BC | Chapter 8

In the early morning, when the rush-hour traffic had eased, the taxi sped down the clear road and came to a stop in front of the hospital. With a bright smile, Yoo-eun’s father turned to look at the passenger seat beside him.4d605f218bfbe915

“Daughter, should Dad come pick you up after you’re done today?”c6a113df1d6396f0

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“No, I have a dinner party with the exhibition team and the hospital’s PR team today.”c2e2fa5454f8c6f2

“Then, should I come to pick you up after the dinner?”1b4614953678ac05

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Yoo-eun smiled softly, 00d7adb973 her eyes crinkling 14a3610bd1 slightly.f28767bdcdba9b38

“Dad.” she said warmly.4fb106e142799365

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It was a brief ec4b0dc451 call to assure him 681ef354b9 not to worry. However, her father a9675940e7 let out a 98ee741262 sigh, as if 03f7b1ff14 he just couldn’t 52f111dc04 help but be feb78292cf concerned.8de3fa382f9f2c30

“But still…”0827692f57496bff

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“I’ll go in on my own”76fcf38a9bf246e6

At Yoo-eun’s firm response, only then did her father reluctantly acknowledge it with a resigned expression.6c38f4020dda0ff9

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“Okay, sure. But if you can’t catch a taxi, call me, even if it’s late.”2c41e44dad66bbe9

Yoo-eun also nodded a61e9c06b8 without adding any 8452012af7 further objections. She had 2eb10782bb an idea 1b86499da3 why her 31c3112d9f father was 71864cd967 acting this dff9b3704e way. It seemed af30a4bf01 that he 259cd42df2 still believed 7eb055537a the accident f16d738dbe that happened 046c9596e5 to her c198054afc mother was 71e0f5f344 his fault.881cd70bd96f51e7

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Her father, who had worked at a financial company for over 20 years, quit his job and started driving a private taxi when he heard that her mother had developed a heart condition. He made the decision because he thought a private taxi, with its flexible working hours, would be better than a company with frequent overtime for taking care of her mother’s health.43faa01d99c1284c

Fortunately, her mother was 0d41b36963 among those with a 90cdea62f6 good recovery after surgery. Driving her to 4e8b0cc294 frequent follow-up appointments, c0a74e24a8 her father often bb5efdab03 felt proud, saying f20152ab05 time and again 9c74cc6b89 that choosing to 39389c236e drive a private f317d692c2 taxi had been 0f24b8dafe the right decision.d64e7e558fdcd4ee

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But on that one particular day, the only day her father couldn’t pick up her mother, the accident happened.894daf33fad5e53b

And Yoo-eun had to 0fd21d2811 face her mother in 7c5d405152 the emergency room.03178022946b6d01

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 9bc545ee6a06c381

     “If I had gone to pick you up, this accident wouldn’t have happened. Honey, oh honey, what do I do?”2d7463afee459e4f

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 0321226a07de85ac

That day, her father repeatedly wailed and fainted, lamenting that he shouldn’t have listened to her mother insisting on going to the follow-up appointment alone.34031c82b7ceaf5d

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Covered in the f85078f355 blood her mother 12a196910a had spilled as a14edc8e8d she was dying, 9eb717bf85 and on the 15980ee17d verge of losing 317736ba74 her mind, Yoo-eun 8e9b8b1c70 snapped back to 9cd1717fe9 reality with the f70393dbfc thought that her 3a102d8c01 father might also 77382c8e17 die at this a4c04301d1 rate.be9d69de15b613a5

Her father, 0771647e24 who had 8d0fab45a2 loved her d41f6afe40 mother deeply, 49f72e4f1f remained bedridden cf07da0d9f for over b03b5b122c six months 431b10eaeb even after 9b6abbff60 the funeral. She tried e5b391652e every possible 9deea1089a way to 88698029e4 help him 5fab88952b get back 324bbb66f8 on his 43da41db5c feet, but 34e70a0415 it was 75be198d48 impossible.a2b8149d114fbdd3

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     “If I hadn’t gone to pick up mom, you wouldn’t be here next to me, Dad!”1a4e9bff46bcffe8

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 166b1b5d11a1a51f

Finally, one day, cfe1b81a15 holding her frail 3b3f71e991 father, Yoo-eun burst 5666cf2909 into tears. She cried, cd3f7d87ee saying that 098e349417 if he 16e9529418 had gone b0cb6755f3 to the 86c1586c4e hospital to 200f0b7324 pick up 8e6a7a7304 her mother, 9fbad79f6e she might b0dc21a3d9 have ended 7f6fb7da15 up facing ede4bf2adf his injuries 067c965e36 in the 6c459d021c emergency room a2a5bf430f as well. Her father stared a357169074 at her with 06bf4e807b a vacant expression.71bba20a29759ae7

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The next day, her 0828985142 father took the taxi 2bb852b619 wheel again.70ca04e34b10ed0e

“Yoo-eun!”e56f785db147e93b

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Her father called out 962e948a57 to Yoo-eun as she 7209aa4ee4 was getting out of 102eae3ab4 the taxi, with the 7e632fe6b7 passenger side window rolled 5f5a2f44ce down.6c306c038a0ef4f1

“Yes, Dad.”ff867cf086093a99

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Yoo-eun, slightly 5f21bac619 bending her 8c6f535a0c knees, looked 5925de6179 into the 92d04623c4 car and 82ccc7dbd1 made eye 56189473ea contact with 953acce91d her father.bdbd3ac58e08db1b

“Did Mr. Jeong Beom-woo come by to see you, by any chance?”d945c6a0baaec19f

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Because of the unexpected name that slipped from her father’s lips, Yoo-eun’s heart sank. Her father was looking at her with a gentle smile.fd68ad639e168bc6

Yoo-eun’s eyes widened in confusion.1f93a1184c3ea827

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Yoo-eun was the 7742fd8841 type of person 3493b77c60 who couldn’t lie. Especially in front 6cb4be5de5 of her father, f855296530 who knew her 391e81f961 nature well, she 8afeb25d58 couldn’t bring herself b1db188438 to deceive him, 1753eedea0 no matter what.480141e04c1722d8

“How do you know that, Dad?”b3e82a74fbe8cb73

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“Oh my. Our teacher, he came by. Thank you! Mr. Jeong Beom-woo was a passenger the day before yesterday.”a154cb002ba55d74

“I see.”9b10338bb8016e0d

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Yoo-eun awkwardly nodded. She had to tense 08876a64f7 the area above her 29e345b880 eyebrows, as wrinkles were a7f2b7d345 starting to form on 02d1459a5a her forehead.5cdd7f4418da202b

“I told him that my daughter is exhibiting here and that you should definitely go and take a look. But it seems like he even greeted you separately! Wow, how honorable!”7c773421cfad350d

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     “Dad, do I really have to endure this glory that’s nothing but wounds?”e772cbe9097e4964

Yoo-eun couldn’t bring herself to ask the question that lingered in her mind and only gave a half-hearted smile.04f51044a8ae0a85

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“That teacher probably worked at the hospital where Mom had her surgery, right? Maybe you two even crossed paths once. It’s a kind of fate, after all.”d015303b2c671471

It seemed that her 03c385b954 father didn’t know that 7d82ebf28e Jeong Beom-woo had been a338bee903 part of her mother’s 6f8eac2c48 surgical team. In fact, Yoo-eun had eea8d9432c only found out by b316f2a36f chance, so it was 5a8628c4ec understandable that her father b5c8dafd5f didn’t know. She only remembered 5ef3d04644 the face of b567c653dd Professor Park Su-han, a4f9ac76f1 who had led 7f24341a22 the surgery, but 1d379f825b she couldn’t remember 15fc629cdf the faces of 5bbecfe8ba the residents who a844ce14d2 followed him.8873313841f78a98

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“Ah, I see.”8acfaa414d8cda59

Yoo-eun kept awkwardly nodding bfa3fa9cb2 her head.5ab3282b3494a30f

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“So, I bragged a bit about our daughter. I told him that our daughter used to attend medical school, but now she’s working as an artist.”81c4b6347434e730

“Dad, why did you say something like that?”5641595b324d7913

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After losing his spouse in the accident, her father’s focus was entirely on his daughter. Those who had ridden in her father’s taxi had probably heard him brag about his daughter at least once.3867f9942659dffe

But of all 37b0994440 people, it had 46f679a4f0 to be Jeong 7a67bcc15a Beom-woo.4cc5ca25c107f219

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A deep sigh c7c0f07f9d escaped.9923b22cc5cce880

“Are you struggling?”2e8ff5627dfc718b

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Without knowing the reason, 05f0fe4738 her father looked at f935a97ef5 Yoo-eun with a sympathetic f31fe21920 expression.35ba3b150ace4edd

“No, Dad. I’m just happy that I can have an exhibition like this.”81024e555c9c038b

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“Good. Our daughter, fighting today too!”56da9c2057d6a8cd

As Yoo-eun e064168083 quickly changed 96ebffa493 her expression ce1de503fc and smiled, af11ca3994 her father e1f2a9a694 clenched his e9658bb1a6 fist in d4c8d76a31 the air 8c56288fff and burst 22cd8cbc17 into a 5dda1ba4c7 hearty laugh. Watching her father’s taxi, cb24ddf5d5 filled with cheerful energy, 839b1ce20c disappear into the distance, c2263c16d4 Yoo-eun let her shoulders 7a6b8fb48c slump.a21b6ab4010d1929

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     “Yeah, as long as Dad is happy, that’s what matters.”8d26bfb3f33454e6

It was at that 59b0590c5c moment, as she turned 39cb961881 toward the entrance of 869728b49b the hospital, thinking that 0365a03a37 way.928b312edbc50016

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“Sis!”e1c1cef12fa2a3db

Jun-young, who got out 969dfb8bf8 of the taxi, waved c1dcbed627 his hand above his 6dc0f8fa48 head. Yoo-eun also waved 5e7d2d215e her hand back b66bfad4ef with a flutter, 0f5b69bec0 excited.8f8c72e158357e79

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“Did you eat something today? I couldn’t have breakfast, but do you want to eat something together? You have anemia, you know.”26ff94f1ebe03064

After a moment fc54ea82a2 of hesitation, Yoo-eun 0160b5540f shook her head. Although the 56b999e2d0 first performance 979cdd8d87 started at a6a86ffff5 noon, she d5b9f035ee didn’t feel 0620ab3741 like eating 12107d50c7 anything two 792756e02b hours before 0e49745e89 the performance.b045cc66696dbe75

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“No, I just don’t want to eat.”609d7a047f2a1ef9

As Yoo-eun entered 4f76922a7b the lobby, she 5ee3f2ec49 suddenly felt dizzy 616922cfb8 and stopped for f9a46e574d a moment. Then Jun-young 17d1a72603 wrapped his 38f529ff57 arm around a739dd1c87 her shoulder ce6ba9777f and scolded cd46f0e47c her.de7c26c1e46f401f

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“See? You’re dizzy because you haven’t eaten anything.”bf302721ae239cef

Yoo-eun quietly shrugged off Jun-young’s hand and muttered.a97029df599025e3

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“Can you be quiet? The voices are ringing in my ears.”4ba0aa739a17fae8

“Lean on me until we get to the exhibition hall. Do you think you can perform today?”d8510b94951ca2fc

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Whether Yoo-eun pushed 48de6ffb11 him away or 66c6ee01a1 not, Jun-young continued 9f39d8531c to make a 552d4ed39e fuss. The back-and-forth 537f643279 about whether d3af6a4f7a he should 4d075c0cbe support her adf1ecbd86 or not da4abf0e7c went on. Yoo-eun, feeling like 9f55181196 her stomach was c6b5031a5c churning again, gave 7c1e8feeac up on stopping 4e0f5c40cd Jun-young and took 0d5f979292 slow steps forward.25d6465684d2fdf8

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On his way c5ddc99a98 back to the 0f3209e025 hospital after attending 96910c9369 an external conference d531ae6675 in the morning, 08da00e452 Beom-woo quietly stared c9899b6c29 at the back ab7cef13e5 of  Yoo-eun, who dc5fd03791 was walking, practically 6f658ea8ff in the arms 02112b88c9 of Jun-young.8f1619b00dd27bd4

“They’re not dating, are they?”87782f3aedb66099

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The face of Shin 053b3b0c25 Seong-heon, who had boasted 270885661c that no one could c9595b350c match his instincts when 3ff5597ccd it came to romance, afd402648f appeared in front of dd94b1a846 his eyes. It seemed that this 717b29b879 time, Seong-heon had been 522adad467 wrong again.9371e91d2f7f773e

“That’s definitely dating—how can you wrap your arm around someone’s shoulder if you’re not in a relationship?”7e9a42c18d34dd31

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To Beom-woo, Yoo-eun, who was being supported due to dizziness, appeared to be engaging in the affectionate gestures of a romantic couple. According to Beom-woo’s understanding, a man and a woman who weren’t in a relationship couldn’t possibly stand that close to each other.dd218300e8013a00

“Fine, if they’re dating, b83ab112c4 they’re dating.”  – Beom-woo deliberately e0c704b39d averted his gaze and 3e33417476 muttered to himself.00561dc735debe6e

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“What does it have 984391bf61 to do with me b75878ccd5 anyway? I’m just curious about 1eb4f84b30 why Yoo-eun suddenly quit 0a4e25db8e her sub-internship.”304088092a14ae85

     “But then, why do I feel so irritated?”f15bf36d1f215488

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Although he wasn’t usually 65ebf7fc2b the type to be ea971055ed oblivious, he could feel 20ebe28e1a himself becoming unusually sensitive c9fbf164f9 these days. Beom-woo quickly decided that 2f8e5a65df he needed a strong cd8448133c espresso to gather his 60e75ba3b0 scattered thoughts and walked 7cc12bfe49 briskly into the hospital 6d6e02883a lobby.db05786685ea87d2

 5e23798554eba879

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Today, he performed b38f36cd67 two emergency surgeries. Skipping lunch and f84dc228bb standing in front 927abb7f46 of the operating 7db0b1f0f9 table all day 2d706fdf18 left him with 8753c15ebf an overwhelming sense 214d8b158a of fatigue.373009d423a925c5

“Professor Jeong Beom-woo, are you leaving for the day?”b8cbc8b28317fb84

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As he passed 645bf89219 through the lobby, abd0a6a15e stretching his seemingly 6af3816209 coiled shoulders, a 9d2f05ca1b familiar voice stopped 3390d358a6 Beom-woo in his 0c6f5c4636 tracks.a581e3f48df80546

The person 5156ae79f5 approaching with b1565dbed7 a gentle 2e457ba04d smile was ac3138ac55 Yoo Won-il, 6a5aa37bb1 an employee 08e80a0496 of the e74b6ec641 hospital’s public 10b7f96901 relations office.b55eb21bf4a9b3f2

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“Oh, it’s been a while.”74d08409a95d7f4b

As Beom-woo greeted him casually, Won-il also smiled and gave Beom-woo’s back a friendly pat.a95a79888d7eaa86

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“How have you been lately? I’m planning to have a small drink today, would you like to join me?”02af6e43fb9026d6

Beom-woo’s mother and Won-il’s mother were senior and junior in high school. Although Beom-woo’s mother had passed away, their connection had continued.213999cb190d303d

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“No, I’m just tired from standing all day.”c886c7209f2afc89

“It’s been a while since I had a drink with you, and I thought it would be nice to have one together while also catching up.”92fbed9315a98a2a

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At Beom-woo’s refusal, Won-il clicked his tongue in disappointment.ee3df808ebd49001

“While also catching up?”723e65b2f47442d8

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“Yeah, it’s our team’s dinner gathering today.”341a0a7900072062

At the mention of the public relations team’s dinner, Beom-woo wrinkled his face in disgust. It was a team where only heavy drinkers gathered, and they never returned home before midnight.07dd33b36d3ce9f1

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“Forget it. I’m tired.”d12b7f20cd590cd1

When Beom-woo a5f5df8052 once again 051ae10083 firmly declined, 15f2567299 Won-il nodded f9f6223e5b as if eccb6eee04 he understood.69fe1ddfdaf0e4ee

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“Your team and you don’t quite match, do they? But today, other teams are joining in.”b6f34de67593f110

“Other teams?”30030104d762fbdb

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Before heading down the stairs to the executive parking lot, Beom-woo asked out of courtesy. It wasn’t a recent thing that the PR team joined forces with other teams. They were notorious for looking for sacrificial victims to get drunk with, under the pretense of expanding their network. Which team would end up being the PR team’s drinking companions today?c7f7f426e4829df7

“Yeah, the exhibition team from the pediatric ward.”3acc2bdfa61bca51

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Beom-woo’s body, which was about to step down one more stair, tilted downward and then suddenly shot upward.de5f62d34d221016