Because I'm Me
Chapter 2: Yeah It's Not Just A Nightmare
YOOKYUNG has entered the chatroom.
MC has entered the chatroom.
YOOKYUNG: MC
YOOKYUNG: - weep-
YOOKYUNG: What happened to Zen?
MC: Jae-jin and Jina brought him to the hospital
MC: Jae-jin says the MRI's normal. His sugar's a little low but
MC: Even when they corrected it, he isn't back to normal
YOOKYUNG: I hope he's ok
YOOKYUNG: I didn't really understand what happened in the other chatroom;;
YOOKYUNG: he was calling Jae-jin and Jina weird names
MC: yeah…
MC: he seemed surprised about my avatar too ;;
MC: I knew the man bun was weird
YOOKYUNG: It's cute on you oppa ^^
YOOKYUNG: I'm really worried about Zen.
Jina Han has entered the chatroom.
YOOKYUNG: Unnie!
YOOKYUNG: How's Zen?
Jina Han: He's still the same.
Jina Han: Lacking in the head department
Jina Han: but the rest of his body seems to be fine.
YOOKYUNG: that's so mean ;;
YOOKYUNG: so he's still confused?
Jina Han: He still keeps calling me names
Jina Han: like 'trust fund jerk' and 'CEO-in-line'
Jina Han: and 'Jumin Han'
MC: Yikes
YOOKYUNG: so he still thinks you're a guy?
YOOKYUNG: even when he saw you in person?
Jina Han: apparently so
Jina Han: he has been accusing me of being this Jumin Han's sister
Jina Han: I don't have any siblings that I know of
Jina Han: I'd have to ask father about that, I suppose
MC: … you don't need to do that ^^'
MC: So what else do we need to do?
Jina Han: Dr. Lim has recommended further observation
MC: But what about Hair Gel?
YOOKYUNG3: Yeah
YOOKYUNG3: That was his big break
Jina Han: No musicals.
Jina Han: At least until he gets reoriented.
YOOKYUNG3: poor Zen ;;
YOOKYUNG3: but at least you were there super fast even when it was like 3 in the morning.
YOOKYUNG3: you must really like him, Unnie
YOOKYUNG3: -blush-
MC: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Jina Han: MC, how did you do that…?
Jina Han: Regardless
Jina Han: It was Assistant Kang who told me the situation
Jina Han: I was already awake because Elliot 3rd needed to take his medicine.
Jina Han: It was not difficult for me to respond to the call.
MC: right, right
MC: so are you still in the hospital?
Jina Han: yes. Assistant Kang is watching over him at bedside.
Jae-jin Kang has entered the chatroom.
Jae-jin Kang: Ms. Han.
Jae-jin Kang: And Yoo-kyung and MC.
Jae-jin Kang: Good morning.
MC: Jae-jin! How's Zen doing?
Jae-ji n Kang: he's stable. But still confused.
Jae-jin Kang: he keeps calling me 'Jaehee' and seems to be blaming Ms. Han over his condition.
Jae-jin Kang: except that he still refers to her as 'Jumin Han'.
YOOKYUNG: That's so weird!
MC: Can a stroke really do that?
Jae-jin Kang: even if it did
Jae-jin Kang: we don't have evidence of anything wrong with his brain
Jina Han: His behaviour has always been evidence enough.
Jae-jin Kang: -sigh-
Jae-jin Kang: Anyway, Ms. Han. I came in to tell you that Dr. Lim wants to give us an update on his condition.
Jae-jin Kang: I would also like to ask permission to leave, since it's almost time for me to come to work.
Jina Han: Understood.
Jina Han: Cancel my morning meeting with the Chairman.
Jina Han: I shall watch over Zen for the meantime.
MC: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Jina Han: …
Jina Han: Somebody needs to be here in case they have to operate.
Jae-jin Kang: Understood.
Jina Han: I'll see you in a few minutes.
Jina Han has left the chatroom.
Jae-jin Kang has left the chatroom.
YOOKYUNG: I've never seen Jina so worried before.
MC: Right?
YOOKYUNG: anyways, MC, let's go visit Zen at the hospital later!
MC: Sure. After your classes
YOOKYUNG: ;; I don't wanna go~
MC: Yookyung Kim
MC: Take your classes seriously
YOOKYUNG: ugh fine
YOOKYUNG: just 'cause Zen's hospitalised
YOOKYUNG: doesn't mean u get to nag me in his place
MC: someone has to lol
YOOKYUNG: I don't see why I should bother with college
YOOKYUNG: I'm gonna be a housewife anyway
MC: I thought you wanted to take an internship under Jina?
YOOKYUNG: ehhh~
YOOKYUNG: don't'remind her of that please
YOOKYUNG: anyways I'll text you later MC
YOOKYUNG: LOLOL awaits me
MC: sure. I should sleep too.
MC: good night!
YOOKYUNG: good night Oppa!
YOOKYUNG has left the chatroom.
MC has left the chatroom.
Zen flinched as another nurse stabbed him with a needle, this time at the tip of his finger. They placed drops of his blood onto a strip and plunged this into the machine. "Your blood sugar's 124 mg/dl."
"Is that normal?"
The nurse nodded.
"So will you guys let me go home already?"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Ryu. We still need to observe you," she said bashfully, averting her gaze. "I'm… I'm sorry. It's just that… you're really good looking…" The entire time that she was in the room, her face was pink and she was trying in vain not to stare at his face for too long. Zen was used to it. In fact, it brought him relief that whatever was happening to him didn't seem to have affected his physical beauty in any way.
"That's enough, Nurse. Thank you for your help." Male Jaehee audibly sighed as he typed some things onto his phone. Peering over his broad shoulder, Zen could see that he was chatting on the messenger. He logged off discreetly before turning to face Zen. "Does anything hurt?"
"No, I'm telling you, Jaehee, I'm fine," sighed Zen. "I'm probably in the wrong dimension right now, but I'm fine. My brain is clear and I'm pretty sure I'm not insane."
The tall assistant looked at him with concerned, soft brown eyes behind clear glasses. Yes, that's the Jaehee he knew. If only this guy would turn into a girl the next second so that he could stop questioning his sanity. "I'm sorry Zen, I'm sure you're not all right. And please call me Jae-jin. I do not know who this Jaehee is."
"It's you! You're Jaehee! You've been working with that jerk Jumin Han, the director of C&R, for the past two years!" cried Zen in frustration. "We planned all those parties for the RFA, we talk everyday on the messenger... I know all about the cat projects and how you've always supported me in my musicals, and how much you like coffee! I'm right, aren't I? You're really… you're really Jaehee, aren't you?"
The male Jaehee pushed up his glasses up the bridge of his nose and turned to him. An unmistakable layer of sadness was evident in his voice when he spoke. "Most of what you've said is true, Zen. But I'm not Jaehee, and Ms. Han has always been Ms. Han for as long as I can remember."
As if on cue, the door opened, and in walked the beautiful woman from before. Her charcoal eyes fell on his red ones. For some reason his cheeks felt warm. "Assistant Kang. I'm here to relieve you of watching over Zen."
Jaehee—or Jae-jin, as he was called in this universe—bowed slightly. "Dr. Lim should be here shortly."
"It's fine. I spoke to him outside. I know about the situation."
"I see. Then, I must go."
"Thank you. See you in the afternoon." The male assistant took one last look at Zen, worry clear in his brown eyes, before leaving the hospital room.
Zen grunted in frustration. "Great. It's me and the trust fund jerk again, huh."
"Trust fund bitch." Female Jumin made her way to the seat next to Zen's bed and sat there, her back straight and her dark eyes without a hint of exhaustion in them. He felt some admiration as he looked at her. "You've called me that for the past years that you've known me, Zen. I do not understand why you should change it now."
Zen forced himself to look at her once more, looking for any signs that this cold woman could be the cold jerk that he knew from the day before. Her face was stern, but her features were small and delicate; her eyes were wider, the black irises shining like ebony; her hair was the same shade of black that it was when she was a guy, but it was very long and shiny and silky and most definitely not a wig.
Maybe I should touch it to make sure…? The image of his pale hand caressing her hair and her face tenderly suddenly flashed in his mind.
Zen mentally kicked himself in the leg for thinking that.
She crossed her arms over her chest—the movement hid the bit of her silk blouse that was popping open over the swell of her breasts. "Still as rude as ever, I see. For how long are you going to keep gawking at me like a fool?"
"You jerk!" Just hearing her voice sprouted familiar feelings of annoyance inside his chest. "Give me a break, all right? I'm having trouble gauging reality here!"
Female Jumin tilted her head to one side in curiosity before opening that wretched mouth once more. "I've always thought that you were slightly detached from reality, Zen. It was only a matter of time before you were pushed to the deep end, yet I can't fathom what the trigger is."
Zen felt his face turning red in fury. "You're still Jumin Han, all right. Still with a stick up your butt. You didn't even give Jaehee—I mean, Jae-jin the day off even though he was working overtime for your cat project and…"
"And even though he spent all morning watching over you," said the woman. She sighed. "It's his choice to do that since he values you as a friend and as his idol. Henceforth, it is not related to work and should not affect his work in any way. It's the same as me, too."
"You're skipping work, though."
"I have more freedom to do that as a director," she said without a hint of conceit in her voice, which made Zen's blood boil all the more. "I have more obligation to watch over you, though, since I was the one who signed the consent forms as your legal guardian."
The silver-haired man raised his eyebrows. "You did? But I could have done that…"
"Of course not. You were blabbering nonsense names and acting very hostile. You obviously did not have the capacity to make any decisions."
"Still, that's—" began Zen, when the door opened once more.
A beautiful woman peered in from the doorway, her mint eyes slightly unfocused. Her shoulder-length mint green hair was neatly tied in a ponytail that she cradled over one shoulder. "This is Hyun's room, isn't it?" she said with the gentlest voice that Zen's ever heard.
"Jihye," called out Female Jumin. "You made it."
Once more, Zen kept his jaw from dropping. The woman called Jihye slowly made her way in. She carefully held a cane in one hand as she stood at the foot of his bed. "I can't believe that you're in the hospital again, Hyun… I had hoped that your motorcycle accident was the last one."
"… V?!" Zen almost fell from his bed in shock. "You… you're a girl too…?!"
Female V tilted her head in curiosity and gazed at Female Jumin, who was rolling her eyes. "I am. At least I think I am. I am a girl, aren't I, Jina?"
"Yes, for as long as I've known you," replied the businesswoman.
The mint-haired woman looked once more at Zen. "You don't seem to have any broken bones this time, thank goodness. But how are you feeling?"
Zen swallowed. "I… you're really V? Is this part of the joke?"
"Er…" Female V gave an uneasy glance at Female Jumin, who only shook her head sternly. "You seem to remember me, right, Hyun? Can you tell me about the time we first met?"
"You mean when I first met Jihyun Kim and Rika, right?" began Zen. "It was during one of my earliest musicals. Rika went backstage and gave me flowers, and you were there… you guys invited me to the RFA, but I didn't join until you—I mean, Jihyun—rescued me from that motorcycle accident…"
"Rika…?" Once more, the older women glanced at each other. "It's interesting to see that you've got most of the details right… except I don't know who this Rika woman or who Jihyun Kim is."
"What…?"
The Female Jumin looked at him with those piercing eyes once more and said, "RFA had always stood for Ryung's Fundraising Association. Well, for as long as anyone of us remember, anyway."
"Ryung…? Who the heck is that?!" stammered Zen.
"Er… he was my fiancé," answered V, in an uncharacteristically low voice. "I… I don't know if you remember, Hyun, but… he committed suicide about half a year ago…"
As she spoke, she gingerly took out her own smart phone and carefully scrolled through her photo albums, keeping the screen at a curious distance from her eyes. When she found the photo in question, she held this up to Zen's face, who once more found himself with his mouth agape.
It was a photo of all of them at the last RFA party, which was held two Christmases ago. It was exactly the photo that Zen remembered, except that instead of Jumin and V, the two women in the room were staring back at him, beautiful and sparkling in their gowns. Jaehee—or Jae-jin was there too, looking obviously tired but was all smiles in the photo. There were also two other girls in the photo, one with bleached blonde hair wearing a cocktail dress, and another one with fiery red hair with glasses and a green shirt over dress pants. Zen appeared then as he remembered, looking as gorgeous as ever, and he stood next to a tall, bright-eyed guy with short blonde hair and a big smile.
"Wha…? This is… why are Yoosung and Seven girls too…? And Rika's a guy…?"
He barely noticed Female Jumin taking the phone out of his line of sight and giving it back to Female V. The mint-haired woman did not look less worried as she set her phone aside.
"I see. I can understand now why you and Jae-jin are so worried," said Female V. She then broke out into a serene smile, the most comforting one that she could muster. "But it's good that you're here for Zen, Jina. I think that he'll be okay as long as you're here."
Zen felt the room spinning once more. Everything—the women in the room, the stories, the photo—finally convinced him that this wasn't all a prank.
"I need to lie down…" he heard himself mumble. The sounds meshed and whirred around his head, and the lights above him suddenly blurred. V's voice sounded distant in the background as she called for a nurse.
"Zen. Look at me. Deep breaths."
For a split second, he swore he heard Jumin's voice—the real Jumin Han that he knew, and not the disconcertingly beautiful woman that he met hours before. He glanced up and saw his face, his brows knitted in concern. He hated to admit it, but seeing Jumin's face so close, the pacing of his own breath keeping time with his, calmed him down considerably.
"Zen… it's time to wake up," he heard him say, his voice strangely disembodied and distant.
Eventually, as his breathing slowed and his vision returned, he saw that the familiar businessman was a businesswoman once more. Her raven eyes peered into his with full force.
"Are you okay, Zen?"
"J-jumin… I don't know what's going on," he said weakly.
The woman frowned. Zen didn't notice it before, but she was holding his hand as she tried to calm him down. She tightened its grip considerably. The same nurse from before rushed in, took his vital signs, shone a light into his pupils, and said some things to Female Jumin in a low voice.
Zen felt exhausted and laid his head back and closed his eyes. Maybe if he fell asleep, he'd find out that everything was a crazy dream. It would be something to share to the messenger, at least. He didn't care if Seven and Yoosung laughed in his face forever. He just wanted to wake up.
These were the last thoughts he had before drifting into a dreamless sleep.
A/N: I wish I could draw so I could show you all how they look like in my head