Ache
Donghae opened his eyes. Where am I? Leeteuk occupied two seats across from him, lying on his back, an opened book covering his face. Slowly pushing himself into an upright position, Donghae rubbed his eyes and yawned. His body felt stiff and cramped from falling asleep in an awkward position. He stood up and stretched out his arms and legs. Now more awake, he took a look around. There was a vending machine to his left, beside it a hot drink machine. To his right there were two glass doors; beyond them was a row of rooms, each with name tags by the door. On the ceiling hung a sign that read "EMERGENCY ROOM" with an arrow pointing to the end of the hall. Then Donghae remembered. The hospital…
The events of the previous night rushed back to him. Eunhyuk had been sick for two days straight, showing all the flu symptoms, but no signs of recovery. The worried members had decided to get him checked out at the hospital, where he was diagnosed with swine flu. After much debate and protest Leeteuk had forced the others to go home. Donghae had absolutely refused to leave and the tired leader let him be. Several hours later, both of them fell asleep on the seats in the waiting room.
Not wanting to disturb Teukie, Donghae tiptoed out and went to find Eunhyuk's room. After asking the information desk, he followed the nurse's directions until he came to the room with the tag "Lee Hyukjae" beside the door. Slowly pushing down the handle, he cautiously opened the door and stepped inside. A doctor stood by Eunhyuk's bed writing in his binder. He noticed Donghae's entrance and looked up, nodding his head respectfully. Donghae did the same.
"Doctor, how is he?"
"He'll be fine. We've taken the proper procedures and at the moment, his situation's stable. There shouldn't be any further complications. He'll just need to rest and take his medications. We'll be monitoring his condition for the next few days."
"Kahmsahamida~" Donghae bowed again. The doctor nodded and left the room.
Eunhyuk was sleeping soundly, his breathing slow and even. The machines around him beeped and whirred. Donghae sighed. Not wanting to disturb his friend, he snuck out of the room with a last glace at the sleeping figure.
The hallway was cool; nurses and doctors occasionally walked by. Pulling his hoodie tighter around him, he made his way back to the waiting room.
Some coffee sounds good right about now. He bought two cups of coffee from the machine and sat down, placing one cup on the small coffee table between him and Teukie. Slowly sipping his drink, Donghae zoned out. Suddenly, a loud -PLOP- sounded, startling him. Teukie had shifted onto his side and the book on his face had fallen onto the floor. He woke up from the noise.
"Ah…Donghae-ah…," the leader mumbled sleepily.
"Hey hyung," Hae smiled. Leeteuk sat up.
"Ohhhh~ Crampcrampcrampcramp" He stretched his legs out. Donghae handed the coffee to him.
"Here~"
"Ah, just what I needed. Thanks! ^^" Leeteuk took the warm cup. "Doctor say anything yet?"
"Yeah, he's okay. Probably has to stay here for a few days. I just went to see him."
"Mm" -sip- "That's good." Teukie stood up. "I'll go look in on him."
"It's room 305A, around the corner and down the hall."
"'Kay. See you in a bit." He walked out.
Donghae sat there, still holding the coffee. I should take a walk, he thought, and left the room.
By now, the hospital was bustling with activity. It was filled with patients, doctors, nurses, concerned family members, etc. Donghae weaved through the people, pulling his baseball cap lower over his face. I really hope no one recognizes me… Suddenly, a shout resounded through the hall.
"SUN-HEE SSI!! Please come back! SUN-HEE SSI!!
A little girl burst through the clusters of people and ran down the hallway. Her pursuers turned out to be two female nurses, one in a white uniform, the other in a blue one. Panting, they came to a stop near Donghae.
"Omoo~ What do we do?!" One worried in between breaths.
"The poor girl…anyone would be upset witnessing such a thing…" the other responded.
Donghae stepped over. "Um…excuse me…what was that about?"
The two nurses turned to the handsome stranger.
"Sun-hee ssi and her parents were involved in a car accident. She got out with minor injuries but unfortunately, her parents were both fatally injured on impact," the nurse in white explained.
"We did everything we could to save them, but it was too late. And…she was there when they…" The nurse in blue trailed off and gazed down the hallway in the direction the girl disappeared to.
Donghae's eyes opened wide. That little girl just lost both her parents…
"Do you mind if…if I try to talk to her?" he asked slowly. The nurses looked at each other for a moment. Then the one in white spoke up.
"Uh…yeah…sure. We could definitely use some help." The other nodded.
"Thank you." With that, Donghae bowed and walked towards the room he had seen the girl run into.
"Does he look familiar to you?" The white nurse whispered to her colleague.
"Yeaah…he really does…But I just can't place that face…"
After a few moments of staring, they shrugged and walked away.
Donghae found the room he was looking for. The name tag read "Lee Sun-hee." He walked in slowly. There on the big bed sat a small girl. She was huddled up, her arms wrapped around her knees. Her head was down, her hair covering her face. Hae listened for crying, but heard none. He felt his heart sink. She can't be more than five or six years old and yet she's still trying so hard to stay strong…Quietly, he walked over and sat down in the chair beside her bed.
"Anyeong~"
The girl lifted her head at the stranger's voice. He had innocent dark brown eyes and a smile that was both kind and honest. She continued to gaze at him.
"What's your name?" he asked softly.
"S-sun-hee," she said quietly.
"Ohh, Sun-hee ssi…what does it mean?"
"Umma told me it means 'happiness.'"
The kind stranger looked surprised. "Yahh…what a pretty name~" Her expression softened a bit.
"I'm Lee Donghae. It seems we have the same last names! :D"
"Dong…hae…" she whispered to herself.
"Yup, but you can call me 'oppa'!" ^^
"Donghae oppa" Sun-hee confirmed.
"So…if your name means happiness, why aren't you happy?" Donghae asked, smiling.
Sun-hee paused. "My umma and appa…can't be with my anymore…I'll never see them again…" She couldn't say anymore and gazed downward, hugging herself tighter. Donghae shifted his chair closer.
"I see…" he began. "You know, oppa knows how you feel. I lost my father too."
She looked up with eyes wide. "…Jinja?" Hae nodded.
"How?"
"Well…Appa was…" he paused. "…very sick for a long time. Then one day…he was gone."
Sun-hee's eyes were sad. "Does oppa miss him?"
Donghae hesitated. After a while, he said, "Yes…yes oppa still misses him…even after 6 years, oppa still misses him."
Sun-hee looked down at her hands. "Oppa, did you know…umma…she held my hand and told me—" The words caught in her throat.
"What did she tell you?" Donghae prompted gently.
"…She told me she was proud of me, and that…that…she loved me." At this point, Donghae could see that she was desperately trying to hold back tears. Looking down, he saw her hands clenching the sheets so tightly her knuckles were white. Having conquered the urge for the moment, she asked, "Did your Appa say that to you too?"
For a moment, Donghae was silent. "Actually…oppa was working away from home. I wanted to bring my first earning home to make my Appa proud…But when I got home, he already…" A lump formed in his throat and tears began to sting his eyes. Sniffing loudly, he changed the subject. "Anyway Sun-hee ssi, I'm sure your parents were very happy to have you there in the end."
He saw her bite her lips, trying to take deep breaths.
Reaching over slowly, he placed his hand on her head. "Sun-hee ssi~ If you hurt inside, it's okay to cry. Crying doesn't show weakness. It only shows you care. No one's strong enough to hold everything in. Not even oppa. Just let it all out. I'm here."
Hearing this, Sun-hee's emotions finally broke out. Tears cascaded down her round little face as she sobbed and choked. All the while, Donghae sat beside her, his arm around her small shaking form.
Finally, she calmed down and the tears subsided, leaving only a few hiccups and sniffles. Hae patted her head.
"How do you feel?"
He saw a hint of a smile on her. Sorrow lingered, but there was also relief. At that moment, a nurse walked in. "Sun-hee ssi needs a check-up now."
Hae nodded and glanced at his watch. 11:41am. Hyukjae should be awake now.
"Sun-hee ssi, oppa has to go see someone now. I'll be back later, okay?" She nodded, smiling a bit wider now. He felt his spirits rise. Flashing a perfect smile, he gave her head one last pat, stood up, and walked to the door. Sun-hee waved to him. Giving her a thumbs-up, he went out.
It had been a while since Donghae had discussed his father's death with anyone. Sure, many variety show MC's have asked him about it, and time and again he had to go through the painful details. But that was different. Today, he was reminded that he didn't have it as bad as it could have been. He had his mother, his brother, all his beloved fellow members, ELF… he must be grateful. He smiled to himself. But Sun-hee…who did she have? How else can I help her?
Still lost in thought, Hae entered Room 305A.
"Oh! Donghae-ah!"
Donghae blinked twice and came to. Most of the members were present, except for Kangin, Yesung, and Ryeowook who had radio shows to host.
Eunhyuk was waving to him. "Fishy? Earth to Fishyyyy~"
"Hey Eunhyukie! You're awake! How you feeling?"
"Not bad. Better (:" He peered at Hae. "What were you daydreaming about?"
"Uhhh…"
Leeteuk appeared beside him. "Where did you go?"
Donghae looked at the two. "Actually, I met this little girl Sun-hee…" And he told them about his encounter.
"Wow…" Shindong frowned.
"That's…so sad…" Hankyung said softly.
"She's so young too…" Siwon shook his head.
Kyuhyun, Sungmin, and Kibum stood side by side in silence looking troubled. Eunhyuk, the sensitive one, looked positively glum. Leader-ssi looked out the window.
"We should do something for her."
"How about getting her a gift? Some kind of momento." Heechul suggested.
"Hmm…that's a good idea!" Donghae nodded.
"Yeah!" The others agreed.
For the next two days, Donghae visited Sun-hee often. The other members took turns going with him. He even brought her to visit Eunhyuk. There was much laughter, and the pain of loss would be momentarily buried. On the fourth day of Eunhyuk's stay, the doctor informed the members, "Hyukjae-ssi has made great progress and is pretty much recovered. If he wants, he can check out tomorrow afternoon." Everyone was excited from the news. Later that day, Donghae was told by a nurse that Sun-hee would be released the following afternoon as well.
"Donghae-ssi, Sun-hee is in good condition now and an orphanage has agreed to take her in. There, she can be connected to a foster family. A representative will be picking her up."
Donghae rushed to Eunhyuk's room to share the news.
"Jinja?! She's being released the same day as me?? … Niiiiiiiiiiice~"
"That means we'll have to get her the present by then." Leeteuk pointed out.
"No problem! I got that covered." Donghae's eyes sparkled with excitement.
After visiting hours were over, Hae set off for "Lasting Memories Jewelry Store," where he and the other members had agreed on and ordered Sun-hee's gift.
"Welcome!" An elderly woman greeted him.
"Anyeonshaseyeo!" I'm here to pick up my order." He handed her the receipt.
"Ah, one moment please~" She walked to the back and returned with a small purple plastic bag; inside was a small box.
"Kahmsahamida!" Fishy picked up the bag and made his way home.
The next afternoon came quickly and the time for departure arrived. Eunhyuk and all the members decided to see off little Sun-hee first. They all stood outside the hospital entrance and waited for the orphanage representative. Donghae stood beside her, holding her hand. Soon, a middle-aged woman with a kindly face and a soft, calming voice had come to pick up the girl.
"Omo, are these the friends you made here, Sun-hee ssi?" She asked, looking at the thirteen strapping young men standing with her.
"They're not friends." Sun-hee turned to look at them. "They're family." They all laughed and nodded, smiling widely.
"I see~" The woman smiled. She walked up to them. "Thank you so much for watching over her. Please feel free to stop by anytime to visit!" She handed Hae a business card.
"Don't mention it," he answered. "And we'll definitely visit!" He winked at Sun-hee.
Releasing Hae's hand, Sun-hee walked over to the woman.
"Ah wait! One more thing!" Donghae pulled out the small plastic bag from his sweater pocket and placed it in Sun-hee's hands. "This is for you~"
Confused, she opened the bag and slowly took out the small box. She opened it. Inside was a necklace with one pink tube-like stone strung on a black leather chord; a tiny jade bead on either side. Engraved on the pendant were the characters: 순히 ("Sun-hee" = Happiness).
She looked up at Donghae, stunned. "Oppa…this…"
He knelt in front of her, picked up the necklace, and hung it around her neck.
"This is a gift from all of us. We all want you to be happy, no matter what obstacles stand in your way. You have to be strong. Your parents were proud of you. So, you have to continue making them proud, got it?"
"And remember we're all cheering for you!" Eunhyuk added.
Sun-hee laughed. "Thank you, oppas!"
With that, she took the woman's hands and followed her down the path towards a waiting car. The Suju members watched them go. Suddenly, Donghae shouted, "Sun-hee ah! HWAITING~!!"
She turned around and, smiling, gave him a thumbs-up. "You too, oppa!! Anyeongggg!!"
Hae laughed and returned the gesture. The boys kept waving until the car drove out of sight.
"She'll be okay." Leeteuk put his hand on Donghae's shoulder.
"I know." He smiled, gazing into the golden early evening sky.