✧･ﾟ: * twenty *:･ﾟ✧

Almost instant, she blinks, the minimal amount of light in the room still making her eyes water. But she doesn't even care about that. The fact that she can see the light makes her eyes water for another reason entirely. She tries to open her eyes again, keeping open a little longer before blinking once more.

"Still too bright, Madeline?" the doctor asks kindly. "There. Try that. Take your time, okay?"

Her eyes flutter open again. This time it's much easier to keep them open. There's spots around her vision, but she hardly notices them when she sees an eye chart on the wall in front of her. A small gasp leaves her lips. She can see that. She can see the giant "E" at the top. She can see the red line.

She can see.

When she raises her hand to cover her mouth, that's when she remembers the other hand is clutching Taehyung's. Her heart is pounding so fiercely already. Is she really ready to see him for the first time? To finally have an understand of the person she's been with the past couple of weeks? The person she's kissed multiple times now?

"Can you see?" she hears his soft voice ask, anticipation lingering in his tone.

Tears well in her eyes as she turns to him instinctively.

Her breath catches in her lungs.

Albeit her eyes are blurry from tears, she can clearly make out a handsome man with light brown hair, big brown eyes watching her hopefully. His jaw looks as strong as it felt, his lips as plump as they felt. His skin is so smooth, the only marks on his face being a mole on his nose, and another right below his bottom lip.

She blinks some more, clearing her vision from tears, but he still looks perfect—even more so with her eyes continuing to adjust.

And though it's the dumbest thing to ever leave her lips, it's entirely uncontrollable when she whispers, "Are you real?" She reaches both hands up to his cheeks; those are definitely the soft cheeks she caressed the other day. "You are, holy shit."

Taehyung's eyes sparkle. "You can see me?"

She grins, her eyes yet again filling with water. "Yeah," she breathes with a small laugh. "Yeah, I can see you."

His smile singlehandedly makes the tears fall out of her eyes.

She leans up as he wraps his arm around her waist, hugging her tight. She presses her face into his shoulder, her mind not quite comprehending that this is truly happening. Maybe it isn't. Maybe this entire trip has been a dream. If that's the case, she hopes she never wakes up.

Subconsciously, she begins to thank him over and over. She's already done it, but now she just can't stop. It worked. When she couldn't show up before, she told herself it probably wouldn't have worked anyways, but because of Taehyung dragging her here, she can see again.

That's all she's able to repeat in her head.

I can see, I can see, I can see.

"Madeline, we're going to run you through some basic sight testing to make sure all is well, does that sound okay?"

Madeline pulls away from Taehyung, and before she can wipe her eyes, Taehyung does it for her with his thumbs. She turns to the doctor and nods. "Y-yes, sir. I'm ready."

He gives her a genuine smile. "Great. We're going to start by slowing raising the lights back up, okay? Let me know if it starts getting painful."

She nods again as the nurse begins to lift the switch millimeter by millimeter. Madeline squints, deciding to stare at Taehyung instead of anywhere near the lights on the ceiling. He's still grinning, making her stomach flip in funny ways. His smile is almost like a rectangle with all of his teeth showing.

It's the cutest shit she's ever seen.

And she can actually say she's seen it now.

She has to close her eyes when the lights are completely on, but she gets herself used to it rather quickly. The doctor seems proud as well. "Very good. Let's do the one on the wall next. You remember these from before?" he says with a chuckle, gesturing to the eyesight test she saw when she first opened her eyes.

"Yeah," she says with a laugh of disbelief, taking the spoon-like utensil from him to cover one eye at a time. Is she really doing this right now? Is she really reading again?

"Well done. There's a little strain on your eyes the smaller the letters get, but that's to be expected. I'll suggest a primary for you back in the states to go for checkups."

He runs her through a few short tests afterwards, mostly making sure she can see colors fine and depict which is which in specific artwork. She passes it all, which leads her to believe this really is all a dream. There's no way this could be real.

Especially with the type of man standing beside her.

When things start to settle down and the doctor heads off to get her checkout papers, Madeline's remembers the nausea in her stomach. She hadn't felt it through all of the excitement of regaining her sight, but now that things are calmer she feels sick again. She crosses her legs on the bed, trying to ignore it once more, knowing it's just the post-surgery feeling.

She can't stop looking around. At nothing. At anything. At everything.

She reads the posters in the room at least five times over, not grasping that she can, in fact, read them.

She only pauses when she hears Taehyung chuckling. She turns to him, like she's always done, except this time he's really there.

He steals her breath again for a moment or two.

"What's funny?"

His eyes meet hers. His eye contact is one of the most intense experiences she's ever been through her entire life, including the surgery she just came out of. She can't look away from him—she doesn't want to.

"You look so cute," he says. His words made her blush before, but now being able to attach his face with his voice sets her entire face on fire. He frown at her. Even that's cute. "Your face is red again, Maddie." Instantly, the backs of his hands on her cheeks once more.

She's not red from fever, but she doesn't tell him that.

"I'm okay," she says, voice barely above a whisper. Is it creepy how much she's staring at him? She truly can't muster the strength to turn away. "I just... I can't believe any of this right now. It's unreal."

"It is real," he says, confused.

Good Lord, he's adorable.

"I mean it doesn't feel real," she says with an amused smile. "It feels like a dream."

"Is that why... you did not think I am real?"

That, and she has no idea how she got an angel as an accomplice. She supposes the universe decided to be on her side this time.

Before she can reply, an abrupt feeling rushes over her that makes her go very lightheaded. She sways a little before Taehyung puts his hands on her shoulders, steadying her. Her head starts to pound, the churning in her stomach intensifying.

"Maddie? Are you okay?" He helps her lay back down on the bed, eyes widening with concern.

"I'm okay," she manages, closing her eyes as she rubs at her temples. "Just... just dizzy."

Taehyung finds the button the nurse instructed her to use if she needed anything, pushing it with haste. Madeline tells him he didn't need to do that. She'll be okay. It's natural to feel a little sick after a surgery.

Her head is really hurting, though. It feels like nails are being hammered into the back of her skull.

Taehyung brushes the hair off her forehead, reusing the rag from earlier, although it's no longer cool, it stills helps some.

The nurse comes in, asking what the problem is. Taehyung strings together a sentence that hardly makes sense, Korean words being thrown in simply from him being flustered. The nurse manages to understand, rewetting the rag and also offering Madeline some medicine to ease the headache.

Madeline lays there while the medicine kicks in, Taehyung repeatedly feeling her cheeks despite the nurse telling him the medicine will help lower her fever. He seems convinced she's come down with something serious, which makes Madeline simultaneously entertained and all gushy.

The doctor comes in a few minutes later with paperwork for Madeline to fill out. She had to fill out some earlier when they first arrived, merely saying she consented to the operation. Taehyung helped her find the lines for all of that, but now she can see them for herself. In under four hours, just like that.

She goes through each paper, signing more consent forms and confirming her identity and such since it's overseas. When she gets to the final page, the payment method, she pauses. This is the part she'll be guilty about the rest of her life. Even if her mom had somehow scrubbed up enough money, Madeline would still be guilty for so much cash being spent on her. It's just how she is.

Taehyung leans over her shoulder. "What does it say?"

Madeline purses her lips, wishing she had her matchbox filled with money still, but that's been long gone. "It's, um... asking about how I'm going to pay."

"Oh, of course." He digs into his back pocket, pulling out his wallet. He looks up at the doctor while holding his card out.

The doctor takes the signed paperwork and the card. "Thank you. I'll be back."

When he leaves, Madeline looks to the floor. "I'm sorry, Taehyung."

"Eh? For what?"

"You have to pay... It's a lot of money."

"It is," he murmurs. "But that is okay. You can see again, no? It is worth money."

"You're too good of a person," she says.

"Hmm?"

"Nothing." She sighs, looking up at him with a smile. "You know I'm very thankful, right? I'll pay you back one day, I swear."

She means it. She'll work any job she can score just to do so.

"Ah, no, no." He waves his hand dismissively, chuckling. "You don't have to, Maddie. It's okay. I promise."

The doctor returns with his card and a piece of paper suggesting a primary for Madeline back in America. She thanks him numerous times, to which he says he's glad he could help and tells her to enjoy the rest of her trip.

Despite being able to see now, she stills slips her hand into Taehyung's on instinct, letting him lead the way. He notices, tugging her gently to where she's walking beside him rather than slightly behind. It makes her smile.

Her cheeks are beginning to hurt from smiling so much.

"Are you okay?" he asks, keeping a slow pace as he checks her forehead with his free hand.

She lowers his hand, meeting his eyes. She could stare at him all day. "I'm okay now. I'm better than okay, actually."

"You're doing great?"

She smiles. "Yeah, Taehyung. I'm doing great."