HERSHE - TIAOM

Hospital

"HAHAHA!"

"I can't believe it, he's here," Zee sniggered after hearing the loud guffaw of a man from inside the hospital room.

"He?" asked Jane.

"Kim's dad. He's a fun guy. You'll see," said Zee, knocking on the door.

A balding man, whom Pie assumed to be Kim's dad, opened the door for them. "Look who we have here!" he exclaimed, arms stretched wide. "Isn't this the almighty Zee descending from Mount Olympus to captivate women's hearts?"

Zee immediately threw herself for a big hug. "Haha! I missed you, uncle!"

"I missed you too, kiddo." He tapped her back. He pulled away when he noticed Jane and Pie. "Oh, and you brought your pretty friends, huh? Come on in now," he said, gesturing to them. "Tiger, you got visitors."

Pie smiled at the pet name. Her eyes immediately searched for Kim and found her lying on the bed with a bandaged right foot. She felt relieved and worried at the same time. No one knows how much she struggled to maintain her composure not to hug the poor patient at that moment.

Although others might not have noticed it, Pie surely saw how Kim was surprised to see her there. It was a brief shock that Kim immediately changed to a smile when she turned to look at Zee and Jane.

Aside from Kim's dad, there were other people inside. One is a middle-aged woman, whom Pie initially assumed as Kim's relative due to resemblance, and then there's...

Yam? What is she doing here?

Pie's eyebrows furrowed while looking at Yam who's currently sitting ON the hospital bed, BESIDE Kim.

"Hey, guys..." said Kim, looking more cheery now compared to how she was last Friday.

Zee pointed a finger on Kim's foot and said, "Dude, what's up? You got it pretty bad, eh?"

"I'm fine, c'mon. You've seen worse, remember?" said Kim, reminding Zee of the car incident before, which the latter answered with a laugh.

"What happened to you?" asked Jane, walking towards Kim.

"Just minor foot injury. I can go back to work the day after tomorrow," Kim answered. "Miss me already?"

"Of course," said Jane, tapping Kim's leg. "It just doesn't feel the same not seeing you passing by the hallway. Right, Pie?"

Pie, who was zoning out while looking at how close Yam's body is to Kim, was brought back to Earth. "Uh... y-yeah..."

Not knowing what to say, Kim looked around and realized something. "Oh, guys, meet my dad and Aunt In." She pointed at the two. The siblings greeted everyone with a wai.

Kim turned to Yam this time. "These are my friends and colleagues: Zee, Jane, and... Pie. Guys, meet Yam." Jane made an "ooh" sound after hearing Yam's name.

"Hello everyone," said Yam with a wai.

Kim's dad cleared his throat to gather everyone's attention. "So, now tell me, which of you girls is Kim's girlfriend?"

Their mouths fell open at the blunt question. Kim brought her hands to her face and said, "Ugh, dad, stop it!"

The man chuckled. "Hey, tiger, what's the matter? I'm just curious, okay?"

"How many times should I tell you that I'm single?" Kim's voice is muffled from hiding her face behind her palms. Pie still finds it cute, though.

"What? I can't believe it! You're a disgrace to this family," said Kim's dad, his hands on his waist. "You surely have pretty friends here and you don't like any of them? What happened to your taste?"