HEARTBEAT | VKOOK - Chapter 35: Chapter 35

The ivory skin between Jeongguk's eyebrows creased slightly, eyes remaining shut, and lips slightly agape, chest rising up and down with each breath. His fingers slowly regained their senses, grasping onto the white bedsheets, clenching his fist. Yet even so, his grip felt so weak. A grimace spread across his face at the dull throbbing pain that shot through the back of his head, brows drawing together in a deep frown.
His eyes fluttered open, closing shut instant the moment the bright light fell onto his eyes. He struggled to open his eyes, due to how bright the lights were, a string of curses running through his mind as he squinted his eyes, blinking a few times to get accustomed to the light.
A few moments later, he finally opened his eyes, taking in the view around him. A figure towered over him, face blurry, and voice loud yet muffled. It took him a few moments to regain to his senses completely, his vision clearing slowly as he finally recognised the voice. Seokjin.
"You're awake." He heard him say, eyes darting up to meet Seokjin's almond eyes. Jeongguk stared at him for a moment, somewhat perplexed as he then shifted his gaze elsewhere, scanning the painfully bright room with a look of distaste on his face.
The side of his lips twitched as he attempted to sit up, Seokjin helping him lean against the pillow placed behind him. It was then when he realised that his arms were connected with wires, and a monitor by his side that displayed his heart beat. And although he connected the dots, a certain question lingered in his mind that he couldn't seem to figure out.
Jeongguk sighed, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them again, only to see another figure on the other side of his bed, making him look up to meet the eyes of Hoseok, who had an amused look on his face, "You're awake." He gasped, the smile on his face widening as his eyes glimmered in sheer happiness.
"How are you feeling?" Seokjin queried, a concerned look painted on his features, "Are you okay? Do we need to call the doctor?"
A dull silence settled in the room, Jeongguk simply blinking at him, a baffled look etched on his face. His eyes flickered to Hoseok, who mirrored the same expression as Seokjin. Furrowing his eyebrows, he turned to the oldest, "I-I'm fine, just a little headache." He mumbled, eyes droopy and seemingly exhausted as he pursed his lips. "What happened?"
"You were in a coma for about. . two weeks." Seokjin answered, releasing a deep breath as he took a seat on the stool next to his bed, interlacing his own fingers on his lap and setting his eyes on the youngest, "Glad to see you finally awake."
Hoseok took a seat on the edge of the bed, eyes now grim as he studied the younger for a moment, the side of his lips twitching as he contemplated his thoughts, "Do you. . Do you remember anything?"
Jeongguk simply sent them a perplexed look, unable to comprehend what they were on about. His eyebrows creased slightly in a frown as he glanced away, eyes blank and seemingly in a daze as he focused on his thoughts. He couldn't seem to recall anything. That was until memories slowly fled back into his mind.
"I-I can't really— I don't know. I was in a car and. . Jimin was with me, driving us home but. ." The frown on his face deepened as he concentrated on his thoughts, vague images flashing through his mind.
"You had an accident." Seokjin spoke up, a grim look etched on his features as he held the younger's gaze, "And you barely survived. Speaking of Jimin, he's totally fine, although it'd take him sometime to recover. He's been worried sick about you."
Memories began resurfacing in his mind, all the moments with Jimin, the whole conversation, to when they got into the car. A vivid image of a car speeding straight at them flashed through his mind, Jeongguk knitting his brows in utter confusion as he recalled that moment again.
"How do you think it happened?" Hoseok queried cautiously, scrutinizing the younger from a distance, eyes narrowed. Jeongguk snapped out of his trance and looked up at the male, a silence following right after. Jeongguk pursed his lips, looking down at the white sheets on his lap as the scene replayed over again in his head, "I don't know. It was past midnight and the roads were empty. We were just near the neighbourhood, and it was all good until. . A car came out of nowhere, speeding straight at us."
Jeongguk stared off into space, the frown never leaving his face, "I-It's as if. . It was done on purpose."
"Why would someone want to kill us? Or even harm us for that matter?"
Hoseok stayed silent, eyes remaining on the younger's while Seokjin seemed baffled, eyes flickering between Jeongguk and Hoseok as he attempted to register the information. The red haired male sighed, looking away and shaking his head slightly as he shrugged, "You never know,"
"It could be anyone. Maybe an enemy or someone who hates you." Hoseok paused, pursing his lips for a moment as he collected his thoughts. He turned to the younger, face grim as tension consumed the air, "Tell me Jeongguk. Who do you suspect? Who do you think is capable of doing such a thing?"
Jeongguk blinked at him, eyes narrowing as he averted his gaze to the sheets below him, pondering over the question. He recalled everyone he met, all those people he encountered, people who knew of him, friends and acquaintances, yet no one seemed questionable. Perhaps, he was wrong, maybe it could be an accident, he'll never know.
Yet, he had a feeling it wasn't. And as he thought deeper, the only person he knew hated him, was his own father. But why would he do that? He never cared to know of his whereabouts or even look for him after the day he kicked him out. And Jeongguk never cared to know how he is or where he was, or if he was even living or dead. Although there were times when he missed him, but not anymore. He simply cut off all connections with his father after everything that happened, and found his own way through life.
A sigh evoked Jeongguk's lips, "I don't know, I can't think of anyone like that." He met Hoseok's eyes, who stared at him for a moment before nodding slowly, turning away as he pursed his lips. He rose from his seat, hands shoved into his pockets as he turned to Jeongguk, "I'll look into it, don't worry. Don't think too much about it and take rest, we'll look into the case and solve the matter." Hoseok assured, "After this, we're keeping an eye on you two just in case anything goes wrong."
"And if you find anyone suspicious, tell me." With that, he strutted out of the room, the sound of the door closing shut bouncing off the bright walls of the room. Seokjin sighed, shoulders dropping in distress, unable to think of anything after all that happened.
The silence that followed right after was tense and suffocating, and Jeongguk didn't want to stress himself out unnecessarily, and knowing himself, he'd jump to ridiculous conclusions and end up overthinking— which he didn't really want. He turned to Seokjin, pursing his lips into a thin line as he contemplated, "Where's Taehyung?"
Seokjin met his eyes, face draining of colour as he blinked at him for a split moment before releasing a nervous chuckle, "He's fine, just doing his own thing."
This had Jeongguk's expression faltering as he focused on the other, eyeing him carefully with a crestfallen look, "H-He never came?"
"Oh, he did. But that was two weeks ago, after the accident. I'm not really sure if he showed up again, but I've never seen him after that." Seokjin responded, not failing to notice how the boy's expression dropped to a disappointed look, like he had expected him to show up, and check up on him. A part of him felt bad for the boy, yet he could do nothing about it.
Everyone could see it, for it was pretty obvious to be unnoticed. How Taehyung and Jeongguk acted around each other, the way they'd look at each other, their eyes and their actions spoke volumes. The others noticed it all, yet said nothing, secretly enjoying whatever they did. Yet even so, deep inside, they felt bad for the boy. For he fell for the wrong person at the most unexpected time.
The following days passed by in a blur. It followed the same routine, and to Jeongguk, it felt like a never ending circle. Hoseok, Seokjin and Yoongi came by often to see him, and make him feel better through the time being. Jimin had recovered soon enough, although he was limping in his steps, and had a few cuts and bruises to be healed, he was perfectly fine.
And before he knew it, Jeongguk was discharged and ready to go home, although he had to take rest and wasn't allowed to do anything that'd stress him out, and affect his health. Taehyung was kind enough to spare him for as long as he wanted without bothering him, which slightly concerned him.
For he never came to see him, or even a call. As though he wasn't concerned at all about him, like he didn't care at all. It crushed his heart, for he would wait every day after waking up to see Taehyung, expect him to show up at least once. But he simply never did.
It frustrated him, yet worried him at the same time. He was overwhelmed him with emotions he couldn't decipher, and he couldn't seem to understand his own self either. He couldn't understand why he was acting the way he was, and why it bothered him so much that he never came. It was clear that Taehyung didn't care- all that mattered to him was work, and Jeongguk couldn't expect himself to be his priority.
It was stupid to get his hopes up for nothing, even while knowing that he wouldn't ever see him the the same way.
The weeks pass by, just like that with Jeongguk doing his own thing, and it's almost a month already when he's fully recovered and allowed to join work again. But the day he finally returned to the office, things seem a little too different for his liking. But not in terms of his surroundings, as they're still the same in their places, however, it's a little different with the gossips among the workers.
From what he had overheard, the rumours going around were mainly surrounding their boss, Kim Taehyung— who seemed to have done something that left almost everyone shocked and surprised, yet some of them were happy and glad for the profits in the business. But what were they really talking about?
Jeongguk scanned the planner on his desk, a frown gracing his features as he exhaled deeply, deciding to discuss it with Taehyung himself. He left his office and walked through the halls, passing by random workers on his way to the older's office— a part of him slightly giddy and excited to see the older, while another part of him was nervous and anxious about the outcome.
The walk to the older's office was short and silent, but despite the silence around him, he could hear his thoughts loud and screaming at him to not get his hopes up. Taehyung could switch any moment, act all nice and loving one moment and then switch to an asshole the next. And Jeongguk contemplated if he could even trust him.
He knocked twice on the black door to the CEO's office, hearing a muffled voice of approval, before turning the knob and stepping in. His eyes set on Taehyung who leaned against his desk, head immersed in a file, glasses resting over the bridge of his nose as he creased his brows in concentration. He was dressed in a suit as usual, yet it looked rather attractive on him. Heck, he looked good in anything. Perhaps, it was just him or there was something about today that made him appear rather intimidating.
Jeongguk eyed him, stopping on the older's torso before his gaze could travel down any lower, to places it shouldn't. He cleared his throat, averting the older's attention. He could hear his heart beating vigorously in his ears, yet he masked it off with a blank and serious look, seemingly successful in appearing professional.
"Jeon Jeongguk," Taehyung pushed himself off the desk, straightening his back as he faced the younger, now placing away the file in his hand, "Good to see you again, I hope you're okay now?"
Jeongguk couldn't help it— he kind of liked the way his name rolled off Taehyung's tongue so naturally, it sounded pleasant to hear, and he was sure as hell he lost his mind. He gulped, meeting Taehyung's eyes for a moment before nodding, "Yes, thank you for asking, sir."
"I hope you're aware of the amount of incomplete work, and how your sudden break effected our company. I'll let it slide for now, but I hope you won't repeat that again, am I clear?" He quirked up a brow at Jeongguk, who froze for a good second, a look of disbelief flashing in his eyes, yet he nodded nevertheless. After all, that's how he is when it comes to work.
"Great," Taehyung turned away, his back facing Jeongguk as he picked up the file he was previously reading, "Since you're here now, you're supposed to call Mr. Sung-Min and ask them about our meeting. Then, you'll prepare a conference room for our monthly budgets. Then, you'll make a document on the revenue and sales from Kang Corporations' reports as well as our financial reports and present it to me. After that, you will personally go to Mr. Choi and inform him about the upcoming events and plans."
Jeongguk was busy jotting down everything the older had spurted on his notepad, brows drawn together in a frown. A part of him rather pissed with the way Taehyung seemed to ignore him, and simply dropped a load of work on him just like that, even while knowing he's still not in the best condition to work according to his time. When he was done, he glanced at the older, looking down at the board in his hand, and scanning the amount of work he had; along with the usual calls he had to answer and keeping track of the office supplies, of course.
"Am I clear?" Taehyung turned to look over his shoulder at the younger, who gazed down at the notepad in his hand, nodding,"Yes, but the—"
"You're dismissed." Taehyung turned his back on him, a phone pressed to his ear. He got busy with a phone call, leaving no room for Jeongguk to talk. Which left him baffled and hurt by his sudden change of attitude, questions arising in his mind. He stared at his back for a moment— or perhaps, glared daggers at his back, before taking his leave, and stepping out of the room.
A sigh left his lips once he was all alone in the vacant hallway, shoulders dropping as a crestfallen frown claimed his features— glancing down at the board in his grip, eyes burning in exasperation.
What the hell is wrong with him?