JD 88

After a brief examination, the doctor diagnosed Hakyung with stress-induced gastric spasms. Since Hakyung was too weak to speak and lay motionless on the bed, the doctor explained directly to his guardian, Muheon.

“Has he been under a lot of stress lately? From the X-ray and ultrasound, his stomach is extremely swollen. More seriously, it’s not moving at all.”

“Ah…”

“For now, he needs absolute rest and must be careful with his diet. I’ll prescribe painkillers and IV fluids for today—he should get them before leaving.”

“Yes, understood. Thank you.”

Following the prescription, an IV drip was attached to Hakyung’s left wrist. Seeing a needle piercing that pale, slender arm made Muheon’s heart ache.

Once the medical staff finished treatment and stepped out, only Hakyung and Muheon remained in the hospital room. Muheon gently touched Hakyung’s pale lips and asked,

“Has the wedding prep been too much?”

“N-not really… not too bad…”

Hakyung’s voice trailed off, and his lips drooped downward. To be honest, it had been hard lately.

The biggest stressor in his life had always been Kim Taeyoung, but that was something he’d grown up with, so it never affected his health like this.

But lately, all the unwanted attention—and the looming pressure of a life-changing event like a wedding—seemed to be more than his body could handle.

Seeing Hakyung unable to openly say he was struggling, just letting his eyes dart around helplessly, made Muheon even more upset. He wanted to grab Huang Lin by the collar right now—he was the one who started this mess.

Muheon’s fierce expression made Hakyung flinch. He felt guilty, thinking he’d only added another burden to Muheon’s already full plate.

“I’m sorry…”

“…What?”

“I didn’t mean to end up in the hospital like this… You must’ve been worried.”

Hakyung fidgeted with his fingers as he apologized, and Muheon felt a dull ache in his head.

He gently tapped Hakyung’s lips—where those sad words had come from. It was meant as a light scolding, but his finger carried no strength. The last thing he wanted was to hurt someone who was already sick.

“Why are you sorry? If anything, I’m the one who should’ve managed things better. Let’s just call everything off. Seeing you this stressed—I can’t go through with it.”

“What?!”

Startled by Muheon’s suggestion to cancel the wedding, Hakyung almost bolted upright. Had Muheon not held his shoulder down, he would’ve fallen off the bed in his panic.

“No! We have to have the wedding!”

“What kind of wedding are you having in this state? It’s the day after tomorrow.”

“Exactly! It’s only two days away! How could we cancel it now?!”

Was he really this attached to the wedding?

If Muheon said “let’s cancel” two more times, Hakyung looked like he’d burst into tears. Still, since this involved Hakyung’s health, Muheon couldn’t easily back down either.

The two locked eyes and stared each other down. After a long standoff, the winner was—of course—Hakyung.

Those sparkling eyes made it impossible not to give in. Naturally, the imugi who was weakest against his river dolphin gave a small shake of his head and added one condition.

“Okay. We’ll have the wedding. But we’re sending the guests away.”

“Really?”

It must’ve sounded like a fair deal, because this time Hakyung didn’t object. Seeing his crystal-clear reaction, Muheon couldn’t help but laugh—even in such a serious moment.

Hakyung, not knowing what Muheon was laughing about, smiled back with him.

“Can you be alone for a bit?”

“Of course!”

Thanks to the IV, Hakyung’s complexion had improved. He responded brightly. Muheon gave him a quick kiss on the forehead and stepped out of the room. Gisang-oh followed behind, his expression stiff.

He’d heard about Hakyung’s condition from the doctor and was deeply worried.

“The wedding’s in two days. Will he be okay?”

“That’s exactly why—we’ll go ahead with the wedding as planned, but only invite family and company staff. Politely turn everyone else away.”

Gisang-oh looked relieved. Watching the fragile river dolphin struggle under stress had been painful, and now, they had a solution.

He resolved to use every connection he had to ensure the guests’ expectations were met—so that Muheon and Hakyung could have a healthy, peaceful ceremony.

Meanwhile, back in the quiet hospital room, Hakyung let out a long sigh.

Am I really this weak of a river dolphin? It was embarrassing—he wouldn’t dare say it out loud.

What made it worse was that the people causing him stress had come out of kindness, to celebrate something good in his life. And yet he ended up with stomach spasms.

He felt sorry, guilty, and ashamed—but more than anything, he was grateful. Grateful that Muheon understood how he felt without him even having to say it, and offered to speak up first.

Now that the biggest burden had been lifted from his shoulders, he suddenly felt completely at ease. It was honestly kind of amazing.

Having thrown up everything inside him, Hakyung glanced down at his stomach as it let out a loud rumble—and gave an embarrassed little laugh.

In the end, the guests who had traveled to Korea hoping to attend the wedding instead ended up sightseeing—but fortunately, none of them voiced any complaints. All they asked was that Muheon livestream the wedding on YouTube.

It wasn’t exactly a pleasant sight—centuries-old elders whining for a YouTube broadcast—but it wasn’t an unreasonable request either.

As always, Muheon asked Hakyung for his opinion first. Hakyung cheerfully gave his OK, and the decision was made to stream the ceremony.

Contrary to the doctor’s warning that he might be uncomfortable for several days, Hakyung’s condition improved rapidly. Within a day, the paleness in his face had already faded to a healthy glow.

Even so, Muheon gave strict orders not to let Hakyung leave the room until the wedding. As a result, Hakyung had to spend the entire day before the ceremony confined to his room. Normally, he’d be happily cleaning the stairs, but now that he was stuck lazing around on a soft bed, his whole body ached from inactivity.

“Ughhh…”

Just as he was thinking of doing some stretches, a message came in from Hajo.

“Oh, Hajo!”

— Hyung! I got the thing you asked for!

“Really? Wow, thank god! Thank you!”

At Hajo’s message, Hakyung’s face lit up with joy. In truth, he hadn’t taken Muheon’s joke about singing at the wedding as a joke at all.

He had been secretly preparing a performance—both a wedding song and a proposal. He’d been putting so much heart into it that Hajo, who helped him record and review it, said he’d been stunned silent like he was the one being proposed to.

“Hyung, you’re seriously the best singer out of all the river dolphins.”

That comment still rang in Hakyung’s ears. Kang Hakyung, the best vocalist among the river dolphin clan.

Wouldn’t it be something if Muheon teared up when he heard the song Hakyung had worked so hard to prepare? Grinning to himself, he imagined that scene.

There’d been a major hiccup with the gastric spasms, but thankfully, the wedding itself hadn’t been derailed.

Now that they’d managed to secure the instrumental—the hardest part to find—only the performance itself remained.

“I have to move at dawn tomorrow… Are you sure it won’t be too much?”

— It’s fine. I’ve got a ride. As long as I sleep a bit early, it’s no problem. You’re the one who should be careful—don’t tell me you’re still too nervous to eat properly?

Hakyung flinched at Hajo’s teasing. After all, he’d literally been hospitalized from wedding stress.

Family intuition truly was uncanny.

“Excuse me! I had two bowls of rice this morning, okay?”

— Sure, sure. As long as you’re eating. Anyway, I’ll bring it with me tomorrow.

“Mm, thanks.”

— See you tomorrow, little groom.

Hajo ended the call after one last jab. Hakyung, about to shout that he wasn’t a little groom, ended up fuming at his now-silent screen.

For the record, he was taller than average for a river dolphin! Scowling at the blank phone screen, Hakyung stood up.

Now that the instrumental was secured, there was no excuse not to rehearse his proposal song to perfection.

He opened the door and confirmed the dorm was empty. Clearing his throat, he reminded himself that he hadn’t sung a single line yesterday due to being sick—and today, he’d make up for it.

In the dorm, the bathroom was the best place for singing. With the door shut, it even came with a natural echo effect.

Using his toothbrush as a mic, Hakyung began to sing.

Soon, the quiet bathroom was filled with his clear, beautiful voice—and someone sitting quietly in the rooftop gazebo, who happened to hear that voice by chance, smiled softly to themselves.