Chapter Text
The lights were the first thing Kim Dokja noticed—the slight crack in the curtains letting sunlight seep in. His fingers twitched faintly, the pulse oximeter weighing his hand down.
Then he noticed—not the white walls, not the sterile scent in the air, not even the IV needle prickling his vein—but two figures, blurred at the edges of his vision.
The second thing he noticed was the pressure around his hand. Warm. Low. Anchoring.
His eyes fluttered open, darting from side to side as he tried to process what surrounded him.
Then his vision finally focused on a face.
A face he knew better than anything—etched into his mind, seen through countless incarnations and battles.
Yoo Joonghyuk.
His hair was slightly tousled, like he’d run his fingers through it one too many times. He was wearing a simple black T-shirt, staring straight at him. His expression looked… worried? Relieved? Happy?
“Yoo… Joonghyuk?”
Kim Dokja breathed the name out. It sounded more like a joke than a name. It couldn’t be him. Could it?
Thousands of scenarios and stories rushed through his mind. There was only one logical explanation.
He scoffed—a dry, rasping sound. “I’m dead, aren’t I?” He closed his eyes again.
A chuckle came from the other side.
“You’re not. You’re still alive.”
Kim Dokja’s head lolled to the left as he squinted, trying to make out the face.
Han Sooyoung stood there, looking slightly older, her hair longer than he remembered. She wore a hoodie, a familiar smirk playing on her lips.
He froze.
Yoo Joonghyuk rolled his eyes and let out a long-suffering sigh, finally letting go of Kim Dokja’s hand. He hadn’t even realized Joonghyuk had been holding it.
“You woke up too early,” he said. It sounded like a joke—dry, like everything else he said.
How long had it been?
More importantly—characters.
Characters from a novel he’d been reading since he was fifteen were standing beside his hospital bed, the only “people” there to witness him waking up.
The fragments aligned into a horrifying, almost impossible picture.
Kim Dokja slowly lifted a finger and pointed at Han Sooyoung.
“…Han Sooyoung. Yoo Joonghyuk. Sooyoung and Joonghyuk?”
Realization hit him like a punch.
“What the hell?” he muttered.
Han Sooyoung sighed. “What do you mean, what the hell? You wake up and that’s the first thing you say?” She half-laughed.
At the sound of their voices, a doctor peeked into the room.
“Ah, you’re awake now. My name is Dr. Jung Ji-ho. You’re in the hospital. You’ve been in a coma for two years.” He stepped closer. “Can you squeeze my hand right now?”
Kim Dokja stared at the doctor’s outstretched hand.
It felt ridiculous. After all the scenarios he’d survived, all the worlds he’d watched collapse—this was what he was being asked to do.
Squeeze.
His hand felt weak. Numb.
The doctor let out a quiet breath of relief. “Good. That’s good. Can you do it again?”
Kim Dokja hesitated before squeezing again, the pressure weaker than before.
"That's good Mr.kim try not to strain yourself, and are they your family?" The doctor said referring to han sooyoung and yoo joonghyuk
Kim dokja froze for a moment "family"?
"Are they real?" Kim dokja said looking confused, han sooyoung jaw dropped the fuck is he saying? "..Yes?" The doctor replied he seemed to be more concerned now his body turning back to them
Han sooyoung let out a chuckle "he's just confused yes we are his family" yoo joonghyuk nodded in agreement.
The doctor chuckled "alright thats normal he might be confused, distorted or have derealization after a coma, so if you need anything just press the call button right there" He walked out of the room letting the silence fill the air
Yoo joong hyuk spoke first
"Your weaker than I expected"
"Not even a welcome back?" Kim dokja scoffedYoo Joonghyuk didn’t respond immediately.
His gaze lingered on Kim Dokja’s hand—the IV taped down, the faint tremor still running through his fingers. When he finally spoke, his voice was flat.
“You didn’t go anywhere.”
Kim Dokja blinked. “…What?”
“You just stopped moving,” Yoo Joonghyuk said. “That’s all.”
Han Sooyoung frowned. “Wow. That’s the least comforting way you could’ve phrased that.”
“I’m not here to comfort him.”
Kim Dokja let out a weak breath that might’ve been a laugh. “Figures.”
Kim Dokja swallowed. His throat burned. “ you’re… real?”
Yoo Joonghyuk hesitated for a moment.
“We’ve been real,” he said. “You’re the one who wasn’t waking up.”
That one landed.
Kim Dokja turned his head slightly, meeting Yoo Joonghyuk’s eyes again. Up close, the man looked tired. Not battle-worn—just exhausted in a way no scenario could explain.
“…Did I keep you waiting?” Kim Dokja asked.
Yoo Joonghyuk didn’t answer.
Instead, he reached out again—hesitated—then placed his hand back over Kim Dokja’s.
“Yes.”