koojournal97

[koojournal97]

When the Moon Forgot to Shine

Episode 1: A Murmur in the Silence

The hospital always smelled like bleach and quiet pain.

Y/N hated in. Not the people, not the patients — but the atmosphere. It was sterile in more ways than one. It dulled laughter. Swallowed hope. But she kept coming back, week after week, because sometimes the smallest moments — holding a hand, reading a book aloud, offering a warm smile — could make a difference

Today, though, something felt different.

She stepped into the Cardiology Ward with her clipboard tucked to her chest, her smile sneakers quiet against the floor. She created the nurses with a nod and a soft smile before checking the volunteer assignments for the day.

"Room 317," Nurse Hyejin said, eyeing her with a smirk. "Your new assignment."

Y/N raised an eyebrow. "That's... a private room?"

"VIP status. But don’t let that fool you,” the nurse leaned in and whispered. “He’s a tough one to talk to. Silent. Standoffish. But maybe he just needs the right person."

Y/N didn’t reply, just nodded and made her way down the long corridor.

The door to Room 317 was slightly ajar. She knocked softly before peeking in.

The room was bathed in pale light from the tall window. Machines beeped rhythmically in the background. Sitting near the window, head resting back against the chair, was a young man with dark, shoulder-length hair. His gaze was fixed on the sky outside.

He didn’t turn when she entered.

"Hi,” she said gently. “I’m Y/N. I volunteer here. Thought I’d come say hello."

Still, no response.

She stepped further in. "You don’t have to talk if you don’t want to. I can just… sit. Or read. Or annoy you with small talk. Dealer’s choice."

The corner of his mouth tugged slightly—almost a smirk. Finally, he spoke, voice low and calm.

"You talk a lot for someone who just got here."

Y/N blinked, then chuckled softly. "You’re not wrong."

He turned to look at her then, and for a moment, she was caught off guard. His eyes were deep, shadowed with something she couldn’t quite place. Sadness? Fatigue? Both?

"I’m Jeon Jungkook," he said. "Welcome to my five-star suite."

She smiled. "Nice to meet you, Jeon Jungkook. Do you want company or should I go bother someone else?"

He hesitated.

"…Stay."

She pulled up a chair beside his bed.

"Cool," she said. "Tell me, what’s your favorite movie?"

He looked at her like she had just asked him what the color of air was. Then, he shrugged. "Don’t really have one."

"You don’t like movies?"

"I used to. Not so much anymore."

There was something final in the way he said it, like a door quietly clicking shut.

She didn’t press further. Instead, she looked around the room. No flowers. No get-well cards. Just sterile white walls and a single pair of earbuds on the bedside table.

"Do you live nearby?" she asked.

"Not really."

"Family?"

He didn’t answer.

Y/N caught herself. Too personal, too fast. She tried to steer the conversation back. "Well, you’re lucky. You got the big window. Most patients fight over that."

Jungkook smiled faintly. "It’s the only thing they gave me that doesn’t beep."

She laughed. It was soft but real.

For a while, they sat in a strange kind of peace. The machines hummed. The light shifted.

Eventually, she glanced at her watch. "I should head to my next patient."

He nodded.

But as she stood, he said, "Hey… Y/N."

She turned. "Yeah?"

"Thanks."

She smiled. "For what?"

He looked back out the window.

"For not pretending this place isn’t hell."

That night, Y/N found herself thinking about him. The way he looked at the sky like he was waiting for it to say something back. The way he spoke, carefully, like every word had weight. And the way his heart—hidden beneath bone, silence, and machines—still tried to beat like it wasn’t breaking.

She didn’t know yet what he was battling.

But she had a feeling she'd be back.

Not because it was her duty.

But because he was a murmur in the silence—and she was already listening.

Episode 1: "A Murmur in the Silence

Episode 2: “Heartbeat Between the Lines

Episode 3: “Terms and Conditions”

Episode 4: “Rain in the Chest”

Episode 5: “Borrowed Days”

Episode 6: “Every Beat Hurts” 

Episode 7: “Quiet Goodbyes”

Episode 8: “Love Doesn’t Wait”

Episode 9: “If I Wake Again” 

Episode 10: “The Moon Remembered”