It had taken some finagling with Jungkook's case worker, but eventually, they got the room number in question. Jungkook stood outside the door, eyes tracing the number outside the room to the number on the index card in his hand to verify for the hundredth time that they were identical.

"I'll be waiting right out here," his mom told him, taking a seat on a bench in the hallway. "Go on in and say what you want to say. Take as much time as you need."

Still, Jungkook hesitated. It felt like his heart had climbed his throat like a ladder and was sitting in his mouth; with each beat, he felt like throwing up.

"And, baby?" A small pause. "I think you're really brave to be doing this. Forget whatever happened with your team. I know you better than anyone, and I know that you're a good person, no matter what some other kids think and no matter what the boy in there thinks."

Those were words Jungkook had wanted to hear for a long time now, but he still felt like he didn't deserve them. Not yet, at least. "Thanks, Mom," Jungkook whispered before setting his hand on the doorknob. His eyes wandered between the index card and the room number one last time before he opened the door and went in, leaving the only person who believed in him outside.

Jungkook stopped almost immediately after entering the room. Lying in the middle of the bed was a boy, covered in blankets and attached to machines, who-

"Jungkook?"

"Taehyung?" Jungkook choked out, taking two quick steps forward before halting fast. "What are you- why-" He looked down at the index card yet again. The numbers had matched, so why-?

"Took you fucking long enough," Taehyung said cheerily, using his hands to push himself further up in his bed so he could see Jungkook better. "How's it going?"

"Why are you here?" Jungkook asked, his ears ringing. The urge to throw up had intensified.

"Um, because you hit me with your car?" Taehyung said slowly. "Ring a bell?"

Jungkook put a hand up to his forehead, rubbing at the skin. Was this real? Or some cruel joke? "You were...you were the boy in the other car?"

"Yep, that was me," Taehyung said with a small laugh. "And I texted you like four hundred million times but you never responded. Didn't even leave me on read, just on delivered. And we've been friends for how long?" Taehyung scoffed. "Asshole."

"I..." Jungkook was wholly lost. "So...you were in the other car...and you're..." Jungkook swallowed before looking down at Taehyung's bed, but his legs were buried beneath blankets.

"A little bit broken at the moment, yes," Taehyung said with a small snort. "Apparently my legs are a no-go, but I'm lucky to still have my arms and brain function. Also, I have my own wheelchair now – one of the nurses here is super hot and she takes me out on Mondays and Wednesdays for a ride – and I was kind of thinking about maybe painting some fire on the side or something because I-"

"How can you joke about this?" Jungkook interrupted, still feeling as though an explosive had gone off in his brain. The aftershock was weighing down on him heavily. "Taehyung, I- you're paralyzed because of me, I..." He locked his hands together in a firm hold, needing someone to hang onto him to keep him anchored, but the only one who could anchor him was himself. He realized rather abruptly that he hadn't even apologized yet. "Taehyung, I'm so sorry, please, you have no idea how-"

"No worries," Taehyung said before patting the bed. "Wanna hop up? Wheel of Fortune comes on in-" He paused to consult the clock. "Two minutes. Last time, I went bankrupt, but I'm feeling pretty good about today."

Jungkook just stood there, mouth hanging open with the feeling that he was in some weird alternate universe. Or a dream, maybe? Wouldn't that be a relief. "Taehyung, really, I'm sorry-"

"No hard feelings," Taehyung repeated. "Now get over here. You won't be able to see the screen from there."

Jungkook's eyes were wet. Taehyung had been one of his oldest friends from his old school. They'd grown up together and had always had each other's backs. But Jungkook hadn't texted his old friends after the accident, and he'd made sure to especially not text Taehyung, because he didn't believe he deserved someone to have his back. He hadn't wanted Taehyung to defend him because he would have known what a lie it was.

And all this time...

He choked out a laugh. The irony of it all was horrifying. "I was texting, Taehyung. I crashed into your car because I was texting while driving."

"Bro, I know," Taehyung said with a laugh. "I was texting too."

Jungkook stared at him in shock. "What?"

"Yeah, we were talking in the same group chat, remember?" Taehyung said with a small snort and a roll of his eyes.

"Why- why were you driving out here, though?" Jungkook asked, still failing to understand everything even though Taehyung clearly had it all figured out. "You live like an hour away."

"I was coming to surprise you with a visit cause I knew how lonely you were at your new school," Taehyung said with a shrug of his shoulders before an awkward smile took over. "Surprise?"

--

As Taehyung had predicted, they did better at Wheel of Fortune today than Taehyung had done yesterday. If they'd been on the show, they would have won an all expenses paid trip to Cancún, Mexico. Jungkook said he'd try and save up money to take Taehyung there someday, and Taehyung had told Jungkook that maybe his insurance would cover it. When Jungkook had told Taehyung that he didn't think that would work, Taehyung had suggested that he could get one of those "Make a Wish" things, and when Jungkook had informed Taehyung that those only applied to kids with cancer, Taehyung had just said, "I'll work on it."

"I've got to head out," Jungkook said after a while. He was starting to feel bad that he had made his mom wait for him for over an hour now.

"Okay," Taehyung said, turning the TV off and yawning. "I might take a nap. But come back soon, okay? And turn on your damn phone so I can annoy you at all hours of the day."

"Okay," Jungkook readily agreed, moving toward the door.

"And, Jungkook?"

"Yeah?" Jungkook asked, stopping and looking over at his friend.

"I know you probably feel guilty because that's the kind of guy you are, but don't," Taehyung said, looking serious for the first time since Jungkook had entered the room, and Jungkook wondered abruptly if Taehyung had only acted happy and energetic to make Jungkook feel better about the whole thing. "Yeah, you were texting and driving, but so was I. You crashed into my car, but it just as easily could have been the other way. It could have been you in the hospital bed. And, Jungkook, I'm honestly glad it was me because I couldn't stand seeing you in my position. I'd rather be the one hurt than have to watch you be hurt." He exhaled heavily before smiling. "I've been waiting to tell you that since the accident."

Jungkook was crying now. He'd been crying sporadically all day so it wasn't really any surprise, but everything just felt like it was catching up to him all at once. Hoseok hated him for what he'd done, yet Hoseok hadn't even been affected by the accident. And here was Taehyung, saying that he didn't fault Jungkook for it even though he was the one sitting in the hospital. Jungkook felt confused, but he also felt like he was getting closer to the answers he needed.

"I know this past month has been rough for you," Taehyung said, looking down. "I mean, it's been rough for me too, shit, but I'm here for you, Kook."

"I'm here for you too, Tae," Jungkook said, wiping at his eyes even as new tears formed. "I'm sorry...I'm sorry it took me so long to get here. I was scared, and I...I..."

"It's okay," Taehyung said. "You're here now, and that makes me really happy."

"Even though you're paralyzed now because of me?" Jungkook asked, unable to suppress the question.

"Even though I'm now hitting up the hottest nurses every day of the week for sponge baths," Taehyung said solemnly. "It's a cross I'm willing to bear."

His response surprised a laugh out of Jungkook despite his tears. "I'll be back tomorrow," he promised, and Taehyung shook his head.

"Nah, make it Thursday."

"Why?" Jungkook asked, immediately feeling his words settle over him as a rejection. Maybe Taehyung hated him after all?

"Because tomorrow is Moira's shift," Taehyung said. "Sure, you're fantastic and lovely and attractive, but you're not Moira."

"Got it," Jungkook said with a small laugh. That was probably better because it would give him Wednesday to come to terms with everything.

"See you Thursday," Taehyung said with a smile, but there was a little tension in his face that Jungkook thought he understood. Taehyung could say "See you Thursday," but he had no guarantee that Jungkook would show up, no other option but to wait and hope.

"Thursday. It's a promise," Jungkook said with a smile, and Taehyung's smile relaxed.

--

"How did it go?" Jungkook's mom asked as he walked out. She took in his still-teary face and hesitated, biting at her lip but letting him answer.

"It was...good," Jungkook said after a moment. There was a heaviness gone from his soul, a weight that had been sitting there since the accident that had disappeared or, at the very least, lessened. Breathing felt easier. He waited as his mom stood up, stretching. "Mom...did you know? That it was Taehyung?"

She looked over at him, eyes wide. "Taehyung? Your friend from your old school?"

Jungkook bobbed his head, feeling weepy yet again, but he managed to hold the tears back this time. "It was Taehyung. He said he'd been waiting to talk to me." Jungkook took a deep breath, still having a hard time processing. "I didn't even recognize his mom in court. She looked so...so tired, so weary. I wasn't thinking clearly, but still, I didn't even recognize her."

"Neither did I," Jungkook's mom said, shaking her head in shock. "It's really Taehyung, then?"

Jungkook nodded. "He said I should come visit him Thursday. That's okay, right?"

"Of course, of course," she murmured, nodding as she set a hand on his head and carded her fingers through his hair before pulling him into a hug. "I was so scared for you," she admitted softly. "I wasn't sure if they would hate you or make you feel worse than you already do. But...how did Taehyung feel?"

"He said, 'No hard feelings,'" Jungkook recounted before laughing softly, tightening his arms around his mom's thin figure. She'd been his rock. Not just this past year, but all of his life. He didn't want to take that for granted. "He said that he'd rather be the one hurt than me." His voice got quieter, and yet again, he felt more tears sliding down his face. He had to be almost out of tears by now, didn't he? "But Mom, I feel the same way. It's so hard to see him and not want to be in his place."

"I know," she said, holding him against her. A nurse walked past, and for a moment, their conversation was punctuated by the soft click of shoes against the cold tile. But then the footsteps faded away, and the hallway was silent once more. "But we can't change that, right? Let's just do whatever we can to let Taehyung know that we're here for him. Once he's out of the hospital, he's going to need some help getting around and getting used to the wheelchair, so we need to be there for him through that."

"Yeah," Jungkook agreed. He'd already been planning on it. He took a moment to just close his eyes and take a deep breath, sealing this moment away inside his memory before detaching himself from his mom and taking her hand in his. "Thanks, Mom."

She nodded without having to say anything, and they slowly departed from the hospital.

--updated 09/07/20 (mm/dd/yy)--