"C- can you show me something??"
Minho and I exchange a look before we both get up and walk toward the bathroom. I open the door fully and see Squirrely staring at the tooth-brush again.
"You said you use this to clean your teeth, than how do I-" He turns his head and the moment his eyes land on Minho he jumps up into the air.
"Y- you. Don't touch me!!" He holds the toothbrush in front of our noses like it's a sword that can protect him. I make a step forward in between him and Minho and slowly reach for the toothbrush.
"He won't hurt you" Squirrely looks at me and back at Minho a few times. His body is still tensed and he doesn't let of the toothbrush even thought I am gently holding the tip.
Suddenly Minho pushes pass me, which causes Squirrely to jump up and hide behind me keeping me between him and Minho. Minho walks in front of the sink, grabs his toothbrush and puts on toothpaste.
"Wha- what are you doing??" He finally turns around and looks at me before turning to face Squirrely.
"You were about to ask how to use this right??" He holds the toothbrush up. Squirrely gives me a look as well before turning back to Minho. He holds on the toothbrush a bit lighter before relaxing his body again.
Minho definitely has a quick and fearless way of approaching Squirrely even thought he is still scared of him. I know he's not a professional or has experience but I still trust him with this. He seems like he knows how far he can go and how much impact he can have. I'm just curious how he'll use that.
"I-" Squirrely tries to speak but Minho stops him fast by snatching the toothbrush out off his hand. He puts a bit of toothpaste on it and hands it back to Squirrely.
"Come here" He pulls Squirrely in front of the mirror and puts his toothbrush into his mouth. Squirrely slowly and carefully makes his way next to the older.
"Make circles on your teeth so the dirt from them is brushed off" Squirrely looks at the toothbrush once again before puting it inside his mouth. I lean on the wall watching him awkwardly turning the toothbrush inside his mouth. He seems confused about what exactly he is doing but he still watches Minho in the mirror and tries to copy his movements.
Is this how a mom feels when her child is brushing their teeth on their own for the first time?? I know me comparing this feeling to a mother is quite stupid but watching this scene kinda worms up my heart. The way the bubbles start to form around his lips and the foam starts to run down his chin reminds me of the way my sister used to brush her teeth.
The smile she had every time we stood in the bathroom brushing our teeth. Than I would crack a joke out of nowhere and she would start to laugh. Since she had her syndrome and couldn't really laugh while brushing her teeth the foam would always run down her chin.
I wonder what is his smile like. Does he show his teeth when he smiles?? Do his cheeks pop out?? Do his eyes squeeze together?? I wonder.
I have other things to worry about thought. It's almost 3am and I truly hoped he would have been asleep at this time. How do I convince him to take the drug that he hates so much??
--
After their little lesson of hygiene I took a shower and right after, we sat Squirrely down on the couch in the living room. The vibe is really heavy I have to admit. The fear and confusion are still inside his eyes like always. From the moment I stepped into his hospital room way untill now.
He is looking at the cloths he is wearing like they came from space. I wish I could read minds, that way I would be able to know why he jumped through the window before. What he though when he took a shower on his own. What was on his mind while brushing his teeth. And what is he thinking now while looking at his clothes.
I know those are all small things, but he did them for the first time or after a long time. What was he thinking about, since there aren't many memories that are probably worth thinking of.
"How much do you remember??" I ask out of curiosity. He seems like the question caught him off guard. He is looking down at his socks while trying to speak. Untill now he always needed a second to collect the courage to speak. I noticed it since every sentence that comes out of his mouth is spoken slowly and quietly.
"I- I actually don't remember a lot of things. The things we did in the bathroom seemed familiar... but I don't really remember doing them." This is probably a side effect of using the drug for years. His memories will probably come back as he recovers. Some may won't, some definitely will but I'm not sure if that is a good or a bad thing.
"Don't worry. You'll remember. But now." I pull out the bag Seungmin gave me and place it on my lap. The way Squirrely already slowly gets ready to stand up tells me this is not gonna be that easy.
"No. You are not injecting that into my veins" For the first time his voice sounds determined and clear. Even thought it's still like a broken string, I can feel how he's ready to throw hands if I make a single movement.
"You have to" He gets up from the couch and already looks for a way to escape the situation. Minho is quick to act as he stands up and blocks Squirrely's way.
"We don't know how your body will react if you stop taking them right away. You need to take them." He looks at me with clear disgust written all over his face.
"I don't care. I'm not taking them" He slowly starts wo walk back trying to avoid Minho. "Stay away from me"
"You can die if you don't take them." I place the bag on the armchair that I was sitting on seconds ago. "You need to take it."
"You are no different. You brought me here just to hide me didn't you. It's another building I'm locked in isn't it." Minho slowly approaches him while he is just stepping backwards faster and faster.
"Do I look like a babysitter to you??" Minho says and holds his hands up. Squirrely just looks at him, his eyes a lot sharper now.
I can see his sloppy steps though. His energy is gone already and he's barely keeping his eyes opened at this point. He is going to be done soon.
"We just want to help you Jisung and we can only do th-" Minho gets cut off by a question that surprises all three of us.
"Ji- Jisung??" No way. He doesn't remember his own name.... He really doesn't... remember his name. My energy suddenly drops. I didn't expect this. A second later Squirrely is just staring in the empty space in front of him.
He lowers his head with his face out off my sight. Suddenly he slowly turns around showing both me and Minho his back. He brings his hands up to his head and squeezes his elbows together.
"Jisung..." the small murmur can be head come out off his lips as his knees go week under his own weight. What is going on?? What is happening?? I'm confused as I am still trying to process the fact his memory is not just messed up but gone to total shit.
"He.. He.. Stop it." the nonsense that come out of his mouth are spoken with a heavy breath. And 2 seconds later he just drops on the ground.
Minho rushes over and holds his head up as his fingers check for a pulse.
"His pulse is fast. Maybe to fast." I take the bag and make my way to the boy on the ground.
"His body wants the drug. And... Whatever that was a moment ago it might have caused one of his memories to return which possible lead to a panic attack." I look at his face that is calm and shiny from the few drops of sweat, that I didn't even notice up untill now.
"Prepare his hand" I say to Minho and open up the bag. I prepare three different injections of each substance. This time I can measure less of it since last time we were kinda in a rush. It would be a good idea to start getting him off the drug as fast as possible without loosing anytime. Something tells me the president is not really sweating that much at the moment.
I slowly inject everything inside and Minho lays him down on the couch.
"You could use some sleep you know" He says as he looks me up and down.
"I would use some food right now" I say and turn around to walk toward the kitchen. We haven't eaten in a looooong time.
I hear Minho throw a blanket over Squirrely and not long after I leave, he cames after me. With the lights switched in the livingroom Squirrely can finally take a good sleep and this time I'm not leaving him alone even for 5 seconds. If he opens his eyes or moves by a centimeter I will know and be there before he runs out the door or through the window like a wild Squirrel.
I open the drawer and the only thing I see it's ramen. I really can't eat ramen right now, not again. I take some simple ingredients out off the fridge and bread. I think a sandwich will be a good diner.... breakfast?? Doesn't mater anyway.
"Wow damn. I didn't know my grandma knew a thing about alcohol." I turn my attention to Minho who is looking inside a huge glass door drawer. I walk closer and oh my damn god. This woman sure knew how to drink.
From wine to whiskey to tequila and soju. She has a bottle of everything.
"Damn. Was your grandma a world championship in collecting bottles. Look at this one is from 1978" I point toward the nicely wrapped wine.
We absorb the different kinds of alcohol for a while before remembering that we were hungry just 10 minutes ago. Which makes me remember Squirrely collapsed before eating. I left the guy without food again.
In that moment a crazy idea comes to my mind. What if we feed him while he is asleep?? I know it's possible but I have never tried it.
I tell Minho my idea and he can't really decline since Squirrely hasn't eaten ever since we came here. And me and Minho have been feeding each other pretty well which makes me feel embarrassed of myself.
We cook a simple soup, one that will easily go down his throat and won't choke him. It might not be much but is all we can do right now. Minho tries it if it's edible and only after he confirms it we make our way back to the livingroom.
Minho sits on the couch placing Squirrely's head into his lap slightly supporting it with his hands. And I take the first spoon toward Squirrely's lips. I place the spoon on his lips and slowly tilt it so the liquid enters his mouth.
I go slowly and it seems like the soup is running down his throat smoothly. Me and Minho exchange a look of satisfaction before I continue feeding him. Of course this takes quite a while, almost an hour actually and both of us can't even feel our hands as I give Squirrely the last spoon of soup.
I don't care how long this took because the feeling when we finish is one of the best things I have felt in a while. A smile aspires on my face as Minho places a pillow under Squirrely's head and finally gets up to stretch his legs.
I also stand up and a small smile forms on my lips. I'm not letting him die out of hunger that's for sure.
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