Chapter 65: 63: Defending You
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"S-Shinji wins!" Inhyuk announced.
The injured teen stood shakily, the agonizing pain from his back not fading one bit.
"Shinji!" Jiyoung shouted, running at Shinji. She continued, "Are you alright? We need to get you some medical assistance, quickly! Inhyuk!"
The man in a green suit nodded and went off to find some doctors, a cream-haired teen following him.
"I-I'm fine. I'll go to the Hospital Wing myself..." he replied, his voice trembling at every word. He then took a step toward the exit, trying to ignore his throbbing back.
Jisuk quickly cut in, "Huh?!?! If you're "fine", then I'm God himself!"
"I-" Shinji tried to speak but stopped when he heard his sister say, "Don't make me slap that damn disgusting-looking injury. Now, stop f*cking acting tough and stay there, idiot."
"Acting tough?... Why would I act... when I'm already tough as hell, to begin with..." he replied with a shaky smirk before finally buckling from the pain.
...
Not long after, some people wearing white scrubs burst into the room, carrying Shinji and Lukas to a Medical Ward. The latter woke up after an hour and demanded to be released.
He left after saying the words, "I admit that you have some able fighters... however, our medical care is infinitely better than yours."
Jiyoung decided not to argue with the prideful patient and released him.
Shinji on the other hand was sound asleep for a few hours. When he finally woke up, he was immediately greeted by some visitors.
"Hey, guys..." he said, laying on his stomach, his whole torso fully wrapped with bandages.
"He's awake, everyone!" a cream-haired teen announced as he opened the door to the ward, gaining the attention of his friends.
"Finally..." a white-haired youth voiced out.
Shinji's head then perked up, saying, "Grandpa...? You're back?", making all of them but one, snicker.
"Damn you-" the youth tried to shout but he was elbowed in the stomach by Subin.
"Oh, it's just you, Jisuk. Sorry, sorry. The hair confused me." Shinji continued teasingly, making Jisuk's veins bulge in anger.
They chatted for a while until they decided to leave and let him rest. However, before leaving, Subin told Shinji, "After you get better, we need to talk. Alone."
His smile became strained when he saw that she seemed sullen - an emotion she rarely ever shows.
So... Shinji was left with his own thoughts.
'I definitely need to talk to her after this... She must have been disheartened, seeing me overpower that massive asshole.'
"Many will definitely be glum when seeing my greatness. Such is the curse of being a genius," he said jokingly to no one, showcasing arrogance that rivaled Kayden's.
His face did turn serious afterward as he sat up, feeling almost no pain (due to the administered painkillers), 'But, seriously. I'll definitely talk to her.'
After that, he recalled his battle with Lukas. He noted the mistakes he made and memorized the correct moves he performed against him. An after routine for most of the fight he's been in.
'I let my guard down after I hit that d*ck's face. A f*cking amateur's mistake. Tch. It was just so satisfying...'
He quickly calmed himself, 'But, still. I beat him. I beat someone that's on the higher side of the international ranking.', mentally giving himself a pat on the back.
'Heh, I even heated and froze his blood. I've always wanted to do that. Hell- I even controlled his body! That was the first time I controlled someone's whole body. Sure, I managed to slightly control my opponent's arm or even their leg, but never the whole body.' he thought with a satisfied smile.
[A/N: Chapter 13 throwback on him wanting to heat and freeze someone's blood.]
"Hah! I'm such a f*cking genius."
"Genius indeed." someone said, opening the door. A man in a green suit entered the room, a man in an all-black outfit following him.
"He's no genius. A reckless moron is what he is." Seongha voiced out angrily. "You-"
He was about to continue but stopped himself when he saw Shinji's state. He pinched the bridge of his nose and promptly stepped out of the ward.
"Don't mind him, that's just how he shows that he cares," Inhyuk said with a slightly taunting smile.
"I know," Shinji replied with a satisfied exhale.
Inhyuk then congratulated the teen on his win, also informing him about what happened with Lukas before he woke up.
"That's all I have to say. Don't push yourself too hard, kid." the man said, opening the door.
He paused for a second and showed a sly smile, making Shinji raise his eyebrow. As he left the room, a gorgeous woman walked in, a concerned look on her face.
"Jiyoung?"
"I heard you were awake..." she said.
A sigh of relief left her mouth when she saw that he was mostly okay. His brazen and confident face left untouched. His aura that exuded pride remained unchanged.
What changed, however, was the fact that his whole upper body was covered in bandages. Seeing this, Jiyoung's face became strained.
"I-I'm sorry..." she said, extreme guilt washing over her.
"Sorry? What are you sorry for?" Shinji asked as he patted the bed, signaling her to sit beside him.
She sat, replying, "I should have stopped you. If I did, then you wouldn't have been severely injured."
"Don't go blaming yourself for my recklessness, idiot. It was my choice to fight that annoying bastard." the raven-haired teen retorted with a warm smile, rubbing her back.
'She's too kind.' he beamed radiantly.
"But-"
Shinji released a contented sigh, facing Jiyoung, "Look, I may have done it for you, but remember that me getting hurt is not your fault. It's just the result of a mistake I did mid-battle."
She got quiet at that, and after a few seconds, a question left her mouth.
"Why did you do that for me?"
Shinji looked at her weirdly before answering, "What do you mean, "why"? I did it 'cause it's you! That Lukas bastard was disrespecting you, and practically lusted after you with his eyes."
An unpleasant feeling came across her when she remembered how the Wenzel Family had mocked South Korea, and she did nothing about it.
Seeing this, the raven-haired youth gently raised her chin, looking her in the eyes.
"Look, if it wasn't obvious yet in all those dates... I like you, Jiyoung. I like how beautiful you are, and your kindness to others. I especially like how your eyes practically light up when you see some cute animals."
He held her hand, continuing with a smile, "I would still challenge that scumbag, even if I was given a chance not to, and even if that meant that I'd get my back melted. I'd gladly pummel his really punchable face, no question, if it meant defending you."
Jiyoung was silent.
All those years after her parent's passing, a strong desire to protect her brother emerged in her. She trained endlessly, facing countless trials when she was named the head shortly after their untimely death, yet she persevered.
As time passed, the strong desire to protect her brother grew into protecting Shinhwa as a whole. But, the burden was slowly and surely becoming heavy, even for her. Jisuk was still a child. Troubling him would only make things worse for her. Inhyuk... he was there, but she knew he had his own demons to fight, she did not want to trouble him with hers.
That's why, hearing someone boldly say that they'd protect them, she couldn't stop it. Jiyoung became teary-eyed at Shinji's kind words. An indescribable feeling rose to her chest as tears rolled down her cheek.
A warm smile made it's way to Shinji's face, cusping her cheek and wiping her tear with his thumb. He pulled her closer to him, giving her a deep hug.
As Jiyoung pulled away, her eyes met with his resolved yet gentle eyes. She inched closer and closer to Shinji's face, him doing the same to hers, as they slowly closed their eyes.
And before he knew it, Shinji felt Jiyoung's soft lips press against his.
******
Yummy stones?
Damn, a second long chapter in a row... (I think this is my longest one yet :>)
Also, this is what I talked about when I said I'd make Shinji's and Jiyoung's relationship official~ IT'S THEIR FIRST KISS, BABY!!!
Thoughts? Was it cheesy?
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