beyOnd

Chapter Five

The horrible sunlight had been gleaming against my face, so unbearably bright that I could barely keep my eyes open. The bus had pulled up to my stop, and the glass doors had folded upon me. It had been rather quiet for a Tuesday morning. Not many had been on board, only a few young students who go to Shimseng High accompanying me.

I rest my eyes to my left. There sat Wook-jin, whose eyes seemed focused upon the window next to him. He rested his chin in the palm of his hand, earphones seeming to blast inaudible music. Those coal grey eyes then guide themselves to my direction and immediately sparkle with glee to see me.

Those lips perked up into a sweet grin, and those strong hands had seemed to greet me with a coyly wave. His presence himself had seemed to beckon me to move forward, yet that smile seems to freeze me in time, almost as such I’m trapped in time.

Immediately, I rushed up to him and took a seat right next to him, placing my bag onto the hard floor of the bus. His earbuds were on as he had been busy on his phone, and his foot had been tapping to the beat of the song. He then turned the phone off and glanced back at me, giving me a sweet smile. “Morning!” said he.

He then took out one of his earphones and offers it to me. Carefully, I pick it up and place it in my ear, hearing the sweet tune he had been listening to. Lost At Sea (IIla Illa 2) by B.I had been blasting through the speakers. The beauty of the artist’s voice, calming and soft with every melody sang.

I look downward to my left hand, which had started bleeding again. “f**k,” I quietly said to myself, “I thought I’d cleaned it thoroughly…” Those eyes then guide themselves to me, a sudden look of concern growing in his expression.

“What happened?” he asked, grabbing my hand to inspect the wound.

“I just…slashed my hand on broken glass,” I said, which was technically not a lie, “I dropped a glass and managed to s***h my hand while cleaning it up…” Those fingertips then traced over each edge of the wound, gliding gently above the ripped skin.

“We’ll go to the nurse’s office right when we reach the school,” he said, looking back up at me. “For now, all I can do to help is to clean the outer bits of your wound.”

“Here?” I asked, “Isn’t the ride too bumpy to do it?” He then snickers a bit, yet I couldn’t tell why. He then proceeded to wipe the blood off with a wet wipe, but was still smiling obviously.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, “did I say something wrong?”

“I’m sorry,” he said through laughter, “I just took that the wrong way.” For a while, I had a long thought of what I’d said, yet I couldn’t seem to get any idea. Then it came to me. He mistook it as a term when you want to…fuck a person.

“Ohh…” I muttered. “Shit.” He starts to laugh even more with my words, and it was as though he couldn’t even concentrate anymore. “You dirty-minded bastard,” I said as I pretended to strike him on the head. Of course, I was being playful with my actions, and I never intended to actually hit him. But instead, my hand was caught by his and he managed to stop me from “hitting” him.

His grip was strong, yet not strong enough to the point where I couldn’t get loose of his hold. He was still smiling at me, even though we were in a position that anyone would’ve mistaken as assault. “Don’t hit your elders like that,” he told me.

“And how do you know that you’re older than me?” I asked.

“I checked the yearbook at break time,” he said in a “know-it-all” tone, “you are approximately…1 month, 4 weeks, and 3 days younger than me.”

“Well that’s precise,” I said, smirking cheekily at him. I then look out to the window behind him. The shallow waters had traced over the horizon, the shore so inevitably dim in a mirage. With shades of cherry pink and cloud blue glistening against the ripples of the ocean, it seemed almost endless as we drove off further from it’s very entrance.

It seemed to beautifully quiet, so unbothered. With the birds gliding through the air in such a swift motion, I couldn’t barely comprehend such sight. How the clouds drifted above us, fading deeper into the yellowed sky.

“You wanna go there sometime?” I asked him. He then looks over his shoulder, hand still keeping hold of my wrist.

“Yeah,” he told me. “Maybe…this weekend, sunset?” A smile then plays on my lips, and that little thrill in my chest had begun.

“Of course!” I told him. Just then, the bus came into an abrupt halt, which immediately made me look over to the stop we were at.

“Aren’t we getting off at the next stop?” Wook-jin asked.

“Yeah,” I said as I stood up from my seat, throwing my bag back onto my shoulder. Slowly, he follows from behind and stood right next to me, who was already at the front door. The doors then slowly open and me and Wook-jin walk out of the bus, along with some other students who were also studying at our school, we just didn’t seem to notice them.

“Don’t we have to go to the nurse’s office?” I asked.

“Yep,” he smiled. “Form time can wait. For now, we gotta get your hand treated.”

. . .

The two of us then snuck into the nurse’s office, hoping to our lives that we wouldn’t be caught. I entered the room first. The nurse wasn’t even in, so it was just me and Wook-jin who were left in the room. Fallen casts and medicine bottles had laid around in a scatter, so unorganized and in such an incomprehensible clutter.

He followed me from behind, looking out for anyone who might’ve seen us sneak into the office. Right when he came in, he immediately shut the door and rushed over to me, who was already sat on the examining table.

“Right…” he said to himself as he looked through a cupboard full of medicine. He took out a wound spray and bandage, then walked back over to me. He then takes a better glance at my hand, which had started bleeding much more than before. He sighed and let go of my hand, going back to the cupboard. “You’re gonna have to get that stitched.”

“What?” I asked in disbelief.

“The wound opened too much. A simple bandage wouldn’t be able to help that.” He stays silent for a while, looking for a needle and thread. “Don’t worry,” he told me as he crouched down in front of me. “I know how to do this. My dad’s a doctor. He taught me how to do this when I was a bit younger.” He then sprays a bit of antiseptic on my wound, which seemed to numb all the pain in my hand.

“I’ll be quick, don’t worry,” he told me in a reassuring tone. He threads the string into the needle and proceeds to wound it through my skin. The pricks didn’t hurt, yet I could still feel it stab through the thin layer of skin that tore out. His hands were steady with every action they made, and those grey eyes of his were full of precision as he threaded the needle through me.

He cuts the thread right when it reaches the end of my wound and ties a small knot at the end. He sets the needle and thread down on the examining table and looks up at me. “We’re done,” he smiled. “Did it hurt?”

“No, not at all,” I said, staring down at my hand. The middle had been covered with stitches completely. I normally would’ve hated something like this on my skin. But if it was something that Wook-jin did, I wouldn’t mind at all.

“You’re gonna have to go to the hospital to get it done properly,” he told me as he traced his fingers over the stitches. “I’m not a professional, but this was the best I could do. I’ll pay for the bills if you’d like.”

“No, it’s alright,” I said with a small smile played on my lips. “I’ll pay for it.”

“You sure?”

“Of course I am.” We then heard the loud, horrible sound of the bell. We had to go to our form room, otherwise we’d get in trouble. I looked out to the door and saw the students rushing into their classrooms, yet me and Wook-jin were the only ones who were still out.

He then grabs my hand – the one that wasn’t wounded – and helps me down the examination table. “We gotta hurry…” he muttered to what seemed like himself as he guided me out of the room. As we ran to our classroom, my hand was still in his, and it felt as though I’d been on cloud 9. Though I knew we were going to be late, this was one of the most enjoyable times that we’ve been late.

Upon his presence, everything seems right. Nothing seems wrong. Like life became so absolutely perfect all of a sudden. Like a fairytale, indeed. Life seems so absolutely perfect yet I know it might all just be a façade that had been created by my mind. Yet could I possibly be helped to like him when he leaves me so intrigued?

The perk on his lips, so joyful and lively. How is it so very possible that I wouldn’t fall for him?