Seonghwa ripped off the white paper of his straw and stuck it in his pink colored drink. The sourness of the strawberry lemonade made his jaw hurt as he took a sip. He exited the cafe, dropping the wrapper in the trash on the way out. Sitting down at one of the outdoor patio tables, he pulled his phone out, checking for new messages. He sighed and set his phone face down on the glass. The bright sunlight reflected off the surface of the glass and made little lines of light on the table where the sunlight flowed through the ice of his drink.
He stared out in the distance at a group of trees that grew at a nearby park. There were small kids running around, chasing each other with their arms out on their sides like airplanes. He took a deep breath and leaned his head back on the chair, shielding his eyes from the sun with his hand. Fluffy white clouds dotted the early Saturday morning sky. A gentle breeze ran its invisible fingers through his soft black hair.
Seonghwa sat up when he heard his phone chime. It was Hyejin.
Where are you? The message read.
Starbucks.
Have you seen my staff card? I can't find it.
Did you check your purse and your work bag?
Yes. It's not there.
You probably left it in your office. You want me to go see?
No. I'll see when I go back next week. I probably left it on my desk.
You sure? I can go. I'm near the hospital.
It's ok, I don't need it right now.
Ok.
Seonghwa sighed and stretched his legs. Suddenly, his phone rang.
"Yeah?" He said, smiling when he heard Hyejin's voice.
"I'm bored," she replied. "I thought taking time off would help, but it's driving me crazy. Do you have off today?"
"I go in at four, but I'm free now. You want me to come over? We can do something." he said, switching his phone to his other ear.
"Sure," she replied.
"I'll be there in like, fifteen minutes." He hung up and stood, walking to his car.
He arrived at her house a bit later than he wanted. He turned the car off and pulled his key out of the ignition. Smoothing out his shirt, he knocked on the door. She answered right away, pulling the door open and letting him in.
"How have you been?" he asked. It was the first time he got to see her since the incident at the hospital which was nearly a week.
"Good...bored mostly, but I've been okay." He nodded and stuck his hands in his pockets. She motioned for him to sit down, which he did.
"Did you want something to drink?" she asked, heading for the kitchen.
"No thank you, I have a drink in my car." She nodded and pulled a water bottle out of the fridge. Untwisting the cap, she took a sip and walked into the living room.
"What do you want to do?" He asked.
She shrugged, "I don't know. Take a walk or something? Anything to get me out of this house." He laughed. She smiled and sat down next to him.
"Sure." He answered, resting his head on his hand and his elbow on the back of the couch. He smiled and stared at her. She smiled shyly.
Before the silence got too awkward, Hyejin stood up and spoke. "Come on," she said, grabbing his hand and pulling him up. They left the house together, walking slowly as they breathed in the nice summer air.
They talked about old childhood memories as they walked, laughing about embarrassing moments, avoiding sad ones. It was comforting to Hyejin, as she was able to temporarily forget her incident at the hospital.
They stopped and ate at an Italian restaurant before Seonghwa announced that it was time for him to get ready for work. He walked Hyejin home and headed back to his place, where he threw on his nurse scrubs and got back in the car.
Cool air blasted Seonghwa as he entered the psychiatric facility. He walked through the staff's entrance and down the hallway that led to the office that he shared with Hyejin. It wasn't a big room, but all the nurses were given one that they shared with another nurse which was more of a personal break room. He pulled open the door. and glanced at Hyejin's desk, finding her staff card laying on top of her clipboard.
I found your card. It was on your desk. He texted.
Thank you!
He set his bag on his desk and walked out into the hallway, stretching his arms over his head as he walked into the staff lounge. Three nurses sat, two drinking coffee while another one was pouring sugar into her mug.
"Hey," Seonghwa said. The nurses greeted him and offered him a cup of fresh coffee, which he politely declined.
"How's Hyejin?" a nurse named Jung Wooyoung asked.
Seonghwa pursed his lips. "She said she's doing okay, but I think she's still shaken up." He said, crossing his arms over his chest. "She seems fine, but I can tell still it's still bothering her."
Wooyoung set his cup on the table next to him and folded his hands in his lap. "What even happened? She stormed passed me as I was coming in last Tuesday."
Seonghwa sighed. "She was working on Floor 3 again in the ICW. Apparently, Choi San scared her. I think he tried touching her or something. I only heard a bit of what happened from Yeosang." Seonghwa responded.
"Touching her? Why wasn't he restrained?" Asked one of the other nurses, Kim Hongjoong.
"He was. He refused to take his medication unless Hyejin gave it to him. I think he kissed her hand or something."
Hongjoong looked at Seonghwa curiously. "I don't know...I took over her shifts though. She seemed pretty upset."
"So she took off a whole week because of that?" Wooyoung scoffed. "I don't think she's fit to work in a hospital if she's going to be freaking out over something like that."
Seonghwa shrugged his shoulders.
Wooyoung stood and tossed his paper cup in the trash. "Well, I got to go." He said, leaving the room with a smirk on his face. The room fell silent. Seonghwa, not knowing what to do, and feeling slightly uncomfortable by the silence, also left.
He walked down the hallway, locating the board that listed the nurses' daily schedule. He ran his finger down the paper finding Hyejin's name. If she hadn't have taken off the last few days, she would have been working in the ICW again, but he had taken over her shifts. He found his name. ICW- Medication it read. He sighed and headed for the elevator, passing by several nurses who were distracted with patients.
He made his way to the ICW doors. Scanning his card and walking up to the desk, he retrieved the medical notes from Yeosang. He checked his watch, finding that he still had about twenty minutes before it was time for him to start his shift.
"Hey," He said, turning to the guard that sat next to Yeosang. His feet were propped on the desk and his hands were folded on his stomach. "Am I allowed to talk to one of the patients?" He asked.
The guard tilted his head to the side. "Who?" he questioned.
"San. Choi San." The guard took his feet off the desk and leaned forward, squinting his eyes at Seonghwa curiously. Yeosang looked up at him from over the paper he held in his hand.
"Yes, but why?" he said.
"I want to ask him something." The guard leaned back in his chair, studying his face before he stood and grabbed a set of keys from the wall near him. He stood and walked around the desk to Seonghwa, motioning for him to walk.
They walked down the hallway, Seonghwa adjusting his shirt uneasily as sweat formed under his arms. They stopped in front of his cell. Through the small window, Seonghwa could see San laying down on the bed, playing with the buttons on his top. He sat up slowly when he heard the guard start to unlock the door. Swinging his legs off the bed, he stood, placing his hands on his hips. There were two doors, one metal one, and a door that much more resembled the bars of the jail cell behind it. The guard pulled open the heavy metal door, leaving the barred door locked.
"Mr. Choi, someone wants to talk to you," the guard said through the door.
San smiled and made eye contact with Seonghwa. "Ah, Nurse Park. How are you?" San asked, smirking.
Seonghwa came up to him and put his hands behind his back. "I am fine. How about you?" he responded seriously.
"Well, you know, could be better." He sat down on the edge of the bed.
"Just wanted to come talk to you," Seonghwa said, hiding the uneasiness in his voice. San nodded, waiting for Seonghwa to continue.
"How is Ms. Young? I haven't seen her in a bit. I fear I may have scared her at her last visit. I had no idea she would react that way." He licked his lips.
Seonghwa looked at him, a hint of anger crossing his face. He stopped himself from yelling at the monster before him. "She's fine. She took off work," he responded. San nodded, disappointment obvious on his face and he looked down at his pale bare feet.
"What do you want Mr. Park?" San said coldly, his expression changing suddenly. He seemed upset now.
"I just want to talk," Seonghwa replied, staring him directly in the eyes. San bit his lip. There was an eerie pause between them, waiting for the other to say something.
"Well?" San said, clearly annoyed. Seonghwa looked down at his hands, unsure of what to say.
"I see you like Ms. Young." He finally said. San perked up a bit at the mention of Hyejin's name.
He smiled softly. "I do."
Seonghwa shifted. "You know, you really scared her with that little act of yours." San tilted his head.
"Act?" he said innocently.
Seonghwa's hand curled into a ball. "You know what I'm talking about." Anger rose in his voice.
San laughed to himself. "Tell her I apologize. It was not my intention to cause her any fear..." he paused, "It's quite difficult containing myself around a lady so pretty."
Seonghwa clenched his teeth, forcing back the curses that threatened to come out. San studied his face.
"Oh? Are you jealous? It seems you're a bit upset...is it because I was able to touch her before you? Hmm?" Seonghwa lunged at the door, trying to reach his hands through the bars to grab San. The guard pulled him back by the shoulders, almost pulling him to the floor. San laughed loudly.
Seonghwa jerked his shoulders away from the guard's hands and stormed down the hall. His face was red and he breathed heavily, angrily. He took a deep breath, trying to calm down. He stopped and closed his eyes, leaning back against the white wall. It wasn't a matter of jealousy that angered Seonghwa. It was the way he freely talked about her as though he knew her personally and his creepy infatuation he had with her.
He found himself back in his office, sitting in a chair, reading through a document about a new patient that would be transferred early Monday morning. He set the paper down and picked up another one. He had been sitting there so long that the words blurred together into a mess of black and blue ink. He pulled out his phone and texted Hyejin.
Hey.
She responded back almost right away. Hey.
Wyd?
Sitting...bored. Aren't you supposed to be working?
I am. I'm on break.
How's everything?
He didn't tell her about his encounter with San. Good.
She didn't respond so he sat quietly at his desk, playing with an orange rubber band he found in one of the drawers. He still had another ten minutes of break, but he was getting fidgety and needed to move around. He let out a deep breath and stood up, leaving the room, wandering around until it was time for him to resume his shift.
When it was time for Seonghwa to leave, he gathered his things and walked out into the parking lot, flashing the lights of his car to unlock it. The night sky was blanketed with thousands of little stars that twinkled softly and the cool breeze felt good on his skin. He pulled his arms closer to his chest as he walked past the numerous parked cars.
His phone chimed and he stopped walking to check the text from Hyejin.
When do you get out?
I'm leaving now, why?
Can you come over?
Sure. Is everything okay?
Yeah. I can't sleep.
Kay, on my way. He responded. He checked his watch. 12:26 a.m. He threw his bag in the back seat and got in the car, driving to her house.
Hyejin answered the door before he had even lifted his hand to knock. Apparently, she had been watching for him. He entered her house, flopping down on the couch and closing his eyes.
"Tired?" She asked, closing and locking the door. He nodded and sat up, resting his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. She sat down next to him, pulling her legs up on the couch. She was wearing an over sized pink shirt and a pair of black athletic shorts. Her hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail, a few strands hanging down by her ears. He found her extremely attractive with her casual appearance.
"Thanks for coming over." She said smiling. He smiled back, turning to face her. They stared at each other for a few moments before Hyejin shyly pulled her eyes away. "You want to watch a movie?"
"Sure," he replied.
They took a while to decide on a movie, but when they did, they fell silent, absorbing themselves in the TV. Throughout the movie, Hyejin shifted closer to Seonghwa, until she had fallen asleep with her head on his shoulder and her hand clutching his. A bit of hair hung down on her face, which Seonghwa pushed behind her small ear. She was breathing softly against him. He moved his arm around her so that her head rested on his chest. She stirred a bit, but fell back into a deep sleep, and Seonghwa dozed off, holding her.
Seonghwa woke up, seeing the Netflix menu on the screen. He looked down at his watch. He had only been asleep for about two hours, but it felt like it had been much longer. He tapped her gently on the arm, waking her up.
"Hey, Hyejin. I'm gonna get going." Her eyes fluttered open and she moved a bit. When her eyes had fully adjusted, she realized Seonghwa's arm was around her and she was curled up against him. She shot up quickly, blushing.
"Uh, okay," she said, standing. He stood up next to her and stretched, yawning quietly.
They exchanged goodbyes as he left. She stood in the doorway, waving at him as he walked down the steps and got in his car. She sighed and closed the door, secretly wishing he would've stayed. She headed over to the kitchen, staring at the mountain of dishes in the sink that hadn't been washed in over a week. Turning on the water, she grabbed a cup and scrubbed it with a soapy sponge. Now she was wide awake.
She suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist from behind and a head rest on her shoulder, causing her to jump. She tensed slightly, but then smiled to herself, blushing softly. "I thought you went home. How did you even get back in?" she said, setting the cup in the sink.
"I was, but I just couldn't leave you." A deep voice whispered. A pair of lips brushed her ear. She looked down at the hands that held her waist. She drew in a deep breath, noticing the long scar on his left hand that reached from his wrist to his pinky finger. She turned slowly, coming face-to-face with Choi San.