When the Clock Strikes|Pi Han Ul x Reader|

(S02) Chapter 1

The pages of the patient file blurred before my eyes as I skimmed the details, my mind half-occupied with the weight of the day. It had been years since I first stepped into Seoul, years since I had let go of my old name and embraced the person I had fought to become.

Seven years. Seven years of relentless study, of sleepless nights, of balancing part-time jobs that barely kept me afloat. I had juggled tutoring, convenience store shifts, and hospital internships, working through exhaustion just to afford tuition. But it had all led to this moment.

Harin and her family were acquitted in court, as their wrongdoings had been pinned on their right-hand man and others they had set up to take the fall. But I have never saw them in these 7 years.

Now, I stood in the emergency department of Seoul General Hospital—not as the struggling student I once was, but as Ye Na, a resident anesthesiologist. I had built myself up from nothing, and I had no intention of slowing down.

My phone buzzed against the desk, breaking my focus. I glanced at the screen.

Ga Min: How was your day?

I felt a warmth spread through my chest. Despite being miles away in America, he still made an effort to check in. It was a small thing, but it meant the world to me.

The group chat, once filled with messages from Ji Woo, Seo Hyeon, Hui Won, and Jun, had gone nearly silent. Life had taken us in different directions, and though we still reached out from time to time, it wasn’t the same.

And Han Wool…

I swallowed the lump forming in my throat. I had waited for years, visiting the lake, hoping for some sign of him. But he never came. Eventually, I stopped going. Stopped waiting. I told myself I had moved on, but deep down, he had never really left me.

Before I could dwell on it further, the doors to the ER burst open. A nurse rushed in, urgency written all over her face.

"Emergency incoming! Severe trauma case—female, early twenties. Suspected suicide attempt. Jumped from a building."

The words snapped me into action. I grabbed my coat and rushed toward the emergency bay.

The room was a whirlwind of chaos. The gurney crashed through the doors, paramedics shouting vitals as the girl lay motionless, her body battered and bloodied.

"BP is dropping fast—70/40!" a nurse called out.

The girl’s parents ran in seconds later. The mother let out a strangled sob at the sight of her daughter. "Please, save her! Please!"

I met the woman’s tear-filled gaze. "We’re doing everything we can. We need to stabilize her first."

I turned back to the patient. She was barely conscious, her breathing labored. Blood soaked her clothes, pooling beneath her.

"Severe blunt force trauma," one of the paramedics said. "She landed on her side, multiple fractures, possible internal bleeding."

"She needs to be intubated now," I said, already snapping on my gloves. "Suction ready?"

"Ready."

"Pulse ox?"

"65%. She’s not oxygenating well."

I grabbed the laryngoscope and positioned her head carefully. Her airway was swelling fast—I had one chance to get this right. Sliding the endotracheal tube in, I watched for chest rise.

"Tube’s in. Confirm placement."

"Breath sounds on both sides."

I secured the tube, glancing up as the trauma surgeon, Dr. Kang, arrived. "What do we have?"