Chapter 17: Savior
Some of the residents were gathering supplies from Seokhyun's store. Y/N was near the table, arranging the things and trying to make everything fit as much as possible. Some did want her to rest but she insisted saying she was doing better than before. There was an awkward atmosphere around Eunhyuk and her as both of them were working on the opposite side, trying their best to avoid each other. Y/N sighed holding her neck, she was feeling a bit tired.
"H-How.."
Y/N heard a whisper and turned to her left noticing Hyunsu. "What?" she asked in a tiny voice. Well, she knew talking loudly and catching everyone's attention would make him uncomfortable...but it did catch someone's attention.
"How are you doing?" he asked.
"Oh, better than before. It's not as bad as I expected. Uh..." she looked momentarily at Eunhyuk who looked away from her quickly and resumed his work and said, "Eunhyuk..is a medical student. He made sure I was fine."
"Oh okay," he said.
Eunhyuk tried his best to avoid listening to their conversation but he couldn't help but feel...curious. He felt this back when she was drunk too. Like a strange fire lit at the bottom of his stomach whenever he thought of Hyunsu. At this point he knew that Y/N felt maybe a little bit protective of the boy and he couldn't help but feel...bitter about it. If she loved him like she kept saying, why was she always sticking up for Hyunsu. He looked at them enviously as they worked on the table with a small smile on their faces. She didn't even stick up for him all the time. She looked very...relieved when she talked to him. Almost carefree.
It was something he always managed to break in her. A dull feeling took over him.
Well Hyunsu can't make her feel as good as he does.
Eunhyuk shook his head at the ridiculous thought and concentrated on his work, trying his best to block out the two figures. He couldn't remember the last time he felt this...petty. It was ridiculous. It wasn't like she...she was his girlfriend for him to feel like this.
The worst of all was that he knew he was the reason why Y/N stopped talking to him. It was neither her nor Hyunsu's fault that he chose all those words that would hurt her the most. It was his defense mechanism for avoiding all of this - whatever she was feeling to step any further. But their reckless action already made it worse. As much as he wanted to avoid the feeling, there was still something that made him pull back to her every single time. He felt..helpless. He wanted to touch her, feel her warmth, and everything they did back then. Even if it was reckless...it was something that he kept replaying back in his mind and it pissed him off.
Was it lust?
Suddenly loud footsteps broke him from his thoughts and he looked back. It was the boy...that anxious boy with glasses.
And he was fuming.
[ TIME SKIP ]
It wasn't long after Eunhyuk laid down the plans and everyone was ready to do their part when Jisu collapsed. After examining he confirmed that it was appendicitis and that she needed operation as soon as possible.
It took some convincing but Eunhyuk agreed to operate on her, only if she made the decision. Jisu agreed to it immediately considering she was going to die anyway, and they started working on their part.
Y/N brought the towels required in the room and looked around, searching for Eunhyuk who wasn't in there. She walked around and arrived at the only place she expected him to be - the control room. Sighing, she rubbed her eyes.
Well, she couldn't exactly hold onto her grudge when Jisu's life was on line. Besides Eunhyuk probably needed some support despite all the confidence he showed off. His eyes wasn't fooling her atleast.
She went and sat beside him, looking at his face which was now turned towards the computer screens and avoiding her gaze. Placing her hand slowly on his arm, she squeezed it in assurance and said, "You're a med student Eunhyuk, don't worry about anything else."
He couldn't take it anymore and turned to her saying, "If she dies, her blood is on my hands." He was..breathing heavily. Y/N realized how nervous he must have been. She smiled and said, "You didn't hear me, did you? You're just a med student. If she dies...it was because you're not an expert. I don't know if this is helping but...if you don't operate she's gonna die either way. Then you'll be guilty for not doing anything."
"You don't understand," he snapped, "I've already killed tons of people just for my stupid decisions. I can't just..."
"Eunhyuk you're not the reason for their death. You're taking the decisions that others are afraid to take because they don't want to be responsible for the consequences. You're the leader down here and whoever died around here is either because they turned or they were attacked. You took the safe decision, that is, thinking about the safety of majority."
His eyes were glossy. She couldn't understand if her honest speech was of any help but this guy needed to see the reality from her eyes.
The eyes of someone who survived because of him.
She crouched in front of him and held his face, "You are responsible for the survival of most residents down here. Because of your precautions!"
He sighed looking at her and pulled her up. She stood in front of him and brushed his hair gently, "We need to talk after the operation. I don't know what's your issue with Hyunsu but you need to hear mine."
"Okay," he said standing up. "Is your back okay?"
"Why, do you want to check?" she asked, slowly lifting up her shirt. Eunhyuk's eye went down at her stomach, a blush on his cheeks. "I'm just messing with you, don't worry." She immediately pulled down her clothes.
She fixed his hair, which she messed up previously while brushing it with her fingers. Tiptoeing, she kissed his forehead gently and looked at him with eyes full of adoration. "Who patched up your specs? And with a bandaid?" she asked, laughing.
Eunhyuk stood and stared at her with doe eyes - a tiny smile at the corner of his lips. She was so...weird to laugh at a crucial time like this.
Oh, she was so perfect.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone