Doctor Demon

Siwan slightly groaned when he felt something poking him on the head. He slowly opened his eyes to find himself staring into a pair of tiny chocolate brown eyes.

Miyoo was bent over his head, staring at him.

"Wanwan wakey!" she said.

"Miyoo?" Siwan frowned and sat up. His nose hurt and so did his arm but otherwise he felt fine. To his surprise, Hobin was next to him with his head laid on the bedside desk. Siwan smiled upon seeing his younger brother sleep like a child, lost in his own world. He stroked his brother's head. It felt as if they were kids again when Hobin used to fall asleep like this while studying and Siwan carried him to bed on his back.

"Hobin, sleepy," Miyoo told him.

"Yeah," Siwan smiled. Hobin frowned and woke up, rubbing his eyes.

"You're awake!" he yawned. "How are you feeling now?"

"I'm good," Siwan said. "What about you? Are you alright?"

"I'm good bro. But you've been out for three days!"

"That doesn't matter."

He was more concerned for Hobin than for himself. Even though he was not sure what happened, Siwan knew that something had taken over him that night. He could even recall some of the incidents but he wanted answers.

"What really happened that night, Hobin?" he asked in a clear tone. "I know that I was being possessed by something. I'm not dumb."

He was not angry nor was he disappointed. Instead, he just wanted to know the truth and Hobin knew that he could no longer hide the truth from him. Jina and he had already decided that they will tell the truth to Siwan about her powers and why the demon attacked him.

"Well'¦It's a lot to take in so bear with me," Hobin began. He told Siwan the truth about Jina's powers and also how Sungki became a demon in hell. Siwan did not interrupt but his frown deepened with every word. A lot of it did not make sense but some of the pieces fell into place. He also recalled the night at the Infinite Room where he saw Hobin's other self, a demonic figure which was adamant on taking over Hobin.

Once Hobin was done explaining, there was a long silence between them. Miyoo looked from one brother to the other, as if waiting for something to happen.

"This...demon," Siwan said. "Is it gone?"

"Yes."

"And the one inside you? Is it gone?"

Hobin sighed. "No," he replied. "I don't know how to get rid of it."

"What happened to that other guy?" Siwan realized. "The shaman?"

"We don't know," Hobin admitted. "He ran away before any of us could find him. The CCTV cameras that night were also turned off so we couldn't find him on camera. It was like he vanished."

They had looked at every part of the street but the shaman was nowhere to be found. Even Magrod could not locate him. Siwan was now worried.

"I don't trust these shamans," he finally said. "Whether it's the Cho's one or the one the Hwang's are cosy with. I don't trust them."

"Why not?"

"It's just...I feel that it's weird," Siwan admitted. "That guy, Bomi. You said that he's been handling demons for years, right? Yet, he didn't know that demons were once human souls! How is that possible? If he's been exorcising them, why didn't he know this? Whereas you've been handling demons only for a few days and you found out quickly."

"Maybe no one thought about it like that," he pointed out. "Even Jina didn't know and she's been dealing with paranormal creatures for years."

"No," Siwan said, shaking his head. "I still don't buy it. Something is wrong."

Hobin did not question his brother. At this point, anything was possible so he did not rule out the possibility that Bomi might be hiding things from them.

There was a knock on the door and they looked up to see Jiwoon standing at the door.

"Uh'¦"

She was awkward and fidgeting so Hobin took it as a cue to leave.

"I'll take the kid to the cafe," he said aloud. "Otherwise she'll throw a tantrum."

"Miyoo is not hungry," Miyoo said. "Miyoo wants Wanwan."

"She can stay-" Siwan said but Hobin threw a stern gaze at the kid and picked her up. Miyoo pouted and stuck out her tongue at him but Hobin pressed a penny into her hand.

"Take this and shut up!" he muttered. But Miyoo shook her head.

"Miyoo wants dollar!" she demanded. She had recently learnt that dollars are higher in value than pennies so she upgraded her demands. Hobin scowled and pressed a dollar in her palm before whisking her away from there, leaving Jiwoon and Siwan alone.

"Are you admitted here as well?" Siwan frowned, noticing that she wore a hospital gown.

"Yeah," she sighed. "Turns out, I suffered a concussion during the fight. Anyways'¦"

She sat next to him, looking worried. His face was bruised and his arm was also in a sling but otherwise, he looked alright. The doctors kept him sedated for a while but his body was weakened by the possession. They asked how he sustained the injuries but Hobin somehow managed their suspicions.

"Are you alright?" Both of them asked at once. They blinked in surprise.

"You're the one who's badly hurt and you're worrying about me?" she asked.

"You had to face the demon of your ex-husband," he shrugged. "I thought you were in the worst state."

She looked down. "I'm okay. But I'm more concerned for you. If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have been possessed like this. I...I'm sorry for creating such chaos."

Siwan patted her head with his free hand. "It wasn't your fault," he assured her. "It was only Cho Sungki's fault and he's paying for it. Alright?"

"How much do you remember about that night?"

Jiwoon slowly looked up at him, trying to analyze his thoughts. Despite the horrendous events, there was one part she hoped that Siwan would not remember.

"Not much," he said. "I just remember that I blacked out after my encounter with Mrs. Cho."

Jiwoon was a little relieved. He did not recall the part where Sungki had exposed her feelings for Siwan. She was aware that he was in love with Jina and she did not want to create any other inconvenient situation for him.

"I'll let you rest," she said. "I need to check up on Baekha as well. She's fine but still weak."

"Okay," Siwan nodded. "I'll see you later."

He watched her leave and once she was gone, he sighed.

"Should I have mentioned that I remember everything about that night?" he wondered out loud. But knowing Jiwoon, she would only retreat back into her shell if he revealed that he knew about her feelings for him.

I guess I shouldn't complicate things any further, he decided. But his heart was uneasy at that thought.

Why it was so, he did not know.