—St. Lucas Hospital, Special Treatment Room, year 2012. Day 6 of treatment—

"How long have I been in here?"

It was a long day. I had multiple tests done to my body, and even underwent a physical therapy to inspect how my heart and my other internal organs were doing. They let me hang around the hospital area, allowing me to do a little sightseeing—not that there was much to see there anyway—before they sent me back into my room. The feeling of the bed underneath my body was making me feel both sick and sore once I was back that could only lie there motionless.

"One week, give or take," my mother answered me. "You're getting bored, aren't you?"

I sighed, moving about on the bed to find the perfect angle to lie down more comfortably. "I'm feeling more tired than bored, actually. Did they tell you when I can go home yet?"

"Nothing yet, but I'm sure they'll let us know soon," she said, running her fingers on top of my head, and I was thankful that the nurses had helped me wash them just yesterday. "You should rest. You seem tired after those long hours on the lab earlier."

"I can't, Mom," I said, shaking my head slowly. "My back is hurting me, and if I lie on my side, my head will hurt. I feel like nothing I do will help me rest on this bed."

She leaned down to kiss my forehead, patting the pillow beneath my head to help me settle down. "Be patience, okay? I'm sure they'll let us take you home soon. You already seem to be getting better already," she said, sitting down next to the bed.

I didn't answer her right away, knowing that perhaps none of these treatments or tests they were giving me would help much. Aside to the headaches and random flashes of flashbacks in my head, there was nothing wrong with me—or so I thought.

"Perhaps once your brother is here he'll help get rid of your boredom a little," my mother suddenly added.

"What? He is coming?"

Hang on, where was he supposed to be back then?

My mother nodded. "Your friend Tae is picking him up at the station. He kind of volunteered to do it since he knows I can't leave you. I'm really thankful to have him helping us here, he's been doing a good job nursing you too, hasn't he?"

"Yeah, he does," I sighed. "He's been helping me catch up with school homework too."

That, and much more.

I fell asleep in the middle of chatting with my mother. At this point, I could no longer care about how my body kept falling in and out of sleep without me being able to control it.

I could not exactly remember what dream I had, but it was not the best of sleep I ever had either.

There was a sound of familiar snickering coming from right next to my bed as I was waking up, followed by a sound of whispering of, "Sshhh—you'll wake her."

I opened my eyes slowly, blinking them to get rid of the heavy sleep and to adjust with the bright light in the room. The familiar voices kept whispering and joking, the hushed laughters filling my ears, pulling me to wake. And that was when I saw him.

"Hoseok?" I called him with a whisper.

The soft laughter died down, and the man sitting next to the bed turned to look at me. The smile on his face softened as he saw me awake.

"Hello there, little sister," he said, before turning back to face Taehyung who was sitting in front of him. "Yah, what did I tell you? You made me wake her up," he whined while shoving Taehyung's shoulder, causing him to laugh.

Their antics made me giggle. I pushed myself up and turned on the bed so I could have a better look at my brother's face. "No, it's neither of your faults. I don't think it'll be good for me if I sleep too long anyway."

"You should rest, though," he said, rubbing his palm on my forearm. "Doesn't more sleep help you get better faster?"

I stretched my body a little, shaking off the soreness on my back. At least there was no headache this time. "Too much sleep won't be good for my body."

And it'll be a waste of time as well, I thought to myself, flickering my eyes to look at Taehyung who was staring at me with a pursed smile.

I held Hoseok's hand, squeezing it a bit too tight while smiling weakly at him. "When did you get here?"

"I got here about an hour ago. We made a quick stop at a burger joint on the way here cause they didn't give me food on the train," he playfully pouted like a child. "Sorry, it took me so long to come home and visit you. The entrance exam drained me, and I had to be sure I'm not going to be missing any announcement for the advanced exam before coming back here."

Oh, I remember now. He was applying for a prep school in the big city.

"How did it go? Do you think you're going to make it?"

He shrugged. "I don't know yet. But I did my best, so hopefully, I'll get some good news soon. Even if I fail, I can go back to school here in town and go back for pre-law once I finish high school."

Don't worry, you will make it on both, I wondered to myself when I pictured him in his lawyer suit. A much older version of him. But of course, I could not say anything about it.

"I hope so too," I only whispered to him with a smile.

"I was actually talking about it with Taehyung earlier," he said, looking at Taehyung and then back at me. "I offered him to join me in Seoul once you guys finish high school. I can try and look for a great place for you guys to study at once I'm settled down there. I just have to make sure I'm accepted at the school first and then start going on college there, though," he chuckled.

I wasn't sure what to answer him. All I could do was glance at Taehyung. The look he gave me when our eyes met let me know that he understood. "I told Hoseok that I'll think about it," Taehyung told me, lifting his eyebrows as if asking for my opinion. "It's a pretty good idea, don't you think?"

Seoul. The place where everything started. Should I go back to that city and give it another chance?

"We'll see about it."

The doctor's voice seemed to be fading away even as he kept speaking.

Things felt like a dream when he revealed to us the test results which he carried in his hands. The X-ray photos taken off my body were shown over the board on the wall behind him, displaying every single thing he said.

I was silent in my seat, right across the doctor. My parents were sitting right beside me and my brother, Hoseok, was standing behind me with both of his hands steadily gripping my shoulders. I could feel his hands giving me light rubs and squeezes to encourage me while we received the news, despite the shock that we all had gotten from what was given to us.

Taehyung was also there, sitting quietly somewhere in that room, since I insisted that he could join us. I needed him to be there. I needed someone who I could share my thoughts with. And he was the only one who knew about my circumstances.

The doctor was still talking, but I was lost in my own thought. The previous words the doctor gave me still echoed in my mind. It lasted until a soft squeeze on my shoulder brought me back, forcing me to once again focus on what was happening around me.

"Can it be treated?" It was my father's voice. I looked at him and my mother. Their faces were filled with worries, but what the doctor said next reduced most of them away.

"Of course," the doctor said. "It's a good thing that we found it so early. It is still at a harmless state, so not much damage had happened yet. Nevertheless, the treatment is going to be—well, a bit risky."

My parents looked at each other, then turned to look at me before asking the kind doctor once again, "What—what kind of treatment is ____ have to go through, doctor?"

The doctor gave a small smile while staring at me directly as he spoke, "First, we have to go through a surgery. It is the part with the highest risk, but we will prepare you for it before the procedure needs to be done. And just like I said before, it was found at an early stage and your body is quite healthy so I'm pretty sure it will go smoothly, and we will make sure that you will have a fast recovery."

I could hear the people around me exhaling a deep sigh. Although the tension that was formed before was still there in the room, and I didn't even realize that I was also holding my breath as I was listening to him speak.

"And then, what's next?" I finally spoke, only after a few seconds of silence. No one seemed to have the courage to question for details, perhaps, knowing that there would be a possibility of any bad news coming to play. But I needed to know. "You said that the surgery would be the first step, so—what's the next one?"

The doctor gave another smile before he continued. Perhaps my curiosity showed him that I had hopes, instead of fear, and it encouraged him to share more details of what I would have to go through. No matter how gruesome they would be.

"It depends on the result and aftereffects of the surgery. We will do some tests first, and if needed you will go through some tough treatments, either radiation, or—"

"Chemotherapy?" I cut him off, earning everyone's attention on me and a raise of an eyebrow on the doctor's part.

"Yes, chemotherapy," he said, nodding his head. I could feel all the curious stares being sent to me by everyone in the room, but I kept my eyes staring at the doctor that was giving me an encouraging smile.

"When will it start?" I asked him, sounding hesitant no matter how I tried to sound brave. I could feel my mother nervously shifting on her seat while holding my hand tight in hers.

"Once your body is ready to endure the procedures and once all of us are well prepared, then we can set the schedule for the first treatment as soon as possible," he said, staring back and forth between my parents and myself as he spoke. "Perhaps you should discuss this with your family first? Because if you agree to go through the process, it certainly is going to be quite a long journey. So it's probably best that everyone agrees and are well prepared to face everything. You will need their support the most."

My father moved on his seat after a while, already anxious to leave the room and wanting nothing else but to take all of us back to my treatment room. "Yes, we, uh--" he said, while raising from his seat, "We will need some time to talk this over," he answered then, turning to my mother to earn her agreement through a slow nod of her head.

The doctor started collecting some brochures and notes from the folder which he had laid on his desk, carefully handing them to my parents. "These are some brochures that will explain the whole process which _____ will have to go through. They might help enlighten you about the whole treatment program, since ______ will need as much support as she can get. Just let me know about your decision as soon as possible, so I can get a team ready and start preparing as soon as possible."

The whole family, with the addition of Taehyung, all returned together to my treatment room. The nurses had insisted that I use the wheelchair for my own safety—even after I argued with them and tried to convince them that I was strong enough to walk on my own. So I had my parents walking on either side of me as they pushed me through the hallway, while Hoseok and Taehyung followed close behind without saying any words.

They all stayed with me in the room after I settled on the be. Everyone fell silent at first, until I brought up the topic in hand by saying, "Can we take some time to think about this and talk in the morning? Hoseok hasn't even stepped foot at the house, you know. And I also need to rest for today. I think we all do."

My mother looked at me, the wariness in her eyes was clear as day. "Of course, sweetheart. I'm sure you're tired. Do you want me to stay with you tonight?"

"No," I shook my head, smiling at her just so she wouldn't worry too much about leaving me. "I'll be okay on my own, you guys need some rest too. I can get the nurse if I need anything."

She opened her lips, about to say something to reply before Taehyung cut her off gently, "I can stay with her tonight, if that's okay. At least until she falls asleep."

"Will it be okay?" My brother asked him this time. "I can help guard tonight if you want."

"No, you guys go ahead and go home. You can go back early in the morning. We'll be okay, I promise."

It took a while before I could convince my family and make them stop worrying about me, until they finally took turns on giving me quick hugs and goodnight kisses right before leaving. I needed to be alone, and perhaps get a chance to speak alone with Taehyung first.

"Do you know what surprised me most?" Taehyung spoke not long after everyone had left and we were both alone in the room.

"What is it?"

"You seem a bit calm after receiving such a big news while everyone was in shock and instantly started worrying," he said, sitting down at his usual seat. His eyes were on me as he was studying my face, looking for answers somewhere in my eyes.

I looked into his deep gaze, giving him a smile as I told him, "Because it was not the first time that I heard them."

He frowned. "Heard what? That you have a freaking tumour growing inside your body?"

I only gave him another smile.

"Yes. Looks like I did take something back with me from the future after all."