A cool sensation on my face wakes me up, and I sit up immediately, dazed.

I didn't dream.

After Jungkook put me back on the couch and I fell back to sleep, I didn't dream of the road or Taehyung.

It was just darkness and emptiness.

"Easy there," a voice says, pulling me into reality. I groan when the room begins to spin, and the owner of the voice eases me back onto the couch, holding the cold, damp cloth to my forehead. "You're okay."

"Questionable," I say in more of a croak as I try to adjust myself on the couch to get comfortable.

"I'm running a cool bath for you," Jin says as his face finally becomes less blurry. "You're burning up and Jungkook told me about last night."

"Not my best moment," I joke, exhaling loudly.

"You have the flu," Jin says, moving my sweaty hair out of my face. "You're not going to feel great for a few more days."

"Jin," I say, struggling to keep my eyes open, "I can't keep staying here. My dad needs me."

"And you need rest," he says. "Not up for discussion. Now come on, the tub is waiting for you."

I slowly nod as he moves back slightly, giving me room to swing my legs off the couch. As soon as I stand up, the world tilts and I nearly fall to my knees, but Jin grabs me before I lose my balance.

"You're gonna get sick," I mumble as I try to focus my vision.

Jin sighs. "I'll be fine. Worry about yourself and only yourself for once, maybe."

As my vision clears and my head stops swimming, I glance behind Jin to see a dark figure flickering in and out of view, almost as if the person is stuck inside an old television that refuses to show a clear picture.

I know it's Taehyung, and as much as I try to ignore him, my eyes refuse to leave the flickering figure standing in the room.

"Violet?" Jin's voice echoes in my mind, but it sounds far away as the world feels as if it's melting away and all I can see is this man my vision just can't quite focus on. He's so close, yet he feels so far away.

"Are you real?" I whisper, and Jin moves to put his hands on either side of my face, forcing me to look at him.

"Violet," he says, a worried tone evident in his voice. "Are you okay?"

I glance back towards where Taehyung was once standing, only to see empty space.

"I'm fine," I murmur absentmindedly, forcing a smile across my chapped lips. "I just need to cool down, I guess."

Jin helps me down the hallway and into the bathroom, turning the faucet to the tub off when the water reaches a satisfactory level.

Jin sighs and rubs the back of his neck as he watches me leaning up against the bathroom sink.

"What?" I ask, frowning slightly at the slightly flustered look on Jin's face.

"I don't want to leave you alone in case you pass out and accidentally drown or something," he says, his cheeks tinting the slightest of pinks. "But I can't just sit in here while you bathe."

I laugh, which is a weird sound to hear come from my mouth. "You can just sit in the hallway beside the bathroom and I can talk to you to let you know I'm okay. If I stop responding, you have my permission to see me naked so you can keep me from drowning. Deal?"

Jin clears his throat, shaking his head as he lets out a chuckle. "Deal."

I shoo him out of the bathroom, surprised I have enough strength to stand on my own at this point. I strip my sweaty clothes off of my sticky skin and submerge myself into the coolness of the water in the bathtub.

I groan as the water envelops my aching body. My skin, once feeling as though it could catch on fire at any moment, instantly cools from the touch of the water, and I'm surprised steam isn't emitting from my body.

"You okay?" Jin asks anxiously from the hallway.

"I'm fine," I say, taking a moment to submerge my head, letting the coolness spread to my face and scalp. I come back up after a moment, almost wanting to go back under just to feel the coolness again, but I remember I need to talk to Jin to keep his anxious thoughts about me at ease.

"I didn't dream," I find myself saying before I can even think. "After I got sick and laid back down, I didn't have the dream, or any dream. It was just... nothing."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Jin asks, and I almost start to shiver when I think about it.

I don't know how I know this, but deep down, I know that it's a bad thing. A very bad thing.

"I don't know," I lie, leaning my head back against the edge of the tub. "I guess no dream is better than that one."

A second lie.

That dream had become something more for me. It became my solace; it became my escape. It was where I talked to him.

But now I'm beginning to see him outside of the dream - the dream which never appeared in my thoughts after I fell back to sleep last night.

Things are changing... and I don't think it's for the better.

"Get washed up and then I'll make you some soup," Jin's voice brings me out of my worry, and I shake my head slightly to clear it.

"Where did Jungkook go, by the way? It's Saturday. He doesn't have any classes today, right?" I ask as I grab the shampoo and lather it into my hair, scrubbing the sweat and oil out of it.

"He had a few errands to run, but he said he would be back," Jin replies and I sigh.

"I don't need two babysitters," I exclaim as I lean my head back into the water to rinse out the shampoo. "It's bad enough that I need one."

"Violet," Jin says in a quiet tone and I sigh again.

"I know, Jin," I say, sitting up and pulling my knees to my chest as I try to ignore the flickering figure in the doorway of the bathroom. "I know."