Chapter 49

Jennie's POV

The doors of the emergency room burst open as the nurses pushed Lisa's stretcher inside. I wanted to follow and make sure that she was still breathing, but they wouldn't let me.

I sat on the edge of my seat outside the room, wrapping my arms around my own body as I trembled in fear.

"She's still alive," I kept telling myself. "She was breathing when I saw her. She's still alive. She's still alive."

Kai sat across me with his head buried in his hands. "She's going to be okay. Jennie, I'm so fucking sorry. You have to believe me, I did not crash into you guys on purpose."

I didn't even care if I had a few bruises in my arms and my forehead. My situation was nothing compared to what Lisa has to go through right now.

"Jennie, please talk to me..." Kai begs.

"What do you want me to say?" I choke out my own words. "Do you want me to tell you that it's okay? That I'm okay?"

"N-no, but..." Kai stammered. He slumped his back against the wall and stared into thin air. "I just need you to believe me when I say I did not mean for this to happen... I know you'll think I'm making it up, but shit I'm... I'm genuinely sorry... Please..."

"It doesn't matter," I sobbed into my hands. "Nothing you say will help the situation right now."

We sat outside in silence as the doctors operated on Lisa. An hour later, Doctor Im came out with his mask still on.

"Is she okay?" I rushed up to him.

He let out a deep sigh as he took out his gloves. "She is fighting for her life. We are doing everything that we can, but right now she really needs blood donors. She lost a large amount of blood so we need to get someone with a blood type O as soon as possible. but any blood type will do and we'll exchange it to the blood bank atleast"

Kai quickly got up from his seat. "I'm a type O. I can donate as much as you need."

"If you donate as much as she needs, you will be the one needing donors next. We need as much as two donors," Doctor Im shook his head. He glanced at Kai from head to toe and asked, "If you don't mind me asking, when was the last time you got a tattoo?"

Kai looked at him hand and swallowed. "Um, a month ago."

"That doesn't make you qualified to donate. I'm very sorry," Doctor Im sighs. "Miss Kim, I will give you at least until tomorrow morning to find two donors. Let me know if you can't find any, then we can use the blood bank as our last resort."

"When can we see her?" I ask.

"We are almost done with the operation," Doctor Im says. "The left side of her head had a terrible collision, which triggers the previous damage she already has resulting a crack in her skull. It's a good thing her brain wasn't damaged or she would have been dead on arrival. We are doing the best that we can, Ms Kim. I will get back to you soon."

I wanted to say thank you or hug him to tell him to do everything he can, but nothing came out of my mouth. I just felt like my entire world was crashing in front of me and I couldn't even do anything about it.

When he went back inside the emergency room, I sank back into my seat feeling completely lifeless. During the past hour, I have sent mass text messages to my family and her family. Her aunt and cousin were both stuck in traffic, but they were on their way. Rosé and Jisoo were supposed to be here any minute now.

"I was really going to donate if they would have let me..." Kai spoke up.

I look up at him and didn't say anything.

"Look, I know you probably hate me right now," Kai whispers, kneeling down in front of me. His shaky hands held on tight to mine. "Just tell me if you need anything. I will do anything for you right now."

"All that matters to me at this point is Lisa," I mumble in between short sobs. "I don't hate you, but let me know if you can go back in time and prevent the accident from happening and then maybe I won't need anything else."

"I wish I could..." Kai mumurs. When I looked at him, there were already tears in his eyes.

"I need some air," I blankly say as I let go of his hands. I stood up and walked out to the lobby. He didn't follow me. He just paced back and forth outside the room.

I looked up the dark skies and closed my eyes to pray.

"I know I don't always pray to You..." I whispered. "And I'm sorry for that. But right now I need You so much. Please... I'm begging You... let her live. She has so much to live for. She can't go so soon. I will do anything. I will give my own life, just please give her one more chance... please..."

A tear rolled down my cheek and dropped to the ground. It's almost as if memories with Lisa flashed back in my head during that second. I wasn't ready for our adventure to end just yet. I knew this was only the beginning.

When I was about to step out walk back inside, I saw two police cars park in front of the hospital. They started asking the guards outside about the accident that happened to us.

At this point, it didn't matter if I was using my heart or my brain, but I knew I had to go back inside and so I did. I ran to the hallway where Kai was waiting and pulled him to one corner.

"You need to get out of here," I tell him in between deep breaths.

"What?" he frowns.

"Go," I insisted. "Just leave for New York as soon as possible. The police are here. I know they're trying to dig up on the case and find out what caused this. They're going to take you."

"Jennie..."

"Kai, please. Don't make this any harder for me," I began to cry. "Just please go. I don't think I can bear seeing you in cuffs and being forced into a police car... so do this for me. You said you'll do anything, right?"

"I know, b-but..." he stuttered, running his hands through his hair in panic. "I can't just leave you here."

I placed my hands on his shoulders and looked him in the eye. "I'll be fine here. Seulgi is on her way and so is Lisa's family. Run away, Kai. please..."

"If she doesn't make it, I won't be able to forgive myself knowing that I escaped from my responsibility," Kai shook his head. "I can't do this to you, Jennie."

"Please don't say that," I start sobbing harder. "Lisa will make it. She's strong and I know that she's fighting. But seeing you get into this much trouble will just make everything harder for me and it will definitely not fix anything. Kai, I'm begging you. Just go."

All of a sudden, I started to hear the sound of heavy footsteps and loud voices.

"Go, please just go," I cried.

Kai hesitantly looks around him. He leans forward and plants a kiss on my forehead. "I love you, Jennie. And I'm really, really sorry for everything."

"i love you too" I sniffed while quickly leaning my head on his shoulder. "Maybe not the same way as I did before, but you will always mean something to me. Now go home to the girl who genuinely loves you and deserves all the love that you can give. Do this for the both of us and for Lisa too."

Kai wraps his arms around me and gives me a quick hug. "Thank you," he whispers one last time and with that, he runs out the back door of the hospital.

Just a few seconds after Kai disappeared; Seulgi and Irene came running towards didn't take long before the police followed right behind.

"Jennie,," Irene gasps the moment she sees me sitting on the floor.

"Unnie, I can't lose her," I cry, collapsing into her arms as I burst into loud sobs. "I can't lose her, unnie, please help me, please..."

* * *

"Does it hurt?" I quietly asked Rosé as she lay flat on her back on the hospital bed. Lisa's aunt had just finished donating blood for Lisa, and now it was Rosé's turn. Lisa's aunt blood type is O but Minnie can't donate for some reason,so we decided to have Rosé instead even if her bt is B.

"A bit," she closes her eyes. She was one who has fairer skin I've ever met, but now due to the loss of blood, she got even paler.

"Thank you for doing this for Lisa," I whisper. "I know you're not exactly a fan of needles..."

"I'm not," she nods. "I'm not a fan of bullets either, but I'll take one for you. Doing this for her feels like I'm saving you guys."

I bit my trembling lip as a tear rolled down my cheek. "You're the most amazing friend anyone could ever have... Thank you."

Rosé smiles as she reaches out for my arm. "Words can't really explain how much I believe in you and Lisa. She grown on me. This is by far the greatest love story I've ever witnessed."

"It's quite awesome, isn't it?" I force a smile. "How are you and Jisoo?"

It was three in the morning and none of us have had any sleep yet. Rosé forced Jisoo to go head home a few hours ago to sleep. She ended up agreeing, promising us that she will just bring home cooked breakfast in the morning and left with Seulgi and Irene.

"I kissed her," she answers, her eyes widening as she says the words.

"I know. I saw."

"You did?"

"I was literally a few feet away from you guys."

Just an hour before the sun rose, they performed the blood transfusion on Lisa, making all of us anxiously wait in the guest suite. Jisoo arrived with breakfast packs that she prepared before leaving.

"Thank you so much," I smile at her, even if I didn't have the appetite to eat at all. She sat beside Rosé and give a faint smile.

"It's the least I could do," she says while giving me a quick yet comforting hug.

We all ate in silence, nervously picking at our food. None of us said a word, and even if we tried, we felt like we would just end up crying.

After breakfast, Doctor im came in the room to talk to us. He said that Lisa was currently in a coma, but ready for visitation. Mel talked to her in allowing me and Rosé to sleep with them in the room with Lisa, even if we weren't family. She was very kind about it and didn't even think twice. I knew she would be Lisa's second mother when i met her at Thailand on Christmas day.

When I walked in the room, Minnie got up from her seat and greeted me with a tight hug. Her voice was hoarse and weak. "She needs you right now, Jennie," she whispers.

I swallow the lump in my throat. Seeing Lisa in this hospital bed with all of those tubes in her wasn't easy. I never pictured her in this situation. This wasn't supposed to be her ending, not unless I was in the same bed as she was, experiencing the exact same thing.

I sat on the seat next to her bed and held her hand. At this point, I couldn't even think of anything else to do but cry.

"Hi, Lisa..." I murmur. "Please hang in there, okay? A lot of people are waiting for you to wake up, but you should get all the rest you need. Just make sure you don't sleep forever, okay? You've already passed this before, you can do it again"

Most of her hair were cut off and shaved in order to perform the operation.

Her head was now wrapped in a white cloth to cover her wound. She was almost unrecognizable at first glance. But despite her current situation, I still couldn't help but admire her angelic face underneath the oxygen mask.

I leaned my head against the end of the bed and closed my eyes, my arm lightly wrapped around her body. "It's time to go back to how things were," I whispered into her ear.

***

I opened my eyes and noticed a familiar setting. Everywhere I looked, there were huge, fluffy clouds in different shapes and sizes. Heart shaped clouds, round ones, animal ones - you name it.

"I know you're here," I speak up as I looked around.

"Hey there!" I felt Lisa's arms wrap around my waist from behind. "I thought you'd never show."

I turned around and gave her a tight hug while bursting into sobs. "Tell me everything is just part of this dream. You're not really lying on that hospital bed, right? You're perfectly fine. When I wake up from this dream, we'll be onto our next adventure. Do you want to go back to Paris? How about Italy? How about somewhere in Asia?"

"Woah, hold on," Lisa laughs. "Why not enjoy this little moment first?"

"You're not really answering my questions," I swallow nervously. "You're okay, right?"

"I feel perfectly fine," she smiles. "I like it here."

My eyes roamed around the majestic place that felt like heaven.

"You can't like it here!" I wailed. "You can't stay here for long, Lisa, at least not yet. Not until you're really old with arthritis and all that."

"But then that's a loooooongg time from now," Lisa rolls her eyes. "I mean, look at this place! We're literally floating on the clouds! I bet you can't think of any other adventure that can top this."

"Yes, but you have to be dead in order to stay here!!" I angrily replied. I wanted to yell at her for even liking this place. Of course heaven was beyond lovely, but this wasn't her place - at least not yet.

Lisa sighs while taking my hand in her. "I'd like to think of it as exploring different sides of the universe," she stops and tilts her head to the side. "Wait, is heaven part of the universe or is it like, right above?"

"I don't know," I slouch my shoulders as she drags me along in the air with her. "I don't even know how to fly, you're just pulling me with you."

"Just think of happy thoughts and you'll float right up," she winks.

I open my mouth to say something, but she interrupts me with a kiss. "No, I'm not Peter Pan," she murmurs while smirking.

She took me in her arms and pulled me closer. "Hold on tight."

The next thing I knew, we were flying through each cloud. I could literally feel the softness graze against my cheeks each time. We were flying around the globe - again.

I couldn't help but scream even if I knew this was all a dream.

I gripped her body tight, forcing her to stay in one place so we could talk.

"Are you in pain?" I randomly blurt out.

"What do you mean?" she asks.

"You're in a coma again. You know that, right?" I tell her. "So are you just floating around now while waiting for your body to be okay? Because you will be okay. I'm telling you this. You'll be fine."

"It's horrible down there," she sighs. "I mean, not with you and all. Like it really hurts, physically. I'm tired, Jennie."

I shook my head quickly and held her hand tight. "No. Lisa, please. You can't give up just yet. How about me? Your family? We're all waiting for you to wake up."

"I know," she simply nods.

"Aren't you going to fight?"

"I'm trying."

"It doesn't seem like you are because you're clearly having the time of your life here," I say, feeling the tears brim in the corner of my eyes again.

Lisa plops down on the cloud and crosses her legs. "Well, there's not much I can do to control the situation, can I? I just have to wait, like everyone else. I just want to stay here and have a great time with you while waiting."

"How long do we have to wait?" I impatiently ask, sitting right next to her.

"Not for long. I can feel it."

"Is it a good feeling?"

"I don't know," she says, looking down beneath her. "I don't know what's going to happen."

I hold her chin and tilt her face towards me. "Lisa, I need you to promise me something."

She doesn't say anything, so I went on.

"Promise me that you will do whatever it takes to fight and come back to us," I softly cry. "We still need you. Our story can't end here. It's too soon. We have a lot of plans, remember?"

She looks at me, and smiles. "I know I still have a lot to live for. I have you. I have my family. That's actually enough reason for me to stay."

"I know," I nod quickly. "That's why you should. I truly believe that the decision is yours and you won't let us down. Your body can't force to kill a soul who strives to live."

"Jennie, remember what you said before?" Lisa looks up at the rest of the clouds that were above her. "You said that you wish you could just sleep forever, if it meant being with me."

"I said that," I sigh. "Only because I wasn't with you in real life. But Lisa, I have you now. I don't want to keep dreaming."

"But what if that's how it's meant to be?" her eyes sparkle. "What if we were meant to be together in our dreams - a place where we can make anything possible? We said that we were going to show each other what dreams were made of. What if this is it?"

"I don't want to live like this!" I cry. "I might as well die so I don't have to wake up to the reality where you don't exist. Don't you understand how hard this is for me?"

"Don't you understand how hard it is for me as well?" she retorts. "I'm literally floating on air, waiting for my body to get better. I'm just as lost as you are, maybe even worse. It's not fun to lie down there with all those stupid tubes connected to my body. It feels weird and it hurts terribly. I can't even last a second without wanting to die because my head is literally killing me. It kills me even more when I hear my aunt and Rosé talk in the room and cry. It's harder when you're there, because I don't want you to ever cry. I don't want to make you cry but there I am in that stupid hospital bed, making you cry."

"That's exactly why I'm begging you to fight," I began to sob. "So you wouldn't have to go through all of this any longer. So we wouldn't have to cry anymore."

"I'm trying, but I'm not that strong anymore!" she cries out loud. Her face starts to turn red in frustration. "Believe me when I say that I will do anything to be with you again. Anything."

"You're confusing me. First you say that you want to live in your dreams with me, and now you're saying you will do anything to be with me again. What do you really want?"

"I don't care where I am. That's the point," she explains. "It doesn't matter whether I'm on earth, or heaven or in hell. As long as I'm with you."

"Then I would have to die too if that were the case," I shrug.

"No. You're not dying. That's what our dreams are for. You don't have to die for us to be together."

"This is confusing me," I bury my face in my hands. "I don't even know what you're talking about anymore."

"You're just dreaming," she sighs. "It's okay. You'll probably wake up soon."

"When I wake up, I want you to be fine," I insist. "I want you to be alive and breathing and fighting."

"Jennie, listen to me," she looks me straight in the eye while gripping both of my arms with her hands. "I need to tell you something important and I want you to listen, not only with your heart but also your mind."

I wanted to tell her to shut up with all the talking and just get her senses back, but I just nodded weakly.

"I want you to be happy with yourself," she says. "I want you to learn to be whole without having to depend on anyone. The moment you realize that, you can make anything happen. Real happiness won't ever be found in anyone or anything but yourself. You have to stop depending on other people, not even me."

"But I want to be with you," I frown. "You think I'm going to be happy without you? Do you truly believe that?"

"You're not even listening. I'm trying to make a point here," she sighs.

"Well, I am not liking the point that you are trying to make!"

"I don't care if you don't like it but you have to promise me that! Do it for me, please Jennie," she begs. "Please? That is all I'm asking for right now. I want you to believe deep inside that you will be happy no matter what. Whether we end up getting married with ten children or whether you end up alone in your apartment with five dogs - not that I want to leave you alone, but do you get what I'm saying? Love yourself before anyone else. Do what you want to do. Eat that damn pizza even if they will go to your thighs, wear sweats to the mall like nobody's looking, sing out loud in the cab on your way to work - live your life. Live it for yourself. Try to find genuine happiness in you, because you will if you try."

"You're very stubborn, you know that?" I sniff, looking away from her gaze.

"Not as stubborn as you are," she smiles. "Now will you make that promise? You're not going to let me down, are you?

I cross my arms and huff. "This is so unfair, Lisa."

She raises and eyebrow and presses her lips together.

"Okay. Fine. Damn it," I sigh. "I promise."

"I love you," she grins while pulling me in for a kiss.

I press my lips harder against her, feeling her warmth. "I love you too, Lisa."

"This is a pretty splendid date, isn't it?" she chuckles.

"It is," I mumble. "But I think it's my turn to ask you to promise me something."

"I already know what you're going to say," she says with a teasing grin. "You've been saying it this whole time."

"What do you expect me to say then?" I wail. "You would have said the same thing if the roles were reversed."

Lisa takes a deep breath, pulling me close to her chest. "Just look at it this way. I told you that you were going to find me soon, remember?"

"Yeah?"

"Jennie," she smiles. "You already found me."

**

The sound of the door closing made me jolt up in my seat. I opened my eyes and realized I was back in the hospital room. I quickly glance at Lisa who was still unconscious.

"Hey there," Minnie says, sitting on the couch next to me. "Were you able to sleep well?"

"Just a bit," I nod while scratching my eyes. "How about you?"

"Not even a wink," she sighs. "It's hard to sleep knowing that my little cousin has to go through all of this. If only I could take her place, you know?"

"I know," I nod. "I dreamt about her just now."

"Really?" Minnie sits up straight. "What happened?"

"I was convincing her to fight," I blink back tears. "It was a very confusing conversation. She told me she was in pain and that she was having a hard time."

Minnie's hands tremble as she begins to cry softly. "I can tell that she is, but I don't want her to go. Even if I know that it will make things easier for her. Does that make me a bad person?"

"Hey," I whisper, sitting next to her on the coach. "It's okay to feel that way. We all want her to stay with us."

"She's a strong girl" Minnie sobs. "I know she can fight more. It hasn't been a day. Maybe she still has it in her."

"I hope so," I agree. "She also told me that she hates seeing us cry. If only I could stop my tears, I would. Just for her. But I just... I can't take all of this. I don't like seeing her that way."

"No one does," Minnie wipes her face dry with her shirt.

All of a sudden, the nurse who was sitting on the opposite side of the bed quickly stood up. When I glanced at Lisa, her entire body was shaking.

"I'm calling Doctor Im" she says while running out of the room.

"What's happening??" Rosé cries.

I rush to Lisa's bedside, quickly taking her hand in mine. "Lisa? Baby?"

The sound of her heartbeat in the monitor started to get louder, making me freeze in my position. The tears were already flowing nonstop.

"Lisa, you're going to make it, right?" I sobbed. "Lisa, listen to me. It's not too late to fight. Please... please don't leave me!"

The room was starting to be filled with chaos. The sound of the doctor and nurses rushing inside the room, mixed with loud sobs coming from Rosé who rushed back inside after getting Lisa's Aunt. Mel was already kneeling at the end of Lisa's bed, unable to hold back the tears.

In the midst of it all, I managed to look straight at Lisa's face. I saw it with my very own eyes. Her eyelids flutters opened halfway.

Her gaze was on mine. Her fingers twitched while I was holding her hand.

And then I heard the sound that I've been dreading to hear.

The only sound that pierced through everything was the sound that came from the monitor.

It was a flat line.