking of telling him the truth about my rebirth, but I'm afraid he will not believe me.


"Mr. Choi. Could you believe in me a little more? I will tell you everything. Please give me more time." I lower my head and sadly look at him. My eyes drop, biting my lower lip.


"I understand. I will wait for you in the parking lot. You can go with your friends." Mr. Choi patted my head. I lift my head after wiping condensed tears. I smiled at him.

**

We reach Daniel's room, and all of the club members are already present. I greeted them and sat at the empty bed across from Daniel's bed.

"Jia! You're late again." Yumi greeted me happily.


"I'm glad you made it." Penelope smiled and greeted me.


"I was late because of Yang Juno," passing the blame on him.


"Ah! Because of the food. Hehe," Juno awkwardly answered. Hyuk Narrowed his eyes and went near his best friend.


"So, where's the food?" Hyuk is sharp again. I laughed genuinely at them when I saw Juno's panicked face.


"I forgot! Because Yejun is asking met t-to w-wait for him!" Juno gazes at Yejun, who is sitting near Daniel's bed.


"You can get it now." Yejun casually told him. He patted Daniel's head. The boy hugged him affectionately.

"You can go with him, Hyuk," Yumi said while shaking her head to Juno. Fortunately, Juno's personality is like this, acting naïve.

I lean my head to the headboard of the bed because I'm feeling tired. The adrenaline rush already left my body, and the muscle pain because of the exhaustion started stalling in me. I want to sleep right now. I covered my mouth when I yawned. I fixed my scarf, hugged my neck, and pulled it over to cover my mouth that kept yawning.


"Are you tired?" Yumi asked me worriedly. She sat beside me and gently patted my head.



"Just a bit," I mumbled and closed my eyes. I feel relaxed in this position.


"These days, I always feel anxious. I always thought that something happened to you. I don't even know why. It's ridiculous," Yumi whispered. I opened my eyes and met her gaze. I blink when I see her pretty sad face.


"You change Jia. I'm not sure if it's for good, but I feel like you're keeping more secrets from me. I'm worried that someday… You might disappear without saying anything." Yumi's voice is weak, but I felt her sincerity. I avert my eyes and close it again. The depressing feeling is growing inside me. I feel the guilt of being her best friend and keeping the truth from her. I want to protect her, but I don't know anymore.


"Don't feel sad, Yumi. I'm always on your side." I said it, but I didn't look at her. I'm afraid it will betray me. Yumi is the last person I want to hurt, but if she knows the truth about my rebirth and I exchange my soul, it will be excruciating to watch.


"Promise me that you will tell me everything someday." Yumi stops patting my head instead hugs me. I remain motionless.

Silence followed us. I didn't answer her, nor did she speak again. I don't think I could tell Yumi about my circumstances because talking about death is sad. There's a gleaming light in her eyes, but I remain cold towards her affection. Yumi is one of the most influential people to me. I wanted to avoid revealing it to her as long as I could.

I heard Penelope and Yejun talking to Daniel in the background, not minding us, but I know that they listened to what Yumi just said because the room is not that big and there is no other noise in the room.

The door opens, and two figures show up. Hyuk has a riled expression on his face, and it's not hard to guess why he has a gloomy mood. They talked about the incident that happened a while ago. Hyuk keeps staring at me the entire time that I have a hard time eating the food. Juno also feels awkward and glances an apologetic stare at me. I sigh and let them.
It was past nine o'clock in the evening when we decided to go home. I know that Na Hyuk wanted to talk to me, but I avoided making contact with him. It isn't the right place for that topic. I don't wish Yumi to know because she worries about me.
Mr. Choi is quick to drive the car without going out nor opening the window. I bid goodbye to them and went in the car. I nodded to Juno while smiling at Yumi and Penelope. Yejun's eyes remain impassive. I didn't bother to glance at Na Hyuk. Maybe I will talk to him later on.
End of chap 23.