# Chapter 32
With the fact that there were only 5 minutes left, Kwon Dojin became more urgent, so I hastily ended the call. I didn’t think there was much to prepare, but since I was the one visiting uninvited, I didn’t say anything.
After getting out of the taxi, I wandered around the area to give Dojin more time. About 10 minutes later, I headed toward the entrance of the apartment building where his home was.
After entering the unit number and calling, I went through the door that opened as if he’d been waiting. I took the elevator up and as soon as I pressed the bell at the front door, it opened.
“Oh, I was a bit surprised.”
The door didn’t swing open violently, but I didn’t expect it to open so quickly. I froze with my hand still poised to press the bell, and Dojin smiled weakly, unlike his usual self.
“Were you? Shall we go in first?”
I tilted my head at his still-cracking voice. Maybe it wasn’t just his voice being hoarse from waking up? Moreover, looking closely, his cheeks seemed flushed red-
“Habin-ah?”
After entering through the front door, I touched Dojin’s forehead and felt intense heat on my palm. In case I was mistaken, I touched my own forehead, but it didn’t feel nearly as hot as Dojin’s.
“You have a fever?”
“…Yeah, a little.”
He rolled his eyes around hesitantly before slowly nodding. As my suspicion turned to certainty, I let out an exasperated breath.
“And you were talking about preparing-! No, never mind. What about the hospital?”
“I didn’t go.”
“You didn’t come to school, so why didn’t you go to the hospital either?”
Perhaps because I told him I was coming, Dojin had already changed into outdoor clothes. It seemed like he just needed to put on an outer layer, so I grabbed his arm and headed to the living room first.
“Sit down here. Where are your clothes?”
“There’s a dressing room inside the bedroom.”
“Really? Then don’t move and sit here. If you’re really struggling, just lie down.”
I patted Dojin’s shoulder as he sat on the sofa, emphasizing again. He nodded absentmindedly and looked at me with slightly dazed eyes. The fever seemed quite severe; I can’t believe he didn’t go to the hospital.
“Where are you going?”
“You need to go to the hospital. I’m just going to get your outer clothes, so stay still.”
“Okay…”
His response was completely lacking in energy, so I checked his forehead again. If it were just a cold, he wouldn’t be this weak. Was it the flu?
He obediently closed his eyes at my touch and leaned back against the sofa. He looked so obviously sick that I moved my hand from his forehead to gently stroke his hair, which made him laugh softly.
“That’s sweet of you.”
“I can’t be mean to someone who’s sick.”
“If that’s the case, I wouldn’t mind being sick more often.”
“…You really have no filter.”
I wanted to flick Dojin’s forehead for saying such nonsense, but remembering he was sick, I held back.
“Habin-ah.”
“What?”
“Did you come all the way here because you were worried about me?”
“You were perfectly fine until yesterday, and then suddenly you don’t come to school and don’t contact me at all. How could I not worry?”
Seeing Dojin’s voice getting increasingly weak, I figured if I left him like this, he’d fall asleep before we could even get to the hospital. So I withdrew my hand from his hair and was about to go to the dressing room when he grabbed my arm.
He looked surprised with wide eyes after grabbing me, as if it had been a reflexive action.
“I need to get your outer clothes. Aren’t you going to the hospital?”
“…Are you going to go straight home after the hospital?”
“What nonsense is that? I’m taking you back home after, of course.”
What if something happened on the way if I sent him home alone? However, Dojin blinked as if he hadn’t considered that I would take him home.
“Really?”
“I don’t lie about things like this. Anyway, let go of me. We need to get to the hospital before it closes.”
He seemed to be acting spoiled, perhaps because he was sick. I tapped the back of his hand that was gripping my arm, and he released me with a clearly reluctant expression.
Seeing that expression made my heart soften, and I sighed while gently stroking his hair again.
“I’ll be right back, why are you making that face?”
“Okay…”
After comforting him a couple more times, I went to find the dressing room he mentioned. Apartment layouts are pretty similar, so it wasn’t hard to find. The moment I opened the door to the dressing room, I couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.
I felt like I’d walked into a store and wanted to properly look around, but that wasn’t the priority right now, so I held back.
Everything was organized by season, type, and color, making it easy to grab a cardigan he could wear. I returned to the living room to find Dojin with his head tilted back, covering his eyes with his forearm.
“Are you in a lot of pain? Do you have the strength to go to the hospital? Should I call a taxi?”
“There’s a hospital right in front of the building. I have enough strength to walk there-“
“So you’re telling me there’s a hospital right in front of your building, and you still haven’t gone until now?”
“Um…”
Dojin trailed off and gave a weak smile. This “look at me being sick” act was probably his way of asking me to let it slide.
I sighed in disbelief, but taking him to the hospital first seemed the right thing to do, so I handed him the cardigan I’d brought. He reached out and took it, putting it on with sluggish movements.
“Habin-ah.”
“What?”
As I answered while putting my bag aside, planning to return, he had somehow approached me and rested his forehead on my shoulder.
“Hold my hand.”
“You said you had the strength to walk less than a minute ago.”
“Can’t I?”
“…You can, fine. Here.”
I offered my hand to Dojin, and he promptly took it. His grip was so tight it hurt, not seeming like someone who was sick, but I didn’t mention it.
I led the childish Dojin out of the apartment. Since I didn’t know where the hospital was, I followed his directions and arrived at a hospital prominently situated about a 5-minute walk away.
“Why didn’t you go to such a close hospital?”
“I didn’t want to move.”
His straightforward response left me speechless. We needed to get him to the hospital quickly for an injection or at least some medication.
“Is this your first time here?”
“No, I came once before.”
If he’s been here before, he just needs to give his name. When we got to the hospital, I immediately sat Dojin down on a sofa in the waiting room and went to the desk to register for him. Fortunately, there weren’t many people, so the waiting time wasn’t long.
I was going to let him go into the examination room alone, but he grabbed my arm and gestured for me to come with him, so I had no choice but to get up.
“Hello.”
“Hello. What brings you in today?”
While Dojin exchanged questions and answers with the doctor, I felt awkward and positioned myself near the door. I’d never gone to the hospital with a friend before, let alone entered the examination room together.
I wiggled my toes and waited for the examination to end, half zoning out. It seemed inappropriate to look at my phone, so all I could do was stand there blankly.
“I’ll prescribe three days’ worth of medication. If you’re still not feeling well after three days, come back again.”
“Yes.”
As the examination seemed to be wrapping up, I quickly looked up. Just then, Dojin rose from his seat, and when our eyes met, he smiled, causing me to unconsciously reach out my hand.
As if he’d been waiting for it, Dojin took my hand, and as I was leading him out, a nurse called his name. I tried to let go of his hand, but Dojin held mine tighter and pulled me toward the desk.
He didn’t let go of my hand until after paying the medical fees and going to the pharmacy to receive his medicine, which made me wonder if this was appropriate. Still, I decided to let him do as he wished while he was sick.
“Habin-ah, I’m dizzy.”
As soon as we left the pharmacy, he suddenly buried his forehead on my shoulder, making me anxiously grab his arm.
“That bad? Maybe you should have gotten an injection after all?”
“Maybe it’s just from walking so much.”
“Should we rest then? But it’s only 5 minutes to your home; wouldn’t it be better to rest there?”
“Yeah… let’s stay like this for a moment.”
He nuzzled his forehead against my shoulder and exhaled deeply.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had someone by my side when I’m sick.”
Dojin let out an obviously artificial laugh and slightly turned his head to look up at me. Due to the fever, beads of sweat had formed on his forehead. Combined with his slightly damp bangs and flushed cheeks, it was, how to put it… sexy.
“I thought you were close with Ahn Ji Yu and Sunwoo Hyun, if not Ji Haecheon?”
“Well, not close enough to take care of me when I’m sick. Actually, can we even say we’re close?”
“Aren’t you called the Four Heavenly Kings?”
As I carefully wiped the sweat from his forehead, Dojin lowered his eyes. I could subtly feel his arm wrapping around my waist, but since it would be cruel to push away someone who said they were dizzy, I left it be.
“That’s just what others call us arbitrarily. We’re in the same year, and our rankings are all pretty similar. Plus, since we went to the same middle school and are often seen hanging out together, I guess people wanted to group us together.”
“Annoyingly.”
He added in a very small voice. I heard it clearly because we were so close. That single word so vividly contained Dojin’s feelings that I just stroked his hair without saying anything.
“Let’s go for now. We can’t stay here forever.”
“I’d be fine staying like this.”
“You want me to watch you collapse on the street?”
I headed toward his home with Dojin hanging on my shoulder, talking nonsense. Since he matched his steps with mine, it wasn’t too difficult. Because I walked more slowly than usual, considering his condition, we arrived at his home a bit later than I had initially thought.
“Enter the password.”
“Should I tell you the password too, Habin?”
Thinking he might say something strange if I responded, I kept quiet. He drooped his eyes and pressed the password very slowly. It was as if he was showing me so I could memorize it, but I just snorted and turned away.
“As expected, Habin is sweet yet cold.”
“Thanks for the compliment.”
I ignored his obviously fake dejection, and Dojin pulled me in as he opened the front door. No matter how he acted, we weren’t close enough to share house passwords.
