Amalia's POV
We drove to the hospital in relative silence, aside from the quiet mumble of the radio and other cars driving by outside. We introduced ourselves, and that was about it. I thought it would bother me, especially with someone I'd never met, but it barely did; perhaps because I couldn't exactly consider Taemin a stranger given how much I knew about him thanks to Riley.
After about ten minutes or so, we pulled up outside the hospital and slid into a free space in a shaded corner of the parking lot. I fiddled with my seatbelt as Tae searched around in the glove box and pulled out a black baseball cap, putting it on before hopping out of the car and coming over to help me. The drive had helped me feel a little better on my feet so I followed behind him to reception and allowed him to check me in, staying quiet in the waiting room until I was finally called to be examined.
The doctor who tended to me ordered a CT scan then sat me in a room, pulling out a torch and asking me to follow the light with my eyes. Wanting to get home, I obliged, taking a sip of the water I was given once he was finished.
Tae, who had been standing at the end of the bed with his hands stuffed in his jeans pockets, slowly looked up. "So... is she okay?"
"Well, the CT scan came back normal and I can't see any sign of any major damage..." The doctor turned away from him to face me and smiled. "So yes, you'll be fine. Just make sure you rest, and take it easy for a day or two."
Tae let out a small sigh of relief, likely because there'd be no risk of a lawsuit or anything serious. I was just happy there wouldn't be any obvious injury I'd need to explain to my parents, and more so that after such a mess of a night, I was finally able to go home. All I could hope was I'd return to some semblance of normality.
My eyes wandered around the room, flicking up to the clock to check the time as the doctor pulled Tae to the side, asking in a hushed voice, "What happened, Tae? One second you're performing on stage, the next you're putting a girl in hospital."
"It was an accident, alright? I just opened the door and she was there."
I quirked an eyebrow. "Hold up... you guys know each other?"
They both turned to me, seemingly surprised I'd managed to hear them despite the fact they were in the same room. Neither one responded for a moment, then Tae chuckled and nodded.
"Yeah. You can't tell?" He wrapped an arm around the doctor's shoulders and squeezed him, receiving an eye roll in return. "He's my older brother."
I glanced down, my eyes landing on the badge attached to the guy's coat which read, 'Dr. Seong'. Looking at them both side by side, I was surprised I hadn't guessed they were related sooner given the similarities between them.
"I'm Ho-Jin. I apologise on behalf of my brother — he has a habit of giving people headaches."
Tae's arms fell to his sides as he narrowed his eyes at his brother who barely acknowledged him, slipping his hands into the pockets of his coat. It was difficult to tell if it was just brotherly teasing or genuine bad blood, but I didn't really care either way; their family issues were not my problem.
"Right... am I free to go now?"
"Yes, but you need to keep an ice pack on your head for the next couple of hours to help reduce the swelling. I'll be right back."
I nodded and watched as he left the room, leaving Taemin and me in silence once again. Even with my attention on the ground I could tell he was looking at me, but I refused to confront it until his phone went off and he began hurriedly responding to a text.
"Sorry, I'm not keeping you, am I?" The sarcasm was practically oozing in my tone, the night having worn me down a little too much by that point.
"No, that was just Elijah." My clueless expression prompted him to tell me more. "He's like my wing-man. Best friends... since we were born, really. Both our moms went to the same yoga class and fancied the instructor."
He smiled as he recalled the story, but I simply shuffled and shrugged. "Okay... didn't ask for your life story."
"Whatever." Rolling his eyes, Tae put his phone away and crossed his arms over his chest. "Once you get that ice pack, I'll take you home and then you'll never have to hear my voice again."
"If only," I scoffed.
He frowned but didn't have a chance to question me before Hojin re-entered the room, handing me the ice pack and sighing. "I don't think it's going to be that easy."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, there just so happens to be a bunch of people with cameras hanging out in the waiting room." Jin rolled his lips together, looking his brother up and down. "Pretty sure they're not here for me."
"Are you serious?" Tae took a quick peek outside of the curtains, soon stepping back in and running his hands over his face with a groan. "But how? I thought hid my car..."
"Clearly not well enough."
After a short pause, he placed a hand on Hojin's shoulder. "Jin, you've gotta help me."
"What do you expect me to do? I can't just make a huge group of people disappear."
"I don't know, just—" He was clearly in a panic, though he tried not to show it too much. "Gimme your car keys."
Jin scoffed. "What? No, why would I do that?"
"Come on, you know you'll get it back. I just need to get out of here in a car the paparazzi won't recognise." A hand reached into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a set of keys with a record keyring dangling from them. "Just for a day or two."
"...alright."