Prelude to Romance

Epilogue

Eun Jae eagerly opened the front door of Doldam Hospital. She was already imagining the shocked yet happy reception that the staff would certainly give her. She knew its only been ten days, but it felt like she was gone for months. She wanted to tell Dr. Kim about the offer to stay in Geodae and how she turned it down because she is now Doldam's own, through and through. She thought he will be very pleased to hear it, and making her mentor happy made her feel jubilant. She couldn't wait to see everyone and catch up on all the gossip with Ah Reum and Dr. Jung. 

Most importantly, she couldn't wait to see him.

She thought about him every single spare moment she had, but she was often exhausted after surgery or trying to finish a meal before her next operation. She never got the chance to speak to him on the phone, and she longed to hear his voice. She wanted to feel his arms around her again and stay there for days. She hoped he's not too angry that it took her so long to return.

The reception desk was empty, but there was plenty of hustling going around. Staff attendants running along the corridor, arms loaded full of medical supplies. Nurses rushed up and down the staircase, whispering quickly and perusing medical charts. Eun Jae stopped to take it all in. From her position, she could look in the window leading to the emergency room, and it was like a warzone inside.

Eun Jae bit her lip. I guess my homecoming party will have to wait.

She went directly to the staff room to get dressed. When she entered the emergency room, the first person to see her was Eun Tak, who froze in mid-step, a syringe and a box of gauze in his hands. His serious face broke into a wide smile, "You're back!"

"Hello, Nurse Park." she said, grinning at him.

"Dr. Cha!" Dr. Jung cried when he saw her, engulfing her into a bear hug "You have no idea how happy I am to see you! Seriously, I could cry right now. Thank all the heavens, what a blessing! You came back on the busiest day ever—"

"Let her go before she suffocates," Dr. Kim said good-naturedly as he approached, smiling at her, "I'm glad to see you again, Dr. Cha. You look well."

"Thank you Dr. Kim, I missed everyone." Eun Jae replied, her cheeks growing pink, "What can I do to help?"

"You can take over the patient in the hybrid room. He'll need a full medical check-up."

Eun Jae slipped on a pair of gloves and joined Ah Reum, who smiled and squeezed her. "I'm so glad you're back. I have so much to tell you."

"We need to catch up after this."

Ah Reum nodded knowingly. She leaned closer to Eun Jae to whisper, "He just left to do a surgery in Room One."

Eun Jae smiled at her friend gratefully before bending down to check their patient.

Woo Jin scribbled the last few instructions in the medical chart, signing it with a flourish. He stretched his arms overhead with a tired groan. It was probably one of the most gruelling shifts he ever had at Doldam: back to back surgeries in addition to ward duties and several emergency procedures. It was amazing how everything was calm when he came to work this morning and suddenly having to cater to a massive influx of cases at the same time. He felt stretched to the limit, but he couldn't complain since it kept his mind off other things.

He sighed and started to clear his table. As he double-checked that he had all the charts in order, a pair of soft arms suddenly wrapped around his neck from behind. The scent of her perfume melting the tension he incurred during the last ten days. She gave him a squeeze, her head resting gently on his shoulder.

"I'm home." she whispered.

The corners of his mouth lifted up automatically. Life at Doldam had always felt alien since he started working here. Strange but oh, so right. It felt like he belonged, like he was accepted.

It felt like a family.

With her back beside him, all the missing pieces of his life were finally complete.

He placed his hands over hers and squeezed them tightly,

"Welcome back."

END.